The Pulpit Commentary — Proverbs — Section 282

I. F1NAN0IALLY eomm; avoiding that which leads to embarrassment and ruin; ehunning those which conduct either to a sordid parsimony in one direction or to a wasteful extravagance on the other hand_; choosing that which leads to compet<ince and generosity. II. EDUCATIONALLY WISE; forming the habits which etrengthen and develop the faculties of the mind, instead of those which dwarf, or narrow, or demoralize them. III. SooIALLY SATISFACTORY;· not going the way of an unwise and unsatisfactory ambition which ends in disappointment and chagrin; seeking the society which is suitable, elevating, honourable. IV. IN ACCORDANOE WITH nm1VIDUAL ENDOWMENT; so that we do not expend all our time and all our powers in a. way which cuts against all our individual inclinations, but in one which gives room for our particular aptitudes, and develops the special faculty with which our Creator has endowed our spirit. V. MORALLY SAFE. It is a. very great pa.rt of" the wisdom of the prudent" for a man to know what he may allow himself to do and where to go; what, on the other hand, he must not permit, and whither he must not wend his way. The path of safoty to one man is the road to ruin with another. "Happy is he who condemneth not him- self in that thing which he alloweth" (Rom. xiv. 22). Wise is it in those, and well is it for them, who have discerned and who have decided upon those habits of life which are establishing in their hearts all Christian virtues and making to shine in their lives all Christian graces. VI. THE WAY OF HOLY SERVI0E. The way or sacred se:-vice is so essentially the way of wisdom, that any "prudence" or cleverness that misses it makes the supremo mistake. On the other hand, the wisdom that leads to it and that preserves the soul in it is the wisdom to attain unto. This way, which is the end of our being and the crown of our life, includes (1) the service of Christ, and (2) the service of man.-U. Ver. 9.-Tlie sadness of sin. It is foolish enough to t1se the words "sin" and " sinner" in the light and flippant way in which they are frequently employed. But to "make a mock at sin" itself, to treat otherwise than seriously the fact and forces of sin, is folly indeed. For sin is- I. THE SADDEST .AND STERNEST FAOT IN ALL TEE UNIVERSE OF Goo. It is the ultimate cause of all the disorder,misery, ruin, and death that are to be found beneath any sky. There is no curse or calamity that has befallen our race that is not due to its disastrous power. II. TEE DARKEST EXPERmNcl': WE EAVE IN REVIEW. We may look back on mnny dark passages in our life-history, but none can be so black as the experiences for which we have to reproach ourselves, as those wherein we broke some plain precept of God or left undischarged some weighty obligation. III. A POWERFUL, HOSTILE FORCE STILL CONFRONTING us. Sin" easily besets us." 1. It is exceedingly deceptive, alluring, undermining, betraying. 2. It is a very present enemy, near at hand when least suspected, entering into a.II the scenes and spheres of life. 3. It strikes deep, going down into the innermost places of the sonl. 4. It is very extensive in its range, covering all the particulars of life. 6. It stretches far into the future, crossing even the dividing-line of death, and reaching into eternity. G. It is fatal in its results, leading the soul down into the dark shadows of spiritual death. The only wise course we can take in view of such a force as this is (1) to realize its heinousness; (2) to confess its guiltiness; (3) to strive with patient strenuousness against its power; (4) to seek the aid of the Holy and Mighty Spirit that it may be uprooted from the heart and lifo.-C. Vers. 10-13.-Loneliness and laughter, The tenth verse suggests to us the serious and solemnizing fact of- I. THE ELEMENT OF LONELINESS 1N HUMAN LIFE. " The heart knoweth its own bitterness," etc. In one aspect our life-path is thronged. It is becoming more and more difficult to be alone. Hours that were once sacred to solitude are now invaded by society, And yet it remains true that "in tbe central depths of our nature we a.re alone." There is a point at which, as he goes inward, our nearest neighbour, our most intimate friend, must stop; there is a sanctuary of the soul into which no Coot  THE PROVERBS. [orr, XIV, 1-35.