Proverbs 6 commentary

If we live as directed by the word of God, we shall find it profitable even in this present world. We are stewards of our worldly substance, and have to answer to the Lord for our disposal of it; to waste it in rash schemes, or such plans as may entangle us in difficulties and temptations, is wrong. A man ought never to be surety for more than he is able and willing to pay, and can afford to pay, without wronging his family; he ought to look upon every sum he is engaged for, as his own debt. If we must take all this care to get our debts to men forgiven, much more to obtain forgiveness with God. Humble thyself to him, make sure of Christ as thy Friend, to plead for thee; pray earnestly that thy sins may be pardoned, and that thou mayest be kept from going down to the pit.

Diligence in business is every man's wisdom and duty; not so much that he may attain worldly wealth, as that he may not be a burden to others, or a scandal to the church. The ants are more diligent than slothful men. We may learn wisdom from the meanest insects, and be shamed by them. Habits of indolence and indulgence grow upon people. Thus life runs to waste; and poverty, though at first at a distance, gradually draws near, like a traveller; and when it arrives, is like an armed man, too strong to be resisted. All this may be applied to the concerns of our souls. How many love their sleep of sin, and their dreams of worldly happiness! Shall we not seek to awaken such? Shall we not give diligence to secure our own salvation?

If the slothful are to be condemned, who do nothing, much more those that do all the ill they can. Observe how such a man is described. He says and does every thing artfully, and with design. His ruin shall come without warning, and without relief. Here is a list of things hateful to God. Those sins are in a special manner provoking to God, which are hurtful to the comfort of human life. These things which God hates, we must hate in ourselves; it is nothing to hate them in others. Let us shun all such practices, and watch and pray against them; and avoid, with marked disapproval, all who are guilty of them, whatever may be their rank.

The word of God has something to say to us upon all occasions. Let not faithful reproofs ever make us uneasy. When we consider how much this sin abounds, how heinous adultery is in its own nature, of what evil consequence it is, and how certainly it destroys the spiritual life in the soul, we shall not wonder that the cautions against it are so often repeated. Let us notice the subjects of this chapter. Let us remember Him who willingly became our Surety, when we were strangers and enemies. And shall Christians, who have such prospects, motives, and examples, be slothful and careless? Shall we neglect what is pleasing to God, and what he will graciously reward? May we closely watch every sense by which poison can enter our minds or affections.

CHAPTER 6

Pr 6:1-35. After admonitions against suretyship and sloth (compare Pr 6:6-8), the character and fate of the wicked generally are set forth, and the writer (Pr 6:20-35) resumes the warnings against incontinence, pointing out its certain and terrible results. This train of thought seems to intimate the kindred of these vices.

1-2. if--The condition extends through both verses.

be surety--art pledged.

stricken ... hand--bargained (compare Job 17:3).

with a stranger--that is, for a friend (compare Pr 11:15; 17:18).

3. come ... friend--in his power.

humble ... sure thy friend--urge as a suppliant; that is, induce the friend to provide otherwise for his debt, or secure the surety.

4-5. The danger requires promptness.

6-8. The improvident sluggards usually want sureties. Hence, such are advised to industry by the ant's example.

9-10. Their conduct graphically described;

11. and the fruits of their self-indulgence and indolence presented.

as ... travelleth--literally, "one who walks backwards and forwards," that is, a highwayman.

armed man--that is, one prepared to destroy.

12. A naughty person--literally, "A man of Belial," or of worthlessness, that is, for good, and so depraved, or wicked (compare 1Sa 25:25; 30:22, &c.). Idleness and vice are allied. Though indolent in acts, he actively and habitually (walketh) is ill-natured in speech (Pr 4:24).

13-14. If, for fear of detection, he does not speak, he uses signs to carry on his intrigues. These signs are still so used in the East.

15. Suddenness aggravates evil (compare Pr 6:11; 29:1).

calamity--literally, "a crushing weight."

broken--shivered as a potter's vessel; utterly destroyed (Psa 2:9).

16-19. six ... seven--a mode of speaking to arrest attention (Pr 30:15, 18; Job 5:19).

20-23. (Compare Pr 1:8; 3:3, &c.).

24. A specimen of its benefit. By appreciating truth, men are not affected by lying flattery.

25. One of the cautions of this instruction, avoid alluring beauty.

take--or, "ensnare."

eyelids--By painting the lashes, women enhanced beauty.

26. The supplied words give a better sense than the old version: "The price of a whore is a piece of bread."

adulteress--(Compare Margin), which the parallel and context (Pr 6:29-35) sustain. Of similar results of this sin, compare Pr 5:9-12.

will hunt--alluding to the snares spread by harlots (compare Pr 7:6-8).

precious life--more valuable than all else.

27-29. The guilt and danger most obvious.

30-31. Such a thief is pitied, though heavily punished.

32. lacketh understanding--or, "heart"; destitute of moral principle and prudence.

33. dishonour--or, "shame," as well as hurt of body (Pr 3:35).

reproach ... away--No restitution will suffice;

34-35. nor any terms of reconciliation be admitted.

regard--or, "accept" any ransom.

If thou be surety for thy friend - לרעך lereacha, for thy neighbor; i.e., any person. If thou pledge thyself in behalf of another, thou takest the burden off him, and placest it on thine own shoulders; and when he knows he has got one to stand between him and the demands of law and justice, he will feel little responsibility; his spirit of exertion will become crippled, and listlessness as to the event will be the consequence. His own character will suffer little; his property nothing, for his friend bears all the burden: and perhaps the very person for whom he bore this burden treats him with neglect; and, lest the restoration of the pledge should be required, will avoid both the sight and presence of his friend. Give what thou canst; but, except in extreme cases, be surety for no man. Striking or shaking hands when the mouth had once made the promise, was considered as the ratification of the engagement; and thus the man became ensnared with the words of his mouth.

Do this - deliver thyself - Continue to press him for whom thou art become surety, to pay his creditor; give him no rest till he do it, else thou mayest fully expect to be left to pay the debt.

Deliver thyself as a roe - צבי tsebi, the antelope. If thou art got into the snare, get out if thou possibly canst; make every struggle and excertion, as the antelope taken in the net, and the bird taken in the snare would, in order to get free from thy captivity.

Go to the ant, thou sluggard - נמלה nemalah, the ant, is a remarkable creature for foresight, industry, and economy. At the proper seasons they collect their food - not in the summer to lay up for the winter; for they sleep during the winter, and eat not; and therefore such hoards would be to them useless; but when the food necessary for them is most plentiful, then they collect it for their consumption in the proper seasons. No insect is more laborious, not even the bee itself; and none is more fondly attached to or more careful of its young, than the ant. When the young are in their aurelia state, in which they appear like a small grain of rice, they will bring them out of their nests, and lay them near their holes, for the benefit of the sun; and on the approach of rain, carefully remove them, and deposit them in the nest, the hole or entrance to which they will cover with a piece of thin stone or tile, to prevent the wet from getting in. It is a fact that they do not lay up any meat for winter; nor does Solomon, either here or in Pro 30:25, assert it. He simply says that they provide their food in summer, and gather it in harvest; these are the most proper times for a stock to be laid in for their consumption; not in winter; for no such thing appears in any of their nests, nor do they need it, as they sleep during that season; but for autumn, during which they wake and work. Spring, summer, and autumn, they are incessant in their labor; and their conduct affords a bright example to men.

Yet a little sleep, a little slumber - This, if not the language, is the feeling of the sluggard. The ant gathers its food in summer and in harvest, and sleeps in winter when it has no work to do. If the sluggard would work in the day, and sleep at night, it would be all proper. The ant yields him a lesson of reproach.

So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth - That is, with slow, but surely approaching steps.

Thy want as an armed man - That is, with irresistible fury; and thou art not prepared to oppose it. The Vulgate, Septuagint, and Arabic add the following clause to this verse: - "But if thou wilt be diligent, thy harvest shall be as a fountain; and poverty shall flee far away from thee."

It is also thus in the Old MS. Bible: If forsothe unslow thou shul ben; shul comen as a welle thi rip; and nede fer shal fleen fro thee.

A naughty person - אדם בליעל adam beliyal, "Adam good for nothing." When he lost his innocence. A man apostata; Old MS. Bible.

A wicked man - איש און ish aven. He soon became a general transgressor after having departed from his God. All his posterity, unless restored by Divine grace, are men of Belial, and sinners by trade; and most of them, in one form or other, answer the character here given. They yield their members instruments of unrighteousness unto sin.

He winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers - These things seem to be spoken of debauchees, and the following quotation from Ovid, Amor. Iib. i., El. iv., ver. 15, shoots the whole process of the villany spoken of by Solomon:

Cum premit ille torum, vultu comes ipsa modestoIbis, ut accumbas: clam mihi tange pedem.

Me specta, nutusque meos, vultum que loquacemExcipe furtivas, et refer ipsa, notas.

Verba superciliis sine voce loquentia dicamVerba leges digitis, verba notata mero.

Cum tibi succurrit Veneris lascivia nostrae,Purpureas tenero pollice tange genas, etc., etc.

The whole elegy is in the same strain: it is translated in Garth's Ovid, but cannot be introduced here.

He deviseth mischief - He plots schemes and plans to bring it to pass.

He soweth discord - Between men and their wives, by seducing the latter from their fidelity. See the preceding quotation.

Suddenly shall he be broken - Probably alluding to some punishment of the adulterer, such as being stoned to death. A multitude shall join together, and so overwhelm him with stones, that he shall have his flesh and bones broken to pieces, and there shall be no remedy - none to deliver or pity him.

These six - doth the Lord hate -

1. A proud look - exalted eyes; those who will not condescend to look on the rest of mankind.

2. A lying tongue - he who neither loves nor tells truth.

3. Hands that shed innocent blood, whether by murder or by battery.

4. A heart that deviseth wicked imaginations - the heart that fabricates such, lays the foundation, builds upon it, and completes the superstructure of iniquity.

5. Feet that be swift in running to mischief - he who works iniquity with greediness.

6. A false witness that speaketh lies - one who, even on his oath before a court of justice, tells any thing but the truth.

Seven are an abomination unto him - נפשו naphsho, "to his soul." The seventh is, he that soweth discord among brethren - he who troubles the peace of a family, of a village, of the state; all who, by lies and misrepresentations, strive to make men's minds evil-affected towards their brethren.

Keep thy father's commandment - See on Pro 1:8 (note).

Bind them continually upon thine heart - See on Pro 3:3 (note). And see a similar command, to which this is an allusion, Deu 6:6-8 (note).

When thou goest, it shall lead thee - Here the law is personified; and is represented as a nurse, teacher, and guardian, by night and day. An upright man never goes but as directed by God's word and led by God's Spirit.

When thou sleepest - He commends his body and soul to the protection of his Maker when he lies down and sleeps in peace. And when he awakes in the morning, the promises and mercies of God are the first things that present themselves to his recollection.

For the commandment is a lamp - It illuminates our path. It shows us how we should walk and praise God.

And the law is light - A general light, showing the nature and will of God, and the interest and duty of Man.

And reproofs of instruction - Or, that instruction which reproves us for our sins and errors leads us into the way of life.

To keep thee from the evil woman - Solomon had suffered sorely from this quarter; and hence his repeated cautions and warnings to others. The strange woman always means one that is not a man's own; and sometimes it may also imply a foreign harlot, one who is also a stranger to the God of Israel.

Neither let her take thee with her eye-lids - It is a very general custom in the East to paint the eye-lids. I have many Asiatic drawings in which this is expressed. They have a method of polishing the eyes with a preparation of antimony, so that they appear with an indescribable lustre; or, as one who mentions the fact from observation, "Their eyes appear to be swimming in bliss."

By means of a whorish woman - In following lewd women, a man is soon reduced to poverty and disease. The Septuagint gives this a strange turn: timh gar pornhv, osh kai enov artou. "For the price or hire of a whore is about one loaf." So many were they in the land, that they hired themselves out for a bare subsistence. The Vulgate, Syriac, and Arabic, give the same sense. The old MS. Bible has it thus: The price forsothe of a strumpet is unneth oon lof: the woman forsothe taketh the precious liif of a mam. The sense of which is, and probably the sense of the Hebrew too, While the man hires the whore for a single loaf of bread; the woman thus hired taketh his precious life. She extracts his energy, and poisons his constitution. In the first clause אשה זונה ishshah zonah is plainly a prostitute; but should we render אשת esheth, in the second clause, an adulteress? I think not. The versions in general join אשת איש esheth ish, together, which, thus connected, signify no more than the wife of a man; and out of this we have made adulteress, and Coverdale a married woman. I do not think that the Old MS. Bible gives a good sense; and it requires a good deal of paraphrase to extract the common meaning from the text. Though the following verses seem to countenance the common interpretation, yet they may contain a complete sense of themselves; but, taken in either way, the sense is good, though the construction is a little violent.

Can a man take fire - These were proverbial expressions, the meaning of which was plain to every capacity.

So he that goeth In to his neighbor's wife - As sure as he who takes fire into his bosom, or who walks upon live coals, is burnt thereby; so sure he that seduces his neighbour's wife shall be guilty. That is, he shall be punished.

Men do not despise a thief if he steal - Every man pities the poor culprit who was perishing for lack of food, and stole to satisfy his hunger; yet no law clears him: he is bound to make restitution; in some cases double, in others quadruple and quintuple; and if he have not property enough to make restitution, to be sold for a bondsman; Exo 22:1-4; Lev 25:39.

But whoso committeth adultery - The case understood is that of a married man: he has a wife; and therefore is not in the circumstances of the poor thief, who stole to appease his hunger, having nothing to eat. In this alone the opposition between the two cases is found: the thief had no food, and he stole some; the married man had a wife, and yet went in to the wife of his neighbor.

Destroyeth his own soul - Sins against his life, for, under the law of Moses, adultery was punished with death; Lev 20:10; Deu 22:22.

A wound and dishonor shall he get - Among the Romans, when a man was caught in the fact, the injured husband took the law into his own hand; and a large radish was thrust up into the anus of the transgressor, which not only overwhelmed him with infamy and disgrace, but generally caused his death.

Jealousy is the rage of a man: therefore he will not spare - He will not, when he has detected the adulterer in the fact, wait for the slow progress of the law: it is then to him the day of vengeance; and in general, he avenges himself on the spot, as we see above.

He will not regard any ransom - This is an injury that admits of no compensation. No gifts can satisfy a man for the injury his honor has sustained; and to take a bribe or a ransom, would be setting up chastity at a price.

Surety - Rashly, without considering how thou shalt discharge the debt as occasion require. Otherwise suretyship in some cases may be not only lawful, but an act of justice and charity. Stricken thy hand - Obliged thyself by giving thine hand, as the custom then was in such cases. With - With the creditor, whom he calls a stranger, because the usurers in Israel, who lent money to others, upon condition of paying use for it, were either Heathens, or were reputed as bad as Heathens, because this practice was forbidden by God's law, Deut 23:19.

Hand - Into the power. Friend - Of the debtor, for whom, as being thy friend, thou didst become surety; whereby thou art in his power, by his neglect or unfaithfulness, to expose thee to the payment of the debt. Make sure - Or, and prevail with thy friend, strive to win him by thine incessant and earnest solicitations.

Give not sleep - Until thou hast taken care for the discharge of this obligation.

Travelleth - Swiftly and unexpectedly. Armed man - Irresistibly.

Hate - Above many other sins which have a worse name in the world.

Deviseth - He whose practice it is to contrive wickedness. Swift - Such as greedily execute their wicked designs.

The law - The word of God, which thy parents delivered to thee.

Bind them - Constantly remember, and duly consider them.

It - The law of God which thy parents have taught thee. Talk - It shall give thee counsel and comfort.

Eye - lids - With her wanton glances,

Despise - Abhor, but rather pity him.

Restore - He speaks not of that restitution which the law required, but of that which either the wronged person might force the thief to make, or which the thief would willingly give rather than be exposed to public shame.

Rage - It enflames a man with rage. In the day - When he hath an opportunity to avenge himself.

1. MY son, if thou be surety for thy friend, if thou hast stricken thy hand with a stranger :

To wit, rashly, without considering for whom, or how far thou dost oblige thy self, or how thou shalt discharge the Debt, if occasion require it. Otherwise suretyship in some cases may be not only lawful, but an Act of Justice, and Prudence, and Charity. See Gen. 42. 37. & 43. 8. Philem. v. 19. Or, to (as this prefix most commonly signifies) a friend.

Obliged thy self by giving thine Hand, or joining thine Hands with another mans, as the custom then was in such cases: Of which see Iob 17. 3. Prov. 17. 8. and 22. 26.

With the Creditor, whom he calls a Stranger, because the Usurers in Israel, who lent Money to others for their necessary occasions, upon condition of paying use for it, were either Heathens, or were reputed as bad as Heathens, because this practice was forbidden by Gods Law, Deut. 23. 19. Or, to or for 1 Stranger; for here is the same prefix which is rendred for in the former clause. And so he may imply, that whether a man be surety to, or for, a friend, or to, or for, a stranger, the case and course to be used is much of the same kind.

Marginal references: Ch. 22. 26.

2. Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, thou art taken with the words of thy mouth.

Thy Freedom is lost, and thou art now in Bondage to another.

3. Do this now, my son, and deliver thy self, when thou art come into the hand of thy friend , go, humble thy self , and make sure thy friend.

Into the Power.

Either 1. Of the Creditor, who possibly may be also thy Friend; yet take the following course with him, and much more if he be a Stranger. Or 2. Of the Debtor, for whom, as being thy Friend, thou didst become Surety; whereby thou art not only in the Creditors Power▪ to exact payment, but also in the Debtors Power, by his neglect or unfaithfulness, to expose thee to the payment of the Debt. And this may seem best to agree both with v. 1. where Friend is taken in that sense, and is distinguished from the Creditor who is called a stranger, and with the words here following; for this humbling of himself was not likely to have much power with a Stranger, and a griping Usurer; but it might probably prevail with his Friend, either to take effectual care to pay the Debt, or at least to discharge him from the obligation, or to secure him against it some other way.

Heb. Offer thy self to be trodden upon, or Throw thy self down at his feet. As thou hast made thy self his Servant, bear the fruits of thine own Folly, and humbly and earnestly implore his Patience and Clemency.

h Or, and prevail with thy Friend, strive to win him by thine incessant and earnest solicitations. Or, honour or magnifie thy Friend, which is fitly and properly opposed to, and indeed is in some good measure done by the humbling a mans self before him.

Marginal references: Or, so shalt thou prevail with thy friend▪

4. Give not sleep to thine eyes, nor slumber to thine eye-lids .

To wit, until thou hast taken care for the discharge of this obligation. Be not secure, nor negligent, nor dilatory in this matter.

5. Deliver thy self as a roe from the hand of the Hunter , and as a bird from the hand of the fowler.

With all possible expedition, as the Roe runs swiftly away.

6. Go to the ant , thou sluggard, consider her ways , and be wise:

This is another distinct precept; and it is for the most part as needless to seek, as hard to find, Coherence in the Proverbs and Counsels of this Book.

Her actions and manner of living, especially her Diligence and Providence, which are the things commended in her, v. 7, 8. of which Naturalists give many Instances, as that the Ants watch the fittest seasons for all things, that they provide most plentifully against the time of Famine, that they never hinder, but always assist one another in their work, and unite their force together to carry away such things as are too large or heavy for one of them, that they prepare fit cells or repositories for their Corn in the ground, and such as the Rain cannot easily reach; and if through excessive rain their Corn be wet, they bring it forth to be dried, that they bite off the ends of the Grains of Corn that they may not grow, &c.

7. Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler ,

Which might direct them in, or quicken them to the work, as the Bees have their Kings, and many other Creatures have their Leaders. This heightens their commendation.

8. Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest .

When they come forth in great numbers, as in Winter they stir not out of their holes.

9. How long wilt thou sleep , O sluggard? when wilt thou arise out of thy sleep?

When the Ants are watchful and labour not onely in the daytime, but even by night, when the Moon shineth.

Marginal references: [illegible: 1 word] [illegible: 1+ letters]4. 33.

10. Yet a little sleep, a little slumber , a little folding of the hands to sleep.

This he speaks in the person of the sluggard, refusing to arise, and requiring more sleep, that so he might express the disposition and common practice of such persons.

Which is the gesture of men composing themselves to sleep.

11. So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth , and thy want as an armed man .

Swiftly and unexpectedly.

Irresistibly or unavoidably.

Marginal references: [illegible: 1 word] 13. 4. [illegible: 1 word].

12. A naughty person, a wicked man walketh with a froward mouth .

He sheweth the naughtiness of his Heart by the wickedness of his Talk and Discourses, to which he doth accustom himself, as walking implies.

Marginal references: [illegible: 1 word] of [illegible: 1 word]

13. He winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers .

He vents his wickedness, as by his speech, so also by his gestures, whereby he secretly signifies what he is afraid or ashamed to express openly to his complices, his intentions or desires of some evil towards another person: which having in the general declared by the motion of his Eyes or Feet, he points out the particular person by his fingers.

14. Frowardness is in his heart, he deviseth mischief continually, he soweth discord .

Perverse or wicked thoughts and desires.

Either out of malice against others: or out of a base design of improving it to his own advantage.

Marginal references: [illegible: 1 word] casteth [illegible: 1 word]

15. Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly: suddenly shall he be broken without remedy .

Heb. and there shall be no healing: no prevention of it before hand, nor recovery afterward.

16. These six things doth the LORD hate ; yea, seven are an abomination unto him:

To wit, above many other sins, which have a worse name in the World.

Marginal references: [illegible: 1 word] of his [illegible: 1 word]

17. Aproud look , a lying tongue , and hands that shed innocent blood.

Pride of heart, which commonly discovers itself by a mans looks and gestures. See Psal. 101. 5. & 131. 1. Prov. 30. 13.

He that accustometh himself to lying and deceit in his common conversation.

Marginal references: [illegible: 1 word] 18. 27.; [illegible: 1 word] [illegible: 1 word]

18. An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations , feet that be swift in running to mischief .

He whose practice it is to design and contrive Wickedness.

Such as greedily and readily execute their wicked designs, without any restraint or delay.

Marginal references: [illegible: 1 word] 3. 15.

19. A false witness that speaketh lies , and him that soweth Discord among brethren .

To wit, in judgment: whereby this differs from the former lying, v. 17.

Dear Relations or Friends.

20. My son, keep thy fathers commandment , and forsake not the law of thy mother .

So far as it is not contrary to Gods command.

Whom Children are too apt to despise. See Prov. 1. 8.

Marginal references: Chap. 1. 8.

21. Bind them continually upon thine heart , and tie them about thy neck .

Constantly remember, and duly consider them.

See on Prov. 1. 9. & 3. 3.

Marginal references: Chap. 7. 3.

22. When thou goest, it shall lead thee ; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee: and when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee .

The Law of God which thy Parents have taught thee, and pressed upon thee.

Direct thee how to order all thy steps and actions.

It shall▪give thee Counsel and comfort.

23. For the commandment is a lamp ; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way to life :

It enlightens thy dark mind, and clearly discovers to thee the plain and right way.

Wife and instructive Reproofs or Admonitions.

Both to preserve and prolong this Life, and to procure eternal Life to those that obey them.

Marginal references: Psal. 19. 8. & 119. 105.; Or, candle.

24. To keep thee from the evil woman , from the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman.

Which is mentioned as a great commendation of Gods word, because neither worldly Discretion, nor civil Education, nor moral Precepts, nor any other considerations, are sufficient Preservatives against this last, as is manifest from daily experience.

Marginal references: Chap. 2. 16. & 5. 3. & 7. 5.; Or, of the [illegible: 1 word] tongue.

25. Lust not after her beauty in thine heart ; neither let her take thee with her eye-lids .

Do not give way to, nor delight thy self with unchaste thoughts or affections. Compare Mat. 5. 28.

Either with her Beauty, which consists much in the Eyes; or rather with her amorous and wanton glances.

Marginal references: Mat. 5. 28.

26. For by means of a whorish woman a man is brought to a piece of bread : and the adulteress will hunt for the precious life .

To extream Poverty, so as to want and be forced to beg his bread.

To take away a mans life; either by consuming his body and spirits, and so shorming his days; or more directly and strictly, when she hath any great provocation to it, or any prospect of considerable advantage by it. Or, for the pretious Soul, which she corrupteth and destroyeth. But I prefer the former sense.

Marginal references: Chap. 29. 3.; Heb. the wo [illegible: 1+ letters] of a man, or a mans wife.

27. Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his cloths not be burnt ?

The question implies a denial: he cannot escape burning. No more can he who burns in Lust avoid Destruction.

29. So he that goeth in to his neighbours wife : whosoever toucheth her , shall not be innocent .

That lieth with her, as this Phrase signifies, Gen. 19. 31. & 29. 21, 23, &c.

i. e. Hath carnal knowledge of her, as this word is used, Gen. 20. 6. 1 Cor. 7. 1. and in Terence, and other Writers.

Shall be punished as a Malefactor either by God or Man.

Marginal references: Or, not be acquitted.

30. Men do not despise a thief, if he steal to satisfie his Soul when he is hungry:

i. e. Abhor or reproach him, but rather pity and pardon him, who is urged by meer necessity to these practices.

Marginal references: Or, slight.

31. But if he be found, he shall restore seven-fold , he shall give all the substance of his house.

Qu. How doth this agree with Gods Law, which required onely that he should restore double, or, at most, four-fold, or fivefold? Exod. 22. 1. 4. Ans. 1. The number of Seven may be here put indefinitely for many times, as it is Gen. 4. 24. Levit. 26. 28. and in many other places. 2. Some think that as Thefts were multiplied, so the punishment of it was increased in Solomon's time, or, at least, that it was the practice of some Nations to require this sevenfold restitution. 3. He speaks not of that restitution which the Law required, but of that which either the wronged Person being potent might force the Thief to make, or which the Thief would willingly give rather than be exposed to publick shame; as appears by the following Clause, wherein he adds to this sevenfold restitution all his substance, which no Law of God or Man required.

32. But whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding : he that doth it, destroyeth his own soul .

Is a brutish and silly Man, who madly rusheth upon these filthy courses without any sense or consideration of the horrid shame, and certain destruction which attends upon them.

Or, life: is guilty of self-murder and of Soul-murder.

Marginal references: Heb. [illegible: 1 word].

33. A wound and dishonour shall he get, and his reproach shall not be wiped away .

Civil or corporal punishment from tho Magistrate, or rather from the Womans Husband, as it follows.

Although it be forgiven by God, yet the reproach and scandal of it remains.

34. For jealousie is the rage of a man ; therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance .

It enflames a Man with rage and fury against the Adulterer.

When he hath an opportunity to avenge himself upon the delinquent.

35. He will not regard any ransom: neither will he rest content, though thou givest many gifts .

He will accept of no other recompence for the injury beneath thy life.

Marginal references: Heb. he will not accept the face of any ransom.

Pro 6:1-5

The author warns against suretyship; or rather, he advises that if one has made himself surety, he should as quickly as possible withdraw from the snare. 1 My son, if thou hast become surety for thy neighbour,    Hast given thy hand for another: 2 Thou art entangled in the words of thy mouth,    Ensnared in the words of thy mouth. 3 Do this then, my son, and free thyself -    For thou hast come under the power of thy neighbour -    Go, instantly entreat and importune thy neighbour. 4 Give no sleep to thine eyes,    And no slumber to thine eyelids; 5 Tear thyself free like a gazelle from his hand,    And as a bird from the hand of the fowler.

The chief question here is, whether ל after ערב introduces him for whom or with whom one becomes surety. Elsewhere ערב (R. רב, whence also ארב, nectere, to twist close and compact) with the accusative of the person means to become surety for any one, to represent him as a surety, Pro 11:15; Pro 20:16 (Pro 27:13), Gen 43:9; Gen 44:33 (as with the accusative of the matter, to pledge anything, to deposit it as a pledge, Jer 30:21; Neh 5:3, = שׂים, Arab. waḍ'a, Job 17:3); and to become surety with any one is expressed, Gen 17:18, by ערב לפני. The phrase ערב ל is not elsewhere met with, and is thus questionable. If we look to Pro 6:3, the רע (רעה) mentioned there cannot possibly be the creditor with whom one has become surety, for so impetuous and urgent an application to him would be both purposeless and unbecoming. But if he is meant for whom one has become surety, then certainly לרעך is also to be understood of the same person, and ל is thus dat. commodi; similar to this is the Targumic ערבוּתא על, suretyship for any one, Pro 17:18; Pro 22:26. But is the זר, 1b, distinguished from רעך, the stranger with whom one has become surety? The parallels Pro 11:15; Pro 20:16, where זר denotes the person whom one represents, show that in both lines one and the same person is meant; זר is in the Proverbs equivalent to אחר, each different from the person in the discourse, Pro 5:17; Pro 27:2 - thus, like רעך, denotes not the friend, but generally him to whom one stands in any kind of relation, even a very external one, in a word, the fellow-creatures or neighbours, Pro 24:28 (cf. the Arab. sahbk and ḳarynk, which are used as vaguely and superficially). It is further a question, whether we have to explain 1b: if thou hast given thine hand to another, or for another. Here also we are without evidence from the usage of the language; for the phrase תּקע כּף, or merely תּקע, appears to be used of striking the hand in suretyship where it elsewhere occurs without any further addition, Pro 17:18; Pro 22:26; Pro 11:15; however, Job 17:3, נתקע ליד appears the same: to strike into the hand of any one, i.e., to give to him the hand-stroke. From this passage Hitzig concludes that the surety gave the hand-stroke, without doubt in the presence of witnesses, first of all of the creditor, to the debtor, as a sign that he stood for him. But this idea is unnatural, and the “without doubt” melts into air. He on whose hand the stroke falls is always the person to whom one gives suretyship, and confirms it by the hand-stroke. Job also, l.c., means to say: who else but Thou, O Lord, could give to me a pledge, viz., of my innocence? If now the זר, v. 1b, is, as we have shown, not the creditor,A translation by R. Joseph Joel of Fulda, 1787, whose autograph MS Baer possesses, renders the passage not badly thus: - “My son, if thou hast become surety for thy friend, and hast given the hand to another, then thou art bound by thy word, held by thy promise. Yet do what I say to thee, my son: Be at pains as soon as thou canst to get free, otherwise thou art in the power of thy friend; shun no trouble, be urgent with thy friend.” but the debtor, then is the ל the dat. commodi, as 1a, and the two lines perfectly correspond. תּקע properly means to drive, to strike with a resounding noise, cogn. with the Arab. wak'a, which may be regarded as its intrans. (Fl.); then particularly to strike the hand or with the hand. He to whom this hand-pledge is given for another remains here undesignated. A new question arises, whether in Pro 6:6, where נוקשׁ (illaqueari) and נלכּד (comprehendi) follow each other as Isa 8:15, cf. Jer 50:24, the hypothetical antecedent is continued or not. We agree with Schultens, Ziegler, and Fleischer against the continuance of the אם. The repetition of the בּאמרי פיך (cf. Pro 2:14) serves rightly to strengthen the representation of the thought: thou, thou thyself and no other, hast then ensnared thyself in the net; but this strengthening of the expression would greatly lose in force by placing Pro 6:2 in the antecedent, while if Pro 6:2 is regarded as the conclusion, and thus as the principal proposition, it appears in its full strength.

Pro 6:6-8

As Elihu (Job 35:11) says that God has set the beasts as our teachers, so he sends the sluggard to the school of the ant (Ameise), so named (in Germ.) from its industry (Emsigkeit): 6 Go to the ant, sluggard;    Consider her ways, and be wise! 7 She that hath no judge,    Director, and ruler: 8 She prepareth in summer her food,    Has gathered in harvest her store.

The Dechî written mostly under the לך separates the inseparable. The thought, Go to the ant, sluggard! permits no other distinction than in the vocative; but the Dechî of לך אל־נמלה is changed into MunachCod. 1294 accentuates לך אל־נמלה; and that, according to Ben-Asher’s rule, is correct. on account of the nature of the Athnach-word, which consists of only two syllables without the counter-tone. The ant has for its Hebrew-Arabic name נמלה, from the R. נם (Isaiah, p. 687), which is first used of the sound, which expresses the idea of the low, dull, secret - thus of its active and yet unperceived motion; its Aramaic name in the Peshîto, ûmenaa', and in the Targ. שׁוּמשׁמנא (also Arab. sumsum, simsim, of little red ants), designates it after its quick activity, its busy running hither and thither (vid., Fleischer in Levy’s Chald. Wörterb. ii. 578). She is a model of unwearied and well-planned labour. From the plur. דּרכיה it is to be concluded that the author observed their art in gathering in and laying up in store, carrying burdens, building their houses, and the like (vid., the passages in the Talmud and Midrash in the Hamburg Real-Encyclopädie für Bibel und Talmud, 1868, p. 83f.). To the ant the sluggard (עצל, Aram. and Arab. עטל, with the fundamental idea of weight and dulness) is sent, to learn from her to be ashamed, and to be taught wisdom.

Pro 6:9-11

After the poet has admonished the sluggard to take the ant as an example, he seeks also to rouse him out of his sleepiness and indolence: 9 How long, O sluggard, wilt thou lie?    When wilt thou rise up from thy sleep? 10 “A little sleep, a little slumber,    A little folding of the hands to rest!” 11 So comes like a strong robber thy poverty,    And thy want as an armed man. Pro 6:9-10

The awakening cry, Pro 6:9, is not of the kind that Paul could have it in his mind, Eph 5:14. עצל has, as the vocative, Pasek after it, and is, on account of the Pasek, in correct editions accentuated not with Munach, but Mercha. The words, Pro 6:10, are not an ironical call (sleep only yet a little while, but in truth a long while), but per mimesin the reply of the sluggard with which he turns away the unwelcome disturber. The plurals with מעט sound like self-delusion: yet a little, but a sufficient! To fold the hands, i.e., to cross them over the breast, or put them into the bosom, denotes also, Ecc 4:5, the idler. חבּוּק, complicatio (cf. in Livy, compressis quod aiunt manibus sidere; and Lucan, 2:292, compressas tenuisse manus), for formed like שׁקּוּי, Pro 3:8, and the inf. שׁכב like חסר, Pro 10:21, and שׁפל, Pro 16:19. The perf. consec. connects itself with the words heard from the mouth of the sluggard, which are as a hypothetical antecedent thereto: if thou so sayest, and always again sayest, then this is the consequence, that suddenly and inevitably poverty and want come upon thee. That מהלּך denotes the grassator, i.e., vagabond (Arab. dawwar, one who wanders much about), or the robber or foe (like the Arab. 'aduww, properly transgressor finium), is not justified by the usage of the language; הלך signifies, 2Sa 12:4, the traveller, and מהלּך is one who rides quickly forward, not directly a κακὸς ὁδοιπόρος (lxx).

Pro 6:12-15

There follows now a third brief series of instructions, which run to a conclusion with a deterring prospect similar to the foregoing. 12 A worthless man, a wicked man,      Is he who practiseth falsehood with his mouth; 13 Who winketh with his eyes, scrapeth with his foot,      Pointeth with his fingers. 14 Malice is in his heart,      He deviseth evil at all times,      He spreadeth strife. 15 Therefore suddenly his destruction shall come,      Suddenly shall he be destroyed, and there is no remedy.

It is a question, what is the subject and what the predicate in Pro 6:12. Thus much is clear, that upon him who is here described according to his deceitful conduct the sentence of condemnation shall fall. He who is so described is thus subject, and אדם בּליּעל is without doubt predicate. But does the complex subject begin with אישׁ און? Thus e.g., Hitzig: “A worthless man is the wicked man who....” But the interchange of עדם and אישׁ is a sign of parallel relation; and if 12b belonged attributively to אישׁ און, then since אישׁ האון is not used, it ought at least to have been continued by ההולך. The general moral categories, 12a, are thus predicates, as was indeed besides probable; the copious division of the subject demands also in point of style a more developed predicate. Pro 16:27 is simpler in plan, and also logically different. There the expression is, as is usual, אישׁ בליעל. Since אדם און is not possible, the author uses instead בליעל. This word, composed of בּלי and יעל (from יעל, ועל, to be useful, to be good for), so fully serves as one word, that it even takes the article, 1Sa 25:25. It denotes worthlessness, generally in a chain of words in the genitive, but also the worthless, Job 34:18; and it is to be so taken here, for אדם does not form a constructivus, and never governs a genitive. בליעל is thus a virtual adjective (as nequam in homo nequam); the connection is like that of אדם רשׁע, Pro 11:7, and elsewhere, although more appositional than this pure attributive. Synonymous with בליעל is און (from an, to breathe), wickedness, i.e., want of all moral character. Thus worthless and wicked is he who practises deceit with his mouth (cf. Pro 4:24), i.e., who makes language the means of untruthfulness and uncharitableness. עקּשׁוּת פּה is meant in a moral sense, but without excluding that distortion of the mouth which belongs to the mimicry of the malicious. It is the accus. of the object; for הלך is also bound in a moral sense with the accusative of that which one practises, i.e., dealing with, exercises himself in, Pro 2:7; Pro 28:18, Isa 33:15.

Pro 6:16-19

What now follows is not a separate section (Hitzig), but the corroborative continuation of that which precedes. The last word (מדנים, strife) before the threatening of punishment, 14b, is also here the last. The thought that no vice is a greater abomination to God than the (in fact satanical) striving to set men at variance who love one another, clothes itself in the form of the numerical proverb which we have already considered, pp. 12, 13. From that place we transfer the translation of this example of a Midda: - 16 There are six things which Jahve hateth,      And seven are an abhorrence to His soul: 17 Haughty eyes, a lying tongue,      And hands that shed innocent blood; 18 An heart that deviseth the thoughts of evil,      Feet that hastily run to wickedness, 19 One that uttereth lies as a false witness,      And he who soweth strife between brethren.

The sense is not, that the six things are hateful to God, and the seventh an abomination to Him besides (Löwenstein); the Midda-form in Amos 1:3-2:6, and in the proverb in Job 5:19, shows that the seven are to be numbered separately, and the seventh is the non plus ultra of all that is hated by God. We are not to translate: sex haecce odit, for המּה, הנּה, (הם, הן) points backwards and hitherwards, but not, as אלּה, forwards to that immediately following; in that case the words would be שׁשׁ אלה, or more correctly האלה שׁשׁ. But also Hitzig’s explanation, “These six things (viz., Pro 6:12-15) Jahve hateth,” is impossible; for (which is also against that haecce) the substantive pronoun המה nuonorp , הנה (ההמה, ההנה) is never, like the Chald. המּון (המּו), employed as an accus. in the sense of אתהם, אתהן, it is always (except where it is the virtual gen. connected with a preposition) only the nom., whether of the subject or of the predicate; and where it is the nom. of the predicate, as Deu 20:15; Isa 51:19, substantival clauses precede in which הנה (המה) represents the substantive verb, or, more correctly, in which the logical copula resulting from the connection of the clause itself remains unexpressed. Accordingly, 'שׂנא ה is a relative clause, and is therefore so accentuated here, as at Pro 30:15 and elsewhere: sex (sunt) ea quae Deus odit, et septem (sunt) abominatio animae ejus. Regarding the statement that the soul of God hates anything, vid., at Isa 1:14. תועבות, an error in the writing occasioned by the numeral (vid., Pro 26:25), is properly corrected by the Kerı̂; the poet had certainly the singular in view, as Pro 3:32; Pro 11:1, when he wrote תועבת. The first three characteristics are related to each other as mental, verbal, actual, denoted by the members of the body by means of which these characteristics come to light. The virtues are taken all together as a body (organism), and meekness is its head. Therefore there stands above all, as the sin of sins, the mentis elatae tumor, which expresses itself in elatum (grande) supercilium: עינים רמות, the feature of the רם, haughty (cf. Psa 18:28 with 2Sa 22:28), is the opposite of the feature of the שׁח עינים, Job 22:29; עין is in the O.T. almost always (vid., Sol 4:9) fem., and adjectives of course form no dual. The second of these characteristics is the lying tongue, and the third the murderous hands. דּם־נקי is innocent blood as distinguished from דּם הנּקי, the blood of the innocent, Deu 19:13.The writing דּם follows the Masoretic rule, vid., Kimchi, Michlol 205b, and Heidenheim under Deu 19:10, where in printed editions of the text (also in Norzi’s) the irregular form דּם נקי is found. Besides, the Metheg is to be given to דּם־, so that one may not read it dom, as e.g., שׁשׁ־מאות, Gen 7:11, that one may not read it שׁשׁ־.

Pro 6:20-21

After these three smaller sections, the teacher of wisdom returns here to the theme of the eighth: Warning against sins of the flesh, whose power and prevalence among men is so immeasurably great, that their terrible consequences cannot sufficiently be held up before them, particularly before youth. 20 Keep, my son, the commandment of thy father,      And reject not the instruction of thy mother. 21 Bind them to thy heart evermore,      Fasten them about thy neck.

The suff. -ēm refers to the good doctrine (cf. Pro 7:3) pointed out by מצוה and תּורה; the masc. stands, as is usual (e.g., Pro 1:16; Pro 5:2), instead of the fem. Regarding the figure, reminding us of the Tefillin and of Amuletes for perpetual representation, vid., under Pro 3:3. Similarly of persons, Sol 8:6. The verb ענד (only here and Job 31:36) signifies to bend, particularly to bend aside (Arab. 'ind, bending off, going aside; accus. as adv., aside, apud), and to bend up, to wind about, circumplicare.

Pro 6:22

The representation of the good doctrine is now personified, and becomes identified with it.

When thou walkest, it will guide thee;

When thou liest down, it will keep watch over thee;

And when thou wakest, it will talk with thee.

The subject is the doctrine of wisdom, with which the representation of wisdom herself is identified. The futures are not expressive of a wish or of an admonition, but of a promise; the form of the third clause shows this. Thus, and in the same succession as in the schema Deu 6:7, cf. Pro 11:19, are the three circumstances of the outward life distinguished: going, lying down, and rising up. The punctuation בּהתהלכך, found here and there, is Ben-Naphtali’s variant; Ben-Asher and also the Textus rec. reject the Metheg in this case, vid., Baer’s Metheg-Setzung, §28. The verb נחה, with its Hiph. in a strengthened Kal-signification, is more frequently found in the Psalms than in the Proverbs; the Arab. nh' shows that it properly signifies to direct (dirigere), to give direction, to move in a definite direction. שׁמר with על, to take into protection, we had already Pro 2:11; this author has favourite forms of expression, in the repetition of which he takes delight. With lying down, sleeping is associated. והקיצות is, as Psa 139:18, the hypoth. perf., according to Ewald, §357a: et ut expergefactus es, illa te compellabit. Bertheau incorrectly: she will make thee thoughtful. But apart from the fact that there is no evidence of the existence of this Hiph. in the language of the Bible, the personification demands a clearer figure. שׂיח (שׂוּח) signifies mental speech and audible speech (Gen 24:63, poet., in the TalmudicThe conjecture thrown out by Wetstein, that (Arab.) shykh is equivalent to משׂיח (מסיח), speaker, is untenable, since the verb shakh, to be old, a so-called munsarif, i.e., conjugated throughout, is used in all forms, and thus is certainly the root of the shykh. a common word); with ב, speaking concerning something (fabulari de), Psa 69:13; with the accus., that which is said of a thing, Psa 145:5, or the address, briefly for שׂיח ל, Job 12:8 (as מגּן with accus. Pro 4:9 = מגן ל): when thou art awake, wisdom will forthwith enter into conversation with thee, and fill thy thoughts with right matter, and give to thy hands the right direction and consecration.

Pro 6:23

Since in היא the idea of wisdom and of wholesome doctrine lie in one another, the author can proceed with proof:

For a lamp is the commandment, and instruction a light (Jerome et lex lux);

And a way of life, disciplinary reproofs.

That תורה has here not the positive, specifically Israelitish sense, but the generalized sense of instruction in conformity with truth regarding the will of God and the duty of man, vid., p. 42. This instruction mediated by man, but of divine origin, is אור, light, which enlightens the man who submits to it; and the commandment, מצוה, which directs men in every case to do what is right, and forbids that which is wrong (including the prohibition Lev 4:2), is נר, a lamp which, kindled at that light, enlightens all the darkness of ignorance with reference to human conduct and its consequences. אור and נר are related to each other as general and particular, primary and derivative. Löwenstein accentuates incorrectly תּורהו אור instead of תּורהו אור (as the Cod. 1294 and the 3 Erfurt Codd.); vid., on the retrogression of the tone, not existing here, under Pro 3:15. The gen. מוּסר denotes the object or character of the admonition: not disciplinary in the external sense of the word, but rather moral, having in view discipline in the sense of education, i.e., moral edification and elevation. Such corrections are דּרך חיּים, the way to true life, direction how to obtain it.

Pro 6:24

The section thus closes:

To keep thee from the vile woman,

From the flattery of the strange tongue.

Regarding the genitive connection אושׁת רע, a woman of a wicked character, vid., under Pro 2:14; and regarding the adjectival connection לשׁון נכריה, under Pro 6:17; the strange tongue is the tongue (לשׁון) of the strange (foreign) woman (vid., p. 81), alluring with smooth words (Pro 2:16). Ewald, Bertheau: from her of a smooth tongue, the stranger, as Symm., Theod., ἀπὸ λειογλώσσου ξένης; but חלקת is a substantive (Gen 27:16), and as a fem. adject. form is without an example. Rather חלקת לשׁון is to be regarded as the first member and נכריה as the second of the st. constr., for the former constitutes one idea, and לשון on this account remains unabbreviated; cf. Psa 68:22; Isa 28:1; but (1) this syntactical phenomenon is yet problematical, vid., Friedr. Philippi, Wesen und Ursprung des St. Constr. p. 17; and (2) the supposition of such an anomaly is here unnecessary.

Pro 6:25-26

The proaemium of these twelve proverbial discourses is now at an end. Wisdom herself begins striking the note of the Decalogue: 25 Long not for her beauty in thy heart,      And let her not catch thee with her eyelids; 26 Because for a harlot one cometh down to a piece of bread,      And a man’s wife lieth in wait for a precious soul.

The warning 25a is in the spirit of the “thou shalt not covet,” Exo 20:17, and the ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὑτοῦ, Mat 5:28, of the Preacher on the Mount. The Talmudic proverb הרהודי עבירה קשו מעבירה (Joma 29a) means only that the imagination of the sinful act exhausts the body even more than the act itself. The warning, “let her not catch thee with her eyelids,” refers to her (the adulteress’s) coquettish ogling and amorous winking. In the reason added, beginning with כּי בעד־ (thus it is to be punctuated), there is the appositional connection אשּׁה זונה, Gesen. §113; the idea of זונה goes over into 26b. “לחם כּכּר [ = כּרכּר, R. kr, to round, vid., at Gen 49:5], properly a circle of bread, is a small round piece of bread, such as is still baked in Italy (pagnotta) and in the East (Arab. ḳurṣ), here an expression for the smallest piece” (Fl.). בּעד (constr. of בּעד), as Job 2:4; Isa 32:14, is used in the sense of ὑπέρ, pro, and with עד there is connected the idea of the coming down to this low point. Ewald, Bertheau explain after the lxx, τιμὴ γὰρ πόρνης ὅση καὶ ἑνὸς ἄρτου, γυνὴ δὲ ἀνδρῶν τιμίας ψυχὰς ἀγρεύει. But nothing is said here of price (reward); the parallelism is synonymous, not antithetic: he is doubly threatened with loss who enters upon such a course. The adulterer squanders his means (Pro 29:3) to impoverishment (vid., the mention of a loaf of bread in the description of poverty 1Sa 2:36), and a man’s wife (but at the same time seeking converse with another) makes a prey of a precious soul; for whoever consents to adulterous converse with her, loses not perhaps his means, but certainly freedom, purity, dignity of soul, yea, his own person. צוּד comprehends - as צידון, fisher’s town [Zidon], Arab. ṣyâd, hunter and fisher, show - all kinds of hunting, but in Hebr. is used only of the hunting of wild beasts. The root-meaning (cf. צדיּה) is to spy, to seize.

Pro 6:27-29

The moral necessity of ruinous consequences which the sin of adultery draws after it, is illustrated by examples of natural cause and effect necessarily connected: 27 Can one take fire in his bosom      And his clothes not be burned? 28 Or can any one walk over burning coals      And his feet not be burned? 29 So he that goeth to his neighbour’s wife,      No one remains unpunished that toucheth her.

We would say: Can any one, without being, etc.; the former is the Semitic “extended (paratactic)The παρατακτικὸς χρόνος denotes the imperfect tense, because it is still extended to the future. construction.” The first אישׁ has the conjunctive Shalsheleth. חתה signifies to seize and draw forth a brand or coal with the fire-tongs or shovel (מחתּה, the instrument for this); cf. Arab. khât, according to Lane, “he seized or snatched away a thing;” the form יחתּה is Kal, as יחנה (vid., Köhler, De Tetragammate, 1867, p. 10). חיק (properly indentation) is here not the lap, but, as Isa 40:11, the bosom.

Pro 6:30-31

The thief and the adulterer are now placed in comparison with one another, in such a way that adultery is supposed to be a yet greater crime. 30 One does not treat the thief scornfully if he steals      To satisfy his craving when he is hungry; 31 Being seized, he may restore sevenfold,      Give up the whole wealth of his house.

For the most part 30a is explained: even when this is the case, one does not pass it over in the thief as a bagatelle. Ewald remarks: בּוּז ל stands here in its nearest signification of overlooking, whence first follows that of contemning. But this “nearest” signification is devised wholly in favour of this passage; - the interpretation, “they do not thus let the thief pass,” is set aside by Sol 8:1, Sol 8:7; for by 31b, cf. Sol 8:7, and 34a, cf. Sol 8:6, it is proved that from Pro 6:30 on, reminiscences from the Canticles, which belong to the literature of the Chokma, find their way into the Mashal language of the author. Hitzig’s correct supposition, that בּוּז ל always signifies positive contemning, does not necessitate the interrogative interpretation: “Does not one despise the thief if...?” Thus to be understood, the author ought to have written אף כי or גם כי. Michaelis rightly: furtum licet merito pro infami in republica habetur, tamen si cum adulterio comparatur, minus probrosum est. Regarding נפשׁ in the sense of appetite, and even throat and stomach, vid., Psychologie, p. 204. A second is, that the thief, if he is seized (but we regard ונמצא not as the hypoth. perf., but as the part. deprehensus), may make compensation for this crime. The fut. ישׁלּם thus to be understood as the potential lies near from this, that a sevenfold compensation of the thing stolen is unheard of in the Israelitish law; it knows only of a twofold, fourfold, fivefold restoration, Ex. 21:37; Exo 22:1-3, Exo 22:8 (cf. Saalschütz, Mos. Recht, p. 554ff.). This excess over that which the law rendered necessary leads into the region of free-will: he (the thief, by which we are now only to think of him whom bitter necessity has made such) may make compensation sevenfold, i.e., superabundantly; he may give up the whole possessions (vid., on הון at Pro 1:13) of his house, so as not merely to satisfy the law, but to appease him against whom he has done wrong, and again to gain for himself an honoured name. What is said in Pro 6:30 and Pro 6:31 is perfectly just. One does not contemn a man who is a thief through poverty, he is pitied; while the adulterer goes to ruin under all circumstances of contempt and scorn. And: theft may be made good, and that abundantly; but adultery and its consequences are irreparable.

Pro 6:32-33

Here there is a contrast stated to Pro 6:30 : 32 He who commits adultery (adulterans mulierem) is beside himself,      A self-destroyer-who does this. 33 He gains stripes and disgrace,      And his reproach is never quenched. נאף, which primarily seems to mean excedere, to indulge in excess, is, as also in the Decalogue, cf. Lev 20:10, transitive: ὁ μοιχεύων γυναῖκα. Regarding being mad (herzlos = heartless) = amens (excors, vecors), vid., Psychologie, p. 254. משׁחית נפשׁו is he who goes to ruin with wilful perversity. A self-murderer - i.e., he intends to ruin his position and his prosperity in life - who does it, viz., this, that he touches the wife of another. It is the worst and most inextinguishable dishonouring of oneself. Singularly Behaji: who annihilates it (his soul), with reference to Deu 21:12. Eccl. 4:17, where עשׂה would be equivalent to בּטּל, καταργεῖν, which is untrue and impossible.Behaji ought rather to have referred to Zep 3:19; Eze 7:27; Eze 22:14; but there עשׂה את means agere cum aliquo, as we say: mit jemandem abrechnen (to settle accounts with any one). נגע refers to the corporal punishment inflicted on the adulterer by the husband (Deu 17:8; Deu 21:5); Hitzig, who rejects Pro 6:32, refers it to the stripes which were given to the thief according to the law, but these would be called מכּה (מכּות). The punctuation נגע־וקלון is to be exchanged for קלונו נגע (Löwenstein and other good editors). מצא has a more active signification than our “finden” (to find): consequitur, τυγχάνει.

Pro 6:34-35

One who has been stolen from is to be appeased, but not the injured husband. 34 For jealousy is the fury of a husband,      And he spareth not in the day of vengeance. 35 He regardeth not any ransom,      And is not contented though thou offerest to him gifts ever so great.

The connection marks קנאה as the subject; for it respects carnal intercourse with another’s wife. Jealousy is not usually חמה, the glow of anger (from יחם, as שׁנה from ישׁן), but חמת־גּבר (constr. as שׂנת), the glow of a man’s anger, who with the putting forth of all his manly strength will seek satisfaction to his wounded honour. גּבר, here significant for אישׁ, with the fundamental idea of strength, firmness; cf. Arab. jabr, to make fast, to put right again something broken in pieces, particularly a broken vessel, hence Algebra, properly the operation by which an incomplete magnitude is completed (Fl.). The following ולא־יחמּל (with the orthophonic Dagesh, as Pro 6:25 יחמּד, and with Makkeph) is connected with גבר, with definite reference to the man whom the faithless guest has made a cuckold. When the day comes in which the adultery brought to light demands and admits of vengeance, then, wounded in his right and in his honour, he knows no mercy; he pays no regard to any atonement or recompense by which the adulterer seeks to appease him and induce him not to inflict the punishment that is due: he does not consent, even though thou makest ever so great the gift whereby thou thinkest to gain him. The phrase נשׂא פנים, πρόσωπον λαμβάνειν, signifies elsewhere to receive the countenance, i.e., the appearance and the impression of a man, i.e., to let it impress one favourably; here it is used of the כּפר, i.e., the means by which covering, i.e., non-punishment, pardon of the crime, impunity of the guilty, is obtained. Regarding אבה, to consent to, vid., at Pro 1:10. שׂחד, Aram. שׂוּחד, is a gift, particularly bribery. That the language may again finally assume the form of an address, it beautifully rounds itself off.

Cautions against Suretiship.

1 My son, if thou be surety for thy friend, if thou hast stricken thy hand with a stranger, 2 Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, thou art taken with the words of thy mouth. 3 Do this now, my son, and deliver thyself, when thou art come into the hand of thy friend; go, humble thyself, and make sure thy friend. 4 Give not sleep to thine eyes, nor slumber to thine eyelids. 5 Deliver thyself as a roe from the hand of the hunter, and as a bird from the hand of the fowler.

It is the excellency of the word of God that it teaches us not only divine wisdom for another world, but human prudence for this world, that we may order our affairs with discretion; and this is one good rule, To avoid suretiship, because by it poverty and ruin are often brought into families, which take away that comfort in relations which he had recommended in the foregoing chapter. 1. We must look upon suretiship as a snare and decline it accordingly, v. 1, 2. "It is dangerous enough for a man to be bound for his friend, though it be one whose circumstances he is well acquainted with, and well assured of his sufficiency, but much more to strike the hands with a stranger, to become surety for one whom thou dost not know to be either able or honest." Or the stranger here with whom the hand is stricken is the creditor, "the usurer to whom thou art become bound, and yet as to thee he is a stranger, that is, thou owest him nothing, nor hast had any dealings with him. If thou hast rashly entered into such engagements, either wheedled into them or in hopes to have the same kindness done for thee another time, know that thou art snared with the words of thy mouth; it was easily done, with a word's speaking; it was but setting thy hand to a paper, a bond is soon sealed and delivered, and a recognizance entered into. But it will not be so easily got clear of; thou art in a snare more than thou art aware of." See how little reason we have to make light of tongue-sins; if by a word of our mouth we may become indebted to men, and lie open to their actions, by the words of our mouth we may become obnoxious to God's justice, and even so may be snared. It is false that words are but wind: they are often snares. 2. If we have been drawn into this snare, it will be our wisdom by all means, with all speed, to get out of it, v. 3-5. It sleeps for the present; we hear nothing of it. The debt is not demanded; the principal says, "Never fear, we will take care of it." But still the bond is in force, interest is running on, the creditor may come upon thee when he will and perhaps may be hasty and severe, the principal may prove either knavish or insolvent, and then thou must rob thy wife and children, and ruin thy family, to pay that which thou didst neither nor drink for. And therefore deliver thyself; rest not till either the creditor give up the bond or the principal give thee counter-security; when thou art come into the hand of thy friend, and he has advantage against thee, it is no time to threaten or give ill language (that will provoke and make ill worse), but humble thyself, beg and pray to be discharged, go down on thy knees to him, and give him all the fair words thou canst; engage thy friends to speak for thee; leave no stone unturned till thou hast agreed with thy adversary and compromised the matter, so that thy bond may not come against thee or thine. This is a care which may well break thy sleep, and let it do so till thou hast got through. "Give not sleep to thy eyes till thou hast delivered thyself. Strive and struggle to the utmost, and hasten with all speed, as a roe or a bird delivers herself out of this snare of the fowler or hunter. Delays are dangerous, and feeble efforts will not serve." See what care God, in his word, has taken to make men good husbands of their estates, and to teach them prudence in the management of them. Godliness has precepts, as well as promises, relating to the life that now is.

But how are we to understand this? We are not to think it is unlawful in any case to become surety, or bail, for another; it may be a piece of justice or charity; he that has friends may see cause in this instance to show himself friendly, and it may be no piece of imprudence. Paul became bound for Onesimus, Philem. 19. We may help a young man into business that we know to be honest and diligent, and gain him credit by passing our word for him, and so do him a great kindness without any detriment to ourselves. But, 1. It is every man's wisdom to keep out of debt as much as may be, for it is an incumbrance upon him, entangles him in the world, puts him in danger of doing wrong or suffering wrong. The borrower is servant to the lender, and makes himself very much a slave to this world. Christians therefore, who are bought with a price, should not thus, without need, make themselves the servants of men, 1 Cor. vii. 23. 2. It is great folly to entangle ourselves with necessitous people, and to become bound for their debts, that are ever and anon taking up money, and lading, as we say, out of one hole into another, for it is ten to one but, some time or other, it will come upon us. A man ought never to be bound as surety for more than he is both able and willing to pay, and can afford to pay without wronging his family, in case the principal fail, for he ought to look upon it as his own debt. Ecclesiasticus viii. 13, Be not surety above thy power, for, if thou be surety, thou must take care to pay it. 3. It is a necessary piece of after-wit, if we have foolishly entangled ourselves, to get out of the snare as fast as we can, to lose no time, spare no pains, and stick at no submission to make ourselves safe and easy, and get our affairs into a good posture. It is better to humble ourselves for an accommodation than to ruin ourselves by our stiffness and haughtiness. Make sure thy friend by getting clear from thy engagements from him; for rash suretiship is as much the bane of friendship as that which is prudent is sometimes the bond of it. Let us take heed lest we any way make ourselves guilty of other men's sins against God (1 Tim. v. 22), for that is worse, and much more dangerous, than being bound for other men's debts; and, if we must be in all this care to get our debts to men forgiven, much more to get our peace made with God. "Humble thyself to him; make sure of Christ thy friend, to intercede for thee; pray earnestly that thy sins may be pardoned, and thou mayest be delivered from going down to the pit, and it shall not be in vain. Give not sleep to thy eyes nor slumber to thy eye lids, till this be done."

Slothfulness Reproved.

6 Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise: 7 Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler, 8 Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest. 9 How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? when wilt thou arise out of thy sleep? 10 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: 11 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man.

Solomon, in these verses, addresses himself to the sluggard who loves his ease, lives in idleness, minds no business, sticks to nothing, brings nothing to pass, and in a particular manner is careless in the business of religion. Slothfulness is as sure a way to poverty, though not so short a way, as rash suretiship. He speaks here to the sluggard,

I. By way of instruction, v. 6-8. He sends him to school, for sluggards must be schooled. He is to take him to school himself, for, if the scholar will take no pains, the master must take the more; the sluggard is not willing to come to school to him (dreaming scholars will never love wakeful teachers) and therefore he has found him out another school, as low as he can desire. Observe,

1. The master he is sent to school to: Go to the ant, to the bee, so the LXX. Man is taught more than the beasts of the earth, and made wiser that the fowls of heaven, and yet is so degenerated that he may learn wisdom from the meanest insects and be shamed by them. When we observe the wonderful sagacities of the inferior creatures we must not only give glory to the God of nature, who has made them thus strangely, but receive instruction to ourselves; by spiritualizing common things, we may make the things of God both easy and ready to us, and converse with them daily.

2. The application of mind that is required in order to learn of this master: Consider her ways. The sluggard is so because he does not consider; nor shall we ever learn to any purpose, either by the word or the works of God, unless we set ourselves to consider. Particularly, if we would imitate others in that which is good, we must consider their ways, diligently observe what they do, that we may do likewise, Phil. iii. 17.

3. The lesson that is to be learned. In general, learn wisdom, consider, and be wise; that is the thing we are to aim at in all our learning, not only to be knowing, but to be wise. In particular, learn to provide meat in summer; that is, (1.) We must prepare for hereafter, and not mind the present time only, not eat up all, and lay up nothing, but in gathering time treasure up for a spending time. Thus provident we must be in our worldly affairs, not with an anxious care, but with a prudent foresight; lay in for winter, for straits and wants that may happen, and for old age; much more in the affairs of our souls. We must provide meat and food, that which is substantial and will stand us in stead, and which we shall most need. In the enjoyment of the means of grace provide for the want of them, in life for death, in time for eternity; in the state of probation and preparation we must provide for the state of retribution. (2.) We must take pains, and labour in our business, yea, though we labour under inconveniences. Even in summer, when the weather is hot, the ant is busy in gathering food and laying it up, and does not indulge her ease, nor take her pleasure, as the grasshopper, that sings and sports in the summer and then perishes in the winter. The ants help one another; if one have a grain of corn too big for her to carry home, her neighbours will come in to her assistance. (3.) We must improve opportunities, we must gather when it is to be had, as the ant does in summer and harvest, in the proper time. It is our wisdom to improve the season while that favours us, because that may be done then which cannot be done at all, or not so well done, at another time. Walk while you have the light.

4. The advantages which we have of learning this lesson above what the ant has, which will aggravate our slothfulness and neglect if we idle away our time. She has no guides, overseers, and rulers, but does it of herself, following the instinct of nature; the more shame for us who do not in like manner follow the dictates of our own reason and conscience, though besides them we have parents, masters, ministers, magistrates, to put us in mind of our duty, to check us for the neglect of it, to quicken us to it, to direct us in it, and to call us to an account about it. The greater helps we have for working out our salvation the more inexcusable shall we be if we neglect it.

II. By way of reproof, v. 9-11. In these verses,

1. He expostulates with the sluggard, rebuking him and reasoning with him, calling him to his work, as a master does his servant that has over-slept himself: "How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? How long wouldst thou sleep if one would let thee alone? When wilt thou think it time to arise?" Sluggards should be roused with a How long? This is applicable, (1.) To those that are slothful in the way of work and duty, in the duties of their particular calling as men or their general calling as Christians. "How long wilt thou waste thy time, and when wilt thou be a better husband of it? How long wilt thou love thy ease, and when wilt thou learn to deny thyself, and to take pains? How long wilt thou bury thy talents, and when wilt thou begin to trade with them? How long wilt thou delay, and put off, and trifle away thy opportunities, as one regardless of hereafter; and when wilt thou stir up thyself to do what thou hast to do, which, if it be not done, will leave thee for ever undone?" (2.) To those that are secure in the way of sin and danger: "Hast thou not slept enough? Is it not far in the day? Does not thy Master call? Are not the Philistines upon thee? When then wilt thou arise?"

2. He exposes the frivolous excuses he makes for himself, and shows how ridiculous he makes himself. When he is roused he stretched himself, and begs, as for alms, for more sleep, more slumber; he is well in his warm bed, and cannot endure to think of rising, especially of rising to work. But, observe, he promises himself and his master that he will desire but a little more sleep, a little more slumber, and then he will get up and go to his business. But herein he deceives himself; the more a slothful temper is indulged the more it prevails; let him sleep awhile, and slumber awhile, and still he is in the same tune; still he asks for a little more sleep, yet a little more; he never thinks he has enough, and yet, when he is called, pretends he will come presently. Thus men's great work is left undone by being put off yet a little longer, de die in diem—from day to day; and they are cheated of all their time by being cheated of the present moments. A little more sleep proves an everlasting sleep. Sleep on now, and take your rest.

3. He gives him fair warning of the fatal consequences of his slothfulness, v. 11. (1.) Poverty and want will certainly come upon those that are slothful in their business. If men neglect their affairs, they not only will not go forward, but they will go backward. He that leaves his concerns at sixes and sevens will soon see them go to wreck and ruin, and bring his noble to nine-pence. Spiritual poverty comes upon those that are slothful in the service of God; those will want oil, when they should use it, that provide it not in their vessels. (2.) "It will come silently and insensibly, will grow upon thee, and come step by step, as one that travels, but will without fail come at last." It will leave thee as naked as if thou wert stripped by a highwayman; so bishop Patrick. (3.) "It will come irresistibly, like an armed man, whom thou canst not oppose nor make thy part good against."

The Seven Abominations.

12 A naughty person, a wicked man, walketh with a froward mouth. 13 He winketh with his eyes, he speaketh with his feet, he teacheth with his fingers; 14 Frowardness is in his heart, he deviseth mischief continually; he soweth discord. 15 Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly; suddenly shall he be broken without remedy. 16 These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: 17 A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, 18 An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, 19 A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.

Solomon here gives us,

I. The characters of one that is mischievous to man and dangerous to be dealt with. If the slothful are to be condemned, that do nothing, much more those that do ill, and contrive to do all the ill they can. It is a naughty person that is here spoken of, Heb. A man of Belial; I think it should have been so translated, because it is a term often used in scripture, and this is the explication of it. Observe,

1. How a man of Belial is here described. He is a wicked man, that makes a trade of doing evil, especially with his tongue, for he walks and works his designs with a froward mouth (v. 12), by lying and perverseness, and a direct opposition to God and man. He says and does every thing, (1.) Very artfully and with design. He has the subtlety of the serpent, and carries on his projects with a great deal of craft and management (v. 13), with his eyes, with his feet, with his fingers. He expresses his malice when he dares not speak out (so some), or, rather, thus he carries on his plot; those about him, whom he makes use of as the tools of his wickedness, understand the ill meaning of a wink of his eye, a stamp of his feet, the least motion of his fingers. He gives orders for evil-doing, and yet would not be thought to do so, but has ways of concealing what he does, so that he may not be suspected. He is a close man, and upon the reserve; those only shall be let into the secret that would do any thing he would have them to do. He is a cunning man, and upon the trick; he has a language by himself, which an honest man is not acquainted with, nor desires to be. (2.) Very spitefully and with ill design. It is not so much ambition or covetousness that is in his heart, as downright frowardness, malice, and ill nature. He aims not so much to enrich and advance himself as to do an ill turn to those about him. He is continually devising one mischief or other, purely for mischief-sake—a man of Belial indeed, of the devil, resembling him not only in subtlety, but in malice.

2. What his doom is (v. 15): His calamity shall come and he shall be broken; he that devised mischief shall fall into mischief. His ruin shall come, (1.) Without warning. It shall come suddenly: Suddenly shall he be broken, to punish him for all the wicked arts he had to surprise people into his snares. (2.) Without relief. He shall be irreparably broken, and never able to piece again: He shall be broken without remedy. What relief can he expect that has disobliged all mankind? He shall come to his end and none shall help him, Dan. xi. 45.

II. A catalogue of those things which are in a special manner odious to God, all which are generally to be found in those men of Belial whom he had described in the foregoing verses; and the last of them (which, being the seventh, seems especially to be intended, because he says they are six, yea, seven) is part of his character, that he sows discord. God hates sin; he hates every sin; he can never be reconciled to it; he hates nothing but sin. But there are some sins which he does in a special manner hate; and all those here mentioned are such as are injurious to our neighbour. It is an evidence of the good-will God bears to mankind that those sins are in a special manner provoking to him which are prejudicial to the comfort of human life and society. Therefore the men of Belial must expect their ruin to come suddenly, and without remedy, because their practices are such as the Lord hates and are an abomination to him, v. 16. Those things which God hates it is no thanks to us to hate in others, but we must hate them in ourselves. 1. Haughtiness, conceitedness of ourselves, and contempt of others—a proud look. There are seven things that God hates, and pride is the first, because it is at the bottom of much sin and gives rise to it. God sees the pride in the heart and hates it there; but, when it prevails to that degree that the show of men's countenance witnesses against them that they overvalue themselves and undervalue all about them, this is in a special manner hateful to him, for then pride is proud of itself and sets shame at defiance. 2. Falsehood, and fraud, and dissimulation. Next to a proud look nothing is more an abomination to God than a lying tongue; nothing more sacred than truth, nor more necessary to conversation than speaking truth. God and all good men hate and abhor lying. 3. Cruelty and blood-thirstiness. The devil was, from the beginning, a liar and a murderer (John viii. 44), and therefore, as a lying tongue, so hands that shed innocent blood are hateful to God, because they have in them the devil's image and do him service. 4. Subtlety in the contrivance of sin, wisdom to do evil, a heart that designs and a head that devises wicked imaginations, that is acquainted with the depths of Satan and knows how to carry on a covetous, envious, revengeful plot, most effectually. The more there is of craft and management in sin the more it is an abomination to God. 5. Vigour and diligence in the prosecution of sin—feet that are swift in running to mischief, as if they were afraid of losing time or were impatient of delay in a thing they are so greedy of. The policy and vigilance, the eagerness and industry, of sinners, in their sinful pursuits, may shame us who go about that which is good so awkwardly and so coldly. 6. False-witness bearing, which is one of the greatest mischiefs that the wicked imagination can devise, and against which there is least fence. There cannot be a greater affront to God (to whom in an oath appeal is made) nor a greater injury to our neighbour (all whose interests in this world, even the dearest, lie open to an attack of this kind) than knowingly to give in a false testimony. There are seven things which God hates, and lying involves two of them; he hates it, and doubly hates it. 7. Making mischief between relations and neighbours, and using all wicked means possible, not only to alienate their affections one from another, but to irritate their passions one against another. The God of love and peace hates him that sows discord among brethren, for he delights in concord. Those that by tale-bearing and slandering, by carrying ill-natured stories, aggravating every thing that is said and done, and suggesting jealousies and evil surmises, blow the coals of contention, are but preparing for themselves a fire of the same nature.

Parental Cautions; Cautions against Impurity.

20 My son, keep thy father's commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother: 21 Bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck. 22 When thou goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee; and when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee. 23 For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life: 24 To keep thee from the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman. 25 Lust not after her beauty in thine heart; neither let her take thee with her eyelids. 26 For by means of a whorish woman a man is brought to a piece of bread: and the adulteress will hunt for the precious life. 27 Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned? 28 Can one go upon hot coals, and his feet not be burned? 29 So he that goeth in to his neighbour's wife; whosoever toucheth her shall not be innocent. 30 Men do not despise a thief, if he steal to satisfy his soul when he is hungry; 31 But if he be found, he shall restore sevenfold; he shall give all the substance of his house. 32 But whoso committeth adultery with a woman lacketh understanding: he that doeth it destroyeth his own soul. 33 A wound and dishonour shall he get; and his reproach shall not be wiped away. 34 For jealousy is the rage of a man: therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance. 35 He will not regard any ransom; neither will he rest content, though thou givest many gifts.

Here is, I. A general exhortation faithfully to adhere to the word of God and to take it for our guide in all our actions.

1. We must look upon the word of God both as a light (v. 23) and as a law, v. 20, 23. (1.) By its arguments it is a light, which our understandings must subscribe to; it is a lamp to our eyes for discovery, and so to our feet for direction. The word of God reveals to us truths of eternal certainty, and is built upon the highest reason. Scripture-light is the sure light. (2.) By its authority it is a law, which our wills must submit to. As never such a light shone out of the schools of the philosophers, so never such a law issued from the throne of any prince, so well framed, and so binding. It is such a law as is a lamp and a light, for it carries with it the evidence of its own goodness.

2. We must receive it as our father's commandment and the law of our mother, v. 20. It is God's commandment and his law. But, (1.) Our parents directed us to it, put it into our hands, trained us up in the knowledge and observance of it, its original and obligation being most sacred. We believe indeed, not for their saying, for we have tried it ourselves and find it to be of God; but we were beholden to them for recommending it to us, and see all the reason in the world to continue in the things we have learned, knowing of whom we have learned them. (2.) The cautions, counsels, and commands which our parents gave us agree with the word of God, and therefore we must hold them fast. Children, when they are grown up, must remember the law of a good mother, as well as the commandment of a good father, Ecclesiasticus iii. 2. The Lord has given the father honour over the children and has confirmed the authority of the mother over the sons.

3. We must retain the word of God and the good instructions which our parents gave us out of it. (1.) We must never cast them off, never think it a mighty achievement (as some do) to get clear of the restraints of a good education: "Keep thy father's commandment, keep it still, and never forsake it." (2.) We must never lay them by, no, not for a time (v. 21): Bind them continually, not only upon thy hand (as Moses had directed, Deut. vi. 8) but upon thy heart. Phylacteries upon the hand were of no value at all, any further than they occasioned pious thoughts and affections in the heart. There the word must be written, there it must be hid, and laid close to the conscience. Tie them about thy neck, as an ornament, a bracelet, or gold chain,—about thy throat (so the word is); let them be a guard upon that pass; tie them about thy throat, that no forbidden fruit may be suffered to go in nor any evil word suffered to go out through the throat; and thus a great deal of sin would be prevented. Let the word of God be always ready to us, and let us feel the impressions of it, as of that which is bound upon our hearts and about our necks.

4. We must make use of the word of God and of the benefit that is designed us by it. If we bind it continually upon our hearts, (1.) It will be our guide, and we must follow its direction. "When thou goest, it shall lead thee (v. 22); it shall lead thee into, and lead thee in, the good and right way, shall lead thee from, and lead thee out of, every sinful dangerous path. It will say unto thee, when thou art ready to turn aside, This is the way; walk in it. It will be that to thee that the pillar of cloud and fire was to Israel in the wilderness. Be led by that, let it be thy rule, and then thou shalt be led by the Spirit; he will be thy monitor and support." (2.) It will be our guard, and we must put ourselves under the protection of it: "When thou sleepest, and liest exposed to the malignant powers of darkness, it shall keep thee; thou shalt be safe, and shalt think thyself so." If we govern ourselves by the precepts of the word all day, and make conscience of the duty God has commanded to us, we may shelter ourselves under the promises of the word at night, and take the comfort of the deliverances God does and will command for us. (3.) It will be our companion, and we must converse with it: "When thou awakest in the night, and knowest not how to pass away thy waking minutes, if thou pleasest, it shall talk with thee, and entertain thee with pleasant meditations in the night-watch; when thou awakest in the morning, and art contriving the work of the day, it shall talk with thee about it, and help thee to contrive for the best," Ps. i. 2. The word of God has something to say to us upon all occasions, if we would but enter into discourse with it, would ask it what it has to say, and give it the hearing. And it would contribute to our close and comfortable walking with God all day if we would begin with him in the morning and let his word be the subject of our first thoughts. When I awake I am still with thee; we are so if the word be still with us. (4.) It will be our life; for, as the law is a lamp and a light for the present, so the reproofs of instruction are the way of life. Those reproofs of the word which not only show us our faults, but instruct us how to do better, are the way that leads to life, eternal life. Let not faithful reproofs therefore, which have such a direct tendency to make us happy, ever make us uneasy.

II. Here is a particular caution against the sin of uncleanness.

1. When we consider how much this iniquity abounds, how heinous it is in its own nature, of what pernicious consequence it is, and how certainly destructive to all the seeds of the spiritual life in the soul, we shall not wonder that the cautions against it are so often repeated and so largely inculcated. (1.) One great kindness God designed men, in giving them his law, was to preserve them from this sin, v. 24. "The reproofs of instruction are therefore the way of life to thee, because they are designed to keep thee from the evil woman, who will be certain death to thee, from being enticed by the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman, who pretends to love thee, but intends to ruin thee." Those that will be wrought upon by flattery make themselves a very easy prey to the tempter; and those who would avoid that snare must take well-instructed reproofs as great kindnesses and be thankful to those that will deal faithfully with them, Prov. xxvii. 5, 6. (2.) The greatest kindness we can do ourselves is to keep at a distance from this sin, and to look upon it with the utmost dread and detestation (v. 25): "Lust not after her beauty, no, not in thy heart, for, if thou dost, thou hast there already committed adultery with her. Talk not of the charms in her face, neither be thou smitten with her amorous glances; they are all snares and nets; let her not take thee with her eye-lids. Her looks are arrows and fiery darts; they wound, they kill, in another sense than what lovers mean; they call it a pleasing captivity, but it is a destroying one, it is worse than Egyptian slavery."

2. Divers arguments Solomon here urges to enforce this caution against the sin of whoredom.

(1.) It is a sin that impoverishes men, wastes their estates, and reduces them to beggary (v. 26): By means of a whorish woman a man is brought to a piece of bread; many a man has been so, who has purchased the ruin of his body and soul at the expense of his wealth. The prodigal son spent his living on harlots, so that he brought himself to be fellow-commoner with the swine. And that poverty must needs lie heavily which men bring themselves into by their own folly, Job xxxi. 12.

(2.) It threatens death; it kills men: The adulteress will hunt for the precious life, perhaps designedly, as Delilah for Samson's, at least, eventually, the sin strikes at the life. Adultery was punished by the law of Moses as a capital crime. The adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death. Every one knew this. Those therefore who, for the gratifying of a base lust, would lay themselves open to the law, could be reckoned no better than self-murderers.

(3.) It brings guilt upon the conscience and debauches that. He that touches his neighbour's wife, with an immodest touch, cannot be innocent, v. 29. [1.] He is in imminent danger of adultery, as he that takes fire in his bosom, or goes upon hot coals, is in danger of being burnt. The way of this sin is down-hill, and those that venture upon the temptations to it hardly escape the sin itself. The fly fools away her life by playing the wanton with the flames. It is a deep pit, which it is madness to venture upon the brink of. He that keeps company with those of ill fame, that goes in with them, and touches them, cannot long preserve his innocency; he thrusts himself into temptation and so throws himself out of God's protection. [2.] He that commits adultery is in the high road to destruction. The bold presumptuous sinner says, "I may venture upon the sin and yet escape the punishment; I shall have peace though I go on." He might as well say, I will take fire into my bosom and not burn my clothes, or I will go upon hot coals and not burn my feet. He that goes into his neighbour's wife, however he holds himself, God will not hold him guiltless. The fire of lust kindles the fire of hell.

(4.) It ruins the reputation and entails perpetual infamy upon that. It is a much more scandalous sin than stealing is, v. 30-33. Perhaps it is not so in the account of men, at least not in our day. A thief is sent to the stocks, to the gaol, to Bridewell, to the gallows, while the vile adulterer goes unpunished, nay, with many, unblemished; he dares boast of his villanies, and they are made but a jest of. But, in the account of God and his law, adultery was much the more enormous crime; and, if God is the fountain of honour, his word must be the standard of it. [1.] As for the sin of stealing, if a man were brought to it by extreme necessity, if he stole meat for the satisfying of his soul when he was hungry, though that will not excuse him from guilt, yet it is such an extenuation of his crime that men do not despise him, do not expose him to ignominy, but pity him. Hunger will break through stone-walls, and blame will be laid upon those that brought him to poverty, or that did not relieve him. Nay, though he have not that to say in his excuse, if he be found stealing, and the evidence be ever so plain upon him, yet he shall only make restitution seven-fold. The law of Moses appointed that he who stole a sheep should restore four-fold, and an ox five-fold (Exod. xxii. 1); accordingly David adjudged, 2 Sam. xii. 6. But we may suppose in those cases concerning which the law had not made provision the judges afterwards settled the penalties in proportion to the crimes, according to the equity of the law. Now, if he that stole an ox out of a man's field must restore five-fold, it was reasonable that he that stole a man's goods out of his house should restore seven-fold; for there was no law to put him to death, as with us, for burglary and robbery on the highway, and of this worst kind of theft Solomon here speaks; the greatest punishment was that a man might be forced to give all the substance of his house to satisfy the law and his blood was not attainted. But, [2.] Committing adultery is a more heinous crime; Job calls it so, and an iniquity to be punished by the judge, Job xxxi. 11. When Nathan would convict David of the evil of his adultery he did it by a parable concerning the most aggravated theft, which, in David's judgment, deserved to be punished with death (2 Sam. xii. 5), and then showed him that his sin was more exceedingly sinful than that. First, It is a greater reproach to a man's reason, for he cannot excuse it, as a thief may, by saying that it was to satisfy his hunger, but must own that it was to gratify a brutish lust which would break the hedge of God's law, not for want, but for wantonness. Therefore whoso commits adultery with a woman lacks understanding, and deserves to be stigmatized as an arrant fool. Secondly, It is more severely punished by the law of God. A thief suffered only a pecuniary mulct, but the adulterer suffered death. The thief steals to satisfy his soul, but the adulterer destroys his own soul, and falls an unpitied sacrifice to the justice both of God and man. "Sinner, thou hast destroyed thyself." This may be applied to the spiritual and eternal death which is the consequence of sin; he that does it wounds his conscience, corrupts his rational power, extinguishes all the sparks of the spiritual life, and exposes himself to the wrath of God for ever, and thus destroys his own soul. Thirdly, The infamy of it is indelible, v. 33. It will be a wound to his good name, a dishonour to his family, and, though the guilt of it may be done away by repentance, the reproach of it never will, but will stick to his memory when he is gone. David's sin in the matter of Uriah was not only a perpetual blemish upon his own character, but gave occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme his name too.

(5.) It exposes the adulterer to the rage of the jealous husband, whose honour he puts such an affront upon, v. 34, 35. He that touches his neighbour's wife, and is familiar with her, gives him occasion for jealousy, much more he that debauches her, which, if kept ever so secret, might then be discovered by the waters of jealousy, Num. v. 12. "When discovered, thou hadst better meet a bear robbed of her whelps than the injured husband, who, in the case of adultery, will be as severe an avenger of his own honour as, in the case of manslaughter, of his brother's blood. If thou art not afraid of the wrath of God, yet be afraid of the rage of a man. Such jealousy is; it is strong as death and cruel as the grave. In the day of vengeance, when the adulterer comes to be tried for his life, the prosecutor will not spare any pains or cost in the prosecution, will not relent towards thee, as he would perhaps towards one that had robbed him. He will not accept of any commutation, any composition; he will not regard any ransom. Though thou offer to bribe him, and give him many gifts to pacify him, he will not rest content with any thing less than the execution of the law. Thou must be stoned to death. If a man would give all the substance of his house, it would atone for a theft (v. 31), but not for adultery; in that case it would utterly be contemned. Stand in awe therefore, and sin not; expose not thyself to all this misery for a moment's sordid pleasure, which will be bitterness in the end."

CHAP. VI. Verſ. 1. My Son, if thou bee Surety]

THe wiſe-man having exhorted his Son to marry, rather than burn, and to nouriſh a family, rather than to haunt Harlots houſes, to the end that hee may ſhew himſelf a good Oeconomick, and provide for the comfortable ſubſiſtence of wife and children, hee bids him here beware, 1 Of unadviſed ſuretiſhip. 2 Of idleneſs, two great enemies to thrift, without which there can be no good houſe kept. The royalty of Salomon could not have conſiſted for all his riches, without forecaſt and frugality.

Verſ. 2. Thou art ſnared] i. e. Endangered to ſlavery or poverty, or both. Hence the proverb, Sponde, noxa praeſto eſt: Give thy word, and thou art not far from a miſchief. Shun therefore ſuretiſhip, if fairly thou canſt: or if not, propound the worſt, and undertake for no more than thou canſt well perform without thy very great prejudice: ne, ut leo caſſibus irretitus dixeris, Si praeſciviſſem? leſt thou being got into the hamble trambles come in too late with thy tools Had I wiſt.

Thou art taken] For a bargain binds a man by the Law of Nature, and of Nations. Judah, though in a ſhameful buſineſs, would make good his engagement to the Harlot, Gen. 38.23. Every godly man will do ſo, though it bee to his own hinderance, Pſal. 15.4. The Romans had a great care alwaies to perform their word; inſomuch that the firſt Temple built in Rome was dedicated to the goddeſſe Fidelity. The Athenians were ſo careful this way, that Atticus teſtis is uſed for one that keeps touch; and Attica fides is ſure hold; as contrarily, Punica fides, there was no hold to bee taken of Carthaginian promiſes. Of a certain Pope and his Nephew, it is ſaid, that the one never ſpoke as hee thought, the other never performed what hee ſpake.Rom. 13. This was ſmall to their commendation. Debt is a burden to every well-minded man, neither can hee bee at reſt, till hee come to Owe nothing to any man but this, that yee love one another. When Arch-biſhop Cranmer diſcerned the ſtorm which afterwards fell upon him in Queen Maries daies,Act. & Mon. vol. 2. p. 1541. hee took expreſs order for the payment of all his debts, and ingagements; which when it was once done, a moſt joyful man was hee, ſaith Maſter Fox in his life. For bills and obligations do mancipate the moſt free and ingenuous ſpirit, and ſo put a man out of aim, that hee can neither ſerve God without diſtraction, nor do good to others, nor ſet his own ſtate in any good order; but lives and dies intangled and puzled with cares and ſnares; and after a tedious and laborious life paſſed in a circle of fretting thoughts, hee leaves at laſt, inſtead of better patrimony, a world of intricate troubles to his poſterity, who are alſo taken with the words of his mouth.

Verſ. 3. When thou art come into the hand] For the borrower is ſervant to the lender, Hieron. ad Celantiam. Prov 22.7. And Facilè ex amico inimicum facies cui promiſſa non reddes, ſaith Hierom. A friend will ſoon become a foe, if unfriendly and unfaithfully dealt with. Not keeping time makes a jarre in payments (and ſo in friendſhip too) as well as in Muſick.

Ezek. 32.2. & 34.18. Go, humble thy ſelf] Crave favour and further time of the Creditour: ſay, Doubt not of your debt, onely forbear a while. Caſt thy ſelf at his feet, as to bee trodden (ſo the Hebrew word here ſignifieth) Stick not at any ſubmiſſion, ſo thou mayeſt gain time, and get off, and not bee forced to run into the Uſurers Books, that Amalec or licking people, which as Cormorants fall upon the borrowers, and like Cur-doggs, ſuck your blood onely with licking, and in the end kill you, and cruſh you, rob you, and raviſh you, Pſal. 10.8, 9, 10.

And make ſure thy friend] For whom thou ſtandeſt ingaged; call upon him to ſave thee harmleſs. For as Alphius the Uſurer ſometimes ſaid of his Clients,Horat. Epod. Colum. de re ruſt. l. 1. c 7. Optima nomina non appellando mala fieri; Even good Debters will prove ſlack pay-maſters if they bee let alone, if not now and then called upon. Some read the words thus: Multiply thy friends, or ſollicite them, viz. to intercede for thee to the Creditor, and to keep thee out of this brake.

Verſ. 4. Give not ſleep to thine eyes, &c.] Auguſtus wondred at a certain Knight in Rome, that owed much, and yet could ſleep ſecurely;Dio. and when this Knight dyed, hee ſent to buy his bed, as ſuppoſing there was ſomething more than ordinary in it, to procure ſleep. The opportunity of liberty and thriving is to bee well husbanded, leſt ſome ſtorm ariſing from the cruelty of Creditors, or mutability of outward things, over-whelm a man with debt and danger, as the whirlwind doth the unwary traveller upon the Alpes with ſnow. Now if ſuch care bee to bee taken that wee run not raſhly in debt to men, how much more to God? If to undertake for others bee ſo dangerous, how ſhould wee pray with that godly man,Auguſt. From my other-mens ſins good Lord deliver mee? If wee are ſo to humble our ſelves to our fellow-creatures in this caſe, how much more ſhould wee humble our ſelves under the mighty hand of God,Jam. 4.10. that hee may lift us up in due ſeaſon? If this bee to bee done without delay, where the danger reacheth but to the outward man; how much more ſpeed and earneſtneſs ſhould bee uſed in making peace with God, whoſe wrath is a fire that burns as low as hell, and getting the black lines of our ſins drawn over with the red lines of his Sons blood; and ſo utterly razed out of the book of his remembrance?

Verſ. 5. As a Roe from the hand, &c.] This creature may bee taken, but not eaſily tamed: It ſeeks therefore by all means to make eſcape,Cald. Paraph. in Cant. 8.14. and when it fleeth, looketh behinde it, holding it no life, if not at liberty.

And as a bird] A moſt fearful creature, and deſirous of liberty,Nititur in ſylvas quaeque redire ſuas. that Avis Paradiſi eſpecially, that being taken, never gives over groaning, till let go again.

Verſ. 6. Go to the Ant thou ſluggard] Man that was once the Captain of Gods School, is now (for his truantlineſs) turned down into the loweſt form, as it were, to learn his A b c again, yea to bee taught by theſe meaneſt creatures. So Chriſt ſends us to School to the birds of the air, and Lilies of the field, to learn dependence upon divine Providence, Matth. 6. and to the Stork, Crane, and Swallow, to bee taught to take the ſeaſons of Grace, and not to let ſlip the opportunities that God putteth into our hands, Jer. 8.7. This poor deſpicable creature the Ant, is here ſet in the chair to read us a Lecture of ſedulity and good husbandry. What a deal of grain gets ſhe together in Summer? What pains doth ſhee take for it, labouring not by day-light onely, but by Moon-ſhine alſo? What huge heaps hath ſhee? What care to bring forth her ſtore, and lay it a drying on a Sun-ſhine day, left with moiſture it ſhould putrifie, &c. Not onely Ariſtotle, Aelian, and Pliny, but alſo Baſil, Ambroſe, and Hierom have obſerved and written much of the nature and induſtry of this poor creature; telling us withall, that in the Ant, Bee, Stork, &c. God hath ſet before us, as in a picture, the lively reſemblance of many excellent vertues, which wee ought to purſue and practiſe. Theſe, ſaith One, are veri laicorum libri, the true Lay-mens books, the images that may teach men the right knowledge of God, and of his will, of themſelves and their duties.

Verſ. 7. Which having no guide, overſeer, &c.] How much more then ſhould man, who hath all theſe, and is both ad laborem natus, & ratione ornatus, born to labour, and hath reaſon to guide him? Only hee muſt take heed that hee bee not Antlike, wholly taken up about what ſhall wee eat, or what ſhall wee drink, &c.

Verſ. 8. Provideth her meat in the Summer] Shee devours indeed much grain made chiefly for the uſe of man; But deſerves (ſaith an Interpreter) for this very cauſe, to bee fed with the fineſt wheat, and greateſt dainties, that all men may have her alwayes in their eye: Diligent men to quicken their diligence, and ſluggards to ſhame them for their ſlothfulneſs.

And gathereth her food in harveſt] That may ſerve in Winter. It is good for a man to keep ſomewhat by him, to have ſomething in ſtore, and not in diem vivere, Quint[illegible: 1 letter]l. as the fowls of heaven do. Bonus Servatius facit bonum Bonifacium, as the Dutch Proverb hath it. A good ſaver makes a well-doer. Care muſt bee taken ne Promus ſit fortior Condo, that our layings-out, bee not more than our layings-up. Let no man here object that of our Saviour, Care not for to morrow, &c. There is a care of diligence, and a care of diffidence, a care of the head, and a care of the heart; the former is needful, the latter ſinful.

Verſ. 9. How long wilt thou ſleep, O ſluggard?] The ear wee ſay, is firſt up in a morning: Call a ſleeping man by his name, and hee will ſooner awake and anſwer to it than to any thing elſe. The Wiſe-man therefore thus deals with the ſluggard, that hee may go forth and ſhake him, as Sampſon, not giving way to exceſſive ſleep, which comes as a Publican (ſaith Plutarch) and takes away a third part of our lives at leaſt.Lib. 3. cap. 5. Pliny ſaid to his Nephew, when hee ſaw him walk out ſome hours without ſtudying, Poteras has horas non perdere, You might have put theſe hours to better uſes. May not the ſame bee ſaid to the ſleepy ſluggard? Whiles the Crocodile ſleeps with open mouth, the Indian Rat ſhoots himſelf into his body, and ea[illegible: 1 letter]s up his intrails. Whilſt Iſhboſheth ſlept upon his bed at noon, Baanah and Rechab took away his head. Epaminondas a renowned Captain, finding one of his Sentinels aſleep, thruſt him thorow with his ſword: And being chid for ſo great ſeverity, replied, Talem eum reliqui qualem inven[illegible: 1 letter], I left him but as I found him. It muſt bee our care that death ſerve us not in like ſort, that wee bee not taken napping, and ſo killed with death, Rev. 2.21. The bird Onocrotalus is ſo well practiſed to expect the Hawk to grapple with her, that even when ſhee ſhutteth her eyes ſhee ſleepeth with her beak exalted, as if ſhee would contend with her Adverſary, to teach us continual vigilancy, reſembling thoſe who were wont to ſleep with brazen balls in their hands, which falling on veſſels purpoſely ſet on their bed-ſides, the noyſe did diſſwade immoderate ſleep.Sen. Epiſt. Nullus mihi per otium exit dies, partem etiam noctium ſtudiis vendico, ſaith Seneca. I let no day paſs mee idlely, ſome part of the night alſo I ſpend in ſtudy. Our King Alfred, Anno 872. caſt the natural day into three parts; eight hours hee ſpent in prayer, ſtudy and writing, eight in the ſervice of his body, and eight in the affairs of his State. Which ſpace (having then no other engine for it) hee meaſured by a great wax-light divided into ſo many parts,Daniels Chro. 13. receiving notice by the keeper thereof, as the ſeveral hours paſſed in the burning. The Jews divided likewiſe the day into three parts, the firſt ad Tephilla, for prayer; the ſecond ad Torah, for reading the Law; the third, ad Malachah, for work; no talk of ſleep. Their work would (likely) keep them waking. As for the Law, what Servilius Scevola ſaid of the Civil Law,Tenenti codicem ſomnus obrepat, & cadentem faciem pagina ſacra ſuſcipiat. Hier. ad Euſt. holds more true of the Divine, Jus civile ſcriptum eſt vigilantibus non dormitantibus, The Law was not written for ſleepers, but wakers. Jerome exhorted ſome godly women to whom hee wrote, not to lay the Bible out of their hands, until being overcome with ſleep, and not able any longer to hold up their heads, they bowed them down, as it were, to ſalute the leaves, below them, with a kiſs. And for prayer, David would not fall aſleep at it, but break his ſleep for it, Turk. Hiſt. fol. 297. Eg[illegible: 1 letter]eroch ex radice gnarach ordinavis, acicum diſpoſuit: vaz[illegible: 1 letter]. ſappel ex radice [illegible: 1 letter]ſap[illegible: 1 letter]ah ſpeculando expectavit. Hinc [illegible: 1 letter]ſopheh ſp[illegible: 1 letter]culator. Pſ. 119.62. & 147. He was at it at midnight, at day-dawn, and In the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up, Pſal. 5.3. Two military words hee there makes uſe of (to ſhew his wakefulneſs at his work) (Souldiers are not the greateſt ſleepers: Caeſar was no leſs vigilant, than valiant: Scanderbeg from his firſt coming to Epirus never ſlept above two hours in a night) hee would not onely pray, but marſhal up his prayers, put them in good array; and when hee had ſo done, hee would bee as a Spy upon a Tower, to ſee whether hee prevailed, whether hee got the day: The Spouſe ſlept, but her heart waked; and as repenting of that half-ſleep alſo (which yet the night and foul weather perſwaded) ſhee promiſeth to get up early, Cant. 5.2. with 7.12. Our Saviour was up and at prayer a great while before day, Mark. 1.35. The holy Angels are ſtiled Watchers, [non-Latin text not transcribed]. Dan. 4.10. And they are three times pronounced happy that watch, Luk. 12.37, 38, 43. Watch therefore.

Verſ. 10. Yet a little ſleep] Heb. Sleeps, ſo ſlumbers, Though hee ſpeaks in the plural, and would have much, yet all is but a little in his pretence and conceit. Hee asks a little, but hee will not bee denied:Auguſtin. Sed finite panlulum ibit in longum. Firſt, hee muſt have ſleep, having ſlept, hee muſt have ſlumbers; (ſleep will not quickly bee rubed out of his eyes) having ſlumbered, hee muſt fold his hands. Compreſſis ſedere manibus, to fit with hands folded up,Liv. lib. 7. is uſed by the Latines in a like ſenſe.) Hee tumbles on his bed, as a door on the hinges, Prov. 16.14. a man muſt come with a lever to help him off his Couch.

Verſ. 11. As a traveller, and thy want as an armed man] That is, ſpeedily and irreſiſtibly. Men muſt ſweat out a living, and earn their bread afore they eat it, 2 Theſ. 3.12. Think not to have wealth without working; as Cities and Towns are ſaid to have fallen into Timotheus his toil as hee was ſleeping (with ſo much eaſe hee took them in.Hippocrat.) Spontaneae laſſitudines morbos praecedunt, Roamings and reachings fore-run diſeaſes: ſo doth ſluggiſhneſs uſher in penury: when as manus motitans, the nimble hand maketh rich, Prov. 10.4. and in all labour there is abundance, Prov. 14.Saluſt. But Nae illi falſi ſunt qui diverſiſſimas res expectant ignaviae voluptatem & pramia virtutis: They are utterly out that think to have the pleaſure of idleneſs, and the plenty of painfulneſs.

Verſ. 12. A naughty perſon] Lo, every idle man is a naughty man: is, or ere long will bee; For by doing nothing, men learn to do evil,Nihil agenda male agere diſcunt. ſaid the Heathen: And, thou wicked and ſlothful ſervant, ſaith our Saviour, Mat. 25.26. Hee puts no difference betwixt Nequam & Nequaquam, and idle and an evil perſon. The Devil alſo will not long ſuffer ſuch an one to bee idle, but will ſoon ſet him to work. Idleneſs is the hour of temptation.

A wicked man] Or, an unprofitable man, vir nihili, good for nothing, but to eat, and drink, and ſleep, and ſport, and ſit, and talk, and laugh, and be merry. Theſe are Cyphers, nay, they are excrements in humane ſociety;Mr. Wheatly. that live in the world to no purpoſe, yea, to bad purpoſe. Oh it is good (ſaith One) to do ſomething whereby the world may be the better; and not to come hither meerly as Rats and Mice, onely to devoure victuals, and to run ſqueaking up and down.

Walketh with a froward mouth] Graditur ore perverſe. Nothing more uſual with Idlebies, than to go tatling up and down▪ prying, and ſpying, [non-Latin text not transcribed]. 2 Theſ. [illegible: 1 letter].11 and carrying tales and rumors, 1 Tim. 5.13. See the note there. It is nothing that they can do; they will ſay the more therefore.

Verſ. 13. Hee winketh with his eyes] Hee is reſtleſs in evil, and with his odd tricks and geſticulations ſeeks to ſpread miſchief; even there, where hee dares not otherwiſe diſcover himſelf. Or the ſenſe may bee this: Though hee ſpeak froward things, though hee ſlander and detract, &c. to the hurt of the hearers, yet as if hee ſpake nothing but truth, and out of deep affection to the party, hee ſeeks to aſſure it by the conſtancy of his countenance, by the gravity of his gate, and by the motion of his fingers, to make beleeve that it is ſo indeed, when as in truth it is neither ſo, nor ſo.

Verſ. 14. Frowardneſs is in his heart] What marvel then though hee ſoleciſe with his hand, though hee twinkle with his eye, and tinkle with his feet, [non-Latin text not transcribed]. &c. When hee ſpeaketh fair, beleeve him not: for there are ſeven abominations in his heart, Prov. 26.25. Even thoſe ſeven next mentioned here, Verſ. 16, 17, 18, 19. as Aben-Ezra conceiveth upon that Text.

He[illegible: 1 letter] deviſeth miſchief continually] Heb. At all times. Pliny ſpeaks of the Scorpion, that there is not one minute, wherein it doth not put forth the ſting. The ſoul of a wicked man is in a ſling, reſtleſs, and violently toſſed about by Satan, who acts and agitates him,1 Sam. 25.29. Epheſ. 2.2. See Mic. 2.1. Hoſ. 7.6.

Hee ſoweth diſcord] And ſo ſhews himſelf a true breathing Devil, a Diſciple of Machiavel, whoſe Maxime was, Divide, & impora, make diviſion, and get dominion.Archb. Abbots Anſwer to D. Hills three reaſons. In the year 1579 Allen at Rhemes inſtructed his Emiſſary ſeducers ſent over into England, to make way for their great project of perdition in eighty eight, by dividing the people under the terms of Proteſtant and Puritan, and provoking them thereby to real and mutual, both hate and contempt. And what labouring there is now by the Jeſuitical party to heighten out unhappy differences, that they may make themſelves Maſters of all, who ſeeth not? Herein they deal (ſaith Gregory, of the like factors for the Devil in his time) as the Maſter of the Pit, who oft ſets two Cocks to fight together to the death of both, that after mutual conqueſt, hee may ſup with both their carkaſſes. The Jews, before they were baniſhed out of this Kingdome, threw bags of poiſon into the wells and fountains that the people were to drink of, and thereby indeavoured to poiſon them all: ſo do our ſeeds-men of ſedition.

Verſ. 15. Suddenly ſhall hee bee broken without remedy] A diſmal doom: Broken and not bruiſed onely, ſuddenly broken, when they leaſt dream or dread the danger. And this without remedy; no poſſibility of peecing them up again, or putting them into a better condition. See this exemplified in Nabal, 1 Sam. 25. and Deeg, Pſal. 52.

Verſ. 16. Theſe ſix things doth the Lord hate] That is, hee deteſteth, damneth, puniſheth them in the ſluggard, whoſe ſoul is the ſink of all theſe enſuing evils. Where note, That ſin makes wicked men the object of Gods hatred, the Saints of his pitty: As wee hate poiſon in a Toad, but wee pitty it in a man: in the one, it is their nature, in the other, their diſeaſe.

Yea ſeven are an abomination to him] Or, That ſeventh his ſoul abhorreth, that ſowing of diſcord among brethren heightneth and compleateth his hatred of the reſt.Septimum abominatio anima illius.

Verſ. 17. A proud look] Heb. Haughty eyes. Mens hearts uſually and chiefly ſit and ſhew themſelves in oculis, in loculis, in poculis, in their eyes, purſes,Profecto oculis animus inhabitat. Plin. Ep. ad Evagr. and cups. The Latines ſpeaking of an arrogant diſdainful perſon ſay, that hee doth ſupercilium attollere, look loftily. Odi fastum iſtius Eccleſia, ſaid Baſil, I hate the proud ſtatelineſs of that Weſtern Church: the Church of Rome hee means,Quid verum fit neque ſciunt, neque ſuſtinent diſcerere. Ibid. which even in thoſe purer times began to look big, and deſpiſe all other in compariſon of it ſelf. This hee ſomewhere calls [non-Latin text not transcribed], the Weſtern eye-brow, which occaſioned at length that lamentable ſeparation of the Eaſtern or Greek Church from communion with the Latine: The other four Patriarcks dividing themſelves from the Biſhop of Rome, and at their parting, uſing theſe, or the like words: Thy greatneſs wee know, thy covetouſneſs wee cannot ſatisfie, D. Field of the Church. Gerſon. Carleton. thine intollerable inſolency wee can no longer endure, live to thy ſelf, &c. God himſelf reſiſts a proud perſon in a ſpecial manner, 1 Pet. 5.5. and that afar off, Pſal. 138.6. hee cannot abide the ſight of him, Looks aloof at him. For whereas all other vices flye from God (ſaith Boethius) Pride lets flye at him.Sola Superbia ſe Deo opponit. No wonder therefore though his ſoul abhor it, when it buds eſpecially, Ezek. 7.10. and teſtifies to a mans face, Hoſ. 7.10. breaking forth as the Maſter-pock of the ſoul in big-ſwoln words, proud gate,Bubbles of vanity. 2 Pet. 2.18. ridiculous geſtures, gariſh attire, lofty and haughty looks, that hate of Heaven and gate to Hell. David could not indure it in any of his, Pſal. 101.5. No more could Queen Elizabeth in the greateſt favourite about her. Diſſenſion once falling out between her and Eſſex about a fit man for government of Ireland, hee forgetting himſelf, and neglecting his duty, uncivilly turneth his back, as it were in contempt, with a ſcornful look. Shee waxing impatient, Camdeus Eliſab. 494. gave him a cuff on the ear, bidding him begone with a vengeance, &c. For avoiding of all diſcontents and diſtempers this way occaſioned, it were to bee wiſhed, that men would firſt get humble hearts, (the Apoſtle, Epheſ. 4. makes humble-mindedneſs the firſt virtue, as here a proud look is made the firſt vice, the Maſter-root.) And then, that they would enter into a Covenant, as Job did (with his own eyes at leaſt, Chap. 30.1.) ſuch a Covenant as was once made at a meeting of the borderers in the marches between England and Scotland: Security was given and confirmed on both ſides by Oath (according to cuſtome) and proclamation made, Ibid. 279. ſaith mine Author, that no man ſhould harm other by word, deed, or look.

A lying tongue] Heb. A tongue of lying, viz. That hath learned the trade, and can do it artificially. A Frier, a lier, was the old proverb here, paſſing for current of that evil Generation, thoſe loud and lewd liers, The proud have forged lies againſt mee, Pſal. 119.69. Aſſunt mendacium mendacio (ſo the Hebrew hath it) they [illegible: 1 letter]ew one lie to another, until their iniquity bee found to bee hateful, Pſal. 36.2. A righteous man (how much more the righteous God?) hateth lying: But a wicked man (for his lying) is loathſome (Heb. ſtinketh) and cometh to ſhame, Prov. 13.5. Pilate (for inſtance) of whom Egeſippus ſaith, that hee was Vir nequam & parvi faciens mendacium, A naughty man, and that made light of a lye. It may ſeem ſo by that ſcornful queſtion of his, What's truth? Joh. 18.38. Tacitus alſo is by Tertullian ſaid to bee mendaciorum loquaciſſimus: where hee ſpeaks of Chriſtians, hee writes ſo many lines, ſo many lies. Liers pervert the end for which God created ſpeech▪ which was, to give light to the notions of the mind. Hence [non-Latin text not transcribed].

And hands that ſhed innocent blood] This is fitly ſubjoyned and ſet after a lying tongue; becauſe blood-ſhed is oft occaſioned by lying.

— nil eſt audacius illis Deprenſis: iram atque animos ex crimine ſumunt.Juvenal.

Ruffians revenge the lye given them with a ſtab. Perſecutors (as in the French Maſſacre) give out that Chriſtians are the worſt of men, not fit to live for their notorious enormities, and therefore not to bee pittied if taken from the earth. Thoſe that kill a Dog (ſaith the French Proverb) make the world beleeve hee was mad firſt: ſo they alwaies belied the Church, and traduced her to the world, and then perſecuted her; firſt took away her veil▪ and then wounded her, Cant. 5.6. The Devil was firſt a ſlanderer and lyer, and then a murtherer. Hee cannot murder, without hee ſlander firſt. But God will deſtroy them that ſpeak lies, the Lord will abhor the bloody and deceitful man, Pſal. 5.6.

Verſ. 18 An heart that deviſeth wicked imaginations] This is the old Beldame, the Mother of all the foregoing and following miſchiefs; and is therefore fitly ſet in the midſt of the ſeven, as having an influence into all. From the eies, the Wiſe-man deſcends to the mouth, from the mouth, to the hands, from the hands, to the heart, from thence to the feet, and ſo takes the parts in order as they ſtand: But as for the heart, it transfuſeth its venome into all the reſt, and may ſay to them all, as the heart of Apollodorus the Tyrant ſeemed to ſay to him, who dreamed one night that hee was fleaed by the Scythians, and boiled in a Caldron, and that his heart ſpake to him out of the kettle, [non-Latin text not transcribed]. It is I that have drawn thee to all this. Thoſe in Hell cry ſo doubtleſs.

Feet that bee ſwift] As if they ſhould come too late. This is a foul abuſe of the locomotive faculty given us by God for better purpoſe, that wee ſhould bee ſwift to hear, run to and fro to encreaſe knowledge, Dan. 12. walk in the way that is called holy, go from ſtrength to strength, taking long ſtrides towards Heaven, Pſal. 84.7. Thoſe then that walk in a contrary road, and make all poſſible haſte to heap up ſin upon ſin, muſt needs be abominated and accurſed of God.

Verſ. 19. A falſe witneſs that ſpeaketh lies] Heb. That blows abroad lies, as with a pair of bellows, that vents them boldly and freely in open Court, in the face of the Countrey. Theſe Knights of the Poſt can lend an oath for a need, as they did Jeſabel againſt Naboth, and like thoſe in the hiſtory, will not ſtick to ſwear that their friend or foe was at Rome and Interamna both at once. God oft thundereth againſt ſuch, to ſhew his utter hatred of them: and hath, threatned that the winged flying-book that is full of curſes within and without, ſhall overtake them ere they get home, and ſhall reſt in the midſt of their houſes, to conſume them with the timber thereof, and the ſtones thereof, Zach. 5.4.

And him that ſoweth diſcord] See the Notes on verſ. 14. & 16. Unity among brethren is fitly compared to a Cable-Rope, which will not eaſily break but if once cut aſunder, its hard to tye a knot upon it; what ill officers then are Breed-bates, and boutefeus?

Verſ. 20. My Son, keep thy Fathers Commandement] The commandements of religious Parents, are the very commandements of God himſelf, and are therefore to bee as carefully kept as the apple of a mans eye, Prov. 7.2. See the Note one Chap. 1.8.

Verſ. 21. Binde them continually] Obſerve them with as much care and conſcience, as thou art bound to do the Law of God given by Moſes, Deut. 6.8. See the Note there.

Ducet & perducet.Verſ. 22. When thou goeſt, it ſhall lead thee] No ſuch guide to God as the Word, which while a man holds to, hee may ſafely ſay, Lord, if I bee deceived, thou haſt deceived mee; If I bee out of the way, thy word hath miſled mee.

When thou ſleepeſt, it ſhall keep thee] If thou ſleep with ſome good meditation in thy mind, it ſhall keep thee from fooliſh and ſinful dreams and fancies, and ſet thy heart in a holy frame, when thou awakeſt. Hee that raketh up his fire at night, ſhall finde fire in the morning. How precious are thy thoughts (that is thoughts of thee) unto mee, O God? Pſal. 139.17. what follows? When I awake, I am still with thee, verſ. 18.

Verſ. 23. For the Commandement is a Lamp] Or Candle, whereof there is no ſmall uſe when men go to bed, or riſe betime. Hee that hath the Word of Chriſt richly dwelling in him, may lay his hand upon his heart, and ſay as dying Oecolampadius did, Hic ſat lucis. Here's plenty of light. Under the Law all was in riddles; Moſes was veyled. And yet that ſaying was then verified, Et latet & lucet. There was light enough to light men to Chriſt the end of the Law.

And reproofs of inſtruction] Or corrections of inſtructions. A leſſon ſet on with a whipping is beſt remembred. See the Note on Chap. 3.13.

Verſ. 24. To keep thee from the evil woman] Heb. From the woman of evil, that is wholly given up to wickedneſs, as Aaron ſaith of the people, Exod. 32.22. and as Plautus, In fermento tota jacet uxor. In this ſenſe Antichriſt is called the man of ſin, 2 Theſ. 3.

From the flattery of the tongue] This is the proper effect of Gods word, hid in the heart, as an amulet. Bellerophon and other Heathens, without this preſervative, abſtained from Adultery, either for love of praiſe, or fear of puniſhment, or opinion of merit, but this was not properly chaſtity, but continency, which kept them from the outward act, ſed non ſine dolore, not without inward luſtings and hankerings after ſtrange fleſh. Vellem, ſi non eſſem Imperator, ſaid Scipio, when a fair Harlot was offered to him, I would if I were not a General.

Of a ſtrange woman] Filthineſs (as alſo ſwearing and drunkenneſs) in a woman is moſt abominable. Hence (among other reaſons, ſaith one) the whoriſh woman is called the ſtrange woman.

Saluſt.Verſ. 25. Luſt not after her beauty] Aureliae Oreſtillae praeter formam nihil unquam bonus landavit. Aurelia Oreſtilla had beauty indeed, but nothing elſe that was praiſe-worthy, [non-Latin text not transcribed] Aelian. ver. hiſt. lib. 12. c. 1. ſaith the Hiſtorian. How much better Aſpaſia Mileſia, of whom Aelian reports, that ſhee was Fair and Modeſt? And the Lady Jane Gray whoſe excellent beauty was adorned with all variety of virtues, as a clear Sky with ſtars, as a princely Diadem with Jewels. Some women are like Helen without, Hecuba within; but it is a ſmall praiſe to have a good face, and a naughty nature, a beautiful countenance, and a baſe life.

In thine heart] See the Note on Mat. 5.28. and on 1 Cor. 7.34.

Propers. Paguin. Neither let her take thee with her eye-lids] Si neſcis, oculi ſunt in amore duces. Some render it, Neque to capiat splendoribus ſuis, Let her not take thee with her glitterings, and gay habiliments, or head-tires. Cyprian and Auſtin ſay, that ſuperfluous attire is worſe than whoredome, becauſe whoredome only corrupts chaſtity, but this corrupts nature. Hierome ſaith; that if women adorn themſelves ſo as to provoke men to luſt after them, though no evil follow upon it, yet thoſe women ſhall ſuffer eternal damnation, becauſe they offered poyſon to others, though none would drink it.

Verſ. 26. For by means of a Whoriſh woman] See the Note on Chap. 5.10. Theſe creatures know no other language but that of the Horſleeches daughter, Give, give, and may fitly bee compared to the Ravens of Arabia, that full-gorged have a tuneable ſweet record; but empty, ſcreech horribly: or to Carrion-crows, that flock to a dead carcaſs, not to defend it, but to devour it; and no ſooner have they bared the bones, but they are gone.Daniels Chronicle. Thus Dame Alice Peirce (King Edward the thirds Concubine) ſerved him whiles hee lived, all was here as ſhee would; and when this King lay a dying, ſhee packt away what ſhee could ſnatch, even to the rings on his fingers, and ſo left him.

Corpus, opes, animum, famam, vim, lumina, Scortum Debilitat, perdit, necat, aufert, cripit, orbat.

Will hunt for the precious life] As Potiphars wife did for Joſephs, Gen. 39.14. And ſurely it was a great providence of God, that upon her falſe accuſation, hee had not been preſently put to death. Into priſon hee was thrown, and ſo laden with fetters, that the iron entred into his ſoul, i. e. eat into his fleſh, Pſal. 105.18. and all by means of this Whoriſh woman,Mantud[illegible: 1 letter]. whoſe luſt turned into hatred. Aut te ardenter amat, aut te capitaliter odit. See more in the Note on Prov. 5.11.

Verſ. 27. Can a man take fire] Leſt any man ſhould reply, I will ſee to my ſelf, and ſave one from the fore-named miſchiefs. I have more wit than to truſt any Harlot, and more skill than to let it come abroad to my diſgrace and detriment: The Wiſe-man anſwers, that it is as poſſible to take a live-coal from the hearth, and bear it in a mans boſome, without burning his cloaths, or to walk upon fire without ſcorching his feet, as to attempt any thing in this kinde, and to ſcape ſcot-free. Flagitium & flagellum ſicut acus & filum. Sin and puniſhment go linked together with chains of Adamant. Thy cloaths will ſtink at leaſt of that fire, thy feet will bliſter at leaſt with thoſe coals. If the great ſhowr blow over thee, yet thou ſhalt bee wet with the after-drops.

Verſ. 28. Can one go upon hot coals?] Similitudes are never ſet out to confirm or confute, but to adorn and illuſtrate, giving unto their matter a certain kinde of lively geſture, and ſtirring up thereby mens drowſie mindes to the conſideration and acknowlegement of the truth, and to the purſute and practice of vertue and godlineſs. Of the great uſe of Similes, wee may read in Chryſoſt. Hom. in Gen. 13. Origen in Levit. 10. Auguſt. de doctrina Chriſt. lib. 2. Greg. Moral. lib. 3. cap. 36. &c.

Verſ. 29. So hee that goeth in to his neighbour] That ſuſpiciouſly converſeth with her alone, though haply with no intent of corrupting her. Joſeph ſhunned the company of his Miſtreſs, hee would not bee with her alone, Gen. 39.10. Chambering and ſecret familiarity with women is forbidden as a deed of darkneſs and diſhoneſty, Rom. 13.13. How much more then wanton touches and dalliance. Sit not at all with another mans wife, ſit not down upon the bed with her, ſaith Siracides, Chap. 9. Chriſts Diſciples marvelled that hee talked with the woman of Samaria, Solus cum ſola, ſaith Beza. But hee might do that,Joh. 427. that wee muſt beware of, leſt concupiſcence kindle. Abraham might ſee Sadome burning, but Lot might not look that way.

Shall not bee innocent] Shall not bee held ſo, howſoever ſhall ſuffer in his name, bee hee never ſo honeſt (beſides that hereby hee tempts the Devil to tempt him to uncleanneſs.) Now the Proverb is, Oculus & fama non patiuntur jocos. A mans eye and his name will bear no jeſt. And hee was no fool that ſaid, Negligere quid de ſe quiſque ſentiat, non ſolum arrogantis est, ſed & diſſoluti. Hee is not only a proud, but a lewd perſon, that takes no thought what others think and talk of him. Provide wee muſt for things honeſt, not onely before the Lord, but alſo before men, 2 Cor. 8.20 21.

Verſ. 30. Men do not despiſe a Theef] Wee uſe to ſay, A lyer is worſe than a theef;Potior eſt fur quam qui aſſidue mentitur. [non-Latin text not transcribed]. Suidas. and Siracides ſaith the ſame of a conſtant lyer, Chap. 20. But that an Adulterer is worſe than a Theef, the Holy Ghoſt here aſſureth us, and his reaſons are unanſwerable. For firſt, his neceſſity pleads for him, hee muſt either ſteal or ſtarve, and this doth ſomewhat excuſe him, à tanto as they ſay, but not à toto; For as a man ſhould rather dye than lye, ſo hee ſhould rather periſh than purloin or pilfer. But what excuſe hath the Adulterer? non ventris inediam patitur, ſed cordis indigentiam, hee wants not meat, but wit; hee preſerveth not his body, but deſtroyeth his ſoul.

Verſ. 31. Hee ſhall reſtore ſeven-fold] i. e. Manifold, according as the Law limiteth, though it bee to the utmoſt of what the Theef is worth. But what reſtitution can the Adulterer make? ſhould hee make him amends with as much more? The Theef ſteals out of want, the Adulterer of wantonneſs.

Verſ. 32. Lacketh underſtanding] Being wholly carried by ſenſual appetite, againſt the dictates both of Religion, and of Reaſon. Beetles love dunghils better than oyntments, and Swine love mud better than a garden. Luther tells of a certain Grandee in his Country, ſo beſotted with the ſin of Whoredome, hee was not aſhamed to ſay, that if hee might ever live here, and bee carried from one Whore-houſe to another, there to ſatisfie his luſts, hee would never deſire any other heaven. This filthy man did afterwards breathe out his wretched ſoul betwixt two notorious Harlots.

Loniceri theat. hiſtor. p. 5[illegible: 2 letters]. Deſtroyeth his own ſoul] It is not therefore leve peccatum, a ſmall ſin, as the Popes Canoniſts call it. Divine Juſtice doth not uſe to kill Flyes with Beetles.

Verſ. 33. A wound and diſhonour ſhall hee get] Either from the husband of the Adultereſs, or from the Magiſtrate, who will put him to death, according to the Law of God, Levit. 20. Deut. 22. and of divers Nations, with whom Adultery is a capital crime.

And his reproach ſhall not bee wiped away] See the Note in Chap. 5.9. How oft read we of David, that hee was upright in all things, ſave only in the matter of Uriah? What an indeleble blot is that ſtill upon him?

Verſ. 34. For jealouſie is the rage] Howbeit hee may not kill the Adulterer though taken in the act,Cuſtos utriuſque tabula. but proſecute the Law againſt him, and appeal to the Magiſtrate, who is the Lord-keeper of both Tables. But if no Law will releeve a man, yet let him know, that hee ſhall do himſelf no diſſervice by making God his Chancellor.