An Honorable Woman

Let me begin by wishing all of the mothers here today a Happy Mother’s Day. We had better all show some admiration to mothers, because, as the old saying goes; ‘if it weren’t for moms, none of us would be here.’

Now, we all know that motherhood has its sweet and wonderful times, but it also has its hard times; times caused when motherhood itself is an accident, or when it is not even a possibility to others. In truth, some mothers aren’t really all that nice, and even in the best of circumstances, motherhood is not always a bed of roses.

Today, we are going to talk about women in general, and mothers in particular. And we will do so by using a perfect biblical example of each; the one found in PROVERBS 31.

While you are turning in your bibles to that passage, let me remind you that becoming a mother really isn’t all that difficult. It is becoming a mom that is the hardest part. And no matter how many diapers you have to change, or how many nights you stay up with sick children, in the end it is all worth it because those children will only grow up to do the same things for their children.

Speaking of mothers, I am reminded of a grade-school teacher who was teaching her students about magnets. She spread metal shavings on her desk and then had the students, one by one, take the magnet and slowly glide past them. They were amazed how all the metal shavings jumped up to go to the magnet.

The next day, she gave them a quiz. One of the questions was: “I have six letters and I pick up things. What am I?” She was surprised to see that every child in class wrote down “Mother” for the answer.

And while mothers do pick up after everyone else in the home, they are far more than picker-uppers. Their duties include being teachers, nurses, confidants, chauffeurs, cooks, maids, and much more.

So I guess we could say that an honorable woman is one who takes on the job of wife and mother out of the love of her heart and not the pay she could get from doing the job.

In PROVERBS 31, we learn what a king’s mother taught him as he was growing up.

We do not know all that much about him, but we do know that in Hebrew, his name means “dedicated to God.” This shows that His mother honored God even in her child bearing, by dedicating her newly born son to God Almighty.

Let’s read.

PROVERBS 31:1-9

‘The sayings of King Lemuel, an oracle his mother taught him: “O my son, O son of my womb, O son of my vows – do not spend your strength on women, your vigor on those who ruin kings.

“It is not for kings, O Lemuel – not for kings to drink wine, to for rulers to crave beer; lest they drink and forget what the law decrees, and deprive all the oppressed of their rights.

“Give beer to those who are perishing, wine to those who are in anguish; let them drink and forget their poverty – so they remember their misery no more.

“Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.”

Can we see the immense depth of what this woman was teaching her son? I think it might go way past “honorable” and go right to “Godly.” Let’s explore these words in more depth.

The bible doesn’t tell us specifically, but we must assume that Lemuel was raised to be a king, or at least that is the impression given. And His mother is wisely preparing him early to be a proper and kindly king.

She reminds him that a lust for women will bring down any power, no matter who holds it. And she reminds him that to give oneself over to alcohol makes one forget the priorities in their lives. She goes on in verse 5 to say that alcohol will make them forget to stand up for the oppressed. And you know that when a person gets drunk they forget all about what they are supposed to be doing, don’t they?

So, his mother warns him of things to stay away from, but then she gives him some very solid advice. Advice fit for a king.

She shows her compassion towards those who suffer by telling him it is okay if they drink to forget their misery. And then she instructs him to speak up for those who cannot speak up for themselves. She tells him to speak up for them and to judge them fairly; and to defend the poor.