Proverbs 31 woman - Post 21

Day 21 – Prov. 31:31

"Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her own works praise her in the gates."

- (New King James Version)

We ended the last devotional saying that "when you remember to fear Him (revere Him), then you shall be praised." And here we see it.

Our speaker, recall, is a mother who is telling her son the right woman to look for. Most people know how hard it is to please a mother-in-law ;) But here we see her actually imploring her audience "GIVE HER the fruits of her labor." Our virtuous woman has lived a life so ... well, virtuous, that perhaps one of the last people to praise her cannot deny her her due rewards. What an amazing life she must have led!

I find myself smiling again as I address the second part of the verse. "Let her own works praise her ..." Probably the only woman worthy enough to toot her own horn must now bear with another restriction (though I hesitate to use that word). She never boasts of her good deeds, but lets her good deeds boast for her. But this really isn't a restriction because, as we've addressed numerous times before, pride is itself a trap, and completely unfounded since she has nothing to be proud of - GOD provided her with every good trait.

And HE in the end will be the rewarder. Countless times I've read this passage, these 22 verses, and been so awestruck by the last verse that I missed the message in the last phrase. "In the gates ..." I associated it with the same gates in which her husband is known, when he sits among the elders of the land. I found such honor in her being known among the people as a virtuous woman. Surely, this is how her works speak as a testimony of her virtue. But then I realized that I was thinking too small.

It's too small an act to be honored by her husband or her children. It's too small an act to be honored by the maidservants for whom she loving provided clothing and a meal. It's too small for her to be honored by the merchants who go to far away lands and still can attest that they've never met a woman as fantastic as she. It's even too small for her to be honored by the elders of the land, whose word is law.

Similarly, it's too small an act for a virtuous woman in our time to just be honored by her family. It's too small for her to be honored and revered by those with whom she works (with or under). It's too small for her to be honored by the educated class, the worldly, the "cultured" and well-rounded, who think they've seen it all and thus feel themselves apt to judge. It's even too small for her to be honored by the kings/rulers/presidents what-have-you of this world, who with one word can alter the course of history.

No, this is too small. And if she were not to be honored by any of these, it would be okay. Because in the end, her works would praise her "in the gates." Those gates that so many virtuous women have seen but whose names have never been mentioned in any book, magazine, or Facebook message. Those gates that open to a glorious home, where each brick was laid for each of her acts of righteousness mortared with love and affection, not self-satisfaction. Those gates where her Savior stands, ready to greet her with open arms. How we long for those gates!

Can we see it now? Can we understand the gravity of the task we are undertaking? To make the vow of living a virtuous life - what an investment in our future! And each day as we grow closer to Him, we reflect Him more and more, until our face shines like Moses when he came down from the mountain. This is our true beauty - the glory of God that resides in each us, manifesting itself in faith, hope, purity, and love.

showcase your true beauty.

God bless,

Alisha Philip