Proverbs 31 — Legacy Standard Bible

A Mother’s Oracle

31The words of King Lemuel, the ¹oracle unto which his mother disciplined him:

²What, O my son?And what, O ^ason of my womb?And what, O son of my ^bvows?³^aDo not give your excellence to women,Or your ways to that which ^bblots out kings.⁴It is not for ^akings, O Lemuel,It is not for kings to ^bdrink wine,Or for rulers to desire strong drink,⁵Lest he drink and forget what is decreed,And ^apervert the justice of all the ¹afflicted.⁶Give strong drink to him who is ^aperishing,And wine to those ^bwhose soul is bitter.⁷Let him drink and forget his povertyAnd he will not remember his trouble any longer.⁸^aOpen your mouth for the mute,For the justice of all those ¹passing away.⁹Open your mouth, ^ajudge righteously,And render ^bjustice to the afflicted and needy.

A Woman Who Fears Yahweh

א Aleph

¹⁰¹An ^aexcellent wife, who can find?For her worth is far ^babove pearls.

ב Beth

¹¹The heart of her husband trusts in her,And he will have no lack of gain.

ג Gimel

¹²She deals bountifully with him for good and not evilAll the days of her life.

ד Daleth

¹³She searches for wool and flaxAnd works with her ¹hands ²in delight.

ה He

¹⁴She is like ^amerchant ships;She brings her food from afar.

ו Vav

¹⁵And she ^arises while it is still night,And ^bgives ¹food to her householdAnd a ²portion to her young women.

ז Zayin

¹⁶She makes plans for a field and buys it;From the fruit of her ¹hands she plants a vineyard.

ח Heth

¹⁷She ^agirds ¹herself with strengthAnd makes her arms strong.

ט Teth

¹⁸She senses that her gain is good;Her lamp does not go out at night.

י Yodh

¹⁹She stretches out her hands to the distaff,And her ¹hands hold fast the spindle.

כ Kaph

²⁰She ¹^,^aextends her hand to the poor,And she stretches out her hands to the needy.

ל Lamedh

²¹She is not afraid of the snow for her household,For all her household are ^aclothed with scarlet.

מ Mem

²²She makes ^acoverings for herself;Her clothing is ^bfine linen and ^cpurple.

נ Nun

²³Her husband is known ^ain the gates,When he sits with the elders of the land.

ס Samekh

²⁴She makes ^alinen garments and sells them,And gives belts to the ¹tradesmen.

ע Ayin

²⁵Strength and ^amajesty are her clothing,And she smiles at the ¹future.

פ Pe

²⁶She ^aopens her mouth in wisdom,And the ¹instruction of lovingkindness is on her tongue.

צ Tsadhe

²⁷She watches over the ways of her household,And does not eat the ^abread of ¹idleness.

ק Qoph

²⁸Her children rise up and bless her;As for her husband, he also praises her, saying:

ר Resh

²⁹“Many daughters have done excellently,But you have gone above them all.”

שׁ Shin

³⁰¹Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain,But a woman who ²^,^afears Yahweh, she shall be praised.

ת Tav

³¹Give to her from the fruit of her hands,And let her works praise her in the gates.