“When it snows, she has no fear for her household; for all of them are clothed in scarlet.” (Proverbs 31:21)

That struck a cord in me!  I hurried to my computer to dig deeper into these two phrases.  The term “Plants a vineyard” yielded search results pertaining to the actual process of growing a vineyard.  When I searched for “Clothed in Scarlet” however, I found some Christian resources explaining the context and deeper meaning behind the phrase.  What I read had me literally falling on my knees and praising God, because it was exactly what I had envisioned.

The term ‘Scarlet’ refers to a type of very fine and high quality wool cloth which as such preserves warmth, and when colored, also appears dignified and rich.  The cloth was given a scarlet color by dipping it twice in a lotion made from the eggs of the coccus ilicis – a small insect found on the leaves of the oaks in Spain, and in countries east of the Mediterranean.  This particular type of cloth was rare and probably pretty expensive as well!

The virtuous woman has no fear for the coming winters because her family was covered in fine, expensive clothing suitable for winter.  Her household was well stocked for times of need.

‘Scarlet’ is also significant of the Blood of Christ!

Every living person has sinned – nobody can claim to be perfect and blameless.  Hebrew 9:22 says that there is no forgiveness without the shedding of blood – that is what Jesus did on the cross.  By dying on the cross for our sins, He shed His blood and purchased our forgiveness.  Because of His blood, we are now forgiven and our past has been wiped clean.  We have hope for our future because of Christ’s scarlet sacrifice!

“Since we have now been justified by His blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through Him!” (Romans 5: 9)

Winter is often thought of as arid, barren and fruitless.  Symbolically, winter can represent times of spiritual, emotional, social and economical scarcity.  The virtuous woman in Proverbs 31 was not afraid of the winter season because she has her kith and kin clothed in the Blood of Jesus – the security and comfort that comes from a relationship with Him.

As Christian women, God has entrusted to us the well being of our family.  We are to envelop them with the Blood of Jesus by leading them closer to Him, and support them with the talents and skills God has given us.  Our household will then be properly sheathed for the dark and barren winters of life!

I created a printable version of our guiding verse, Proverbs 31:21 just for you… Click here to download it!

God is with you,

Sunu