"Many of the branches of study that consume the student's time are not essential to usefulness or happiness; but it is essential for every youth to have a thorough acquaintance with everyday duties. If need be, a young woman can dispense with a knowledge of French and algebra, or even of the piano; but it is indispensable that she learn to make good bread, to fashion neatly-fitting garments, and to perform efficiently the many duties that pertain to homemaking. Ed 216.1"
"She seeketh wool, and flax, and worketh willingly with her hands."
Both passages highlight the value of women engaging in practical work. Proverbs 31:13 describes a woman working with wool and flax, while the EGW passage emphasizes the importance of skills like making bread and clothing.
"To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed."
Both passages emphasize the importance of women being skilled in domestic duties. Titus 2:5 encourages women to be 'keepers at home,' while the EGW passage specifies skills like bread-making and garment-making.
"To the health and happiness of the whole family nothing is more vital than skill and intelligence on the part of the cook. By ill-prepared, unwholesome food she may hinder and even ruin both the adult's usefulness and the child's development. Or by providing food adapted to the needs of the body, and at the same time inviting and palatable, she can accomplish as much in the right as otherwise she accomplishes in the wrong direction. So, in many ways, life's happiness is bound up with faithfulness in common duties. Ed 216.2"
"Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God."
The EGW quote directly applies the principle of doing all things to the glory of God (1 Cor 10:31) to the specific context of cooking and providing wholesome food. It emphasizes the importance of faithfulness in common duties, aligning with the verse's broader principle.
"Since both men and women have a part in home-making, boys as well as girls should gain a knowledge of household duties. To make a bed and put a room in order, to wash dishes, to prepare a meal, to wash and repair his own clothing, is a training that need not make any boy less manly; it will make him happier and more useful. And if girls, in turn, could learn to harness and drive a horse, and to use the saw and the hammer, as well as the rake and the hoe, they would be better fitted to meet the emergencies of life. Ed 216.3"
"She considereth a field, and buyeth it: with the fruit of her hands she planteth a vineyard."
The EGW quote promotes a broader understanding of skills for both genders, while Proverbs 31:16 specifically highlights a woman's industriousness in acquiring and cultivating land. The connection lies in the shared theme of practical skills and industriousness, though the EGW quote expands the concept to include both men and women and a wider range of skills.