Beauty By the Book : Biblical Beauty According to Proverbs

This week we looked at: Biblical Beauty According to Proverbs

Let's start with a little background on Proverbs.  It is written by King Solomon to his son.  The purpose of the Proverbs is found in Proverbs 1: 1-6: He hopes to give wisdom, discipline, understanding, prudence, knowledge and discretion to those that are wise AND unwise. And in vs 7, we find the principle of of Proverbs- that the fear of the lord is the beginning of KNOWLEDGE.  That is the foundation.  What does "fear of the lord" mean?  It means to revere the Lord and obey Him.  Knowledge leading to reverence and obedience.  Tall order? Not so much.  As Laurie (author of the study) says, "you gotta know better to do better!"

Over the past week, the homework focused on introducing 5 women of Proverbs: the Immoral woman, the Indiscreet Woman, the Irritating woman, the Captivating woman,. and the Ideal woman.  Some of these women are biblical beauty Do's and some of them are biblical beauty Don'ts.  At bible study yesterday, we took a brief look at them and in the coming weeks, we will look deeper into who each of these women are.

The Immoral Woman : Proverbs 5: 3-6


³ For the lips of the adulterous woman drip honey, 
   and her speech is smoother than oil; 
⁴ but in the end she is bitter as gall, 
   sharp as a double-edged sword. 
⁵ Her feet go down to death; 
   her steps lead straight to the grave. 
⁶ She gives no thought to the way of life; 
   her paths wander aimlessly, but she does not know it.


She is a sweet talker, but she leads to destruction.  She dresses in a way that gets attention.  Remember last week: biblical beauty is gentle and quiet.  She is deceiving.  She is provacative.  She appears to be beautiful in appearance and speech, but she is not what she appears to be.  Her paths are crooked, but she is accepted as a cultural norm.  Why does The Book talk about her?  So we can avoid becoming like her.  This woman teaches us about morals.    We are to be the opposite of the immoral woman.  We are to be pure and modest.

The Indiscreet Woman: Proverbs 11:22

The woman who is beautiful, but lacks discretion is like a gold ring in a pig's snout.  

This woman is clueless.  She is unaware that she is making a fool of herself.  Although she is physically beautiful, it is overshadowed by her indiscreet behavior.  She lacks good sense.  She teaches us about spiritual maturity.  We don't want to be a fool.  We are to be discreet and prudent.

The Irritating Woman: Proverbs 21:9 and Proverbs 21:10

It is better to live alone in the corner of an attic than with a contentious wife in a lovely home.  Proverbs 21:9


It is better to live alone in the desert than with a crabby complaining wife.  Proverbs 21:10


Hmm.  I know I never can turn into this woman!  Don't judge me.  You know you have too ;)  This woman complains, is argumentative, always looks at the negative.  She is contentious, crabby, and complaining.  Hmm...I think I am the irritating woman about every 28 days...if you get my drift!  But we don't want to be this woman. She teaches us about personality.  We are to be edifying and gracious and be a blessing to others.

The Captivating Woman: Proverbs 5: 18-19

¹⁸ May your fountain be blessed, 
   and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth. 
¹⁹ A loving doe, a graceful deer— 
   may her breasts satisfy you always, 
   may you ever be intoxicated with her love

 Oooo....is it getting hot in here?  Finally, a beauty DO! Yes, the Book teaches us to be sexually satisfying to our husbands.

The Ideal Woman: Proverbs 31: 10-31


^10 [a]A wife of noble character who can find? 
   She is worth far more than rubies. 
¹¹ Her husband has full confidence in her 
   and lacks nothing of value. 
¹² She brings him good, not harm, 
   all the days of her life. 
¹³ She selects wool and flax 
   and works with eager hands. 
¹⁴ She is like the merchant ships, 
   bringing her food from afar. 
¹⁵ She gets up while it is still night; 
   she provides food for her family 
   and portions for her female servants. 
¹⁶ She considers a field and buys it; 
   out of her earnings she plants a vineyard. 
¹⁷ She sets about her work vigorously; 
   her arms are strong for her tasks. 
¹⁸ She sees that her trading is profitable, 
   and her lamp does not go out at night. 
¹⁹ In her hand she holds the distaff 
   and grasps the spindle with her fingers. 
²⁰ She opens her arms to the poor 
   and extends her hands to the needy. 
²¹ When it snows, she has no fear for her household; 
   for all of them are clothed in scarlet. 
²² She makes coverings for her bed; 
   she is clothed in fine linen and purple. 
²³ Her husband is respected at the city gate, 
   where he takes his seat among the elders of the land. 
²⁴ She makes linen garments and sells them, 
   and supplies the merchants with sashes. 
²⁵ She is clothed with strength and dignity; 
   she can laugh at the days to come. 
²⁶ She speaks with wisdom, 
   and faithful instruction is on her tongue. 
²⁷ She watches over the affairs of her household 
   and does not eat the bread of idleness. 
²⁸ Her children arise and call her blessed; 
   her husband also, and he praises her: 
²⁹ “Many women do noble things, 
   but you surpass them all.” 
³⁰ Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; 
   but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. 
³¹ Honor her for all that her hands have done, 
   and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.

 The biggest Beauty Do of all time!  She is trust worthy; she is enriching to others lives; she is strong; she revers the Lord and is obedient; She is a busy woman!!  She is spiritual and she is strong.  It takes a long time to become more like the ideal woman, but it is possible.

We must remember that beauty is not physical in God's eyes; it is in the soul :)