Charlie Brown on Isaiah 6

This is an iconic Peanuts scene. Lucy holding the ball out for Charlie Brown who, despite his better judgement, holds out some hope that Lucy will finally let him kick the football. And of course, Lucy doesn't and again yanks the ball away sending Charlie skyward and downward. This is one is my particular favorite because of Chuck Schulz' use of scripture and great analogy to life. I am not sure he is going to take it as far as I do, but thanks anyway Chuck!

By now I'm sure you read the comic. Its great. Charlie quotes Isaiah 6:11 out of his frustration of having to trust Lucy yet again to hold the ball firm. To really get this comic, let me give you some context. In Isaiah 6:9-10, God has just finished commissioning Isaiah to preach the message of discipline to the Jews . Here is what was said:

He said, “Go and tell these people: ‘Listen continually, but don’t understand! Look continually, but don’t perceive!’10 Make the hearts of these people calloused; make their ears deaf and their eyes blind! Otherwise they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears, their hearts might understand and they might repent and be healed.”

This is what is going on: God is telling Isaiah that he is to go preach to a hard-hearted, stubborn group that will not hear him. They will listen continually but never understand. They will see Isaiah's object lessons and actions and not understand. Their hearts will become harder and harder and their ears will not hear and their eyes will fail to see the truth of what Isaiah was preaching. Basically, God is telling Isaiah that he is going to preach for probably the rest of his life and has a God-given guarantee that no one will listen- and that is by design. Talk about a commission! I'm not sure I would be super happy about that charge.

Charlie's response to Lucy about holding the football is the same as Isaiah in 6:11-12, " I replied, “How long, sovereign master?” He said, “Until cities are in ruins and unpopulated,and houses are uninhabited, and the land is ruined and devastated, 12 and the Lord has sent the people off to a distant place,and the very heart of the land is completely abandoned." As it would have been for us- what God was asking seemed too much for Isaiah. So he cried out in his misery- How long, sovereign master? To which God said, you are going to preach this unheard and unseen message until all the cities are in runin, the people are gone, the homes are uninhabited, and there is nothing left in the land- it will be a complete wreck. That is when you can stop preaching. Again, talk about a calling!

Now you can see how Charlie and Lucy kind of relate to this passage. The scene with the football was on ongoing struggle for Charlie. No matter how hard he tried, Lucy would always pull the football away. You know what though, Charlie always had a choice in the matter. Lucy was never forcing him to run after that football, risking yet another failure. The same goes for Isaiah, actually. God did commission Isaiah and sent a seraph with a hot coal to touch his lips and cleanse his sins (this is a topic for another day). But as Isaiah 6:8 says, Isaiah volunteered for the mission. So both Isaiah and Charlie were voluntary participants. Not only was their job essentially the same- keep doing something over and over again with the knowledge that the result would be the same- more suffering, but the duration was the same. Charlie asks, "How long, O Lord?" To which Lucy replies, "all your life Charlie, all your life." And that is essentially the message of Isaiah 6 here. Isaiah accepted the call of God in his life. After accepting it- God notified him of his charge- you will be a preacher that won't teach anyone anything. No one will listen, no one will hear, no one will see- and you will do this until the cities lie in ruin. Until the people are gone and until the nation is ravaged- you will see no fruits in your lifetime.

Although Peanuts can only take us so far- it is a cute idea that does relate to this passage sort of. It does still have application for us. Jesus Christ has called us for a purpose- to preach the Gospel, and in so doing, to glorify God. But just like Charlie, there is no guarantee of success. The world is like Lucy- just sitting there nicely holding the football out for us to kick. But just at the last moment, it whips the ball away and we fall flat on our faces, again, and again, and again. This is also the mission of Isaiah- go no matter what- obey and preach, although you "know" no one will hear. What Isaiah didn't know was that his part was just a small piece in God's larger plan- a plan that went all the way to the coming of the Messiah, the Son of God, and His life, death, and resurrection on the cross centuries later.

The same goes for our life. Sometimes we can feel like we have the same mission of Isaiah. That we preach and preach but no one is listening and no one cares. I often think of the story of William Carey- the father of modern missions. Carey risked everything to go to India to share the gospel. He lost his family and his wife. In his lifetime he faced countless trials and suffered tremendously. All the while he never saw 1 man come to faith in Jesus Christ. But after Carey died, Christianity took off in India and grew exponentially. As a result, Christianity is a major faith group in India.

There are thousands of stories just like this. It could be your story. My point today is this. The calling of Christ is often a call to suffer, to risk your life for the sake of His. How long? Maybe all your life. This is a hard call and you may never see the fruit of your ministry- you, like Isaiah, may go your whole life falling flat on your face for God. But you will be rewarded. God promises that the world will hate you because it first hated Christ, so be prepared. But also be armed with the knowledge that all things happen according to God's plan and glory. Your suffering is for God's glory and your reward will be oh so sweet in eternity.

Isaiah 6:8 is still calling out to us today: 8 I heard the voice of the sovereign master say, “Whom will I send? Who will go on our behalf?” I answered, “Here I am, send me!” God is still calling and still asking for our response. Even though you have no guarantee of success and comfort- Respond Today!

PJ

"Why do I exist in relation to God?" And other meaningful things

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It has been a few days since my last post and I think I left you hanging. The question I asked previously was, "Why do I exist in relation to Earth?" I gave some awesome comics to think about, which I did again, and promised to discuss the next issues, "Why do I exist in relation to God?" Why am I curious about this? That is very simple, because I want to know what I am here for. There has got to be some reason why I was existed other than to sit here typing away on my awesome iMac taking up physical and cyber-space. We all want to know- here is some more Calvin and Hobbes to ponder over:












Did I evolve from monkeys? Did you evolve from a monkey?

"Why do I exist in relation to God?" Meaning, if I agree there are two natures, a "supra" nature, or supernatural realm, and a natural realm, then what is my relationship to the supernatural while existing in the natural realm? Before we begin, I think it best that I define what I mean by "supra" nature. For a definition, please see the picture to the right -->

Supra, when added as a prefix, carries a meaning of "beyond," "transcending," or "above." Anything that is beyond physical reality, the nature that we can normally see, hear, and feel, is supernatural. I don't want to get into trying to prove whether or not there is such a thing as supernature or not. For that you can check out C.S. Lewis' book Miracles or a soon to be published book by Dale Kratt that speaks very comprehensively on the topic of philosophical naturalism and things of that nature. These are topics I don't want to delve into today- that is not my "purpose."

Just like I have a purpose in this little blog, I also have a large purpose as a human. But what is that purpose? Last week I talked about how we have a purpose to take care of God's orderly nature, to not exploit it. Maybe our purpose, as Hobbes has it, is to be tiger food. What do you think?

The reason I appreciate Calvin and Hobbes so much is because a lot of it is true about some of us. Just take the first comic for example. Calvin has just convinced himself that the whole history of the universe is leading up to a certain, unavoidable climax (something I agree, we call this the "second coming of Jesus Christ.") So Hobbes asks him, "what are you going to do about this knowledge?" And what do they do? They spend the rest of the afternoon watching cartoons on tv.... haha. That seems like a response that I would have had, and it seems like a response we all have from time to time. At some point in our lives, the thought that there might be something greater than ourselves comes to us. It might not be something we think about all the time, but it comes, maybe subtly, but its there. And sometimes we respond by seeking out the truth of that inquiry or subconscious suggestion, or sometimes we just shrug it off and go to watching cartoons for the rest of the day.

Then we have the 3rd comic. Calvin asks Hobbes, "what is the purpose of humanity?""Why are we here?" To which Hobbes describes, "to devour each other alive." Now, if you are any fan of Thomas Hobbes or have ever taken a Poly Sci class, you will know that Hobbes is famous for saying in his book The Leviathan, about mankind in the state of nature: "and In such condition, there is no place for industry; because the fruit thereof is uncertain: and consequently no culture of the earth; no navigation, nor use of the commodities that may be imported by sea; no commodious building; no instruments of moving, and removing, such things as require much force; no knowledge of the face of the earth; no account of time; no arts; no letters; no society; and which is worst of all, continual fear, and danger of violent death; and the life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short."(Thanks Wikipedia for this exact quote)

I wonder how much of us hold to this understanding? Or how many of us out there practice life according to Hobbes (the tiger) that the purpose of man is to devour one another alive. I unfortunately think that more of us fall into this category that we like to admit... But enough of that, its too convicting (thanks Howard Hendricks!). Even more, how many of us think we are the perfect end of evolution?

Anyway, that long introduction finally leads me to the point of this blog today, which is a big question, "Why do I exist in relation to God?" There are many answers to this, and of course there is the "big answer" which is to glorify Him, which is irrevocably true. But today I want to focus on one thing: fellowship.

Mankind was created in the image of God to have fellowship with God, to worship God completely and walk with him(Gen 1---3). Fellowship with God means complete blessing. But as a result of Adam and Eve's sin, mankinds spiritual condition was corrupted and was cut off from fellowship from God: For a more comprehensive reading, see Paul Ennis in Moody's Handbook of Theology:

JUDGMENT

Adam and Eve now came to a knowledge of good and evil but not in the manner they should have. Immediately the world around them looked different; they recognized their nakedness, something they had not previously considered (Gen. 3:7). Their minds had become defiled, hindering fellowship with God.

God called for Adam, the mediator of His truth, to accountability (Gen. 3:9). Adam as head of the human race was being held responsible. God first pronounced judgment upon the serpent and Satan who was the power behind the serpent (Gen. 3:14–15). Because the serpent sought to exalt himself he would be abased, crawling on his belly, eating the dust in his path. Genesis 3:15 should be understood as referring to Satan. Although he would have a minor victory, the seed of the woman (Christ) would deal Satan a death blow. God also judged the woman; she would have pain in childbirth (Gen. 3:16) and desire for her husband⁷ who would rule over her. The judgment on Adam meant he would work hard; the ground would resist him.⁸  The tragic news awaited Adam: death would occur. Adam and Eve died both physically and spiritually.

Promise of Redemption 

In Genesis 3:15 God announced the enmity that would come between Satan and mankind. This is the protevangelium, the first announcement of the gospel in Scripture. Satan would be dealt a destructive, head crushing blow. This is a reference to Christ’s victory over Satan at the cross (Col. 2:14–15; Heb. 2:14) when Christ would render Satan powerless, enabling man to be forever restored to fellowship with God, making possible man’s ultimate rule. Satan would have a minor victory (“you shall bruise him on the heel” ), suggesting the death of Christ; however, that very death would spell Satan’s defeat.

Although Adam and Eve had sinned, incurring death, God moved to resolve man’s dilemma by pointing to a future Savior who would eliminate death, restore believing man to fellowship with God, and consummate history with Messiah’s reign on earth to restore all that Adam had lost.

Even though Adam lost considerable authority in his kingdom rule as God’s mediator, Genesis 3:15 looks to the future when the Messianic kingdom will be inaugurated, restoring all that Adam lost.

And the "promise of redemption" is the good news. Before Christ, if man wanted fellowship with God, to be "friends with God," to "be with God," he has to partake in the sacrifical system, the shedding of blood for the remission of sins and guilt. But since Christ came, the message of Easter, man no longer has to shed the blood, but because of the shed blood of Christ, is free once again to partake in complete fellowship with God and to share in the blessings that follow. If you want to know more on what it means to have fellowship with God, I encourage you to check out 1 John. That is a great little book in the back of the Bible that focuses on this issue of what it means to have fellowship with God. Or, check out the C.S.
lewis article I linked on an earlier post called, "The Weight of Glory."

"Why do I exist in relation to God?" I exist for the purpose of having fellowship with God, of calling God my "friend." Of partaking in the blessings and, often times, the suffering that comes with being God's friend. We try and find experiences that can relate to what I am talking about- we try and use chemicals (alcohol, drugs, caffeine (yes), ect. ect.) or whatever to empower our senses toward some other kind of supernatural or "out of body" experience. But the real, true extra-sensory experience is had in true relationship with our creator- that is a purpose.  It may sound silly and hokey to you. But once you have experienced God's fellowship you will know what I mean, you will understand the blessing that comes and the pure blessing that awaits when we can finally have perfect fellowship with God for eternity.

PJ

Comics, The Earth, Recycling, Environmental Activism and Much More!

Calvin and Hobbes is my absolute favorite comic. If you come to my house (you are invited), you will see prominently displayed on my desk the complete works of Bill Watterson (Calvin and Hobbes author. Thanks Mal!). I love it for a number of reasons, but mainly because Calvin reminds me of me, inquisitive, a little crazy, sometimes disobedient, loves exploration, like to talk to self and stuffed animals, and so on.... I also enjoy it because it is a comic strip that isn't afraid to jump into deeper issues. I mean, the strip is called "Calvin and Hobbes," both those figures are pretty esoteric- John Calvin and Thomas Hobbes. I usually try and weave some Calvin and Hobbes into my teaching materials. So today Calvin has some wisdom for us.

This is a big question that all humans have to come to grips with at some point in their lives. As Christians we kind of have a vague idea of the answer to this question, "Why are we here?" The ol' "meaning of life" question. Normally you hear a few categories of answers, which Hobbes lays out for us: (1) literal, sarcastic answer(my favorite), (2) the scientific answer, and (3) the obvious answer. But Calvin want's the deeper answer- this is the answer most of us want. 

We also have Lucy's take on this question. Charlie Brown says we are here to make others happy. That is quite interesting, sounds pretty good, but not biblically accurate. Her response is quite funny and I think might relate to a lot of us... haha. 

So what does the Bible say about this? Well, lots, actually. As you might expect, the Bible is a book that rather specializes in answering this question and I could write for days about it. So I am going to pick one idea, maybe a central idea. This whole thing of "Why do I exist?" 

It is important because we all want to know that our lives have meaning. We want to know that we aren't just sitting around wasting our time. That we were made with a purpose- and of course, I submit we were.

The pat answer is, "to glorify God," which is the "big" answer. But that is too vague for now. There are 2 types of angles we can take here: "Why do I exist," (1) In relation to the earth and (2) In relation to God. Today I am interested in (1) In relation to the Earth. 

So why did God make you in relation to this floating ball you live on? This is kind of the, "your obligation as a responsible God image-bearer," lesson.

Gen 1:28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply! Fill the earth and subdue it! Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and every creature that moves on the ground.” 

In this passage we have an number of things going on:

(1) Practical: Populate- make babies. Fill the Earth. This is a pretty practical one. The Earth needs people, make them. I think we have this one covered. Well, we as American's and Europeans are bad at this one, but in general we are decent at it.

(2) Functional: Take Care of the Earth: This is a harder one. This passage does not give us license to exploit Earth's natural resources, as I have heard (erroneously) elsewhere. We were called to maintain God's original order and purpose- before God created it, Earth was a state of utter chaos. God gave it design and purpose. Think about it, God created earth and created us to take care of it. How does God take care of the Earth? Not by exploiting it.

Our role is to maintain that design and purpose. We can use Earth's natural resources, but in a responsible manner. I'm no hippie and I don't fall prey to the "green fad." Why? Because that green stuff is fear mongering to put other green stuff (cash money) into people's pocket. While I am not going to fall prey to their fear mongering, I am going to follow God's instructions in Genesis- which is to take care of the Earth.

As human, we are made from clay. We were created out of the ecosystem. We are part of the ecosystem. Sure, we are unique in this ecosystem, but that doesn't give us free-reign to destroy it.

So what does it mean to "subdue the earth, to rule over the fish and the birds and all the creatures?"

God's original design was for a perfect ecosystem. One where man and animal co-existed in harmony- each performing its God appointed task. Mankind as the sole image bearer of God served the functional role as "God's Representative" on Earth. As such, was the effective head over creation on Earth. Man therefore was responsible as the administrator/leader of Earth's many inhabitants. What that would have functionally looked like, I don't know. As a summary- man was appointed to rule on Earth because that is what God does, He rules. Man was uniquely gifted for this task, but we screwed it up.

How did we screw it up? Sin. Adam and Eve's sin brought chaos to this order- ushering in the change agent that would wreak havoc. Man lost His "job" as God's representative- we cut ourselves off as a result of our rebellion. Therefore, a new plan was set into motion in order to restore order- we call this "redemption," or, God's act of getting creation back in order.

And this is the grand theme of the rest of the Bible- God's redemption through Jesus Christ. It's there and it's not square.

I could go on for hours about this, but I'm not going to because I don't have hours. The take-away from this is this: I love animals and the ecosystem. Taking care of it is not just for hippies, Californians, and people from the Pacific Northwest, it is for all people. Being "eco-friendly," is not "anti-Christian," or whatever else- it is responsible. To what extent you should be "eco-friendly," is up to you. Should you go get a Prius? I don't know, do you want good gas mileage at the expense of good looks and power? That is a personal choice. But you should make babies too. How many? I don't know, 7 (that is the holy number).



So in closing- make babies and take care of the environment (but don't smoke pot, its bad for you).

PJ

It's Been Weird, I Need Some Good Stuff: Col 1:15-23

Ok friends, it's been a weird week. If you want to know about it, ask me off-line.  Not bad, just weird. Sometimes when things get weird, I like to go to some favorite scripture and just read it. It settles me and gets my mind right. I have provided such reading for your enjoyment and mental stability today. It is a super famous Christological passage out of Colossians, 1:15-23:

 15. He [Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation, (16) for all things in heaven and on earth were created by him – all things, whether visible or invisible, whether thrones or dominions, whether principalities or powers – all things were created through him and for him. (17) He himself is before all things and all things are held together in him. (18) He is the head of the body, the church, as well as the beginning, the firstborn from among the dead, so that he himself may become first in all things. (19) For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in the Son (20) and through him to reconcile all things to himself by making peace through the blood of his cross – through him, whether things on earth or things in heaven. (21) And you were at one time strangers and enemies in your minds as expressed through your evil deeds, (22) but now he has reconciled you by his physical body through death to present you holy, without blemish, and blameless before him – (23) if indeed you remain in the faith, established and firm, without shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has also been preached in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become its servant. 

I have no words, just meditate on this clear proclamation of who is Jesus Christ- God, Eternal, Co-Equal with the Father, Creator, Sustainer, the Head of the Church, our Savior, the Fixer of Relationships (reconciler) and much much more. This is just a mid-week reminder that He who is all these things is also our friend and brother- someone who loves us and wants the best for us- Amen.

Enjoy! PJ


PS: These pictures represent things that also give me peace of mind: Camels, Memories, Mal and Mimi, and Animals.... especially cute ones like baby Elephants.

Holiness Defined? You Tell Me.

I am reading a great book right now called Radical by David Platt. Some of you might have heard about it or even read it. I am enjoying it immensely. I has really challenged me to re-think the typical paradigm of the "American Dream" style of doing church. If you aren't familiar, he kind of describes it this way (this is not a verbatim quote):

Step 1: Get building (or something like a building)
Step 2: Get Christians to come to your building (steps 1 & 2 can sometimes be reversed)
Step 3: Get Christians to keep coming back and to stay in your building by giving them programs
Step 4: Teach them to be good by telling them why they shouldn't do
Step 5: Once you got Christians in your building and have them coming back, you can tell everyone where your church is so that they can come and get in your building and keep coming back to learn what not to do and discuss how they aren't doing it and make sure everyone else is being good too.

Of course this does not describe every church, I think the author was painting a very broad picture and presenting general tendencies.... But I find that model quite accurate, actually. I know that is kind of the thinking that I have from time to time. It is tempting because its so prevalent. Go to church, hopefully there are some seats in the seats, get some good programs going so people can learn what not to do and come back. In a way this is funny to me because it is too convicting (a famous Howard Hendricks idea. If you don't know who this is- I suggest you acquaint yourself with this great writer and teacher.).

Platt describes a totally different model. The model of our Savior. Jesus' focus was on discipleship. The God of the Universe, the creator and sustainer of life, chose to pour himself into only a roving band of 12 fishermen, misfits, and sinners. He taught them to go out into the world and not be afraid of anything: to look stupid, to be ridiculed, to be shamed, to be beaten, to have your neighbors talk about you, to not seem cool, to make mistakes, and so on. Jesus challenged them to DO Christianity, not BE Christians (the "be, do" analogy I borrowed from John Boyd, if you don't know who this is, I suggest you acquaint yourself with this great military tactician and reformer!). They were not defined by what they did not do- Jesus didn't sit around in a tent all day not doing bad stuff. Instead, Jesus' holiness was defined by what He did. We know the disciples for what they did- especially after the resurrection in Acts- that is some powerful doing.

Now, at first you may have a negative reaction to this because it sounds like works. And when people hear "works" they panic. But that is a totally unconnected issue. What if the gospels read like this?  "Today is Sabbath and Jesus didn't go out into the synagogue to cause trouble. He didn't risk anything by going to heal people. He didn't cause any friction, He didn't challenge the leadership, instead, He stayed in His hut and was good. Jesus did not do anything wrong that day (in fact Jesus didn't do anything wrong any day). Likewise, the disciples didn't do anything wrong either. Instead, they came to Jesus' hut and they sang worship songs and Jesus gave them a lesson." You get the picture.

I could write all day on this topic but won't, because I am short on time this morning. I want to get you thinking about the American Church. How can we do it better? Can can we do it simpler? How can we come together as a church, then take that message and go into the community as doers... How can we be motivated to be brave and risk it all?

Platt explains that holiness is most often defined by what we do, not by what we don't do. So what does that say for our American style of worship? You tell me....

PJ

Short Fuse? YES!!!!! Psalms 117

Dear friends, I have little time today, so I want to focus on the word "short". Why? Because my day started bright and early at the DMV- what a way to start the day, right? Well, it gets better. After filling out all the paperwork and stuff, Mal and I paid the fee for registering our car + a 60$ late fee for not registering within 10 days of moving to California: Awesome! Mal asked the lady, how are we supposed to know that we have to register so early? Don't you think people are busy moving and getting situated and stuff? To which she said, "well, you should check online next time," Super! So, my fuse was getting shorter at this point. Then, we proceeded to take our drivers test. I've been a lot of places and changed driver's licenses a few times. But let me tell you, this is the first time we have had to take a drivers written test to get a license- extreme! So, the lady administers this "short" test... a test which Mal and I both fail by only 1 point. I missed one question that I checked, changed, then re-changed to the original at the last moment- EXTRA AWESOME!!!! We are both idiots. To our credit, those questions were quite trickily worded and I would say 75% of the questions were irrelevant- for example, did you know that it is a $1,000 fine to dump an animal on the side of the road? Well, if you want to get your driver's license in California, you better know it......

So, the lady gave us the short handbook and told us to come back and re-test (w/ a 6$ retest fee, after paying $253 to register our car + $62 for the driver's licenses, which we don't have yet.) My fuse is getting shorter......

Just like in Dallas, to drive in Calif you have to get inspected. Well, we must get our car fixed first, why? Because we have a check engine light. So I make a short stop at Meineke and the guy gets the codes for me, all 5 of them- DOUBLE SUPER!!!! Now I have to make another short trip to the VW dealer to pay another $100 to get a "proper diagnosis," so that I can pay to have the emissions test so I can finally get my car registered. I think its going to cost us a grand for this- YAY UPON YAYS!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes, I am being quite sarcastically negative, but there is good in all this, which is Psalm 117. Psalm 117 is the shortest chapter in all the Bible, but it is refreshing to my negativity and puts my foul mood in proper perspective.... Here it is:

"(1) Praise the Lord, all nations; Laud Him, all peoples! (2) For His lovingkindness is great toward us, and the truth of the Lord is everlasting. Praise the Lord!"

How can you stay mad? Praise God for He has blessed us so much. His lovingkindness is indeed great toward us and His truth lasts forever- that is indeed cause to Praise the Lord!

So if you are frustrated like me today, take a gander at this short prose. You have nothing to be mad at. Praise God, the truth of the Lord is everlasting- Laud him with all laudiness. Praise Him with all you got. Because if you aren't, then you are focusing on that junk that is upsetting you, which is not fun. So if you are a nation of people, praise Him. God is Great!!!!!

PJ

Proverbs 31, Oh Proverbs 31- Lemmie you kill me....

The great Proverbs 31, that oft sardonically misquoted, misunderstood and over allegorized. If you don't know what I am talking about, read Proverbs 31 real quick:

31:1 The words of King Lemuel,an oracle that his mother taught him:2 O my son, O son of my womb,O son of my vows,3 Do not give your strength to women,nor your ways to that which ruins kings.4 It is not for kings, O Lemuel,it is not for kings to drink wine,or for rulers to crave strong drink,5 lest they drink and forget what is decreed,and remove from all the poor their legal rights.6 Give strong drink to the one who is perishing,and wine to those who are bitterly distressed;7 let them drink and forget their poverty,and remember their misery no more.8 Open your mouth on behalf of those unable to speak,for the legal rights of all the dying.9 Open your mouth, judge in righteousness,and plead the cause of the poor and needy. 

10 Who can find a wife of noble character? For her value is far more than rubies.11 The heart of her husband has confidence in her,and he has no lack of gain.12 She brings him good and not evilall the days of her life. 13 She obtains wool and flax,and she is pleased to work with her hands.14 She is like the merchant ships;she brings her food from afar.15 She also gets up while it is still night,and provides food for her household and a portion to her female servants.16 She considers a field and buys it;from her own income she plants a vineyard.17 She begins her work vigorously,and she strengthens her arms.18 She knows that her merchandise is good,and her lamp does not go out in the night.19 Her hands take hold of the distaff,and her hands grasp the spindle.20 She extends her hand to the poor,and reaches out her hand to the needy.21 She is not afraid of the snow for her household,for all of her household are clothed with scarlet.22 She makes for herself coverlets;her clothing is fine linen and purple.23 Her husband is well-known in the city gatewhen he sits with the elders of the land.24 She makes linen garments and sells them,and supplies the merchants with sashes.25 She is clothed with strength and honor,and she can laugh at the time to come.26 She opens her mouth with wisdom,and loving instruction is on her tongue.27 She watches over the ways of her household,and does not eat the bread of idleness.28 Her children rise up and call her blessed,her husband also praises her:29 “Many daughters have done valiantly,but you surpass them all!” 30 Charm is deceitful and beauty is fleeting,but a woman who fears the Lord will be praised.31 Give her credit for what she has accomplished,and let her works praise her in the city gates. (I find proverbs are always much better if you add a really cute picture right in the middle- oh by the way, Mimi agrees with Lem's mom here, she wants to be a noble wife one day.)

I've isolated vv. 10-31 because this is the passage that gives the most headaches for some. Not for me, though. I'll talk more on this later.

The author of this proverb is King Lemuel. Just like Agur of the previous proverb, who is Lemuel? Lots of scholars say Lemuel is Solomon, which may be true. But the text really doesn't say who he is nor does it indicate elsewhere in the Bible who Lemuel is.  It could even have been written by someone unknown and then attributed to "king Lemuel." Just another biblical mystery.

Anyway, Lemuel is a king and this is the advice given to him by his mother, which is also weird/unique to the proverbs. 


This proverb seems to be a nice summary of the whole body of proverbs preceding it. In the first little section, Lem's mom talks about the dangers of drunkenness, fast women, and the need for justice- all common themes in Proverbs. (for more themes see below)


The last section is the one that gives people problems. It is an acrostic poem- which means each line of the poem starts with the next Hebrew letter in the alphabet (see picture).


 "How can the Bible give us such lofty expectations for a wife?" Some opinions of this are that this is an allegory for "wisdom" personified, while other say it is talking about a young boy(????). Didn't we just talk about speculation? I am going to take the stance that King Lemuel's mom is indeed explaining that if there was a person full of wisdom out there, she might look like this, and she would indeed be the ideal wife. Please find below a good summary and conclusion of Proverbs by Sid S. Buzzell in the Bible Knowledge Commentary:

The virtues of a noble wife are those that are extolled throughout the Book of Proverbs: hard work, wise investments, good use of time, planning ahead, care for others, respect for one’s spouse, ability to share godly values with others, wise counsel, and godly fear (worship, trust, service, obedience). As Proverbs has stated repeatedly, these are qualities that lead to honor, praise, success, personal dignity and worth, and enjoyment of life. In the face of the adulteress’ temptations mentioned often in Proverbs, it is fitting that the book concludes by extolling a virtuous wife. Young men and others can learn from this noble woman. By fearing God, they can live wisely and righteously. That is the message of Proverbs. 

Just for your enjoyment, here is a pretty comprehensive list of subjects also covered in the Proverbs. Today and the rest of the month, extoll every virtue on this list (on the positive side)- Amen.