Suz s Proverbs 31 Notes

Transcription

1 Suz s Proverbs 31 Notes 10:03/6:33 Welcome 10:05/6:35 Opening Prayer **Correction to our handout: Open House 9/9, 9/16 for entire church 10:06/6:36 Wisdom Warm-Up (13 minutes + feedback time) 1. What are 3 (no 4!) things, people, situations that never say enough? 2. What are 3 or 4 things, people, or situations that make you marvel? 3. What are 3 or 4 things, people, or situations that make you tremble? 4. Proverbs 31 shifts to acknowledge a woman of noble character. Who in your life has been a woman of noble character? Describe her in 6 key words. 10:20/6:50 Our Own Wise Women: A Toast! 10:30/7:00 Our Chapters: 30,31 Chapter 30 Thinking in numbers quantifying thoughts and views on life. Example: The Wolf at Twilight: 4 seasons, 4 directions, 4 stages of life, 7 days a week, 7 tribal rituals, the moon lives for 28 days, 28 French fries! Who likes numbers and quantities? Feel the freedom to look at life and create proverbs based on quantities and categories, using 3, no 4, seeing life with some parentheses and brackets. Gain insight as you group things, people, habits, or happenings. It s fascinating. Chapter 31 More notes to kings: you ll be faced with choices and distractions. For example, it s not appropriate for a ruler to overdrink because a ruler needs to keep a clear mind in order to be fair and watch out for the oppressed. Consider Jesus when He was on the cross and offered a sedative: He said no to it. Why? He still had work to do, so even in excruciating pain, He wanted to remain clear-minded. He needed to fight off temptations. He needed to save one of the thieves next to Him. He needed to fulfill all of Scripture. You can t do that tipsy. Why do kings/leaders/authorities need to be clear-minded? To speak up for those who can t speak for themselves. To judge fairly; to defend the rights of the poor and needy. Apply that to refugees, immigrants, unborn babies, those without clout in our society, because we in privileged America are often the kings and queens of this world.

2 Transition: We ve journeyed with Lady Wisdom; now we meet a Woman of Valor (Chayil). The book of Proverbs comes to a close at the feet of an honored, celebrated woman of valor. Let s meet this woman and compare ourselves to her, put ourselves down, and close Proverbs feeling less than. Let s be disgusted with our lifestyles! Not really. :-) But I write that to make this point: often that s how women are taught to view the Proverbs 31 woman. She s competition. She s ideal, untouchable, perfect, and it s okay to hate her because we will never measure up. But she's not a measuring stick. She's not here to make us feel guilty. She's someone to raise your glass to and celebrate. I was raised with women around me resenting the "Proverbs 31 woman," but as I've become a Bible student, I realized we were reading it wrong. It's not a to-do list (Western performance competitive mindset). The Jewish way to understand it is as an ode, a "toast," to a fabulous female who has a lot going on. Let s put down our western defensiveness and look at this person through the lens of Jewish tradition with our minds open to how it was written. It doesn t work to compare yourself to the Proverbs 31 woman. Your lives may be lived under very different circumstances. Are you upper class? Near Eastern? Rich? Do you have lots of opportunity and strong networks? Can you sew? Can you work with wool and flax and spin your own materials? Do you journey across the town no, the state, even! for your food? Are you a morning person? AND a night owl? Are you a strong arm-wrestler? Are you married to a great guy? Do you have children at home? Do you command a staff? Do you trade? What is your profit margin? Can you multitask? LET COMPARISON GO and read Proverbs 31 this way: This is an acrostic poem, not a set of commands or a job description. So relax your to-do list mentality and picture a man raising his glass to his beloved, extolling and appreciating the woman he loves, thinking of something sweet and glorious to say about her using every letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Picture a family gathered around a table as Sabbath evening is descending, and hear a smiling Jewish man singing this to his wife or mother in front of his children. He sings this each week. **biblehub.com lesson** Go to biblehub.com. In the search box, type in Proverbs 31:10. Once it s up, click the Interlinear tab. You will see a column that says 2428 [e]/hayil/a virtuous/noun. Click Strong s Concordance will come up to explain chayil. Read through it it s fascinating!!! Chayil means strength, efficiency, wealth, and army. It s a masculine noun [?!] and it s short definition is army. Prov 31:10 is under B-D-B 2: ability, efficiency, often involving moral worth of a woman

3 Under the various references, scroll to Strong s Exhaustive Concordance. Root word chuwl: probably a force, whether of men, means, or other resources. An army wealth, virtue, valor, strength, soldiers, power, riches, strength, substance, worthy. THESE ARE YOUR WORDS, WOMAN! The language here is full of warrior-like references (p.76, A Year of Biblical Womanhood). 31:15 She provides food for her family Prey 11 Her husband lacks nothing of value Booty 27 She watches over the affairs of her household Spies 17 She girds herself with strength Girds her loins 15 She can laugh at days to come Laugh in victory This fits precisely with how God made us: as ezers, warrior companions. When our husband or people cry for help, we re the first responders. We are the force, means, and resources of the gospel. We are the soldiers in God s army of wealth, virtue, valor, strength, power, riches, strength, substance. THESE ARE YOUR WORDS, WOMAN! In Christ you are worthy of them! Both Jewish men and women extol their favorite female moments with Woman of valor! My mom got everything settled and ready and packed up for their next trip. Eschet chayil! My daughters were in a wedding last weekend and we danced together as a family for two hours, then helped clean up for another hour late into the night. Eschet chayil! Women s Ministries received some compliments from our male senior staff members on Monday. Eschet chayil! So what do we conclude? You can become a woman of valor in Christ. A warrior, worthy of the title of soldier. If you have the opportunity to take risks, do it. If you have money and time, be generous, with courage. Beam the light of Christ from the inside out into the darkness with courage. Run your business with courage. Pray with courage. Raise your little people with courage and strength and power and virtue, in the mighty Name of Jesus! Now where does that courage come from? We ll talk about that after you get back into your groups for your final Workable Wisdom. 10:55/7:25 -Workable Wisdom- Proverbs 30 Do your chapter pages, 64-65, together -OR- Proverbs 31 Do pages together (see them below).

4 Proverbs 31 s author,, records the teachings of his wise mama, who has concerns about the manner of his leadership as king. She begins with a few cautions: v3: Don t vv4-7: Don t v8: Do v9: Do Next, let s explore how this woman of valor is described in verses 10 through 31. How does she relate to her husband? How does she relate to her kids? How does she relate to her staff? (Bliss: to have a staff!) What does she do all day? Name her cottage industries. Record what you learn about her heart. Do you think this description applies only to women who are married, or can it apply to women who are single, divorced, and widowed too? Make a list of adjectives describing this woman. Feel free to use your own words to summarize various verses or your own impressions. For example, I would describe her as economically savvy. In what ways have you been a woman of valor this summer? Consider the small things, not just the big things. Have you conquered any fears? Have you faced a difficult conversation? Have you stayed in a difficult relationship while requiring the truth from the other person? Have you worked hard, have you sacrificed? Think of this woman as your mentor. What would you like to learn from her this fall? Name it and pursue it. In what ways are you inspired by this woman? Who are some women of valor you can celebrate this week? Write them a note. Send them a text. Leave them a voic . Eschet chayil! I will contact. 11:15/7:45 -Quiet- 11:20/7:50 Song! Dwell by our own Bethany Shurmer

5 Reflecting back on this Summer Study, how will you incorporate Proverbs into your daily life? What deeper wisdom have you found in Christ? How will you remind yourself to write your own set of Proverbs to pass on to friends and family? 11:25/7:55 -Jesus- The seeker, the questioner Of Proverbs 30 asks: Who has gone up to heaven and come down? Whose hands have gathered up the wind? Who has wrapped up the waters in a cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is the name of his son? Surely you know! Proverbs 30:4 And we do know! It s God the Father and Jesus the Son. On this side of the Scriptures and the cross and recorded history, we can answer that question. God is near, not far off; He has revealed Himself. Jesus is the wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:30), everything we could ever ask for, more than we could ever fathom. He is the Source of your strength, your valor, your beauty as a warrior and companion. We are a vast army of women of valor here! So how do we conclude our study, women of valor? Stay strong in Jesus. How? Pursue intimacy with Him. How? Pay attention to what He is doing and saying to you. How? Listen. How? Still yourself enough that you can hear Him. How? Pause during the day and night to refocus yourself. How? Set your watch, your phone with alarms. Remind yourself at the top of every hour. How do you know it s God s voice you re hearing? Ask Him a question you already know the answer to: Do You love me? The answer is clear from Scripture: Yes. Listen for His YES. See how He comes to you. Practice that over and over until you have a sense of His voice. Remember, He is encouraging; He is truthful; He is convicting but not condemning. Stay in the Scriptures. He will use them to communicate to you. Remember: 30:5 - Every word of God is flawless; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him.

6 Look for what Scriptures or characters or events pop off the page to you. Explore that. The Holy Spirit will help you understand the Bible and use its verses to show you how to move. As you become more and more familiar with Him and how He speaks and moves, you will gain the strength you need for staying on His path every day. NOW! To you, for finishing this study, I say, Eshet Chayil! א ש ת ח י ל Amen.