to do or make · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person feminine singular
linen
סָדִ֣יןsa.Din
H5466
a wrapper · noun, common masculine singular absolute
selleth
וַתִּמְכֹּ֑רva.tim.Kor
H4376
to sell · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person feminine singular
delivereth
נָתְנָ֥הna.te.Nah
H5414
to give · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person feminine singular
girdles
חָגוֹרchâgôwr
H2289
belted
merchant
לַֽכְּנַעֲנִֽיLa.ke.na.'a.Ni
H3669
a Kenaanite or inhabitant of Kenaan · preposition with the article + noun, gentilic masculine singular absolute
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Ezekiel 27:16 Syria was thy merchant by reason of the multitude of the wares of thy making: they occupied in thy fairs with emeralds, purple, and broidere…
Luke 16:19 There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
Judges 14:12 And Samson said unto them, I will now put forth a riddle unto you: if ye can certainly declare it me within the seven days of the feast, and…
1 Kings 10:28 And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and linen yarn: the king’s merchants received the linen yarn at a price.
Proverbs 31:13 She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands.
Proverbs 31:19 She layeth her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff.
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Proverbs 31:10–end
This description of the virtuous woman is designed to show what wives the women should make and what wives the men should choose; it consists of twenty-two verses, each beginning with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet in order, as some of the Psalms, which makes some think it was no part of the lesson which Lemuel's mother taught him, but a poem by itself, written by some other hand, and perhaps had been commonly repeated among the pious Jews, for the ease of which it was made alphabetical. We have the abridgment of it in the New Testament (Ti1 2:9, Ti1 2:10, Pe1 3:1-6), where the duty prescribed to wives agrees with this description of a good wife; and with good reason is so much stress laid…
fine linen--or, "linen shirts," or the material for them.
girdles--were often costly and highly valued (Sa2 18:11).
delivereth--or, "giveth as a present" or "to sell."
John Gill on Proverbs 31:24
She maketh fine linen, and selleth it,.... She not only seeks wool and flax, and spins it, but makes it up into fine linen, which she disposes of to advantage to herself and family. Kimchi says (y), the word signifies coverings for the night, as well as day he seems to design linen sheets: the Arabic version adds, and "sells it to the inhabitants of Bosra." This, in the mystic sense, may signify either the good works the church does, and which she proposes as a pattern and example to her members; or divine instruction, as others, the preaching of the Gospel, and the truths of it; which she sells, and others buy, though both without money and without price; for, as she freely receives, she fr…
The description, following the order of the letters, now directs attention to the profitable labour of the housewife:
24 ס She prepareth body-linen and selleth it,
And girdles doth she give to the Phoenicians.
It is a question whether סדין signifies σινδών, cloth from Sindhu, the land of India (vid., at Isa 3:23); the Arab. sadn (sadl), to cause to hang down, to descend (for the purpose of covering or veiling), offers an appropriate verbal root. In the Talmud, סדין is the sleeping linen, the curtain, the embroidered cloth, but particularly a light smock-frock, as summer costume, which was worn on the bare body (cf. Mar 14:51.). Kimchi explains the word by night-shirt; the Edictum Diocletian…
The Church Fathers
She made a fine linen garment, and sold it, etc. In the weaving of fine linen is symbolized the holy preaching in which one softly rests, because the mind of the faithful is refreshed by a heavenly hope. Thus also animals were shown to Peter in a linen cloth, because the souls of sinners, mercifully gathered, are contained in the gentle rest of faith. Therefore, the Church made and sold this linen garment, because the faith, which it had woven by believing, it learned by speaking, and receives from the faithful the life of righteous conduct. And it gave a girdle to the Canaanite woman, because through the strength of demonstrated justice it extinguished the loose works of paganism. So that what is commanded may be held by living: Let your loins be girded (Luke XII). Indeed, well by the name of Canaan, who also begot the Gentile people and is interpreted as changed, the Gentile populace converted to faith is designated; which by a most blessed change, migrated from vice to virtues, from the devil to Christ. Hence also the forty-fourth Psalm is written in his praise, whose title is: To the end, for those who shall be changed, a song of the sons of Korah; moreover the sons of Korah are interpreted as the sons of Calvary, who are the sons of the Lord's cross, saying: But far be it from me to glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ (Galatians VI). As for how they are changed, the following of the same psalm teaches, where the Beloved Himself, that is, the Church's Lord, says: Hear, O daughter, and see, and incline your ear, and forget your people and your father's house (Psalm XLIV). For He desires her to be changed, whom, so that she may be called a daughter, He orders to forget the house of her prior father, that is, the ancient foe.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Canaanites — The descendants of Canaan, the son of Ham. Migrating from their original home, they seem to have reached the Persian Gulf, and to have there sojourned for some time. They thence “spread to the west,…
Linen — (1.) Heb., pishet, pishtah, denotes “flax,” of which linen is made (Isa. 19:9); wrought flax, i.e., “linen cloth”, Lev. 13:47, 48, 52, 59; Deut. 22:11. Flax was early cultivated in Egypt (Ex. 9:31),…
Marriage — Was instituted in Paradise when man was in innocence (Gen. 2:18-24). Here we have its original charter, which was confirmed by our Lord, as the basis on which all regulations are to be framed (Matt.…
Poetry — Has been well defined as “the measured language of emotion.” Hebrew poetry deals almost exclusively with the great question of man’s relation to God. “Guilt, condemnation, punishment, pardon,…
Weaving, weavers — Weaving was an art practised in very early times (Ex. 35:35). The Egyptians were specially skilled in it (Isa. 19:9; Ezek. 27:7), and some have regarded them as its inventors. In the wilderness, the…
Wife — The ordinance of marriage was sanctioned in Paradise (Gen. 2:24; Matt. 19:4-6). Monogamy was the original law under which man lived, but polygamy early commenced (Gen. 4:19), and continued to prevail…
Writing — The art of writing must have been known in the time of the early Pharaohs. Moses is commanded “to write for a memorial in a book” (Ex. 17:14) a record of the attack of Amalek. Frequent mention is…
Commerce · Persons engaged in, called: Merchants — Persons engaged in, called: Merchants
A capable wife’s industriousness enables her husband to distinguish himself among community leaders. In ancient Israel, civic leaders met at the city gates to conduct trials and make decisions.
Wives · Good: Are diligent and prudent — Good: Are diligent and prudent
Woman · Good and virtuous, described — Good and virtuous, described
Women · Spun — Spun
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
