Proverbs 31: 17
‘She girds herself with strength, and strengthens her arms.’
Have you ever felt like curling up and going to sleep during a particularly difficult day or just running away to indulge in your favourite coffee at your local coffee shop when there are much more important things to be done? I am sure most of us have had periodic moments like this. The important question that therefore must be answered is how we, as Christian women, deal with these times in our life. They are the times when we need to draw on our Lord for the strength to go on, and to do the things that our family and those dependent upon us, need from us. Surely therefore we must look to Scripture and most especially at the virtuous woman to find out how we should deal with this problem of human lethargy.
When we feel particularly energetic and full of life it is not difficult to compare ourselves with this woman as we are also accomplishing a lot and at the end of the day we are satisfied with how the day has gone. But it is when we are feeling down and unmotivated that we will be in the most danger of failing to do what we should do. Therefore this is the time that we need to call on God for His help acknowledging our need of Him (we must always acknowledge our need of Him!). I’m sure that’s the secret of the Proverbs 31 woman - she has her (our) Lord within guiding her and helping her throughout her days. The great paradox (irony) here is that when we feel at our weakest that we are always able to call upon the Lord for His strength and to trust Him to provide what we cannot manufacture ourselves. What a privilege to be able to call upon the high and holy God to provide us with strength for our days.
Let us begin today by praying to the Lord:
Prayer: Father, we do at times have difficulties that would threaten to cause us to despair but help us to cry out to you at the first sight of such thoughts. We would ask that you grant us the abilities found in the Proverbs 31 woman, most especially her strength, that we may have the endurance and vigor we find portrayed in these verses.
Another translation says ‘She girds her loins with strength, and strenghtheneth her arms.’
Inner strength and trust in God translates into outer strength and physical vitality. The "loins" are regarded as the seat of strength as we have read in our chapter of Beautiful in God’s Eyes (see 1 Kings 12:10; Nahum 2:1). It refers to the abdominal or hip region of the body and it is the region of strength and procreative power.
In Bible times both men and women wore outer robes or tunics. If the tunic was ungirded it would interfere with a person's ability to walk freely. The Bible often makes symbolic use of the girdle. Jesus said, "Let your loins be girded about" (Luke 12:35). In other words, "Be as men who have a long race to run; gather up the folds of your flowing robes, and fasten them with your girdle; that nothing may keep you back or impede your steps." In Bible language, "to be girded" means "to be ready for action." "For thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle" (Psalm 18:39). [See Fred Wight, Manners and Customs of Bible Lands, page 93]. We have already read in previous chapters how the Proverbs 31 woman is like a warrior and now we read that she is always ready for action and this translates into her home life where she is neither lazy nor dishevelled.
INNER STRENGTH
Another translation of this verse says she sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks.
The virtuous woman has a reservoir of inner strength which is able to energize her and enable her to accomplish physical tasks which require a great amount of physical strength. There is something about the word “vigorously” that makes me imagine a woman who does not lie in at the sound of the alarm clock but rather gets out of bed and “attacks” the day! She is not weakened by sloth or laziness but she is a wonderful example of diligence and industry. George Lawson describes her in this way:
As rust gathers on metals that are seldom used, so sluggishness of disposition contracts rust on the powers of the body and mind; and idle persons by degrees realize those excuses for their conduct which were at first mere shams. The virtuous woman is of a very different temper. She declines not any part of her duty through aversion to toil; and by exerting her strength with a cheerful mind she improves it. Her labours give her health and vigour, and alacrity for new labours; so that she can with great ease and tranquillity go through those duties which appear impossibilities to other women.
We need to realise that as we go before God He will revitalise us to keep going and this in turn will be evident by the physical strength we have – perhaps strength we did not think we had!
A MODEL FOR US
I recently read a woman’s testimony that had been endeavouring to model her life upon the Proverbs 31 woman. She has two children whom she is homeschooling, has no help at home, is busy running her household on a limited budget and only just managing. She was having great difficulty with the idea that she was not supposed to eat the bread of idleness nor let her candle go out at night etc. but at the same time felt completely burnt out. She did not realise that this woman is for us to model ourselves on and she was even becoming frustrated with her husband for not helping her more. We need to pray that the Lord would help us to maintain the priorities in our lives. It is more important for this woman to spend some quality time with her husband in the evening than to run around like a whirlwind to get everything finished. Scripture clearly teaches on the need for rest but speaks against being slothful.
We also need to remember that there will be times when we do not have the necessary strength to complete all the things we would normally do in our home or outside of it but even during these times we can be women of strength relying on our Lord to supply us with inner strength. We may be pregnant or just had a baby, we may be ill or bed-ridden, and we may just not be as strong as other women. We don’t necessarily have to be body builders in order to have strong arms! In fact I have no doubt that the Proverbs 31 woman is uniquely feminine as we have already encountered. We are able to model our lives on the Proverbs 31 woman and we can aspire to become like her every day. Be strong in your prayer life and in reading God’s Word, be strong in your submission to your husband and in service to your children, be strong in your Bible knowledge, and be strong in your service to others and in your joy.
Questions
1. What additional boosts in attitude can a woman tap into according to these verses?
- Nehemiah 8:10
- Ecclesiastes 9:10
- Psalm 118:24
- Proverbs 14:23
- Galatians 5:22
- Philippians 4:13
2. Her physical energy – Next the teacher of this alphabetical acrostic points to verse 17 to the ability to work. God’s Proverbs 31 woman is strong. Why?
3. Your mental energy – List a handful of practices that are proven to increase a person’s mental energy. Are you failing in any one of them? If so, what can – or must! - You do to “gird” yourself with greater mental strength and energy?
4. Your physical energy – List a handful of practices that are proven to increase a person’s physical energy. Are you failing in any one of them? If so, what can – or must! - You do to “gird” yourself with greater physical strength and energy?
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