Commentary - Proverbs 11:22

Bird's-eye view

Proverbs 11:22 delivers a sharp, almost visceral, image to make a crucial point about the nature of true beauty. The proverb sets up a jarring contrast: a valuable, beautiful object (a gold ring) in a completely inappropriate and defiling place (a pig's snout). This incongruity serves as a powerful metaphor for a woman who possesses external, physical beauty but lacks the internal, guiding principle of discretion. The wisdom here is not a condemnation of beauty itself, which Scripture elsewhere affirms as a gift from God. Rather, it is a condemnation of beauty that is untethered from wisdom, character, and sound judgment. It teaches that external attractiveness, when combined with a foolish or rebellious heart, becomes grotesque. It's not just a waste; it's a perversion. The verse forces us to see that a woman's true adornment is not her physical appearance, but the settled wisdom of a heart that fears God.

This is a lesson in aesthetic theology. God is the author of all beauty, and He desires harmony between the inward and the outward. When a woman is physically lovely but her words, choices, and demeanor are coarse, rash, or immoral, she is like this bejeweled swine. The gold doesn't elevate the pig; the pig debases the gold. In the same way, a lack of discretion makes a woman's beauty an ugly thing. This proverb is a call to prioritize the cultivation of inner character, recognizing that without it, outward beauty is not just fleeting but actively repulsive in the sight of God and wise men.

Outline

Context In Proverbs

This verse sits within a broader section of Proverbs that frequently contrasts the righteous and the wicked, the wise and the foolish. The surrounding verses deal with themes of righteousness delivering from death (v. 4), the integrity of the upright guiding them (v. 3), and the wicked falling by their own wickedness (v. 5). Proverbs 11:22 fits squarely within this framework by illustrating a specific kind of folly. It's a practical, real-world example of how a lack of wisdom (discretion) leads to a state of profound ugliness, despite outward appearances. The book of Proverbs consistently values inner wisdom over external attributes, whether it be riches, strength, or, in this case, beauty. This proverb is a companion to others, like Proverbs 31:30, which states, "Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised." The point is not that beauty is evil, but that it is "vain", empty and worthless, unless it is anchored in the fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of all wisdom and discretion.

Key Issues

An Aesthetic and Moral Oxymoron

The image Solomon uses here is intentionally jarring. We are meant to recoil slightly. A pig, in the Old Testament economy, was an unclean animal. Its snout is for rooting around in the mud and filth. It is the very last place you would expect to see a finely crafted piece of gold jewelry. The clash is total. You have something precious and beautiful forcibly joined to something unclean and base. The result is not that the pig is ennobled, but that the gold is degraded and made ridiculous.

This is what the proverb says happens when a woman is physically beautiful but lacks discretion. She is a walking contradiction, an aesthetic and moral oxymoron. Her beauty, which ought to be a glory, becomes a mockery. The word for discretion here (ṭaʿam in Hebrew) carries the sense of taste, judgment, and sound reason. It's the ability to make right decisions, to understand propriety, to know when to speak and when to be silent. It is practical wisdom in action. A woman who "turns away" from this is one who actively rejects this wisdom. She may be guided by her passions, her vanity, or her foolish impulses. Her beauty, then, becomes the adornment for her folly, making the folly all the more conspicuous and tragic.

Verse by Verse Commentary

22 As a ring of gold in a swine’s snout...

The proverb begins with the setup, the image that will drive the point home. A "ring of gold" was a valuable piece of jewelry, often a nose ring, as we see with Rebekah (Genesis 24:47). It was an object of beauty and wealth, meant to adorn and enhance the appearance of the wearer. Gold signifies something precious, pure, and desirable. But the location is everything. This ring is placed "in a swine's snout." A swine is an unclean animal, biblically speaking. Its snout is for pushing through dirt, mud, and garbage. The image is one of profound incongruity. The preciousness of the gold is utterly wasted and defiled by its connection to the unclean pig. It is a category error of the highest order. The gold doesn't make the pig beautiful; the pig makes the gold filthy and absurd.

So is a beautiful woman who turns away from discretion.

Here is the application of the simile. The "beautiful woman" corresponds to the "ring of gold." The Bible is not against beauty; it often notes it as a matter of fact and a blessing (Sarai, Rebekah, Rachel, Abigail). The problem is not the beauty. The problem is what the beauty is attached to. The woman who "turns away from discretion" is the swine's snout. The Hebrew indicates a departure from, or a lack of, taste and judgment. She has rejected wisdom as her guide. This isn't just a momentary lapse; it describes a character trait. She is fundamentally without sound judgment. Her actions, words, and choices are not governed by godly wisdom. Therefore, her beauty is misplaced. It adorns a life that is, in its essence, unclean and base. Her loveliness on the outside only serves to highlight the foolishness on the inside. It's a grotesque mismatch. Instead of her beauty being a reflection of an inner grace, it becomes a garish decoration on a life of folly, making her a tragic and pitiable figure.

Application

The application of this proverb is straightforward, but cuts deep in our culture, which idolizes physical appearance. For women, the lesson is to pursue discretion above all other adornments. As Peter would later say, the true adornment is not outward, gold jewelry or fine clothes, but is "the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious" (1 Peter 3:4). A woman should labor more for wisdom, for sound judgment, for discretion, than she does for physical fitness or fashion. A beautiful face is a fleeting gift from God, but a discreet character is a cultivated grace that lasts into eternity. A woman who fears the Lord will be beautiful in the truest sense, because her outward life will be in harmony with her inward character.

For men, the application is equally sharp. This proverb is a criterion for choosing a wife. A man who is captivated by a woman's beauty alone, while ignoring blatant signs of foolishness, indiscretion, or a rebellious spirit, is a man who is asking to be made a fool of. He is choosing the gold ring, but failing to see that it is attached to a pig's snout. He is choosing an ornament, not a helper. Wisdom requires a man to look past the superficial and to value what God values: a woman who fears the Lord and walks in His wisdom. A beautiful and discreet woman is a crown to her husband (Proverbs 12:4), but a beautiful and foolish woman will bring him only shame and ruin.

Ultimately, this points us to the gospel. We are all like the swine, unclean and wallowing in the mire of our sin. Any beauty we have is marred and misplaced. Christ did not come to put a gold ring on our snout, leaving us in our filth. He came to transform us from the inside out, to wash us clean, and to make us a new creation. He gives us His own perfect beauty, the righteousness of God, so that we are no longer an ugly contradiction, but a harmonious reflection of His own glory. True and lasting beauty is found only in Him.