She Rises While It is Night – Proverbs 31:15

She Rises While It is Night – Proverbs 31:15

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 only if his plans are followed by earnest toils” (The Golden Gems of Life). We can not expect to have clean and tidy homes, the clothes laundered and put away, good food shopped for and prepared, and all of the other things required in being a homemaker if we don’t work hard and sleep too much. We must not eat the bread of idleness.

Love not sleep, lest thou come to poverty; open thine eyes, and thou shalt be satisfied with bread (Proverbs 20:13).

“Before dawn she is up and stirring, to be ready for her daily occupation…Early rising before any great undertaking is continually mentioned in Scripture (see Genesis 19:2; Genesis 22:3; Psalm 57:8; Jeremiah 7:13; Jeremiah 25:4, etc.; Mark 16:2; John 20:1).” (Pulpit Commentary)

“Awake up, my glory; awake, psaltery and harp: I myself will awake early” (Psalm 57:8)

I have always been an early riser. I love being awake before everyone else, having quiet time, studying, and “giving meat for my household” when my children lived in the home or come to visit. I make french toast, pancakes, eggs and toast, eggs with potatoes, or soaked oatmeal. When my children were growing up, I would make homemade muffins and waffles, too. It was important for me that they eat a good breakfast and while they ate, I would read the Bible to them.

If you weren’t taught how to cook healthy, study and learn how to do it. There are many resources available through the Internet, cooking shows, and books. There is no excuse to not be a good cook these days and then learn to enjoy doing this since you are nourishing your family’s bodies.

As Nancy Campbell wrote, “Don’t look at cooking meals with resignation. Instead, do it with revelation. You have the privilege of feeding your children nourishing food. You are gathering them together around your table again. You are preparing the way to feed their soul and spirit as you read God’s Word at the end of the meal. You are teaching them about life and passing on values to the next generation.

There is too much fast food eating in our nation already! It’s not healthy eating and it negates valuable family togetherness in the home. If you don’t lovingly cook meals at home and pass on this tradition, what will the next generation do?

Make every meal a ‘love affair.'”

Children notoriously wake up early. Most children are in bed by 8:00 pm and then wake up by 6:00 am so it’s important for the mother to go to bed early so she can wake up early with her children to care and feed them after having a good night sleep. As keepers at home, mothers are the ones who are responsible to care for the needs of their family unless they are physically unable. Make sure to teach your children to enjoy going to bed early and rising early. It’s a good discipline to learn.

If you have a poor night sleep, depend upon the Lord for your strength. I have a dear and older, godly friend who can only sleep four to five hours a night yet she determined years ago that instead of grumbling and complaining about it, she would be thankful for the sleep she did get and depend upon the Lord’s strength to get her through each day. She is one of the most positive and cheerful people I know, plus she gets a lot done every single day!

“She riseth also while it is yet night,…. That is, before the ascent of the morning, before break of day; a great while before day, as Christ is said to rise to pray, Mark 1:35; while it was yet dark; so the church here: which shows her affection for her family, her care of her children, and fervent zeal for her husband’s interest and good…with the wholesome words of Christ, with the good doctrines of the Gospel; these have a certain portion given them, and they rightly cut and divide the word of truth, and give to everyone their portion of meat in due season, according to their age and circumstances; milk indeed to babes and meat to strong men” (Gill’s Exposition).

Besides giving actual food to your family, make sure you are speaking kindly to them and showing them by the way that you live your life that you are a child of the King of Kings. My encouragement to you is to read the pure words of the Bible to your children from the time they are small since it is God’s living Word rather than children’s bible stories written by men. The Bible is what will transform them and we are instructed to hide it deep within our hearts.

Read a few verses in Proverbs and explain it in simple terms when they are small. As they grow older, teach them the doctrines of the faith in Romans and Hebrews. Read through a Gospel and let them be amazed at the life of their Savior. Read Genesis and God’s perfect creation; how it was marred by sin and infected everything on earth by sin’s consequences.

When they are more mature in their faith, read to them the end of the story – Revelation. Did you know that we are blessed when we read it (Revelation 1:3)? Let them see the marvelous last two chapters in Revelation about the finality of God’s redemptive plan for all those who call upon His name and the new earth that we will all will live upon one day. Develop in them an awe and reverence for their Creator from the time they are little children. This is the single most important thing you will do for your children as they live under your roof.

Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
Psalm 119:11

22 thoughts on “She Rises While It is Night – Proverbs 31:15

  1. I just want to comment about early raising.

    I have struggled with that my whole life. I have had trouble waking up before 10 am no matter how early I went to sleep. School was always difficult and going to work too. I used to sleep on public transit.

    When I became a homemaker I had a lot of trouble with structuring my day because there is no external pressure to get up early (my husband has very flexible working hours and he’s not a early riser either).

    A few months ago I hit the rock bottom. My child started preschool in the morning and I need to get up early. I was ALWAYS exhausted and, as consequence, not in a good mood.

    So I asked my doctor to run some blood tests. It turned out that I had a very severe vitamin D deficiency.

    I started to supplement with high doses of vitamin D (plus vitamin A from a multivitamin in order to improve absorption) and a magnesium drink.

    Within a week I was already better. Not constantly exhausted anymore. I can wake up at 7 am without too many problems. I have more energy.

    If you struggle with constant exhaustion, please get tested. The test is very affordable and supplements are too (even the best brands). It may change your life as mine was.

  2. What a great post! A wife has such an important role as the one who tends to and nourishes her family. There is no time for laziness!

  3. Great advice, Mrs. G. Thank you! I love that my Naturopath tests for all vitamin, mineral, and hormone deficiencies. It seems like something most doctors should do since lacking in these can cause poor health.

  4. I have always been a night owl but during the school year, I get up an hour and a half before the children so I can get ready for the day. We homeschool, so I find that I need to have that time in the morning where I can pray, walk our dogs, start a bit on the housework, and have time to get myself ready.

    Summer has really thrown us off because I now stay up later with the family and my husband since the children are up later, and I find myself getting up around 8 a.m. Sometimes my daughter is even up before me. I don’t like the feeling of getting up so late, I feel like I haven’t accomplished much.

    I have a friend that gets up at 5 every morning, even in the summer. I’m always wondering how she does it since I know she goes to bed later. However, she is the type of person that always has a lot of energy, but her garden and her beautiful house reflect that 🙂

    Just wondering, Lori, what time do you go to bed at night…and now that your children are grown, do you still get up early?

  5. Such a great reminder Lori. Thanks for being so faithful. I can always count on a good post everyday here. I am sure it must take a lot of your time. It is much appreciated!

  6. I agree Diane ! Thanks a lot Lori for your work ! It helps me to keep a biblical point of view of my role as a wife and mom, not letting our culture to destroy in my mind what God wants for me and from me !!! Thank you again !

  7. This is a great article.

    I have to admit that I struggle with getting up early as I am a nocturnal person. However, since my husband is an early bird, he has been setting the alarm for 5:30 AM every morning!

    As a newlywed, who wanted to have a traditional marriage, at first I looked forward to making meals. I have to admit that I’m at the resignation stage, especially since I have a picky husband!

    Oh well. Little by little.

  8. A year ago my pastor’s wife did a study with us ladies on being a virtuous woman and I purposed in my heart at that time to get up every morning at 4 AM. I have successfully made it a habit and it has helped my life so much. I go to bed early, wake up early, work hard at home and feel like I am finally at peace. I did some tweaking to my schedule over the day to finally get here, but waking up early and spending time with the Lord and then starting my work early has been one of the best things that I have ever done. Great article. Very thought provoking. God bless.

  9. I go to bed around 9:00 pm and wake up around 5:00 am all year around. I love having the mornings to study and read. When I am with my grandchildren, I am up and caring for them which I love to do.

  10. You’re welcome! We are encouraged to exhort one another daily, Daniele, and I know I sure need it because we so easily forget truth and the Lord’s ways if we are not reminded continually.

  11. Good for you, Wendy. Laine from Laine’s Letters made a commitment to the Lord to wake up in the wee hours of the morning to spend time with Him and it radically changed her life! We are promised that this will happen to any of us who commit to spend time in His Word for it alone is what transforms us.

  12. I’ve been waking with my husband between 6-6:30 which i thought was early! It is for me I’ve always been a late riser. Waking earlier make me feel very good, ahead of the day! Although this has inspired me to wake even earlier!

  13. I wish I could wake up early! Unfortunately, I’ve always been a night owl, even as a child, and different jobs I’ve had over the years have not encouraged early starts. My children don’t get up very early either – I usually have to wake them at 7am to get up for school.

    Such great advice though. I will have to work towards going to bed earlier (currently I’m up til around midnight and don’t wake until about 6.30 – 7am, later on weekends) and getting up earlier. I always tell myself I’ll do things in the evening, once the kids are asleep, but I’m always too tired and not productive. I’m sure I would be much more productive if I got up earlier.

  14. I get up around 5:30 with my husband. But unfortunately sometimes dont get to bed till 12pm as im trying to catch up on housework. I realise this is of my own doing. Im exhausted. And for reasons i wont divulge i have 1 child to drive to the schoolbus 4 days a week amd two children to take to kindergarten 3 days a week. So im constantly in and out of the house dropping kids off. And im a homebody. So thats part of the reason im so behind. ?

  15. Good, good advice. I’ve always been an early riser, but I was thrown off in college when I had the freedom to stay up later. Now that I work mostly from home, I have that freedom again, but I know I want to get up before my husband, have prayer and scripture reading, make him coffee and breakfast and lunch (although I find it better to do that the night before), etc. Im married to a man who has cooked and catered professionally in his younger days, so I don’t think of myself as a good cook, but I still make him simple, whole food I know he likes: colorful salads, beans and rice, tabbouli, soups, sandwiches with crusty bread and homemade hummus and other bean spreads, coconut curry dishes with tons of veggies, etc. Im still working on how to make homemade pizza without making the crust soggy, as well as making homemade blackbean burgers that are neither too crispy. Any simple, protein and veggie-loaded dish ideas? (We eat mostly but not exclusively plant based, which means we eat a ton of beans and lentils)

  16. The Bible does indeed encourage us to rise early. I’m also thinking that I’ve observed so many young mothers that are really harried, exhausted and sleep-deprived, one way we can encourage and lift them up, is to lend a hand in whatever way we can. In Biblical and ancient times women lived in a community, for example, and they helped one another such as with birthing and nursing. Those early years are so difficult, depending on children’s sleep patterns. I’m sure anyone who’s been through it can sympathize.

    I’ve realised that I have to be careful when talking a young mother. They can be incredibly sensitive and afraid of doing the wrong thing, sometimes they need some love and reassurance that no, there’s no such thing as a “perfect” ideal that they need to measure up to, the important thing is to be “faithful in little” and trust God for the rest.

  17. Pasta dishes and ratatouille are filling and can be tailored to any taste. Adjust the vegetables and sauce to your taste.

  18. My mom recommended me this blog and I found this post and loved it so much! My only problem is i’m not an early riser and i procrastinate a lot. My mom told me that since I am a teen I can start working on this now so that when I become a mother I am ready. This post was really helpful and I will try working harder for my family and future family 🙂

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