Discovery BoxProverbs 12:4 
Context12:4 A noble wife 1 is the crown 2 of her husband,
but the wife 3 who acts shamefully is like rottenness in his bones. 4
Proverbs 12:10
Context12:10 A righteous person cares for 5 the life of his animal,
but even the most compassionate acts 6 of the wicked are cruel.
Proverbs 17:2
Context17:2 A servant who acts wisely 7 will rule
over 8 an heir 9 who behaves shamefully, 10
and will share the inheritance along with the relatives. 11
1 tn Heb “a wife of virtue”; NAB, NLT “a worthy wife.” This noble woman (אֵשֶׁת־חַיִל, ’shet-khayil) is the subject of Prov 31. She is a “virtuous woman” (cf. KJV), a capable woman of noble character. She is contrasted with the woman who is disgraceful (מְבִישָׁה, mÿvishah; “one who causes shame”) or who lowers his standing in the community.
2 sn The metaphor of the “crown” emphasizes that such a wife is a symbol of honor and glory.
3 tn Heb “she”; the referent (the wife) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
4 sn The simile means that the shameful acts of such a woman will eat away her husband’s strength and influence and destroy his happiness.
5 tn Heb “knows”; NLT “concerned for the welfare of.” The righteous take care of animals, not just people.
6 tn Heb “but the mercies.” The additional words appear in the translation for the sake of clarification. The line can be interpreted in two ways: (1) when the wicked exhibit a kind act, they do it in a cruel way, or (2) even the kindest of their acts is cruel by all assessments, e.g., stuffing animals with food to fatten them for market – their “kindness” is driven by ulterior motives (J. H. Greenstone, Proverbs, 129).
7 sn The setting is in the ancient world where a servant rarely advanced beyond his or her station in life. But there are notable exceptions (e.g., Gen 15:3 where the possibility is mentioned, 1 Chr 2:35 where it changed through marriage, and 2 Sam 16:1-4; 19:24-30, with the story of Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth). This proverb focuses on a servant who is wise, one who uses all his abilities effectively – a Joseph figure.
8 sn The parallelism indicates that “ruling over” and “sharing in the inheritance” means that the disgraceful son will be disinherited.
9 tn Heb “son.”
10 tn The form מֵבִישׁ (mevish) is a Hiphil participle, modifying בֵן (ben). This original heir would then be one who caused shame or disgrace to the family, probably by showing a complete lack of wisdom in the choices he made.
11 tn Heb “in the midst of the brothers”; NIV “as one of the brothers.”
