Forces of Nature
Our daughter Aubri and her family live in Mayfield, KY. They were there when the tornado ripped through the downtown destroying everything in its path. We have been there many times since that night of December 10, 2021. It is still an eerie sight to see the lasting effects of that powerful force of nature.
July 2022 was the time of terrible floods in Eastern Kentucky. A group of us went there to help with dismantling and rebuilding a house. It was located on a river. However, it was about 20 feet above it! The water rose 4 feet into the second story! As we drove, we saw houses washed off their foundations and sitting in the river. It is still an unbelievable memory thinking of that powerful force of nature.
I grew up in the Florida panhandle about 70 miles from the gulf coast. I remember a hurricane that hit sometime in the 70s around Panama City. It made its way toward our town. We were outside and experienced that force of nature as it passed through us. There were tremendous winds as it arrived followed by an eerie calm only to experience the high winds on the other side as it passed by.
The Bible records many powerful forces of nature: the worldwide flood of Noah’s day (Genesis 6-8), an earthquake that swallowed the rebellious Korah (Numbers 16), the plagues sent on Egypt (Exodus 5-12), and the storm on the Sea of Galilee (Mark 4). However, these are not the most powerful forces of nature on this planet. The greatest forces of nature are those who decide to conform their natures to the nature of the God of the universe. One of those forces of nature is described in Proverbs 31:10-31—God’s Woman.
Women were the crown jewel of God’s creation week. He proclaimed His creation good (Genesis 1:10, 12, 18, 21, 25). It was not until He had made woman that He said His creation was very good (Genesis 1:31). The woman described in Proverbs 31 stands as a memorial to all faithful women who, through their faith, are God’s forces of nature.
The text opens declaring the truthfulness of this concept. “Who can find a virtuous wife? Her price is far above rubies.” (verse 10). The Hebrew word translate “virtuous” is used 224 times in the Old Testament. Of these, 179 of them are used for an army fighting valiantly to win.
God chose this word purposefully. Women have been overlooked, dismissed, and relegated to second-class through much of the history of the world. God, however, has constantly shown the powerful influence of faithful women. There are many whom we could call to the fore to illustrate this. Proverbs 31 may be the most concise passage standing as a memorial to all those women who gladly take their place in the powerful role for which God has made them. “Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, but a woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised.” (Proverbs 31:30).
