Question:
What role do women have in the family?
Answer:
Women play a great role in the family, and it is sad that it is often down-played by the world, as if being a homemaker is taking a lesser position in life.
The woman is to be a keeper at home, not a person out seeking a career. Titus 2:4,5 says, “That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To be discreet, chaste, KEEPERS AT HOME, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.”
This does not mean that she can never leave the home to go anywhere, or help out the family income by doing things from the home base (even though the man is responsible to provide for the home, whether it be for widows in his family, or his own immediate family — I Timothy 5:8 says, “But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.”) The virtuous woman of Proverbs 31 is seen going out and selling things to merchants that she has made at home. Proverbs 31:24 says, “She maketh fine linen, and selleth it; and delivereth girdles unto the merchant.”
Being a “keeper at home” does not mean being lazy by any means. Household chores require a lot of time. Proverbs 31:15,16 says, “She riseth also while it is yet night, and giveth meat to her household, and a portion to her maidens. She considereth a field, and buyeth it: with the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard.” Verse 21 says, “She is not afraid of the snow for her household: for all her household are clothed with scarlet.” Between planning ahead for food and clothing, the virtuous woman is busy. But she is not only busy with her own family. Verse 20 says, “She stretcheth out her hand to the poor; yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy.” She realizes that there are poor people that also need help, and she reaches out to them, too.
Laziness in women is said to be one of the root causes of perverted, immoral sin. Ezekiel 16:49 says, “Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and ABUNDANCE OF IDLENESS was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.” Interestingly, it does not even mention the men and their sin, but said that the iniquity was in the women and their daughters.
The reason is further seen in Romans 1:26,27 says, “For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even THEIR WOMEN did change the natural use into that which is against nature: And LIKEWISE ALSO THE MEN, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompense of their error which was meet.” Notice that the women went into perversion first, and the men followed right after them in their sin.
The fact of the matter is that men too often follow the lead of women, instead of leading the home. That is what happened in the Garden of Eden. Genesis 3:1-6 says, “Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, SHE TOOK OF THE FRUIT thereof, and did eat, AND GAVE ALSO UNTO HER HUSBAND with her; and he did eat.” Adam followed his wife into sin.
If a woman will take her proper place in the home, she will be exalted. Proverbs 31:27-31 says, “She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness. Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her. Many daughters have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all. Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain: but a woman that feareth the LORD, she shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates.”