She Shall Be Called Woman
Re-posted from 2012
By Shirley M. Wiggins
“Then the Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him.’ …
So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept;
then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place. The Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man. The
man said, ‘This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh; She
shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man.’ For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.” Genesis 2:18, 21-24 (NASB).
Thank You for the memories, Jesus; I see her now:
Petite and slender, she was a lady in every sense of the word with her black hair, long and straight, drawn tightly in a neat bun on the back of her head, My grandmother, seated at the piano down front at the little white-frame church, teaching me as a little girl to play, “Are You Washed In the Blood?”
I’ve seen this
picture in my mind’s eye several times before. Often it’s during a
Sunday evening service as we are singing that precious old song.
This particular time was several years ago on the last Sunday of the cold month of January. I
was sitting with my dearly loved friends at my current home church and
as we began to sing, the tears sprang to my eyes with a sharp stinging
pain that caused my mouth to tremble in spite of my efforts to gain
control over my emotions.
There was a sudden
intense longing to see her again and a sudden strong yearning to have my
husband, children, and grandchildren gathered around me singing and
worshiping together.
How clearly I could see her: That
sweet, small-in-stature lady with the soft velvety dark hair and eyes,
always wearing a smile, always with a warm word of good humor and
encouragement on her lips. She
had a softly crinkled beautiful face, and work-worn hands that brought
forth such beautiful and worshipful music from the keys of that old church piano.
Did she ever have a piano of her own? Oh, how I wish I could hear her talk to me again! I have so many questions I would ask!
I never heard that gentle woman say a harsh, angry word to anyone or about anyone, nor ever a critical or complaining word. So many people told us they’d never known her to speak an unkind word about anyone.
How did she do that, I asked the Lord again. How did she keep from ever speaking ‘a discouraging word’ or a complaining word? She experienced some of life’s harsh and hard circumstances while on this earth.
And she surely must have had plenty of worries as a wife, mother, mother-in-law, and grandmother. If
any woman ever seemed to have plenty of reason to fret, fear and faint,
it seemed to me that she did, just because of the times in which she
lived.
But, I never saw any fretting, fearing, or fainting; nor have I ever heard about any from others who knew her. What
I did see, though, even as a young girl myself, was a courageous woman
who had a heart full of love and concern for her family and for others
in her community.
I’ve wondered a lot
about whom she might would have talked to and with about everyday life
issues, and have also wondered if she had a close woman-friend that she
could confide in. Or did she take all those concerns straight to the Lord Himself?
She apparently married the love of her life at a young age. Sometime later in life Papa’s farm wagon overturned breaking one of his legs, leaving him in pain for many years. Near
the end of his life he was bedridden and my grandmother patiently and
lovingly tended his needs night and day until he passed away.
They had four sons
and one daughter. Their only daughter married at a young age and died
soon after at the age of 18; thirty-four years before my grandmother’s
own death at the age of 76.
I am so thankful to
the Lord for honoring what I was told had been her desired hope when the
time came for her heavenly Father to call her Home. She
hoped to go to sleep one night and wake up in heaven and we were told
that was exactly the way her departure seemed to have happened!
As was her custom, on
that particular evening she had gone next door to spend the night with
her friends who were the other grandparents of two of her own
granddaughters. Early every morning she would get up and slip quietly out to return to her own home.
But, not that early
dawn – it was discovered that she had passed quietly away sometime in
the night, apparently very peacefully in her sleep. Her dark hair resting neatly on her pillow showed no evidence that she had ever even turned over in the bed that night.
She was a woman who sacrificed and did without untold creature comforts of her own so that she could give to others. She had the most generous heart and giving to her family made her happy.
I praise and thank
the dear Lord for this wonderful woman who had such an impact on my
young life that her life remains to this day such an important part of
my family memories. I am so grateful for all the years that our family had with her.
I also thank Him for another special day when He brought her lovely face to my mind’s eye. I was reading Proverbs 31:26-27** in
my Amplified Bible and the image of her face was so vivid that I wrote
her name in the margin beside those verses as a memorial to her.
Thank You for the memories, Jesus! I love You!
May each of us,
daughters of Eve and sisters- in- Christ Jesus, our
Lord, have as our hearts’ desire, to be as godly as the women we read about in God’s Word, especially here in
Proverbs 31:10-31.
Please
be sure to read the Footnotes following the Scripture below for
valuable and insightful information about some of the women in the
Bible.
Proverbs 31: Amplified Bible: 10A capable, intelligent, and [b]virtuous woman--who is he who can find her? She is far more precious than jewels and her value is far above rubies or pearls.
11The
heart of her husband trusts in her confidently and relies on and
believes in her securely, so that he has no lack of [honest] gain or
need of [dishonest] spoil.
12She comforts, encourages, and does him only good as long as there is life within her.
13She seeks out wool and flax and works with willing hands [to develop it].
14She is like the merchant ships loaded with foodstuffs; she brings her household's food from a far [country].
15She rises while it is yet night and gets [spiritual] food for her household and assigns her maids their tasks.
16She
considers a [new] field before she buys or accepts it [expanding
prudently and not courting neglect of her present duties by assuming
other duties]; with her savings [of time and strength] she plants
fruitful vines in her vineyard. [S. of Sol. 8:12.]
17She
girds herself with strength [spiritual, mental, and physical fitness for
her God-given task] and makes her arms strong and firm.
18She
tastes and sees that her gain from work [with and for God] is good; her
lamp goes not out, but it burns on continually through the night [of
trouble, privation, or sorrow, warning away fear, doubt, and distrust].
19She lays her hands to the spindle, and her hands hold the distaff.
20She opens her hand to the poor, yes, she reaches out her filled hands to the needy [whether in body, mind, or spirit].
21She fears not the snow for her family, for all her household are doubly clothed in scarlet.
22She
makes for herself coverlets, cushions, and rugs of tapestry. Her
clothing is of linen, pure and fine, and of purple [such as that of
which the clothing of the priests and the hallowed cloths of the temple
were made].
23Her husband is known in the [city's] gates, when he sits among the elders of the land.
24She
makes fine linen garments and leads others to buy them; she delivers to
the merchants girdles [or sashes that free one up for service].
25Strength
and dignity are her clothing and her position is strong and secure; she
rejoices over the future [the latter day or time to come, knowing that
she and her family are in readiness for it]!
26She opens her mouth in skillful and godly Wisdom, and on her tongue is the law of kindness [giving counsel and instruction].
27She
looks well to how things go in her household, and the bread of idleness
(gossip, discontent, and self-pity) she will not eat.**
28Her
children rise up and call her blessed (happy, fortunate, and to be
envied); and her husband boasts of and praises her, [saying],
29[c] Many
daughters have done virtuously, nobly, and well [with the strength of
character that is steadfast in goodness], but you excel them all.
30Charm
and grace are deceptive, and beauty is vain [because it is not
lasting], but a woman who reverently and worshipfully fears the Lord,
she shall be praised!
31Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her own works praise her in the gates [of the city]!
Footnotes:
- Proverbs 31:2 It is important to the purpose of this invaluable chapter that one realizes that it is first of all intended for young men. It is the mother's God-given task to provide youth with this information directly from its inspired source, letting them grow up with it in their consciousness.
- Proverbs 31:10 It is most unfortunate that this description of God's ideal woman is usually confined in readers' minds merely to its literal sense--her ability as a homemaker, as in the picture of Martha of Bethany in Luke 10:38-42. But it is obvious that far more than that is meant. When the summary of what makes her value "far above rubies" is given (in Prov. 31:30), it is her spiritual life only that is mentioned. One can almost hear the voice of Jesus saying, "Mary has chosen the good portion... which shall not be taken away from her" (Luke 10:42).
- Proverbs 31:29 "Many daughters have done... nobly and well... but you excel them all." What a glowing description here recorded of this woman in private life, this "capable, intelligent, and virtuous woman" of Prov. 31! It means she had done more than Miriam, the one who led a nation's women in praise to God (Exod. 15:20, 21); Deborah, the patriotic military advisor (Judg. 4:4-10); Ruth, the woman of constancy (Ruth 1:16); Hannah, the ideal mother (I Sam. 1:20; 2:19); the Shunamite, the hospitable woman (II Kings 4:8-10); Huldah, the woman who revealed God's secret message to national leaders (II Kings 22:14); and even more than Queen Esther, the woman who risked sacrificing her life for her people (Esth. 4:16). In what way did she "excel them all"? In her spiritual and practical devotion to God, which permeated every area and relationship of her life. All seven of the Christian virtues (II Pet. 1:5) are there, like colored threads in a tapestry. Her secret, which is open to everyone, is the Holy Spirit's climax to the story, and to this book. In Prov. 31:30, it becomes clear that the "reverent and worshipful fear of the Lord," which is "the beginning (the chief and choice part) of Wisdom" (Prov. 9:10), is put forth as the true foundation for a life which is valued by God and her husband as "far above rubies or pearls" (Prov. 31:10).
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