Ref; Prov 31: 10-end
We continue in our “Great Women of the Bible” series, with the Proverbs 31 Woman..The Wife of Noble Character…A virtuous woman…
“A worthy woman who can find? For her price is far above rubies”..Pro 31:10
Unlike Deborah, Ruth, and Queen Esther, the Proverbs 31 woman does not refer to just one woman…Every christian woman has the Proverbs 31 woman inherent in her…you just have to draw her out…Let’s take a walk through the 31st chapter of the book of proverbs, to get to know her better…
Pro 31:11-12 The heart of her husband trusteth in her, and he shall have no lack of gain…She doeth him good and not evil all the days of her life…Because you are a virtuous woman, your husband should trust in you, should prosper at whatever business he does, and should experience goodness, all his days.
Pro 31:13 She seeketh wool and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands…the proverbs 31 woman is hardworking and skillful…you should be too.
Pro 31:14 She is like the merchant-ships; She bringeth her bread from afar…who says a woman cannot do business internationally?
Pro 31:15 She riseth also while it is yet night, and giveth food to her household, and their task to her maidens…as a christian woman, you should increase so much, that you’d need staff to do some work with and for you.
Pro 31:16 She considereth a field, and buyeth it; With the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard…you don’t need/have to depend on anybody, or to borrow…from your own income, you should be able to aquire property and build businesses, etc.
Pro 31:17 She girdeth her loins with strength, And maketh strong her arms…she is strong, and always in good health.
Pro 31:18 She perceiveth that her merchandise is profitable: Her lamp goeth not out by night.
Pro 31:19 She layeth her hands to the distaff, And her hands hold the spindle.
Pro 31:20 She stretcheth out her hand to the poor; Yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy…every christian woman should be a giver…be known for your benevolence.
Pro 31:21 She is not afraid of the snow for her household; For all her household are clothed with scarlet…Scarlet here refers to warm clothing…the virtuous woman is not afraid of changing weather conditions, for she has provided adequate clothing for her family…
Pro 31:22 She maketh for herself carpets of tapestry; Her clothing is fine linen and purple…for all her hardwork and success, doesn’t she deserve the nice things in life? She’s royalty in her own rights!
Pro 31:23 Her husband is known in the gates, When he sitteth among the elders of the land…my hubby sometimes jokes that her husband is lazy, leaving her to do all the hardwork and make all the money, while he sits at the gates doing nothing…he however tells me, that he would looooove to sit at the gate…lol…anyway, we both know that here, sitting at the gates, among the elders of the land, represents a position of great responsibility, wisdom, and trust…Her husband IS a great man!
Pro 31:24 She maketh linen garments and selleth them, And delivereth girdles unto the merchant.
Pro 31:25 Strength and dignity are her clothing; And she laugheth at the time to come…as a proverbs 31 woman, strength and dignity shall encompass you…and because you have planned and prepared for your future, you shall laugh with confidence, knowing that there shall be no sorrow, pain, or regret…
Pro 31:26 She openeth her mouth with wisdom; And the law of kindness is on her tongue…a virtuous woman is wise, and full of wise counsel…when she speaks, she takes other people into consideration, and is kind with her words.
Pro 31:27 She looketh well to the ways of her household, And eateth not the bread of idleness…the wife of noble character is NOT lazy!
Pro 31:28-29 Her children rise up, and call her blessed; Her husband also, and he praiseth her, saying: Many daughters have done worthily, But thou excellest them all...your husband and children should bless and praise you, constantly thanking God for making you a part of their lives.
“Grace is deceitful, and beauty is vain; But a woman that feareth Jehovah, she shall be praised”..Pro 31:30
Pro 31:31 Give her of the fruit of her hands; And let her works praise her in the gates…as proverbs 31 women, our gifts shall make room for us, our works shall speak for us, and we shall be recognised at home, and abroad…Amen!
AND, we shall remember to ALWAYS give ALL the glory, praise, and thanks, to God Almighty, who has started this good work in our lives, and who IS able to complete it…
I know I’m not there yet, but I certainly do aspire (and I’m taking steps) to be a complete Proverbs 31 woman…are you a proverbs 31 woman?
Hello, what a brilliant write-up. A must read for all. I am blessed because just a couple of weeks ago, I sent wifey a text to read Proverbs 31 because she is the woman God Almighty blessed me with.
No one is ever there, but we all can aspire to and be encouraged all along the way.
God bless you real good.
taKia
I am not ooo, chei but I trust that by God’s grace and my hardwork one day I will be. It’s funny ‘cos I’ve been reading books that talk of this Proverbs 31 woman. One of them is called ‘The lady, her lover and her lord’ by T.D Jakes and another one by Michelle Mckinney Hammond.
That was nothing short of inspiring…You’ve said it all…We all need to strive to be virtuous women…To also make ourselves worthy of the love of Good men we crave..
Lesson taught and Learnt!
Ps..Thanks for coming by,i hope to see you again..No i didn’t sue..lol..I can’t afford such legal fees,..lol..not to mention court dates and all..
My favorite verse of the proverbs 31 , is verses 11/12& 23; the hubby of the prov31 woman, can safely trust her to handle every aspect of the home, Also her hubby is in a position of influence in the community bcos she supports him, the hubby is considered wise dat’s y he can sit with d elders at the gates. v23.
thanx 4 this words again.
Hmm….. and what does the Mr have to do to be deserving of such a woman? Food for thought!
Good post.
Well expository…
for those who wants to know the kind of man the proverbs 31 woman needs, you will find it here: http://adesojiadegbulu.com/2009/05/a-wife-of-noble-character.html
Your comments will be appreciated. And if you find it interesting, why not subscribe for updates..
Thanks
One Love Doyin
I love this concise view and explanation of Prov 31, I feel like making this into a bible study outline for the women ministry in my church. BaGucci’s question is very important and crucial, can the men in the house talk about this please? …..any ideas of where the male version of Prov 31 is in the bible?
@ Babajide; Thanks and God bless you too…I’m glad this ministered to you, and hopefully to your wifey too…
@ Original M; Amen to that…yes, I’ve read the lady,her lover, n her Lord too…though I need to re-read it…
@ Rose; thanks dearie…lol @ your reasons for not suing…
@ dta; yes oh…u r welcome…thank u too…
@ Bagucci; yes, good food for thot…over to u guys…lol…maybe u n Niyioski should get together to do a guest post for Anoda Phase?
@ Jesus freak; thank you…the link u provided is broken, but we’ll all go to urs n search 4 it…thx…
@ Niyioski…thank you sir;feel free to do that, u have my express permission (just remember to quote Anoda Phase as the source…lol)…I suggest u n Bagucci get together on this (n any other men in d house…Jesus Freak? Sheyeh?)…see my reply to Bagucci above…you guys might want to start 4rm Prov 20…
Pro 20:6 Most men will proclaim every one his own kindness; But a faithful man who can find?…
this presents a challenge for a guy o..or maybe just the guy that desires the prov 31 babe.. :)..which takes me back to bagucci’s question…lord help..
ahhh proverbs 31 woman, I could go on and on with this topic. its a rich chapte that contains a whole bunch of things both for the men and women of God.
Who can find such a woman? she is not impossible to find.
I am proverbs 31 woman in training
you ask where the male version is? Its spread out in the bible, you just have to understand it. I have been involved in debates where some men claim “loving your wife” is more tasking than “submitting to your husband”, but its once place to start in being the male version of proverbs 31 woman. what is love you ask? go to God’s definition of it as seen in 1 cor 13 and thats another place to start your training.
ahhh…Husbands love your wife; love your wife as Christ loved the church. Give yourself up for your wife (Eph 5:25)
b)Love your wife in the same way you love your body and yourself (Eph 5:28-33)
c)Be considerate as you live with your wife (1 Pet 3:7)
d)Do not be harsh with your wife (Col. 3:19)
e)Your bdy belongs to your wife (1 Cor 7:3-5)
f)Rejoice in your wife; let her breasts satisfy you. be captivated with her (Proverbs 5:18-19)
g).Ensure that other men do not enjoy your wife in public places (Prov 5:16)
h) Do not be captivated by other women (Prov 5:20)
i)Praise your wife (Prov 31:28-29)
j)Tell your wife how captivated with her body (song of solomon; 4:7; 7:1-8)
k)Honor your marriage; keep it pure by remaining true to your wife n every way (Heb 13:4)
l)Be thankful to your wife and realize the favor you have received frm God (Prov 18:22)
m)Be one flesh with your wife in every way (Mat 19:5)
Each point is a sub heading and there are explanations for each point…enjoy
still on the proverbs 31 male;
A husband: helper; provider of food, clothing and marital rights (Ex 21:10).
Provider (1Tim 5),
love your wife and do not be bitter against her, have authority over your wife’s body, head of the wife, love your wife, you should be able to give yourself up for your wife, cleanse her by your word. Do what you have to present your wife to you in splendor without spot or wrinkle but blameless (the church did not do anything before Jesus gave himself up; Jesus willingly did it for them to make them presentable to him. Don’t start looking if your wife is doing what she ought to or not) Jn 15:3; you are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you; clean your wife up by the words you speak to her; let your words be seasoned.
Live with the understanding that yur wife is of a weaker nature. Honor your wife (as co heir of God’s kingdom; so your prayers wont be hindered)
Qualities: be able to recognize/appreciate the worth of your wife. Praise your wife. Reward your wife. Do not overshadow her works; let her handiwork be seen so she may be praised for them
justdoyin
Thanks for the wonderful write up…you knew I was going to look out for that “sitting at the gate” part…thanks for including it.
I was going to try and respond to BaGucci’s question until I read Naijagirl’s response and I can only say thanks to her for the list…each one is a topic of discussion on it’s own.
it is said that “like attracts like” and based on that I will say that you need to be a Pro 31 kind of man if you are going to attract a Pro 31 woman i.e. be a better man so you could attract a better woman. If you are married, seek to be a better man as well.
my answer is found in Pro 19:14 “House and riches are the inheritance of fathers: and a prudent wife is from the LORD.” …a gift from God which you need to search for, as in Pro 18:22.
cheers
Sometimes, reading about the proverbs 31 makes me stagger.
Yet I know that we may not all be her at this time but we should all keep her before our eyes as we walk this road called marriage.
Regardless of what my man does, I should still strive to be the best I can.
Thanks for the reminder and thanks for visiting my blog.
@ Simeone; oh yes…over 2 u guys…lol
@ Naijagirl; I c u r on a roll here…lol. thx 4 helping d guys out on this 1…we r all blessed n enlightened…
@ Seye; lol…yes, I knew u would look out for it…thanks for adding to this…
@ Enkay; well said…thanks, n u r welcome…
@Gucci he has to be a man of God. Boaz, David or someone in that area…
Thank u Lady A…
Good thoughts, and as many have said, any reading on the Proverbs 31 woman offers a challenge to us all.
As for the “Proverbs 31” man…can’t we say that as we, both male and female, are apart of God’s church and thus the Bride of Christ, all of us, both male and female can have these same qualities or characteristics. As the Bride of Christ it is our responsibility to stive to be the “Proverbs 31 woman” honoring Jesus as our husband and reaching out to those that are lost.
I like your submission GTG; very well said…thanks for coming by my blog…God bless you…
Doyin this is a nice one i must say
it will take the Grace of God to be like that woman,that is a picture of a balanced life.God help us
Kemi, thanks a lot…ur kind words keep me going…yes, it will take the grace of God to be like the Prov 31 woman, and as u say; God will help us all 2 get there…cheers
[…] 27, 2009 by justdoyin I was just going through the Proverbs 31 Woman post, and I stumbled upon Naijagirl’s comments, a part of which reads like this; I have been […]
[…] one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; To another faith by the same Spirit; to […]
Heyb it seems to be everywia dis weekend! This prov 31 woman and the challenge she poses to us today! We thank God for her sha! But the truth is, I think we all have her in us. We are all that woman, if only we would look through the eyes with which God sees us! My take is that the Prov 31 woman should want to be like today’s christiam woman sef! Like I said, my take. I enjoyed reading this. I think all d Prov 31 woman articles shld be combined into some kind of compendium for future reference.
@ bagucci – I think the Prov 31 man should fir her just perfectly! Lol!
“Every christian woman has the Proverbs 31 woman inherent in her…you just have to draw her out…” sums it all up.
I strive to be her too. Thanks for sharing.
I think there’s more to the Proverbs 31 woman than people initially realize when just reading the passage. I’ve incidentally been reading a new book by Dr. Tony Evans and his daughter, Chrystal Evans Hurst called “Kingdom Woman” that has given me new insights. Right off the bat they talk about the Proverbs 31 woman being the hallmark of kingdom women, “But the Proverbs 31 woman is not the model of a perfect woman. Neither is a kingdom woman called to perfection. Women, you can be a Proverbs 31 woman and more – but that doesn’t mean you do it all at the same time.” They talk about life flowing through seasons and about getting help, not trying to do it all. It’s really eye-opening. If you’re interested in Dr. Evan’s book, they have information and even free devotional downloads at kingdomwomanbook.com. I hope it blesses you as it has blessed me.