Bible Strands
Proverbs 31:25
Strength and honor are her clothing, and she can laugh at the days to come.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — An unnamed narrator describes the "virtuous woman" in a poem addressed to King Lemuel (Proverbs 31:1). This verse sits between her commercial activity (v. 24) and her speech (v. 26), framing her character as the sum of her work and words.
The words — תִשְׂחַק (tisḥak, "she laughed") is a rare verb (Psalm 2:4; 4:4; 62:5; 65:13; Isaiah 25:6) that conveys confident, almost mocking laughter rather than mere amusement. The object is לְיוֹם אַחֲרוֹן (lĕyôm aḥărôn), literally "to the last day" or "the day to come."
The thread — Strength and honor as clothing echoes Job 40:10, where God tells Leviathan to "adorn yourself with majesty and splendor," and parallels the Pauline call to "clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 13:14) and to be marked by "good deeds" rather than outward adornment (1 Timothy 2:10).
Why it lands — The verse does not promise that the future will be easy; it asserts that a life built on strength and honor meets the future with laughter rather than dread. It asks the reader to examine whether their own preparation is rooted in character or in anxiety.
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
Strength and honour are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come.
Cross-references
- Job 40:10 Then adorn yourself with majesty and splendor, and clothe yourself with honor and glory.
- Romans 13:14 Instead, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the desires of the flesh.
- 1 Timothy 2:10 but with good deeds, as is proper for women who profess to worship God.
- Job 29:14 I put on righteousness, and it clothed me; justice was my robe and my turban.
- Isaiah 61:10 I will rejoice greatly in the LORD, my soul will exult in my God; for He has clothed me with garments of salvation and wrapped me in a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom wears a priestly headdress, as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
- Ephesians 4:24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
- 1 Peter 5:5 Young men, in the same way, submit yourselves to your elders. And all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”
- Psalms 132:9 May Your priests be clothed with righteousness, and Your saints shout for joy.
- Psalms 97:11 Light shines on the righteous, gladness on the upright in heart.
- Psalms 132:16 I will clothe her priests with salvation, and her saints will sing out in joy.