Can the Book of Proverbs be a player in "biblical theology"?

So one level of meaning--appropriate and in line with Israelite thought. But the terms are open-ended, and reinterpretation is possible. At a later date the "justice" that delivers from death came to be interpreted specifically as almsgiving. According to Tobit 4:10, "almsgiving delivers from death." Later on another interpretation is given, this time in the Greek dikaiosune, which is the translation of the Hebrew "justice," or "righteousness." In the Book of Wisdom, death, in both a physical and a spiritual sense, is taken up in the first chapter, where the writer affirms that "justice [dikaiosune] is undying (Wis 1:15). Intimations of immortality may appear in certain psalms (49:8, 16; 73:23-26), and more obviously in the resurrection of Daniel 12:2-3 and 2 Maccabees 7:9, 11, 14). But in the Book of Wisdom there is a clear affirmation of a unique immortality. The just are "in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them" (Wis 3:1). The reward of the just person, who had been persecuted in this life by the wicked (Wis 2:10-20), surprises them at the judgment, as they exclaim: "See how he is accounted among the sons of God, how his lot is with the holy ones!" (Wis 5:5). Immortality means belonging to the family of God, the heavenly court. Although the writer knew of the Greek notion of soul as opposed to body, he did not reason from such an understanding to conclude to immortality. Instead he understood immortality as rooted in a persevering relationship with God, a gift of life as a member of the divine family, the "sons of God."

Proverbs 11:4 echoes the familiar words of 10:2:

   Wealth is of no profit on the day of wrath, but justice delivers from death

The meaning is made more specific. Riches are-again the target, but not because they have been wrongfully gained; they are simply not profitable "on the day of wrath." This day is not further specified; it could designate any kind of adversity, from simple loss of wealth to the act of dying. The immediate cause is some human disaster; so one cannot necessarily conclude that the wrath is divine. Riches, however, which are normally part of the prosperity of the just as elsewhere in the Bible, are clearly downplayed, and v 4b retains its meaning as in 10:2.

Echoes of this outlook appear in other sayings, especially the "better" sayings, finely analyzed in E. Huwiler (1988: 86-89, 141-48). Thus Proverbs 15:16 reads:

   Better a little with fear of the Lord, than great treasure and with it
   trouble.

The "trouble" mentioned here is the problems that riches can bring to a person (e.g., those pointed out by Qoheleth in Ecclesiastes 5:9-16). This form of proverb is a preferred way of expressing a paradox. Such sayings contradict the optimistic view that prosperity and virtue (=wisdom) should belong together. The general notion is repeated in a slightly different form in Proverbs 16:8, 16, 19; 17:1; 28:6.

Thus one ends up with a striking similarity between the prohibition of idolatry and the proverbial sayings about wealth. The Torah and the Prophets excoriate emphatically and explicitly the worship of other gods. Proverbs attacks what human beings are all too prone to erect as divinities: riches. These are as it were ramifications of one proverb, 10:2, and they exemplify the true riches that a close and comparative reading of the sayings can yield. They are not well summed up in any theme or in "biblical theology." They are best evaluated by the exegesis of individual passages, an exegesis that pays careful attention to the saying and its reverberations in the Bible.