A Good Wife - Meaning

"If you find a truly good wife, she is worth more than precious gems! Her husband can trust her and she will richly satisfy his needs." Proverbs 31:10. There are men that turn to Proverbs 31 and point to it for their wives to read. They want their wife to be as industrious as is the woman in the above text. She is to do many things according to what his estimation of an industrious wife should do. She is to be energetic, a hard worker, a bargain shopper, a child bearer, along with keeping those children in line by teaching and disciplining them. Many women work hard, but does she need to work far into the night? Too many husbands especially like the verse that says, "She will richly satisfy his needs." And she will if he satisfies her needs also. There are women out there that fit that description, but not every woman was inbred with having the super multi-task abilities. Proverbs 31 describes the characteristics that are in many women and it also tells how she came to be this way. Also kindness, encouragement and helpful actions on the husbands part goes a long way to inspire his wife to want to work harder. Verse 30 says, "Charm can be deceptive and beauty doesn't last, but a woman who fears and reverences God shall be greatly praised." So a woman's positive response to God in her life has much to do with the development of the qualities listed in this chapter. One way a husband can have a Proverbs 31 wife is to encourage and help implement her spiritual development. The husband can be the major catalyst in her becoming all that she can be. In verse 11 it reads, "The heart of her husband trusts in her confidently." A caring husband won't take his wife for granted; he appreciates her and all that she does. When a husband invests trust in his wife and believes in her, she will blossom right before his eyes. When a husband compliments his wife in front of other men it can make his wife feel good, but if he actually praises her directly then those warm and genuine compliments will help release a wife to be all that she can be. If a husband wants a "quality" wife he can surely have one.....if he is willing to play the role God has designed for him! Working together as equals, in the roles of "and they shall become one" says a lot for how a marriage should operate. When there is respect and mutual regard for each others abilities to manage the marriage, then both parties gain loving fringed benefits (My thoughts with Quiet Times for Couples, page 276).