Unusual Tally and Porcine Jewelry

I never cease to be amused at what appears to be one of the most random pieces of information set forth in the Bible.

In Numbers 34:9, the Bible tells us that in the exodus of the Children of Israel from Egypt, they eventually came to Elim (listed as the fifth camping place) where there "were twelve fountains of water, and threescore and ten palm trees; and they pitched there." Though I have not investigated the original language, which I suspect may shed further light on why this particular phrasing was used, I find it humorous that they should count the number of water fountains and palm trees before setting up camp.

I always imagine Moses saying something like this to his sidekick, "Oh... this looks like an interesting place. Let me see... mmhmm... We've got, oh, twelve fountains of water and... yeah... seventy palm trees. Pass the word; we'll be staying here." It may not, in fact, be that they chose to camp there based on the water and palm tree count, but the wording of the verse seems to imply that... which I find amusing.

The other metaphor that struck me today was from Proverbs 11:22, "As a jewel of gold in a swine's snout, so is a fair woman which is without discretion." And again, I have a ludicrous mental image of a melange of the two; morphing between a gorgeous woman wallowing in the mud and an ugly, ugly pig wearing the same breathtaking earring which can be seen in the woman's ear... funny, then again, not so funny.

I have seen this phenomena before. Not the pig wearing the "jewel of gold," but the beautiful woman who lacks discretion. I knew a drop-dead gorgeous girl once... she was so beautiful, it was hard to believe she was human. But all her beauty and appeal to the eye could not cover up her complete lack of propriety or discretion. Each time the beauty would take over and seem to dictate she be treated one way, that indescretion would surface, causing me (and others) to shut down to her and arrange for her not to be a representative of the company we were working for.

It was sad. This verse serves as a reminder for me too... Though not as bad as I used to be, I still find myself at times lacking in discretion - which has led to many embarassing and humiliating situations in my life. The visual used by Solomon as he attempted to put a simile on the awkwardness and incongruity of women of indiscretion was masterfully put.

A jewel of gold is a work of art and worthy to be desired, but when placed in a pig's snout, its beauty is diminished by reason of the loathsome surroundings.