Proverbs 31

Translator Notes

1. If Lemuel is from Massa (in Arabia), then both Agur (ch. 30) and Lemuel (ch. 31) are non-Israelite sages whose wisdom Israel valued enough to canonize. The book of Proverbs ends not with Solomon but with international voices, demonstrating that wisdom transcends national boundaries.

Translator Notes

1. The triple mah ('what?') is a mother's urgent address — part rebuke, part plea. She names him three ways: beri ('my son' — the intimate term), bar-bitni ('son of my womb' — reminding him of his physical origin in her body), and bar-nedarai ('son of my vows' — she had made sacred vows concerning him, perhaps dedicating him to God before birth, like Hannah with Samuel). Each name increases the emotional weight: you are mine, you came from my body, you were promised to God.

Key Terms

Translator Notes

1. Chelekha ('your strength, your vigor, your resources') — the same word chayil that will describe the ideal woman in verse 10. The king's chayil must not be wasted on women who drain rather than build. Lamchot melakhin ('to those who wipe out kings, to the destroyers of kings') warns that sexual entanglements have toppled monarchies — Solomon himself being the prime example (1 Kings 11:1-4). The irony: the chapter opens by warning against women who destroy and closes by celebrating a woman who builds.

Translator Notes

1. The repetition al la-melakhim ('not for kings, not for kings') is emphatic and personal — his mother calls him by name. Wine (yayin) and strong drink (shekhar) are prohibited not universally but specifically for kings. The reason follows in v5: intoxication corrupts judgment, and the king's judgment is the nation's justice system.

Translator Notes

1. Pen-yishteh ve-yishkach mechuqqaq ('lest he drink and forget what is inscribed/decreed') — alcohol causes the king to forget the law he is supposed to administer. Vi-yeshanneh din kol-bene-oni ('and he changes/perverts the judgment of all the sons of affliction') — the poor, who depend on the king for justice, are the first victims of royal drunkenness. Intoxicated power is unjust power.

Translator Notes

1. If wine is not for kings (whose minds must be clear), it is for the oved ('one who is perishing, the dying person') and the mare nefesh ('bitter of soul, those in anguish'). This is not a prescription for escapism but a recognition that alcohol has a legitimate use as palliative care — easing the suffering of those who are dying or in extreme distress. The mother distinguishes between medicinal use (appropriate) and recreational use by rulers (dangerous).

Translator Notes

1. Yishteh ve-yishkach risho ('let him drink and forget his destitution') — the same verb (shakach, 'to forget') that was dangerous for kings (v5) is merciful for the suffering. Amalo lo yizkor-od ('his toil he will remember no more'). What is a liability for the powerful is a comfort for the powerless. Context determines morality.

Translator Notes

1. Petach-pikha le-illem ('open your mouth for the mute, speak up for the voiceless') — the king's voice must serve those who have no voice. El-din kol-bene chalof ('for the judgment/rights of all the sons of passing away, the destitute, those who are disappearing') — the most vulnerable members of society, those who are being erased. The queen mother commands her son to use royal power for advocacy, not self-indulgence.

Key Terms

Translator Notes

1. Shefot-tsedeq ('judge with righteousness, render just judgment') and din ani ve-evyon ('give justice to the poor and the needy') close the queen mother's instruction with the core mandate of kingship: justice for the vulnerable. The final word of her oracle is evyon ('needy, destitute') — the last person on society's ladder is the first priority on the king's agenda.

Key Terms

Translator Notes

1. The acrostic begins here with aleph (א). Each of the following 22 verses begins with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. This literary device makes the poem a comprehensive portrait — from aleph to tav, from A to Z, she is complete.

Translator Notes

1. Bet (ב). Batach bah lev ba'alah ('the heart of her husband trusts in her') — trust (bitachon) is the foundation of the marriage. The husband's confidence is not passive but based on observed competence. Shalal lo yechsar ('profit/spoil he will not lack') — shalal originally means 'plunder, spoil of war,' here used for economic gain. The military vocabulary is consistent: she is a warrior whose victories produce wealth.

Translator Notes

1. Gimel (ג). Gemalat-hu tov ve-lo ra ('she repays him good and not evil') — the verb gamal means 'to repay, to deal bountifully, to treat.' Kol yeme chayyeha ('all the days of her life') emphasizes duration: this is not seasonal behavior but a lifetime commitment. Her goodness to her husband is not occasional but constitutive — it defines her entire married life.

Translator Notes

1. Dalet (ד). Dareshah tsemer u-fishtim ('she seeks wool and flax') — she is an active sourcer of raw materials, not a passive recipient. Wool and flax are the two primary textile fibers of the ancient Near East. Va-ta'as be-chefets kappeha ('she works with the delight/willingness of her hands') — chefets means 'delight, pleasure, desire.' Her work is not drudgery but energized purpose.

Translator Notes

1. He (ה). Ka-oniyyot socher ('like ships of a merchant, like trading vessels') — the comparison is to international commerce. She imports provisions from a distance (mi-merchaq tavi lachmah, 'from afar she brings her bread'). The image elevates her beyond the domestic sphere into the world of trade and logistics. She does not merely manage a pantry; she runs a supply chain.

Translator Notes

1. Vav (ו). Va-taqom be-od laylah ('she rises while it is still night') — she is the first person awake, preparing before dawn. Teref le-veitah ('prey/food for her household') — teref (from taraf, 'to tear, to seize prey') uses predatory language for provision. She is a hunter-provider. Choq le-na'aroteha ('allotted portions for her young women/servant girls') — she manages staff and distributes resources with fairness and order.

Translator Notes

1. Zayin (ז). Zammemah sadeh va-tiqqachehu ('she considers/plans regarding a field and takes it') — the verb zamam ('to plan, to purpose, to consider') shows that she makes strategic real estate decisions. She does not impulse-buy; she evaluates and then acts. Mi-peri kappeiha nat'ah karem ('from the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard') — her profits fund further investment. She reinvests earnings into productive assets.

Translator Notes

1. Chet (ח). Chagerah ve-oz motneiha ('she girds with strength her waist') — 'girding the loins' is the Hebrew idiom for preparing for hard work or battle. Warriors girded themselves for combat; she girds herself for labor. Va-te'ammets zero'oteha ('she makes strong her arms') — she builds her physical capacity to work. This is not a delicate woman; she is powerful, physically prepared for demanding work.

Translator Notes

1. Tet (ט). Ta'amah ki-tov sachrah ('she tastes/perceives that her trade/profit is good') — she monitors the quality of her business output. Lo-yikhbeh va-laylah nerah ('her lamp does not go out at night') — she works late, not from anxiety but from productive energy. The burning lamp symbolizes both activity and prosperity.

Translator Notes

1. Yod (י). Yadeiha shillechah va-kishor ('her hands she sends to the distaff') and kappeiha tamkhu falekh ('her palms hold the spindle') — spinning thread was the fundamental textile craft of the ancient world. The distaff holds raw fiber; the spindle twists it into thread. She masters the basic technology of her industry.

Translator Notes

1. Kaf (כ). Kappah paresah le-ani ('her palm she spreads open to the afflicted') and yadeiha shillechah la-evyon ('her hands she extends to the needy'). The same hands that work the spindle (v19) also give to the poor (v20). Productivity and generosity are not competing activities but complementary ones — she works in order to give. The open hand (paresah) is the physical opposite of the clenched fist of hoarding.

Translator Notes

1. Lamed (ל). Lo-tira le-veitah mi-shaleg ('she does not fear for her household from snow') — winter does not catch her unprepared. Kol-beitah lavush shanim ('all her household is dressed in scarlet/double garments'). Shanim could mean 'scarlet' (expensive, warm dye) or 'double garments' (from shenayim, 'two' — double-layered clothing for warmth). Either reading shows preparation and quality: her family is warm and well-dressed because she planned ahead.

Translator Notes

1. Mem (מ). Marvaddim asetah-lah ('coverings/tapestries she makes for herself') — she provides luxury for her own household. Shesh ve-argaman levushah ('fine linen and purple are her clothing'). Shesh ('fine linen,' imported from Egypt) and argaman ('purple,' dyed with the prohibitively expensive murex snail extract) are materials of royalty. She dresses not in rags but in the finest fabrics, which she has earned through her own industry.

Translator Notes

1. Nun (נ). Noda ba-she'arim ba'alah ('known at the gates is her husband') — the husband has public status and civic influence. Be-shivto im-ziqne-arets ('when he sits with the elders of the land') — he holds a position of honor and authority. But the context makes clear: his public standing is enabled by her private industry. He can sit with the elders because she has handled everything else.

Translator Notes

1. Samekh (ס). Sadin asetah va-timkor ('a linen garment she makes and sells') — she manufactures goods for market, not just for household use. Chagor natnah la-kena'ani ('a sash/belt she gives to the trader/Canaanite'). Kena'ani can mean 'Canaanite' or 'merchant' (Canaanites were known as traders). She is not a cottage hobbyist but a commercial producer supplying professional merchants.

Translator Notes

1. Ayin (ע). Oz-ve-hadar levushah ('strength and splendor are her clothing') — her real garments are not linen and purple (v22) but oz ('strength, power') and hadar ('dignity, majesty, splendor'). Va-tischaq le-yom acharon ('she laughs at the future day, she laughs at the last day'). Her preparation is so thorough that she can face the future without anxiety. She laughs (tischaq) — the opposite of fear. The future, which terrifies the unprepared, amuses the woman of strength.

Key Terms

Translator Notes

1. Torat chesed ('instruction of faithful love') is one of the most beautiful phrases in Proverbs. Torah (instruction) sets the form; chesed (faithful love) sets the tone. She teaches truth with kindness — the combination that Proverbs has been building toward across all 31 chapters.

Translator Notes

1. Tsade (צ). Tsofiyyah halikhot beitah ('she watches the goings/activities of her household') — tsofiyyah ('she watches, she observes, she keeps lookout') uses watchman/sentinel vocabulary. She is the household's sentry, monitoring everything that comes and goes. Lechem atslut lo tokhel ('bread of laziness she does not eat') — she does not consume anything she has not earned. Her food is the fruit of her labor, never the bread of idleness.

Translator Notes

1. Qof (ק). Qamu vaneha va-ye'ashruha ('her children rise up and call her blessed/fortunate') — the verb ashar (from ashre, 'blessed, happy') means they publicly declare her blessed. Ba'alah va-yehallelah ('her husband, and he praises her') — the husband joins the chorus. The whole household acknowledges her. This is public honor — not private appreciation but community-recognized worth.

Key Terms

Translator Notes

1. The husband's praise uses chayil — the same word from verse 10's opening question and verse 3's warning. The king was told to protect his chayil; the woman embodies chayil; and now her husband declares her chayil surpasses all others. The word binds the chapter together.

Translator Notes

1. This verse is the theological center of the eshet chayil poem. All her achievements — economic, domestic, commercial, charitable — flow from yir'at-YHWH ('the fear of the LORD'). Without this verse, the poem could be read as a celebration of mere productivity. With it, every accomplishment is grounded in reverence for God. The fear of the LORD is the root; everything else is fruit.

Translator Notes

1. The acrostic is complete: from aleph (v10) to tav (v31), the portrait is finished. The woman of strength has been described from A to Z, and the final image is public recognition. The book that began with 'The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge' (1:7) ends with a woman whose fear of the LORD (v30) produces works that praise her in the public square (v31). Wisdom has been embodied.