I found the study of the Proverbs 31 woman so insightful and refreshing! I was amazed to discover it's not written with the intention of being an unattainable check-list for every Christian woman but rather a word of advice from a mother to her son.
I hope you enjoy this devotional and find it as edifying and uplifting as I did!
Women Of The Bible- Proverbs 31 Woman
Proverbs 31:1-31
“The words of King Lemuel, the utterance which his mother taught him:
What, my son?
And what, son of my womb?
And what, son of my vows?
Do not give your strength to women,
Nor your ways to that which destroys kings.
It is not for kings, O Lemuel,
It is not for kings to drink wine,
Nor for princes intoxicating drink;
Lest they drink and forget the law,
And pervert the justice of all the afflicted.
Give strong drink to him who is perishing,
And wine to those who are bitter of heart.
Let him drink and forget his poverty,
And remember his misery no more.
Open your mouth for the speechless,
In the cause of all who are appointed to die.
Open your mouth, judge righteously,
And plead the cause of the poor and needy.
Who can find a virtuous wife?
For her worth is far above rubies.
The heart of her husband safely trusts her;
So he will have no lack of gain.
She does him good and not evil
All the days of her life.
She seeks wool and flax,
And willingly works with her hands.
She is like the merchant ships,
She brings her food from afar.
She also rises while it is yet night,
And provides food for her household,
And a portion for her maidservants.
She considers a field and buys it;
From her profits she plants a vineyard.
She girds herself with strength,
And strengthens her arms.
She perceives that her merchandise is good,
And her lamp does not go out by night.
She stretches out her hands to the distaff,
And her hand holds the spindle.
She extends her hand to the poor,
Yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy.
She is not afraid of snow for her household,
For all her household is clothed with scarlet.
She makes tapestry for herself;
Her clothing is fine linen and purple.
Her husband is known in the gates,
When he sits among the elders of the land.
She makes linen garments and sells them,
And supplies sashes for the merchants.
Strength and honour are her clothing;
She shall rejoice in time to come.
She opens her mouth with wisdom,
And on her tongue is the law of kindness.
She watches over the ways of her household,
And does not eat the bread of idleness.
Her children rise up and call her blessed;
Her husband also, and he praises her:
“Many daughters have done well,
But you excel them all.”
Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing,
But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.
Give her of the fruit of her hands,
And let her own works praise her in the gates.”
Women of the Bible, so many to admire.I hope you enjoy this devotional and find it as edifying and uplifting as I did!
Women Of The Bible- Proverbs 31 Woman
Proverbs 31:1-31
“The words of King Lemuel, the utterance which his mother taught him:
What, my son?
And what, son of my womb?
And what, son of my vows?
Do not give your strength to women,
Nor your ways to that which destroys kings.
It is not for kings, O Lemuel,
It is not for kings to drink wine,
Nor for princes intoxicating drink;
Lest they drink and forget the law,
And pervert the justice of all the afflicted.
Give strong drink to him who is perishing,
And wine to those who are bitter of heart.
Let him drink and forget his poverty,
And remember his misery no more.
Open your mouth for the speechless,
In the cause of all who are appointed to die.
Open your mouth, judge righteously,
And plead the cause of the poor and needy.
Who can find a virtuous wife?
For her worth is far above rubies.
The heart of her husband safely trusts her;
So he will have no lack of gain.
She does him good and not evil
All the days of her life.
She seeks wool and flax,
And willingly works with her hands.
She is like the merchant ships,
She brings her food from afar.
She also rises while it is yet night,
And provides food for her household,
And a portion for her maidservants.
She considers a field and buys it;
From her profits she plants a vineyard.
She girds herself with strength,
And strengthens her arms.
She perceives that her merchandise is good,
And her lamp does not go out by night.
She stretches out her hands to the distaff,
And her hand holds the spindle.
She extends her hand to the poor,
Yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy.
She is not afraid of snow for her household,
For all her household is clothed with scarlet.
She makes tapestry for herself;
Her clothing is fine linen and purple.
Her husband is known in the gates,
When he sits among the elders of the land.
She makes linen garments and sells them,
And supplies sashes for the merchants.
Strength and honour are her clothing;
She shall rejoice in time to come.
She opens her mouth with wisdom,
And on her tongue is the law of kindness.
She watches over the ways of her household,
And does not eat the bread of idleness.
Her children rise up and call her blessed;
Her husband also, and he praises her:
“Many daughters have done well,
But you excel them all.”
Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing,
But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.
Give her of the fruit of her hands,
And let her own works praise her in the gates.”
We learn about their strengths and traits to which we can aspire.
One of great intrigue is found in Proverbs 31,
We read these words of wisdom from a mother to her son.
These verses, filled with sound advice to help him gain success,
Suggest he find a godly wife with traits she might possess.
This passage, not a checklist for every Christian wife
But counsel and instruction to avoid all kinds of strife.
Guidance to seek righteousness and be of sober mind,
To gain a wife of virtue, a precious thing to find.
What attributes can we observe, what traits can we unravel?
What qualities and aspects can we see in this example?
We read about a woman who is diligent and bold.
She’s confident and capable, a lady to behold!
She isn’t weak and helpless but self-assured and strong.
A blessing to her husband, who praises her with song.
Using all her gifts and skills, unique and well adjusted,
This woman of integrity is worthy to be trusted.
Devoted to her family, she loves and serves the Lord.
A life that glorifies her King is truly her reward.
She teaches us to use our days and trust in God’s provision,
To always show compassion and to seek out wise decisions.
Oh may we be inspired in the days still yet to come
And look to the example found in Proverbs 31!
Colossians 3:17
“And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”
Colossians 3:23-24
“And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.”
Points For Reflection And Insight
Proverbs 31 begins by telling us that these are the words of King Lemuel (whose name means “belonging to God”) and he’s sharing some wisdom given to him by his mother. King Lemuel isn’t found on any recorded list of the kings of Judah or Israel so it seems likely that he was a pagan king who went on to put his trust in the God of Israel and through the fear of the Lord, learned wisdom.
There has been much discussion over who King Lemuel was but what we see clearly at the beginning of this chapter is the tenderness in which his mother spoke to him. We can hear her words of great affection as she describes three times, her connection to him.
I found this really interesting as so often, Proverbs 31 can be viewed as some sort of “check-list” for Christian women to live up to. Verse 1 tells us clearly however that this chapter isn’t actually directed at women at all, these are words of advice that were addressed to a man. This is also just one woman’s motherly advice to her son and not an overarching prescription or manual for all virtuous women to attain to.
Taken in the correct context, we can see that these verses are very much a mother advising her son not to make bad choices such as chasing after women and getting drunk. She advises him to treat others well and find a godly woman before then giving an example of some of the traits a godly woman might possess.
This chapter certainly isn’t saying, “All Christian women must tick these boxes in order to be a virtuous woman.” Rather, her description is intended to help her son have a clear picture of what a woman of noble character may look like. It’s certainly very insightful when it comes to highlighting helpful principles in living a virtuous life.
I think it’s also worth noting that this woman is mentioned in what seems to be an allegorical sense and not a literal one. Scholars aren’t entirely in agreement as to whether this woman was an allegorical character or a real person. Either way, it seems highly likely that the woman of Proverbs 31 is a compilation of best traits of godly women as a whole.
Looking through this chapter, it also doesn’t seem to suggest that she is a young woman with young children or has achieved all the things listed in one day! She appears to be an older woman with years of experience and this is perhaps highlighting the “best bits” that this wife of noble character has achieved over the course of her whole life.
The reason I mention this is because it can often feel as if the woman of Proverbs 31 sets an unattainable standard for us mere mortals who maybe don’t rise before the sun is up! Perhaps we don’t have husbands of high standing or even a husband at all for that matter. Maybe we don’t have lots of children or don’t feel like the perfect mother to our offspring. We may not have fabulous work lives to boast of, successful careers or be able to brag about our excellent DIY skills on top of all that!
The point is, the virtuous woman in this chapter is not intended to make us feel as if we have to be the perfect trophy wife, perfect mother and successful career woman. None of us are perfect and we can’t do it all. Instead, these verses can offer an example of some clear characteristics and qualities that can help us when it comes to cultivating a “virtuous and noble character” in our own lives.
So what are some of the traits we see from studying this woman in Proverbs 31? We certainly see that she’s not a pushover and she’s not weak. As I mentioned in the poem, this woman is confident, capable and self-assured. She reflects well on her husband and honours him but she’s still very much her own person with her own strengths and abilities and far from being “the family maid.”
Interestingly, eleven of the verses focus on how hard she works, both inside and outside of the house. Four of the verses mention her husband, one verse mentions her children so the main focus isn’t actually on her being a wife and mother. Although these are elements of her life, the main focus is actually on her being her own, unique person who is using her God-given talents to bless those around her.
Studying the woman of Proverbs 31, there are certain things we can see that may help us in our lives today. When we look at her qualities we can see that she had excellent character and integrity. She was trustworthy, sought to do good to others, worked diligently, made wise decisions and was compassionate to those in need. These are all wonderful traits that we would certainly do well to emulate in our own lives.
Regardless of whether or not we have our own businesses, husband, children or own home, may we take some time today to ask the Holy Spirit to help us cultivate a noble character. Whatever our personal situation may be, there is so much we can learn from the inspiring example given to us through this hard-working, virtuous woman of Proverbs 31.
