Annotations Upon the Books of Poetry, Proverbs · Chapter 4
CHAP. IV.
Verſ. 1. HEar ye children the instruction of a father.] See the Notes chap. 1.8. and Pſal. 34.11.
Verſ. 3. For I was my fathers ſon, &c.] As if he ſhould have ſaid, his darling ſon: tender & only beloved in the ſight of my mother; ſee the Note 1 Chron. 3.5. And by tender here is meant both that he was a young child, of tender years, & ſo weak in knowledge; & alſo that he was accordingly tenderly regarded, & daintily & tenderly brought up by his mother. Now Solomon intending to ſhew how his father taught him, he premiſeth 1. that concerning his parents dear affection to him; both to imply how neceſſary inſtruction is in the waies of wiſdome, in that his parents, though very fond of him, would not neglect that, but rather were therefore the more carefull to teach him; and likewiſe to hint to thoſe to whom he now ſpeaks, that it was out of the ſame fatherly love, that moved David to inſtruct him, that he now preſſed theſe things upon them: and 2. that concerning his own tender years, thereby to preſſe the youngeſt to learn from his example, who had gotten ſo much by it.
Verſ. 4. He taught me alſo, &c.] To wit, my father David, who was a great prophet, and a man after Gods own heart; he taught me the ſame things that I teach you, & therefore my words ought to be received with the more attention and ready obedience; neither can you reject me, without rejecting him too: and ſaid, Let thine heart retain my words, keep my commandements and live; ſee the Notes chap. 3.1, 2. Now both theſe, & all the following words to the end of the 9. verſe, may moſt probably be taken as the words of David to Solomon, recited here by him.
Verſ. 6. Forſake her not, and she shall preſerve thee, &c.] See the Note chap. 2.11.
Ver. 7. Get wiſdome, & with all thy getting get underſtanding.] That is, even with the expence of all that thou haſt gotten; or with all the care and diligence which thou canſt uſe for the getting of any thing: be ſure to get that, whatever thou goeſt without.
Verſ. 8. Exalt her, &c.] To wit, by loving her, and making precious account of her, ſeeking her with all poſſible diligence, & preferring her before all things whatſoever: and she shall promote thee; that is, advance thee to great dignities, and make thee to be highly honoured both by God and man: and indeed the wiſedome of Solomon it was, that made him ſo renowned, and that confirmed the crown of Iſrael upon him.
Verſ. 10. Hear, O my ſon, &c.] Here Solomon returns again to his own exhortation; ſee the Note above verſ. 4.
Verſ. 11. I have led thee in right paths.] That is, in waies of righteouſneſſe, agreeable to the ſtraight rule of Gods law: yet others by right paths underſtand plain and even waies, wherein there is no danger of ſtumbling; according to that which followeth.
Verſ. 12. When thou goeſt, &c.] To wit, ſay ſome Expoſitours, in the way of wiſdome: thy steps shall not be ſtreightned; that is, though thoſe waies may ſeem at firſt very irkſome & difficult, yet by degrees they ſhall become pleaſing, and no way troubleſome to thee. But I rather take it thus: When thou goeſt about thy buſineſſes & affairs, thou ſhalt not be brought into any ſtreights, not knowing which way to turn thy ſelf; ſee the Notes 2 Sam. 22.37. & Job 18.7. And when thou runneſt thou shalt not ſtumble; that is, though thou makeſt never ſo much haſte in any thing thou undertakeſt, thou ſhalt not miſcarry therein. But ſee the Note chap. 3.23.
Verſ. 13. Take faſt hold of inſtruction, &c.] That is, Be ſure to perſevere in the waies wherein I have inſtructed thee: let her not goe, keep her; to wit, wiſdome; ſee the Note chap. 3.1: for she is thy life; that is, the guide of thy life, or the means of life to thee; ſee the Notes chap. 3.2. and Pſal. 91.16.
Verſ. 14. Enter not into the path of the wicked, &c.] See the Note chap. 1.15: & goe not in the way of evil men; that is, if thou haſt been tempted into any of their waies, yet at leaſt goe not on therein.
Verſ. 15. Avoid it, paſſe not by it, &c.] That is, Keep aloof, & come not nigh it, for fear of being tempted into it: turn from it, & paſſe away; to wit, with all the ſpeed you can, leſt you be indangered thereby.
Verſ. 16. For they ſleep not except they have done miſchief, &c.] Some conceive that Solomon doth here ſet forth the time when wicked men play their lewd pranks, namely, that before they ſleep, in the dark of the night, they goe forth to accompliſh their miſchievous devices, & then, & not till then, they betake themſelves to their reſt. But the words are clearly an expreſſion of their eagerneſſe to do evil, namely, that they cannot ſleep in their beds for plotting & contriving how to doe evil, and that hence it is that they many times riſe ſo early to bring about their wicked projects: which is yet clearer in the following clauſe, & their ſleep is taken away, unleſſe they cauſe ſome to fall; to wit, into the ſnares they have laid for them; or into the miſchief they have plotted againſt their perſons or eſtates; or into the ſins to which they have tempted them.
Verſ. 17. For they eat the bread of wickedneſse, and drink the wine of violence.] That is, Wickedneſſe & violence are as meat & drink to them; ſee the Note alſo Job 15.16: or rather, They live by wickedneſſe and violence; the meat they eat, & the wine they drink is gotten that way.
Verſ. 18. But the path of the juſt is as the shining light, that shineth more & more unto the perfect day,] That is, As the morning light doth by little & little ſhine brighter & brighter unto noon; ſo the righteous, though at firſt they have their light much darkened with thick miſts of ignorance & ſinfull infirmities, & with divers clouds of afflictions & ſorrows, yet by degrees they grow in knowledge & grace, yea their joy & glory & proſperity doth encreaſe; ſee the Notes 2 Sam. 23.4. Job 11.17. & Pſal. 97.11. till they come at laſt to perfect joy and bliſſe in heaven.
Verſ. 19. The way of the wicked is as darkneſse, &c.] To wit, as the evening darkneſſe, which grows darker and darker even unto midnight; for thus theſe words muſt be underſtood, as in oppoſition to what was ſaid of the righteous in the foregoing verſe. And the meaning is, that in regard of ignorance & miſery, terrours & fears, their condition grows uſually by degrees worſe & worſe: even that light of reaſon, which at firſt they had, by the juſt judgement of God they many times looſe, & they become ſtupid and brutiſh, and in a manner void of all underſtanding: their joy and proſperity comes by degrees to extreme ſorrow and miſery, till they be at laſt caſt out into utter darkneſſe in hell. They know not at what they ſtumble; that is, they go they know not whether, and do they know not what, not diſcerning the dangers of ſin & miſery, which lye in their way; they muſt needs be unable to avoid them, & ſo they run on in their wickedneſſe without repentance, often thinking to pleaſe God in thoſe things wherein they grievouſly ſin againſt him; and then think themſelves moſt ſecure, when the judgejudgements of God are readieſt to ſeize upon them. See the Note Job 5.14.
Verſ. 21. Let them not depart from thine eyes, &c.] That is, my ſayings, verſ. 20. ſee the Note chap. 3▪ 21: keep them in the midſt of thine heart; that is, hide them deeply and ſurely in thy mind; ſee the Note Pſal. 37.31.
Verſ. 22. For they are life unto thoſe that find them, &c.] See the Notes chap. 3.2, 18, 22. and Pſal. 91.16: and health to all their flesh; that is, to their whole bodies; namely, becauſe piety, beſides that it brings the bleſſing of God upon men in every regard, doth alſo keep men from all exceſſe, and luſts of uncleanneſſe, and violent paſſions, which do uſually bring upon men many and many diſeaſes. But ſee the Note chap. 3.8.
Verſ. 23. Keep thy heart with all diligence, &c.] It is in the Original, above all keeping, that is, with more diligence then is uſed for the keeping & preſerving of any thing elſe; even as men are more carefull to ſafeguard their hearts, then any part of the body beſides: for out of it are the iſsues of life; that is, as the heart in the body is the fountain of all naturall life, ſo is the mind and will, the heart here intended, the ſpring of ſpirituall life, & thence all our actions both good and bad do proceed, Matth. 12.35, & 15.19. Unleſſe the heart be pure, all conformity to the word in the outward man is but mere hypocriſy, nor will there be any conſtant ſtability in it.
Verſ. 24. Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverſe lips put far from thee.] To wit, with loathing & deteſtation. But doubtleſſe, as the foregoing verſe ſpeaks of keeping our own hearts, ſo this is meant of ordering our own lips: becauſe as the outward parts receive defilement from the heart, ſo they alſo reflect defilement upon it; therefore in the next place charge is given concerning them. And becauſe next to the keeping of the heart, the keeping of the tongue is both moſt difficult and moſt neceſſary, therefore of the outward parts this is firſt mentioned.
Verſ. 25. Let thine eyes look right on, &c.] That is, Let them look conſtantly to that only which is juſt & right: & let thine eye-lids look ſtraight before thee; that is, to that ſtraightneſſe of way which God hath preſcribed thee; & he mentions the eye-lids, to intimate that they are given us of God as a covering for the eyes, to guard them from looking after any thing that is evil: or, Look diligently to the end thou propoundeſt to thy ſelf: or, Doe nothing raſhly and unadviſedly, but mind what thou doeſt, as men are wont to obſerve the way wherein they are going; conſider ſeriouſly of every thing thou meaneſt to undertake, before thou undertakeſt it. I know that ſome underſtand theſe words more particularly, 1. of taking care that we look modeſtly, & avoid all vain roving & wandring of our eyes; & 2. that we ſhould mind our own buſineſſe, & not look after thoſe things which belong not to us. But the more generall Expoſitions before mentioned are the beſt. And to the ſame purpoſe is that which follows in the next verſe.
Verſ. 26. Ponder the path of thy feet, &c.] That is, Weigh well & conſider ſeriouſly with thy ſelf, whether that you intend to doe be juſt & right according to the direction of Gods word: and let all thy waies be eſtablished; to wit, by this means: as if he had ſaid, and ſo ſhall all thy waies be eſtabliſhed, that is, ſo ſhall all thy waies ſucceed proſperouſly; or rather, ſo ſhalt thou be ſure to goe on conſtantly in the right way: and accordingly ſome tranſlate this laſt clauſe, and all thy waies shall be ordered aright.