An excellent wife
I had a professor in college who was one of the world's foremost experts on the book of Proverbs. He told us once that the 31st chapter of that book—the one that lays down impossibly high standards for wives—used the word wife as a metaphor for wisdom rather than a literal term. I'm sure he elaborated, but I can't remember any of his reasons for thinking that. When I read it, it certainly seems to be speaking about wives. And though he may be the smartest person in the world when it comes to that subject, he's the only person I've ever heard offer that opinion. But that's neither here nor there.
I'm thinking about Proverbs 31 because Doug wrote a beautiful post this week in tribute to his wife, and it nearly made me cry to see the love he has for her and that he's willing to express in such a public fashion. It also made me think. I read over the chapter and applied it to my own marriage. As I said before, its standards are impossibly high. But in many ways they are still applicable to modern marriage. In any case, verses 10–31 prompted these thoughts about my wife:
- she is more precious than jewels
- I trust her completely
- she takes care of me and hardly ever injures me
- she shops for groceries at the store that's the fourth nearest to our house in order to save money
- she works out at a gym twice a week
- she is most generous with those who need it most
- she loves snow
- her husband is a deacon in the church
- she faces up to challenges with determination and a sense of humor
- she recognizes those who need to hear kind words, and speaks them
- I praise her in private and public at every opportunity
- she is my favorite person
- she relies on God
I'm so glad she married me.
