Exposition of the Moral Law, Book 2 · Commandment 9 · Exercitation 7
EXERCITAT. VII. Againſt railing and backbiting. Commandement IX.
1. Cor. 5.11. If any man that is called a brother, be a railer, with ſuch one eat not.
Pſalm. 101.5. Who ſo privily ſlandereth his neighbour, him will I cut off.
WE ſpeake evill of our neighbour either in his preſence or behinde his backe. In his preſence,When a man doth backbite his neighbour. this is called foreign; behinde his backe, this is called foreign: The Latines call the firſt contumelia, foreign.and the ſecond detractio; and this contumelie in the preſence of of one, is either foreign or foreign.foreign.
foreign is a ſhort quipe or taunt which we give to one, as Gen. 37.19. Behold this dreamer commeth. What foreign is properly.So Micols mocke to David, 2. Sam. 6.20. and ſuch the mocke of Tobiah the Ammonite to the Iewes, Nehem. 4.3.
What foreign.foreign, is when one raileth in a mans face with many and bitter ſpeches, ſuch was the railing of Rabſache againſt the Iewes, 2. King. 9.14. and the railing of Shimei againſt David, 2. Sam. 16.7. and the railing of the heathen againſt the Chriſtians, calling them murtherers, inceſtuous, enemies to the ſtate, worſhipers of an aſſe, foreign, eaters of men, worſhippers of Bacchus, and Ceres, becauſe they uſed bread and wine in the Sacrament;Thyeſtes fratri epulandes filios propoſuit. and as Turtullian ſaith of them, Oedipodios inceſtus & Thyeſlinas canas nobis obijciebant.
When a man raileth in his neighbours face, it is either Contumelia, A difference betwixt contumelia and convitium.or Convitium: Contumelia, is properly when they object a ſinne to him, as adultery, theft: Convitium is, when they object to him any infirmity of his body, as blindeneſſe, deafneſſe, and ſuch. When Shimei called David a bloody man, and a man of Belial, this was a contumelie, 2. Sam. 16.7. and when the children ſaid to Eliſha, Come up thou bald pate goe up thou bald head, this was convitium. What remedies wee ſhould uſe againſt railing2. King. 2.23.
Remedies againſt this railing are; firſt, to rejoyce, Matt. 5.11. When men revile you and perſecute you, and ſhall ſay all manner of evill againſt you for my ſake, rejoice and be exceeding glad.
Secondly, To bleſſe, Matt. 5. Bleſſe them that curſe you.
Thirdly, to hold our peace, and not to anſwer againe, but to ſpread our injuries before the Lord, as Hezekiah did when Rabſache railed againſt him. 2. King. 19.14. and David, when his enemies ſpake miſchievous things of him, hee ſaith, I, as a deafe man heard not, and I was as a dumbe man that opened not his mouth; Pſal. 38.15.
Laſtly, to anſwer modeſtly, as Hanna did to Eli; I am not drunke but a woman of a ſorrowfull ſpirit: So that of Paul to Feſtus, I am not mad, moſt noble Feſtus, but ſpeak… the words of truth and ſobriety, Act. 26.25. A ſoft anſwer pacifieth wrath: Prov. 15.1. And a ſoft tongue breaketh the bone, Prov. 15.15. Wee ſee how Gedion pacified the wrath of the Ephramites, with a calme and ſoft anſwer, Iudg. 8.2. They were angry when hee went up againſt the Madianites, but this ſoft anſwer pacified their wrath: Better is the gleanings of Ephraim than the vintage of Abiezer, your gleanings in killing of the two kings Oreb and Zeb are more worth then our vintage in killing ſo many of the Madianites.
Prov. 26.4.5. Anſwer not a foole according to his folly, When a foole is to be anſwered and when notleſt thou be alſo like unto him. Anſwer a foole according to his folly leſt hee be wiſe in his owne conceit: here Salomon ſheweth us, when wee ſhould anſwer to theſe railing ſpeeches, and when not; when it tendeth not to the good of the railer, nor to the profit of the innocent who is reproached, then it is good to hold his peace. So Hezekiah held his peace, when Rabſache railed, 2. King. 19. So Ieſus Chriſt held his peace when Pilate accuſed him, Ioh. 19 9. But when the anſwer is profitable to the railer or foole, then we are to anſwer him; therefore he ſaith, Anſwer a foole according to his folly, leſt he be wiſe in his owne conceit: if the truth be impared by our ſilence, or the enemie be imboldened to inſult the more, then wee are bound to anſwer. Chriſt when he was beaten ſaid, Why ſmiteſt thou mee? Ioh. 18.23. and ſo did Paul, Act. 23.3. Et haec eſt pars tutelae.
Let ſuch railers as theſe remember, that With ſuch meaſure as they meete, it ſhall be meaſured to them againe, Matt. 7.2. if they ſpeake evill of others, others will ſpeake evill of them againe▪ if thou ſay to one,Talmud. Tolle feſtucam è medio dentium tuorum, thou ſhalt heare it ſaid to the againe, Tolle trabem ex oculis tuis. And if thou ſay to thy neighbour, argentum tuum factum eſt ſcoria; thou ſhalt heare againe that which thou wouldſt not heare, Vinum tuum mixtum eſt aquis, Eſay. 1.22. and hee who ſtriketh with the ſword ſhall die by the ſword, ſo hee that ſtriketh with the tongue ſhall be ſcourged with the tongue.A man calumniates his neighbour abſent either ſecretly or openly.
We ſpeake evill of our neighbour behinde his backe, either ſecretly or openly: hee that ſpeakes ſecretly is called foreign,foreign. a whiſperer; and the open ſpeaker is called foreign: the open backbiter ſtudieth moſt to hinder friendſhip, or to diſſolve it, therefore hee is called incendiarius or ardelio, and he puffeth at his enemies, Pſal. 10.5. as if hee ſhould blow a coale of fire amongſt them, even as Abſolon ſet Ioabs barlie field on fire. 2. Sam. 14.30.Iterare verbum quid. Prov. 17.9. Qui iterat verbum disjungit principem; that is, he who carrieth tales to and fro, ſeparateth the prince from them that love him;foreign and theſe are called Rokelim, Levit. 19.16. Thou ſhalt not goe about with tales to vent them, as the pedler goeth about with his wares to ſell; David ſaith, Adders poyſon is under their lips, Pſal 140.5. The venome of the ſpitting is under their tongues; as the ſerpent ſpitteth the venome a farre off, ſo do they their malice behinde ones backe.
Theſe back biters and traducers of other mens good name in the chaldie tongue are ſaid, Loqui lingua tertia, Loqui lingua tertia quid apud Hebraeos.Ecclus, 28.16. Lingua tertia commovit multos: the back-biter is ſaid, loqui lingua tertia; becauſe like a ſerpent he ſtingeth three at once; as the ſerpent carrieth three ſtings, in her tongue, ſo hee killeth three at once, firſt, himſelfe; ſecondly, him to whom hee makes the evill report; and thirdly, him of whom hee makes the evill report. As Doeg killed himſelfe, the Prieſts, and Saul, foreign duo & foreign os.and the backbiter is called dophi, Pſal. 50.20. which the Rabbins interpret do, duo, & pi, os, becauſe he ſpeaketh with a double tongue, Prov. 28.6. he is called perverſus duarum viarum, ſuch as thoſe ſet their mouth againſt the heavens; And their tongue walketh through the earth. Pſal. 73.9. that is, they ſpare no man, but ſpeake evill of him.
How backbiters are to be cured.The onelyonly cure contrary to this, is, to delate and give up ſuch ſcandalous perſons, this is no back-biting, 1. Cor. 1.11. For it had beene declared of you my brethren, of them who are of the houſe of Cloe, that there are contentions amongſt you. So Gen. 37.2. And Ioſeph brought unto his father the evill report of his brethren. But here wee muſt make a difference betwixt thoſe two phraſes Iabhe dibbath, and motzi dibbath: foreign Detulit rumorem. foreign Protulit rumorem▪Detulit rumorem, & protulit rumorem: Detulit rumorem, hee onelyonly relateth that which hee knoweth or heareth, but Protulit rumorem, who bringeth it out of his owne corrupt heart, Prov. 10.18. He that bringeth forth a ſlander is a foole.
How ſhall men behave themſelves, Queſt. when thoſe reports come to their eares?
If a bad man report evill of a good man, Anſw. When to give credit to evill reports.wee ſhould not beleeve it. If a good man report evill of a bad man wee are to beleeve it: if a good man report evill of a good man, then we are to ſuſpend our judgement: but if an evill man ſpeake evill of a bad man, then wee are to ſuſpect it.
The remedies againſt thoſe detractions are; firſt,Remedies againſt detractions. to make good uſe of thoſe backbitings, and to remember, that they are but like the horſe leaches which are ordained, to ſuck out the bad blood out of a man, but not the good; ſtudie thou to make good uſe of their backbiting. The firſt age contented themſelves onelyonly, to defend themſelves from wild beaſts, but the enſuing age went further, even to make benefit of their fleſh and skin. So when wee are railed upon by our enemies, wee ſhould make our benefit of their railings, & as men when they are beſieged of their enemies, they are the more circumſpect: ſo ſhould the children of God be more circumſpect when the enemies are about to marke their haltings, and thus the children of God ſhall make uſe as well of their foes as of their friends.
The ſecond remedie againſt theſe backbitings, and railing, is to looke up to the Lord, as David did when Shimei railed againſt him, 2. Sam. 16.10. the Lord hath ſaid unto him, curſe David. When the Iſraelites were ſtung with the fiery ſerpents in the wilderneſſe, they looked up to the brazen ſerpent, and then they were healed: When the children of God finde themſelves ſtung with the fiery tongues of the wicked, then let them looke up to Ieſus Chriſt, who was exalted upon the croſſe, and that ſhall cure them.
Concluſion.The concluſion of this is: All our members ſhould be the weapons of righteouſneſſe, Rom. 6.13. therefore our tongues are not our owne; neither muſt we uſe them to the hurt of our neighbour.