Mom's Week, Part 3: Lemuel's Mother

The Proverbs 31 description of the virtuous woman is one of the best-known passages in Scripture. What is often overlooked, however, is the origin of the passage. It was written by a king (named Lemuel) who said he learned this wisdom from his mother.

This final chapter of Proverbs contains two poems -- the Wise King (31:2-9) and the Excellent Wife (31:10-31) -- both of which are attributed to King Lemuel, whom ancient Jewish tradition identified as King Solomon, but who is otherwise unknown. If Lemuel is, in fact, Solomon, that means the mother who taught her son these wise sayings about excellent character was Bathsheba -- a woman known more for scandal than virtue. Perhaps Bathsheba taught Solomon about his ancestor Ruth (Matthew 1:5-6), who had a spotless reputation, and then Solomon could have penned Proverbs 31:10-31 with Ruth in mind. After all, the passage parallels Ruth's life in many ways.