More precious than pearls

Prov. 31:10: “An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth is far above pearls.”

Here: ‘an excellent wife’ is in Hebrew: ‘eshet chayil’ We know that ‘chayil’ means: power, strength, soldier, effective. So she is a strong woman, effective in her deeds.
Her value is more than precious pearls. The word ‘pearls’ in Hebrew is ‘pninim’. This means pearls, jewels, coral, etc.
This text has a hidden meaning because it points us to our inner being that needs some restoration.
We are created in de image of G’d. Man is created as man and woman. That means also that G’d has a masculine and feminine site. He alone can help us to discover our true femininity, that is created according to His will. This means that we need a development out of free will only in relation with our Creator. We also have to establish and maintain this relationship ourselves.

A deep relationship
Our relationship with our Creator is not merely expressed in our lightning of the Shabbat candlesticks or the cooking of the shabbath meal. Or even the making of our house a home. The keeping of a tidy home or even being single or married.
Here it is of importance that we have an inner attitude and character that is being ‘reformed’ by our G’d, Adonai.
When bitterness is ruling in us and because of this we are manipulating our family and congregation than we are not building but destroying and we are not an: esjet chayil.
We need a deep relationship with our Creator. This means spending time with him in studying his word and taking time to pray. The Hebrew word for prayer is: ‘lehitpallel’.
It means besides prayer also: judging yourself. That does not mean: passing an judgment on yourself. Rather looking at yourself and knowing the word of G’d to see whether you have trespassed or doing wrong in order to repent. In this time without a Temple in Jerusalem, we use the sacrifice of Yeshua Messiah to be cleansed by his blood. (1 John 3:3) This is keeping the laws of Tora according to reconciliation en sacrifice in these days.
Prayer is often not done in the right manner because we try to tell G’d how He has to change the world and our circumstances.
However our prayer should be a process in which we are really honest with ourselves and look at our behavior and give G’d space to react to us even different than we could ever think of. The problem here is that it is difficult for us to accept the fact that G’d can say: no to us.
It would be great if our relationship with G’d is so refined, that we know what to ask of Him. This would save us much sorrow and pain.

Serving G’d from a deep relationship with Him.
This deep relationship with Him costs us so much that the verse: “An excellent woman, who can find? has everything to do with this deep relationship between G’d and being a woman.
There are so many stumbling blocks on the road of life and also the enemy of G’d likes it much to cause us backsliding and not being effective any more for serving G’d and the Kingdom. But if we go that deeper, narrow road, that is costly to us, we really can expect a good, healthy fruit. In the following verse we see a midrash on this subject, a text that is spoken by Yeshua Messiah: “And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms for My Name’s sake, shall receive  many times as much, and shall receive eternal life.” Mt. 19:29.
If  we walk that narrow road, we will bear fruit for the Lord and our lives as women will be more precious than jewels.

Ruth an ‘Eshet chayil’
I have experienced that the Lord tests us and causes us to make very hard decisions. These decisions are costly as we saw, but if we persevere we receive even more than we ever imagined. The fruit gives us joy and thankfulness. It is like a sweet taste in our mouth. Like honey from the honeycomb.
You can expect however, that it might take half a generation or even a whole generation to see the fruit, but it will come. The fruit is not visible at once. This means that we need much patience and perseverance. In our innermost being we have often a testimony that we are on the right road. We have to keep that faith alive by our walk with the Lord. How many of us have sacrificed in our lives while our children grew up. Later we see the fruit and can relax and enjoy. The fruit of the labor of an ‘eshet chayil’ reaches in her children’s children that’s why she is so precious. Adonai promises us in the ‘Ten Words’ or ‘Aseret haDibrot” that He will bless and show mercy to a thousand generations for those who love Hem and keep His Torah. (Ex. 20:6) Here we see a working together of the Lord and the woman, eshet chayil. That’s why she is so precious.
She carries the blessing towards the coming generations like we see in the life of Ruth. She obeyed and was being grafted into the people of Israel, the people of G’d. She became the wife of Boaz and they got a son who became the ancestor of Meshiah Yeshua.
May our life also be a blessing and a contribution towards the Kingdom of G’d like we see in the life of Ruth.