Virtuous, worthy, and noble are all words used to describe the woman that is the topic of Proverbs 31. If you haven’t done so yet, take a minute now to read about this worthy woman in Proverbs 31:10-31 (Read Proverbs 31 here). These verses give us a portrait of ideal womanhood. Now I know what you might be thinking after having read these verses (because I certainly was), that this portrait of ideal womanhood is next to impossible to attain today. The woman in Proverbs 31 has many characteristics that women should, and often do, aspire to today. This woman is described as being highly skilled, compassionate, respectful of her spouse, caring, hard working, and wise. These are all qualities that I believe the modern woman would like to see in herself (I know I would). Although it seems like it may be impossible to live up to this standard, the Proverbs 31 woman is not virtuous, worthy, or noble all of herself, for she is a woman who fears the Lord.
The Proverbs 31 woman has a fear of the Lord, meaning she reveres, obeys, serves, and trusts Him. This woman’s success is the result of her fear of the Lord. We can find success in the same way, by revering, obeying, serving, and trusting God in all we do each day. Naturally, these qualities will develop in us as a result. When we serve God first, He will place in our hearts desires that He will give us (Psalm 37:4). We will do the work we were called to do, using our God-given abilities and skills, and we will excel in this work. We will effortlessly develop compassion and teach kindness as we allow God’s true nature to become our true nature. Fearing the Lord will equip us with the strength (spiritual, physical, and mental) needed to carry out our God-given tasks and will allow us to be prepared for whatever lies ahead.
There are many noble women in the world today, but the woman who fears the Lord surpasses them all because she is walking in the strength of the Lord, not her own. The self-worth of the Proverbs 31 woman does not come from all of her achievements or from her outward appearance. Instead, it comes from her reverence for the Lord our God. This is a lesson we women need to learn. Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting, but the woman who fears the Lord is to be praised (Proverbs 31:30) because she will endure through the confidence and strength of the Lord Almighty.
The Truth in Action: A little over two years ago I was trying to balance my career and my family responsibilities in my own strength. This left me feeling constantly tired and longing for peaceful rest. At that time, before I started serving the Lord, being successful in my career gave me my self-worth and defined who I was, but it was also a struggle for me to give equally to my job and my family. I knew something had to give, and as soon as I started putting my trust and faith in the Lord, my circumstances changed. I have learned in the last two years that my self-worth isn’t determined by what job I have, or even how successful I am at being a wife or mother. My self-worth comes from my reverence for God, and when I put God first in my life all of these other things will fall into place because that is God’s will for my life. We can all be the Proverbs 31 woman, the only prerequisite is a fear of the Lord.
Meditate on Scripture: Ecclesiastes 12:13 (KJV) – Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
Further Study – The dictionary/concordance in my Bible lists two definitions for fear: 1. profound reverence and awe toward God and 2. an emotion of dread or alarm caused by danger. What does it really mean to fear God? How can fear produce both reverence and alarm? How can having a fear of God change your life? Search for Old Testament verses as well as New Testament verses that explain what it means to have a fear of God.