are. His wonder-workings in the heavens above and on the earth beneath, in sun and star, in gre.in and grass, in coal and iron, in rain and dew,-a.ll are the product of Divine wisdom. II. PoBBEBBORB OF IT, WE HAVE A WELL-BEING THAT ENDURES. "Length of days is in her right hand" (ver. 16). "She is a tree of life to them that la.y hold upon her" (ver. 18). They who fear God a.re more likely than others to "be satisfied with long life" (Ps. xci. 16). For the secret of strength is with those who a.re obedient to la.w; but though they should die before old age, yet (1) so long a.s life lasts their well- being will continue, and (2) when their earthly life is ta.ken, their heritage is in the everlasting life beyond, where there is "length of days" indeed. III. IT IS THE SOURCE OF GENUINE ESTEEM. "In her left hand . . . honour" (ver. 16). It may, indeed, be that the children of wisdom are disregarded or even despised. But that is the painful exception to the rule. The rule is, everywhere a.nd in every age, that those who consult God's will in the guidance of their life a.re honoured of their brethren, enjoy the esteem of the worthiest of their neighbours, live and die in the fragrance of general regard. IV. IT IS THE ONE SECURITY AGAINST BIN. (Ver. 23.) How many a.re "the stumblers," those who trip and fall as they ascend or descend the hill of life ! And how serious, sometimes, are these falls I Character, reputation, joy, the light oZ other hearts, the happiness of the home,-all gone through the one false step ! We have urgent need of some security. In what shall this be found? Not in hedgings a.nd fencings which will take away every possible danger, but in the wisdom of the wise, which will teach us where to go and how to tread the path of life, in the" wisdom which is from above." V. IT GUARANTEES THE GUARDIANSHIP OF GOD, AND THUS ENSURES CO;!<FIDE;!<CE AND PEACE, (Vers. 24-26.) 'l'here are those whose life is full of slavish fear; by day they dread the evils which assail the wicked, by night the perils of the darkness. But he who keeps God's Word enjoys the guardianship of his Almighty arm. " The Lord is bis confidence;" his days are spent in quietness a.nd calmness, a.nd "his sleep is sweet " (Ps. cxii. 7). VI. IT IS THE PERENNIAL SPRING OF PEACE AND JOY. (Vers. 17, 18.) Other sources of gratification are to be found, but some of them do not carry the sanction of con- science, some of them are out of the reach of the lowly, others are only open to the learned or the favoured; most, if not all of them, are short-lived, a.nd become of less worth as they are more frequently employed. The wisdom which comes from God and which leads to him, which makes the human spirit the friend a.nd follower of the Son of God, brings a "peace which passes a.11 understanding," the "peace of God,'' a.nd 11 joys which through all time abide." VII. IT IS THE REALIZATION OF BUMAN LIFE. Wisdom is a." tree of life" (ver. 18); wisdom and discretion "shall be life unto our soul" (ver. 22). Any existence which is not illumined, ennobled, sanctified, beautified (ver. 22, 11 grace to thy neck"), by these, is something less than life in the sight of God. Only with these and by these do we attain to a state of being which the Wise One who sees things as they are recognizes as the life of man. , Whel'efore: 1. Count •it worth while to secure this heavenly wisdom at all costs whatsoever (vers. 14, 15). Its value cannot be estimated in gold; the price of wisdom is above rubies (Job xxviii.18). Nothing is to be compared with it. Part, if necessary, with the largest fortune to obtain it (Mark x. 21 ; eh. xxiii. 23). 2. Take care to cherish and retain it (ver. 24). Let the most precious pearl fall, but hold this with a hand that will not unclasp.-C.
Vers. 27-32.-Four valuable virtues. There are some ~aces which, though not of the first importance, are yet far from being unimportant. Many men so fashion their lives that while, upon the whole, they are rightly reckoned among the wise a.nd good, they are much less happy, less honoured, and less useful than they might become if they heeded II few small things. If we had regard to some of the minor moralities which we are apt to neglect, there would be less friction and more beauty in our lives than is now seen of God and felt of man. I. PUNCTUALITY IN THE PAYMENT OF THAT WHICH IS DUE, (Vers. 27, 28.) These PROVERBS, G 82 THE PI!,OVERBS. [on. m. 1-35,