"Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised." Proverbs 31:30
At the beginning of this series, I mentioned how I thought Proverbs 6:6 was a fitting verse to begin "Pondering Proverbs," and now, the verse I've chosen for today (Proverbs 31:30) is, what I think, a fitting verse to close this short series.
This Proverb is a Proverb that's applicable to all women, women in all walks and stages of life. From a teenage girl to a middle-aged mother, to a hundred-year old woman to every woman in between. It's a Proverb that we may not want to hear, but it's a Proverb with a message that must be heard. It's a Proverb that we may want to discard, but it's a Proverb that must be treasured. It's a Proverb that covers many of the things that women deal with - deceit, vanity, fear, and praise. So let's take a look at this Proverb!
Deceit and Vanity
We may laugh at the beginning of Proverbs 31:30: "Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain"? As if! It seems that in this world charm and beauty are all that matters! If you're beautiful, you've got it made. Or not. King Lemuel, who wrote Proverbs 31, based on the teachings of his mom (Proverbs 31:1), thinks differently. He seems to think that charm and beauty are not all that matters. He seems to think that charm and beauty are not the most important things in the world. He seems to think along the same lines as the ESV Online Study Bible: "A godly woman may well have outward charm and beauty, but these are of secondary importance to her godliness." (emphasis added) Beauty is not of first importance. Godliness is. "Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain ..." Beauty may last for a few years, but it's fleeting. It's like smoke. It can vanish in a second. (Now, on a quick side note, let me just say that I'm not bashing beauty products. I love sparkly lip gloss just as much as the next girl! I'm simply saying that we must never exalt beauty above the Lord.) "So, son," Lemuel's mama concludes, "when you're looking for a wife, let the first attribute you look for be godliness, for charm is deceitful and beauty is vain!"
Fear and Praise
"... but a woman who fears the LORD will be praised." When I hear that verse, I think back to Proverbs 1:7, the central verse of Proverbs - "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction." So what does it mean to fear the Lord? For this, I'm going to go to the Holman Christian Standard Study Bible: "The fear of the Lord involves awe, reverence, love, and trust in God. It accompanies knowledge, humility, obedience, and blessing. (Proverbs 8:13; Proverbs 10:27; Proverbs 14:26-27; Proverbs 16:6; Proverbs 19:23; Proverbs 22:4)" So, like our ESV friends said above, fear of the Lord in Proverbs 31:30 is talking about godliness. Thus, godliness, the fear of the Lord, results in praise. What kind of praise, we wonder? She will be recognized for her godliness by others - i.e. her husband (if she has one), her children, her friends, her family. She will be esteemed. Honoured. Respected.
So, as we live in the world and not of it (John 17:14-15), let's strive to refuse to exalt charm and beauty as the ultimate and fear the Lord. For then, we shall be praised.