[JESOT 1.2 (2012): 167–88] Wisdom Incarnate?: Identity and Role of אשׁת־חיל(“the Valiant Woman”) in Proverbs 31:10–31 JISEONG KWON Durham University camelknee24@hanmail.net Understanding the identity of אשׁת־חיל(literally, “a woman of strength”) in Prov 31:10–31 presents various exegetical and interpretative issues. What is the rational way to look at the business woman’s characteristics? Should the life of the ancient successful woman which the Hebrew acrostic pragmatically portrays be recognised as speaking of social activities in ANE culture or should it be limited to religious virtues relevant to an Israelite community? Or perhaps, we can make an interpretive decision looking at it from both sides? Employing textual and literary approaches to find the persona of אשׁת־חיל (“womon of strength”), I argue that all the activities of the woman in the poem indicate the model of virtuous woman as well as of the mundane woman in a particular historical period and that אשׁת־חיל (“the valiant woman”) is used for a symbolic figure of personified Wisdom. KEYWORDS: אשׁת־חיל(“the valiant woman”), Hebrew acrostic, hermeneutical model, personified Wisdom INTRODUCTION When believers in Jewish or Christian communities describe their desired image of a wife, both women and men generally appeal to ˇʺ־ʠ ʬʩʧ (“the valiant woman”) in Prov 31:10–31, as a model worthy of emulation. In this poem, she is portrayed as a husband’s perfect helper (Prov 31:11, 23) and as a diligent business woman (vv. 13–16, 17–19, 24). She is represented as a physically and spiritually influential woman in society as well as in her household (vv. 19–20). She is not simply a wife who promotes prosperity, but she is a moral woman who possesses a heart of wisdom and Torah (v. 26). Furthermore, her family respects