Bible Strands
Proverbs 12:4
A wife of noble character is her husband’s crown, but she who causes shame is like decay in his bones.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The author of Proverbs addresses learners in a wisdom instruction setting, placing this verse between statements about the stability of the righteous and the nature of just plans.
The words — חַיִל (cha.yil) denotes ability or strength, while רָקָב (ra.kav) literally means rottenness or decay.
The thread — The text contrasts a virtuous wife with a shameful one, echoing the praise of a capable woman in Proverbs 31:10, the house-building imagery of Proverbs 14:1, and the bone-rotting warning of Proverbs 14:30.
Why it lands — The verse demands a clear-eyed assessment of a spouse's character, treating her actions as either a public honor or a hidden corruption that undermines a man's foundation.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
A virtuous woman is a crown to her husband: but she that maketh ashamed is as rottenness in his bones.
Cross-references
- Proverbs 31:10 A wife of noble character, who can find? She is far more precious than rubies.
- Proverbs 14:1 Every wise woman builds her house, but a foolish one tears it down with her own hands.
- Proverbs 14:30 A tranquil heart is life to the body, but envy rots the bones.
- Proverbs 19:13 A foolish son is his father’s ruin, and a quarrelsome wife is like a constant dripping.
- Proverbs 21:9 Better to live on a corner of the roof than to share a house with a quarrelsome wife.
- Proverbs 21:19 Better to live in the desert than with a contentious and ill-tempered wife.
- 1 Corinthians 11:11 In the Lord, however, woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman.
- Proverbs 27:15 A constant dripping on a rainy day and a contentious woman are alike—
- 1 Corinthians 11:7 A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man.
- Habakkuk 3:16 I heard and trembled within; my lips quivered at the sound. Decay entered my bones; I trembled where I stood. Yet I must wait patiently for the day of distress to come upon the people who invade us.