A Proverb for the Day (11:22)
September 14th, 2009“As a ring of gold in a swine’s snout So is a beautiful woman who lacks discretion” (Proverbs 11:22 NASU). It doesn’t matter how you dress up a pig, a pig is still a pig. Often people spend a great deal of time making themselves look good to the eye. We try dieting, exercising, dressing well, perfume, cologne, and jewelry, but these things don’t make us beautiful. Solomon compares a woman without discretion to an adorned pig. His point: a pretty woman without discrimination isn’t so special or beautiful. A woman’s beauty is diminished when she cannot separate what should be said from what shouldn’t, when she speaks too much, or is cruel to others. A woman’s true beauty come from within (cf. 1 Timothy 2:9-10, 1 Peter 3:3-4). This means if we want to improve ourselves, the change should start with our behavior. It should start by treating others well and learning when to be silent. It also means we should not admire or seek after those who merely have external beauty.
