III. AOTIVE VINDIOATION. By re&SODl\ble judgrnents on those who offer the Insult. Blasphemy ought to be a crime. By withdrawal from Msociation with those who thus walk disorderly. 'l'he man who bas no reverence for God has no basis of character which makes friendship with him safe. And by using all available mcnns for clo11ring the outraged name, and upholding the imperilled honour of him who la our "All and in a!L"-B. T. Ver. 21.-77ie sflrength of su6'fla. "They held their peace, and answered him not a word." The readiest thing is to meet taunt with taunt, and rouse each other's worst passions with mutual recriminations. The noblest thing is to meet undeserved and unworthy reproach and insult with the dignified silence which is born of trust in God as our Vindicator. But worthy silence must be carefully distinguished from the dumb- ness of the sulky temperament, which is a sign of the uncultured and ungoverned nature. We should never confuse the silence of stupidity with the silence of sell~ restraint. Matthew Henry quaintly and wisely says, "It is sometimes prudent • not to answer a fool according to his folly.' These Jews had reason enough on their side, but it would be hard to speak it to such an unreasonable adversary without a mixture of passion; and, if they should fall a-railing like him, Rnbshakeh would be much too hard for them at that weapon." Fixing attention on the two facts-that the people kept silence, and that they did so in obedience to Hezekiah, we get the fonowing two points for illustration. I. Sn.ENCE IN AN EVIL TIME INDICATES SELF-lfABTERY. Remember what the Apostle James says of the unruliness of the tongue. Observe how readily we are excited to answer again. Recall the anxiety of the psalmist about keeping the door of his lips. :Kotice how speakers are carried to the utterance of imprudent things by the beat of discussion. Estimate the mischief done by careless, cruel, ar passionate words. And see the sublime example of our Lord when on his trial. "He answered nothing." "He held his peace." This last expression suggests that silence is a sign of strength of will; the man who can keep silence is master of bis actions, and master of himself. Silence is oftentimes, in its effect, the truest anJ most powerful speech. It shames men; it quiets men ; it reproaches men; it conquers the opvosition of men; it shows the right to all bystanders and onlookers. It has been said that there is such a thing as a" Divine dumbness;" and Carly le calls "speech sil vem, silence golden." 'l'he sublime self-mastery of Heaven is suggested in the declaration that" there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour." II. SILENCE IN A PUllLIC EVIL TD,[E BBOWB POWER OF COMMAND OVER OTHERS, It was a great thing for Hezekiah to keep silence himself; and it was a great thing also for him to command silence in the people. Only the man who can control himself can ever have the power to control others. Illustrations of the importance of this power of checking speech in others may be taken from family lii'e and Church life. It is of special value in excited, irritating, quarrelsome ti.mes.-R. 'l',
EXPOSITION.
CHAPTER XXXVII. the officials had shown by being oovered with sackoloth (on the combination of the This chapter is the sequel of the preceding, two modes of showing grief or horror, see and is so closely connected with it that the Gen. x.u:vii. 34; 2 Sum. iii. 31 ; 1 Kings two ree.11 y constitute but one narrative. xxL 27; Esth. iv. 1, etc.). And went into Ver. 22 of eh. x.u:vi. is more closely con- the houae of the Lord. The temple was not only a place for offering praise and sacrifice, nected with eh. x:uvii. than with the posi- but also a" house of prayer'' (infra, eh. lvi. tion of the narrative to which it is attached. 7; comp. 1 Kings viii. 28-30). Hezekiah Ver. 1.-When King Hezekiah heard it; can, on this occasion, have gone up to the rather, heard Uiem; i.e. the "words of Rab- house of the Lord only to pray. shakeh," which his officials reported to him. Ver. 2.-:e:e sent Eli&kim . . , and Shebna Re rent hill clothes. He did as they had , . . and the elden of the prieltl. A dig- done (eh. x:uvi. 22; see the oomment on nified embassy, showing how much Isaiah that verse). But he went further, showing was held in honour (comp. 2 Kings xxii. a deeper sense of horror and affliction than 14 and Jer. xuviii. 3; and contrut, on tho cu. XXXVII. 1-38.] THE BOOK OF 'l'HE PROPHET ISAIAH. 17