Never Spiteful

Often we take it for granted that the bible has been translated into English, we take it as something old and completed. However, translating from Hebrew (for the Old Testament) and Greek (for the New Testament) into English, does give translators predicaments in losing emphasis. For instance, chair in the old Greek has about 10 different words, whereas in English it is always chair, but choosing one Greek 'chair' over another could change its meaning.
Therefore, when looking at the Woman of Proverbs 31 I have found it useful to look at the different translations through http://www.biblegateway.com/ This has enabled me to grasp the meaning more fully.
In addition to this I am using the commentary from Grace Communion International for help.

Our Proverbs 31 focus today is:

Her husband trusts her without reserve, 

   and never has reason to regret it.

Never spiteful, she treats him generously 

   all her life long.

Here is a man who has been blessed with a wife who gets on with things, who works hard to organise things, who knows how to find the best bargain and who is aware and conscientious about her family's needs.

What stands out to me is that she is 'Never spiteful', and that 'she treats him generously'.

I am not in favour of pigeon holing people to set roles, and even though I love the woman of Proverbs 31, I don't even think she is about being the perceived 'perfect' 1950s housewife. When looking at this sentence, I see a woman who is confident and comfortable with what she is doing in her home and work. She does what she considers needs doing and without reserve. There is no "I am only doing such and such, because that is all they would have done/would do".

She uses her 'know-how' for the job in hand, and sees it through to the end. There is no expectation of praise or reward, but instead a humble gratification that the best has been sought, and he has been helped or cared for.

For the coming days I am going to focus my attention to 'Never being spiteful, but treating him generously.'  

When looking for a picture I just couldn't resist this hard working fellow...

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