Commentary on Prov Ecc SoS Isa Jer Lam Eze Dan, Proverbs · Chapter 29
CHAP. XIX. Verſ. 1. Better is the poor that walketh in his integrity]
THat poor, but honeſt man, that ſpeaks ſupplications, Chap. 18.23. but abuſeth not his lips to leud and looſe language, is better than that rich fool that anſwers him roughly and robuſtiouſly (as Nabal did Davids meſſengers) and otherwiſe, ſpeaks ill, thinks worſe. Wee uſually call a poor man a poor ſoul: a poor ſoul may bee a rich Chriſtian, and a rich man may have a poor ſoul.
Verſ. 2. Alſo that the ſoul bee without knowledge, Lib. 3. Eth.it is not good] An ignorant man is a naughty man. Ignorat ſanè improbus omnis, ſaith Ariſtotle. Every bad-minded man is in the dark; neither can any good come into the heart, but it muſt paſs through the underſtanding; and the difference of ſtature in Chriſtianity grows from different degrees of knowledge. The Romans were full of knowledge, and therefore full of goodneſs, chap. 15.14.
And hee that haſteth with his feet ſinneth] Or, wandreth out of the way. As hee that is out of his way, the faſter hee rides or runs, the farther hee is out; ſo is blinde zeal. It is like metal in a blind horſe, that running upon the rocks and precipices firſt breaks his hoofs, and then his neck: Or like the Devil in the poſſeſſed, that caſt him ſometimes into the fire, and ſometimes into the water.
Verſ. 3. The fooliſhneſs of a man perverteth his way] So that all goes croſs with him,Lev. 26.21. and God walks contrary to him; as it befell our King John, Queen Mary, and Henry the fourth of France. King John ſaw and acknowledged it in theſe words,Mat. Paris. Poſiquam, ut dixi, Deo reconciliatus, me ac mea regna (proh dolor!) Romanae ſubjeci Eccleſiae, nulla mihi proſpera, ſed omnia contraria advenerunt. Ever ſince I ſubmitted to the Sea of Rome, nothing hath proſpered with mee.
And his heart frets againſt the Lord] As the cauſe of his calamity. Birds of prey, that have been long kept in the dark, when they get abroad, are out of meaſure raging and ravenous; ſo are ignorant ſpirits, they let flye on all hands (when in durance eſpecially) and ſpare not to ſpit their venome in the very face of God; as did Pharaoh, when that thick darkneſs was upon him; the King of Iſrael that ſaid, Behold this evil is of the Lord, and what ſhould I wait for the Lord any longer? 2 King. 6.33. Mahomet the firſt Emperour of the Turks, being wonderfully grieved with the diſhonour and loſs hee had received at the laſt aſſault of Scodra, Turk hiſt. fol. 423.in his choler and frantick rage moſt horribly blaſphemed againſt God, ſaying, that it were enough for him to have care of heavenly things, and not to croſs him in his worldly actions.
Verſ. 4. Wealth maketh many friends] Res amicos invenit, ſaith hee in Plautus. Wine, ſaith Athenaeus, hath foreign, a force in it to make friendſhip. Wealth wee are ſure hath; but as that is no ſound love that comes out of cups, it is but ollaris amicitia; ſo neither are they to bee truſted, that wealth wins to us. Hired friends are ſeldome either ſatisfied, or ſure; but like the Ravens in Arabia, that, full gorged, have a tuneable ſweet record, but empty, ſcreetch horribly. Flies ſoon faſten upon honey, and vermine will haunt a houſe where food is to bee gotten.
But the poor is ſeparated from his neighbour] Who either turns from him as a ſtranger, or againſt him, as an enemy. Nero being condemned to dye, and not finding any one that would fall upon him, and diſpatch him, cryed out, Itane, nec amicum, nec inimicum habeo? Have I now neither friend, nor foe, that will do this for mee?
Verſ. 5. A falſe witneſs ſhall not bee unpuniſhed] Many poor people care not to lend their rich friend an oath at a need: And many rich, though they think ill of Pillory-perjury, yet they make little conſcience of a merry lye. Neither of theſe ſhall paſs unpuniſhed. And this ſentence may bee to them, as thoſe knuckles of a mans hand were to Baltaſar, to write them their deſtiny, or as Daniel was to him, to read it unto them.
Verſ. 6. Many will intreat the favour of the Prince] Yea, lye at his feet, and lick up his ſpittle, not being loyal in love for conſcience, but ſubmiſs in ſhew for commodity.foreign. Orph. in Arg. Every man will bee thruſting in where any thing is to bee gotten. The Poets make Litae or Petitions to bee the daughters of Jupiter, and ever about him, to ſignifie, ſaith the Mythologiſt, that Princes and great ones are ſeldome without ſuppliants and ſuters.
And every man is a friend, &c.] See the Note on Chap. 17.8.
Verſ. 7. All the brethren of the poor do hate him] How much more then his hired friends? Theſe are like Crows to a dead Carcaſe, which if they flock to it, it is not to defend, but to devour it; and no ſooner have they bared the bones, but they are gone. See the Note on Chap. 14.20.
Verſ. 8. Hee that getteth wiſdome] Hebr. Hee that getteth, or poſſeſſeth an heart; For wee are born brutes, and are compared to the horſe and mule that have none underſtanding, Pſal. 32. Hearts wee have all, but our fooliſh hearts are darkned, Rom. 1.21. yea, a deceived heart hath turned us aſide that wee cannot deliver our ſouls, nor ſay, Is there not a lye in my right hand? Iſa. 44.20. Well may the rich have many friends, but not many hearts; For without wiſdome no man can love his own ſoul, much leſs can hee truly love another. Therefore by how much better it is for a man to love his own ſoul as hee ought, than to bee beloved of others for his gifts; by ſo much it is better to get wiſdome, than to get wealth.
Verſ. 9. A falſe witneſs, &c.] See Verſ. 5.
Verſ. 10. Delight is not ſeemly for a fool] Dignitas in indigno eſt ornamentum in luto, ſaith Salvian: Health, Wealth, Nobility, Beauty, Honour, and the like, are ill beſtowed upon a wicked man, who will abuſe them all to his own and other mens undoing.Secunda res etiam ſapicutum animos fatigant; quanto magis inſoleſcent stulti rerum ſucceſſu proſpero? Saluſt. The wiſeſt have enough to do to manage theſe outward good things: What may wee then expect from fools? (See the Note on Chap. 14.24.) if they make wiſe men fools, they will make fools mad men.
Much leſſe for a ſervant to rule over Princes] As Abimelech that bramble did over the Cedars of Lebanus: as Tobiah the Servant the Ammonite ſought to do over Nehemiah, and the Princes of Judah: As the ſervants of the Emperour Claudius did over him and the whole State (which occaſioned that verſe to be pronounced on the Theatre, foreign)
As Becket and Wolſey affected to do in their Generations: And as the Bridgemaker of Rome, who ſtiles himſelf Servus ſervorum, a ſervant of ſervants, and yet acts as a Dominus Dominantium, & Rex Regum, Lord of Lords, and King of Kings. Round about the Popes Coin are theſe words ſtamped, That Nation that will not ſerve thee, ſhall bee rooted out. His Janizaries alſo the Jeſuites are as a moſt agile ſharp ſword, whoſe blade is ſheathed at pleaſure in the bowels of every Common-wealth, but the handle reacheth to Rome and Spain. This made that moſt valiant and puiſſant Prince, Henry the fourth of France, when hee was perſwaded by one to baniſh the Jeſuites, ſay, Give mee then ſecurity for my life.
Verſ. 11. The diſcretion of a man deferreth his anger] Plato, when angry with his ſervant, would not correct him at that time, but let him go with Vapulares niſi iraſcerer, I am too angry to beat thee. A young man that had been brought up with Plato, returning home to his Fathers houſe,Sen. de ita, lib. 3. c. 11. and hearing his Father chide and exclaim furiouſly, ſaid, I have never ſeen the like with Plato. See the Note on Chap. 14.29. Anger, by being deferred, may bee diminiſhed, ſo it bee not concealed for a further opportunity of miſchief, as Abſoloms toward Amnon, and Tiberiuſſes, whom the more hee meditated revenge,Lentus in meditando ubi prorapiſſet, &c. Tacit. the more did time and delay ſharpen it: And the farther off hee threatned, the heavier the ſtroke fell.
And it is his glory to paſs over a tranſgreſſion] Heb. To paſs by it, as not knowing of it, or not troubled at it: Thus David was deaf to the railings of his enemies, and as a dumb man, in whoſe mouth are no reproofs. Socrates, when hee was publickly abuſed in a Comedy, laughed at it: Polyagrus vero ſeipſum ſtrangulabat, ſaith Aelian; but Polyagrus, not able to bear ſuch an indignity, hanged himſelf. Auguſtus likewiſe did but laugh at the Satyrs and buffooneries which they had publiſhed againſt him: and when the Senate would have further informed him of them, hee would not hear them. The manlier any man is, the milder and readier to paſs by an offence: this ſhews, that hee hath much of God in him (if hee do it from a right principle) who bears with our evil manners, and forgives our treſpaſſes, beſeeching us to bee reconciled.foreign. Act. 13 When any provoke us, wee uſe to ſay, Wee will bee even with him: There is a way whereby wee may bee not even with him, but above him, and that is, forgive him. Wink at ſmall faults eſpecially. Qui neſcit diſſimulare, neſcit vivere. Hee that cannot lye, is not fit to live.
Verſ. 12. The Kings wrath is at the roaring of a Lion] Heb. Of a young Lion, which (being in his prime) roars more terribly; ſets up his roar with ſuch a force, that hee amazeth the other Creatures whom hee hunteth,Ambroſ. He…s. lib. 6. cap. 5. ſo that (though far ſwifter of foot than the Lion) they have no power to flye from him. Kings have long hands, ſtrong clutches: Good therefore is the wiſe mans counſel, Eccleſ. 8.2, 3, 4. See the Note on Chap. 16.14, 15.
Verſ. 13. A fooliſh Son is the calamity of his Father] Children are certain cares, but uncertain comforts. Let them prove never ſo towardly, yet there is ſomewhat to do to breed them up, and bring them to good. But if they anſwer not expectation, the Parents grief is unexpreſſible. See the Note on Chap. 10.1. and 15.20. How many an unhappy Father is tempted to wiſh with Auguſtus, O utinam caelebs vixiſſem, orbuſque periſſem?
And the contentions of a wife are a continual dropping] Like as a man that hath met with hard uſage abroad, thinks to mend himſelf at home; but is no ſooner ſate down there, but the rain dropping thorow the roof upon his head, drives him out of doors again:Conjugium Conjurgium. De diſcordi conjugio Theomiſtocles dixit, foreign. Such is the caſe of him that hath a contentious wife; a far greater croſs than that of ungracious children, which yet are the Fathers calamities and heart-breaks. Auguſtus had been happy if hee had had no children: Sylla, if hee had had no wife. All evils, as elements, are moſt troubleſome, when out of their proper place, as impiety in Profeſſours, injuſtice in Judges, diſcomfort in a wife. This is like a tempeſt in the Haven, moſt troubleſome, moſt dangerous.
Verſ. 14. Houſe and riches are the inheritance of the Fathers] Viz. More immediately. God gives them to the Parents, and they leave them to their children, being moved thereto by God: Though a carnal heart looks no higher than Parents, cares not ſo hee may have it, whence hee hath it. It is Dos non Deus that maketh marriages with them; good enough, if goods enough; mony is the greateſt medlet, and drives the bargain and buſineſs to an upſho…. Moſtly, ſuch matches prove unhappy and uncomfortable. How can it bee otherwiſe, ſith Hic Deus nihil fecit? God indeed had a hand in it, but for their juſt puniſhment, that ſo followed after lying vanities, and ſo forſook their own mercies.
But a prudent wife is of the Lord] Nature makes a Woman, Election a Wife; but to bee prudent, wiſe, and virtuous, is of the Lord. A good, wife was one of the firſt real and royal gifts beſtowed on Adam. God ſet all the creatures before him ere hee gave him a wife; that ſeeing no other fit help, hee might prize ſuch a gift, not a gift of induſtry, but of deſtiny, as one ſaith; for Marriages are made in Heaven, as the common ſort can ſay, and as very Heathens acknowledge. The Governour of Eskichiſar hearing Othoman the Great Turk his relation of a fair Lady whom hee was in love with, and had highly commended for her virtues, ſeemed greatly to like of his choice, ſaying, that ſhee was by the divine providence appointed onelyonly for him to have.Turk. Hiſt. fol. 136.
Verſ. 15. Slothfulneſs caſteth into a deep ſleep] Sloth bringeth ſleep, and ſleep poverty. See this excellently ſet forth, Chap. 6.9, 10, 11. See the Notes there, and on chap. 10.4.
Verſ. 16. Hee that keepeth the Commandement, keepeth his own ſoul] This is the firſt fruit of ſhaking off ſloth and ſleepineſs. Hee that ſtirs up himſelf to take hold of God, Iſa. 64.7. and to take hold of his Covenant, Iſa. 56.4. to love the name of the Lord, and to bee his ſervant, verſ. 6. to love him, and keep his Commandements, Exod. 20.6. to do that little hee does out of love, if it bee no more than to think upon his Commandements to do them, Pſal. 103.18. this mans ſoul ſhall bee bound up in the bundle of life, hee ſhall finde his name written in the book of life. For in vitae libro ſcribuntur omnes qui quod poſſunt, faciunt, etſi quod debeut non poſſunt, ſaith Bernard. Their names are written in Heaven who do what they can, though they cannot do what they ought. If there bee a willing mind, 2 Cor. 8.12.God accepts, according to what a man hath, not according to what hee hath not. Aug. Exchir. cap. 32.And here alſo, Nolentem praevenit Deus ut velit, volentem ſubſequitur ne fruſtrà velit. God that gives both to will and to do, cauſeth his people to keep his Commandements,Ezek. 36. Iſa. 26. and worketh all their works in them, and for them. Lex jubet, gratia juvat: petamus ut det, quod ut habeamus jubet. Aug. in Exod. quaſt. 55.The Law commandeth, but Grace helpeth; let us beg that God would make us to be what hee requires us to be.
But hee that despiſeth his waies] That is, Gods waies, chalked out in his word. See the Note on chap. 13.13. Or, Hee that deſpiſeth his own waies, Aut mentem aut reſtim comparandum. Chryſip.lives careleſly, and at randome; walks at all adventures with God, cui vita eſt incompoſita, & poſſimè morata contra gnomonem & canonem Decalogi, a looſe and lawleſs perſon, hee ſhall dye, not a natural death onelyonly (as all do) but ſpiritual and eternal. There is but an inch betwixt him and hell, which already gapes for him, and will certainly ſwallow him up.
Verſ. 17. Hee that hath pitty upon the poor, lendeth, &c.] This is a ſecond fruit of ſhaking off ſloth, and working with the hands the thing that is good,Epheſ. 4.28. that one may have to give to him that needeth. Hee doth not give it, but lend it, God accepts it both as foreign, as a gift, and a LoueLove, ſaith Baſil: Nay,Orat. de Eleemoſ. he lends it upon uſury, Faeneratur Domino; and that to the Lord, who both binds himſelf to repay, and gives us ſecurity for it under his own hand here. Hee will pay him again to bee ſure of it, foreign in Piel, hee will fully and abundantly repay him; moſtly in this world, but infallibly in the world to come. Evagrius in Cedrenus bequeathed three hundred pounds to the poor in his Will; but took a bond before-hand of Syneſius the Biſhop, for the repayment of it in another life; And the very next night, (ſaith the hiſtory) after his departure, appearing to him in his ſhape, delivered in the bond cancelled, and fully diſcharged.
Verſ. 18. Chaſten thy Son while there is hope] See the Note on chap. 13.24.
Verſ. 19. A man of great wrath ſhall ſuffer puniſhment] Hee that laies the reynes in the neck, and ſets no bounds to his wrath, whether in chaſtiſing his childe, or otherwiſe, ſhall bee ſure to ſmart for it: ſhall bring himſelf and his friends into great trouble. Such therefore as are cholerick ſhould pray much, and prevent all occaſions of wrath; as Callius and Cotis, becauſe they would not bee ſtirred up to anger, burned their enemies letters before they were read. The like did Pompey to the Letters of Sertorius, and Caſar to Pompey's Letters.
Verſ. 20. Hear counſel, and receive inſtruction] Or, correction. Here hee directs his ſpeech to the younger ſort, and exhorts them, 1 To hear counſel, that is, to keep the Commandement, as verſ. 16. 2 To receive correction of Parents, as verſ. 18. as the onelyonly way to ſound and laſting wiſdome: For Vexatio dat intellectum; Piſcator ictus ſapit; Quae nocent docent, &c. Or Salomon may here bring in the Father thus leſſoning his untoward childe, whom hee hath laſhed. For to correct, and not inſtruct, is to ſnuff the Lamp, but not poure in oyl to feed it.
Verſ. 21. There are many deviſes in a mans heart] They may purpoſe, but God alone diſpoſeth of all. See the Note on chap. 16.1.9. Some think to riſe by ill principles, but it will not bee. Some to bee rich, but God croſſeth them, and holds them to priſoners pittances, to hard meat, as wee ſay. Some, to live long, and to enjoy what they have gotten: but they hear, Thou fool, Luk. 12.this very night ſhall thy ſoul bee taken from thee, &c. Some ſet themſelves to root out true Religion, to dethrone the Lord Chriſt, &c. But God ſees and ſmiles, looks and laughs, Pſal. 2. The counſel of the Lord, that ſhall ſtand when all is done. Chriſt ſhall reign in the midſt of his enemies: the ſtone cut out of the mountains without hands, ſhall bring down the golden Image with a vengeance, and make it like the chaff of the Summer-floor, Dan. 2.35. Sciat Celfitudo veſtra & nihil dubitet, (ſaith Luther in a letter to the Electour of Saxony) longè aliter in coelo quàm Noribergae de hoc negotio concluſum eſſe. Scult. Annal.Let your highneſs bee ſure that the Churches buſineſs is far otherwiſe ordered in Heaven, than it is by the Emperour and States at Norinberg. And Gaud eo quod Chriſtus Dominus eſt; alioqui totus deſperaſſem. I am glad that Chriſt is King; for otherwiſe I had been utterly out of heart and hope, ſaith holy Myconius in a Letter to Calvin, upon the view of the Churches enemies.
Verſ. 22. The deſire of a man is his kindneſs] Or, his mercy. Many have a great mind to bee held merciful men, and vainly give out what they would do, if they had wherewith; and perhaps they ſpeak as they think too (this may bee one of thoſe many deviſes, thoſe variae & vanae cogitationes in the heart of a man, verſ. 21.)
But the poor man is better than a liar] For though hee hath nothing to give, yet having a giving affection, hee is better than a lyar, that is, than ſuch a rich man, who before hee was rich would brag what hee would do if hee were rich, and yet now is a niggard.
Saturatus pernoctabit, Hee ſhall not go ſupperleſs to bed.Verſ. 23. The fear of the Lord tendeth to life, &c.] Life, ſaturity, and ſecurity from evil (from the hurt, if not from the ſmart of it) are all aſſured here to thoſe that fear God. Who would not then turn ſpiritual purchaſer? See Chap. 22.4.
Verſ. 24. A ſlothful man hideth his hand in his boſome] The Latines ſay, Hee wraps it in his cloak, Manum habet ſub pallio.Hee puts it in his pocket ſay wee. Erewhiles wee had him faſt aſleep; and here going about his buſineſs, as if hee were ſtill aſleep; ſo lazie that any the leaſt labour is grievous to him, hee can hardly finde in his heart to feed himſelf, ſo to uphold the life of his hands, which hee ſhould maintain with the labour of his hands, 2 Theſſ. 3.10. and with the ſweat of his brows, Gen. 3. Very ſucklings get not their milk without much tugging and tyring themſelves at the Dug.
Verſ. 25. Smite a ſcorner, and the ſimple will leware] Alterius perditio, tua ſit cautio, ſaith the Wiſe-man. Seeſt thou another man ſhipwrackt? look well to thy tackling. Poena ad paucos, &c. Let but a few bee puniſhed, and many will bee warned and wiſed; any will, but the ſcorner himſelf, who will not bee better, though braid in a mortar. This ſcorner may very well bee the ſluggard mentioned in the former verſe. Smite him never ſo much, there is no beating any wit into him. Pharaoh was not a button the better for all that hee ſuffered; but Jethro taking notice of Gods heavy hand upon Pharaoh, and likewiſe upon the Amalekites, was thereby converted, and became a Proſelyte, as Rabbi Salomon noteth upon this Text.
Verſ. 26. Hee that waſteth his father] That ſpoileth, pilfereth, pillageth, preyeth upon his father; Not ſo much as ſaying with that Scape-thrift in the Goſpel,Luke 15. Give mee the portion that falls to my ſhare. Idleneſs and incorrigibleneſs lead to this wickedneſs, as may appear by the context.
Verſ. 27. Ceaſe my ſon to hear the inſtruction] Beware of falſe Prophets, Mat. 7.24. See the Note there. Take heed alſo what books yee read; for as water reliſheth of the ſoil it runs through, ſo do the ſoul of the Authors that a man readeth.
Verſ. 28. An ungodly witneſs ſcorneth judgement] As if hee were out of the reach of Gods rod.Eccleſ. 8. Pſal. 50. And becauſe judgement is not preſently executed, therefore his heart is ſet in him to do wickedly, hee looks upon God as an Abbettor of his perjury. His mouth devoureth iniquity, as ſome ſavoury morſel. But know they not that there will bee bitterneſs in the end? Let them but mark what follows.
Verſ. 29. Judgements are prepared for ſcorners] For theſe ſcorners (that promiſe themſelves impunity) are judgements, not one, but many, not appointed onelyonly, but prepared long ſince, and now ready to bee executed.