The Transformed Wife

She perceives that her merchandise is good: her candle goes not out by night. Proverbs 31:18 “She perceiveth that her merchandise is good,…. That it turns to good account; that her trading to heaven is of great advantage; that she grows rich hereby; that her merchandise with Wisdom, or Christ, is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereby than fine gold; and though her voyages are attended with trouble and danger, yet are profitable, and therefore she…

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She girds her loins with strength, and strengthens her arms. Proverbs 31:17 “She girdeth her loins with strength,…. Showing her readiness to every good work; and with what cheerfulness, spirit, and resolution, she set about it, and with what dispatch and expedition she performed it” (Gill’s Exposition). I have to admit, when I was younger, I was lazy and loved to be served. When we would spend a couple of weeks each summer with my parents in Door County at…

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She considers a field, and buys it: with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard. Proverbs 31:16 “Whether it be fit for use and of a reasonable price, and how she may purchase it. This excludes the rashness, as the proceeding to buy it excludes the inconstancy, which is often incident to that sex” (Benson Commentary). Yes, many of us women often buy things on impulse. We see something we like and buy it without pondering if we…

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She rises also while it is yet night, and gives meat to her household, and a portion to her maidens. Proverbs 31:15 “She doth not indulge herself in too much sleep, but is an early riser, before the break of day, to make provision for those who are to go abroad to work in the fields, and to set her maidens their several tasks at home.” (Benson Commentary). “A person will get the best results in every area of life…

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She is like the merchants’ ships; she brings her food from afar. Proverbs 31:14 We spent several months in Wisconsin this summer in the cabin my dad bought 30 years ago. Since Ken works from home, we had the opportunity to do this, and we greatly enjoyed it. In order to find fresh food, once a week I would drive about 40 minutes to the nearest health food store and buy up things mostly on sale. They have great monthly…

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She seeks wool and flax, and works willingly with her hands. Proverbs 31:13 “Not that it is the duty of kings and queens to use manual operations, but it is the duty of all persons, the greatest not excepted, to improve all their talents, and particularly their time, which is one of the noblest of them, to the service of that God to whom they must give an account, and to the good of that community to which they are…

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She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life. Proverbs 31:12 The Proverbs 31 woman will “give him thanks for all the good things bestowed by him on her; will seek his interest, and promote his honor and glory to the uttermost; all the good works she does, which she is qualified for, and ready to perform, are all done in his name and strength, and with a view to his glory; nor will she…

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The heart of her husband does safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil. Proverbs 31:11 “For the prudent and faithful management of all his domestic affairs, which are committed to her care; He shall not need to use indirect and unlawful courses to get wealth, as by cheating, or oppressing his subjects, or others, as princes have often done to maintain the luxury of their wives, and as Solomon himself afterward did: because all…

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“The whole passage (Proverbs 31:10-31) is the hallowing of domestic life, a directory for wives and mothers, a beautiful ideal of how noble a thing a busy mother’s life may be, an exhibition to young men of what they should seek, and of young women of what they should aim for” (MacLaren’s Exposition). I am going to study Proverbs 31:10-31 verse by verse, which describes the beautiful ideal of a godly woman, and will use the commentaries of old, since…

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