THE RICH AND POOR MEET TOGETHER— The world does not consist all of rich, nor all of poor; but they are mixed together, and have need one of another, and will properly harmonise if they consider that there is one Lord who is the creator of both, who hath by his providence ordered this inequality for... [ Continue Reading ]
BY HUMILITY AND THE FEAR OF THE LORD— _The reward of meekness, which is the fear of the Lord, is wealth,_ &c. Schultens. Houbigant renders it, _The rewards of modesty and the fear of the Lord, are,_ &c. Or it may be rendered, _The fruit of humility._ &c.... [ Continue Reading ]
TRAIN UP A CHILD— _Initiate, instruct, catechise; lay down the first rudiments._ Houbigant. Horace says remarkably, (considering him as under the Heathen dispensation,) _———Nunc adbibe puro,_ &c. Ephesians 2 lib. 1: ad fin. ———Now pliantly inure Your mind to virtue, while your heart is pure; Now s... [ Continue Reading ]
HE THAT SOWETH INIQUITY, &C.— Houbigant renders this, _He that soweth iniquity shall reap vanity: the rod shall disperse and dissipate his labour:_ and he supposes the idea to be taken from sowing and harvest. See Isaiah 28:27. Schultens says the meaning is, that, "He who soweth iniquity, when he th... [ Continue Reading ]
HE THAT LOVETH PURENESS OF HEART— The LXX and Arabic read, _The Lord loveth pure hearts, and all those who are free from sin are acceptable to him._ They who insist upon the Hebrew reading as perfect, must imagine the sense to be, "The Lord loveth purity of heart: the king is a friend to the grace o... [ Continue Reading ]
THE MOUTH OF STRANGE WOMEN IS A DEEP PIT— Maundrell, describing the passage out of the jurisdiction of the Basha of Aleppo into that of the Basha of Tripoli, tells us, that the road was rocky and uneven, but attended with variety. "Sometimes it led us under the cool shade of thick trees; sometimes t... [ Continue Reading ]
FOOLISHNESS IS BOUND, &C.— Ignorance, weakness, inclination to evil, corruption of heart, are maladies which accompany all men from their birth: education, instruction, correction, under the influence of Divine grace, cure them, or diminish very much their ill effects. Calmet. Dr. Taylor's gloss is,... [ Continue Reading ]
HE THAT OPPRESSETH THE POOR, &C.— _He who spoileth the poor that he may abound in riches, shall himself give to the rich, and want._ Houbigant. From this verse, there is scarcely any interpreter but has observed that another form of speech, very different from the preceding, begins and continues to... [ Continue Reading ]
HAVE NOT I WRITTEN TO THEE EXCELLENT THINGS— Many of the ancient versions read _threefold things,_ in which they are followed by Schultens and Grotius. The Jews distinguished philosophy under three branches; morality, physics, and divinity. Solomon wrote in all these branches, as appears from 1 King... [ Continue Reading ]
MAKE NO FRIENDSHIP WITH AN ANGRY MAN— "By how much the more devoutly the laws of friendship among good men are to be observed, by so much the more it stands us upon to use all caution, even at the very first, in the prudent election of friends; and, let the dispositions and humours of our friends be... [ Continue Reading ]
REMOVE NOT THE ANCIENT LAND-MARK— The plain meaning of this seems to be, "Be content with thy paternal estate, and endeavour not to increase it by unjust means." See chap. Proverbs 23:10.... [ Continue Reading ]
SEEST THOU A MAN DILIGENT IN HIS BUSINESS— Solomon does not merely commend industry and diligence, as some understand it; but something more, which the Hebrew word מהיר _mahir,_ plainly imports; namely, speed, swiftness, readiness, and cheerfulness in the dispatch of business; to which is required a... [ Continue Reading ]