PROVERBS 22


1 A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold.

It is a poor glory to have a reputation you do not deserve.

Better to have a bad name that is a slander than a good name that is not warranted.

TC 05/1898



There are not many wise people in the world


Those only are wise who give themselves to this one thing, who will consent to forego the good opinion of this foolish world for Christ's sake. It is not pleasant, but wise. Wise things are sometimes disagreeable for a time, but sweetness comes at last.

The Christadelphian, Feb 1872 



2 The rich and poor meet together: Yahweh is the maker of them all.

We are told that God has caused these things to be recorded that we may receive instruction, comfort and hope. The first lesson we learn is that-in the lives of the people of

God-nothing happens by chance. All is arranged in God's wise purpose for the development of His children, and His hand is ever present to control and direct.

The reading of God's Word is the most important activity of our lives. It should be the most looked-forward to and enjoyable. Each day as we begin we should meditate upon the

solemn and wonderful fact that this Book-alone of all books ever written-has been composed by God Himself, for the express purpose of saving man from death and making him "wise unto salvation."

Each word is there because God specifically caused it to be there. And the pleasure and impressiveness of reading these daily portions of Divine authorship are increased by the realization that, throughout the world, faithful and earnest brethren and sisters are reading and thinking upon these very same incidents, day by day.

It is an intimate, worldwide communion of minds in the glorious deep things of the Spirit of God, of which the natural man, like the beasts of the field, knows nothing.

Bro Growcott - A New Name



3 A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself: but the simple pass on, and are punished.

"Helping God a Little Bit"


You carry the doctrine of faith in God farther than Christ intended, when you say a man must not make any provision for the future. It is really true that "we must help God a little bit" though you seem to think it an extraordinary suggestion.

God sends rain and sunshine, but He does not plant the field. He causes the grain to grow, but He leaves us to turn it into flour and bread; and if we don't "help God a little bit" in the matter, we shall certainly not see the loaves in our houses.

He gives wool and cotton, but the intricate and laborious processes by which these are turned into clothes, He leaves to us, and if we don't do our part, the promised provision will not be supplied.

What is the sowing of the field but a provision for the future? What is the buying of an umbrella but a provision for the future? If we know a dry season is coming on, we shall not sin if we store the water; we shall but act the part of wise men. "Fellow-workers with God" is really the principle at the heart of the Gospel. When we say,

"Give us this day our daily bread,"

we do not mean, and Christ never intended us to mean, "Bring us loaves to our door this day that we have made no arrangements to pay for;" the meaning is, that God will so affect and arrange our affairs that we shall be able to obtain what we require by the efforts that he intends us to put forth.

We must not put such a construction upon any part of the word of truth as will bring it into collision with divine wisdom in other parts. Faith in God is much needed in all our ways-for opportunity, for ability, for health, and a thousand conditions. It never was intended to displace that doing of our own part which the Lord requires, and which is the condition of His co-operation with us.

"The prudent man foreseeth the evil, but the simple pass on and are punished."

It is different when the Lord speaks expressly and direct. If He tell us to offer our Isaacs, we will do so. If He tell us to sell our all and divide it among the poor, we must do so. If He tell us to provide no purse and have no more coats than one, we shall be faithless and disobedient if we falter. But we shall mistake if we apply special commands to general cases, and discard the maxims of wisdom that are applicable in a day when the Lord has hidden His face and concealed His hand.

If we commit our way to the Lord in faith He will take us through; but is our way that we commit to him-ordered in all the wisdom necessary for guidance in an evil time. To say that a man cannot have been born again who provides for his wife and children is going too far. In due measure, such provision is part of godliness; as saith Paul,

"If any provide not for his own, especially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel."

The Christadelphian, Sept 1898



6 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

Solomon says,

‭ "‬A child left to itself bringeth its mother to shame.‭" ‬

Many work against this principle of Solomon's,‭ ‬and tacitly avow that the best way to train children is to leave them alone and let them unfold themselves.‭

All experience shows Solomon to be right,‭ ‬and the Solomon contradiction to be wrong.‭ ‬When a child comes into the world,‭ ‬he brings no knowledge with him.‭ ‬His little brain is barbarism closely packed in little space.‭ ‬It is the material out of which a beautiful mentality can be fabricated by manipulation,‭ ‬just as coal,‭ ‬iron,‭ ‬and water become a beautiful useful engine in the hands of an operative mechanic.

‭ "‬Left to itself,‭" ‬the child will certainly grow up a curse to itself,‭ ‬and a nuisance to all around.‭ ‬It has to be taught and to be properly taught,‭ ‬it has to be made to listen.‭ ‬How is this to be accomplished‭? ‬The chapter gives a hint before it closes.‭ "‬Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child:‭ ‬but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.‭"

This is a recommendation of corporal punishment-at the right moment.‭ ‬The world is going away from this,‭ ‬as it is from a great many other inculcations of wisdom.‭ ‬They even suggest that Solomon did not mean this,‭ ‬but that by the‭ "‬rod‭" ‬he meant the law of the parents orally enjoined.‭ ‬This extraordinary suggestion is sufficiently disposed of by the words of Solomon in the next chapter:‭ "‬Withhold not correction from the child,‭ ‬for if thou‭ ‬beatest him with the rod,‭ ‬he shall not die.‭" ‬And again,‭ "‬Chasten thy son‭ ‬while there is hope‭;‬ let not thy soul spare for‭ ‬his crying.‭"

A child does not cry for the wise instructions of its parents.‭ ‬Solomon meant flagellation,‭ ‬of course.‭ ‬In this,‭ ‬there may appear to be a brutalising element.‭ ‬It all depends upon how it is employed.‭ ‬It is like every other good thing:‭ ‬it becomes evil if extremely or unskilfully used.‭ ‬But the cure for its wrong use is not its disuse.‭ ‬Its disuse will produce many more evils than its wrong use.‭ ‬The strongest and most useful men in history have all been men brought up under the coercion of parental authority.‭

Spoiled children are a crying shame:‭ ‬an affliction and a disgrace both to themselves and their parents.‭ ‬Just as there is nothing more beautiful under the sun than an obedient and intelligent and well-trained family,‭ ‬so there is nothing uglier than to see wilful,‭ ‬whimpering youngsters whose only law is their own likes and their parents‭' ‬weakness.‭ ‬It was not without a reason that Paul made wise government in the house the test of a man's fitness for public service:‭ "‬If a man know not how to rule his own house,‭ ‬how should he take care of the ecclesia of God‭?" (‬1‭ ‬Tim.‭ iii. ‬5‭)‬.‭ ‬The rule of family government is simple if parents are enlightened and firm with the due flexibility.‭

While there are many things in which parents will take their children into confidence almost as equals,‭ ‬there are two things in which they should never hesitate to punish:‭ ‬if children disobey them or do flagrant wrong‭ (‬as lying,‭ ‬stealing,‭ ‬cruelty,‭ &‬c.‭) ‬It is mistaken kindness to let them off with a reprimand:‭ ‬it will pay to make them suffer.‭ ‬It may be painful at the moment,‭ ‬but afterwards it will yield sweetness and satisfaction beyond measure.‭ ‬It ought to be a law that the child should not be allowed to cry because its wishes are thwarted.‭ ‬Crying for such a cause should be a crime,‭ ‬and should be punished.‭ ‬The rule would work infallibly.‭

Firmly,‭ ‬consistently,‭ ‬and kindly applied,‭ ‬such a method of treatment would banish the ugly phenomenon of whimpering children from every house,‭ ‬and changes nuisances into sources of comfort,‭ ‬interest and joy.‭ ‬Parents are afraid to use the whip for fear of alienating the affections of their children.‭ ‬It is a mistake.‭ ‬Things work the other way.‭ ‬No parents are loved so well as those who are not afraid to enforce the law of righteousness.‭ ‬No parents are despised and slighted so much,‭ ‬at last by their children,‭ ‬as those who are afraid to whip them.

‭ ‬Their methods breed tyrants,‭ ‬and louts and boors.‭ ‬Enlightened and firm government produces men and women fit to be sons and daughters of God.‭ "‬Train up a child in the way that he should go,‭ ‬and when he is old,‭ ‬he will not depart from it.‭" ‬Try it.‭ ‬Never mind the scornful and shallow philosophy of street fools.‭ ‬The wisdom of God shall come forth justified in everything at last.‭ ‬The saints are‭ "‬called‭" ‬that they may govern the world at last.‭ ‬Part of their preparation lies in present experience.‭ ‬How are they going to be able to enforce God's authority on public communities,‭ ‬if they do not now do it in their own families‭?

The Christadelphian 12/1896


7 The rich ruleth over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.

Do not get into debt.

"Owe no man anything but love"; it is an apostolic precept. You can be under a debt of gratitude as much as you like, but keep money out of the obligation; this is good advice, even apart from precept, but here is precept, therefore a binding rule on those who submit to apostolic law.

There are many evils connected with debt.

"The borrower is servant to the lender."

The debt is something between you which has power to cloud friendship; it is always an anxiety; a worm that gnaws the roots of joy. At last, perhaps, it is a seed of hatred and strife. Keep the air clear of debt, and the sun will have a better chance. But some say we cannot help it, and doubtless there are times when people cannot help it, but in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred they can help it, by denying themselves.

The advantages that come of the borrowing are very dearly bought, in a higher than a commercial sense. Most borrowers find that out by experience, but it is better not to let experience teach in this matter, since we have a command; it is better to obey the command and not to get into debt; a recognition of duty in this matter will greatly help.

There is nothing like duty as the motive principle of life; applied to this matter, it would save worlds of trouble. Acting on this principle of not getting into debt, people would be saved much trouble. Once get into debt, the difficulty of getting out is greater than dreamt of, but some people do not think about it. They see an opportunity; they conceive a desire in a certain direction; and borrowing is as easy with them as possible.

This is wrong. They have no business to handle money that is not their own; they are not sure they will live to repay; their health may fail, prospects may desert them and the lender is robbed, and that the lender may have plenty is no weakening of the obligation to give him his own. In our circumstances, it is specially important to be particular on this point. The Lord may be upon us any day, and how discomfiting for him to find us with hands and feet tied in debt and unable to do anything for his name, for the burden we have taken on our shoulders.

There is nothing but wisdom in this precept: a noble-hearted lender may forgive debt; but we must not presume on this; nay, rather refuse to be forgiven and insist on the advantage of being free and independent. Shut your ears to flattering projects. Say not, "I will pay up in a year." Ye know not the year is yours. Even if ye live, things may go wrong, and ye in a fix will have to say with humiliation, "I would pay but I cannot."

Traffic in love without limit, for love is the fulfilling of the law. We are allowed to contract indefinite obligations in this direction; the interest is sweet to the payer and receiver, and leaves a man richer in the article when paid. At the same time, beware of counterfeits; beware of such as talk of love, and on the strength of it get into debt and bear false witness.

Love is the fulfilling of the law only in the sense that it is the sentiment that leads to the spontaneous doing of what the law enjoins, and abstinence from what it forbids. It will not do to put love in the place of obedience; this is characteristic of the false religions of the day. We must always guard against the misapplication of good principles, that we may see the right fulfilment of all in the Kingdom of God.

Bro Roberts - Submission to human law



Men, then, whether we call them individuals or the world, cannot know what the Scriptures teach unless they study them apart from tradition. This is contrary to their practice. Their custom is, to indoctrinate the human mind with tradition from the cradle to maturity. This is called "training up a child in the way he should go, that when he is old he may not depart from it!"

It ought to be styled, the putting the mind in chains stronger than iron. After they have handcuffed and riveted the intellect, they put the Bible into their hands with eulogy, and saying, "Read it, for the Bible is our religion!" They all tell their disciples this, whether clergyman or rabbi; and as their scholars are trained in a sort of awful reverence for the men of sanctimony and the "holy tone," they are too much the creatures of implicit faith, to dispute the fact.

Herald of the Kingdom and Age to Come, June 1857



9 He that hath a bountiful eye shall be blessed; for he giveth of his bread to the poor.


‭It may not be so now. Such a man rather seems a goose to be plucked by the sly foxes: sheep to be devoured by prowling wolves. But appearance is not always reality. It steadily remains an appointed truth that blessedness and nothing but blessedness awaits the merciful men who are bountiful for God's sake.

‭ Such were his servants the prophets, "of whom the world was not worthy, who wandered about in sheep skins, in dens and caves of the earth, destitute, tormented, afflicted." How will they appear when "the time of the dead" has come, when God in anger rises in judgment against angry nations, and deals out bountiful "reward to his servants, the prophets, and to them that fear His name, small and great?"

‭ It will then be apparent to all the world that this statute of the sanctuary is invulnerable in the strength of truth, and that, however much God's bountiful children may be prevailed against in this age of confusion and sin, their blessedness stands like a rock awaiting them at their awaking, and will prevail, like Jacob's blessing on Joseph, "unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills."

‭Let not the bountiful man lose heart: let not his love wax cold because iniquity may abound among those who have a name to live and are dead. Let him persevere faithfully unto death, remembering that he to whom our service is dedicated is an observant watcher amid all the darkness, contemporary with all its times, and waiting to chase it away with His everlasting presence.

Editor.

‭ The Christadelphian, Dec 1896.