A Warrior

When you picture a warrior, what mental image comes to mind? Is it David when he fought Goliath? Maybe William Wallace in the movie Braveheart? Or Maximus in Gladiator?

Who does the Bible call warriors? We could all recall a few from the many victories throughout the Old Testament. But did you ever consider the Proverbs 31 woman to be a warrior? Well, she is.

The language used in Proverbs 31 points to this truth.

-vs. 10 she is described as “valiant” or “strong”

-vs. 11 she provides “spoil” for her family

-vs. 17 she “girds her loins with strength”

-vs. 29 her husband says she has “done valiantly”

All of these word choices paint a picture of war for us. They are all battlefield terms. Why would the author of Proverbs 31, King Lemuel (who credits the teaching to his mother in verse 1) use these descriptions? Why paint her as a warrior? Because we, as women, are in fact in a war.

Genesis 3:15 states, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”

As Scott Hubbard states, “No war rivals the war between the serpent and the woman. The Mongol Conquests and the Napoleonic Wars, the North versus the South and the two World Wars are puffs of smoke compared to the danger, the savagery, and the destruction of the battle between that ancient dragon and the daughters of Eve.”

Women are in fact on the frontlines in the home.

Perhaps a little frightening to think about, but also humbling. What a privilege to be on the frontlines. Also, how countercultural is God’s view of women?

As Hubbard also states, “From beginning to end, the Proverbs 31 woman is not merely a homemaker. She is a victor on the feminine field of war.”

I pray that God will use each of us in our homes to keep fighting the good fight (1 Timothy 6:12) and to change how we view ourselves as women. We are warriors and we are the heroines of the home—out of love for our families and for the glory of our Savior.

See Scott Hubbard’s Article, “The Proverbs 31 Warfare: How Home Unleashes a Woman” on DesiringGod.org