Proverbs 4:9

4:9 She will place a fair ¹  garland on your head;

she will bestow ²  a beautiful crown ³  on you.”

Proverbs 12:4

12:4 A noble wife ⁴  is the crown ⁵  of her husband,

but the wife ⁶  who acts shamefully is like rottenness in his bones. ⁷ 

Proverbs 17:6

17:6 Grandchildren ⁸  are like ⁹  a crown ¹⁰  to the elderly,

and the glory ¹¹  of children is their parents. ¹² 

[4:9]  ¹ sn The personification of wisdom continues with the bestowal of a wreath for the head (e.g., 1:9). The point is that grace will be given to the individual like a wreath about the head.

[4:9]  ² tn The verb מָגַן (magan) is a Piel (denominative) verb from the noun “shield.” Here it means “to bestow” (BDB 171 s.v.).

[4:9]  ³ sn This verse uses wedding imagery: The wife (wisdom) who is embraced by her husband (the disciple) will place the wedding crown on the head of her new bridegroom. Wisdom, like a virtuous wife, will crown the individual with honor and grace.

[12:4]  ⁴ 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.

[12:4]  ⁵ sn The metaphor of the “crown” emphasizes that such a wife is a symbol of honor and glory.

[12:4]  ⁶ tn Heb “she”; the referent (the wife) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:4]  ⁷ 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.

[17:6]  ⁷ tn Heb “children of children [sons of sons].”

[17:6]  ⁸ tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[17:6]  ⁹ sn The metaphor signifies that grandchildren are like a crown, that is, they are the “crowning glory” of life. The proverb comes from a culture that places great importance on the family in society and that values its heritage.

[17:6]  ¹⁰ tn The noun תִּפְאָרָת (tif’arat) means “beauty; glory” (BDB 802 s.v.). In this passage “glory” seems to be identified with “glorying; boasting”; so a rendering that children are proud of their parents would be in order. Thus, “glory of children” would be a subjective genitive, the glorying that children do.”

[17:6]  ¹¹ tc The LXX has inserted: “To the faithful belongs the whole world of wealth, but to the unfaithful not an obulus.” It was apparently some popular sentiment at the time.