The reigns of those princes who gave an easy belief to accusations, are stained with the most atrocious crimes. Tiberius Cæsar put to death the greater number of his own privy councillors, by giving ear to lies, and encouraging his servants to be wicked; and it is probable that the worst action that ever was committed since the fall of Adam, the murder of the Prince of Life, was occasioned by Pilate’s wicked and cowardly regard to the temper of that tyrant, and his fear of being accused as an encourager of treason, if he had suffered our Lord to escape.—Lawson.
Rulers are the looking-glasses according to which most men dress themselves. Their sins do much hurt, as by imputation (2 Sam. xxiv.)—the prince sinned, the people suffered—so by imitation; for man is a creature apt to imitate, and is more led by his eyes than his ears. . . . Height of place ever adds two wings to sin,example,andscandal,whereby it soars higher and flies much further.—Trapp.
The subject of verse 13 is the same as that of chap.xxii. 22, page 636. Thedeceitfulman should be “the man of usury, money-lender,” meaning simply the “rich man.” (Zöckler.) For subjects of verses 14 and 15, see on chapterxvi. 10–15, page 472, andxiii. 24, page 335, also on chap.xix. 13–18, page 573.
main homiletics of verse16.
Victory Not with the Majority.
I. There is no necessary connection between numbers and righteousness.Weeds grow faster than wheat, and are much more abundant than the grain. But the simple fact that there are more weeds than there is corn does not alter the character of either. In the same field it may happen that there is more to bind for fuel than for food—that the tares far outnumber the ears of wheat—and in this case the worth is on the side of the smaller quantity. So it is in the moral field of the world. It is a startling fact that under the government of God the wicked are permitted to multiply—that when a man sets himself in opposition to his Maker, he is not at once removed from the earth, but is permitted to live and use his life to make other men wicked like himself. We may sometimes be inclined to ask with the patriarch,“Wherefore do the wicked live, become old, yea, are mighty in power”(Job xxi. 7), and the question may be difficult for us to answer; but this we must never forget, that neither with an nor with God is there any necessary connection between quantity and quality, between worth and abundance.
II. Neither are numbers any guarantee of victory.The greatness of atree and the number of its branches do not make it certain that it will outlive the storm—on the contrary, its great bulk and height are often the causes of its fall. When the wicked multiply, and so increase transgression, they sometimes lose sight of their personal sin and danger in the sin and danger in the multitude, and persuade themselves that there is safety in numbers. But the very opposite is the case. Men grow more bold in transgression in proportion as they are surrounded with other transgressors, and venture to do deeds of wickedness when in company with others that they would fear to commit alone. And so the multiplication of the wicked, as it increases transgression, is the means of hastening their fall instead of retarding it. It was“when men began to multiply upon the face of the earth”(Gen. vi. 1) that their wickedness became so great as to compel God to destroy them by a flood. It was the combination of the entire Jewish nation that enabled them to commit the crime of crucifying the Lord of Glory, but it was this “increase of transgression” that led to their final fall.
outlines and suggestive comments.
Combination emboldens in sin (Isa. xli. 7). Each particle of the mass is corrupt. The mass therefore of itself ferments with evil. Hence the prevalence of infidelity in our densely crowded districts above the more thinly populated villages. There is the same evil in individual hearts, but not the same fermentation of evil.—Bridges.
The reference is, in all probability, to the influence of wicked rulers in promoting the increase of wickedness in the community, which requires not either illustration or proof.—“But the righteous shall see their fall.”—Their fall, that is,from power and authority.It is not thefinal fall—theperditionof the wicked, that is intended. In that the righteous haveno pleasure.Herein they resemble God; are of one mind and heart with Him. He says, and confirms it by His oath—“As I live, saith the Lord, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked.” In the execution of the sentence against them, God glorifies Himself; and the righteous solemnly acquiesce, acknowledging and celebrating the justice of the Divine administration:—“Even so, Lord God, Almighty, for true and righteous are Thy judgments!” But pleasure in witnessing the execution of the sentence, we cannot, we must not, for a moment, imagine them to have.—Wardlaw.
Cyrillus Alexandrinus tells us, when man was alone upon the earth there was then no such matter as sinning. . . . Much company in sin ever makes more, it being the weakness of man’s understanding to fear little hurt and danger, where many run into it, and it being the nature of wickedness to take strength from a multitude, as not fearing then to be opposed or resisted.—Jermin.
For Homiletics on the subject of verse 17, see on chap.xix. 18, page 573.
main homiletics of verse18.
Divine Revelation and Human Obedience.
I. The human soul needs what it cannot produce.If the flower is to attain to its development of beauty and colour it must have the sunlight and the rain from without itself—it needs what it has no power to produce. The husbandman and all mankind need a harvest, but they have no power within themselves to supply their need; although they can plough, and plant, and sow,they cannot give the quickening rays of light and heat which alone can make the seed to live and grow. The entire human race has spiritual needs which it cannot supply, and capabilities which must be developed by influences outside and above itself. It needs a knowledge of God’s Nature, and Will, and Purposes, if it is to grow in moral stature, and blossom and ripen into moral beauty and fruitfulness, but no human intellect or heart can acquire this knowledge by its own unaided efforts. If the human soul is to grow in goodness it must know God, and if it is to know Him, God must reveal Himself.
II. God by revelation has supplied man’s need.This supply men had a right to look for and expect. He had a right to look to the Creator of his bodily appetites and needs for the supplies that are necessary to his physical life and well-being, and he does not look in vain. God has given the“earth to the children of men”(Psa. cxv. 16), and every year He causes it to bring forth and bud, not only giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, but an abundance of luxuries for his enjoyment. It is most natural and reasonable to look to the Giver of all these good things for the body, and expect from Him the supply of the deeper needs of the soul. We do not think a human parent does his duty to his child if he only feeds and clothes him and makes no effort to enlighten his mind and satisfy his heart. And surely the Great Father of the universe would not be worthy of His name if He dealt so with the children of whose bodies and souls He is the Author. But He has not left us thus unprovided for, but“at sundry times and in diverse mannersHe has spoken unto men” (Heb. i. 1), telling them enough of Himself and of themselves to satisfy their spiritual cravings, and to elevate their spiritual nature.
III. It follows that gratitude and self-love should prompt men to listen to God, and to obey Him.If the foregoing assertions are true, it follows that man must give heed to the revelation of God, or sustain permanent and irretrievable loss. As he cannot reject the Divine provision for the body without bodily death, so he cannot refuse attention to God’s provision for his soul without spiritual ruin—without causing to perish all those powers and faculties of his highest nature the exercise of which make existence worth having. Self-love, therefore, should prompt a man to“keep the law,”and if he do not listen to its voice he has only himself to blame for missing real happiness. If a man is starving, his best friend can do no more than supply his need, he must eat the food set before him; and when God has offered to the children of men that wine and milk which will satisfy the soul, and cause it to grow, He has done all that even a God can do (Isa. lv. 1, 2). Man is a self-murderer if he refuse it.
outlines and suggestive comments.
He doth not say they may perish, but they do perish; or they are in danger of perishing, but they do certainly perish where there is no serious, conscientious, faithful, powerful preaching. . . . These men perishtemporarily;when vision, when preaching ceased among the Jews, oh, the dreadful calamities and miseries that came upon the people! . . . There men perishtotally:both the bodies and the souls of men perish where serious conscientious preaching fails (Hosea iv. 6);“My people are destroyed for want of knowledge.”. . . The Papists say that ignorance is the mother of devotion; but this text tells us that is the mother of destruction.—Brooks.
This is only a hypothetical case, for there are no such“people.”Nevertheless there is such a principle. Just in proportion as men do not know they will not be punished. Paul and Solomon are in full accord. “They that sin without law shall also perish without law; but they that sin in the law shall be judged by the law” (Rom.ii. 12). These Proverbs elsewhere have taught the same doctrine (chap. viii. 36). Men might all perish, but some less terribly, from a difference of light. All men have some light (Rom. i. 20); and that which they actually have is all that they shall answer for in the day of final account. Still there is a form of ignorance that will exactly proportion our guilt. It is ghostly ignorance, or the absence of spiritual knowledge. Perhaps I may still say that a man is punished for what he has, and not for what he has not. A man who knows of this ignorance, and has light enough to know his need of light, has enough to give account for in that without being supposed to suffer for a profound negation. Be this as it may, there is such an ignorance. It exactly grades our sins. It is the measure of our depravity. The profounder it sinks we sink. No man need sink or perish. There is a remedy. “The word is nigh” (us).—Miller.
main homiletics of verses19and21.
Masters and Servants.
I. Human servants generally need correction.The relation of master and servant is generally, though not always, founded upon some superiority on the one side and inferiority on the other. Where there is any right adjustment of social relations, those who serve are those who lack knowledge of some kind which those who rule are able to impart, and hence arises the necessity of correction on the part of the master and of submission on that of the servant. It is undeniable that there are many inversions of this ideal moral order, but the proverb can only refer to what ought to be, and whatoften,though notalways,is the case.
II. The means of correction ought to be moral means.A servant is a moral and intelligent agent, and not a machine or a brute, and he can and ought to appreciate appeals to his reason and conscience. A wise and humane rider will use his voice to his steed in preference to the whip or the spur, and generally finds it effectual. And words of reproof and encouragement are probably the only successful means of dealing with human nature in this relationship. If these fail, no others will avail, and all benefit from the connection will cease.
III. Therefore human masters need much wisdom.If they are over-indulgent the servant may take undue advantage and claim privileges to which he has no right (ver. 21). In the present constitution of things in this world, and probably throughout the universe, there are inequalities of position and rank which no wise man can ignore, and it is kind and wise to those beneath us to maintain these differences and distinctions. But to maintain them without haughtiness, and with that consideration and sympathy which ought to mark all our intercourse with our fellow-creatures, needs much wisdom on the part of superiors. Dr. David Thomas suggests another, and perhaps a pleasanter application of this proverb. “There is another side,” he says, “to the kindness of a master towards his servant, that is, the making of the servant feel towards him all the sympathy and interest of a son. . . . He who can make his servant feel towards him as a loving, faithful, and dutiful child, will reap the greatest comfort and advantage from his service.” But this happy result can only be brought about where the master is truly wise as well as kind.
For Homiletics on verses 20 and 22, see on chap.xiv. 17and29, pages 363 and 386. On verse 23, see on chap.xi. 2, page 192, and onxvi. 18, page 482.
main homiletics of verse24.
Criminal Partnership.
I. Partnerships are self-revealing.That proverb is an old and true one—“Tellme what company you keep, and I will tell you what you are.” A man seeks the society and shares the pursuits of those who are likeminded with himself; if he chooses the fellowship of the good it shows that there is something in his character that has an affinity to theirs, and if he willingly associates himself with bad men, he proclaims himself to be a bad man. Good men do not “walk in the counsel of the ungodly,” or “sit in the seat of the scornful”—men who are found in such places must be counted among the ungodly and scornful, although they may be negative rather than positive sinners.
II. Criminal partnerships are self-destroying.As we have seen, partners with criminals are criminals themselves in spirit if not in actual deed, and must therefore meet with the doom of the transgressor. Probably the proverb is directed against those who shelter themselves under the idea that those who do not commit the crime themselves, but only consent to it beforehand, or conceal it afterwards, are not so very guilty; but this is nowhere the teaching of Scripture, nor is it the verdict of the human conscience.
outlines and suggestive comments.
A partnership life is becoming more and more common and necessary in our commercial England. Great undertakings can only be carried out by companies. Modern legislation has greatly encouraged these combinations, by limiting the monetary liability of its members. Hence, joint-stock companies are multitudinous and multiplying. Such companies are often, perhaps generally, projected and managed by selfish, needy, and unprincipled speculators; and honest men are often tempted by the glowing promises of their lying programmes to become their adherents, and they soon find themselves in the unfortunate position referred to in the text.—Dr. David Thomas.
Thereceiverandresetteris at least as guilty as the thief. I sayat least;for in one obvious respect he is worse. His is a general trade, which gives encouragement to many thieves, by holding out to them the means of disposing of their stolen property and evading the law. He is thus, in fact, a partaker in the guilt of all. One thief cannot set up and maintain a resetter; but one resetter may keep at their nefarious trade many thieves.—Wardlaw.
There is a warning under the eighth commandment. Do we realise the same solemnity of obligation as under the first? Many professors attach a degree of secularity to a detailed application of the duties of the second table. But both stand on the same authority. The transgressions of both are registered in the same book. The place in the Decalogue cannot be of moment, if it be but there with the imprimatur—“I am the Lord thy God.”—Bridges.
It is the cursed policy of Satan, that he strives to join men in wickedness. In drunkenness there must be a good fellow; in wantonness there must be a corrival; in bloody duels there must be a second; in theft there must be a partner, yoking men together to draw upon themselves the heavy burden of God’s displeasure. . . . Wherefore, although it may be a love unto the things stolen, or else a love unto the stealer, which maketh others to join with him, certainly he showeth little love to God’s law, certainly he proveth great hatred, which he has to his own soul. For while he joineth with another in stealing some worldly goods, he joineth with Satan in stealing his own soul from himself. And whatsoever fear he may have of somecursewhich the other hath laid upon him, if that he doth reveal it, he hath much more cause to feel thecurse of God’s wrath,if he doth conceal it. He hath butheardthe one, he shallfeelthe other.—Jermin.
main homiletics of verses25and26.
Safety from a Snare.
I. Men fear and hope too much from their fellow men.This fear and this hope are very active agents in this world, influencing men often to abstain from what they know to be right, and inducing them to do deeds of evil. Good men have often staggered and sometimes fallen before this fear and have been misled by this false hope, and both the hope and the fear are intensified when the object of them belongs to the ranks of the conventionally great—when the man whom they desire to propitiate is a“ruler”among his fellows. Such a man sometimes has the power to injure those who displease him, and has also much that he can bestow upon those who seek his favour; but the weight of his displeasure and the worth of his gifts are generally estimated far too highly by his inferiors in rank, and when this is the case they are snares which lead to sin.
II. Trust in God is the only escape from the fear that will mislead, and the hope that will disappoint.The many and the great contrasts, not only between the favour of God and the favour of man, but between all that is connected with the seeking and the bestowal, will lead every wise man to forsake the pursuit of the less for the greater. 1.The favour of an earthly ruler is often obtained only by the exercise of great skill on the part of the seeker.When the woman of Tekoa desired to obtain from David the forgiveness of Absalom, what ingenuity on her part was necessary in order to gain the monarch’s ear and goodwill. She had to study how to put the case before him in the best light, and to enact a little drama before his eyes in order to enlist his attention and soften his heart. And yet she was pleading with a tender-hearted father for his own son. How different it is when we plead for the mercy of God either for ourselves or others. The simplest statement of the case is sufficient; no schemes or plans of any kind are necessary to win the ear of Him who is always waiting to be gracious. 2.Success with an earthly ruler is often unconnected with the merit or demerit of the pleader.It often happens that the most worthless characters obtain the greatest favours, even if the ruler himself be a fairly impartial man, because they have more friends at court than a deserving man. In the case just mentioned, Absalom, a thoroughly bad man, was able to command the services of a person who was probably more fitted to gain the desired end than any person in the kingdom. If there had been a banished subject who really merited a free pardon from the king, he would probably not have been able to command the services of so successful a pleader as the woman of Tekoa. But the case is altogether different with Him who doth not“judge after the sight of His eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of His ears”(Isa. xi. 3). The “judgment which cometh from the Lord” is founded on the strictest impartiality, and depends upon nothing but the character and needs of the suitor. If we add to these drawbacks the uncertain good which may be contained in the “favour of a ruler” even after it is obtained, we may well wonder that it is as true now as in Solomon’s days that the “many” seek it, and only the few trust their earthly and their spiritual interests with their God. How many of the few who are not disappointedofthe favour of great men are disappointedinit, and find it a poor and unsatisfying portion after all; but the testimony of all those who seek the higher good is“In Thy favour is life, and Thy lovingkindness is better than life”(Psa. xxx. 5; Psa. lxiii. 3).
outlines and suggestive comments.
To those who look out upon society from the standpoint of trust in God, the greatest magnates of the world will appear only as grasshoppers. . . . He who can say, “Surely my judgment is with the Lord,” will stand before hisrace with undaunted heroism, and before his God with devotion. Conscious dependence on the Almighty is the spirit of independence towards men.—Dr. David Thomas.
The fear of man leads you into a snare, and will the fear of God make you safe? No; if the character of the affection remains the same, you will gain nothing by a change of object. If you simply turn round and fear God as you feared men you have not thereby escaped. The fear of the greater Being is the greater fear. The weight presses in the same direction, and it is heavier by all the difference between the finite and the infinite. . . . It is not a transference of fear from man to God that can make the sinner safe. The kind of affection must be changed, as well as its object. Safety lies not in terror, but in trust. Hope leads to holiness. He who is made nigh to God by the death of His Son stands high above the wretched snares that entangled his feet when he feared men. The sovereign’s son is safe from the temptation to commit petty theft. . . . When you know in whom you have believed, and feel that any step in life’s journey hereafter may be the step into heaven, the fear of this man and the favour of that will exert no sensible influence in leading you to the right hand or to the left.—Arnot.
Albeit faith, when it is in the heart, quelleth and killeth distrustful fear, and is therefore fitly opposed to it in this sacred sentence; yet in the very best sense it fights sore against faith when it is upon its own dunghill. I mean in a sensible danger. Nature’s retraction of itself from a visible fear, may cause the pulse of a Christian that beats truly and strongly in the main point—the state of the soul—to intermit and falter at such a time, as we see in the examples of Abraham, Isaac, David, Peter, and others. . . . The chameleon is said to be the most fearful of all creatures, and doth therefore turn himself into so many colours to avoid danger, which yet will not be. God equally hateth the timorous and the treacherous. “Fearful” men are the first in that black roll (Rev. xxi. 8).—Trapp.
There is a higher step to be taken before we can well step so high; there is the favour of God to be procured before the favour of the ruler can well be obtained. For kings are but God’s kingdoms; as they reign over their people, so He reigneth over them; as they sit on the throne of their kingdom, so He sitteth on the throne of their hearts, and by a distributive justice dispenseth thejudgmentof his and their favours according as it seemeth good to His eternal wisdom. The favour therefore of thy ruler is worth thy seeking for; but first seek and get God’s favour, if thou wilt get and enjoy the other to thy happiness. And when thou hast gotten it, remember that it was God’s hand which directed the king’s hand to reach it forth unto thee. For it is too commonly seen, as one speaketh, “Then doth God especially slip out of the minds of men, when they enjoy His benefits and favours.”—Jermin.
For Homiletics on verse 27, see on chap.xxviii. 4.
Critical Notes.—1. Agur.There have been many conjectures about this person. Many consider that it is a figurative name, and some have adopted the old Jewish tradition that it is an allegorical designation of Solomon. “The name,” says Delitzsch, “means‘thegathered’”(see chap. vi. 3, x. 5), also“the collector,”or the word might mean, perhaps “industrious in collecting.”The son of Jakeh,etc. Stuart and Zöckler adopt here the reading of Hitzig and others, and read“The son of her who was obeyed in Massa (or the princess of Massa): I have toiled for, or carried myself about, God, and have ceased.”For their reasons the student is referred to their commentaries, where the subject is discussed at great length. Ithiel and Ucal signify respectively“God with me,”and“the son of the mighty,”and the common opinion is that they were Agur’s disciples. From the great differences between the language and style of the last two chapters of the book, and those which have preceded them, most scholars believe that they were written outside the land of Palestine. Zöckler thinks that “Agur and Lemuel might very properly be regarded as Arabian-Israelitish shepherd-princes or kings of a colony of Israelites of the tribe of Simeon that had emigrated to northern Arabia.” (See 1 Chron. lv. 38–43; Micah i. 15, ii. 8, 10.) Delitzsch suggests that they were “Ishmaelites who had raised themselves above the religion of Abraham, and recognised the religion of Israel as its completion.”2. Brutish,i.e.,without reason.10.Stuart and Zöckler here read “Cause not a servant to slander his master.” Delitzsch agrees with the English version.15. Horseleach,or “vampire,an imaginary spectre or ghost, supposed to suck the blood of children.”(Stuart.)15and16.On these verses, Dr. Aiken, the American translator of the Proverbs for Lange’s Commentary, remarks, “As compared with the numerical proverbs which follow, the complexity and the more artificial character of the one before us at once arrests attention. They all have this in common, that whatever moral lesson they have to convey is less obvious, being hinted rather than stated. . . . In the one now under consideration, insatiable desire and the importance of its regulation seem to be the remote object. In the development, instead of the ‘three things’ and ‘four things’ which repeatedly appear afterwards, we have the ‘leech,’ its two daughters, the three and the four. Some have regarded the two daughters as representing physical characteristics of the bloodsucker, others as expressing by an Orientalism a doubly intense craving. Parallelism suggests making the first two of the four the two daughters; other allusions of the Scripture to the greediness of the world of the dead justify the first, while the second alone belong to human nature.”23. Odious,or unloved.26. Conies.A gregarious animal of the class Pachydermata, which is found in Palestine living in the caves or clefts of the rocks. Its scientific name isHyrax Syriacus. . . . It is like the Alpine marmot, scarcely the size of a domestic cat, having long hair, a very short tail, and round ears(Smith’s Biblical Dictionary).28. Spider.Most commentators translate“lizard.”Delitzsch reads,“The lizard thou canst catch with the hands, and yet it is in the king’s palaces.”29. Go well,rather, “are of stately walk.”31.Delitzsch renders the last clause of this verse:—“A king with whom is calling out of the host.”
Note.—The following is Miller’s unique translation of the first four verses of this chapter with his reasons for the same, and the teaching which he sees in the passage. “It struck us that we would take the simple Hebrew and inquire its meaning. We would accept nothing as a proper name till we found it destitute of sense; and, following no intricate conceits, we would fail of a directer meaning before we went into anything more difficult. It is astonishing how facile the result. We believe that all was the work of Solomon. We believe there was no such man asAgur,except that great man Jesus Christ. We believe there was no such king asLemuel.We believe everything is the work of Solomon as much as any other proverb. If it appear Arabic or extra-Hebraic no matter. Solomon gathered his materials over a wide surface. We believe it is distinctly what it says,The prophecy.We count it as all finished in the four first verses, andJakehandIthiel,andUcalandMuelin the next chapter (verse i. 4). We would be quite willing to read it that way, if, likeLo-ammiin the prophet, orLo-ruhamah,words confessedly significant (Hosea i. 8, 9), it were thought euphonious or wise to give them without a translation. But what the Hebrews saw why not our people see? Certain it is that the words to a Hebrew were about as follow:—
“1. Words of I-fear, Son of the Godly: The prophecy:—The Strong Man speaks to God-with-me, to God-with-me and to I-am-able.2. Forasmuch as I am more brutish as to myself, than a man of the better sort,and have not the intelligence of a common man.3. and have not been taught wisdom and yet know the knowledge of holy things.4. who has gone up to heaven and come down?who has gathered the winds in his fists?who has bound the waters in a garment?who has set firm all the extremities of the earth?what is his name, and what is his son’s name? Because, Thou knowest.
“1. Words of I-fear, Son of the Godly: The prophecy:—The Strong Man speaks to God-with-me, to God-with-me and to I-am-able.2. Forasmuch as I am more brutish as to myself, than a man of the better sort,and have not the intelligence of a common man.3. and have not been taught wisdom and yet know the knowledge of holy things.4. who has gone up to heaven and come down?who has gathered the winds in his fists?who has bound the waters in a garment?who has set firm all the extremities of the earth?what is his name, and what is his son’s name? Because, Thou knowest.
“Let us examine, first, the language, and then the result as to the sense.I-fear.This is the very simplest Hebrew. It actually occurs in Deuteronomy (chap. xxxii. 27). The verb is thefamiliar oneבדּך,which means primarilyto turn out of the way.And thisturning out of the wayfor danger is a prudent and innocent character offear. Agurtherefore, orI-fear,with the light we get afterward, marks himself as theStrong Manof the next clause; theSon of the Godly,because descended out of the loins of the Church (see Rev. xii. 5); and theMan—just asMuel(chap. xxxi. 1) is God and man—contemplating the low humanity of Christ, which is about to express its wonder at its amazing knowledge.Godly;from a root meaning to venerate:Jakehis in the singular, and means thepious one;which keeps in view what is too often forgotten, that Christ was not the son of the abandoned, but, as His mother expresses it (chap. xxxi. 2), theson of my vows. The Prophecy;not needfullyprediction,as in the present case, but anoracle, vision,orinspired elationof any kind. The words that follow constitutethe prophecyfor though the speech of theMan-Christ does not begin till the second verse, the very names in the next clause are predictive; and the most vitally so of the whole of the vision.The Strong Man;strong, though weak; strong because he sees in himself such wonderful conditions. The wordstrongis implied in the noun that is selected.Speaks;oracularly. It is the solemn, poetic, and in fact, rare expression.To-God-with-me.That the Man-Christ should address the Deity has innumerable precedents. If it were necessary, we could imagine the Human Nature as addressing the Divine Nature; for that really occurs in high Eastern vision, in the Book of Zechariah (chap. iii. 4, 6, 7, 8). In lofty texts, like this, it is perfectly admissible. Christ speaks of His Divine Nature (John iii. 13); and speaks of it as being where the Man Christ Jesus was not, viz., in Heaven. But the fourth verse of this chapter mentions both Father and Son; and therefore in this, which is so near it, it is not necessary to distinguish.The Strong Manspeaks to theGodwhich waswith(Him), and calls HimUcal,which meansI-am-able.There was a powerful Divinity in Christ, and that He was wondering about. His mother repeats the wonder in the after case (chap. xxxi. 2). The whole is a grandProphecyof Christ in the form of a grand inquiry.Agurmakes it ofIthiel.That is, theMan, I-fear,goes searching into theGod-with-me.There is anI-fearpart and anI-am-ablepart, of His one Grand Person; and these parts speak even in the New Testament with the humility (John v. 19) and with the splendour (John viii. 58) that belong to each.Forasmuch as;the simple particlebecause. I am more brutish, i.e.more the mere untaught animal.As to Myself, i.e.as to my human self; for it is theStrong Manthat speaks. The emphasis is laid by the mere expression of the pronoun.Than a man of the better sort;than an educated, refined man, which Christ was not.And have not the intelligence of a common man.That is, he had not the education usually given to the more lowly. Thecommonnessof the humanity is expressed again by the noun.And have not been taught wisdom.Here the emphasis is ontaught. And yet know the knowledge of holy things.The meaning of the whole is, that he has singular light. He confronted the doctors in the temple, and, as a little child, was a miracle. Whence came this? This is what the prophecy represents as a surprise.Who has gone up to Heaven and come down?Somebody has.The Strong Manaddresses this appeal to theGod-with-me;and ends it significantly;—Who is it?Because Thou knowest.One word back in the third verse:—know the knowledge.We have not altered this, nor saidhave the knowledge,which would be better English, because this seems the intentional form. The words that Christ gave to His disciples, God gave to Him; and Christ, in saying so, would include all senses; the outer word; the inner word; the outward blessed revelation, and the inner teaching.He knew the knowledge; i.e.,He discerned in perfect ways what the Spirit without measure was there to impart.Going up to heaven, gathering the wind, binding the waters, and setting firm the extremities of the earth,were the work of a Divinity. Some Divinity had been at work upon Him. He applies to theAble One,to theGod with Him,to explain a low man’s wonderful knowledge, and then adds, as significant of the reply,Because Thou knowest.”
The extract is given here, not because we agree with Miller’s view of the passage, but as affording a specimen of the mode of interpretation which he adopts throughout the book.
main homiletics of the paragraph.—Verses1–9.
The Source of True Humility.
I. In proportion as men know God they confess they know Him not.A child looks above his head at the midnight sky and he concludes that the stars that he sees are only so many shining points which have no use beyond that of beautifying the heavens and giving a little light to our world. He does not think that there is any more to know about the stars, but this conclusion of his is basedupon complete ignorance. How different is the attitude of the astronomer in relation to the stars. He has good reason to believe that each one is a sun like unto that which makes the centre of our own system of planets, and this enlarged knowledge enables him to form some idea of how much he has to learn about them, and so draws from him such a confession of ignorance as a child would never utter. He realises that what he knows is nothing in comparison with what there is to know, and it is his increased knowledge which makes him feel thus. So men who never reflect upon the nature or character of God have no conception of the height and depth of the knowledge of the Infinite, and hence have no conception of their ignorance concerning Him. It is only the man who has in some degree apprehended the greatness of his Maker that has any idea of how far he is from comprehending Him, and his consciousness of ignorance increases with his growth in the knowledge of God. Agur, who here declares that he has no “knowledge of the Holy,” and is “without understanding” on the highest and deepest subjects, was evidently a man who had endeavoured by searching to find out God, and his confession is the result of his knowledge and not of his ignorance. But what he knew only served to show him how much remained unknown.
II. Therefore humility is the great sign of high attainments in Divine knowledge, and those who know most will be the most able and willing to be taught more.Humility is the effect of the most thorough acquaintance with any subject, and of the most profound meditation upon it. When men utter their opinions in the spirit of self-conceit, and are lifted up by their acquirements, we must ascribe it to their ignorance and not to their knowledge. Those who have learned most are the most teachable scholars and the first to welcome instruction from whatever source it may come. If we were to tell a savage of the wonderful capabilities of electricity he would most likely look upon us with contempt, and refuse to believe our statements; but if we were to speak to an experienced electrician about some new theory or discovery in relation to it he would not turn from us in disdain simply because he was unacquainted with it, but would gladly welcome any new light upon the subject. This is pre-eminently the case in the knowledge of all that relates to the Divine Being. When He becomes the object and subject of study and contemplation—when a creature who had no existence a few years ago seeks to know Him who is Godfrom everlasting to everlastinghe finds himself embarked upon an ocean without a shore, and is compelled to exclaim:“Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, it is high, I cannot attain unto it”(Psa. cxxxix. 6). His humble reverence will always be in proportion to the progress that he has made. He who knew as much about God and His dealings as any man who ever lived, gave, as the result of his researches, that“His ways are past finding out,”and was led by it to ascribe to Him“glory for ever”(Rom. xi. 33–36); and all who have trodden the same path, either before or after him, have arrived at the same conclusion, and have acquired the same spirit of humility. And this is the spirit which makes a man willing and therefore able to receive a higher and deeper revelation. Because he knows that he has not “already attained”—that there is no comparison between what he knows and what there is to know—his mind is ever open to receive new instruction, and he welcomes any means by which he can advance a step nearer to that“light which no man can approach unto,”and catch a fresh glimpse of Him“whom no man hath seen or can see”(1 Tim. vi. 16).
III. The unsearchableness of God is no hindrance to practical godliness.If Agur could not know all that he desired about God, he knew enough to trust Him, and enough to make him desire to serve Him. He could from experience testify that God had spoken to men, and that His word was to be depended on, and that there was a reward to those who kept it. If God is unknowable in some aspects of His nature, godly men in all ages have found him a shield indanger, and a rock of certainty, upon which it is safe to rest. Although Agur could not ascend into heaven and read the secrets of the other world, he felt that he could strive to walk with God in this world, and the effect of a real conviction of the greatness and majesty of God is not to drive men from Him but to draw them near in holy living as well as in humble adoration.
outlines and suggestive comments.
Verse 2. This was true humility, that like true balm ever sinks to the bottom, when hypocritical, as oil, swims on the top. . . . He that looks intently on the sun hath his eyes dazzled; so he that beholds the infinite excellencies of God, considers the distance, cannot but be sensible of his own naughtiness, nothingness. It is fit the foundation should be laid deep, where the building is so high! Agur’s humility was not more low than his aims lofty: “Who hath ascended up to heaven?” It is a high pitch that he flies, for he knew well that godliness, as it begins in a right knowledge of ourselves, so it ends in a right knowledge of God.—Trapp.
Verse 4. The discourse is philosophically accurate, as well as religiously devout. It is through the mutual relations of air, earth, and water, that the Supreme Ruler gives or withholds the food of man (verse 8). These three, each in its own place and proportion, are alike necessary to the growth of grain, and consequently to the sustenance of life. . . . The earth is the basis of the whole operation. . . . Alike in its creation and its arrangement, its material and its form, the final cause of the earth has obviously been the growth of vegetation and the support of life. But the earth could not bear fruit at any portion of its surface without the concurrence of water; and how shall the supply of this necessary element be obtained? “Who hath bound the waters in a garment?” Again the clouds and showers, the springs and streams, with one voice answer, “God.” So wide is the dry land, and so low lies the water in its ocean storehouse, that we could not even conceive how the two could be made to meet, unless we had seen the cosmical hydraulics in actual operation from day to day and from year to year. Here lies the earth, rising into mountains and stretching away in valleys, but absolutely incapable, by itself, of producing food for any living thing. There lies the sea, held by its own gravity helpless in its place, heaving and beating on the walls of its prison-house, but unable to rise and go to the help of a barren land. . . . In this strait—when the land could not come to the water and the water could not come to the land—a Mediator was found, perfectly qualified for the task. “Who hath gathered the wind in His fists?” The air goes between the two, and brings them together for beneficent ends. The atmosphere softly leans on the bosom of the deep, and silently sucks itself full. The portion so charged then moves away with its precious burden, and pours it out partly on the plains but chiefly on the vertebral mountain ranges. Thus the continents are watered from their centres to the sea.—Arnot.
main homiletics of verses5and6.
The Word of God.
I. God has given man a knowledge of His Character and Will.Although, as we have just seen from the preceding verses, God is so great and incomprehensible in His nature, there is a knowledge of Him which is possible to manand which he possesses. This seems reasonable before experience. If a man built a vessel which he intended to send his son to navigate across an unknown sea, we should conclude beforehand that he would put a compass in the vessel. And we should likewise conclude before experience that a just God would not build a world, and call into existence a creature like man to dwell in it, without furnishing him with a compass by which to guide his life—a revelation and a law by obedience to which he can be blest and saved. And what might have been expected has come to pass. God has spoken, and has thus met human expectation and human need. Agur recognised this fact in the days of old, and we, to whom in these last days God has spoken by His Son (Heb. i. 1), have a clearer revelation. In answer to Agur’s question,“Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended,”we can bring the words of Christ,“No man hath ascended up to heaven but He that came down from heaven, even the Son of Man which is in heaven”(John iii. 13), and in the record of His life and death obtain the fullest and clearest revelation of God that it is possible for Him to give and for us to receive.
II. The Word of God is what of necessity it must be.The sun is in its nature light, and therefore rays of light must proceed from it. That which flows from it must of necessity be of the same nature as the sun whence it comes, and the fountain of natural light being pure the streams which flow from it must be pure also. When human words are a reflection of the human soul, and“out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh”(Matt. xii. 34), the spoken word must be of the same nature and character as the inward feelings. The purity of the outward word will be in proportion to the purity of the inner life. God is moral light—“In Him is no darkness at all”(1 John i. 5)—therefore, rays of moral light must flow from Him; all that proceeds from Him must be, like Himself, perfectly free from all shadow of moral imperfection.
III. Because the Word of God is what it is, it must be carefully preserved from human additions.It is manifest that nothing that man can add to what God has said can make His Word more fitted to a man’s needs, any more than any intervention of man can make the sun more perfectly adapted to human vision. It is therefore a criminal act for any creature to add to the Divine Word by putting his own ideas on an equality with the revealed thoughts of God, and most foolish for him to expect them to have the same power on the heart and conscience as Divine words have.“The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul”(Psa. xix. 7), and man must not tamper with its perfection.“All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works”(2 Tim. iii. 16, 17). The fact that it comes from God is a guarantee that blessing will come from seeking to understand and obey it, and condemnation by seeking to improve it by human addition.
outlines and suggestive comments.
It is the saying of Tertullian, “This is the first thing which we believe, that there is nothing beside God’s word to be believed.”. . . At least it must not be taught or received,as added to His words,either as of equal authority with them, or as supposing any defect in them. . . . He therefore that addeth to God’s words, shall add unto his own words the just and sharp reproof of God upon them; and whatsoever any may think to find by the doing of it, he shall himself therefore be found a liar. Search them thou mayest to find the depth of them, explain them thou mayest that others may be able to find the meaning of them: but in searching, in explaining,let nothing be added that is contrary to them. . . . For what can he be but a liar that opposeth truth itself?—Jermin.
The learner is far in advance of his starting-point now. He set out in quest of knowledge to gratify a curious intellect; he ends it by finding rest for a troubled soul. He addressed himself successively to the air, and the water, and the earth; but they were all dumb. They sent back to him only the echo of his own cry. Turning next to the Scriptures, he finds what he sought and more. His darkness vanishes, and his danger too. No sooner has he learned that the Word is pure than he learns that the Speaker is gracious.—Arnot.
There is, perhaps, in the expression here a more immediate reference to theunmingled truthof God’s Word. This suits the connection with what follows:—“He isa shieldunto them that put their trust in Him.”Scepticismandinfidelityunsettle the mind. They leave it without confidence and without security. The mind under their influence is like a vessel that has drifted from its moorings, and has been left to drive out to sea, without rudder and without anchor,—unmanned, and at the mercy of the winds and waves and currents:—or, to keep nearer to the allusion in the verse under comment, it is like a soldier in the thick and peril of the battlewithout a shield,in danger from every arrow that flies, and every sword that is raised against him. They make their unhappy subject the sport and the victim of every delusive theory and every temptation of Satan. Hence such expressions as that of Paul to the Ephesians:—“Over all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.” God is the“shield”of all who trust in Him. And it is thetrust,—it is the firmfaith in God,—that imparts the feeling of security. So, what is here said of God himself is said of Histruthorfaithfulness:—“Histruthshall be thyshieldandbuckler.” God could not be “a shield,” though His power be almighty, unless He werefaithful.It is His faithfulness that renders Him the object oftrust.And when this view of God’s faithfulness is such as to impartperfect trust—the spirit, calm and tranquil, feels as if it were under the protection of an all-covering shield.—Wardlaw.
main homiletics of verses7–9.
The Middle Way.
I. A desire that our circumstances should be favourable to our godliness reveals a soul alive to the meaning of existence.The man who values his health more than his raiment, and is more anxious to keep his body in a fit condition to work than to clothe it in purple and fine linen, reveals that he rightly estimates the comparative value of the two, and values most that which is worth most. But no man attains to a right estimate of the comparative worth of all that belongs to him until he values his character more than all things else, and is willing to suffer the loss of all his other possessions in order to preserve that. He is a wise man who, in the choice of clothes, considers first what will conduce to health; but the highest wisdom is that which leads a man in choosing—so far as he is able—his position in life, to consider first of all what will be favourable to his soul’s welfare. Such a man reveals that he has made the all-important discovery that the chief end of man is to glorify God, and that he can do this only by a holy life. He therefore makes it the aim of his life to say in deed as well as in word “Hallowed be thy name;” for he has learned the lesson of the text, that anything less than perfect dependence upon God is a denial of Him, and any act of doubtful integrity is “taking His name in vain.”
II. A prayer that our circumstances may be thus favourable, reveals a soulconscious of its own weakness.There can be no doubt that a man’s confidence in God ought to be so strong as to remain unshaken in the most adverse circumstances, and his spirituality ought to be deep enough to remain uninjured in the greatest temporal prosperity, but this is but seldom the case. All sincere and humble servants of God acknowledge their proneness to yield to temptation, and the more vital their godliness, the more earnestly do they put up the petition,“Lead me not into temptation.”Paul could say without boastfulness,“I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me”(Phil. iv. 12, 13), but there have been but few men who would say this with truth, and those who have been most like him in spirit have been the most ready to acknowledge the danger of being exposed to either extreme. A very robust man can keep in perfect health either in the arctic regions or in the torrid zone, but there is most safety in living in a region between these two extremes, and the wisest men acknowledge this, and unless duty calls them, prefer the latter to either of the former. So a man of God, although he hopes that he might be found faithful in any circumstances, reveals a right spirit of humility when he puts up the prayer of Agur. For he knows that the tempter of men is most skilful in using our circumstances against our godliness, and that both great wealth and extreme poverty are weapons which he can use with great skill.
outlines and suggestive comments.
Verse 7. Agur re-enforces his request. It was honest, else he would never have begun it; but being so, he is resolved to follow it. So Jacob would have a blessing, and therefore wrestles with might and slight; and this he doth in the night and alone, and when God was leaving him, and upon one leg. . . . When poor men ask us two things we think we deal well if we grant the one. Few are Naamans that when you beg one talent will force you to take two. But God heaps mercies on his suppliants, and blames them for their modesty in asking.—Trapp.
Verse 8. We are not only to pray for the removal of sin, but for the removal of it at a great distance from us. As God removes it far away in pardon, the soul that abhors sin desires to have it far removed from the heart and life. Our Lord reaches us not only to pray against sin, but against temptation; for there is a strong inclination in the hearts of men to comply with temptations when they are presented to the soul. If a man has a bag of powder in his hands, he will certainly wish to keep at a distance from the fire.—Lawson.
Food convenient is obviously not a fixed measure. It implies, not a bare sufficiency for natural life, but a provision varying according to the calling in which God has placed us. “If Agur be the master of a family, then that is his competency, which is sufficient to maintain his wife, children, and household. If Agur be a public person, a prince or a ruler of the people; then that is Agur’s sufficiency, which will conveniently maintain him in that condition.” Jacob when “he had become two bands,” evidently required more than when in his earlier life “with his staff he had passed over Jordan” (Gen. xxxii. 10). What was sufficient for himself alone, would not have been sufficient for the many that were then dependent upon him. The immense provisions for Solomon’s table, considering the vast multitude of his dependents, might be only a competency for the demand (1 Kings iv. 22). The distribution of the manna wasfood convenient—nothing too much, but no deficiency—“He that gathered much had nothing over; and he that gathered little had no lack” (Exod. xvi. 18). And thus, in the daily dispensation of Providence, a little may be a sufficiencyto one, while an overflowing plenty is no superfluity to another. Only let Christian self-denial, not depraved appetite, be the standard of competency.—Bridges.
Verse 9. Many in their low estate could serve God, but now resemble the moon, which never suffers eclipse but at her full, and that is by the earth’s interposition between the sun and herself.—Trapp.
For Homiletics on the subject of verse 10 see on chap.xxiv. 28, 29, page 689.
main homiletics of the paragraph.—Verses11–17.
Four Manifestations of Ungodliness.
I. Children without natural affection.Parents that have the disposition and character which God intends them to possess are the best reflection of God that a child can look upon in a fallen world. A son or daughter can by no other means so well come to understand the fatherhood of God as by considering the tenderness and self-sacrifice of good human parents, and hence the Saviour in His most beautiful parable (Luke xv.) uses this relationship to set forth the depth and strength of Divine love to sinful men. He who treats such love lightly, therefore, despises the love of Him who instituted the relationship of parent and child to minister to human happiness and to elevate human character. The man or woman who is guilty of this crime reveals a heart incapable of worthy emotion, and a conscience dead to all the claims of duty. Such an unnatural being must fail in all his other relationships—he cannot be a good husband or faithful friend, or worthily fulfil any of the more public duties of life. A man who was found wanting here, was, in the Hebrew commonwealth, regarded as rotten at the very core of his moral nature, and condemned to suffer the extreme penalty of the law (Deut. xxi. 18–21). Thus God puts the rebellious child on a level with the murderer and blasphemer, and the terrible threatening passed here upon one who disregards the fifth commandment is another proof of the greatness of the sin in the eyes of God. In verse 17 such a sentence is passed upon an undutiful child as is scarcely paralleled in Scripture. Even the body which was the home of so unnatural a soul shall be exposed to ignominy and contempt.
II. Self-deceivers.This is a manifestation of ungodliness, which is in some degree common to all men whose inner vision has not been set right by Divine grace. All unrenewed men are more or less like the ancient Laodiceans, who thought they had need of nothing, but who were in reality so spiritually blind that they could not see their spiritual nakedness (Rev. iii. 15). It is those who are “not washed from their filthiness” that are “pure in their own eyes,” for they are in the condition of spirit described by the apostle John—they“walk in darkness,”and“that darkness hath blinded their eyes”(1 John ii. 11). But it is their own fault if they remain in this condition of blindness. A man may be born into this world with weak or impaired vision, but there may be means within his reach whereby the defect may be remedied and he become capable of seeing things as they are. By coming under the influence of those who can see well themselves and who can help him to sight also, he may be brought from a state of comparative darkness to one of light, and if with these opportunities within his reach he become worse instead of better, and at last totally blind, his blindness is a crime and not a misfortune. So, although it is true that we all come into this world with our spiritual perceptions defective and impaired, we are blameworthy in the highest degree if we do not put ourselves in contact with the moral light which God has placed within our reach, and we shall in time come to the condition of the Jewish nation in the days ofthe prophet and in the time of Christ (Isa. vi. 9; Matt. xiii. 14),“seeing, we shall see, and shall not perceive.”For“the light which lighteneth every man”(John i. 9) has come into the world; and when His Word is allowed free access to man’s heart and conscience it opens his spiritual eyes as the morning sun playing upon the bodily eyes of the sleeper arouses him to life and consciousness. Self-deception, therefore, is asin,and a sin inseparable from ungodliness.
III. The proud.This sin is the natural outcome of the one just mentioned. If a man has no sense of his state before God, he will have no right conception of his position in relation to his fellow-creatures. The eyes that cannot discern their own moral defilement will certainly look disdainfully upon others. He who thus dishonours his God will certainly despise his brother, and the less a man has to be proud of, the prouder he will be. (On the subject of pride see on chap.xi. 2, andxiii. 10, pages 192 and 305.)
IV. The cruel and covetous.Man’s rapacity and selfishness are set forth in verses 15 to 17 in very strong terms. His greediness and cruelty are compared to that of a creature the sole end of whose existence is to gorge itself with blood; to the ever open grave; to swords and knives, etc. We know too well that this picture is not overdrawn. Nothing that man can imagine in the form of cruelty can surpass what man has been guilty of, and such ingenuity has he sometimes displayed in this direction that one is constrained to believe that he has been inspired by a supernatural power of evil, for his deeds of darkness have seemed too black for man of himself to conceive. Some of the cruelty of man towards man may not be the offspring of covetousness, but doubtless much of it is. Men often care not who suffers, or how much they suffer, so that they satisfy their own selfish desires, and all this unnatural conduct is an evidence that there is a schism in the human race which calls for some remedy such as that of the Gospel, whereby such savage natures may be transformed, and“The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid,”etc. (Isa. xi. 6).
outlines and suggestive comments.
In Scripture, the word“generations”is repeatedly used to signify particularclassesordescriptionsof men; for two reasons, or points of analogy:—first,that as generation follows generation, so surely, in every generation, asuccessionof such characters is to be found;—andsecondly,that they very often communicate the character to one another, and thus keep up their respective kinds,—are successive propagators of their species.—Wardlaw.
Verse 11. Here a new thought begins, but probably one from the same teacher. As he had uttered what he most desired, so now he tells us what he most abhorred, and in true harmony with the teaching of the Ten Commandments places in the foremost rank those who rise against the Fifth.—Plumptre.
Solon, when asked why he had made no law against parricides, replied, that he could not conceive of anyone so impious and cruel. The Divine lawgiver knew His creature better, that his heart was capable of wickedness beyond conception (Jer. xvii. 9).—Bridges.
Verse 14. Yet withal, these cruel oppressors are marked by pitiful cowardice. They vent their wantonness only where there is little or no power of resistance. It is not the wolf with the wolf, but with the defenceless lamb;devouring the poor and needy from off the earth,—“eating up my people”—not like an occasional indulgence, but “as they eat bread” their daily meal, without intermission (Ps. xiv. 4).—Bridges.
main homiletics of the paragraph.—Verses18–20.
Depths of Wickedness.
I. There are deeds of iniquity which leave no outward immediate trace.The path which the eagle opens by her wings when she soars aloft cannot be traced by the human eye. The air closes behind her as she moves, and she leaves nothing to show that she has passed that way. The vessel ploughs its way through the deep, and leaves a wake behind her for a short time. But the sea, like the air, soon resumes its former condition, and the keel leaves no lasting indication upon the water whereby the course of the mariner can be seen. So the serpent glides over the rock, and for a moment its shining scales are reflected in the sun, and then it is hidden from sight and the rock bears no footprint upon its surface. No human skill could, in any of these instances, find any evidence by which to establish the fact that either the thing without life or the living creatures had been there. So the sin to which all these comparisons are linked is one which may be concealed from the eyes of all except those concerned in it, not only at the time of its committal, but also in the immediate future. Those who come in contact with the guilty parties may see no more trace of the sin than they would do of an eagle’s course, or, to use the other metaphor, of bread that had been eaten by one who has wiped his mouth after the meal.
II. Sin is so in opposition to the voice of the human conscience that even those who love it must seek to hide it.The adulteress has sunk as low in the moral scale as it is possible for a human creature to sink, and yet she seeks to hide her shame. Men of evil deeds love darkness rather than light, and so give evidence that there is that within them that condemns their unholy deeds. The very denial of the crime is a condemnation of it. There are many crimes which are not amenable to human law which men, notwithstanding, try to hide from human eyes, and their efforts to do this are witnesses against them and in favour of the law which they have broken.
main homiletics of the paragraph.—Verses21–23.
Burdens Grievous to be Borne.
I. It is sometimes dangerous to the peace of a community to raise a person from a low to a high position.To place a man who has never before crossed a horse, upon a high-spirited charger, is to create a source of danger both to himself and others. There is a strong probability that the unskilful rider will be thrown from his unaccustomed elevation, and so injure himself. And it is also probable that he will be the means of mischief to other travellers upon the road, whom he will overthrow in his unskilful efforts to keep his seat. It is generally as dangerous an experiment to lift a man at once from the position of a servant to that of a ruler. Although faithfulness “over a few things” is, according to the highest authority, the best qualification for rulership “over many things” (Matt. xxv. 21), it is not always hands used only to service are fit to hold the reins of government, either in a small or a large society. On this subject see also on chap.xix. 10, page 569.
II. Some human creatures cannot safely be trusted with even a sufficiency of this world’s goods.They are not only unfit to rule others, but so unfit to rule themselves that they cannot be “filled with meat” without becoming a centre of disturbance. Even enough of the necessaries of life suffices to make them injurious to themselves and insolent to their betters. This is especially true of men who are slaves to their bodily appetites. There are men in the world who,although peaceable and even useful citizens when they are kept in a state of comparative want and hardship, indulge in excess and immorality as soon as the restraint is removed. They will sometimes know this to be true, and yet they are so wanting in moral courage and strength as not to struggle after a higher condition of being. Such men are fools indeed.
III. The change of disposition which change of circumstance sometimes seems to work may be the result of deliberate purpose.When a servant becomes a ruler he may be the occasion of trouble simply from intellectual inability, and the fool who cannot safely be filled with meat may be only morally weak; but the woman here represented as developing into a curse after marriage suggests a person who has deliberately hidden her real character for a time in order to gain a position in which she can have more opportunities of indulging her evil propensities. This is a step farther in wickedness, and this domestic burden is often the most grievous of all burdens. On this subject see on chap.xxi. 9 and 19, page 613.
outlines and suggestive comments.
Judge, then, how horrible it is that men should set the devil, or his two angels the world and the flesh, in the throne, whiles they place God in the footstool; or that in this commonwealth of man, reason, which is the queen or princess over the better powers and graces of the soul, should stoop to so base a slave as sensual lust.—T. Adams.
And now, just notice the comprehensiveness, in regard to the happiness of human life, of thefour thingsthus enumerated. They begin, observe, atthe throne,and come down to thedomestic servant.They embrace four great sources of the social unhappiness of mankind. They are—incompetent rule, preposterous and besotted folly, conjugal alienation and strife with its domestic miseries,and theunnatural inversion of social order.—Wardlaw.
main homiletics of the paragraph.—Verses24–28.
Lowly Teachers.
I. Men can learn from creatures far beneath him.Herein he gives evidence both of his greatness and of his imperfection. He is often so faulty in many respects that some of the most insignificant creatures around him read him lessons of wisdom, and yet his capability of receiving instruction from them shows how superior he is to them. For creatures below man, although their actions are often marked by something that seems very nearly akin to reason, are not capable of receiving moral instruction, either from those above or beneath them, and so give proof that they lack a capacity which man possesses.
II. The lessons taught him by each of these creatures.1.From the ant industry and forethought.On this subject see on chap.vi. 6–11, page 78. 2.From the coney(seeCritical Notes)a prudent acknowledgement of weakness.It is one of the marks of a wise man that he knows his weakness as well as his strength, and this seems to be the lesson conveyed by the feeble folk who, conscious of their feebleness, make their abodes in the rocks. Foolhardiness may ruin a man as surely as cowardice, and it is quite a different thing from courage, though it is sometimes mistaken for it. 3.From the locust the need of unity and co-operation.The locust is in itself a small and weak insect, yet it is well known what mighty and terrible work can be accomplished by them when they unite. They stand as an example of the wonderful effect of perfect combination and unanimity in action. (See Joel ii. 2–11.) They seem animated by a single purpose, and the myriadsof individuals seem to become one great and irresistible monster, and thus show us what great things can be accomplished in any community when men are of one heart and mind on any subject, and are willing to lay aside personal preferences and individual interests in order to achieve a common purpose. 4.From the lizard(seeCritical Notes)the results of perseverance.This little creature is constantly found in Eastern houses, and doubtless in the palace as well as in more lowly dwellings. Although hardly so good an example of perseverance as the spider, yet it owes its presence in the house to its own energy in overcoming obstacles, and its pertinacity in seeking out some means of entrance, and may therefore be regarded as worthy of man’s imitation when some task is set before him which calls for continuous and watchful effort.