Ornamenting the Body and Defiling the Temple
"Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; but let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirt, which is in the sight of God of great price. For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves..." Likewise, in the old testament Proverbs 31:25, King Lemuel is telling of the words of wisdom that his mother told him to keep in mind for looking for the perfect wife: "Strength and honour are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come." The rewards are found in verse 30-31: "Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain; but a woman that feareth the Lord, she shall be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates." Although these scriptures are specifically addressed to women, they can easily be interpreted for men also since similar guidelines had been given for men to be judged by their works. One's appearance is addressed in 2 Thessalonians 22: "Abstain from all appearance of evil." For this reason, we all dress modestly so that no one could interpret our appearance as having any purpose of evil or to encourage evil thoughts for anyone else.
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