Proverbs 31:14-16

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Proverbs 31:14 tn The first word of the fifth line begins with ה (he), the fifth letter of the Hebrew alphabet.tn The verb הָיָה (hayah) is stative, so theoretically its perfect form could be present tense or past tense. But the context gives her past accomplishments, so it is past tense here.
2. Proverbs 31:14 sn The point of the simile is that she goes wherever she needs to go, near and far, to gather in all the food for the needs and the likes of the family. The line captures the vision and the industry of this woman.
3. Proverbs 31:14 tn The imperfect verb (תָּבִיא, taviʾ) is used in its past habitual sense. The verbs describing the woman from verses 12-29 include 19 perfects and 9 preterites which describe actions with past time references. Thus the four imperfect verbs that describe her (vv. 14, 18, 21, 27) should be understood as modal and operating in a past time frame.
4. Proverbs 31:15 tn The first word of the sixth line begins with ו (vav), the sixth letter of the Hebrew alphabet.tn The verb וָתָּקָם (vattaqom) is a preterite and therefore is past tense.
5. Proverbs 31:15 tn The verb וַתִּתֵּן (vattitten) is a preterite and therefore is past tense.
6. Proverbs 31:15 sn The word for “food” is טֶרֶף (teref, “prey”; KJV “meat”), another word that does not normally fit the domestic scene. This word also is used in a similar way in Ps 111:5, which says the Lord gives food. Here it is the noble woman who gives food to her family and servants.
7. Proverbs 31:15 sn The word חֹק (khoq) probably means “allotted portion of food” as before, but some suggest it means the task that is allotted to the servants, meaning that the wise woman gets up early enough to give out the work assignments (Tg. Prov 31:15, RSV, NRSV, TEV, NLT). That is possible, but seems an unnecessary direction for the line to take. Others, however, simply wish to delete this last colon, leaving two cola and not three, but that is unwarranted.
8. Proverbs 31:16 tn The first word of the seventh line begins with ז (zayin), the seventh letter of the Hebrew alphabet.tn As the perfect form of a dynamic verb, זָמְמָה (zam^emah) should be understood as past tense or perfective. A simple past tense translation is particularly well suited here. Her past actions are collected in this portrait to typify her character whether she did those actions frequently or rarely. Although she bought a field, that does not mean that she regularly traded in real estate or even that she bought more than one field in her lifetime. It also does not mean that a woman has to make a real estate transaction to be a good wife.tn The word “considered” means “to plan carefully” in accordance with her purposes. The word is often used in the book of Proverbs for devising evil, but here it is used positively of the woman’s wise investment.
9. Proverbs 31:16 tn The verb וַתִּקָּחֵהוּ (vattiqqakhehu) is a preterite and therefore is past tense.
10. Proverbs 31:16 tn Heb “from the fruit of her hands.” The expression employs two figures. “Hands” is a metonymy of cause, indicating the work she does. “Fruit” is a hypocatastasis, an implied comparison meaning what she produces, the income she earns. She is able to plant a vineyard from her income.
11. Proverbs 31:16 tn As the perfect form of a dynamic verb, נָטְעָה (nat^eʿah) should be understood as past tense or perfective.