Older women to teach the younger

As spiritual instructresses they had to teach the young women in the following ways —

To be sober, that meant, to practice self-discipline and control.

To love their husbands, and love their children. As women of Christ their first duty was to make their home life beautiful by the sacrificial love resulting in the forgetfulness of self.

To be discreet. Prudence and discretion were the jewels they should wear. What treasured virtues they are!

To be chaste. Although young, they must be modest, immaculate, pure from carnality.

To be keepers at home, or workers at home. They must not be gadabouts, but look upon their home duties, cares and sacrifices as God’s will for their lives.

To be good. Because the God whom they served is good, then, like Him, they must be gracious, kind, considerate of others.

To be obedient to their husbands. Loving Christ their Master, they must recognize the law of subordination to the rightful head of the family. If all of these exhortations were carried out then the word of God would not be blasphemed. There would be nothing about their personal and home life to contradict their testimony, or bring shame upon the name of Christ. By their good life and corresponding good deeds they would so shine in their home as to bring glory to the Father in heaven whom they professed to serve. Never forgetting they were Christians, their lives would reflect the beauty of the Lord.

Photo by Junior REIS on Unsplash

Herbert Lockyer, All the Women of the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Academic, 2016).