Proverbs for Spinsters

"A house and riches are the inheritance of fathers, and a prudent wife is from the LORD."

The convergence of this little proverb from last Saturday morning with a recent re-relishing of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice and, for an extreme contrast, a production of Guys and Dolls I attended yesterday in Cedar Rapids, has caused some speculation on how Solomon's wisdom on the estate of holy matrimony, were he alive today, might be articulated. I get that the contrast he is going for in the proverb is not between the respective sources of a prudent wife, and say, an imprudent wife, but between what you can bequeath to your children and what you cannot. Your kids can inherit your house and your money when you die, but you can't give them a prudent wife. Only God can give them that. True as ever today, as parents of boys would be quick to affirm. But Solomon never offers a comment on the source of a good husband. Maybe that's his goal in a meta-sense through the whole book, producing wise men. But what are we 21st century, doing-our-best-to-be-prudent-industrious-educated-and-pleasant, maidens to make of this? What might Solomon say to us? How about:

Health, intelligence, beauty or wealth are gifts from God, but prudence outshines them all and will attract a faithful husband.

Yeah, if he's paying attention and hasn't been scared to death by his previous encounters with, uh, less worthy women. Or, is that precisely what we "average unmarried females" are, less worthy? My point is, the plight of unmarried women is not something I see too much in the scriptures. There's Ruth, and I love that story so much I memorized the whole book. I'm quick to recognize that we have it a lot better than single women used to have it, as I'm sure Jane Austen would affirm were she to pop in for a visit. Spinsterhood even suits some of us undoubtedly, and I'm really not as bitter and disgruntled as this post probably sounds, but I have moments of feeling invisible when I read the Bible and wish some inspired pen had breathed out a book of wise proverbs for spinsters.

Psalm 46

¹God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

²Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;

³Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah.

⁴There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High.

⁵God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early.

⁶The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: he uttered his voice, the earth melted.

⁷The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.

⁸Come, behold the works of the LORD, what desolations he hath made in the earth.

⁹He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in the fire.

¹⁰Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.

¹¹The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.

I've been trying to memorize this lately so that I can think about it when I am tempted to worry. When I was kid, I listened to these Christian cassette tapes that were called G.T. and the Halo Express. They consisted of children being scared of things and an angel showing up and reminding them of the promises of scripture. And then those verses would be set to song. At the time I loved them. Now the super 80s music they used to accompany the verses is a downside, but I still remember the text, which was always from the NIV. The good news is that the King James version defamiliarizes the words just enough for me to forget the music from G.T. (even as I memorialize it here). But my favorite part of this one is when the psalmist talks about Jerusalem in v. 5: "God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early." And that right early. Amen.

Oh, and apropos music, the hymnal lists Martin Luther's "A Mighty Fortress is Our God" as based on Psalm 46. And there are no flies on that music. At least not for me.