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Women all over the world have read these verses of scripture and have yearned to be a living example of the virtuous woman described in Proverbs 31:10-31. It is our model we all aspire to become however there is also another sphere of application to this wonderful passage.
The church is often referred to as the Bride of Yeshua, bearing this in mind we then refer back to this passage to see how it relates and to examine the implications of these verses on our churches as a body and as individual churches.
Women in the bible were often used to represent and symbolise the body of believers from Ruth and Naomi (the Jewish woman and the gentile woman) to Rachel & Leah and so on. Here we can interpret this as applying to the full body of believers, as the bride is noted as being one body and so too is the virtuous woman. So when considering the bride, the virtuous woman we are being told not only what exactly women as individuals should represent but also what the bride the collective body of believers the church should represent.
If we consider the first three verses of this part of scripture it contemplates:
10 Who can find a virtuous wife?
Her worth is far above rubies.
11 The heart of her husband safely trusts her.
As can be seen throughout the books of the bible idolatry is a very significant sin and spiritual adultery is denoted as being "unfaithful to God" we note the scripture the importance of this.
We are told in Numbers about the Rite of Ordeal and Law of Jealousy in Numbers Chapter 5 in which the husband who feels his wife may have been unfaithful, can submit her to a test to see if indeed she has been unfaithful, where she has to drink water with the bitter substance inside as prepared by the Rabbi's. If she was innocent, God would show her favour and she would bear a child, if she were guilty she would suffer a physical affliction as a resul
Fidelity was viewed as one of the most precious parts of a marriage, that has not changed as we can see that unfaithfulness in marriages leads to a breakdown in society and family structures, marriages breakdown, diseases are spread, children grow up in broken homes and a breakdown of society in general and morality.
We also see this in the days of Noah when the flood entered into the earth, man had once more strayed from God and was being unfaithful, the water destroyed those who were evil and getting into the ark saved Noach and his family. The ark made out of wood can also typify the cross, Noach was faithful and took refuge in the wood symbolising the cross of salvation (which he made into an ark) as he had been instructed too. Noach and his family were saved. The ark of covenant typified Yeshua in many ways, it was made out of wood a symbolic reference to the cross, and it had the commandments engraved inside in stone.
In the days of Noach we can see that men were not walking with God. We are told Noach was righteous and that he walked with God. In the days of Noach men were unfaithful to God, they were rejecting him and become evil and morally depraved. We are told in scripture that when men reject God he gives them over to their evil desires and they become morally depraved. The water engulfed the wicked and they died. Just as in the Rite of ordeal the infidelity will physically afflict an unfaithful woman and impact on her health if she is guilty when she drinks the bitter water.
The earth was washed and sanctified by the water of the flood, as to is the woman who stands accused in the Rite of Ordeal if she is innocent. If she is innocent she is blessed by God to bear a child. Noach was held as innocent of spiritual adultery, as he walked with God and was referred to as a righteous man of his generation. Clearly here we see the synergy as a result he and his children were told by God to be fruitful, multiply and populate the earth, to bear fruit and have children.
In the Rite of ordeal the woman who is afflicted and guilty can no longer bear children, as in the days of Noach, those who did not walk with God and who were unfaithful spiritually died and did not bear fruit of children. They did have the gift of bearing fruit.
As the body, wife and bride we can also see that if we are not faithful to God and practice spiritual adultery in his very house, we will not only inflict ourselves but there will also be consequences as a result on what our church produces. We may multiply as the men did in the days of Noach before the flood, however you will notice as in the days of Noach our believers will not reach spiritual understanding of God or mature in their walk. You can see this happening in the church where money, materialism and wealth are the new idols of the day; success is measured by worldly standards.
These things indicate spiritual immaturity and lack of understanding of the God we profess to worship and love. They also indicate much more serious implications as to the loyalties of believers, who choose to place money as some kind of idol in God's house. We have then false doctrine being pumped through our churches, name it and claim it, you can tell God what to do, the craving of believers for signs, wonders and miracles. The leaders promoting such things become an idol of some kind, people follow them depending on them for a miracle, for financial prosperity. They send and give these people money to pray for them. They become a focused intermediary for these people instead of Yeshua.
They become an idol and an object of worship instead of God, their doctrines are often distortions of scriptural truths, and the fruit is a church, which doesn't understand the God they profess to follow. Ministries that collapse standing accused of financial misconduct, pastors that stand accused of sexual sin and a world that is watching this example of Christianity once more. There are non-Christians that don't do these things what kind of witness is this if our churches are engaging in such acts?
Hence why spiritual adultery is such a serious sin, it destroys the framework of the body of believers, which is also a means of protection against many things also from false doctrine. We see Paul clearly telling people in the New Testament to be aware of this teacher and that teacher whose teachings are false. We see in the days of Ezekiel the warnings of the abominations within the temple. These things were taught through the body to protect the church. These things are not being taught in these blab it and grab it churches. Instead the emphasis today is on getting rich, believing in God for your miracle, coming to see a pastor who will lay his hands on you so you can receive your miracle. There is no protection here in fact it is the opposite.
Adultery and spiritual infidelity breaks down the family, children grow up with less parental supervision, protection, love and nurturing as a result. Though parentless children still have the Lord as their father who protects them, it is so nice to have a physical mother and father that are in a good marriage with no infidelity. The church is the same the body of believers, it is good for young churches to grow and be nurtured by established faithful churches that are grounded in the truth and love of God.
Though God has promised to cater for the fatherless, to protect the orphans, our churches in this instance some of which have gone astray and cannot be the family they are supposed to be, making this more necessary. That fills my heart with great sadness but I thank God for the faithful remnant that were like Noach holding onto the Lord and walking with him in righteousness those who depend on the cross of Yeshua for salvation and who follow and are faithful to him, for through them there will be fruit and multiplication. Through the faithful bride there is a ruby to be found. The virtuous woman and bride though rare, stands innocent of infidelity and spiritual adultery and can take the rite of ordeal and bear a child and fruit, which is a blessing.
No church is perfect we all know that, but as a basic grounding to our love for God we must endeavour to be faithful and not cheat on our husband. We must endeavour to become a bride worthy of the title of a virtuous woman as described in Proverbs 31:10-31. How I wish we as a body of believers can be faithful and known as a precious jewel to our Lord, how I wish we as a body of believers we can be trusted by him and make our Lord's heart safe.
For the next section we will continue to examine what it means to be a virtuous bride and wife as a figurative of what we as a body should aspire to be.
Written by J Barraclough 2004
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