Fashioned with Strength & Honor

“Strength and honor are her clothing; she shall rejoice in time to come.” (NKJV)

 Proverbs 31:25

 Studying Proverbs 31, the more in depth I get with it, the more I love it! I feel like I can almost picture this woman in my head. And at times, I have somebody in mind when I read the verse. This one is no different. When I read verse 25, I could practically see in front of me a woman sitting tall with a quiet strength and confidence. She has the posture of one who is very well-respected and you can tell she carries wisdom before she even speaks a word. Perhaps you have someone in mind as well.

It has come to my attention that this verse does not mean what we think it does. It may seem very forthright, however, when you look deeper, you see that there is so much more to it. Reading that single verse we could conclude that this woman is strong and a woman of character and therefore her life is wonderful and she can rejoice in those times that will come! Everything will be just perfect! If only we could live this life!

No.

This is not at all what that verse means.

That word “rejoice” in this verse in the Hebrew is the word sachaq which means to laugh mockingly (Strongs, H7832).

You got that right. She is mocking the days that are to come. She knows very well that it will not always be an easy life. She knows that trials come. She does not know what the future will hold, and yet she can laugh at the days that are to come.

This same word sachaq, is seen in other parts of scripture. You see it in psalm 2:4 where it says, “He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision.”

And again in Psalms 37:12-13: “The wicked plots against the just. And gnashes at him with his teeth. 13 The Lord laughs at him, For He sees that his day is coming.” 

You might wonder how this woman can mock the days to come. You may wonder how she has the boldness to taunt the enemy.  This comes back to much of what Proverbs 31 shows evidence of:

This woman knows who she is and more importantly, she knows whose she is. She knows who her king is. Everything that describes the “Proverbs 31 Woman” comes back to one thing; everything that is part of who this woman is, is the fruit that is produced out of her fear of the Lord. Coming to that point of truly knowing God is so crucial to embracing this life. This life is so much a process. It does not happen all at once. But it begins with the fear of the Lord. And with the fear of the Lord, comes a knowing of who He is. And when you know who He is, you come to a place of security in who and whose you are. When you become rooted and secure in the Father – you can laugh at the days that are to come, you can have that boldness to taunt the enemy because you know who your king is, and your security is found in Him.

Your security is not based on your circumstances. It is based on your position. When you recognize the position you have as a daughter of the king of kings it changes everything. Life might not be easy right now, and you may be finding yourself in what seems to be trial after trial. Maybe it is a family situation, a diagnosis, a change on the horizon - whatever your today and the future may hold, I want to challenge you to learn to recognize the position that you walk in.

I bless you to be a woman who has no fear of the future because you are a woman who fears the Lord. And may you walk in the recognition of not only who you are, but whose you are. May you recognize that greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world and with that recognition laugh and rejoice in the days that are to come! You are fashioned with strength and honor, and you can rejoice in the time to come. Smile at the future.

Blessings and favor,

Brittany