Proverbs 31:23-24

31:23 Her husband is well-known ¹  in the city gate ² 

when he sits with the elders ³  of the land.

31:24 She makes linen garments ⁴  and sells them,

and supplies the merchants ⁵  with sashes.

[31:23]  ¹ tn The first word of the fourteenth line begins with נ (nun), the fourteenth letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The form is the Niphal participle of יָדַע (yada’); it means that her husband is “known.” The point is that he is a prominent person, respected in the community.

[31:23]  ² tn Heb “gate”; the term “city” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[31:23]  ³ tn The construction uses the infinitive construct with the preposition and a pronominal suffix that serves as the subject (subjective genitive) to form a temporal clause. The fact that he “sits with the elders” means he is one of the elders; he sits as a judge among the people.

[31:24]  ⁴ tn The first word of the fifteenth line begins with ס (samek), the fifteenth letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

[31:24]  ⁵ tn Heb “to the Canaanites.” These are the Phoenician traders that survived the wars and continued to do business down to the exile.