“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 spirit, 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, being in subjection unto their own husbands”
1 Peter 3:3-5

Hi, Page. Good question!
There are two kinds of “good works” that all of us perform: one is called “labour for the meat that perisheth”, and the other is called “labour for the meat that endureth” (John 6:27). Solomon identified the former as labour which is in vain – all that which is performed “under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:3). Labor “under the sun” is vain because it is performed for worldly gain, i.e., for that which perishes away. These are all the things which can be seen by those around us, and includes the good works and fancy clothes that we “put on” as a result of our egotistical desire to be thought well of.

The kind of labor which is not in vain, or that which endureth, is all that is done “in the Lord” (1 Cor. 15:58). This is the labor that Matthew 25 calls “profitable”, and without which, we are hell-bound. Profitable labors are many…. (just a few, “labour in the gospel”, “labour in the word and doctrine”, “labour in prayers”, “labour to enter into rest”).

In 1 Peter 3, the labor which wives can perform in the Lord is that which is “incorruptible”, and which “endureth”. It is to wear the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit. To be “meek” means that we are not easily offended, just like Christ was “meek and lowly of heart”. His compassion and love for us kept Him from being offended by our ignorance, so that even when we murdered Him, He prayed that we be forgiven.

Women, whose sensitivity sometimes causes us to be offended easily, are to be forgiving in the same manner. Having a quiet spirit is having a calm, inner peace that bears and endures all things, including persecution and disdain. One way we manifest this inner quiet is to reverence our husbands, to speak with chaste conversation, and to patiently endure being disliked. This God-given ability is of GREAT price because it is something that only God can see and reward. It is the “hidden man of the heart”. Therefore, it cannot be vain or worldly, because it is performed for God’s glory, and not for the glory of mankind.