She is like the merchant ships. She brings her bread from afar.
Parallel Translations
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She is like the merchant ships. She brings her bread from afar.
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She is like the merchants’ ships; she bringeth her food from afar.
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She is like the merchant-ships; she bringeth her food from afar.
Cross-references (2)
Passages linked to Proverbs 31:14 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- 1 Kings 9:26-28 King Solomon made a fleet of ships in Ezion Geber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom. Hiram sent in the fleet his servants, sailors who had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon. They came to Ophir, and fetched from there gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon.
- Ezekiel 27:3-36 and tell Tyre, ‘You who dwell at the entry of the sea, who are the merchant of the peoples to many islands, the Lord Yahweh says: “You, Tyre, have said, ‘I am perfect in beauty.’ Your borders are in the heart of the seas. Your builders have perfected your beauty. They have made all your planks of cypress trees from Senir. They have taken a cedar from Lebanon to make a mast for you. They have made your oars of the oaks of Bashan. They have made your benches of ivory inlaid in cypress wood from the islands of Kittim. Your sail was of fine linen with embroidered work from Egypt, that it might be to you for a banner. Blue and purple from the islands of Elishah was your awning. The inhabitants of Sidon and Arvad were your rowers. Your wise men, Tyre, were in you. They were your pilots. The old men of Gebal and its wise men were your repairers of ship seams in you. All the ships of the sea with their mariners were in you to deal in your merchandise. “ ‘ “Persia, Lud, and Put were in your army, your men of war. They hung the shield and helmet in you. They showed your beauty. The men of Arvad with your army were on your walls all around, and valiant men were in your towers. They hung their shields on your walls all around. They have perfected your beauty. “ ‘ “Tarshish was your merchant by reason of the multitude of all kinds of riches. They traded for your wares with silver, iron, tin, and lead. “ ‘ “Javan, Tubal, and Meshech were your traders. They traded the persons of men and vessels of bronze for your merchandise. “ ‘ “They of the house of Togarmah traded for your wares with horses, war horses, and mules. “ ‘ “The men of Dedan traded with you. Many islands were the market of your hand. They brought you horns of ivory and ebony in exchange. “ ‘ “Syria was your merchant by reason of the multitude of your handiworks. They traded for your wares with emeralds, purple, embroidered work, fine linen, coral, and rubies. “ ‘ “Judah and the land of Israel were your traders. They traded wheat of Minnith, confections, honey, oil, and balm for your merchandise. “ ‘ “Damascus was your merchant for the multitude of your handiworks, by reason of the multitude of all kinds of riches, with the wine of Helbon, and white wool. “ ‘ “Vedan and Javan traded with yarn for your wares: bright iron, cassia, and calamus were among your merchandise. “ ‘ “Dedan was your trafficker in precious cloths for riding. “ ‘ “Arabia, and all the princes of Kedar were the merchants of your hand; in lambs, rams, and goats. In these, they were your merchants. “ ‘ “The traders of Sheba and Raamah were your traders. They traded for your wares with the chief of all spices, and with all precious stones, and gold. “ ‘ “Haran, Canneh, and Eden, the traders of Sheba, Asshur and Chilmad, were your traders. These were your traders in choice wares, in wrappings of blue and embroidered work, and in chests of rich clothing, bound with cords and made of cedar, among your merchandise. “ ‘ “The ships of Tarshish were your caravans for your merchandise. You were replenished and made very glorious in the heart of the seas. Your rowers have brought you into great waters. The east wind has broken you in the heart of the seas. Your riches, your wares, your merchandise, your mariners, your pilots, your repairers of ship seams, the dealers in your merchandise, and all your men of war, who are in you, with all your company which is among you, will fall into the heart of the seas in the day of your ruin. At the sound of the cry of your pilots, the pasture lands will shake. All who handle the oars, the mariners and all the pilots of the sea, will come down from their ships. They will stand on the land, and will cause their voice to be heard over you, and will cry bitterly. They will cast up dust on their heads. They will wallow in the ashes. They will make themselves bald for you, and clothe themselves with sackcloth. They will weep for you in bitterness of soul, with bitter mourning. In their wailing they will take up a lamentation for you, and lament over you, saying, ‘Who is there like Tyre, like her who is brought to silence in the middle of the sea?’ When your wares went out of the seas, you filled many peoples. You enriched the kings of the earth with the multitude of your riches and of your merchandise. In the time that you were broken by the seas, in the depths of the waters, your merchandise and all your company fell within you. All the inhabitants of the islands are astonished at you, and their kings are horribly afraid. They are troubled in their face. The merchants among the peoples hiss at you. You have become a terror, and you will be no more.” ’ ”
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (11 sources)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Pro 31:14 She is like the merchants’ ships; she…
Pro 31:14 She is like the merchants’ ships; she bringeth her food from afar.
Ver. 14. She is like the merchants’ ships.] That is, She gets wealth apace; yea, though she stir not off her stool, and studies how to buy everything at best hand, though she send far for it. Of the Low Country men it is said, Peterent ccelum navibus Belgae, si navibus peti posset. So the good housewife would do anything to further thrift.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain By the sale of her homespun commodities she purchaseth…
By the sale of her homespun commodities she purchaseth the choicest goods which come from far countries.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain She is like the merchant ships,.... Not like a…
She is like the merchant ships,.... Not like a single one, but like a navy of them, that cross the seas, go to foreign parts, and come back laden with rich goods: so the church of Christ, and her true members, like ships of burden, trade to heaven, by prayer and other religious exercises, and return with the riches of grace and mercy, to help them in time of need; and though they have often difficult and dangerous passages, are tossed with tempests, and covered with billows; yet, Christ being their pilot, faith their sail, and hope their anchor, they weather the seas, ride out all storms, and come safe home with their merchandise;
she bringeth her food from afar: from a far country, from Egypt particularly, from whence corn for bread, as the word here used signifies, was fetched and carried in ships to divers parts of the world (p); to which the allusion may be: in a spiritual sense, it may mean that the church brings her food or bread from heaven, the good land afar off; where God her father, Christ her husband, and her friends the angels are; with whom she carries on a correspondence, and from hence she has her food for her family; not from below, on earth; not dust, the serpent's food; nor ashes, on which a deceitful heart feeds; nor husks, which swine eat; but the corn of heaven, angels' food, the hidden and heavenly manna; the bread of life, which comes down from heaven; the Gospel of the grace of God, the good news from a far country.
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(p) Bacchylides spud Athenaei Deipnosoph. l. 2. c. 3. p. 39.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain From afar - By the sale of her home-spun…
From afar - By the sale of her home-spun commodities she purchases the choicest goods which come from far countries.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 14. She is like the merchants' ships]
Verse 14. She is like the merchants' ships]
3. She acts like merchants. If she buy any thing for her household, she sells sufficient of her own manufactures to pay for it; if she imports, she exports: and she sends articles of her own manufacturing or produce to distant countries; she traffics with the neighbouring tribes.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain The comparison points to the enlarged commerce of the…
The comparison points to the enlarged commerce of the Israelites consequent on their contact with the Phoenicians under David and Solomon; compare Pro 31:24.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Bread; all that is used for meat and drink.…
Bread; all that is used for meat and drink. Septuagint, "riches." Grabe, "livelihood:" Greek: Bion. (Haydock)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 14. She bringeth her food from afar — What…
14. She bringeth her food from afar — What she needs for sustenance, for convenience, for ornament, which she does not produce herself, she procures by exchange of commodities. She exports and imports. She carries on a profitable commerce.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 14. She is like the merchant’s ships] The principles…
14. She is like the merchant’s ships] The principles of profitable exchange which regulate foreign trade are exemplified in the narrower sphere of her wise domestic economy. The reference to merchant-ships is interesting as pointing to an age when trade with foreign countries was common.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (14) She bringeth her food from afar.—Looks for opportunities…
(14) She bringeth her food from afar.—Looks for opportunities of buying cheaply at a distance from home, instead of paying a larger price on the spot.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain HE. She is like the merchants" ships. She is…
HE. She is like the merchants" ships. She is like them in that she extends her operations beyond her own immediate neighbourhood, and bringeth her food from afar, buying in the best markets and on advantageous terms, without regard to distance, and being always on the look out to make honest profit. Septuagint, "She is like a ship trading from a distance, and she herself gathereth her livelihood." The expressions in the text point to active commercial operations by sea as well as land, such as we know to have been undertaken by Solomon, Jehoshaphat, and others, (1Ki_9:26 1Ki_22:48) and such as the Hebrews must have noticed in the Phoenician cities, Sidon and Tyre.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.