John Trapp on Proverbs 6:9

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.