Proverbs 31:18
in Proverbs 31She sees that her gain is good, and her lamp is not extinguished at night.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
She perceiveth that her merchandise is profitable; Her lamp goeth not out by night.
KJV
She perceiveth that her merchandise is good: her candle goeth not out by night.
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This verse in Proverbs 31
Commentary
10 notes on this versePerceiveth - She finds great comfort in her labours. Her candle - Which is not to be taken strictly, but only signifies her unwearied care and industry.
This site's exposition
She is like the merchant ships
on Proverbs 31:14-19
"She is like the merchant ships, bringing her food from afar." She rises while it is night, appraises a field and buys it, and plants a vineyard "from her earnings." Her girded strength and a lamp "not extinguished at night" show a woman working past the hours anyone would require.
This site's exposition
She sees that her gain is good
John Wesley says she finds great comfort in her labors. He reads the lamp that burns at night loosely, as a sign of unwearied care and industry. The gain she sees keeps her working.
The record, by era
The Medieval Church1 voice
She tasted and saw that her trading was good, etc. What he says, "Her trading," surely refers to that field which he mentioned above: "She considered a field and bought it." Therefore, the holy Church tasted, a perfect soul tasted, that is, recognized from the …
The Puritans and the Awakening4 voices
It is a mercy to have candle-light to supply the want of day-light, and a duty, having that advantage, to improve it. We say of an elaborate piece, It smells of the lamp. (3.) She rises early, while it is yet night (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
3 Give not thy strength unto women, nor thy ways to that which destroyeth kings. 4 It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine; nor for princes strong drink: 5 Lest they drink, and forget the law, and pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted. 6 Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, and wine unto those that be of heavy hearts.
quarantine:scripture (2026-07-29) — verbatim-scripture
); she is sensible that in all her labour there is profit, and that encourages her to go on in it. She perceives that she can make things herself better and cheaper than she can buy them; she finds by observation what branch of her employment brings in the best returns, and to that she applies herself most closely.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
She perceiveth that her merchandise is good,....
2 more voices on this verse
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
In Hebrew the verses begin with the letters of the Hebrew alphabet in order (compare Introduction to Poetical Books). Who . . . woman--The question implies that such are rare, though not entirely wanting (compare Pr 18:22; 19:14). virtuous--literally, "of strength," that is, moral courage (compare Pr 12:4;
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
She perceiveth that her merchandise is good - 8. She takes care to manufacture the best articles of the kind, and to lay on a reasonable price that she may secure a ready sale. Her goods are in high repute, and she knows she can sell as much as she can make. And she finds that while she pleases her customers, she increases her own profits. 9. She is watchful and careful.
The words behind it
8 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| טָ֭עֲמָה | taamah | she perceives | H2938 → | |
| כִּי־ | ki- | that | H3588 → | 4482 times |
| ט֣וֹב | tov | [is] good | H2896 → | 538 times |
| סַחְרָ֑הּ | sachrah | profit her | H5504 → | 7 times |
| לֹֽא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| יִכְבֶּ֖ה | yikhbeh | it is extinguished | H3518 → | |
| בַלַּ֣יְלָה | valayil | in the night | H3915 → | 233 times |
| נֵרָֽהּ׃ | nerah | lamp her | H5216 → | 49 times |
טָ֭עֲמָהshe perceives
taamahH2938 →
כִּי־that
ki-H3588 →4482 times
ט֣וֹב[is] good
tovH2896 →538 times
סַחְרָ֑הּprofit her
sachrahH5504 →7 times
לֹֽא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
יִכְבֶּ֖הit is extinguished
yikhbehH3518 →
בַלַּ֣יְלָהin the night
valayilH3915 →233 times
נֵרָֽהּ׃lamp her
nerahH5216 →49 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 127:2In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for bread to eat— for He gives sleep to His beloved.
it leads to
- Ecclesiastes 5:12
The sleep of the worker is sweet, whether he eats little or much, but the abundance of the rich man permits him no sleep.
- Psalms 4:8
I will lie down and sleep in peace, for You alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.
- Job 11:18
You will be secure, because there is hope, and you will look around and lie down in safety.
- Psalms 3:5
I lie down and sleep; I wake again, for the LORD sustains me.
- Jeremiah 31:26
At this I awoke and looked around. My sleep had been most pleasant to me.
- Ecclesiastes 5:12
Through
1 Thessalonians 2:9Surely you recall, brothers, our labor and toil. We worked night and day so that we would not be a burden to anyone while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God.
it leads to
- 2 Thessalonians 3:7–9
For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not undisciplined among you,
- 2 Corinthians 11:9
And when I was with you and in need, I was not a burden to anyone; for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my needs. I have refrained from being a burden to…
- Acts 18:3
and he stayed and worked with them because they were tentmakers by trade, just as he was.
- 2 Thessalonians 3:7–9
Where this verse is studied
About Proverbs
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Bede, Commentary on Proverbs; Franz Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Proverbs of Solomon; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.