14 (A)Houses and riches are an inheritance from fathers,
But (B)a prudent wife is from the Lord.

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14 Houses and wealth are inherited from parents,(A)
    but a prudent wife is from the Lord.(B)

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22 (A)He who finds a wife finds a good thing,
And obtains favor from the Lord.

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22 He who finds a wife finds what is good(A)
    and receives favor from the Lord.(B)

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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.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 31:10 Vv. 10–31 are an alphabetic acrostic in Hebrew; cf. Ps. 119
  2. Proverbs 31:10 Lit. a wife of valor, in the sense of all forms of excellence
  3. Proverbs 31:16 Lit. the fruit of her hands

Epilogue: The Wife of Noble Character

10 [a]A wife of noble character(A) who can find?(B)
    She is worth far more than rubies.
11 Her husband(C) has full confidence in her
    and lacks nothing of value.(D)
12 She brings him good, not harm,
    all the days of her life.
13 She selects wool and flax
    and works with eager hands.(E)
14 She is like the merchant ships,
    bringing her food from afar.
15 She gets up while it is still night;
    she provides food for her family
    and portions for her female servants.
16 She considers a field and buys it;
    out of her earnings she plants a vineyard.
17 She sets about her work vigorously;
    her arms are strong for her tasks.
18 She sees that her trading is profitable,
    and her lamp does not go out at night.
19 In her hand she holds the distaff
    and grasps the spindle with her fingers.
20 She opens her arms to the poor
    and extends her hands to the needy.(F)
21 When it snows, she has no fear for her household;
    for all of them are clothed in scarlet.
22 She makes coverings for her bed;
    she is clothed in fine linen and purple.
23 Her husband is respected at the city gate,
    where he takes his seat among the elders(G) of the land.
24 She makes linen garments and sells them,
    and supplies the merchants with sashes.
25 She is clothed with strength and dignity;
    she can laugh at the days to come.
26 She speaks with wisdom,
    and faithful instruction is on her tongue.(H)
27 She watches over the affairs of her household
    and does not eat the bread of idleness.
28 Her children arise and call her blessed;
    her husband also, and he praises her:
29 “Many women do noble things,
    but you surpass them all.”
30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
    but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
31 Honor her for all that her hands have done,
    and let her works bring her praise(I) at the city gate.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 31:10 Verses 10-31 are an acrostic poem, the verses of which begin with the successive letters of the Hebrew alphabet.

22 A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children,
But (A)the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.

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22 A good person leaves an inheritance for their children’s children,
    but a sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous.(A)

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(A)In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall [a]direct your paths.

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 3:6 Or make smooth or straight

in all your ways submit to him,
    and he will make your paths(A) straight.[a](B)

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Footnotes

  1. Proverbs 3:6 Or will direct your paths

17 (A)Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, (B)with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.

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17 Every good and perfect gift is from above,(A) coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,(B) who does not change(C) like shifting shadows.

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Love for the Church

14 (A)Now for the third time I am ready to come to you. And I will not be burdensome to you; for (B)I do not seek yours, but you. (C)For the children ought not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children.

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14 Now I am ready to visit you for the third time,(A) and I will not be a burden to you, because what I want is not your possessions but you. After all, children should not have to save up for their parents,(B) but parents for their children.(C)

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Jacob Sent to His Uncle Laban

28 Then Isaac called Jacob and (A)blessed him, and [a]charged him, and said to him: (B)“You shall not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan. (C)Arise, go to (D)Padan Aram, to the house of (E)Bethuel your mother’s father; and take yourself a wife from there of the daughters of (F)Laban your mother’s brother.

“May (G)God Almighty bless you,
And make you (H)fruitful and multiply you,
That you may be an assembly of peoples;
And give you (I)the blessing of Abraham,
To you and your descendants with you,
That you may inherit the land
(J)In[b] which you are a stranger,
Which God gave to Abraham.”

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Footnotes

  1. Genesis 28:1 commanded
  2. Genesis 28:4 Lit. Of your sojournings

28 So Isaac called for Jacob and blessed(A) him. Then he commanded him: “Do not marry a Canaanite woman.(B) Go at once to Paddan Aram,[a](C) to the house of your mother’s father Bethuel.(D) Take a wife for yourself there, from among the daughters of Laban, your mother’s brother.(E) May God Almighty[b](F) bless(G) you and make you fruitful(H) and increase your numbers(I) until you become a community of peoples. May he give you and your descendants the blessing given to Abraham,(J) so that you may take possession of the land(K) where you now reside as a foreigner,(L) the land God gave to Abraham.”

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Footnotes

  1. Genesis 28:2 That is, Northwest Mesopotamia; also in verses 5, 6 and 7
  2. Genesis 28:3 Hebrew El-Shaddai

16 then it shall be, (A)on the day he bequeaths his possessions to his sons, that he must not bestow firstborn status on the son of the loved wife in preference to the son of the unloved, the true firstborn.

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16 when he wills his property to his sons, he must not give the rights of the firstborn to the son of the wife he loves in preference to his actual firstborn, the son of the wife he does not love.(A)

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23 So Joshua took the whole land, (A)according to all that the Lord had said to Moses; and Joshua gave it as an inheritance to Israel (B)according to their divisions by their tribes. Then the land (C)rested from war.

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23 So Joshua took the entire land,(A) just as the Lord had directed Moses, and he gave it as an inheritance(B) to Israel according to their tribal divisions.(C) Then the land had rest(D) from war.(E)

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The Lord God of heaven, who (A)took me from my father’s house and from the land of my family, and who spoke to me and swore to me, saying, (B)‘To your [a]descendants I give this land,’ (C)He will send His angel before you, and you shall take a wife for my son from there.

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Footnotes

  1. Genesis 24:7 Lit. seed

“The Lord, the God of heaven,(A) who brought me out of my father’s household and my native land(B) and who spoke to me and promised me on oath, saying, ‘To your offspring[a](C) I will give this land’(D)—he will send his angel before you(E) so that you can get a wife for my son from there.

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Footnotes

  1. Genesis 24:7 Or seed