One of the things that Proverbs 31 teaches us is that our language of “head of household” is somewhat of a biblical misnomer because according to Proverbs 31, the wife is the head of the household. The husband is the head of his wife (1 Cor. 11:3, Eph. 5:23), but the wife is the watcher and guardian of the household.
Via: Having two legs
I was a bit suss when I first read that but having just read through Proverbs 31, and today noticing for the first time bits like verse 27, I feel the tectonic plates of my headship theology wobbling. Any thoughts?
Interesting. At first glance I don't see any real friction between encouraging women to live out Prov 31, and holding to a complementarian position of male and female relationships/roles.
ReplyDeleteI suppose that's because I don't see the 'head of the household' idea, a la the active managing of the physical family home as you get in Prov 31, as being in opposition to the truth that the husband is the 'head', i.e. the one with authority/leadership role of the family unit.
It doesn't seem the Prov 31 wife is trying to be the 'head', as the Bible would normally use the word; certainly the term itself isn't used, in my copy of Prov 31 anyway.
I've also heard Prov 31 taught not as a 'this is the model wife' but 'this is true wisdom', which might change the way some view what the writers conveying when he exults her for her material provision for the family.
But aside from that, surely this passage helps us to appreciate the richness of the wife's vital role in the home/household, but the tectonic plates aren't as rickety as first thought?
Robin,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment.
I suppose what I was getting at with this post is that often when we affirm that the man is the head, it fails to express or indicate how this works out precisely in the home. So for example does my being the head mean I have to indicate what we eat for dinner, when the floor gets cleaned, what tweeds my kids wear, etc or not. I think operationally we tend to let the wife get on with ruling within the home whilst recognizing that if new decisions need to be made (or current practices reviewed) the head can veto/overrule/realign/etc. In other words the woman as 'head of household' is a recognition of her real authority/power/rule in the home, even though this has been delegated to her by the husband.
K