Proverbs Chapter 19
Proverbs
Chapter 19
1. Better a poor man whose walk is blameless than a fool whose lips are perverse. Poverty is never a disgrace, except when it is the result of wrong behavior. But when it is adorned with blameless character, it is most honorable. Better a poor man than a person who is elevated in his own sight because of his riches and is given over to being perverse. Often men put under their feet those whom God carries in his heart. Man honors the perverse for their riches and despises the poor because of their poverty. But what does the rich man have if he does not have God? And what is a poor man lacking if he has God? It is better to be in a wilderness with God than in Canaan without him. Judge wisdom according to God's standard. God judges by character, not by status. Estimate the value of everything in the light of eternity. Death will strip the poor of his rags and the rich of his purple and bring them both naked to the earth, from which they came. Meanwhile, let us hear our Lord's voice to his despised people. He knows about our poverty, yet we are rich (Revelation 2:9). For those who honor God, he will reward with his seal, his smile, and his everlasting crown.
2. It is not good to have zeal without knowledge, nor to be hasty and miss the way. Let us note the evil of the lack of sound and disciplined knowledge in temporal matters. The uninstructed child or savage acts rashly. The impulsive person is impatient to finish his work and so always crowds too much into his days. He forgets that "things are not done by the effort of the moment, but by the preparation of past moments" (Cecil). Our wise moralist has well remarked, "He that is in a hurry proves that the work in which he is engaged is too much for him" (Dr. Johnson). Certainly to be hasty can be a sin when it comes from a lack of simple trust in God.
The right way to live is to do the thing of the day on that day. This is all that God requires to be done. The affairs of one day at a time is as much as can be quietly committed to God in the daily exercise of faith. This principle should be carried into all important responsibilities. Bishop Burnet's account of Sir M. Hale has a most valuable insight about this: "Festina lente [make haste slowly] was his beloved motto, which he ordered to be engraved on the head of his staff. He was often heard to say that he had observed many witty men run into great error because they did not give themselves time to think. But the heat of imagination made them make wrong decisions. Whereas calm men who made decisions in a measured way could search after truth and find it with greater certainty."
But this evil is far more serious in spiritual matters. "Where no discretion is, there the soul is not well" (Bishop Coverdale's translation). The man who is without knowledge, instead of pondering his path, is hasty and miss[es] the way. Eagerness, as opposed to sloth, is the energy of divine grace. But here it is compared with thoughtfulness, and to be hasty here leads to sin. This impatience shows that a person will only take notice of his own wishes and has no time for making carefully thought out decisions. Rash experiments, often the result of haste, often land the nation in serious trouble. The same spirit cuts the church in two with schism. Let us remember that without self-discipline there can be no Christian consistency. The best of intentions, without the will and Word of God, are only blind impulses. They should be checked and not followed. The real peace of faith is to stand or sit still and see how God will appear on our side, to make a way for us through many deep waters of perplexity.
3. A man's own folly ruins his life, yet his heart rages against the Lord. Such was the folly of Adam! First he ruined his life, then he accused God. As he caused his own miserable situation, it would have been reasonable to blame himself. But he was so proud that his heart raged against God, as if God, and not Adam himself, were responsible. This has been the foolishness of Adam's children ever since. God has linked moral and penal evil, sin and sorrow. The fool rushes into the sin and most unreasonably rages against the Lord. He blames his crosses not on his own perverseness, but on God's injustice. But God is free from all blame. He showed the better way, but man chose the worse way. God has issued warnings through his Word and through the conscience. But man, deaf to these warnings, plunges into misery and, while eating the fruit of his own ways, rages against the Lord. Such is the pride and blasphemy of a proud spirit. The criminal blames the judge for his righteous sentence.
We must study God's gracious dispensations carefully. "O Lord, remove our ignorance that we may know you; our idleness, that we may seek you; our unbelief, that we may find and enjoy you " (Bishop Hall).
4. Wealth brings many friends, but a poor man's friend deserts him. We have had the substance of this proverb previously (14:20). It is generally true that wealth brings many friends. "Riches have them," says Bishop Hall. But they are usually worth very little. The principle is to beware of selfishness. Few love at all times (17:17).
Lack of sympathy for the poor is a serious evil. It separates those whom God has linked by a mutual bond of reciprocal interest. The rich are the guardians and protectors of the poor, while the poor are the strength and support of the rich. But all too often the poor know their wealthier neighbors only as living in the most luxurious indulgence, while they themselves are left in their poverty, uncared for. This would never happen if the rich lived by the principle of divine love.
Poverty may separate a poor person from his neighbor, but who can separate him from his God (Romans 8:38-39)? "If it were possible for him to stand absolutely in need of the use and service of the whole creation, all the creatures in the world would surely wait on him and be appropriated to him" (Bishop Reynolds). With such an inheritance as this, why should he fret about a few years' poverty or neglect? Earth's short vision will soon be past, and then comes the eternal reality of unclouded joy.
5. A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who pours out lies will not go free. If a truthful witness saves lives (14:25), a false witness destroys them. This is an offense against the Ten Commandments.
The habit of lying, allowing an untruth to exist under the cover of a good motive, grows and results in more and more evil. There is much instruction in the wise reply of Solon on first seeing the rude theatricals of Thespis. Asking him how he dared to tell so many lies before the people, he received the answer that he only did it in play. "Yes," said the legislator, striking his staff with force into the ground, "but if we begin with telling lies in play, we shall end with telling them in earnest."
So careful attention to truth is vital in Christian education. The boundary line must never be trifled with. Not even a child can cross it with impunity. A child must never be allowed to play with a falsehood.
6-7. Many curry favor with a ruler, and everyone is the friend of a man who gives gifts. A poor man is shunned by all his relatives—how much more do his friends avoid him! Though he pursues them with pleading, they are nowhere to be found. Everyone loves, or professes to love, those from whom they expect something that will benefit them. If a person who is now fawned on for his gifts were by providence brought to poverty, the same friends would hate or neglect him. "Which of them," asks Bishop Hall, "would dare acknowledge him when he is going to prison?" As the winter brooks, filled with water from springs and from the torrents from heaven, are dried up and vanish in the summer heat, so these friends of the poor disappear in his day of calamity.
We need to consider how we should plead for the favor of our Prince. We need to reflect on the gifts he gives to his people. Should not those who are enriched by them show his rule of mercy to their poor brethren, especially to the heirs of the kingdom? "Lord, in my greatest plenty help me to mind and feel others' poverty; and in my most prosperous condition keep me from forgetting the afflictions of your foseph" (Swinnock).
8. He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; he who cherishes understanding prospers. It might seem that self-interest could put us in a favorable position with God. Only a careless sinner could think that! Apply your heart diligently to seek wisdom, and then bring your heart to God for his light and teaching. Yet it requires as much care to keep the blessing as to get the blessing. It will quickly slip away from a negligent hand.
But no ordinary good is found here. To get wisdom, therefore, whatever the cost, is to love our own soul. One should be ashamed even to ask the question, will Christ or the world have our love, trust, time, and talents? It is like comparing pebbles with pearls, dust with diamonds, dross with gold. To follow our way is to destroy ourselves and not to love our souls.
9. A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who pours out lies will perish. The revealed character of Jehovah is that he is faithful and true. We should not be surprised at the repeated denunciations against deceit, for it greatly dishonors God's never-changing attribute. One addition is made to the previous sentence on this topic (verse 5). Not only will he who pours out lies not escape—he will perish. Lies and desolations are linked (Hosea 12:1; Malachi 3:5).
10. It is not fitting for a fool to live in luxury—how much worse for a slave to rule over princes! The slave has the same rational power as his sovereign. But lesser habits of mind make him unfit to rule. There are, however, exceptions to this, as in the case of Joseph. But God's order is seldom reversed without anarchy and confusion. Peace and happiness belong to godly contentment (1 Timothy 6:6). Those whom God has placed in a subordinate position should remember our Father's voice: "Should you then seek great things for yourself? Seek them not" (Jeremiah 45:5).
11. A man's wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense. What is anger but temporary madness? To give in, therefore, to its paroxysm, to act without deliberation under its impulse, is to do we know not what. But whatever we do will surely need to be repented over! A space between the inner rise and the outer manifestation of the anger is most important. A man's wisdom gives him patience. Mindful of his own infirmity, the wise man will guard against the indecent attacks of temper and take time to weigh the offense and not think of it in a worse light than it really is. Even heathen moralists acknowledge the value of this. "I would have beaten you, if I was not angry," said the philosopher to his offending servant. Augustus, when he was in a rage, was told to repeat the alphabet to give him time to calm down. "It is easier," as Seneca wisely observed, "not to give way to the passion than, when indulged in, to govern it." Justin Martyr, when asked which was Christ's greatest miracle, named his great patience in such great trials.
An affront, therefore, is a test. It will show whether we have patience or not. It will reveal if we are a slave to the passion of our own anger. The way of the world is to get even with people and to repay one insult with another insult. But the Christian way is not to trade insults but rather to repay an insult with a blessing (1 Peter 3:9).
It is to his glory to overlook an offense. Man is so warped in his judgment that to overlook an offense is thought to be an act of a fool or a weak person. But Solomon, a wise man and a king, declares that it is a weakness, not strength or greatness, to be able to bear nothing. It is his glory to overlook an offense. It must be so because it is acting in the same way as God acts. What a motive this gives us! "Let it pass for a kind of sheepishness to be meek. It is a likeness to him who was 'a sheep before the shearers, not opening his mouth' (Isaiah 53:7). It is a portion of his spirit" (Leighton).
12. A king's rage is like the roar of a lion, but his favor is like dew on the grass. The monarch of the forest is like the monarch of the land. Who would not fear a roaring lion? The rocks and hills echo the terrible cry. All the animals of the forest flee or, petrified, are rooted to the spot. Such is a king's rage in a land of despotism, where the king rules without law and acts above the law, as if there were no laws. This is a dreadful picture of cruelty and tyranny. Unlimited power is too much for the proud human nature to bear, unless endued with special grace from above. But the king's favor brings reviving blessing, like dew on the grass, when vegetation is nourished.
If a king's rage is so terrible, what, oh, my soul, must God's wrath be like! May this wrath be the great object of my reverential fear. Let me flee from it by the only way of escape, while escape is open to me, and seek God's favor, as the enriching dew to Israel, fertilizing my barren soil (Hosea 14:5-7; Psalm 72:6).
13. A foolish son is his father's ruin, and a quarrelsome wife is like a constant dripping. "Many," observes an old commentator, "are the miseries of a man's life; but none like that which comes from him who could be the stay of his life" (Jermin). As a wise son makes a glad father, so a foolish son is his father's ruin. The throne of grace to the Christian father will be the only refuge for his grief. There he will pour out the bitterness of his soul in humiliation for himself, and there he will pray for his child, and so find rest.
A quarrelsome wife is like a constant dripping. Another domestic calamity is now mentioned, but it is not as poignant as the first one. A quarrelsome wife is like rain coming through the roof of an old house. Such dripping utterly destroys a man's household comfort and wears away a heart previously firm as stone. But faith will seek strength to bear this meekly so that God may be honored. It is right to exact a solid blessing from a heavy trial. And who knows if the quarrelsome wife may not be won over through persevering prayer and patient forbearance and be a helper to her husband, and so both live a life of grace together.
14. Houses and wealth are inherited from parents, but a prudent wife is from the Lord. Every good gift comes from God. Some of these gifts come to us in daily life; others come in extraordinary ways. Houses and wealth, although they are God's gifts, are inherited from parents. The heir is known, and in the course of events he takes possession of his estate. But a prudent wife is totally unknown to the man and is not related to him. The account of Ruth's life beautifully illustrates God's providence in a marriage. The Moabitess married, contrary to all human expectation, an Israelite. In this way she was brought into Naomi's family. She had returned with Naomi to her land and then came to the attention of Boaz, who became Ruth's husband. Often the wheels of the Lord's working in this interesting matter constrain the admiration of men who are not used to observing spiritual matters (Genesis 24:50). And how much more endearing and secure is a special gift of God! The bread coming down from heaven was more valued than if it had been the fruit of labor. Thus a prudent wife is honored as "a special blessing of God's immediate choosing, and therefore to be obtained by our prayers at the hand of the giver" (Bishop Hall).
But is not the husband, no less than the wife, from the Lord? Let each person seek the blessing of God's ordinance. We must never trust our own judgment and affections without first seeking God's guidance. Let us realize the responsibility, as well as the comfort, of the union. Always count it as a gift from God, for his service and glory.
15. Laziness brings on deep sleep, and the shiftless man goes hungry. All experience and observation attest to the fact that laziness destroys mental energy, and idleness leads to hunger. What else could we expect from the sluggard lying in bed all day long? And if the sluggard does take a false step, he does not have enough energy to correct it. Marshall Turenne expressed his warm appreciation to a friend who had given him the following advice when first setting out in life: "When you have made a false step, spend not a moment in vexing yourself and moaning over it; but think how it may best be repaired, and instantly set about it." If there is any reward in perseverance, sloth will never find it. The shiftless man goes hungry.
Here is a word to the thoughtless sinner: Think how this applies to God's work. You persuade yourself that all is well because you will not trouble yourself to open your eyes to the truth, and you are content to let things run their course. You do not rebel against the Gospel openly. But has not our divine Master said that he who is not with him is against him (Matthew 12:30)? You like to think that you have done no harm. But have you done no harm if you have wasted every opportunity for eternity? Have you not wandered about in vanity from your cradle instead of living for God? You are determined to sleep. Although the two great treasures—the favor of God and your own soul—are in imminent danger, you still tell your soul to take its ease. Instead of weeping love, wrestling prayer, and working diligence, you turn over and go back to sleep. Wake up, or else you will sleep the sleep of eternal death.
16. He who obeys instructions guards his life, but he who is contemptuous of his ways will die. To fear God's instructions is to travel on the path of honor. To obey them is our security. If we keep the Word, the Word will keep us safe. Our duties are thus identified with our privileges. This is the first successful effort to shake ourselves from the deep sleep of laziness.
Yet, the power to obey God's instructions is not within a man. Is it not rather a matter of God working in us, through us, with us ? Let the world know that we do not exercise obedience in a covenant of works, but that keeping the commandment evangelically is keeping our own souls. This is the way of present happiness, the seal of everlasting mercy, and the pathway to heaven.
17. He who is kind to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will reward him for what he has done. It is God's ordinance that there will always be poor in the land (Deuteronomy 15:11). Hence the universal obligation is to be kind to the poor. This is also taught in the New Testament, which inculcates the spirit no less than the act (Luke 6:30-36; Colossians 3:12). We must open our heart as much as our hand. For it is possible to give all our goods to the poor without having an atom of true love in our heart.
. . . lends to the Lord. Sir Thomas More used to say, "There was more rhetoric in this little sentence than in a whole library." The worldly philanthropist, however, has no conception of the divine honor of the principle involved in it. If your brother is the object of kindness, the majesty of heaven is concerned. The Lord considers it as a loan to himself. It is lending to the Lord. Selfishness would evade the obligation under the cover of prudence. But what we give is only a loan, to be repaid. The security we have for the loan we make will never fail.
The Lord of heaven condescends to be the Surety for the poor. He takes the debt on himself and gives us the bond of his word in promise of payment. Although he has a right to rule over everyone and is obligated to none, he becomes a debtor to his own. Many acts of kindness have been buried and forgotten. The witness of our conscience is the only fruit. But here is a safe deposit in the heart of God. It can never be lost or forgotten. "If then," as Bishop Hall writes, "we need to store our money, where should we put it other than in the Christian's treasury? The poor man's hand is the treasury of Christ. All my superfluity shall there be hoarded up, where I know it will be kept safe and surely returned to me."
And yet most people prefer to lend to a rich man of known integrity rather than to the Lord. It is indeed an act of faith, often of naked faith, when there seems no hope of return. But the King delights to honor this principle. And only on the resurrection day will most of this be brought to light. Meanwhile, let us admire God's wonderful grace. He puts the desire in the heart, disposes the heart, gives the opportunity, and after all accepts the act as if it had been his own work, without stain or any pollution.
18. Discipline your son, for in that there is hope; do not be a willing party to his death. Christian parents should study God's Word carefully. Note here too our Father's wise and loving discipline of his children. And which child has not blessed him for not withholding his discipline until it had accomplished its perfect work?
Is not this, then, our pattern and our standard, setting out the sound principle of Christian education? Fathers are not to embitter their children so that they become discouraged (Colossians 3:21). However, let the rule of discipline not be a hard saying. Is not so-called tenderness for the child a cover for the indulgence of weak and foolish affections? There is much more mercy in what seems to be harshness than in false tenderness. Let the child see that we are firm in our resolution. Let him realize that we will not be diverted from our duty by the cry of weakness or passion. It is far better that the child should cry under healthy correction than that parents should later cry under the bitter fruit to themselves and their children of neglected discipline. "Eli could not have devised which way to have plagued himself and his house so much as by his kindness to his children's sin. Parents need no other means to make themselves miserable than sparing the rod" (Bishop Hall). Yet much less of this would be needed if parents brought up their children as they ought to, through a firm decision or a word, a frown, or a look.
But the great force of the rule is its timely application, while there is hope. For hopeless the case may be if the remedy is delayed. The cure of the evil must be started in infancy. Not a moment is to be lost. The lesson of obedience should be learned at the first dawn. One struggle and victory in early life may, under God, set the tone for the rest of life. On the other hand, strong discipline may fail later on to accomplish what a slight rebuke might have produced much earlier.
Is there not all too often deliberate blindness here? We do not choose to see what is painful to correct. It is a false idea to say, "Children will be children." It only makes us pass over their faults and think that their tempers and waywardness are too trifling to require prompt correction. In this way, sin winked at in its beginning hardens and becomes deep-rooted corruption. For who would neglect their most trifling bodily ailment that might grow into a serious disease? Oh, what grace and wisdom are needed to discipline our minds, judgment, and affections so that we can train up our children to serve God, which will be their greatest happiness.
19. A hot-tempered man must pay the penalty; if you rescue him, you will have to do it again. How often the undisciplined child grows into a hot-tempered man. Friendly efforts to restrain this wrath must be repeated again and again (1 Samuel 19:1-11; 20:32-33), even though they are so often ineffective.
Meanwhile, the man must pay the penalty. He punishes himself. Wounded pride and resentment leave the wretched criminal brooding in his room. He suffers an intolerable burden of self-inflicted punishment.
What, then, is the radical cure? We must learn from the One who has a lowly heart (Matthew 11:29). The glory and encouragement of the Gospel is that trusting in God, despite difficulties, is possible and wise (2 Corinthians 12:9).
20. Listen to advice and accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise. We have just had a word for parents, telling them how to discipline their children (verse 18). Here the children and others are told to be humble. They need to be awake to advice and instruction, and so must listen to it and accept it. Advice and instruction are often at hand, but God's people so often pay no attention to this divine wisdom. But who, in view of the tragic sight of our present state of ungodliness, will not follow the advice of the godly man who cried, "If only they were wise and would understand this and discern what their end will be!" (Deuteronomy 32:29).
21. Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails. Here is a fine contrast between man and God, showing the great distinction between the worm and his Maker. Man's most serious plans are nothing when compared to God's. And it is God's purpose that prevails. For man's plans are full of trouble and are eventually fruitless. But God's counsel is immutable, and it will stand forever.
It is a vain thing to attempt to fight against God. Our freedom does not interfere with his secret purpose. And we must be careful that we do not resist God's declared will. As his providence chooses our lot, let his Word discipline our desires as the best way to bring them to fruition. For everything is clear above, no matter how cloudy it may be below. All is calm in heaven, however stormy it may be on earth. There is no confusion there. One will alone reign. Every purpose reaches its appointed end.
22. What a man desires is unfailing love; better to be poor than a liar. The privilege of doing good is within reach of us all. If there is a willing mind, it is accepted according to what a man has, not according to what he has not (2 Corinthians 8:12). God's dealings with his people are grounded on this principle. David's desire to build the temple was as fully accepted and honored as the act itself, which was appointed for his son (2 Chronicles 6:8; 7:12-18).
This desire must be active and no mere wishful excitement. But be sure that your motive is pure. Men do not see our hearts, but the Lord weighs our motives (16:2), and fire will test every man's work to see what it is made of (1 Corinthians 3:13).
23. The fear of the Lord leads to life: Then one rests content, untouched by trouble. Here the fear of the Lord as a legal principle is something that Christians are exempt from (Luke 1:74; Romans 8:15; 2 Timothy 1:7). But as a grace of the Gospel, men should cultivate such fear with consummate care. Its three fruits are set out for us here: life, contentment, and security.
It leads to life. This is not just natural life, which we have in common with the ungodly (although this blessing, insofar as it is good, is also included), but heavenly life, eternal life, life lived in the sunshine of God's smile. So far as we are under its influence, we speak, pray, think, and deal with man as if God were standing next to us.
Meanwhile, the contentment that it imparts is a precious privilege. God's service is now our great delight. The law is no taskmaster looming over our heads, but a principle of life and joyful energy. The hearts of the men of this world are torn with an aching void. But the cry of God's child reflects his contentment. Lord, shine your light on me.
We normally dread fear. But if you fear the Lord, that touch turns fear to gold. He who fears in this way does not fear. His mercy sweeps away the fear of terror. His holiness maintains the fear of reverence. Conscious of our security in God, we are even more fearful of ever leaving or being separated from his love.
24. The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; he will not even bring it back to his mouth! Here is another striking illustration of the disease of sloth (see 12:27; 26:15)! It so grows on its victim that he has no heart to do even necessary things for himself—as if he cannot take his hand out of his dish. He prefers the ravages of hunger to the exertion of putting food into his mouth! This is a melancholy picture of many good intentions and promises, and apparently good beginnings in religion, which all grind to a halt when the least effort is required. Every religious duty is a burden. The struggle necessary for prayer, the only means of receiving our spiritual food, is too hard. The soul that seemed to have been awakened sinks into its former lethargy. The effort to rouse it becomes fainter and more hopeless. The hand cannot reach out, even if a crown were within reach.
But remember this, Christian: He who has awakened you from the sleep of death will keep you awake until the Lord comes. But even with you, much drowsiness remains that the Lord will not tolerate. The Lord will make you feel that life is a solemn reality, that prayer is not a halfhearted work but close contact with the living God.
Look for rest only in the arms of victory. While the conflict lasts, there is no time for loitering or for slumber. Never forget to thank God for every victory. Thank him for his constant strength that enables you to continue fighting. Peace with God is our life, and the joy of the Lord is our strength, our health, our happiness, and so we will not be found in a listless state.
25. Flog a mocker, and the simple will learn prudence; rebuke a discerning man, and he will gain knowledge. There is a difference of opinion about the value of punishments. Some say that if the will does not give way to reason, enforcing obedience has little purpose. But God's Word and ordinance is our standard, although great wisdom is required in how we carry it out. Two things are mentioned in this proverb, both of which are linked to the character of the offender.
The mocker is a bold sinner. He needs to be flogged in order to learn prudence. This may be a timely warning to those who are led by him. Dealing with a ringleader can put an end to many troubles. Often when one person is made an example of, even though the sinner himself continues to be in a hardened state, it benefits a whole group of people. Thus "God strikes some, that he may warn all" (Bishop Hall).
A discerning man should be rebuked. He is not to be flogged. In the case of the mocker, his punishment is for the sake of others. In the case of the discerning man, his punishment is for his own sake. He will gain knowledge. Never let us forget the mercy of being kept from sin or being restored from it, even if it is by our Master's sharp and gracious rebuke. "Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline" (Revelation 3:19).
26. He who robs his father and drives out his mother is a son who brings shame and disgrace. This is a dreadful picture of recklessness. It is a picture of unrestrained depravity (Romans 1:30-31). Man is the debased slave of his selfish desires. The profligate may rob his father of his substance by extravagance, and his spirit and health by his evil behavior. Often a mother's tenderness has been repaid with crushing unkindness. The insolence of an ungrateful son virtually drives her out from her own home. Such monsters in human shape, polluting every principle of humanity, have been found in every generation. Yet seldom do they escape without some mark of retributive justice even in this life (30:11, 17).
27. Stop listening to instruction, my son, and you will stray from the words of knowledge. Our divine Master gave a similar warning when he told his disciples to beware of false prophets and to be careful about what they heard (Matthew 7:15; Mark 4:24). All instruction is not positive and does not always promote life. Teachers of evil, who are Satan's ministers, abound.
This instruction is not usually a clear departure from the truth. But, like the first temptation, it causes us to err gradually. We hardly notice that we are deviating from the straight and narrow route until the mischief has caught us. If Eve had at once stopped listening to the serpent, she would not have been led astray from the words of knowledge. But the success of the first attempt has made the seducer more bold to deal out his deadly poison to her weakened children.
But what if we are in a place where words of knowledge are not found? To start with, we would suggest that particular cases require particular action. There may be cases when the call is to stop listening. If the teaching is heretical or wholly unevangelical, if the teacher's life is immoral or scandalously worldly, if the children or servants of the family are clearly in danger of being led astray, it may be right to leave. In such a case you would be separating from the minister and not from the church. But in no circumstances should the ungodliness of the minister be an excuse to neglect Christian ordinances. At the same time, in many more cases than is usually supposed, the mature Christian will do well to stay where he is, continue to pray, abound in his labor of love, and be a consistent example. He may have the opportunity to administer a reproof. He definitely will have the opportunity to take up his appointed cross.
28-29. A corrupt witness mocks at justice, and the mouth of the wicked gulps down evil. Penalties are prepared for mockers, and beatings for the backs of fools. Here we are reminded that fools who make a mockery of sin often have their backs beaten by men who are God's instruments. If only thoughtless and careless young people would take such words to heart. When they join in scoffing, they should tremble in case they are standing in the company of sinners. Soon they will find themselves sitting with those who are scornful (Psalm 1:1). They may end up despising God's warnings even more than their companions.
Who is to blame when such penalties are handed out? "Our sin," says Bishop Hall," is our own, and the wages of sin is death. He who does the work earns the wages. So, then, the righteous God is cleared both of our sin and our death. Only his justice pays us what our evil deeds deserve. What a wretched thing is a willing sinner, as he will cause his own death." It would be a happy day indeed if he ever turned to God in repentance (Jeremiah 31:18-19).