Proverbs 11:22, A Fair Face But A Sordid Centre!

May 20, Proverbs 11:22

1 Pet. 3:1-12 “And I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment” (Phil. 1:9).

A Fair Face But A Sordid Centre!

This is a verse that requires some sensitivity. The OT regards the pig as an unclean animal. Jews have a saying that the nose of a pig was walking dirt! Yet there are tribes that worshipped the pig, and then later feasted on it! The Egyptians, when they wanted to draw a picture of a fool, represented him as a pig!

1. The Converted Porker: A jewel of gold in a swine’s snout. If you had such a jewel, would you put it in a pig’s snout? Of course not! Does a gold ring add to its beauty? No! The whole idea is absurd, but its very absurdity makes its message all the more dramatic. Have you seen a gospel tract entitled, “The Converted Pig”? It imagines a filthy pig being taken, tubbed, and scrubbed, pampered, and powdered, and dressed-up in a white suit. Thus, transformed, the converted porker sallies forth into the big world. When we next see him, however, he is sporting with his pals in the pigpen, white suit, and all! Yes, and pigs can fly, is how we respond to the absurd or impossible! There is another old saying, Pigs when they fly go tail first, meaning that when man tries to do that which he is incapable of, he always goes about it the wrong way. The point of the gospel tract, mentioned above, is obvious enough. You can take people out of the slums, but you can’t take the slums out of people’s heart. Only God can do that! Thus, a jewel of gold in a swine’s snout just makes the swine appear more thoroughly the swine he is. Jesus challenged the Pharisees to cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter (Matt. 23:26). Men still go tail first, content with a fair face while ignoring the sordid centre.

2. The Corrupted Pleasure: A jewel that might have adorned a queen, but stuck in a pig’s snout to root in the muck, is a shocking illustration indeed, but of what? It is, we believe, a spirited, and deliberately provocative, presentation of sin’s stupidity. It is a shocking portrait of physical beauty and moral depravity united in the same person. A ludicrous image, yes, but not so absurd as you might think. It is far more common than we care to admit. If our spiritual eyes were focused, we would see this often enough. We are so taken in by the bauble on the body, that our eyes are blind to the swine in the soul. What is pictured here may be distasteful, even revolting to our refined sensibilities, but let us not evade what the Bible sets forth so graphically. Kidner noted, “Where we would have spoken of the lady as a little disappointing, Scripture sees her as a monstrosity.” He also titled this verse: “Beauty and the beast.” We find great personal pleasure in beauty of all kinds, especially the beauty of form and face. This is not something to be despised. Is not all beauty one of the great proofs of God’s creation? Why did God put it there, if not to be admired and remind us of Himself? Let all beware of being taken in by a beauty not guided and guarded by goodness. However beautiful a woman may be, where discretion, that is, sound sense, is lacking, the resulting picture is one of rebellion and ruin. A jewel, or nose-ring is associated with idolatry (Gn. 35:4, Ex. 32:2), and vanity (Is. 3:16-26). Beauty without virtue turns ugly.

Thought: “Do not follow the swine for the sake of the jewel” (Thomas).

Prayer: Lord, help me to cultivate the hidden man of the heart.