Chapter XXII (1)

CRITICAL NOTES.--+1. A good name.+ Literally _"a name."_ +Loving favour,+ or _"grace," "goodwill."_ +3. Are punished,+ rather _"must suffer injury."_ +4. By humility,+ rather _"The end or reward of humility,"_ etc. Delitzsch reads _"The reward of humility_ IS _the fear of the Lord,"_ etc. +5. Shall be,+ etc. or +Let him keep,+ etc. +6. Train up a child,+ etc. Miller reads _"Hedge in a child upon the mouth of his way;"_ Delitzsch, _"Give to a child instruction according to his way," i.e.,_ conformably to the nature of youth. +8. The rod of his anger,+ or as Zöckler, the _"staff of his haughtiness."_ +16.+ Zöckler reads this verse _"One oppresseth the poor only to make him rich," i.e.,_ "the oppression which one practises on a poor man rouses his moral energy, and thus, by means of his tireless industry and his productive labour in his vocation, he works himself out of needy circumstances into actual prosperity."

Here begins the third main division of the book of Proverbs. (See Introduction.) Its contents are styled in verse 17 "The words of wise men," and they differ from the second division in consisting for the most part of much longer sentences, comprising, as a general rule, two verses, but sometimes many more. Zöckler remarks that "there is prevalent everywhere the minutely hortatory, or, in turn, admonitory style, rather than that which is descriptive and announces facts." Delitzsch and other modern Bible students infer from verse 17 that this portion of the book contains "no inconsiderable number of utterances of wise men of Solomon's time." (See Introduction to the Book of Proverbs, Lange's Commentary.)

+21. Them that send unto thee,+ rather _"them that send thee."_ "The senders here," says Zöckler, "are naturally the parents, who have sent their son to the teacher of wisdom, that he may bring back thence to them real culture of spirit and heart." +29. Diligent,+ rather _"expert," "apt."_

Additional CRITICAL NOTES for Chapter 22 (after verse 16).

_MAIN HOMILETICS OF VERSE_ 1.

BETTER THAN GOLD.

The second clause of the proverb explains the meaning of the _name_ in the first clause--it is evidently a good reputation that is gained by uprightness and unselfishness--that loving esteem of others which is the fruit of _"looking not only upon their own things, but also upon the things of others"_ (Phil. ii. 4). Such a name is better than wealth.

+I. Because the one may come by inheritance, and the other must be the result of personal character.+ The man who is born to wealth deserves no credit for being rich--he may be destitute of all personal excellence--he may, indeed, be a morally bad man, and may neither possess nor deserve the goodwill of his fellow creatures. But if a man does possess the confidence and love of others it is because there is that belonging to him that wins men to trust in him and to love him--if he has a _"good name"_ and deserves it he is in some respects a _good man._

+II. Wealth is often a transitory possession, but "loving favour" often outlives the present life.+ Many mere temporal gifts belong more truly to a man than his riches--his good looks or his handsome figure may long outlive his wealth, for they are more truly his. The uncertainty of riches is the subject of many a proverb, and therefore any possession which is more certain to last is better than they. A _"good name"_--the well-deserved reputation which is the result of loving our neighbour as ourself--is quite independent of the changes and chances of mortal life--it goes with a man to his grave, and embalms his memory long after he has passed away.

+III. A good name belongs to a higher region of life than wealth.+ Even when wealth has been honestly earned, and is the reward of moral excellence, and even if its possession could be assured to its owner, a good name is a more precious gift. Much skill and industry are required to build up a fortune, but skill and industry are not qualities of so high an order as those which are needed to acquire the loving favour of our fellow-creatures. He who possesses the latter must be a more excellent man than the merely honest and skilful seeker after riches, and the possession is itself of a far more precious nature. The gold and the silver are of the earth, earthy, but love and trustful confidence are good things which belong to the soul, and which are in consequence far more truly satisfying to man's higher nature. When one man possesses both these good things he is able to compare their power to bless, and none who has experimental knowledge of the worth of both would sacrifice his good name to retain his riches. They must bring him much outward deference, but he knows full well that this would cease if he became a poor man--that there are many who love not the man but only his money. But if he is so blest as to have won men's hearts he is fully assured that adversity will not deprive him of this good gift. To possess a "good name" is to be rich with the riches which constitute the most precious wealth of God. He is rich in material riches, for _"all the beasts of the forest are his and the cattle upon a thousand hills,"_ yea, _"the world and the fulness thereof"_ (Psa. l. 10, 12). But this wealth is inferior to the mental power which produced it. God is great in intellectual wealth. _"With whom took He counsel, and who instructed Him and taught Him in the path of judgment, and taught Him knowledge, and showed to Him the way of understanding?"_ (Isa. xl. 14). But His real wealth is His _name_--that name which He proclaimed to Moses--_"The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering and abundant in goodness and truth"_ (Exod. xxxiv. 5, 6), which makes Him the object of the reverential love of all the good in the universe. And so it is with His creatures--in proportion as they have those spiritual characteristics which are possessed in perfection only by God Himself, their reputation for mercy, and goodness, and truth becomes their most precious and prized possession.

_OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS._

We are not good judges of value in the public markets of life. We make grievous mistakes, both in choosing and refusing. We often throw away the pearl and carefully keep the shell. Besides the great disparity in value between the things of heaven and earth, some even of these earthly things are of greater worth than others. The valuables in both ends of the balance belong to time, and yet there is room for choice between them. There is the greater and the less where neither is the greatest. A trader at his counter has a certain set of weights which he uses every day and all day, and for all sorts of commodities. Whatever may be in the one scale, the same invariable leaden weight is always in the other. This lump of metal is his standard, and all things are tried by it. Riches practically serve nearly the same purpose in the markets of human life. . . . This is a mistake. Many things are better than gold, and one of these is a good name. A good conscience indeed is better than both, and must be kept at all hazards; but in cases where matters from a higher region do not come into competition, reputation should rank higher than riches in the practical estimation of men. . . . The shadows are not the picture, but the picture is a naked ungainly thing without them. Thus the atmosphere of a good name imparts to real worth additional body and breadth. As a substitute for a good conscience a good name is a secret torment at the time, and in the end a cheat, but as a graceful outer garment with which a good conscience is clothed it should be highly valued and carefully preserved by the children of the kingdom.--_Arnot._

One is more valuable than the other as a means of usefulness. Riches, in themselves, can only enable a man to promote the temporal comfort and well-being of those around him. But character gives him weight of influence in matters of higher moment,--in all descriptions of salutary advice and direction,--in kingly instruction and consolation,--in counsel for eternity. It not only fits its possessor for such employments, but it imparts energy and effect to whatever he says and does. His character carries a recommendation with it,--gives authority and force to every lesson and every admonition; and affords, by the confidence it inspires, many opportunities and means of doing good, which, without it, could not be enjoyed. Riches, again, bring with them many temptations to sinful and worldly indulgences, such as are injurious to the possessor himself and to his family--both temporally and spiritually. Character, on the contrary, acts as a salutary restraint,--keeping a man back from many improprieties and follies, and even outward sins, by which it would be impaired and forfeited. And this restraint is felt, and properly felt, not for his own sake merely, but for the sake of all those objects with which his name stands associated; and especially from a regard to usefulness in connection with the truth, and cause, and church of Christ.--_Wardlaw._

_MAIN HOMILETICS OF VERSE_ 2.

LEVELLING DOWN AND LEVELLING UP.

+I. The rich and the poor have much in common.+ They have, in fact, everything in common which is independent of silver and gold. At first sight this seems to include almost everything worth having, and it does include the best and most lasting good, and often much beside. We rejoice in the thought that many a poor man has as large a share of God's blessed air and sunshine as his richer neighbour--that his bodily frame is as healthful and his house as full as love. But alas! we cannot forget that poverty in many cases shuts out men and women from the gladdening and healthful influences of pure air and sunlight, and consequently shuts them up to bodily disease, and tends to produce moral unhealthfulness. As civilisation advances, and countries become more populous, the gulf between poverty and wealth in this respect seems to widen, and when we consider how many advantages, not only material but intellectual and moral, the very moderately rich possess over the very poor, we do not find so much in common between them as appears upon a slight view of the case. It is indeed true that all the blessings of life that money cannot buy are as much within the reach of the poor as of the rich; but how many good things--not only for the body, but also for the mind and heart--are not to be gotten without gold and silver. There is, however, one platform upon which they all meet, even in this life--one levelling force which brings them into an absolute equality. In the plan of redemption through Jesus Christ, and in all the blessed effects which flow from it, the rich man has no advantage over the poor man--the brother of low degree is shut out from nothing that his rich brother enjoys. In this sense, as in many others, we may use the prophet's words: _"every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill made low"_ (Isa. xl. 4). It does this: 1. _By declaring their common and universal sinfulness._ Disease of body is a levelling power--fever makes no distinction between king and subject--between master and servant; while they are under its dominion the one has no immunity from the weakness and pain of the other. So the Gospel plan declares concerning sin what experience testifies--that _"there is no difference,"_ that _"all have sinned"_ (Rom. iii. 22-23), and that its debasing and destroying power is alike in prince and peasant. 2. _By offering the same conditions of redemption to all._ A physician, when he visits his patients with the intention of doing his best to heal them, does not prescribe one kind of treatment to the rich and another to the poor. The conditions of recovery are not regulated by their rank, but by their disease. So with the Gospel Remedy for the sickness of the soul. It is the same for every man. The strait road is not made wider for the man with money bags, the gate is opened as wide for the pauper as for the emperor. 3. _By providing the same inheritance for all who accept the conditions._ Every man who accepts the way of salvation has an equal right to claim God as his Father--has an equal liberty of access to Him (Ephes. iii. 12), at all times--is sealed with the same Spirit of promise, and his the same hope of blessedness beyond the grave. To each and to all it is said, _"All are yours, and ye are Christ's"_ (1 Cor. iii. 22-23).

+II. To God must be referred the lot to which each man is born.+ He, as the Creator, calls each man into being, and determines the sphere in which he finds himself when he awakens to consciousness and to a sense of responsibility. Man, as a free agent, has much to do with determining his lot in life when he arrives at mature years, but the circumstances surrounding his birth and earlier years, and the mental gifts with which he is endowed, have much also to do with it, and these are determined for him by God. So that He is not only the Maker of the man's personality, but largely also of his position in the world.

_OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS._

In the distinction between the rich and the poor there is something not altogether pleasant to the human mind. We are apt to recoil from it. Without much thought, by the mere spontaneous promptings of our feelings, we are apt to have some dissatisfaction as we behold the advantages of riches so unequally distributed among men. And frequently the dissatisfaction increases, as we can discover no just _rule_ of this distribution; and as we behold more and more of the contrasted advantages and disadvantages of this distinction between rich and poor. Something like this was, in my opinion, the feeling of the writer of this text. He saw the distinction between rich and poor; he felt amazed; he had a disliking for it which set his mind at work. He thought the matter over patiently and religiously. And when he had done he gathers up the whole substance into this single aphorism and writes it down. That was his satisfaction. There he left the matter. . . . He had studied it as he studied botany: _From the cedar-tree that is in Lebanon to the hyssop that springeth out of the wall._ He had contemplated the loftiness of the rich and the lowliness of the poor, wherein they differed, and wherein they agreed, and especially _who made them to differ._ . . . His faith in God and constant recognition of Him would lead him to take along with him in all his contemplations the idea of the one Great Maker of all; and then, when he found things strange, dark, or revolting to him growing out of the distinctions between rich and poor, he leaves all that with God. But _before_ he comes to this, and while he is engaged amid things which he _can_ understand, he finds another side of the question which at first disquieted him. . . . Coming to examine the matter, he finds that _distinction_ is not the real affair after all; that there are more _agreements_ than _distinctions_--more _resemblances_ than _differences_: the Maker of all has made the all more alike than unlike. . . . They meet together in their _origin and their situation_ as they enter the world. They are equally dependent, helpless, miserable. . . . The two classes are very much alike in their _amount of happiness._ . . . The rich man is not necessarily happy nor the poor unhappy. . . . The passions which make men miserable are exercised by both classes without any visible difference in their effects. . . . There is a substantial agreement in all the organs of perception and enjoyment, and much of our felicity here depends upon the organic constitution that makes us men. . . . In intellectual faculties there is the same strong resemblance. The perception, memory, imagination, reason, which God has given, He has been pleased to give with an impartial hand. . . . There is _one common end_ to our humanity; . . . among dead men's bones you can find nothing to minister to human vanity. The rich and poor meet together in the tomb and at the _final bar of God.--Dr. Spencer._

They _meet often;_ yea, often is the rich forced to send for the poor, needing as much the help of his labour as the other doth the help of his money. But this maketh them to meet nearer yet, by causing the same who was rich to become poor, and he that was poor to become rich. . . . And they meet _everywhere_--there is no place that hath not both of them, and as there are many of the one, so there are many of the other.--_Jermin._

For Homiletics on verse 3 see on chap. xiv. 15-18, page 363; on verse 4 see on chap. iii. 1-18, pages 29, 34, 39.

_MAIN HOMILETICS OF VERSES_ 5 _and_ 6.

A HEDGED-UP WAY.

+I. God will hedge in the way of the froward man.+ As we have seen in considering former proverbs, men in a fallen condition have a tendency to break loose from restraint--especially from Divine restraint--and to mark out a path for themselves of their own devising. (See on chap. xxi. 8.) Every human creature shows more or less wilfulness in regard to their relations to God and His law--choosing rather to fashion his life according to his own ideas than accounting to the Divine idea and desire concerning him. And this wilfulness, if unchecked, grows with a man's growth and strengthens with his years, until his frowardness becomes the distinctive feature of his life. But he will not have it all his own way. He will not find the crooked path which he has chosen altogether pleasant and safe. Thorns will prick his feet and pitfalls will endanger his life. He will find himself confronted and fenced-in by laws of retribution which God has set about him to admonish him to forsake his rebellious way. For all the pain of body or mind which men suffer, and all the obstacles they meet with in the way of frowardness are intended to keep them from a deeper pain and a heavier punishment. A thorn-hedge is set by the side of the highway to admonish the traveller to keep the path, and so avoid, may be, the precipice or the bog on the other side. If he attempts to climb the hedge he will be wounded, and if he is a wise man the thorn-pricks will lead him to abandon his intention, and so to escape more serious harm. If the hedge does this if fulfils the end for which it was planted. So with the pains and penalties with which God hedges in the present way of the wicked man--they are intended to lead him into a better and safer way.

+II. It is a parent's duty to hedge in the way of his child.+ The father stands in the place of God to his young children in this respect, for his discipline in their early years is the best possible preparation for the discipline of God later on in life. Indeed the wiser the training of the earthly father the less are his children likely to need the corrective discipline of their Heavenly Parent. The child that accustomed to bend its will to the will of a good father will not find it so hard to yield obedience to the Will of God as he who has had no such training. He will grow upon the practice of sinking his will in that of a wiser will, and it will not be irksome for him so to do. Having found his father's yoke an easy one, and having in the path of filial obedience tasted pleasures unknown to the rebellious child, he will the more readily accept the yoke of God, and find in His service perfect freedom. But this blessed result will not be attained without much anxious and sometimes painful effort on the part of the parent. For the natural waywardness of man in general manifests itself in very early life. A child would like to be trained in the way it _would_ go, rather than in the way that it _should_ go. But this would in effect be no training at all. For the training of anything implies a crossing of the natural tendency--a repression in one direction, and an effort towards development in another. The training of the vine does not mean a letting it put forth its branches just where it wills or a twining of its tendrils around any object it chooses--it implies a free use of the pruning-knife and of the vine-dresser's other implements and methods of restraint and guidance. Every child, like every unwise man, would like to set up its own hedge, and put up its own fences, and prescribe the limits and bounds of its own conduct. But as we have already seen, God lets no man do this beyond certain limits, for He Himself sets "thorns and snares in the way of the froward." It is, therefore, cruel neglect in a parent to allow a child to do it, for thus the tendency to go in the wrong say is strengthened by indulgence, and every year the path of obedience to God becomes more difficult, and looks less inviting. If the parent does not set a hedge about his son's path, he is only making it certain that he will encounter thorns and shares further on in life. As to the promise attached to the command in this proverb, it can hardly be said to be of universal application. Solomon himself seems to have been an exception to the rule. We have every reason to believe that his father, after his birth, would train his son most carefully and enforce his precepts by example. We must believe that David's own bitter experience of the thorns and snares in the path of sin made him very anxious to preserve his son from wandering as he had done, and led him to train him most carefully. It is also said of the sons of a man whose life was outwardly stainless--of Samuel--that his sons "walked not in his ways" (1 Sam. viii. 3). Yet we cannot suppose that Samuel, who had seen in Eli's family the miserable fruits of non-restraint, had neglected to train his sons. Yet the exceptions are doubtless very few in number compared with the rule,--that a rightly-trained child does not depart from the right way in his riper years, though, in Bishop Hall's words, "God will let us find that grace is by gift, not by inheritance."

"Lord, with what care hast Thou begirt us round!
Parents first season us: then schoolmasters
Deliver us to laws; they send us bound
To rules of reason, holy messengers.

Pulpits and Sundays, sorrow dogging sin,
Afflictions sorted, anguish of all sizes,
Fine nets and stratagems to catch us in
Bibles laid open, millions of surprises.

Blessings beforehand, ties of gratefulness,
The sound of glory ringing in our ears;
Without our shame, within our consciences,
Angels and grace, eternal hopes and fears.

Yet all these fences and their whole array,
One cunning bosom--sin blows quite away."--_Herbert._

_OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS._

Verse 5. A forcible image to show that nothing stands so much in a man's way as the indulgence of his own unbridled will. The man who is most perversely bent on his purposes is most likely to be thwarted in them.--_Bridges._

The ungodly finds nothing in his path to hell but thorns and snares, and yet he presses on in it! A sign of the greatness and fearfulness of the ruin of man's sin.--_Lange._

Verse 6. Three different meanings have been found of the interpretation, "according to his way." (See Critical Notes.) It may be--1. His way in the sense of his own natural characteristics of style and manner,--and then his training will have reference to that for which he is naturally fitted; or--2. The way of life which he is intended by parents or guardians to pursue; or, 3. The way in which he ought to go. The last is moral, and relates to the general Divine intention concerning man's earthly course; the second is human and economical; the first is individual, and to some extent even physical. Yet although the third presents the highest standard and has been generally adopted, it has the least support from the Hebrew idiom.--_Tr. of Lange's Commentary._

He learneth best any way that knoweth no other, and he best keepeth any way that groweth in it. Two children that are bred and grow up together, are settled in affection the one to the other. Now, it can be but a childish goodness that is in a child; but if the childhood of goodness shall be bred and grow up with the childhood of man, it will settle the stronger union between them. Aristotle saith, it is a matter of chiefest moment for a man _to be accustomed_ this way or that.--_Jermin._

_MAIN HOMILETICS OF VERSE_ 7.

AN ANALOGY AFFIRMED AND A CONTRAST SUGGESTED.

+I. The contrast between the poor man and the borrower.+ The proverb at least _suggests_ that the poor man and the borrower are not necessarily convertible terms--that a poor man may owe no man anything, and that a man may be in debt without being a poor man in the common acceptation of the word. 1. The poor man and the borrower may occupy different social relations; indeed, as a rule this is the case. The poor man may have been born to poverty, and consequently may be inured to its hardships, one of which is its subjection to the will of the rich. But the borrower may have been born to wealth, and himself accustomed to rule over the poor. The one may be so ignorant and degraded by reason of his poverty as scarcely to be conscious of the yoke he wears; whereas the servitude of the other will be galling in proportion as his education renders him sensitive to his position. 2. They may be unlike in the fact that the poor man may have had no choice but poverty--he may have been born in it, and may have had no opportunity of altering his condition; but the borrower may not have been absolutely obliged to borrow--he may have borrowed merely to speculate or to waste.

+II. The point of resemblance between them.+ They are alike in being both dependent upon the same person--upon the rich man. This rich man may be unlike his poor brother in nothing save in his possession of gold; he may be as uneducated as he is, and morally, far beneath him. He may be much less polished and refined than the man who borrows of him, but, whatever he is or is not does not alter the case, his money makes him the master--both the poor man and the debtor must submit to his dictation, must acknowledge their dependence on him. Both often have the painful consciousness that he holds in his hand all that makes their existence of any value to them--both often alike feel that he could at any time deprive them of their very bread.

+III. The lesson of the proverb.+ The wise man, by thus showing how two men who are unlike in almost every other respect may be reduced to the same level in this, is probably reading a lesson against borrowing. The poor man's subjection to the rich is a matter which it is not in his power to alter, but a man goes into debt generally of his own free will. He may often be very hardly pressed by necessity to do so, or as a matter of business it may be advisable, but the proverb at least suggests that the step should not be taken without well weighing the consequences. It is doubtless mainly directed against borrowing when a man has not resources to repay, and is not likely to have them.

_OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS._

1. _The responsibility of the rich._ How great the power of wealth. In this world it is a talent often more influential for good than intellect or genius. . . . 2. _The temptation of the poor._ . . . To become servile, cringing in spirit. Flunkeyism is the greatest curse of the people. . . . 3. _The wisdom of the diligent._ The industrious man is a wise man. Why? Because the more industrious he is, the more independent he becomes of wealthy men.--_Dr. D. Thomas._

Very important it is to maintain an independence of mind, quite distinct from pride, which elevates the mind far above doing or conniving at evil, for the sake of pleasing a patron. Many have been forced to great entanglement of conscience, perhaps to vote contrary to their conscience, rather than lose the great man's smile. Often also the influence of capital is an iron rule of the rich over the poor. Many, who profess to resist conscientiously state-interference, have little regard for the conscience of their dependants. The monied master exercises a control over his workmen, which shows too plainly his purpose to make them the creatures of his own will. This gigantic tyranny should be denounced with the most solemn protest. The true Christian line is to shun that proud independence, which scorns the kindly offer of needful help; but at the same time to avoid all needless obligations. "Sell not your liberty to gratify your luxury." If possible, "owe no man anything but love" (Rom. xiii. 8). "Guard against that poverty, which is the result of carelessness or extravagance. Pray earnestly, labour diligently. Should you come to poverty by the misfortune of the times, submit to your lot humbly; bear it patiently; cast yourself in child-like dependence upon your God."--_Bridges._

_MAIN HOMILETICS OF VERSE_ 8.

A WORTHLESS SEED AND A ROTTEN STAFF.

+I. The seed sown.+ It is iniquity. All kinds of deeds and every manner of dealing that are out of harmony with the principles of justice are acts of iniquity. The least deviation from the path of moral right is in its measure an iniquitous step. Sowing iniquity is an expression that covers very much ground, and includes many degrees of moral wrong, from the withholding of the smallest act of justice to the inflicting of the greatest act of injustice. Now, whenever a man deliberately and knowingly does either the one or the other he does it with a purpose. He has an end in view as much as the farmer has when he sows seed in the field. Men do not generally act unjustly and commit crime out of mere love of sin--they generally expect and desire to gain something by it that they think worth having. Solomon here declares that they will be disappointed. He has before dwelt upon the retribution that will follow sin, he is here speaking of its deceptive character. Men do not get from it what they expect--they are disappointed either _of_ the harvest or _in_ it. This has been the experience of all sowers of iniquity in the world since Eve cast in the first seed. In a certain sense she got what she was promised, but how different the crop from what she hoped for. She _"reaped vanity."_

+II. The staff depended upon.+ Haughtiness or pride. (See Critical Notes.) This pride of heart and haughtiness of demeanour is born of a man's imagining that he has gained for himself a position and a name that will defy the changes and vicissitudes of life. This idea bears him up; he leans upon it, as men lean upon a rod or staff. The rich man often makes a staff of his riches, and uses it to "rule over the poor," as in verse 7. The man of talent sometimes makes his talent a staff, and walks among his intellectual inferiors with a proud and haughty step. The great conqueror says in his heart, _"I will ascend unto heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God. . . . I will be like the Most High"_ (Isa. xiv. 13-14), and with the rod of his power he smites the nations and tramples upon the rights of his fellow-creatures. But all these rods of haughtiness shall be broken, and those who lean upon them shall find they have been trusting to a broken reed, and the objects of their oppression shall say unto them, _"Art thou also become weak as we? art thou become like unto us?"_

_OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS._

The proverb takes two terms for iniquity, one meaning _crookedness,_ the other meaning _nothingness._ It paints one as only breeding the other. It intends a positive law. Wheat breeds wheat. So iniquity breeds only worthlessness. A man may live a thousand years and yet the harvest will be unvarying. And then to meet the fact that the dominion that his ambition gives does make him ruler over the saints themselves, he employs a verb which expresses high action, but action that _exhausts itself._ Its literal sense is to _consume._ The idea is as of a fever which wears down the patient and itself together. . . . The impenitent seem to have the whole _"rod,"_ or _sceptre,_ of our planet, the true solution is this, that the _"rod"_ is just budding out its strength.--_Miller._

Often may oppressors prosper for a time. God may use them as his chastening rod. But the _seed-time of iniquity_ will end in the harvest of _vanity;_ and when they have done their work, _the rod of their anger shall fail._ Such was Sennacherib in olden time, such was Napoleon in our own day. Never has the world seen so extensive _a sower of iniquity,_ never a more abundant harvest of _vanity._ The rod of anger was he to the nations of the earth. But how utterly was the rod suffered to _fail,_ when the purpose was accomplished! despoiled of empire, shorn of greatness--an exiled captive.--_Bridges._

_MAIN HOMILETICS OF VERSE_ 9.

THE BOUNTIFUL EYE.

+I. The eye is an index of the soul.+ This is true, not only of the _expression_ of the eye but of its _direction._ What is in the mind can often be read in the eye; both evil passions and Divine affections reveal themselves through it, but sometimes both depend very much upon where the eye looks--upon the objects towards which the glance is directed. Perhaps the text refers both to the eye that softens at the sight of another's woe, and to the eye which makes it its business to look around and search for objects which the hand can help. For if the expression of the eye reveals the character so does the direction which it habitually takes. There is many an eye that readily moistens with sympathy at the tale or the spectacle of sorrow which can hardly be called a _"bountiful eye,"_ for it is only by accident that it ever encounters anything to call forth its sympathy. But the eye that is ever on the watch for opportunities of doing good, of feeding the hungry and raising the fallen, is a much surer index of a godlike disposition. For such an eye has something in common with the eye of Him who looked upon the bond slaves of Egypt and said, _"I have seen the affliction of My people and am come down to deliver them,"_ and who, manifest in a human body, _"was moved with compassion"_ at the sight of _"people who were as sheep not having a shepherd"_ (Mark vi. 34). He whose bountiful eye brings down a blessing upon him is not one who now and then meets a needy brother and relieves him; still less is he one whose sympathy is shown only by the look. His is evidently one whose glance of pity is followed by a deed of kindness and whose habit it is to look out for opportunities of succouring the needy.

+II. The soul is blest by the ministry of the hand.+ He who gives of his bread to the needy will have the gratitude of the needy, and there is not a more exquisite joy perhaps on the earth. But the blessing of God will be his in an especial manner. Upon both kinds of blessing see Homiletics on chap. xi. 25, page 234, and on chap. xix. 17, page 576.

_OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS._

Perhaps the expression--"he giveth _of his bread_ to the poor," may mean, that he is ready even to share his own provision with them; not merely to give a small portion of his superfluities, but to stint himself for their supply. And this is the spirit of true charity.--_Wardlaw._

Some that have a bountiful eye have no bread to give, but they will give what will turn to as good an account to the donor, and sometimes will be as pleasing to the receiver; tears and attention, and offices of tenderness and prayers to Him that is able to help.--_Lawson._

This _bountifulness_ is a privilege, which earth possesses above heaven. Many a rich _blessing_ is sealed to it. "Beneficence is the most exquisite luxury; and the good man is the genuine epicure." He "hath a continual feast," because his objects are always before him.--_Bridges._

_MAIN HOMILETICS OF VERSE_ 10.

A MAN WHO OUGHT TO DWELL ALONE.

+I. The scorner should be dismissed from social bodies for his own sake.+ It is better for the man himself that his power to do evil should be as limited as possible. If we could know beforehand that a man intends to commit a great crime, and so render himself liable to heavy punishment, and bring guilt upon his conscience, the kindest thing that we could do for him would be to deprive him of the power of doing as he intends. We should thereby save him from the misery of becoming a greater transgressor. If the other disciples of Our Lord could have foreseen what was passing in the mind of Judas, and could have prevented his becoming the betrayer of his Master, how great a blessing would they have conferred upon that unhappy man! Whatever might have been his other sins, he would not have been stung with that agony of remorse at having betrayed innocent blood. But many sins are of such a nature that it is impossible to hinder men from their committal--the steps which lead to them are hidden from those around, and no one suspects that the guilty one has any such intention. The scoffer, however, is not a sinner of this kind--his transgression is not a single act, but a habit of life; it is not a secret purpose hidden in his heart until the moment of its accomplishment, but is manifested in his words. Men can therefore, to some extent, hinder him from increasing his own guilt by depriving him of the opportunities of indulging in his sin--if they "cast him out"--if they shun his society, and dismiss him from their midst, he will have fewer opportunities and temptations to indulge in scoffing, and so will be kept from going to such great lengths in sinning. A man who loves to turn into ridicule all pure and holy things, uses to his own condemnation and degradation influences which were intended to bless and elevate him, and it is better for himself that they should be placed beyond his reach than that he should so abuse them and increase his own guilt.

+II. He should be cast out for the sake of his fellow-creatures.+ There are certain diseases of the human body which are not only most dangerous for the patient himself, but expose to a like danger all who come in contact with him. The leper is not only a great sufferer himself, but he is a centre of a deadly disease which will spread itself to those with whom he dwells. It is therefore necessary to remove him from the society of other men--so long as he is a leper he must dwell alone, must be denied the privilege of citizenship and the joys of social life. So it ought to be with the scorner--the habit of scoffing is one which is very infectious--very easily communicated by one man to another; and seeing that it is so soul-destructive, those who indulge in it ought not to have the opportunity of communicating the moral pestilence. But there is another aspect of leprosy which renders it necessary to isolate as far as possible those who are suffering from it from the abodes of other men. Even if it were not so infectious, it is most loathsome; and this alone would render some separation necessary. Now, there are societies of men in which the words of the scoffer would be quite powerless to do harm--there are those whose love of that which is true and holy is strong enough to withstand all such evil influence. But to such men a scorner is a most repugnant character--they loathe his irreverent treatment of that which is to them most sacred. It is not required that they expose themselves to the pain of his society--they are at liberty to cast him out of their midst.

_OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS._

There is no cure but _"casting out."_ Such men are the Jonahs of churches, and of the coteries of social life. As long as they are there, there will be nothing but the bluster and commotion of the storm--"toiling in rowing," incessant distress, vain exertion, and no progress. The sea cannot "cease from its raging," till they are thrown overboard.--_Wardlaw._

This _thought_ occurs also in the Psalms (Ps. lxviii. 6). Only the rebellious, says the Psalmist, shall come to mischief. There are, it is true, great mountains of wickedness; but take away this one element of scorn--that is, make a man submissive and the causes of strife have flown. Christ manages afterwards. Take away the rebelliousness of the heart, and great monstrous sins will slowly be corrected and disappear. . . . Scorning is not itself the cause of the quarrel, and therefore ceasing to scorn does not remove it directly. Christ must remove the _cause._ Scorning expels Christ. Ceasing to scorn admits Christ. And, therefore, it is literally true--"Cast out the _scorner_ (it may be thine own scornful heart), and the cause of quarrel passes away, and strife and shame cease."--_Miller._

It is always the disposition of the scorner, that wheresoever he is, he scorneth to stay, and it is always the best usage towards a scorner to cast him out, and not suffer him to stay. For whosoever keepeth him shall be sure to keep strife and contention with him, and where they are, reproach and shame are the attendants of them. If any good be done a scorner he disdains that it is so little; if any wrong be done him he complains that it is very great. If he be used in anything, he disdains to be a servant; if he is not used he complains that he is neglected. Still he is discontented, and still his discontent breeds quarrelling and debate. But cast out the firebrand and the fire goes out; cast out Jonah and the storm shall cease. Cast out the scorner from thy house, and then there shalt be quiet. For whence are all suits of contention. Whence is all strife, but because the heart scorns to bear this, scorns to take that, scorns to let it go?--_Jermin._

_MAIN HOMILETICS OF VERSE_ 11.

A ROAD TO ROYAL FRIENDSHIP.

+I. The pure in heart deserve to be honoured with the friendship of the king.+ Where there is purity of heart, the springs of moral life are healthy--the whole man is an embodiment of truth and goodness. Such a man is worthy of the honour and confidence of those who stand in the highest positions, inasmuch as purity of heart belongs to the man himself, and is a possession that is counted precious by the best beings in the universe, whereas power and rank are often but accidents of birth, and in themselves alone are valueless in the sight of God, and in the eyes of the greatest and noblest of His creatures.

+II. The king consults his own interest when he shows favour to such men.+ A man of pure heart is a great blessing to any community. His very life is in itself a light which scatters moral darkness--a well which makes a fertile spot wherever it springs forth. And it is in proportion to the number of such men in a kingdom that the realm enjoys peace and prosperity. If we could find any earthly commonwealth composed entirely of such citizens, we should find a place where the kingdom of God had "come"--a heaven upon earth. But where there is purity of heart there is grace of lips--there is active effort to spread truth and righteousness. The well does not confine itself to the spot where it first issues from the earth, but sends forth health-giving streams far and near. Seeing, then, that such men are the real pillars of a state, he only is a wise king who seeks them out and delights to do them honour.

+III. Some kings have recognised their obligations and interest in this matter.+ Pharaoh discerned the purity of Joseph's heart by the grace of his lips, and made him the second ruler in the kingdom, and Darius promoted Daniel to the highest office in the realm. David's resolution was--_"Mine eyes shall be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me; he that walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me"_ (Psalm ci. 6).

_OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS._

_Pureness of heart_ describes not the natural, but the renewed man. It is no external varnish, no affectation of holiness; but sincerity, humility, shrinking from sin, conformity to the image of God. He who hath fully attained this _pureness_ is before the throne of God. _He who loveth it_ is the child of God on earth. His desire is perfection, constant progress, pressing towards the mark (Philip. iii. 12-15).--_Bridges._

What Solomon says is rather an encouragement to love and cultivate "pureness of heart," than a motive to be directly regarded, and allowed to influence us to this duty. It is only one of those indirect results which may be enjoyed as a testimony of the higher approbation of God. . . . While we thank God for the favour He may give us in the sight of men,--we must see that we seek no friendships, whether among the greatest or the least, the highest or the lowest, by any other means whatever than the "pureness of heart," and the consistency of life here recommended.--_Wardlaw._

Grace in the lips is necessary to recommend pureness of heart. We ought always to speak the words of truth, but we ought to speak it in the most pleasing manner possible, that we may not render it unacceptable by our manner of representing it. Daniel showed his integrity and politeness at once, by the manner of his address to Nebuchadnezzar, when he was called to give him very disagreeable information.--_Lawson._

He that _hath_ pureness of heart cannot choose but _love_ it, such is the exceeding beauty and amiableness of it; and he that _loveth_ pureness of heart cannot choose but _have_ it, for that it is which purifieth and cleanseth the heart. Many there be who love a cleanness, and neatness, and pureness of apparel; many there are who love a clearness and pureness of countenance and complexion. No washing or purifying is thought to be enough to make this appear, so that often the heart is defiled by it. And with such puritans the courts of princes are much attended, wooing with this bravery the favour of the court and prince. But it is to the pure in heart that God inclineth in favour the heart of the king. And because the heart is not discernible by the king, God therefore giveth grace unto the lips, in which the purity of the heart shining, tieth the heart of the king as a friend unto him.--_Jermin._

_MAIN HOMILETICS OF VERSE_ 12.

THE PRESERVATION OF KNOWLEDGE.

+I. God preserves knowledge by preserving the man who possesses the knowledge.+ The preservation of the life of the man of science who has discovered some secret of nature is a preservation of the knowledge that he has gained. If the discovery has been made by him alone, and he dies before he has revealed it, the knowledge is lost to the world. When a physician is acquainted with a special remedy or method of treatment for a certain disease which is known only to himself, the preservation of his life is the preservation of this special knowledge. If he leaves the world without imparting what he knows to another man, his secret dies with him--the abstract knowledge is not left behind when the man who possessed it is gone. All knowledge is preserved to us from age to age by its being communicated from one human being to another, as one generation succeeds the other, and the hand of God is to be recognised in its preservation. But this is especially true of the knowledge of God. In the days of old, God long preserved a knowledge of Himself in the world by preserving the life of Noah, of Abraham, of Isaac and of Jacob. They stood almost alone in the world in this respect, and were like lighthouses on a dark and stormy ocean, sheltering and preserving a moral light in the moral darkness. If the lighthouse is destroyed the light goes out; and if these men had died without transmitting to others the light which they possessed, the world would have been left in ignorance of God. As the ages have rolled on, there have been more of these spiritual lighthouses, and God has always preserved a sufficient number upon the earth to bear witness of Himself.

+II. God has preserved knowledge by causing special care to be taken of His written Word.+ Holy men of old wrote as they were moved by the Holy Ghost, and the record of the truths which were revealed to them is with us until this day. The knowledge of the way of salvation through Jesus Christ has thus been preserved for nearly nineteen centuries, and to-day we can become as familiar with the events of the Incarnation, and with the teachings of the Apostles, as if we had lived in the first century of the Christian era. Although many efforts have been made to destroy the Scriptures of truth, they are with us still, preserved by the providence of their Divine author, in order that men may not be without the means of becoming wise unto salvation through believing the truths which they contain. There have been dark days when the living guardians of Divine truth were hardly to be found; but if they had quite died out after the Bible was written we should still have had this source of spiritual knowledge with us, like a seed-corn, preserving within its husk the living germ, ready to burst forth and grow when it found a congenial soil. God, as the preserver of the knowledge of Himself, has made its safety doubly sure by not only committing it to the living man, but by causing it to be communicated to the written page.

+III. The preservation of knowledge by the Lord counteracts the evil and false words of wicked men.+ Acquaintance with truth concerning anything overthrows all false ideas and teachings concerning it. The coming of the morning light scatters all the darkness of night, and with it many false conceptions as to what is around a traveller on an unknown road. So a knowledge of Divine truth scatters error, and overthrows false conceptions concerning God and godliness, and convicts their enemies of falsehood, thus rendering them powerless to do harm. Our Lord, by His knowledge, thus overthrew the words of a great transgressor in His temptation in the wilderness, and it is by the spread of this knowledge of God which He has Himself preserved to us that the final overthrow of evil will be accomplished.

_OUTLINES AND SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS._