WOMAN OF VALOR ‫אשת חיל‬

1. The Targum - a kosher wife;

2. Ibn Ezra - wise, competent, and efficient;
3. Metzudas - energetic and straightforward.
The word chayil encompasses many characteristics such as: self control, diplomacy, foresight,
responsibility, patience, loyalty, industrious, kindliness, selflessness, and creative talent, as we
see in the following twenty-two verses.
In addition, the root of the word eishes is eish, which means fire. Thus, Eishes Chayil, is a
woman who is charged with a fiery love of Hashem, the Torah, her husband, and her family.
In Shemos (18:21) the quality of valor is listed as the first desirable attribute, even before fear
of Hashem and truthfulness. Valor refers to energy of character, which is manifested by action.
It thus includes all other desirable qualities (Rabbi Avigdor Miller, A Nation is Born, p. 241)
Midrashically, the passage is interpreted as a praise of the ideal woman of Israel as embodied in
Sarah, the founding matriarch of the nation (Tanchuma).
Rashi interprets the Woman of Valor as referring to the Torah itself, and offers a detailed
commentary on the entire passage from this perspective.
Metzudas David more specifically relates the Woman of Valor to man's intelligent soul, which
may dwell with him to a greater or lesser extent depending upon his deeds. "Who is it that can
attain the intelligent soul to perfection so as to know and understand by himself every word of
wisdom and intelligence?"
The Vilna Gaon points out how precisely the metaphor matches the subject, in that the
numerical equivalent (gematriah) of the word chayil (‫ )חיל‬is forty-eight, which corresponds to
the forty-eight qualities that are essential in order to acquire the Torah. Thus, in order to "find"
Torah, to truly merit acquiring genuine Torah, one must develop himself in the forty-eight
forms of the perfection that are listed in Chapter 6 of Pirkei Avos.
In Conclusion
Rabbeinu Bachya, in his introduction to the last Parasha of the Torah (VeZos HaBerachah),
elaborates on the lessons from Eishes Chayil.
We learn mussar and derech eretz to search for a good wife, who will serve as the foundation of
one’s home and to build a proper edifice.
A good wife, with all of the good character traits, encompasses the entire Torah, for she is his
assistant for success in Torah and Mitzvos, just as the body assists the soul to serve Hashem.
May we all aspire to these qualities of energy to serve Hashem in every possible way, as we find
with all of the great personalities of Tanach, Talmud, and throughout our glorious history.

Welcome to an illustrated
presentation of Eishes Chayil
Commentary by Rabbi Yaakov Iskowitz
Illustrations by Mrs. Ester Prizent
Eishes Chayil was written by Shlomo HaMelech. It is part
of Sefer Mishlei, a Sefer (Book) of great wisdom. We sing
Eishes Chayil before Kiddush on Friday evening, because
of Shabbos and the great part the woman has preparing for
it. The song is alphabetical, praising the Eishes Chayil
(“Ideal Woman”) with lines beginning with all 22 letters of
the Hebrew alphabet! (Yalkut)
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 Eishes Chayil as representative of the virtues of famous Jewish women
"‫"בטח בה לב בעלה‬
Heart of her husband trusts in her
"‫"גמלתהו טוב ולא רע‬
She trusts in him with goodness
"‫"דרשה צמר ופשתים‬
She seeks out wool and flax
"‫"היתה כאניות סוחר‬
Rochel our mother thus, merited to have a son like a ship, full of
She is like merchant ships
"‫"ותקם בעוד לילה‬
She rises while still night
"‫"זממה שדה ותקחהו‬
She considers a field and buys it
"‫"חגרה בעז מתניה‬
She girds her loins with strength
"‫"טעמה כי טוב סחרה‬
She realizes that her enterprise is
profitable
"‫"ידיה שלחה בכישור‬
She puts her hand on the spindle
"‫"כפה פרשה לעני‬
She holds out her hand to the poor
"‫לא תירא לביתה משלג כי כל ביתה‬
‫"לבוש שנים‬
She does not fear for household in
the frost for her entire household
is clothed in scarlet
"‫"מרבדים עשתה לה‬
She makes her own tapestries
"‫ "נודע בשערים בעלה‬Her husband is
well-known at the gates
"‫"סדין עשתה ותמכור‬
Mother of Shimshon
She makes linen and sells them
"‫"עוז והדר לבושה‬
Strength and dignity are her garb
"‫"פיה פתחה בחכמה‬
Her opens her mouth with
wisdom
"‫"צופיה הליכות ביתה‬
Wife of the Prophet She saved her children and did not serve
She watches the conduct of her
household
"‫"קמו בניה ויאשרוה‬
Her children rise and acclaim her
"‫רבות בנות עשו חיל ואת עלית על‬
‫ "כולנה‬Many daughters have done
worthily but you surpass them all
Sara our mother Avrohom was made rich for her sake
She did kindness to Yitzchak when grieving
Rivka our mother
for his mother
She was received by Yaacov with a good
Leah our mother
face
She was embarrassed daily about children;
all the good in the world
Batyah, daughter of
Converted to Judaism and raised Moshe
Paroh
Yocheved, mother of Gave birth to Moshe who is equated to all
Moshe the Jews
Miriam Prophesized about the birth of Moshiach
Chana She is the prototype of method prayer
She did not use weapons of war, but by use
Yael
of her hand she completed the task
Courageously gave Elijah her last remaining
The widow of
food even at the height of a famine. (He
Tzorphis
revived her son, the prophet Yonah)
When the Jews came to conquer Yericho,
Rachav she did not fear them but provided a sign of
hope, a string of scarlet
Batsheva Gave birth to Shlomo
Michal Saved Dovid from death
The Jewish nation was saved by him
Four simchas in one day: her brother became
a Nasi; her husband became Cohen Gadol
Elisheva
(wearer of priestly garments); her sons the
only other Cohanim; brother-in-law the king;
The wise woman persuaded the inhabitants
to deliver Sheva ben Bichri to Yoav because
Serach bas Asher
otherwise the entire town would be killed.
She sought to make peace and end the war.
Ovadiah idols during per King Achav
She was a great woman that forced Elisha to
Shonamis
eat
She left her prior life and accepted the
Rus
mitzvos and merited for King Dovid
 WOMAN OF VALOR
BATSHEVA
Mishlei chapter 31 verse 1: "The words of King Lemuel, the burden with which his mother
corrected him." Like the first verse of the
previous chapter, the king in this verse is Sanhedrin 70b (Mishlei 31,1): "Divrei l'Mu'el...Asher
interpreted in rabbinic medrash (Bereshis Yisarto Imo" - Bas Sheva tied Shlomo to a beam and
Rabba 10, Sanhedrin 70b) as referring to lashed him (for eating too much);
Shlomo himself. He is LEMOEL, facing or "Mah Beri..." - people know that your father was a Tzadik,
they will assume that I am responsible for you!
turned to God. He here recounts his
"U'Mah Bar Bitni" - Dovid would not have relations with
mother's rebuke to him as if it is a
his other wives when they were pregnant - I asserted
prophecy received from God (Metzudas myself, for this improves the fetus;
Dovid). In the early sections of Proverbs, "U'Meh Bar Nedarai" - Dovid's other wives (prayed and)
Shlomo spoke of his father's vowed what they would do if they would have a son
chastisements to lead him on the path of fitting for kingship - I vowed in order that my son
wisdom. Now he speaks of those of his should be zealous, a Chacham, and fitting for prophecy.
mother after the death of King Dovid, "Al la'Melachim Sheso Yayin" - why should you be with
after which he launches into a praise of kings who drink, get drunk and renounce Hash-m?
the Wise Woman built as an acrostic on "Ul'Roznim Ei Shechar" - Version #1: you know all the
the letters of the Aleph Beis in verses 10- secrets of the world, will you drink and get drunk?!
31 (Ibn Ezra). The rabbis tell that when Version #2: those (the Sanhedrin) who engage in the
King Shlomo married the daughter of secrets of the world, seek your counsel every day - will
Pharaoh, on the day of the inauguration of you drink and get drunk?!
the Temple she brought into him various "Ki Ba'ar Anochi me'Ish" - Shlomo admitted to his mother I
kinds of musical instruments and he was am more foolish than No'ach, about whom it says
awake for the whole night. The next "Va'Yachel No'ach Ish ha'Adamah";
morning he slept until the end of the "V'Lo Vinas Adam Li" - I lack the understanding of Adam
fourth hour of the day, and because the ha'Rishon.
keys of the Temple courtyard were under
his pillow they were unable to offer the daily perpetual offering, and his mother entered and
rebuked him in the words that follow" (Metzudas Dovid).

Bat-sheva's rebuke to Shlomo consists of invaluable advice to the king not to dissipate his
strength on women and not to drink, because wine is not for kings. "Open your mouth for the
dumb…" (verse 8) – "This means that if someone comes before you in judgment and is like a
dumb person lacking the knowledge to order his claims and pleas, you should open your mouth
for his sake to put his claims and pleas in order" (Metzudas Dovid). The final advice to the king
is that he must rule with justice (verse 9).

Verses 10-31, EISHES CHAYIL, "A woman of valor," is well known to those who observe and
love the holy Shabbos since this passage is recited weekly at the Friday night Shabbos table
after greeting the angels prior to making the Kiddush. The evocation of the righteous, God-
fearing woman makes a fitting conclusion to Shlomo's Book of Proverbs, which has taken us
along all the highways and byways of wisdom. Having warned repeatedly against succumbing
to the allurements of the "strange woman" and her wares of heresy and sin, Shlomo seals his
book with the praises of "the woman that fears God" (verse 30).

Thus, on one level EISHES CHAYIL is Shlomo's praise of his own wise mother Bat-sheva
(Metzudas).