Our Favorite Proverbs: Proverbs 31:8-9, A Voice for the Voiceless

by Marilynn Chadwick

"Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy." Proverbs 31:8-9 NIV

"The Sayings of King Lemuel" is how some Bible translations refer to the famed 31st chapter of Proverbs. Scripture calls the words an "oracle" taught to the king by his mother. She begins by referring to her son as an answer to her prayer.

"Listen, my son, the answer to my prayers!" (Proverbs 31:2b NIV). She goes on to teach him important life lessons about the kind of king he should be and dangers to avoid. We catch a glimpse into the heart of this mother who had prayed for her son and devoted him to the Lord. Let's look closer at the teachings that were foremost in her mind as she trained this son who would be king (Proverbs 31:1-9).

Like any good mother, she warned him about the dangers of immoral women and overindulgence in alcohol. But her cautions appear to have had more to do with his calling as king rather than mere morality.

For example, she warns him that loose women "ruin kings" and drinking can cause a king to forget laws and deprive the oppressed of their rights. She challenges her son to use his power to help the broken, "[speaking] up for those who cannot speak for themselves" and "[defending] the rights of the poor and needy" (Proverbs 31:3, 5, 8-9).

Clearly the queen mother saw the potential dangers of royalty. She demonstrated her foremost concern that he would be a just and kind ruler to the poor.

If King Lemuel's mother prayed for this son before he was born and during his lifetime, surely, she also prayed for his wife. So, the description of the Proverbs 31 "woman of valor" (Proverbs 31:10-31) could easily reflect the heart's desire of a mother as she prays for her son's future wife. This makes her instructions about seeking a woman of valor all the more meaningful.

And isn't this the prayer for every mother of sons? That he would be kind and just, a voice for the voiceless, a defender of the weak. That he would find a godly and noble wife? I'd like to think these verses not only represent a mother's specific hopes for the kind of woman her son would marry, but also the kind of woman her own daughters would one day become.

We can learn a few tips from the Queen Mother in Proverbs 31 on how to pray for our sons and daughters, grandsons and granddaughters.