Twenty-six times in the book, we read it’s a father-son message — guy-talk. Except for the final chapter — a message from King Lemuel’s mother. Momma always gets the last word!
So dad says, “A quarrelsome wife is like the dripping of a leaky roof in a rainstorm.” I don’t think the boy needed further explanation as to what that meant — don’t suppose we do, either!
Then dad adds, “Restraining her is like restraining the wind or grasping oil with the hand.” This oil would be olive oil and the son would have been very familiar with its properties.
Our proverb uses two similes for this “quarrelsome wife.” Of course, momma could have used similar in describing husbands!
But I think the real message of this proverb is unspoken. Why did this guy marry such a cantankerous woman in the first place?
I don’t suppose he met this lady and said, “She’s mean — think I’ll marry her!” Bet she wasn’t like this when they got married! So what happened?
Here, at Helping Up Mission, guys enjoy this verse! But I enjoy raising this same point with them.
While there are the usual responses, some guy always gets it — “she got like that being married to him!”
Although we’re not given any background for this proverb, we can understand how this happens. A big reason why I’m dealing with this “quarrelsome wife” is because of how I’ve conducted myself over the years!
So, we don’t have to wonder about why she acts this way anymore! And we also know some things we can do to change it!