Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Proverbs 31:13
She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands.
13. seeketh ] Some would render, applies herself to, busies herself about. The LXX. have draws out; .
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Worketh willingly with her hands – Or, worketh with willing hands. The stress laid upon the industrial habits of Israelite matrons may perhaps belong to a time when, as under the monarchy of Judah, those habits were passing away.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 13. She seeketh wood and flax, and worketh willingly, c.]
II. This is the second part of her character, giving the particulars of which it is composed.
1. She did not buy ready woven cloth: she procured the raw material, if wool, most probably from her own flocks if flax, most probably from her own fields.
2. Here she manufactured; for she worketh willingly with her hands. And all her labour is a cheerful service; her will, her heart, is in it.
It needs no arguments to prove that women, even of the highest ranks, among the Greeks, Romans, and Israelites, worked with their hands at every kind of occupation necessary for the support of the family. This kind of employment was not peculiar to the virtuous woman in the text.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
She seeketh wool and flax, that she may find employment for her servants, and not suffer them to spend all their time unprofitably in ease and idleness.
Worketh willingly with her hands; she encourageth them to work by her example; which was a common practice among princesses in those first and purest ages of the world. Not that it is the duty of kings and queens to use manual or mechanical operations, but that it is the duty of all persons, the greatest not excepted, to improve all their talents, and particularly their time, which is one of the noblest of them, one way or other to the service of that God to whom they must give an account, and to the good of that community to which they are related and obliged.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
13, 14. Ancient women of rankthus wrought with their hands; and such, indeed, were the customs ofWestern women a few centuries since. In the East also, the fabricswere articles of merchandise.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
She seeketh wool and flax,…. To get them, in order to spin them, and work them up into garments; she stays not till they are brought to her, and she is pressed to take them; but she seeks after them, which shows her willingness to work, as is after more fully expressed. It was usual in ancient times for great personages to do such works as these, both among the Grecians z and Romans: Lucretia with her maids were found spinning, when her husband Collatinus paid a visit to her from the camp a: Tanaquills, or Caia Caecilia, the wife of King Tarquin, was an excellent spinster of wool b; her wool, with a distaff and spindle, long remained in the temple of Sangus, or Sancus, as Varro c relates: and a garment made by her, wore by Servius Tullius, was reserved in the temple of Fortune; hence it became a custom for maidens to accompany newly married women with a distaff and spindle, with wool upon them d, signifying what they were principally to attend unto; and maidens are advised to follow the example of Minerva, said to be the first that made a web e; and, if they would have her favour, to learn to use the distaff, and to card and spin f: so did the daughters of Minyas, in Ovid g; and the nymphs, in Virgil h. When Alexander the great advised the mother of Darius to use her nieces to such employments, the Persian ladies were in great concern, it being reckoned reproachful with them for such to move their hands to wool; on hearing which, Alexander himself went to her, and told her the clothes he wore were wrought by his sisters i: and the daughters and granddaughters of Augustus Caesar employed themselves in the woollen manufacture by his order k; and he himself usually wore no other garment than what was made at home, by his wife, sister, daughter, and granddaughter l. The Jews have a saying m, that there is no wisdom in a woman but in the distaff; suggesting, that it is her wisdom to mind her spinning, and the affairs of her household: at the Roman marriages, the word “thalassio” was often repeated n, which signified a vessel in which spinning work was put; and this was done to put the bride in mind what her work was to be. Now as to the mystical sense of these words; as of wool outward garments, and of flax linen and inward garments, are made; by the one may be meant external, and by the other internal, acts of religion; both are to be done, and not the one without the other: outward acts of religion are, such as hearing the word, attendance on ordinances, and all good works, which make up a conversation garment that should be kept; and they should be done so as to be seen of men, but not for that reason: and internal acts of religion are, the fear of God, humility, faith, hope, love, and other graces, and the exercises of them, which make up the new man, to be put on as a garment; and these should go together; bodily exercise, without powerful godliness, profiteth little; and pretensions to spirituality and internal religion, without regard to the outward duties of religion, are all vain. Hence Ambrose, on the text, observes that one may say,
“It is enough to worship and serve God in my mind; what need have I to go to church, and visibly mingle with Christians? Such a man would have a linen, without a woollen garment, this woman knew not; she does not commend such works.”
She sought all opportunities of doing good works externally, as believers do; and sought after the kingdom of God, inward godliness, which lies in peace, righteousness, and joy in the Holy Ghost. Not that such garments are to be joined with Christs robe of righteousness, to make up a justifying one; a garment mingled with linen and woollen, in this sense, is not to come upon the saints, Le 19:19;
and worketh willingly with her hands; or, “with the pleasure of her hands” o; as if her hands took delight in working, as the church and all true believers do; who are made willing in the day of the Lord’s power upon them, to serve him, as well as to be saved by him; in whose hearts he works, both to will and to do; and these do what they do cheerfully: these do the work of the Lord, not by the force of the law, nor through fear of punishment, but in love; not by constraint, but willingly, having no other constraint but the love of God and Christ; and not with mercenary selfish views, but with a view to his glory; and they find a pleasure and delight in all they do; Christ’s ways are ways of pleasantness; his commandments are not grievous, his yoke is easy.
z Vid. Homer. Iliad 3. v. 125. 6. v. 490, 491. & 22. v. 440. Odyss. l. v. 357. & 5. v. 62. a “Cujus, ante torumn calathi, lanaque mollis erat”, Ovid. Fasti, l. 2. prope finem. b Valerius Maximus, l. 10. p. 348. c Apud Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 8. c. 48. d Plin. ibid. e Pomponius Subinus in Virgil. Cyrin, p. 1939. f “Pallade placata, lanam mollire puellae discant, et plenas exonerare colos”, Ovid. Fast. l. 3. prope finem. g Metamorph. l. 4. Fab. 1. v. 34, 35. h Georgic. l. 4. i Curt. Hist. l. 5. c. 2. k Sueton. in Vit. August. c. 64. l lbid. c. 73. m Vid. Buxtorf. Lex. Rabbin. col. 1742. n Varro apud Chartar. de Imag. Deorum, p. 88. o “cum voluptate altro neis manibus”, so some in Vatablus, Tigurine version so Cocceius, Michaelis, Piscator, Gejerus, Schultens.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
The poet now describes how she disposes of things:
13 She careth for wool and flax,
And worketh these with her hands’ pleasure.
The verb proceeds, as the Arab. shows,
(Note: The inquirer is there called (Arab.) daras , as libros terens .)
from the primary meaning terere ; but to translate with reference thereto: tractat lanam et linum (lxx, Schultens, Dathe, Rosemller, Fleischer), is inadmissible. The Heb. does not mean the external working at or manufacturing of a thing; but it means, even when it refers to this, the intention of the mind purposely directed thereto. Thus wool and flax come into view as the material of work which she cares to bring in; and signifies the work itself, following the creation of the need of work. Hitzig translates the second line: she works at the business of her hands. Certainly after may denote the sphere of activity, Exo 31:4; 1 Kings 5:30, etc.; but if had here the weakened signification business, , – which it gains in the same way as we say business, affair, of any object of care – the scarcely established meaning presents itself, that she shows herself active in that which she has made the business of her hands. How much more beautiful, on the contrary, is the thought: she is active with her hands’ pleasure! is, as Schultens rightly explains, inclinatio flexa et propensa in aliquid , and pulchre manibus diligentissimis attribuitur lubentia cum oblectatione et per oblectationem sese animans . , without obj. accus., signifies often: to accomplish, e.g., Ps. 22:32; here it stands, in a sense, complete in itself, and without object. accus., as when it means “ handeln ” [ agere ], Pro 13:16, and particularly to act in the service of God = to offer sacrifice, Exo 10:25; it means here, and at Rth 2:19; Hab 2:4, to be active, as at Isa 19:15, to be effective; is equivalent to or (cf. under Pro 10:4). And pleasure and love for the work, , can be attributed to the hands with the same right as at Psa 78:72, discretion. The disposition which animates a man, especially his inner relation to the work devolving upon him, communicates itself to his hands, which, according as he has joy or aversion in regard to his work, will be nimble or clumsy. The Syr. translates: “and her hands are active after the pleasure of her heart;” but is not equivalent to ; also , in the sense of con amore (Bttcher), is not used.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
(13) And worketh willingly with her hands.Literally, with the pleasure or willingness of her hands; they, as it were, catch her willing spirit.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
Pro 31:13. Worketh willingly with her hands From which she forms that which her hands require. Houbigant. The LXX render it, She maketh precious or useful work with her hands.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Pro 31:13 She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands.
Ver. 13. She seeketh wool and flax. ] This was held no shame for Solomon’s wife. Augustus Caesar taught his daughters to spin and card; he wore no garments but what his wife and daughters made him. The like is reported of Charles the Great. Spinster, they say, is a term given the greatest women in our law. Rebecca was a dainty cook; so was Tamar, David’s daughter. 2Sa 13:7-10 By Mohammed’s law, the grand Turk himself must be of some trade.
And worketh willingly with her hands.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
willingly with her hands = with her hands’ good will.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
worketh: Gen 18:6-8, Gen 24:13, Gen 24:14, Gen 24:18-20, Gen 29:9, Gen 29:10, Exo 2:16, Rth 2:2, Rth 2:3, Rth 2:23, Isa 3:16-24, Isa 32:9-11, Act 9:39, Act 9:40, 1Th 4:11, 2Th 3:10-12, 1Ti 5:10, 1Ti 5:14, Tit 2:5
Reciprocal: Pro 31:24 – General
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Pro 31:13-14. She seeketh wool and flax That she may find employment for her servants, and not suffer them to spend their time unprofitably. And worketh willingly with her hands She encourages them to work by her example; which was a common practice among princesses in those first ages. Not that it is the duty of kings and queens to use manual operations, but it is the duty of all persons, the greatest not excepted, to improve all their talents, and particularly their time, which is one of the noblest of them, to the service of that God to whom they must give an account, and to the good of that community to which they are related. She bringeth her food from afar By the sale of her home-spun commodities she purchases the choicest goods which come from far countries.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
"Wool and flax" reflects the eastern economy; she is industrious (Pro 31:13 a). "In delight" reveals her positive motivation. Rather than using whatever is handy, she wisely shops for what is best that she can afford (Pro 31:14). She puts the needs of others in her household ahead of her own comfort and convenience. She is self-sacrificing (Pro 31:15).