Proverbs 31 — A mother’s counsel and a woman of strength — Hebrew and Greek compared
Disparate in this chapter: H 31:31
Each card keeps the independently rendered source readings above their shared comparison and reception notes. The badge records the source’s governing classification; disparate readings are marked in red. Each reading retains its original reference.
Proverbs 31 — A mother’s counsel and a woman of strength
H 31:25 aligns with G 31:26; H 31:26 aligns with G 31:25, with both Greek source entries translated once. G 31:28’s thematic doublet remains there. In the separately verified NETS Rahlfs1935 collection order, 31:1–9 precedes 25:1–29:27 and 31:10–31 concludes the book; the online RH2006 source navigation itself presents one chapter page.
31:1–31:9 — Counsel for a king
Verse H 31:1 Divergent
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:1
The words of King Lemuel, an oracle
with which his mother instructed him.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:1
My words have been spoken by God,
an oracle concerning a king whom his mother instructed.
Comparison and reception
Divergent. Text: H names Lemuel; G does not and explicitly attributes the words to God. H’s massa is read as oracle; treating it as a place name is a possible alternative, not adopted here. Rabbinic: Rashi identifies Lemuel with Solomon and relates the mother’s rebuke to a narrative about the temple dedication. This identification is his reception; Lemuel remains the Hebrew name in the translation. [R31]
Verse H 31:2 Divergent
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:2
What, my son? And what, son of my womb?
And what, son of my vows?
Greek–English (G)
G 31:2
What will you keep, child? What? God’s sayings.
Firstborn, I speak to you, son.
What, child of my womb?
What, child of my vows?
Comparison and reception
Divergent. Text: G expands the questions with keeping God’s sayings and an address to a firstborn. The abrupt questions are retained.
Verse H 31:3 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:3
Do not give your strength to women,
or your ways to what destroys kings.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:3
Do not give women your wealth,
or your mind and livelihood to belated counsel.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: H’s final infinitival construction is compressed: destroying kings is its stated sense. G has wealth, mind, and livelihood, ending with hysteroboulia, counsel or regret that comes too late.
Verse H 31:4 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:4
It is not for kings, Lemuel,
it is not for kings to drink wine,
nor for rulers to ask, ‘Where is strong drink?’
Greek–English (G)
G 31:4
Do everything with counsel;
drink wine with counsel.
The powerful are hot-tempered,
but let them not drink wine,
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: The supplementary Mechon-Mamre Hebrew display explicitly pairs written או with pointed אֵי, where; the English follows that read form [MM31]. This is direct supplemental Masoretic evidence, not BHS apparatus collation. G first counsels thoughtful wine-drinking, then forbids it to hot-tempered potentates; both statements are retained. Rabbinic: Rashi construes the pointed ei as a negative like ein, yielding no strong drink, rather than the interrogative where. The alternative interpretation remains visible. [R31]
Verse H 31:5 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:5
lest he drink and forget what is decreed
and alter the cause of all the afflicted.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:5
so that, after drinking, they may not forget wisdom
and become entirely unable to judge the weak rightly.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: G has wisdom rather than what is decreed; H’s sons of affliction is rendered the afflicted.
Verse H 31:6 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:6
Give strong drink to one who is perishing,
and wine to those bitter in life.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:6
Give intoxicating drink to those in grief,
and wine to drink to those in pain,
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: H names the perishing and bitter of life; G names grief and pain. These are the ancient poem’s words, not an added medical prescription.
Verse H 31:7 Similar
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:7
Let him drink and forget his poverty
and remember his trouble no more.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:7
so that they may forget their poverty
and no longer remember their troubles.
Comparison and reception
Similar. Text: H continues with a singular imperative/jussive; G states the plural purpose of the preceding command.
Verse H 31:8 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:8
Open your mouth for the mute,
for the cause of all those passing away.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:8
Open your mouth for God’s word,
and judge everyone soundly.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: H’s sons of passing away is provisionally those facing disappearance or death; the phrase is not fully certain. G instead names God’s word and sound judgment.
Verse H 31:9 Similar
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:9
Open your mouth, judge righteously,
and plead the cause of the poor and needy.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:9
Open your mouth and judge justly,
and decide the case of the poor and weak.
Comparison and reception
Similar. Text: Both call for just judgment on behalf of vulnerable people.
31:10–31:20 — Strength, work, and generosity
Verse H 31:10 Similar
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:10
A woman of strength—who can find her?
Her worth is far beyond precious stones.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:10
A courageous woman—who will find her?
Such a woman is more precious than costly stones.
Comparison and reception
Similar. Text: H’s hayil encompasses strength, capacity, and worth, not only marital chastity. G’s andreia denotes courage. H’s peninim is rendered precious stones without deciding the particular gem or coral identification. H 31:10–31 forms a 22-verse alphabetic acrostic; the English does not reproduce its initial-letter pattern.
Verse H 31:11 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:11
Her husband’s heart trusts in her,
and he will not lack spoil.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:11
Her husband’s heart is confident in her;
such a woman will not lack fine spoils.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: G explicitly makes the woman the subject of not lacking spoils; H’s masculine verb points to the husband. Spoil is retained rather than silently replaced with a modern accounting term.
Verse H 31:12 Similar
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:12
She does him good and not evil
all the days of her life.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:12
For she works good things for her husband throughout her life.
Comparison and reception
Similar. Text: G lacks the explicit and not evil and names the husband directly.
Verse H 31:13 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:13
She seeks wool and flax
and works with willing hands.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:13
Spinning wool and flax, she made useful work with her hands.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: G specifies spinning; H seeks the materials and describes willing work. Useful work supplies a broad English noun for G’s neuter useful, whose exact product is not named.
Verse H 31:14 Similar
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:14
She is like merchant ships;
from afar she brings her bread.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:14
She became like a ship trading from afar,
and she gathers her livelihood.
Comparison and reception
Similar. Text: G has one ship and livelihood; H has ships and bread.
Verse H 31:15 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:15
She rises while it is still night
and gives food to her household
and an allotted portion to her servant girls.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:15
And she rises in the night
and gave food to the household
and tasks to the maidservants.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: G explicitly assigns tasks to the maidservants; H’s allotted portion may denote a ration or an assigned duty.
Verse H 31:16 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:16
She considers a field and acquires it;
from the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:16
After inspecting a farm she bought it,
and from the fruits of her hands she planted an estate.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: G names an estate/property rather than specifically a vineyard. The supplementary Mechon-Mamre display pairs written נטע with pointed נָטְעָה, she planted; the female subject follows that verified read form [MM31], without claiming BHS apparatus collation.
Verse H 31:17 Similar
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:17
She girds her loins with strength
and makes her arms strong.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:17
Having girded her waist strongly,
she braced her arms for work.
Comparison and reception
Similar. Text: G explicitly adds the purpose for work.
Verse H 31:18 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:18
She tastes that her trade is good;
her lamp does not go out at night.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:18
She tasted that working is good,
and her lamp is not extinguished throughout the night.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: G says that working is good; H evaluates her trade or gain. Both retain tasting as the image of recognition.
Verse H 31:19 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:19
She stretches her hands to the distaff,
and her palms hold the spindle.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:19
She stretches her forearms toward profitable things,
and braces her hands on a spindle.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: G generalizes the first object to profitable things where H names a textile implement. Distaff for H kishor is provisional within the paired spinning imagery.
Verse H 31:20 Similar
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:20
She opens her palm to the poor
and stretches her hands to the needy.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:20
She opened her hands to a needy person
and stretched out her wrist to a poor person.
Comparison and reception
Similar. Text: G’s karpos can mean wrist or fruit; wrist is used provisionally in parallel with hands, without denying the possible giving-fruit interpretation.
31:21–31:31 — Dignity and public praise
Verse H 31:21 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:21
She does not fear snow for her household,
for all her household is clothed in scarlet.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:21
Her husband is not anxious about those at home when he stays away somewhere,
for all those with her are clothed.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: G makes the husband’s absence the concern and does not mention snow or scarlet. H’s pointed shanim is scarlet here; double clothing is not silently substituted.
Verse H 31:22 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:22
She makes coverings for herself;
fine linen and purple are her clothing.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:22
She made double cloaks for her husband,
and garments of fine linen and purple for herself.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: G adds double cloaks for the husband; H’s first object is coverings for herself.
Verse H 31:23 Similar
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:23
Her husband is known in the gates
when he sits with the elders of the land.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:23
Her husband becomes distinguished in the gates
when he sits in council with the elder inhabitants of the land.
Comparison and reception
Similar. Text: G explicitly names the council and the elders as inhabitants.
Verse H 31:24 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:24
She makes linen cloth and sells it,
and gives a belt to the merchant.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:24
She made linen cloths and sold them,
and girdles for the Canaanites.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: H’s Canaanite is provisionally merchant in this commercial setting; G retains the ethnic plural Canaanites. Its final clause leaves the verb understood.
Verse H 31:25 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:25
Strength and splendor are her clothing,
and she laughs at the day to come.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:26
She clothed herself in strength and dignity
and rejoiced in the last days.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: H 31:25 aligns by content with G 31:26, displayed here once. G has plural last days; H’s last/later day is rendered the day to come without importing an eschatological identification.
Verse H 31:26 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:26
She opens her mouth with wisdom,
and instruction of kindness is on her tongue.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:25
She opened her mouth attentively and lawfully
and prescribed order for her tongue.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: H 31:26 aligns by content with G 31:25, displayed here once. G 31:28 also repeats a wise and lawful mouth-opening clause; that actual Greek doublet remains in its own source entry.
Verse H 31:27 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:27
She watches the ways of her household
and does not eat the bread of idleness.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:27
The occupations of her houses are secure,
and she did not eat idle food.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: G’s stegnai diatribai is difficult: secure occupations is provisional, with stegnos suggesting something covered or watertight and diatribai activities or ways of spending time. It does not explicitly say that she watches the household.
Verse H 31:28 Divergent
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:28
Her children rise and call her happy;
her husband also praises her:
Greek–English (G)
G 31:28
She opens her mouth wisely and according to law,
and her mercy raised up her children, and they became wealthy,
and her husband praised her:
Comparison and reception
Divergent. Text: G adds a mouth-opening clause corresponding in theme to H 31:26, then makes her mercy the cause of her children’s rising and becoming rich. H’s children instead call her happy.
Verse H 31:29 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:29
‘Many daughters have shown strength,
but you surpass them all.’
Greek–English (G)
G 31:29
‘Many daughters acquired wealth,
many did mighty things,
but you stand above and have surpassed them all.’
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: G expands into wealth and mighty achievements where H has the single hayil expression, strength/capacity.
Verse H 31:30 Different
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:30
Charm is false and beauty is a breath;
a woman who fears YHWH—she is to be praised.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:30
A woman’s pleasing qualities are false and beauty is vain;
for an understanding woman is blessed,
and let her praise the fear of the Lord.
Comparison and reception
Different. Text: G blesses an understanding woman and commands her to praise fear of the Lord; H praises the woman who fears YHWH. The direction of praise is not harmonized.
Verse H 31:31 Disparate
Hebrew–English (H)
H 31:31
Give her from the fruit of her hands,
and let her works praise her in the gates.
Greek–English (G)
G 31:31
Give her from the fruits of her hands,
and let her husband be praised in the gates.
Comparison and reception
Disparate. Text: G’s final passive subject is her husband; H’s works praise her. The changed recipient of public praise is retained. Rabbinic: Rashi first explains public praise of the woman’s skill, then expressly offers an allegorical reading of the passage as Torah and its students. His two interpretive levels are not conflated with either translation column. [R31]