Keeper: Faithfully Guarding Our Homes
Editor’s note: This is the first of a three-part series as Heather Cofer shares reflections on what Scripture means when it says that women are to be “keepers at home.” Hint: It goes far beyond cooking and cleaning!
Several years ago I sat on the couch in our sun-drenched living room, basking in a moment of quiet, my eyes wandering to the various objects surrounding me. The maps on the wall above my great grandmother’s piano, the basket in the corner overflowing with shoes of all sizes, plants scattered here and there, a stray lego and a hair tie on the coffee table.
As I took it all in, I found myself pondering “home”—what is home for, why does it matter to God, and what does that mean for me as a woman? Not that I hadn’t thought about the significance of home before this; the vast majority of my adult life had been spent doing various things in (and from) our home. However, I sensed a need to grasp at a deeper level what God intends for these dwelling places of ours.
One day shortly after, I opened to Titus 2:3–5, a passage that I’ve long cherished. But I was particularly drawn to take a closer look at the phrase “keepers at home” (as it says in the KJV) as something younger women are to learn from older women. I discovered that this is the only time this phrase is used in Scripture, and the Greek root word means “a guard.” This was a lightbulb moment for me as I considered the significance behind the call for women to place value on—and put effort into—the sphere of the home.
We, as women, have been commissioned by God to watch faithfully over what He desires to accomplish for His kingdom within our homes. All of our budgeting, meal prepping, shelf curating, and sock sorting should be done with that in mind. He desires the home to be a place where hearts are tended, protected, and ministered to for the furtherance of the gospel. This is no insignificant task.
The enemy, however, would have us believe the lies about home that circulate in the broader culture: that a woman making the work of the home a priority is a power play by those who want to keep women “in their place.” When we buy into this lie, we neglect to be the keepers we’re called to be.
Or maybe we’ve chosen to believe God’s Word on the matter and put time and effort into our homes, but it’s more drudgery than delight. Why? Because we haven’t really grasped the spiritual significance of home—to us, it’s just a place to fill tummies and lay our heads at night. Whether we’ve adopted these stances or some variation, any view of home that is not grounded in Scripture puts us in danger of missing the bigger picture and surrendering the responsibility we’ve been given.
Before I go any further, I want to state that I do not believe the Bible teaches that the home is the be-all, end-all for women. In Proverbs 31:10–31 we see an example of a godly woman who is industrious in the marketplace. The way in which we live out our priorities also shifts with our season of life.
The outworking of obedience for me currently as a mom of six young kids will look very different from that of my single sisters or older women whose children are out of the house. But rather than allowing our culture to shape our view of home, we must understand home from God’s perspective, then seek Him for what this means for us personally. He knows this will look different in each woman’s life. What matters is that we understand God’s big picture purpose for home, and that our hearts are set on obedience, however He leads.
God Is the First and Eternal Homemaker
We first need to understand that home was—and continues to be—God’s idea. In the beginning, God was the One who made this earth (specifically, the garden of Eden) a home for Adam and Eve. He made it a place for their thriving and commissioned them to “work it and watch over it” (Gen. 2:15). The importance of home continues to be reiterated throughout the rest of Scripture.
At its core, I believe that being keepers of our dwellings matters so much because it reflects the image of God, who is being a homemaker right now. Jesus said He’s preparing a place for us in His presence (John 14:2). And in 1 Peter we read that there’s“an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you”(1:4). In our eternal home, He’s guarding our inheritance of salvation that will one day be realized in full.
Where else is God making His home at this very moment? In us! We are the temple of the Living God (1 Cor. 6:19). He is transforming us and revealing His salvation in and through His people. So we should keep our homes in a manner that reflects the greater spiritual reality that God’s salvation transforms everything—starting with us and spilling over into the spaces we’ve been given charge of. Our homes can evidence what God is doing in us and what He’s preparing for us in the future. They should be safe havens where . . .
- God’s peace rules.
- Children are discipled.
- Sanctification takes place.
- Truth is proclaimed.
- Others are loved.
- Goodness and beauty flourish.
Women Hold Much Influence in Their Homes
Scripture teaches that women have a significant effect on the life of the home, for good or for ill. We see this demonstrated poignantly in Proverbs. The writer warns his son regarding the forbidden woman, “Keep your way far from her. Don’t go near the door of her house”(Prov 5:8).
Isn’t it interesting he didn’t just say, “keep away from her,” but included her house too? Proverbs 14:1 says, “Every wise woman builds her house, but a foolish one tears it down with her own hands.” And Proverbs 31:27 says, “She watches over the activities of her household and is never idle.”In fact, in this classic passage on womanhood we see a woman whose reputation outside the home is due in large part to her faithfulness inside her home. Those who come into contact with the inner workings of her household are blessed by her diligent, watchful, loving, management. She’s a picture of a woman who has a robust understanding of God’s design for home.
In the New Testament, the Christian woman’s role in the home is linked to something far more significant than merely the practical details of cooking and cleaning. In Titus 2, after we read what the older women are to teach the younger women (including being faithful over their homes) it says, “So that God’s word will not be slandered” (v. 5). Again, in 1 Timothy 5 when the “why” behind young widows remarrying and managing their households is given, Paul says so it will “give the adversary no opportunity to accuse us” (v. 14). When an older widow is being considered for monetary support by her church, several of the qualifications hinge on her faithfulness within her home sphere during her younger years (vv. 9–10).
We as women are commissioned to be watchful over our homes because the home is one of the foundational means by which God furthers His kingdom as families are built strong in Him. There the groundwork is laid for nearly every other sphere: work, learning, spiritual growth, relationships, and more. Its guardianship is no trivial matter. Is it a glamorous call? No. But it is a glorious one.
Which leads to the third thing we need to understand . . .
The Enemy Is After Our Homes
If the home is supposed to be a greenhouse for the family’s spiritual growth and thriving, it’s no wonder we’ve seen an all-out undermining of the home in our day. However, this isn’t something that just began: we have evidence that the enemy has desired to get into homes and destroy families from the very beginning when the serpent slithered into the garden and deceived Eve (Gen. 3).
We also see this warning quite explicitly in 2 Timothy 3:6 when it talks about dangerous people leading others astray: “For among them are those who worm their way into households and deceive gullible women overwhelmed by sins and led astray by a variety of passions.”
“Into households,” it says. And this warning is specifically directed toward women. Yes, men can also be deceived. But, again, we see the life of a home directly connected to the woman’s influence. In this age of technology, avenues for this kind of “worming” (or sneaking, as it says in other versions) abound through social media, podcasts, TV shows, news outlets, and more. We cannot be too vigilant about what we allow to influence us, both for our own sake and the sake of our families and others who will be affected by what enters our homes.
Rather than cower in fear of those influences, this understanding should cause us to run to Christ. It should drive us to fill our minds and hearts with His Word, knowing that it serves as our protection (Eph. 6:17). It should press us into prayer, as we ask for discernment and wisdom that comes from Him alone. It should motivate us to obedience, remembering that His instructions for us bring life. And it should bring us joy, knowing that He will equip us for what He’s called us to.
Does this mean our homes will be perfect? Not on this side of heaven. But by God’s grace, they can be radiant glimpses into the stunning reality of the gospel—what it means for us now and what is yet to come. Let’s set our faces like flint, and keep our homes for the glory of our King.
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