Misinterpretations often portray the verse as misogynistic or devaluing women's beauty outright, ignoring its proverbial style that applies the principle universally to inner virtue over externals and uses a woman merely as an illustrative example; others twist it to justify shaming attractive women or claim it condemns physical beauty itself, overlooking the contrast that discretion enhances rather than negates beauty, while missing the cultural revulsion toward pigs as unclean symbols of folly.
Proverbs 11:22
King James Version (1769)
22 As a jewel of gold in a swine’s snout, so is a fair woman which is without discretion.
This proverb uses the striking image of a gold jewel in a pig's snout to convey that a beautiful woman's lack of discretion renders her beauty pointless and unattractive, much like a valuable ornament wasted on an unclean animal; true worth and appeal come from inner wisdom, self-control, and moral character, which elevate physical beauty, underscoring the biblical priority of godliness over outward appearance.