LESSONS ABOUT WISDOM PROVERBS _KEITH SIMONS_ CHAPTER 31 V1 These are the words of King Lemuel. This section is a difficult puzzle that his mother taught to him. V2 Oh, my son! My own son! You are the answer to my prayers.... [ Continue Reading ]
Lemuel was not a king of Israel. But his name means ‘he belongs to God’ in the Hebrew language. (Hebrew was the language of the people in Israel.) Lemuel’s birth was the answer to his mother’s prayers (verse 2). The prophet (holy man) Samuel was also born as the answer to his mother’s prayers (1 Sa... [ Continue Reading ]
Many women try to tempt an important person like a king. Solomon himself loved many women. He thought that these women would make him happy Ecclesiastes 2:1-11). But Solomon did evil things because of these women (1 Kings 11:1-13). V4 Oh, Lemuel, you are the king! Kings should not drink wine! Kin... [ Continue Reading ]
Kings must be careful about alcohol. In fact, everybody needs to be careful about alcohol. Alcohol causes people to make stupid mistakes. And alcohol confuses the brain. It causes many troubles. But a king is also responsible for other people. So the king has a special reason to refuse alcohol. The... [ Continue Reading ]
This is a strange passage. Lemuel’s mother knew that a king should not drink alcohol. But she supposed that poor people should drink lots of beer and wine in order to forget their troubles. But she was wrong. Alcohol cannot cure the problems of poor people. Their lives will not be better if they bec... [ Continue Reading ]
A king should care about poor people. In fact, everyone should care about poor people. But a king has greater responsibility. King Lemuel was also a judge. So Lemuel’s mother advised him to help poor people in the court. Perhaps poor people cannot afford lawyers. Perhaps poor people do not speak wel... [ Continue Reading ]
God wants men and women to marry (Genesis 2:18). It is good to marry (Hebrews 13:4). But God may not want everyone to marry. Paul was not married (1 Corinthians 7:7-8). A husband and wife should look after each other. A husband should be glad if he has a good wife. A good wife will benefit her husb... [ Continue Reading ]
The husband can trust his wife. She is careful. She will not waste his possessions. He will have everything that he needs. V12 His wife always brings good things to him. She never hurts him, during her entire life. V13 She selects wool and cloth. She is eager to work with her hands. V14 She is... [ Continue Reading ]
This wife selects good things for her husband. Verses 13-15 describe things that she obtains for him. She always tries to help him. She does not hurt him. She does not waste his possessions. She does not upset him with arguments (Proverbs 21:9). She does not cause trouble.... [ Continue Reading ]
The wife makes clothes by hand. And she is happy to do this work.... [ Continue Reading ]
She selects good food. But perhaps there is no good food in the local shops. This woman does not want to use poor quality food. So she travels until she finds the best foods.... [ Continue Reading ]
She works hard, even before dawn. She does not only provide food for her husband. She also provides food for her family. And she even provides for servant girls. Everyone in the house has good food, because this wife works hard. Another translation of the second line is: ‘Before sunrise, she provi... [ Continue Reading ]
This woman is wise. She prepares for the future. Her fruit bushes will not provide fruit this year. And perhaps the bushes will not provide fruit for a few years. (Compare Leviticus 19:23-25. God told the people not to eat fruit from a new tree for 4 years. This is good advice for farmers. Young fru... [ Continue Reading ]
She herself works with her hands. She has servants (verse 15), but she is not lazy. She works with them. So she becomes strong and healthy.... [ Continue Reading ]
This woman starts to work before dawn (verse 15). And she continues to work late at night (verse 18). She buys and sells.... [ Continue Reading ]
At this time, there were no machines to make cloth. So women would make cloth by hand. And clothes were precious. This woman’s work was very valuable.... [ Continue Reading ]
But this woman does not work so that her family will be wealthy. She cares about everyone. She earns money so that she can help poor people. She is kind and generous. She looks after old people and ill people. She wants to help everyone. V21 She is not afraid of snow. All her family have good warm... [ Continue Reading ]
Snow does not often fall in Israel. It is a warm country. But this woman is ready for cold weather. The whole family have warm clothes, because this woman makes the clothes.... [ Continue Reading ]
But this woman does not just make practical clothes. She loves her work. She is happy when she works. So she makes good clothes. And she makes fine covers for the bed.... [ Continue Reading ]
This woman is humble. You might suppose that she wants to be important. But she does not work for this reason. Instead, she is happy to help her husband. He is important because of her. He does not worry about clothes or food. She provides his food and clothes. So he can do an important job. He is... [ Continue Reading ]
This woman earns the money that her family needs. She makes belts and clothes by hand. And she sells these things. V25 She has strength and honour. She is not afraid of the future. V26 She speaks wisely. She teaches well. V27 She looks after her family. She is not lazy. V28 Her children bless... [ Continue Reading ]
Now the writer describes the woman’s character. This woman does not worry about the future. She prepares carefully. Perhaps she saves her money. And she teaches her children to be wise (verses 26-27). So she is ready for future events. Even if the family suffer troubles, she is ready.... [ Continue Reading ]
We know that this woman’s husband is a wise man (verse 23). But the wife is also wise. She teaches her children. And perhaps she advises her friends.... [ Continue Reading ]
Some people behave well in public. But at home, they do not behave well. But this woman does not care whether anyone sees her good works. Her own family see her in private. And they know that she is a good person. So they bless her.... [ Continue Reading ]
Now the husband speaks. He realises that some other women are good like his wife. But he does not want to be with these other women. His own wife is very special in his opinion. He loves her. He appreciates her work. He thanks her. This husband does not want a younger woman. He does not want a mor... [ Continue Reading ]
In this verse, we discover why this woman is a great person. Her special qualities are not beauty and grace. When she is older, this woman might lose her beauty. And she might lose her grace. But she will still be a great person. And she will still be a great wife. This woman is great because she r... [ Continue Reading ]
We, too, know that this woman deserves honour. And we should all try to be like her.... [ Continue Reading ]