A COMPETENT WIFE/Woman-part 4—Proverbs 31:10-31
Attention:
The writer of Proverbs detailed a successful marriage from the standpoint of a competent wife.
A wife’s competence completes a successful marriage.
Who is a competent wife?
What makes/characterizes a competent wife?
Competent—1)“Having the necessary ability, knowledge, or skill to do something successfully; 2)Efficient & capable.
*There is no higher calling for a wife/woman than to be ‘competent’ in Christ Jesus!
We have found previously that
A competent wife/woman...
1. Is Competently RARE & PRECIOUS(:10)in a world given to self-service
2. Competently COMMITS(:11-12)to her husband & family
3. Competently PROVIDES(:13-15)for her husband & family
4. Competently PREMEDITATES(:16)opportunity for her family’s resources
5—A competent wife/woman is...
Competently STRONG(:17)
Explanation:(:17)
:17—“She girds herself with strength, And strengthens her arms.”
A virtuous woman/wife must actively ‘put on’ “strength” in order to accomplish the daily tasks to which she commits herself. She pulls everything about herself together with “strength” as with a belt.
Likewise she takes it upon herself to “strengthen” her “arms.” Physical strength is something usually sought by men but is just as becoming to a woman as well.
She is unafraid of hard work. Thru her work she remains fit both physically & mentally. She does not balk at physical labor & is accustomed to it. Thereby she will not back down from a task that may cause her to ‘break a sweat.’
Such integrity of her ways “strengthens” her for greater works.
Such “personal initiative” is an asset to her, her family, & beyond.
“Girds/Sets about”—rgx khaw-gar’—(See :24 ‘from’—“Sashes”)—1) To gird, gird on, gird oneself, put on a belt. Strong—a primitive root; To gird on(as a belt, armor, etc.).
“Strength/Vigorously”(See :25)—zwe `owz—Noun Masc.—1) Might, strength—1a) Material or physical, 1b) Personal or social or political. Strong—Strength in various applications(force, security, majesty, praise).
“Strengthens/Strong”—Uma aw-mats’—Piel(intensive/intentional or repeated/extended) Imperfect—1) To be strong, alert, courageous, brave, stout, bold, solid, hard—1b) (Piel)--To strengthen, secure(for oneself), harden(heart), make firm, make obstinate, assure. Strong—a primitive root; To be alert, physically(on foot) or mentally(in courage).
“Arms”—erz zer-o'-ah—1) Arm, forearm, shoulder, strength—1a) Arm, 1b) Arm(as symbol of strength), 1c) Forces(political & military), 1d) Shoulder(of animal sacrificed). Strong—The arm(as stretched out), or (of animals)--The foreleg; figuratively--Force.
Argumentation:
Inner strength from God is necessary for attaining His outer strength.
Hosea 7:11-16—“Ephraim also is like a silly dove, without sense--They call to Egypt, They go to Assyria. Wherever they go, I will spread My net on them; I will bring them down like birds of the air; I will chastise them According to what their congregation has heard. Woe to them, for they have fled from Me! Destruction to them, Because they have transgressed against Me! Though I redeemed them, Yet they have spoken lies against Me. They did not cry out to Me with their heart When they wailed upon their beds. They assemble together for grain & new wine, They rebel against Me; Though I disciplined & strengthened their arms, Yet they devise evil against Me; They return, but not to the Most High; They are like a treacherous bow. Their princes shall fall by the sword For the cursings of their tongue. This shall be their derision in the land of Egypt.”
Though God gave strength to their lives, they accepted the strength without honoring the Giver of the strength.
Lk. 12:32-40—“Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Sell what you have & give alms; provide yourselves money bags which do not grow old, a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches nor moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Let your waist be girded & your lamps burning; & you yourselves be like men who wait for their master, when he will return from the wedding, that when he comes & knocks they may open to him immediately. Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself & have them sit down to eat, & will come & serve them. And if he should come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, & find them so, blessed are those servants. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched & not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”
**Eph. 6:11-20—“Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh & blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, & having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, & having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, & the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer & supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance & supplication for all the saints--& for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.”
**1Pet. 1:13-19—“Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, & rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.” And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish & without spot.”
Lk. 9:57-62—“Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, “Lord, I will follow You wherever You go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes & birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” Then He said to another, “Follow Me.” But he said, “Lord, let me first go & bury my father.” Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go & preach the kingdom of God.” And another also said, “Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go & bid them farewell who are at my house.” But Jesus said to him, “No one, having put his hand to the plow, & looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.”
**1Tim. 4:6-11—“If you instruct the brethren in these things, you will be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished in the words of faith & of the good doctrine which you have carefully followed. But reject profane & old wives’ fables, & exercise yourself toward godliness. For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is & of that which is to come. This is a faithful saying & worthy of all acceptance. For to this end we both labor & suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe. These things command & teach.”
**2Cor. 12:1-10—“It is doubtless not profitable for me to boast. I will come to visions & revelations of the Lord: I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago--whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows--such a one was caught up to the third heaven. And I know such a man--whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows-- how he was caught up into Paradise & heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter. Of such a one I will boast; yet of myself I will not boast, except in my infirmities. For though I might desire to boast, I will not be a fool; for I will speak the truth. But I refrain, lest anyone should think of me above what he sees me to be or hears from me. And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
Illustration:
Jack Sisk makes coffee for everybody at most of our gatherings(FBCC)—Sunday school especially/I never hear the coffee drinkers say that Jack’s coffee is too ‘weak’ or too ‘strong’/Yet Jack’s coffee is where many people head on Sunday mornings before Sunday School/Why?...Because it provides opportunity for conversation & fellowship—the kind of real ‘strength’ needed to meet the day!/Competently STRONG
Application:
?You Competently STRONG?
?You a Competent Wife/Woman?
6—A competent wife/woman is...
Competently INVOLVED(:18-19)
Explanation:(:18-19)Hands-on-Experience
:18—“She perceives that her merchandise is good, And her lamp does not go out by night.”
A virtuous woman/wife is personally appreciative/knowledgable about her “merchandise.” Thus she is well aware of its quality on a first-hand basis.
She tastes/receives(“perceives”) the returns of her God-ordered efforts, knowing that they are honoring to her family. This plays into her drive 7 passion for her work.
She is a tireless worker for her family(:15).
A virtuous woman/wife is always on call, & she willingly sets that precedent.
The competent wife/woman does not labor so she can gloat over her accomplishments.
“Perceives/Senses/Sees”—Mej taw-am'—1) To taste, perceive, eat—1a) (Qal)--To taste. Strong—a primitive root; To taste; figuratively--To perceive. Used 11X.
“Merchandise/Gain/Trading/Profits”(See :14—V.)—rxo sakh’-ar—Noun Masc.—1) Traffic, gain, profit, gain from merchandise—1a) Traffic, gain from traffic. Strong—Profit(from trade). Used 20X.
“Good”(See :12)—bwj towb—Adj.—1) Good, pleasant, agreeable. Noun Masc.—2) A good thing, benefit, welfare—2a) Welfare, prosperity, happiness, 2b) Good things(collective), 2c) Good, benefit, 2d) Moral good. Noun Fem.—3) Welfare, benefit, good things—3a) Welfare, prosperity, happiness, 3b) Good things(collective), 3c) Bounty. Strong—Good(as an adjective) in the widest sense; used likewise as a noun, both in the masculine & the feminine, the singular & the plural--Good, a good or good thing, a good man or woman; the good, goods or good things, good men or women, also(as an adverb)--Well.
“Lamp”—rn neer—1) Lamp. Strong—properly, meaning--To glisten; A lamp(i.e. the burner) or Light(literally or figuratively).
“Go out”—hbk kaw-baw’—Qal Imperfect—1) To quench, put out, be put out, be quenched, be extinguished. Strong—a primitive root; To expire, or causatively--To extinguish(fire, light, anger).
“Night”(See :15)—lyl lah'-yil—1) Night—1a) Night(as opposed to day), 1b) Of gloom, protective shadow(figuratively). Strong—properly--A twist(away of the light), i.e. Night; figuratively--Adversity.
:19—“She stretches out her hands to the distaff, And her hand holds the spindle.”
A virtuous woman/wife readily takes up the distaff & spindle in producing spun thread by which she will in turn, produce clothing for herself, her family, & others & for sale.
Some of you may have done or do this. Taking raw material(animal fur/hair or plant material) & working/fashioning it into thread. Then taking that thread & working it to a uniform thickness. Then taking that thread & sewing/weaving it into an article of clothing.
She is unafraid of tedious work. She knows the end result is rewarding. She will find ways of making the work less tedious—Make a game of it, Make it rhythmic, Songs sung, Imagination, etc.
If such were the major way for producing clothing, I think we would better appreciate our mothers & the true ‘expense’ of our clothes. We would also take better care of our clothing. And we would appreciating the love which produced them.
“Stretches out”(See :20—“Reaches out”)—xlv shaw-lakh’—Piel Perfect—1) To send, send away, let go, stretch out—1c) (Piel)—1c1) To send off or away or out or forth, dismiss, give over, cast out, 1c2) to let go, set free, 1c3) To shoot forth (of branches), 1c4) To let down, 1c5) To shoot. Strong—a primitive root; To send away, for, or out(in a great variety of applications).
“Hands”(See :20)—dy yawd—1) Hand. Strong—a primitive word; A hand(the open one [indicating power, means, direction, etc.], in distinction from Pk[See :13, 16b], the closed one); used(as noun, adverb, etc.) in a great variety of applications, both literally & figuratively, both proximate & remote.
“Distaff”—rwvyk kee-yshowr'—1) A spindle-whorl, distaff. Strong—literally--A director, i.e. The spindle or shank of a distaff(Klp), by which it is twirled. Used 1X.
“designed to hold the unspun [raw] fibers keeping them untangled & thus easing the spinning process.”—Wikipedia
“Hand”(See :13, 16b, 20)—Pk kaf—1) Palm, hand, sole, palm of the hand, hollow or flat of the hand. Strong—The hollow hand or palm(so of the paw of an animal, of the sole, & even of the bowl of a dish or sling, the handle of a bolt, the leaves of a palm-tree); figuratively--Power.
“Holds”—Kmt taw-mak’—Qal Perfect—1) To grasp, hold, support, attain, lay hold of, hold fast. Strong—a primitive root; To sustain; by implication--To obtain, keep fast; figuratively--To help, follow close.
“Spindle”—Klp peh'-lek—1) Whirl of spindle, stick, district—1a) Whirl of spindle, stick, 1b) District, circuit. Strong—from an unused root meaning to be round; S circuit(i.e. District); also A spindle(as whirled); hence, A crutch. Used 10X.
“a woodenspike(known as the shaft) used for spinning...fibers into thread. [Holds the finished twisted thread]. It is commonly weighted at either the bottom middle or top, most commonly by a circular or spherical object called a whorl.”—Wikipedia
Argumentation:
**Any man/husband who seriously sets apart, disdains & belittles a ‘woman’s work’ as if it is beneath him...as if it is of lesser importance, has bought into Satan’s worldly lie.
Prov. 12:14—“A man will be satisfied with good by the fruit of his mouth, And the recompense of a man’s hands will be rendered to him.”
Isa. 53:10, 11—“Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand. He shall see the labor of His soul, & be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, For He shall bear their iniquities.”
Rev. 14:12-13—“Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God & the faith of Jesus. Then I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.’” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, & their works follow them.”
**Lk. 19:11-13, 15-17—“Now as they heard these things, He spoke another parable, because He was near Jerusalem & because they thought the kingdom of God would appear immediately. Therefore He said: “A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom & to return. “So he called ten of his servants, delivered to them ten minas, & said to them, ‘Do business till I come.’.....“And so it was that when he returned, having received the kingdom, he then commanded these servants, to whom he had given the money, to be called to him, that he might know how much every man had gained by trading. Then came the first, saying, ‘Master, your mina has earned ten minas.’ “And he said to him, ‘Well done, good servant; because you were faithful in a very little, have authority over ten cities.’”
**1Thes. 2:7-12—“But we were gentle among you, just as a nursing mother cherishes her own children. So, affectionately longing for you, we were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but also our own lives, because you had become dear to us. For you remember, brethren, our labor & toil; for laboring night & day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, we preached to you the gospel of God. You are witnesses, & God also, how devoutly & justly & blamelessly we behaved ourselves among you who believe; as you know how we exhorted, & comforted, & charged every one of you, as a father does his own children, that you would walk worthy of God who calls you into His own kingdom & glory.”
Eph. 6:5-8—“Bondservants, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear & trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ; not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, with goodwill doing service, as to the Lord, & not to men, knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free.”
Col. 3:17-24—“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. Wives, submit to your own husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives & do not be bitter toward them. Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing to the Lord. Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged. Bondservants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh, not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing God. And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord & not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.”
Illustration:
The Apple ‘MacIntosh’ interface was the first point & click interface which was ‘user friendly’(for the average person)/As it progressed, the images got sharper & had more depth & detail & the experience was much better than a mere 2Dimensional Windows experience/They didn’t care so much that Microsoft made more money—They cared that their product functioned & operated ‘elegantly’/Competently INVOLVED
Artists/Some people ‘slap some paint on a canvas’ & call it ‘art’/While others really critique their work carefully, throwing away more that they ever present to the public/Competently INVOLVED
Do your utmost—in Christ
Give it your best shot—in Christ
Work tirelessly—in Christ
Be A Christ-honoring good worker—in Christ
Take a Christ-honoring pride in the work of your hands—in Christ
Have Christ-honoring work ethic—in Christ
Are we proud of Whose we are & what we do?
Application:
?You Competently INVOLVED in your God-ordained & blessed work?
?You a Competent Wife/Woman?
CONCLUSION:
Action:
A competent wife/woman (is) competently...
5. STRONG(:17)
6. INVOLVED(:18-19)
1. Competently RARE & PRECIOUS(:10)
2. Competently COMMITS(:11-12)
3. Competently PROVIDES(:13-15)
4. Competently PREMEDITATES(plans)(:16)
Pts. 5-6 Presented 05/31/2015am to:
FBC Cbelle
206 Storrs Ave(A Ave. SE)
Carrabelle, FL 32322
