The word liberal is one of the most overused and misused words in modern language. We often use the word to refer to those who have weaker morals or those who may have a particular “left-leaning” political agenda. Most often the word is used as a negative connotation by those who are traditional or more conservative. The Bible paints a much different picture of the word’s usage and application. Someone who is liberal willingly and graciously helps others. When others are in need, he gives above and beyond to meet that need. According to our passage, “The liberal soul shall be made fat.” This means that the person who helps others will often receive blessings in return. This truth is confirmed in 2 Corinthians 9:6 where the Bible says, “He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.”
It has often been said that ignorance is bliss, meaning that to be wise is folly. Nothing can be further from the truth. As with most areas of life, a man must recognize the benefits of integrity before he will truly find its protection of utmost importance. Our passage describes one benefit of integrity when it says that integrity preserves a person. Preservation can refer to several areas like being kept from trouble or kept from death. Both of these would be considered invaluable. Additionally, the Bible says that integrity upholds the believer (Psalm 41:12). This means that the Lord holds men up in the midst of troublous times. Proverbs 11:3 declares another benefit: “The integrity of the upright shall guide them.” Praise God! Integrity guides men in the right way and keeps them from trouble!
Men used to be commended for their level of integrity and one's handshake was considered a man’s bond. As societies continue to crumble from the pollution of immorality, men of integrity are quickly disappearing. Unfortunately, churches seem far from immune to this moral decline. What is integrity? In a narrow sense, integrity as used in scripture can be difficult to pinpoint. The word integrity occurs sixteen times in scripture. By considering each occurrence, one can discover clues that provide insight as to its meaning. Integrity is contrasted with the words like perverse (Proverbs 19:1) and perverseness (Proverbs 11:3). Conversely, integrity is used in conjunction with words like upright (Job 2:3; Proverbs 11:3) and uprightness (1 Kings 9:4; Psalm 25:21). In our passage, the word integrity is used alongside the word innocency (Genesis 20:5). These facts would lead the believer to realize that integrity speaks of a moral purity and moral correctness.
The context of our passage is the sinfulness of God’s people, particularly those residing within the city of Jerusalem. The city is said to have “wearied herself with lies.” A similar truth is taught in Jeremiah 9:5 where the Bible says, “they have taught their tongue to speak lies, and weary themselves to commit iniquity.” The context is different, but the concept remains constant: it requires hard work to tell and sustain lies. Anybody that has ever told a lie knows that it takes much greater effort to sustain a lie than to simply let the truth stand upon its own merit. Among other things, lying takes creativity, calculation, and a good memory. Additionally, lying stresses a person’s conscience. Very rarely does one lie suffice within any particular deception, but the original lie often requires additional lies to support it. Lying is hard work and very stressful for those who have not seared their conscience!
The Bible has much to say about the tongue or the words man speaks. The tongue of man is a deadly weapon (James 3:5-8). As such, the scripture likens it to a bow that is bent; only the arrows are the expressed lies (Jeremiah 9:3). A similar thought is found in Psalm 64:3 where David said of the wicked that they “whet their tongue like a sword, and bend their bows to shoot their arrows, even bitter words.” Unfortunately, even Christians sometimes make light of how deadly words can be. The old saying, “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” may sound quaint; but it is far from the truth. Words do cause wounds. The Bible likens lies to arrows that are shot out of a bow. Relating the lies to the arrows is certainly meant to convey the pain caused by the lying. Lies often do bring hurt; sometimes not physically, but in some form or another lies wound others.
Most women who receive gold and jewelry consider them treasured gifts. In fact, gold and some jewels increase in value with some being of inestimable value. These treasures have many uses whereby their owners can benefit. Yet, imagine the reaction when a jewel of gold is mounted in a swine’s snout rather than in an appropriate decorative setting. No matter the perceived value of the item, its appeal significantly decreases. The Bible likens this scenario to a fair (beautiful) woman who is void of discretion. The world values outward beauty more than inward beauty though the Bible cautions against this. Today’s passage equates a beautiful woman without discretion to a jewel of gold in a pig’s snout. Discretion is of such importance that God instructed the aged women to teach the younger women to be discreet in Titus 2:5. The problem began where the Bible began – with a story about a woman in the garden in Eden who partook of the fruit based on what she saw and felt. All of God’s people, including ladies, should make their decisions with discretion.
