THIS MIGHT SURPRISE YOU
The answer
His mother. The heading reads, "The words of King Lemuel. An oracle that his mother taught him" (Proverbs 31:1). The advice that follows is for a king: keep away from strong drink, and speak up for the poor (Proverbs 31:2-9). Nothing else in the Bible mentions Lemuel.
Why it’s interesting
Lemuel's mother's advice is the only known wisdom writing from the ancient Middle East credited to a woman. Proverbs names mothers as teachers elsewhere too (Proverbs 1:8; 6:20).
Scholarly consensus
Learn the Bible.
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