Proverbs 30:20

The book of Proverbs gives us a lot of instruction on a lot of different subjects. One subject that can keep us in God’s wisdom is Godly Follower-ship. Who we follow; where we follow; how we follow are all spoken about in Proverbs. Here is one of them about the heart of our sin:

Proverbs 30:20 (ESV)

This is the way of an adulteress:

she eats and wipes her mouth

and says, “I have done no wrong.”

In this proverb God is giving us insight into the way the world attempts to clear its conscious of sin.   To reveal their heart and attitude toward sin, God's writer, Solomon, uses the "adulterous woman" as his prime example.  There are two reasons for this: The first is that adultery is the perfect sin to demonstrate sin's deception and a perfect picture of the "big cover-up."   The second reason adultery is used to demonstrate his point is that Solomon has used the wayward women as an example and metaphor for Folly ... Folly is the rejection of God/Christ and choosing my own life over God's life.  So, in this proverb we have a picture of the adulterous women thinking that simply by wiping her mouth of the outward results of her consumption she can hide her sin.  She thinks she can simply say, “I have done no wrong,” and make herself clean.    In our world today we think perfume, a shower and a fresh tux can clean up a sad and broken heart.   We think simply by washing off the mouth we can clean the heart.   God is the only one who can clean the heart.   We can confess our sin with our mouth but we cannot clean up our lives by an outward wiping of our face.   Sin flows from the heart.  Christ showed us that adultery was a piece of the heart ... He said if we "look" on a women to lust after her we have already committed adultery.   We think we can clean it up with a mere outward conformity to faith when in reality we need a real work done in our hearts, first and foremost.   Don't try to get lipstick off your collar if there is still a kiss on the thoughts of your heart.