Verse of the Day (May 13, 2020)

Verse of the Day (May 13, 2020) #BMSeminary – The final section of the book occurs in the form of an acrostic, that is, each of the 22 verses begins with a consecutive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Since it has such a distinctive form, it should not be considered part of Lemuel’s words, but taken as an anonymous poem. While verse 10 serves as an introduction to the passage and verses 30 and 31 as a conclusion, there is no logical outline to the poem. It might well be called “22 points about the excellent wife” or “the perfect wife from A to Z.” Each verse emphasizes a different quality about the excellent wife: she is rare (v. 10); trustworthy (v. 11); constant in her love (v. 12); industrious (v. 13); thrifty (v. 14); self-starting (v. 15); enterprising (v. 16); willing to do hard work (v. 17); willing to work long hours (v. 18); willing to do monotonous work (v. 19); compassionate (v. 20); prepared for the future (v. 21); a good seamstress (v. 22); married to a leader (v. 23); an entrepreneur (v. 24); not swayed by circumstances (v. 25); wise and kind (v. 26); duty-conscious (v. 27); blessed by her family (v. 28); not satisfied with the mediocre (v. 29); a woman of God (v. 30); and praiseworthy (v. 31). She is a woman of means (vv. 15, 22) and a woman of great skill and ability who lives in an agrarian economy. She is a woman of God who is enterprising and dedicated to her home. Perhaps this acrostic on the excellent wife is placed at the end of the book because she, above all others, will be most able to demonstrate the principles of wisdom in the home. (KJV Study Bible, HarperCollins)