Proverbs 31:10-31
New King James Version
The Virtuous Wife
10 (A)Who[a] can find a [b]virtuous wife?
For her worth is far above rubies.
11 The heart of her husband safely trusts her;
So he will have no lack of gain.
12 She does him good and not evil
All the days of her life.
13 She seeks wool and flax,
And willingly works with her hands.
14 She is like the merchant ships,
She brings her food from afar.
15 (B)She also rises while it is yet night,
And (C)provides food for her household,
And a portion for her maidservants.
16 She considers a field and buys it;
From [c]her profits she plants a vineyard.
17 She girds herself with strength,
And strengthens her arms.
18 She perceives that her merchandise is good,
And her lamp does not go out by night.
19 She stretches out her hands to the distaff,
And her hand holds the spindle.
20 (D)She extends her hand to the poor,
Yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy.
21 She is not afraid of snow for her household,
For all her household is clothed with scarlet.
22 She makes tapestry for herself;
Her clothing is fine linen and purple.
23 (E)Her husband is known in the gates,
When he sits among the elders of the land.
24 She makes linen garments and sells them,
And supplies sashes for the merchants.
25 Strength and honor are her clothing;
She shall rejoice in time to come.
26 She opens her mouth with wisdom,
And on her tongue is the law of kindness.
27 She watches over the ways of her household,
And does not eat the bread of idleness.
28 Her children rise up and call her blessed;
Her husband also, and he praises her:
29 “Many daughters have done well,
But you excel them all.”
30 Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing,
But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.
31 Give her of the fruit of her hands,
And let her own works praise her in the gates.
Footnotes
- Proverbs 31:10 Vv. 10–31 are an alphabetic acrostic in Hebrew; cf. Ps. 119
- Proverbs 31:10 Lit. a wife of valor, in the sense of all forms of excellence
- Proverbs 31:16 Lit. the fruit of her hands
Ephesians 5:22-33
New King James Version
Marriage—Christ and the Church(A)
22 Wives, (B)submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For (C)the husband is head of the wife, as also (D)Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body. 24 Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands (E)in everything.
25 (F)Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and (G)gave Himself for her, 26 that He might [a]sanctify and cleanse her (H)with the washing of water (I)by the word, 27 (J)that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, (K)not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. 28 So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church. 30 For (L)we are members of His body, [b]of His flesh and of His bones. 31 (M)“For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the (N)two shall become one flesh.” 32 This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. 33 Nevertheless (O)let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she (P)respects her husband.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Ephesians 5:26 set it apart
- Ephesians 5:30 NU omits the rest of v. 30.
Matthew 23:11
New King James Version
11 But (A)he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.
Read full chapter
Psalm 127:3-5
New King James Version
3 Behold, (A)children are a heritage from the Lord,
(B)The fruit of the womb is a (C)reward.
4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,
So are the children of one’s youth.
5 (D)Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them;
(E)They shall not be ashamed,
But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.
Psalm 128:3-4
New King James Version
3 Your wife shall be (A)like a fruitful vine
In the very heart of your house,
Your (B)children (C)like olive plants
All around your table.
4 Behold, thus shall the man be blessed
Who fears the Lord.
1 Peter 3:1-2
New King James Version
Submission to Husbands
3 Wives, likewise, be (A)submissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not obey the word, (B)they, without a word, may (C)be won by the conduct of their wives, 2 (D)when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear.
Read full chapter
Titus 2:1-5
New King James Version
Qualities of a Sound Church
2 But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine: 2 that the older men be sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith, in love, in patience; 3 the older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things— 4 that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, 5 to be discreet, chaste, (A)homemakers, good, (B)obedient to their own husbands, (C)that the word of God may not be blasphemed.
Read full chapter
1 Timothy 5:13-14
New King James Version
13 And besides they learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house, and not only idle but also gossips and busybodies, saying things which they ought not. 14 Therefore I desire that the younger widows marry, bear children, manage the house, give no opportunity to the adversary to speak reproachfully.
Read full chapterScripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Bible Gateway Recommends
