Like the glaze covering an earthen vessel
are fervent lips with an evil heart.
Whoever hates disguises himself with his lips
and harbours deceit in his heart;
when he speaks graciously, believe him not,
for there are seven abominations in his heart;
though his hatred be covered with deception,
his wickedness will be exposed in the assembly.
Whoever digs a pit will fall into it,
and a stone will come back on him who starts it rolling.
A lying tongue hates its victims,
and a flattering mouth works ruin.Proverbs 26:23-28
For 'silver dross' in 23 the RSV reads 'glaze', and this serves to highlight the point that is being made, viz. that a smooth and polished exterior may often conceal a rough and base interior. 24-26 are intended as comments on this statement. A man may speak smoothly, but his heart may be rotten. Sooner or later such a man is found out. One only needs to scratch a glazed vessel to find the earthenware underneath, and a smooth polish in outward demeanour is often easily scratched. 'Burning lips' may refer to fervent protestations of love that are empty of reality and may conceal very different emotions. Ironside comments, 'His burning words are only uttered to cover the corruption of his purposes. Hating the object of his attentions, he will endeavour to deceive by fair speech, but his heart is full of abominations, and he is not to be trusted. He endeavours to cover his malice by falsehood, and for a time may succeed, but eventually his true character shall be manifested openly. 27 and 28 seem linked with the previous verses: such basic insincerity will ultimately recoil on those guilty of it. There is a grim justice in God that makes this inevitable. Would that we were always kept aware of this, for such an awareness would lay restraint upon us for very fear; and once restrained, we might be able to see the nature of the temptation clearly enough to learn to hate it, and so turn permanently from such evil ways. Of 28, Ironside says , 'Conscious of having wronged another and being determined not to confess it, the dissembler will store his heart with hatred against the object of his wrongdoing. He who has debtors may graciously forgive them; but he who is in debt is very apt to cherish the bitterest animosity against the one from whom he has borrowed. One may readily overlook an injury, while he who has done another a favour will often be hated for his kindness, and be added to displeasure.'