the state; and it may be that these are designed by the preacher under the figares of the eye and the ear. II. VIBTUEB INDISPENSABLE TO IIAPPINEBB. 1. Laboriousness. (Ver. 13.) This is a comlllllnd of God: "If any man will not work, neither let him eat;" for which the seeing 8J e and hearing ear are needed. Viewed in one light, of imagination, labour may appear as a curse; for it thwarts our natural indolence, our love of ease, and our sentimental viows in general. But viewed in the light of actual experience, the la.w of Jabour is one of the divinest blessings of our life-constitution. 2. Honesty. (1) Graft and trickiness exposed. (Vers. 14, 17.) Here the cunning tricks of trade are struck; in particular the arts of disparagement, by which the buyer unjustly cheapens the goods he desires to invest in. The peculiar manner in which trade is still con- ducted in the East, the absence of fixed prices, readily admits of this species of unfairness. But the rebuke is igeneral. (2) The deceptiveness of sinful pleasures. (Ver. 17.) There is, no doubt, a certain pleasure in dishonesty, otherwise it would not be so commonly practised in the very teeth of self-interest. There is a peculiar delight in the exercise .of skill which outwits others. But this is only while the conscience sleeps. \Vhen it awakes, unrest and trouble begin. The stolen gold burns in the pocket; the Dead Sea fruits turn to ashes on the lips. 3. Sense and prudence. (Vers. 15, 16, 18.) (1) Sense is compared to the most precious things. What in the affairs of life is comparable to judgment? Yet compared only to be contrasted. .As the common saying runs, "There is nothing so uncommon as common sense." The taste for material objects of price may be termed universal and vulgar; that for spiritual qualities is select and refined. (2) Good sense is shown by caution and avoidance of undue responsibility. This has been before emphasized (eh. vi. 1-5; xi. 15; xvii. 18). We have enough to do to answer for ourselves. (3) Prudence in war. There are justifiable wars; but even these may be carried on with folly, reckless disregard of human life, etc. "The beginning, middle, and end, 0 Lord, turn to the best account ! " was the prayer of a prudent and pious general. 4. Reserve with the tongue, or caution against flatterers. (Ver. 19.) The verse may be taken in both these senses. In all thoughtless gossip about others there is something of the malicious and slanderous spirit; there is danger in it. As to the listener, rather let him listen to those who point out his faults than to those who flatter.-J. Vere. 20-23.-Smitten sins. l, HATRED TO PARENTS. (Ver. 20.) 1. It is unnatural beyond most vices, like liatrlng the hand that lifts food to the mouth. 2. It is disobedience to a primary Divine command. 3. It incurs the Divine curse and the darkest doom. II. THE VICE OF GRASPING. (Ver. 21.) It springs from excessive, irregular, dis- ordered desire, and generally from an ill-led life. We must wait upon God's order; must distinguish the necessary from the superfluous and the luxurious, and seek no enterprises that lie out of onr proper vocation, if we would arm ourselves against this unholy temptation, and avoid the cur~e which attends compliance with it. For ill- gotten wealth can never prosper. III. 'l'HE REVENGEFUL SPIRIT. (Ver. 22.) It costs more to avenge injuries than to endure them. "He that studieth revenge keepeth his wounds open." Let us recall the lessons of the sermon on the mount, and if there is any one who has aroused our dislike, pray for him (not in public, but in the privacy of the heart). IV. IN EQUITY, WHETHER IN COIIIIIIERCE OR IN GENERAL RELATIONS. (Ver. 23; see ver. 10.) What is shameful when det~cted is no less hideous in the sight of God, though concealed from men.-J. Vers. 24-30.-The truth of life in diverse aspects. We may divide the matter as follows. I. DIVINE PROVIDENCE. (Ver. 24.) It is needful, for human wisdom is short- sighted, and human direction inadequate. It is a gracious fact, and, if acknowledged, brings blessing to the trustful mind and heart. Ee.eh man has a life-vocation. God appoints it, and will reveal the means for the attainment of it. We cannot enter the kingdom except through the guidance of Christ. II. Hu111AN nEBPONBIBlLITY, (Ver. 27.) 'fhere is a light within us, or conscience 898 'l'HE PROVERBS. [ OH, XX, 1-30.
in the most comprehensive sense. _Bf the help of reason we may jud~e other men; by that of conscience, ourselves. It 1s Ill another statement the power of reflection, the inner mirror of the soul. III. GEl<ERAL RELATE~ TRUT~s. 1. The necessity of pondci·ing well our wishe4. (Ver. 25.) We should thmk thrice before we act once. 'l'o act first aud reflect after- wards is foolish and helpless; thus we reap the good of neither thouatt nor action. 2. The necessity of discrimination in rulers. (Ver. 26.) The fiau~e is borrowed from agriculture, from the process of sifting and threshing-the latte;' in a penal sense (2 Sam. xii. 31; 1 Chron. xx. 3; Amos i. 3). It is carried into the 'aospol. The Divine Judge's" fan is in his hand, and ho will throughly purge his floor',r. We must submit to law or be crushed by its penal action. 3. The necessity of love and faithful- ness in government. (Ver. 28.) For human government, to be sound,• stable and respected, must be a reflection of the Divine government. And the eternal fe~tures of the latter are love and faithfulness. Clemency and severity are but_ twc, sides of the ooe li,·ing and eternal love which rules men only for their salvation. 4. The beauty oJ piety in youth and age. (Ver. 29.) Let the young man in Christ approve his strength by manful self-conquest, and the old man by riper wisdom and blameless conversation (1 John ii. 13, 14). 5. The necessity of inward purification, (Ver. 30.) .And to this end the necessity of chastisement. In bodily .disease we recoanize the struggle of life against that which is inimical to it ; and in the afflictions of the soul the struggle of tne God-awakened soul against its evils. Luther says, "Evil is cured, not by words, but by blows; suffering is as necessary as eating and drinking. "-J.