portions will not be according to what appeared to men, but according to the righteous measure of divine knowledge. Thus “many that are first shall be last, and the last first." Ought we not then to be emulous to abound in acts of faithful and devoted service to our divine Master? Is it right in any servant of His, to satisfy himself with as much only as may just serve to prevent his being rejected? Would not the very exercise of a principle thus ungenerously selfish, be sufficient of itself to ensure, or at least to warrant his rejection? Should we not be solicitous to be able to say"Thy pound hath gained ten pounds?"-not only not to wrap it in a napkin and let it lie unimproved altogether, but to put it forth to the best possible advantage for the credit of our Master and his cause?-And ought we not as a church, collectively as well as individually, to be zealous of good works; and to "consider one another," to stimulate to their multiplied performance?—that thus we may be mutually "helpers of one another's faith and joy," and contribute to brighten the gems of each other's crowns in the day of the Lord?

LECTURE LXXIV.

PROV. XXIV. 13--22.

"My son, eat thou honey, because it is good; and the honeycomb, which is sweet to thy taste: so shall the knowledge of wisdom be unto thy soul: when thou hast found it, then there shall be a reward, and thy expectation shall not be cut off. Lay not wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous; spoil not his resting place: for a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief. Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth; and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbleth; lest the Lord see it, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him. Fret not thyself because of evil men, neither be thou envious at the wicked. no reward to the evil man; the candle of the wicked shall be put out. My son, fear thou the Lord and the king; and meddle not with them that are given to change for their calamity shall rise suddenly; and who knoweth the ruin of them both?"

For there shall be

A COMPARISON is, in the first two verses, instituted between objects of natural and spiritual taste, and natural and spiritual benefit.-God is good. His benevolence appears in this, among other ways, that in the provision made for us in temporal things, He does not, by any rigid law, prohibit the use of all but what is necessary to life and health. There are many things gratifying to taste, and sight, and smell, of which such necessity cannot be affirmed. And from these, when used in moderation, and in the spirit of gratitude and dependence, we are not interdicted. We may eat "honey,” not only because it is "good," or nutritious, but also because it is 66 sweet." We must not forget, however, that honey is both; for in regard to both, the comparison appears to be designed. Canaan abounded in honey; and it was used, not only as a luxury to the palate, but as an article of diet. "Butter and

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honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good," Isa. vii. 15. "Butter" is not considered as the proper import of the original word here. It means thickened or curdled milk, which is "still a favourite article of food in Syria, Arabia, and the neighbouring countries: and, when mixed with honey, is exceedingly agreeable to the taste."* And that honey" was used as an article of diet, and an accompaniment to other kinds of food, we learn from an incident on a most interesting occasion—when Jesus appeared to the disciples after his resurrection :“While they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat? And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honey-comb," Luke xxiv. 41, 42.—In the reference to "honey" and "the honey-comb," then, we have the two ideas of pleasantness and nutritiveness. The comparison follows-"so shall the knowledge of wisdom be unto thy soul."

There are some men who might as well, for all the use they make of them, have been without minds. Their mental powers lie dormant. Their enjoyment is all in what is sensual and frivolous. But the experience of such fools no more proves that general knowledge imparts no pleasure, than instances of palates which have lost their relish can prove honey not to be sweet. The cultivation of the mental faculties, and their employment in the acquisition of knowledge, is a source of pure and exquisite pleasure. It is so in regard to general and scientific knowledge, how much more so in regard to divine knowledge, the knowledge of those truths which divine inspiration has been given to communicate, and divine power has put forth in miracle to confirm !-The truth of the comparison presupposes for its ascertainment, the existence of a spiritual taste. Spiritual things are "spiritually discerned;" and the spiritual perception of their excellence imparts a pleasure to the soul, of which no power of human sophistry can ever deprive it. A man whose palate is in a healthy condition, and who has tasted honey, can never be argued out

* Henderson.

of the conviction of its sweetness.

You may reason with

him to the end of his days; but he will die in the conviction that honey is sweet. So it is with the soul that has received "the knowledge of wisdom," that has once tasted the sweetness of spiritual discoveries, and of those spiritual enjoyments to which the faith of them introduces. Experience is more than all argument;—" more than all the atheists in the world with their sophistry, and all the profane with their banter."*—And the relish, once felt, produces a growing desire. He who relishes sweetness, having tasted honey, will long for it again. So the sweetness of divine knowledge will quicken the liking for it, and the eagerness for more.† The soul having extracted a little of the sweetness of the word of God, of the "honey from the rock," will long, with a keener relish, for a larger portion;-will long for a progressive acquaintance with its rich and varied contents; in their relative bearings, in their beautiful harmony, in their holy and heavenly influence.—And such progress, while pleasant, is profitable to the soul. Its practical effects are most precious. It promotes spiritual growth,-the nourishment and the healthful exercise of all the principles and affections of the divine life.

There is one point in which the comparison fails. "Honey” is only good in moderation. If its sweetness tempt to the excessive use of it, it becomes both nauseous and hurtful. But this is not true and never can be true, of "the knowledge of wisdom "—the knowledge of God's truth. It never can be found sickening the mind, and producing nausea and rejection. The maxim of all in possession of it will be— a maxim held the more strongly the more abundant has been the acquisition,- The more the better."- -"Surely there is a reward." There is a present reward; a reward of present enjoyment, present benefit, present blessing; not the reward of the man who takes honey to excess,-whom it cloys and sickens, and whose constitution it injures; but the reward

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* Henry.

† Comp. Psa. xix. 7—11; cxix. 103, 97, 47; Jer. xv. 16.

See chap. xxv. 16, 27.

of spiritual pleasure and spiritual prosperity, in due propor tion to the amount of acquirement. And there is a future reward::Thine expectation shall not be cut off." This may refer, indeed, to present enjoyment and present benefit. The "expectation," in this respect, can never go beyond the reality; the reality will ever be found to exceed the " ехресtation." But the "expectation" may be regarded as connected with eternity; with the consummation of the divine life in heaven, as well as with its commencement and pro

gress on earth. That " expectation shall not be cut off,"

when every other shall.

Verse 15. "Lay not wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous; spoil not his resting place." This is an admonition to evil men to beware of all oppression and persecution of the good. The language is evidently not to be confined to unrighteous infliction on account of particular crimes charged, of which the accused are innocent; but extends to, and especially means, the oppressing and evil-entreating those who are "the excellent of the earth," on account of their very excellence, as bearing testimony against

and condemning the world.

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'Spoil not his resting-place." Thus is his dwelling designated. It is the abode of love and peace, of quietness, and holy harmony and domestic joy. It is the place of his family altar, around which are poured out the social devotions of a united and affectionate group, in tender and blessed mutual sympathy, the sympathy of nature and of grace.Intrude not, with unhallowed foot, and ruthless hand, on this abode of piety and love—this chosen resting-place of the affections-this habitation of the God of the families of Israel. Disturb not, with the voice of cursing and bitterness, the " melody of joy and salvation" that is heard in the dwelling of the righteous." The reason is assigned in next verse" For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again but the wicked shall fall into mischief."

It is quite clear that "falleth" here means falling into calamity. Were there nothing else in proof of this, the antithesis between the two parts of the verse would suffice to