Proverbs
30: 21 For
three things the earth is
perturbed. Yes, for four it cannot bear
up:
22 For a servant when he reigns,
A fool when he is filled with food,
23 A hateful woman when she is married,
And a maidservant who succeeds her mistress.
22 For a servant when he reigns,
A fool when he is filled with food,
23 A hateful woman when she is married,
And a maidservant who succeeds her mistress.
Proverbs 30: 21, 23.
The sage lists 4 things that create turmoil in the world. The last two involve women. (This is where I could quite easily make a
sarcastic, semi-sexist comment, but I will resist.)
#3 on the list of earth shaking ironies is a hateful woman
when she is married. Some translations
say an unloved woman, but that’s not
accurate. The adjective used is sane| saw-nay’|, which means hate, to hate, an
enemy, to be hateful, or, in its participle form, simply “hater.”
So here’s the point:
Finding a man won’t fix you if you’re broken. If you are, as I heard husbands in Bassfield
lament, “just plain hateful” then marriage is not the solution.
A bitter woman (or man) wrapped in the sacred bonds
of marriage is a spiritual danger to herself and to others. Marriage is designed to be an example to the
world of the mystery of the intimate relationship between Jesus and His Bride,
the Church (Ephesians 5: 31-33).
When our individual hatefulness & brokenness
overwhelms the marriage bond, what we deliver in marriage is a corrupted and
distorted image of salvation. The power
of our individual prayers is diminished (1 Peter 3: 7). And our spiritual legacy is corrupted as we
produce damaged children instead of godly offspring (Malachi 2: 13-15).
Look around.
Look well, and you’ll see that one of the major reasons our world is so
disturbed is that our marriages are so disturbing.
People postpone marriage until they reach a certain
status, income, or educational level.
They'll even push back the wedding date so they can get their preferred venue for the reception. Yet, seldom do couples wait until they’ve dealt with their respective
foolishness, hatefulness, and insanity.
So Mr. Crazy
marries Ms. Hateful and the whole world suffers.
---Anderson
T. Graves II is a writer, community organizer and
consultant for education, ministry, and rural leadership development.
Rev. Anderson T. Graves II is pastor of Hall
Memorial CME Church in Montgomery, Alabama.
To hear sermons, read devotions, and learn more
about the ministry at Hall Memorial CME Church, visit www.hallmemorialcme@blogspotcom.
If you enjoy our work, please help support our work
in the community. Send a donation of any amount by check or money order.
Mail all contributions to :
Hall Memorial CME Church
541 Seibles Road
Montgomery, AL 36116
Mail all contributions to :
Hall Memorial CME Church
541 Seibles Road
Montgomery, AL 36116
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