Peter continues his instructions on submission in marriage,and sets some standards for beauty that are both amazing and controversial. This is true in our culture, and was likely true in his as well.  You can see his standards in 1 Peter 3:3-4.

Peter is in the middle of his third area of submission, the area of marriage. Beginning with wives (he will address husbands shortly), he gives some standards about beauty, and how wives should strive for it. It’s helpful to note, that while this is applicable to all women, it is in the context of a passage specifically addressed to believing wives. Often, in our culture, when someone disagrees with this passage, they are coming from a different point of view than those to whom Peter is writing.

Peter equates beauty with modesty it seems,and does so much like Isaiah did a few centuries earlier, in Isaiah 3:16-24. Paul states something similar in 1 Timothy 2:9-10 as well. In our culture of exposure, many disagree with this. Their words are worth listening to and following, but at the same time, they should not be taken out of context either. Many mistakenly believe that Peter, along with Paul and Isaiah, are advocating the elimination of all outer adornment. But that is not the case; rather it means overly extravagant or ostentatious adornment.

Peter’s point is that adornment should not be outer, but inner. And in verse 5, he describes some of the characteristics of the inner beauty that is more pleasing to God. He calls the gentle spirit beautiful, and instructs wives to pursue such a spirit. Remember, this is in the context of submission, and Peter states that such a submissive spirit is what adds to their beauty in the eyes of their husbands.

Regardless of whether we like it or not, in our hyper-sexualized modern society, Peter clearly states that such a spirit of submissiveness, that quiet and gentle spirit, is what God seeks. God does not look at the outer appearances; He looks at the heart. And that is where the root of beauty lies.

Question: Do you seek beauty on the inside or the outside? How do you keep your focus where it should be, instead of where culture attempts to direct it? You can leave a comment by clicking here.