Tammy Uzelac Hall found that driving in a blizzard is enough to whiten anyone’s knuckles, so why did her fear during a snowy trip make her feel “totally out of the running for being a ‘virtuous woman’”? Well, Proverbs 31 says of a virtuous woman, “She is not afraid of the snow.”
In her recent “5-Minute Fireside” video, Hall, host of LDS Living’s Sunday on Monday podcast, discusses several ways we might be misunderstanding the meaning of Proverbs 31 and its definition of a “virtuous woman.” This verse “has traditionally taught us the qualities of an ‘ideal wife,’” says Hall. “However, after a careful reading of this proverb in both English and Hebrew, I oppose the traditional definition of what it means to be ‘virtuous,’ and I want to reframe this idea for all women.”
Hall discusses several ways in which we can reframe misunderstandings about this verse. For example, “We have unfortunately limited the context of the word ‘virtuous’ to strictly matters of chastity or modesty,” Hall says. “But in Hebrew, Greek and Latin, the word ‘virtue’ actually means strength and power.” The source of this power? “It is priesthood power, and it comes from covenants.”
This reframing has some important implications. “I mean, how cool is it that every little eight-year-old girl, on the day of her baptism, enters into her first covenant with Christ and is virtuous: filled with power—priesthood power?” asks Hall.
Watch the video below to learn more about how rethinking this verse can help you be “filled with the strength and power that comes from making and keeping covenants with Christ.”
