Doesn't she sound delightfully perfect? How can we possibly live up to that standard?
Here's something important that I've just noticed, I think YHWH revealed it to me TBH because I woke up thinking it and had to read it again to see if it was right.
She doesn't have little children.
It talks about her household, doesn't say what that consists of exactly, and the only part mentioning her children is verse 28: Her children rise up and call her blessed.
We're not talking toddlers here. These children are older, possibly adults. She's not up all night with a baby, she's not breastfeeding and trying to sew clothes for her family. She's not taking kids on her hips out to go and see a field to buy.
Her husband is old enough to be an elder at the gates, so he's not a young man either. She's sewing and cooking and running a household and buying fields and planting vineyards. That isn't something a young woman knows straight out of leaving home. She's learned all this stuff over time, and she's practised to be as good as she is now. She's probably made a tonne of mistakes along the way.
And here's kicker #2: She's got servants. Verse 15: She rises while it is yet night, and provides food for her household and portions for her maidens.
Maidens = a young woman, most likely a female servant. She's not running around the house doing everything on her own. She's delegating. Servants are cleaning while she's sewing, cooking while she's visiting the poor, harvesting the vineyard while she's selling her wares. She's not doing all these things on her own. She is absolutely not superwoman.
Here's something important that I've just noticed, I think YHWH revealed it to me TBH because I woke up thinking it and had to read it again to see if it was right.
She doesn't have little children.
It talks about her household, doesn't say what that consists of exactly, and the only part mentioning her children is verse 28: Her children rise up and call her blessed.
We're not talking toddlers here. These children are older, possibly adults. She's not up all night with a baby, she's not breastfeeding and trying to sew clothes for her family. She's not taking kids on her hips out to go and see a field to buy.
Her husband is old enough to be an elder at the gates, so he's not a young man either. She's sewing and cooking and running a household and buying fields and planting vineyards. That isn't something a young woman knows straight out of leaving home. She's learned all this stuff over time, and she's practised to be as good as she is now. She's probably made a tonne of mistakes along the way.
And here's kicker #2: She's got servants. Verse 15: She rises while it is yet night, and provides food for her household and portions for her maidens.
Maidens = a young woman, most likely a female servant. She's not running around the house doing everything on her own. She's delegating. Servants are cleaning while she's sewing, cooking while she's visiting the poor, harvesting the vineyard while she's selling her wares. She's not doing all these things on her own. She is absolutely not superwoman.