The day was Sunday May 14, Mother’s Day 2023. Everything seemed like a normal Sunday morning around SonRise Community Church. The weather was fine, the band was warming up, the smell of freshly brewed coffee was in the air, and I was putting finishing touches on my sermon. A sermon that kept on the current sermon series through Genesis, which would’ve normally been totally fine, except that this particular Sunday fell on a particular text. One brand new family visiting SonRise for the first time that day commented on their experience afterwards and said, “Well, it certainly was a Mother’s Day we’ll never forget!” Why would they never forget it you ask? Because the text was Genesis 19, the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Nothing quite says ‘Happy Mother’s Day’ like a discussion on the sins of Sodom and burning sulfur from heaven does it? Well, it has now been a year since that day, and here we are again, having arrived at yet another Mother’s Day. I will not apologize for what is in the Bible, we ought to preach and embrace all of it, but I will confess that this year we have employed a greater degree of tact in our sermon scheduling. Thus, today on Mother’s Day (and next month on Father’s Day) we’ve set aside time to address things more pertinent to Mothers and Fathers. So on this Mother’s Day I invite you to turn in your Bibles to Proverbs 31, where we’ll focus on the woman who is best known as Lady Wisdom.[1] Most think this is just a passage about the kind of woman all women ought to be, yet I’ll seek to show you today that there is far more to see. There is much for all kinds of women to glean here, there is much for all kinds of men to glean in this passage too. Above all, we see much of Christ here. Let’s dive in, shall we? We come to the book of Proverbs. From the beginning the book of Proverbs comes to us in the form of a wise older father giving his son sound wisdom and instruction about all of life. This is a book thats as famous as it is infamous. It’s famous for its wisdom. Proverbs is certainly full of wisdom, but it’s very purpose is to teach and lead all its readers to true wisdom. 1:2 begins with the call to “…know wisdom and instruction…” 1:7 then clearly affirms, “The fear of the LORD is beginning of wisdom.” 1:20 says wisdom “…cries aloud in the street…” and chapter 1 ends in v33 stating “…whoever listens to wisdom will dwell secure, will be at ease, without dread of disaster.” So wisdom not only is to one of our main pursuits in life, wisdom is wrapped up with the Lord. True wisdom is found in the Lord, it comes from the Lord, and all who seek wisdom will dwell securely with the Lord. But Proverbs is also infamous, because while being full of wisdom, it’s not a book that is very easy to read through or preach through. So it’s a rare occasion to hear teaching or sermons on this book. On a surface level it just seems to contain one wise nugget after another, as if it were only a collection of sayings fit for fortune cookies. Yet, when one begins to lean into these sayings we find them to be very applicable and accessible to daily life. Simply put, each Proverb displays what God is like and what He values in His kingdom. Each Proverb reveals our weakness and foolishness in that we need to be instructed. The Reformation Study Bible says it well in its introduction to this book, “Proverbs is practical theology. God has established His covenant with His people, and the book of Proverbs offers instruction on how to live in this world…as the people of God.”[2] Of all the wisdom contained in this book, today we lean into the end, where Lady Wisdom stands forth in bright beauty in 31:10-31. This is a carefully crafted section of Scripture. It’s a full Hebrew alphabetic acrostic, meaning the beginning letter of each verse follows the order of the Hebrew alphabet. That this occurs to close out the book of Proverbs gives the sense that Lady Wisdom herself is completeness or totality of all the wisdom seen in the whole book[3], as if the best has truly been saved for last.[4] How fascinating that a book of wisdom from father to son would end with a view of this wise woman. See our first heading… Her Value (v10-12) “An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life.” As this final section begins we see the value and worth of Lady Wisdom. She is clearly quite the lady to receive such commendation in these opening verses. She is called an ‘excellent wife’ in v10, but other translations of this phrase are possible. It could be a noble wife, a virtuous wife, a wealthy wife. And it’s possible that wife isn’t even in view here, the Hebrew literally reads a ‘strong woman’ or ‘woman of valor.’ And the Greek translation of OT reads a ‘manly woman’ here. All of this leads us to conclude that Lady Wisdom is both a strong and a rare woman, the like of which is hard to find. Because of her extraordinary uniqueness she is valuable, worth a great deal, more than precious jewels. The mention of her husband in v11-12 is brief, and serves the purpose of drawing more attention to her worth.[5] That it says the heart of her husband trusts in her is itself something to notice. Only here in v11 and one other place in the OT is there a positive mention of someone trusting in something other than God.[6] Every other time trust comes into view it is said to directed toward God and God alone and not to be put in anything else. This further backs up just how rare and wonderful Lady Wisdom truly is. She is so wonderful that her husband is said to have great gain in her, nothing but good, and no harm, forever. This is indeed a high bar, which brings us back to the opening question in v10, ‘Who indeed can find a woman like this?’ Knowing that sin is real, that the fall happened, and that the only kind of women under the sun are sinful women, might legitimately leads us to answer this question by concluding that no one can find a woman like this because no such woman exists. More on that in a moment. For now, just notice the health and quality of the marriage and the home being presented in v11-12. Rather than this husband fighting doubt and suspicion, he has nothing but trust in her because she is true not false, constant not temperamental, reliable not fickle, and wise not foolish.[7] He trusts her to such an extent that he can relax in the city gate as is seen in v23, and often praises her as is seen in v28-31.[8] That Lady Wisdom is such a daily benefit to her family and husband, impresses upon us the reminder and daily benefit of wisdom in our own lives. That if we desire to be of great good to those around us in daily life, whether in our family or community, wisdom is the road that will lead us to such blessing, and virtue, and strength. We’ve seen her value, now see… Her Activity (v13-27) “She seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands. She is like the ships of the merchant; she brings her food from afar. She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household and portions for her maidens. She considers a field and buys it; with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard. She dresses herself with strength and makes her arms strong. She perceives that her merchandise is profitable. Her lamp does not go out at night. She puts her hands to the distaff, and her hands hold the spindle. She opens her hand to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy. She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household are clothed in scarlet. She makes bed coverings for herself; her clothing is fine linen and purple. Her husband is known in the gates when he sits among the elders of the land. She makes linen garments and sells them; she delivers sashes to the merchant. Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.” Here the diligent activity of Lady Wisdom is on full display. And I mean that, her work is the stuff of legend. In v13 she willingly makes clothes out of raw materials like wool and flax. In v14 her work ethic is so stout she is likened to a merchant ship that successfully and consistently brings back goods from great distances. In v15 she puts the needs of others before her own comfort as she rises from sleep while its still night to provide for her household as well as the servants in her household.[9] In v16 she shows herself to be a good steward, employing the appropriate level of risk and restraint in buying land, and then does more work to cultivate it herself. You might think she would leave this work to the servants, but in v17 we see her girding up her own loins and working with her arms. In v18 she is aware of the great good and profit she is bringing into her home and being within her home, which is seen in that her lamps aren’t put out at night. This could refer to her working late into the evening, and not doing so as to burn herself out but so enjoying her work that she gladly does this.[10] Or the oil not being put out at night could also mean that she has enough resources to keep her home lit at all times unlike others who have to snuff out their lamps to save oil.[11] In v19-20 we see her hands hard at work to not only produce but her hands open wide to provide for those in need as well.[12] In v21 she doesn’t fear the winter, for she has worked to ensure that her family is wrapped in scarlet wool, thick enough to keep out the cold. In v22 we see her care for herself too, especially important to her is the quality of her bed and her clothing. In v23 we see more of the benefit her husband receives from her. Because of her, he has no worries about life at home. And because of her, he is well respected in his own work among the leaders of the city. In v24 we see her running her own business to contribute to the income of the home, making and selling clothes buyers and businesses. In v25, my oh my, we see a deep contented strength in her. It says her own clothing is strength and dignity and rather than worrying about the future and what it may bring she laughs in the face of the unknown before her. In v26 she teaches others. Others who clearly see what this list displays, that she has a ton to offer. So naturally she teaches to others the kindness she brings to her own home. And in v27 we see it all summed up, “She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.” This is a woman that seems to combine all the good of all women throughout all time. Lady Wisdom seems to have the faith of Eve, the hope of Sarah, the beauty of Rachel, the courage of Esther, the strength of Mary, the servant heart of Phoebe, the heart of Lydia, and more. All in all Lady Wisdom brings life, industry, compassion, courage, hope, and vitality to every sphere of her life: the home among her family, the market among the workers, the streets among the poor, and the city gate among the leaders.[13] We’ve seen her value and her activity, now see… Her Praise (v28-31) “Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: “Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.” Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.” Given all that we’ve seen of Lady Wisdom so far, these final verses in the poem make perfect sense. She is indeed a woman deserving of praise, and here she gets just that. Her children praise her, and her husband praises her with an strong confession: that many women are excellent, but Lady Wisdom far surpasses them all. And lest we forget, among all the wonders this woman has there is the one factor that far outweighs them all. It’s not her charm, it’s not her beauty that makes her what she is and brings her praise, no. It’s her fear of the LORD. That not only makes her the wonder that she is, this forms a fitting conclusion to the book of Proverbs as a whole. It began with the fear of the LORD, now it ends with the fear of the LORD. Among all that shines in this life, walking with the LORD, living near the LORD, and fearing the LORD is the main call of all. Conclusion: I’d like to conclude with three encouragements. First, a word to just the ladies. I’m sure there are some of you who are thrilled by this picture of Lady Wisdom. You’ve been tracking with every word of this sermon and you see this woman as a glowing and glorious example of everything you desire to be as a woman. And from seeing such an example you are bolstered and encouraged by this to keep on growing and pursuing this kind of strong and virtuous life. I do think that describes some of you here. But I don’t think that describes all of you. I’m sure there are also some of you who aren’t thrilled by this picture of Lady Wisdom but are greatly burdened by seeing this and hearing this today. Why? Because you’ve tried to meet this level of godly femininity, to live up to these standards, and have fallen short time and time again. I mean who can be both a productive and active morning and evening person? What are you to do with this? Well, I’d encourage you to see all the book of Proverbs in this. There is another picture of Lady Wisdom we get in chapter 9.[14] There we read how she was young woman seeking to bring others into her home who would accept and love what she has to offer. In chapter 31 we then see a grown mature woman who has married and who has developed many practical gifts over the long years of her life. Taking both of these chapters together shows us a more realistic image of what this woman is like. She was not a superhero from birth that only serves as a lofty example for elite women, no. She is a woman for all women, one committed to the Lord, committed to her family, and committed to grow to be a blessing to all. Ladies, the goal here to pursue isn’t perfect, but a heart and life that is faithful though fallen, and fruitful though flawed. Second, we need to be reminded that Lady Wisdom is not the only woman in Proverbs. When we step back and get all the book of Proverbs in view we see this. Proverbs is written from the perspective of a father to a son, to instruct him in wise living for all of life. If the son listens to his father he will grow wise, if doesn’t listen he will grow wicked. And this father chooses to put two images of women before his son. In chapters 9 and 31 there is the picture of Lady Wisdom, but in chapters 5-7 he also includes the adulterous woman. And the adulterous woman is as wicked as Lady Wisdom is wonderful. We learn much in this. Not only is this an on the surface lesson to all men, that God would be pleased if we choose a godly wife over a worldly wife. That’s the low hanging fruit that is certainly to be plucked. But the greater lesson isn’t about women at all. All the readers of Proverbs continually face the choice between two kinds of life. One that follows down the path of wisdom and one that follows down the path of wickedness. These two women are parable like pictures we need to learn from. In these two women we see one truth: the way of wisdom is better and more beautiful than the way of the world. That is a reminder we are always in need of hearing. Third, lastly and most important, we need to see that Lady Wisdom is a type of Christ. This is what we need to see most in Lady Wisdom. When I say she is a type of Christ, I mean that Lady Wisdom gives us a preview of what Jesus will look like. There are many ways we can see this, but think through our three headings today. Ultimately, Jesus is the One who is of infinite value because of who He is. Ultimately, Jesus is the One who does the most laborious and wondrous work for us to save us and keep us. And ultimately, for who He is and what He has done, Jesus is deserving of all praise. So no wonder that Paul makes much of this in his own writing in 1 Cor. 1 when he says Jesus is not only our righteousness, not only our sanctification, and not only our redemption from sin, but our very wisdom from God. Ultimately, every reader of the book of Proverbs will face wisdom from many angles, be reminded that this wisdom finds it culmination in Christ. On this Mother’s Day, be encouraged with the beauty of Christ. God has truly given us so much in Him that all of heaven can give us no more. [1] Miles V. Van Pelt, A Biblical-Theological Introduction to the OT, 379. [2] Reformation Study Bible, 1011. [3] Waltke & De Silva, Proverbs: A Shorter Commentary, 430. [4] O’Dowd, ESV Expository Commentary, 997. [5] Murphy, Proverbs – WBC, 246. [6] Waltke & De Silva, 432. [7] Akin & Akin, Exalting Christ in Proverbs, 173. [8] Murphy, Proverbs – WBC, 246. [9] Waltke & De Silva, Proverbs: A Shorter Commentary, 434. [10] O’Dowd, ESV Expository Commentary, 999. [11] Waltke & De Silva, Proverbs: A Shorter Commentary, 434. [12] Ibid., 435. [13] O’Dowd, ESV Expository Commentary, 1000. [14] Murphy, Proverbs – WBC, 250.