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the Week of Proper 14 / Ordinary 19
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Bible in Basic English

Proverbs 31:29

Unnumbered women have done well, but you are better than all of them.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Economics;   Poetry;   Wife;   Women;   Thompson Chain Reference - Woman;   The Topic Concordance - Praise;   Virtue;   Women;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Industry;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Lemuel;   Letters;   Proverb, the Book of;   Woman;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Wife;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Beauty;   Woman;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Poetry;   Wife;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Education;   Lemuel;   Marriage;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Acrostic;   Proverbs, Book of;   Wisdom and Wise Men;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Acrostic;   Ethics;   Marriage;   Massa;   Song of Songs;   Trade and Commerce;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Home (2);   Parents (2);   Sirach;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Poetry;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Writing;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Daughter;   Go;   Virtue;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Acrostics;   Monogamy;   Poetry;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
“Many women have done noble deeds,but you surpass them all!”
Hebrew Names Version
"Many women do noble things, But you excel them all."
King James Version
Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all.
English Standard Version
"Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all."
New American Standard Bible
"Many daughters have done nobly, But you excel them all."
New Century Version
saying, "There are many fine women, but you are better than all of them."
Amplified Bible
"Many daughters have done nobly, and well [with the strength of character that is steadfast in goodness], But you excel them all."
World English Bible
"Many women do noble things, But you excel them all."
Geneva Bible (1587)
Many daughters haue done vertuously: but thou surmountest them all.
Legacy Standard Bible
"Many daughters have done excellently,But you have gone above them all."
Berean Standard Bible
"Many daughters have done noble things, but you surpass them all!"
Contemporary English Version
"There are many good women, but you are the best!"
Complete Jewish Bible
ר "Many women have done wonderful things, but you surpass them all!"
Darby Translation
Many daughters have done worthily, but thou excellest them all.
Easy-to-Read Version
"There are many good women, but you are the best."
George Lamsa Translation
Many daughters have become rich, but you have excelled them all.
Good News Translation
He says, "Many women are good wives, but you are the best of them all."
Lexham English Bible
"Many daughters have done excellence, but you surpass all of them."
Literal Translation
Many are the daughters who act with virtue, but you rise above them all!
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Many daughters there be yt gather riches together, but thou goest aboue the all.
American Standard Version
Many daughters have done worthily, But thou excellest them all.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
'Many daughters have done valiantly, but thou excellest them all.'
King James Version (1611)
Many daughters haue done vertuously, but thou excellest them all.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Many daughters [there be that] gather riches together: but thou goest aboue them all.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Many daughters have obtained wealth, many have wrought valiantly; but thou hast exceeded, thou hast surpassed all.
English Revised Version
Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Many douytris gaderiden richessis; thou passidist alle.
Update Bible Version
Many daughters have done worthily, But you excel them all.
Webster's Bible Translation
Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all.
New English Translation
"Many daughters have done valiantly, but you surpass them all!"
New King James Version
"Many daughters have done well, But you excel them all."
New Living Translation
"There are many virtuous and capable women in the world, but you surpass them all!"
New Life Bible
"Many daughters have done well, but you have done better than all of them."
New Revised Standard
"Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all."
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Many daughters, have done virtuously, but, thou, excellest them all!
Douay-Rheims Bible
Many daughters have gathered together riches: thou hast surpassed them all.
Revised Standard Version
"Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all."
Young's Literal Translation
`Many [are] the daughters who have done worthily, Thou hast gone up above them all.'
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Many daughters have done nobly, But you excel them all."

Contextual Overview

10 Who may make discovery of a woman of virtue? For her price is much higher than jewels. 11 The heart of her husband has faith in her, and he will have profit in full measure. 12 She does him good and not evil all the days of her life. 13 She gets wool and linen, working at the business of her hands. 14 She is like the trading-ships, getting food from far away. 15 She gets up while it is still night, and gives meat to her family, and their food to her servant-girls. 16 After looking at a field with care, she gets it for a price, planting a vine-garden with the profit of her work. 17 She puts a band of strength round her, and makes her arms strong. 18 She sees that her marketing is of profit to her: her light does not go out by night. 19 She puts her hands to the cloth-working rod, and her fingers take the wheel.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

done virtuously: or, gotten riches

thou: Song of Solomon 6:8, Song of Solomon 6:9, Ephesians 5:27

Reciprocal: Ruth 3:11 - city Luke 1:28 - blessed Philippians 2:20 - I have Philippians 4:8 - virtue 2 Peter 1:3 - virtue

Cross-References

Genesis 28:13
And he saw the Lord by his side, saying, I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father, and the God of Isaac: I will give to you and to your seed this land on which you are sleeping.
Genesis 31:2
And Jacob saw that Laban's feeling for him was no longer what it had been before.
Genesis 31:3
Then the Lord said to Jacob, Go back to the land of your fathers, and to your relations, and I will be with you.
Genesis 31:10
And at the time when the flock were with young, I saw in a dream that all the he-goats which were joined with the she-goats were banded and marked and coloured.
Genesis 31:11
And in my dream the angel of the Lord said to me, Jacob: and I said, Here am I.
Genesis 31:24
Then God came to Laban in a dream by night, and said to him, Take care that you say nothing good or bad to Jacob.
Genesis 31:38
These twenty years I have been with you; your sheep and your goats have had young without loss, not one of your he-goats have I taken for food.
Genesis 31:39
Anything which was wounded by beasts I did not take to you, but myself made up for the loss of it; you made me responsible for whatever was taken by thieves, by day or by night.
Genesis 31:42
If the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had not been with me, you would have sent me away with nothing in my hands. But God has seen my troubles and the work of my hands, and this night he kept you back.
Genesis 31:53
May the God of Abraham and the God of Nahor, the God of their father, be our judge. Then Jacob took an oath by the Fear of his father Isaac.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Many daughters have done virtuously,.... This, according to Aben Ezra and Gersom, is what was said by her husband and children, and which seems to be right; especially they may be thought to be the words of her husband. By these "daughters" may be meant false churches, such as the church of Rome and her daughters, who is the mother of harlots,

Revelation 17:17. These are "many", when the true church of Christ is but one, to whom she is opposed, Song of Solomon 6:8. These may do many virtuous things externally; may make a great show of religion and devotion; may have a form of godliness, without the power of it; and a name to live, and be dead. The Vulgate Latin version renders it, "many daughters have gathered riches"; or "have possessed riches", as the Septuagint, Syriac, and Arabic versions, and so the Targum; and in this sense the phrase is sometimes used for getting riches and wealth; see Deuteronomy 8:17; and may well be applied to the false churches, the church of Rome and her daughters, who possess great riches and large emoluments, which yet in a short time will come to nothing,

Revelation 18:17;

but thou excellest them all; in real beauty, in true riches, in purity of doctrine, in simplicity of worship, in holiness of life and conversation, in undefiled religion, in doing good works, properly so called. Christ's church is "the fairest among women", Song of Solomon 1:8. So Ambrose interprets the daughters of heresies and heretics.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The words of praise which the husband Proverbs 31:28 is supposed to have addressed to the ideal wife.

Virtuously - The Hebrew word has primarily (like “virtus”) the idea of “strength,” but is used with various shades of meaning. Here (as in Proverbs 12:4; Ruth 3:11) the strength is that of character stedfast in goodness. In other passages (e. g., Genesis 34:29; Psalms 49:10) it has the sense of “riches,” and is so taken here by the Septuagint and Vulgate, see also the marginal rendering.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Proverbs 31:29. Many daughters have done virtuously — This is undoubtedly the speech of the husband, giving testimony to the excellence of his wife: "Her husband also, and he praiseth her, saying, 'many daughters,' women, 'have done virtuously,' with due propriety as wives, mistresses, and mothers; 'but THOU,' my incomparable wife, 'excellent them all;' ואת עלית על כלנה veath alith al cullanah, but THOU hast ascended above the whole of them-thou hast carried every duty, every virtue, and every qualification and excellency, to a higher perfection, than any of whom we have ever read or heard." And let the reader seriously consider the above particulars, as specified under the different heads and subdivisions; and he will be probably of the same mind. But high as the character of this Jewish matron stands in the preceding description, I can say that I have met at least her equal, in a daughter of the Rev. Dr. Samuel Annesly, the wife of Samuel Wesley, sen., rector of Epworth in Lincolnshire, and mother of the late extraordinary brothers, John and Charles Wesley. I am constrained to add this testimony, after having traced her from her birth to her death, through all the relations that a woman can bear upon earth. Her Christianity gave to her virtues and excellences a heightening, which the Jewish matron could not possess. Besides, she was a woman of great learning and information, and of a depth of mind, and reach of thought, seldom to be found among the daughters of Eve, and not often among the sons of Adam.


 
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