ttpright men to be poor, for surely one would desire thnt the power of wealth should be in the hands of those people who would use it most justly. Dut when we have to compare integrity joined to the disadvantages of poverty with 11.n unworthy character in no matter what circumstances, the infinite superiority of moral to material worth 11hould lead us to prefer the former. In higher regions, the Christian character is itself a !'ource of blessedness, whatever be the condition of the outer life. Character and conduct are t.he essentials of life; all other things are but the accidents. Ver. 3.-Fi·etting against the Lord. This is a condition of inward rebAllion 1 or at best of grie't'ing over the will of God instead of submitting to it in silence if it is not yet within our power to embrace it with affection. Consider this condition in its ,·arious relations. I. IT 1s rossrnLE. It might be supposed that, however one fretted against his circumstances, he would not carry his complainings back to God. But Moses told the Israelites that when they murmured against him they were really murmuring against God (Exod. xvi. 8). If we resist God's ordinances we resist God himself. He who fires ?D the meanest sentry is really maki_ng ';ar on that sentry's sovereign. We may not rntend to act the proud part of Milton s Satan, and wage war against Heaven. Overt blasphemy _and rank rebe~lion may bo fa.r from our thoughts. Yet complaints of our lot and resistance to Providence have the same essential character. We may even try to confine our rebellious thoughts to our own breasts, and simply fret inwardly. But to God, who reads hearts and dwells within, this is real opposition. II. IT SPRINGS FROM v ARIOOS SOURCES. 1. Trouble. It is easy for Dives to talk of submission to,Providence; the difficulty is with Lazarus. Job in prosperity offers glad sacrifices without constraint: will Job in adversity "curse God and die"? 2. Sel,f-will. We naturally desire to follow the way of our own choice, and when that is crossed by God's will we are tempted to fret, as the stream frets itself against an obstruction, though it may have been flowing silently and placidly so long as it had a free course. It is just this crossing of wills that is the test of obedience, which is easy so long as we are reqnired only to follow the path of our own inclinations. But that >cannot be always allowed. 3. Sin. Direct sinfulness resists God's will of set purpose, just because it is his will. The evil heart will fret against God in all thinf?s. lll. IT rs FOOLISH. "The foolishness of man" is at the root of this mistake. 1.. We do not know what is best. It is but foolish for the fractious child to fret against : !us father's commands, for be is not yet able to judge as his father judges. All •rebellion against God implies that the soul is in a position to determine questions that •lie in the dark, and which only he who is resisted can answer. 2. We cannot succeed in rebellion. The poor heart that frets itself against God can but wear itself out, like the wave that breaks on the rock it can never shake. How foolish to raise our will in opposition to the Almighty I IV. IT IS CULPABLE. We mnst never forget that" foolishness" in the Dible stands for a defect that is more moral than intellectual. It is next door to perversity. '!'his fretting of the heart against the Lord is foolish in the biblical sense; it is sinful. 1. Be is owr Master. It is our duty to obey him, whether we like it or not. When we resist ordinances of man we may be fighting for rights of liberty. But we have no liberty to claim against the Lord of all. 2. He is our Father. This murmuring against him is a sign of domestic ingratitude. Impatience under the rod is even sinful, for we know that it can only smite in love. V. IT IS DANGEROUS. 1. It means present unrest. There is peace of soul in sub- mission ; to rebel is to be plunged into turmoil and distress. 2. It leads to futur11 •·1tin. The foolishness of man not only " perverteth his way," but, as the phrase may be better rendered, "hurls his way headlong to destruction." It is like the avalanche that sweeps the mountain-path, and carries all on it to an awful death.
Ver. 11.-Deferred anger. I. DEFERRED ANGER IS SAVED FROM FATAL ERROR. "Anger," says the familiar Latin proverb, "is a short madness." While it lasts a man loses full control of himself. Then he utters strong, hot words without weighing the meaning of them or considering how they may strike their object. He is tempted to hit out wildly, and to do far more mischief than he would ever approve of in tt. x,x. 1-29.] TIIE PROVERBS. 373