Proverbs 28:26

“He who trusts in his own heart is a fool,
but whoever walks wisely shall be delivered.”

The Holy Scriptures speak plainly, and without reserve; they know nothing of that squeamish delicacy that keeps men from designating things by their appropriate names. They declare sin to be sin, and folly to be folly, without considering what the pride of man will say to the fidelity that is expressed.

Now this gives an exceeding great advantage to ministers; for though it does not sanction rudeness, or indelicacy, or inattention to the feelings of mankind—it does authorize a “great plainness of speech” in all who deliver the messages of God to a sinful and self-deceiving world. Indeed, by universal consent, a greater freedom of speech is admitted, even by the most fastidious in our public addresses, than would be palatable in private converse; nor will any be offended with us, if we declare authoritatively, and without any palliating modifications, what God has said, and what we know to be true, and what therefore we must affirm—that “he who trusts in his own heart is a fool.”

In confirmation of this plain and solemn truth, I will show,

I. What is the conduct here reprobated—trusting in our own heart.

Man, when he fell from God, renounced not only his allegiance to him as his Maker, but his trust in him as his God. Since that time, man desires to be a god unto himself, and places his reliance rather on his own inherent powers, than on the Majesty of Heaven.

1. Fallen man relies on his own wisdom and understanding.

This is true, especially in reference to all that concerns the soul. Every person conceives that he knows what saving religion is, and how he is to obtain favor at the hands of God. The most careless of men stand, in this respect, on a footing with the most thoughtful and serious; every one is alike confident that his opinions are just; and he holds them fast, with a degree of assurance which the most studious habits would scarcely warrant.

Some, however, will admit the Scriptures to be the only true standard of religious sentiment; but then they suppose themselves to be perfectly equal to the task of extracting from them the mind of God. Unconverted men feel no need of divine teaching. They are not conscious of the blindness of their minds, and of the bias that is upon their hearts on the side of error. Hence they will take some few particular passages which favor the prejudices they have imbibed; and on them they will build, as securely as if it was impossible for them to err!

2. Fallen man relies on his own purposes and resolutions.

Every man has, at some time or other, thought with himself, that it was desirable for him to be prepared for death and judgment; and most people have formed some faint purposes at least, if not a fixed resolution, that they will amend their lives at some point in time, and prepare for their great account. In some imminent danger, or under some distressing occurrence, the purpose may have been formed with a view to a speedy change; but, in general, the convenient season is looked for at somewhat of a distant period.

But the power to turn to God is doubted by none. The sufficiency of man to execute his own purposes and resolutions is never questioned. Every one supposes that he shall be able to effect whatever his judgment shall direct, and his necessities require. As for any need of divine assistance for these things, men have no idea of it. Their own strength is equal to the performance of all that they judge necessary for their salvation; and therefore they may safely defer the great work of their souls to any period which it may suit them to assign.

That I may dissuade you from such vain confidence, I proceed to state,

II. The folly of trusting in our own heart.

Even in relation to earthly things a proud confidence in our own judgment and strength is a mark of folly; but in reference to the concerns of the soul it is folly in the extreme. For,

1. Trusting in ourselves robs us of the benefit we might receive from trusting in God.

This is particularly intimated in the words immediately connected with my text, “He who trusts in his own heart is a fool; but whoever walks wisely shall be delivered.” Now here the “walking wisely” is put for trusting in God, rather than in ourselves; and the person who so conducts himself, “shall be delivered” from those evils into which the self-confident must fall.

Indeed the very honor of God is concerned to leave us, that we may reap the bitter fruits of our own folly. If we succeeded in effecting our own deliverance, we would become proud and ascribe all the glory to ourselves. But God has warned us, that, if we provoke him thus to jealousy, we shall lose the benefits which, by trusting in him, we might have obtained; and bring on ourselves the very evils which, by trusting in him, we might have escaped, “This is what the LORD says:

“Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who depends on flesh for his strength and whose heart turns away from the LORD (to trust in ourselves is a departure of heart from God). He will be like a bush in the wastelands; he will not see prosperity when it comes. He will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives.

“But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit!” Jeremiah 17:5-8.”

2. Trusting in ourselves ensures beyond all doubt, our ultimate disappointment.

If ever any man was authorized to trust in himself, methinks Peter and the other Apostles were, in relation to their desertion of their Lord, in his lowest extremity. In the fullness of his own sufficiency, Peter said, “Though I die with you, I will not deny you. And so likewise said they all.” Yet, behold, no sooner was their Master apprehended, than “they all forsook him and fled!” And Peter, the most sell-confident of them all, denied him with oaths and curses.

Thus will it be with all of us; however firm our resolutions are, they will prove only as wax before the fire, if they be made in our own strength. We need, indeed, only look back and see what has become of the resolutions we have already made, that:
“we would turn from this or that sin;
we would mortify this or that propensity;
we would give up ourselves to God in newness of life.”

Alas! alas! how have these purposes vanished, as smoke before the whirlwind! And though we may think to profit by experience, and to become more steadfast in consequence of our former disappointments, we shall only live to prove with still greater evidence, the folly of our own ways, and the truth of that inspired declaration, that “the heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked! Who can know it?”

3. Trusting in ourselves will keep us from discovering our error, until it is past a remedy.

Tell people what God says of their ways, and they will not believe it. Every one thinks himself safe; and holds fast his persuasion, in spite of all the admonitions that can be given him. The Rich Man, who was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day, would have deemed anyone very uncharitable who would have warned him of his approaching end. He would have found an abundance to allege in his own defense; and would not have believed that so inoffensive a life as his could ever issue in such misery as was denounced against him! His five brethren, who succeeded to his wealth, and followed him in what they esteemed so befitting their situation in life, were equally secure in their own minds, and equally averse to think themselves liable to God’s displeasure; nay, so averse were they to admit such an idea, that, if their deceased brother’s wish had been granted, and one had been sent from the dead to warn them of their danger, they would not have believed his report. Hence, like him who had gone before them, they held fast their delusions, until, one after another, they all came into the same place of torment! Each, at the instant of his own departure, saw the danger of those who were left behind; for, as they would not believe Moses and the Prophets, their ruin was inevitable, and their misery sure.

Precisely such is our state and conduct. We will trust in our own hearts, and deny the necessity for trusting in the Lord alone for salvation; and the probability is, that we shall never be undeceived, until we come to experience what now we will not believe. And are not they who pursue such a course justly denominated fools? If a man would not be persuaded that the leaping down from a lofty precipice would hurt him, and would desperately put it to the trial, and break all his bones—would anyone be at a loss to assign an appropriate name to him? Yet would he be wise, in comparison with one who, in defiance of all the warnings of Holy Writ, will trust in himself rather than in God!

See, then, from hence:

1. How desirable is Scriptural knowledge of one’s self.

Respecting gross offences, men cannot be ignorant of their condition before God; but respecting the state and habit of their minds, especially in relation to the object of their trust and confidence—they are almost as ignorant as new-born babes. People will not inquire; they will not examine; they will not even suspect that they may be wrong. In truth, they will not believe that their self-confidence is so criminal as the Scriptures represent it, or that any danger can await them on account of it.

But, my dear brethren, I beg you to remember, that the declaration in my text is the Word of the living God, and shall surely be found true in the end. I charge you, therefore, to examine carefully into this matter.

See whether you have just views of the deceitfulness of the heart. See whether you feel so fearful of its delusions, that you determine never to take its report of anything without comparing it with the sacred records, and imploring direction from God that you may not err.

Be assured, that, until you are brought to renounce all dependence on yourselves, and to depend only on the Lord, you are not, you cannot be, in a state of acceptance with God; for, if he pronounces you to be fools, he will surely deal with you according to your proper character.

2. How necessary is a saving knowledge of Christ.

Until we come to know what provision God has made for us in the Son of his love, we shall of necessity continue guilty of the folly which is here reprobated. But when once we are assured that there is another in whom we may trust, and who possesses in himself all the fullness of the Godhead, we are encouraged to look beyond ourselves, and to place our confidence in him. Now the Lord Jesus Christ is that person, who is sent of God for that very end, and “is of God made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.” Here, then, we have all that our necessities can require. By this, all temptation to creature-confidence is cut off; for who would lean upon a broken reed, who has Omnipotence for his support? Or who would build upon the sand, who can have for his foundation “the Rock of ages?”

Seek, then, I beg you, the knowledge of this Savior. Beg of God to show you what an inexhaustible fullness is treasured up for you in him; and how impossible it is that you should ever fail, if only you trust in him. Once begin in truth to “live by faith in the Son of God,” and you “shall not be ashamed or confounded world without end!

Charles Simeon

Proverbs 28:20

“A faithful man shall abound with blessings: but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent.”

The apostle Paul has told us that “the love of money is the root of all evil; and that many, while coveting after it, have pierced themselves through with many sorrows! 1 Timothy 6:10.” In truth, the effects of this principle on the people in whom it dwells, and on all connected with them, are beyond all conception bitter and injurious. On the other hand, an indifference to the love of money greatly elevates and ennobles those in whom it is found; and conduces, in a very eminent degree, to their happiness both in this world and the next.

This appears to be the precise import of our text, as it stands connected with the words which follow it. But we need not so limit its use. It contains a general truth, which will afford us much profitable instruction. Taking it in this more enlarged sense, I will endeavor to show,

I. Who are they that answer the description here given us.

Nehemiah, speaking of his brother Hanani, says, “He was a faithful man, and feared God above many;” and he assigns this as his reason for appointing him to superintend the repairs of the city of Jerusalem; since he might be fully depended on for a conscientious discharge of his high office, Nehemiah 7:2. From hence, then, we see who they are that are entitled to the character of “faithful men.”

1. The godly are faithful to their convictions in things relating to God.

There is in every man, under the Christian dispensation, a conviction that he is a sinner who stands in need of mercy; that God has revealed to us in his Gospel the way in which alone he will dispense mercy; and that, as responsible beings, who shall soon stand at the judgment-seat of Christ in order to be judged according to our works, it is our duty and our happiness to be seeking for saving mercy in God’s appointed way.

Now, if a man is faithful to his convictions respecting these things, we may justly call him a faithful man; but, if he neglects God, and pours contempt upon the Lord Jesus, and disregards his eternal interests, and labors in every possible way to silence the remonstrances of his own conscience—is he faithful? No indeed! He is a traitor to God and to his own soul. If he is truly upright before God, he will give to the concerns of his soul and of eternity the attention they demand.

2. The godly are faithful to their engagements in things relating to man.

Without supposing any express compact voluntarily entered into between man and man, there is of necessity a mutual obligation lying upon every man to perform the duties of his place and station. As husbands or wives, parents or children, masters or servants, magistrates or subjects—all of us have some line of conduct prescribed to us; and, as members of one great body, are bound to perform our proper office for the benefit of the whole. Every person feels this in relation to others; and would account himself very injuriously treated, if any should violate towards him the duties of their station; and, consequently, every one must owe to others the treatment which he himself claims at their hands.

Now, a faithful man considers this, and will labor to do unto others as he, in a change of circumstances, would think it right that they should do unto him. But if a man consults nothing but his own interests and inclinations, and makes his own will the only rule of his conduct, can he be called “faithful?” Is he not as much bound to observe the commandments of the second table as those of the first? His obligation to both the one and the other of them is unalterable; nor can either the one or the other in any wise be dispensed with. Piety towards God, and morality towards man, must go hand in hand. Neither of them can supersede the other; nor can either of them exist without the other; and he who is faithful in one, must of necessity be faithful in both.

For the encouragement of such characters, I will proceed to state,

II. What are the peculiar blessings reserved for the faithful.

Truly “the faithful man shall abound with blessings!”

I might here enumerate thousands of blessings, if time would admit of it; but I will specify only three:
the approbation of God;
the testimony of a good conscience;
and a blessed hope of immortality and glory!

But how shall I describe these blessings?

1. The approbation of God: “In God’s favor is life; and his loving-kindness is better than life itself, Psalm 30:5; Psalm 63:3.”

2. As for the testimony of our own conscience, and the witness of God’s Spirit with ours, that we are upright before him, man can have no greater joy on earth than that! 2 Corinthians 1:12, Romans 8:16.

3. And who can adequately declare the blessedness of a soul that apprehends God himself as his portion, and all the glory of Heaven as his inheritance!

But it is the peculiarity and exclusiveness of this portion which we are chiefly called to notice.

To the faithful man these blessings are given; but to him also are they limited; for they are peculiar to him, “and a stranger intermeddles not with his joy, Proverbs 14:10.” Let the man who is unfaithful to his convictions or to his engagements say what he knows of these blessings? If he speaks the truth before God, he has no experience of them whatever in his own soul. Indeed, it is impossible that he should have any sense of them as already imparted to him; since, if God is true, no one of them belongs to him, “he has no part or lot in anyone of them;” they belong to the faithful man—and to him alone!

Application:

1. What is the proper scope and tendency of the Gospel.

It is surely intended to effect a change, yes, an exceeding great change, both in the characters and states of men.

But what does it effect in their character? Does it make them hypocrites? No; but faithful both to God and man.

And what does it effect in their states? Does it deprive them of comforts, and make them melancholy? No; but it makes them to abound with blessings, both in time and in eternity.

O that you could be prevailed upon to view the Gospel in its true light, and to embrace it with your whole hearts!

2. What bitter self-condemnation awaits the impenitent and unbelieving man.

You have now the blessings of time and sense. But what are they, in comparison with those that await the faithful man? Even here your portion is far inferior to his; but what will they be in the eternal world? Truly, you will all find, before long, that to gain the whole world with the loss of your own souls is a sad exchange! May God make you wise in time, that you may not have to deplore your folly to all eternity!

Charles Simeon

Proverbs 28:13

“He who covers his sins shall not prosper; but whoever confesses and forsakes them shall have mercy!”

The subject of repentance offers nothing for the gratification of “itching ears.” But it must not on that account be overlooked; since, if less interesting than some other subjects on the score of novelty, it yields to none in point of importance.

Repentance is the first act whereby a sinner returns unto his God; and it is an act for which the most eminent saint has occasion from day to day; insomuch that in him it assumes rather the character of a habit than an act. In the more grown Christian, it is the warp, while every other grace is the woof; whether the colors interwoven with it is grave or mirthful, this pervades the whole piece, and is, as it were, the foundation of all the rest!

For the advancing of this work in all our souls, I will show,

I. The folly of covering our sins.

To conceal our sins from the all-seeing eye of God is impossible!

Yet there are various ways in which men attempt to cover their sins.

Sin, though it cannot be hidden from God, may be covered from ourselves:
by denial,
by excuses,
by forgetfulness.

Sin may be covered by denial.

Many, though walking in the habitual violation of the plainest duties, will deny that they commit any sin at all. As “the adulterous woman,” of whom Solomon speaks, “eats, and wipes her mouth, and says, I have done no wickedness! Proverbs 30:20;” so these, in gratifying their sensual appetites, think that they commit no more evil than if they had merely satisfied the demands of hunger and thirst; and, in their minds, one sinful indulgence is but a prelude to another, whenever opportunity and inclination concur to call for it.

People of this description, if they receive only a distant intimation of their state, are ready to reply, even against God himself, just as Cain did, after murdering his brother Abel, “Where is your brother Abel?” “I know not; am I my brother’s keeper! Genesis 4:9.”

Thus, rather than they humble themselves before God, they will deny their accountability to him, saying, “Our lips are our own; who is Lord over us? Psalm 12:4.” But this denial of their guilt will avail them nothing. God will reprove them as he did Israel of old, Jeremiah 2:23-24. This is a fine image to illustrate the insatiable avidity with which the wicked follow their own lusts and passions; and will surely visit them with his heaviest indignation! Jeremiah 2:31; Jeremiah 2:35.

Sin may be covered by excuses.

Others cover their sins by endeavoring to mitigate the guilt of them.

Thus did Adam and Eve in Paradise.

Thus also did Saul, after sparing the king of the Amalekites, and the spoil which he had taken, instead of destroying them utterly according to the direction which he had received from the Lord. He first of all asserted that he had executed the divine command; and that being disproved by the lowing of the oxen, he vindicated himself, asserting, that, in as far as he was implicated in the affair, he had acted under the influence of the people, whom he could not restrain, and dared not to resist! 1 Samuel 15:13-15; 1 Samuel 15:20-21; 1 Samuel 15:24.

Thus it is also that the generality are acting all around us. They cannot actually deny that what they are doing is contrary to God’s revealed will, but they are quick to offer excuses:

they are so circumstanced, that they cannot on the whole act otherwise than they do;

the current of the world is so strong against them, that they cannot resist it;

and, if they err, the fault is rather in those who have led the way, than in themselves, who have only gone with the stream.

Sin may be covered by forgetfulness.

But perhaps the most common way of covering sing is by letting them pass altogether unnoticed. Many are not altogether satisfied that their ways are right; but they go on without much thought, and presently forget anything which may have made a slight impression on their minds. Forgetting their sins, they suppose that God has forgotten them also. Of such people God complains, “They consider not in their hearts that I remember all their wickedness! Hosea 7:2.” Very beautiful is the description which God gives of such people, by the Prophet Jeremiah, “I hearkened and heard, but they spoke not aright; no man repented of his wickedness, saying, What have I done? Every one turned to his course, as the horse rushes into the battle, Jeremiah 8:6.” The horse is unconscious of his danger; and so are the mass of ungodly men, “it is a sport to them to commit iniquity;” and, provided it is not of such a heinous nature as to violate the usages of the place wherein they live, they say, “No evil will come unto us! Jeremiah 5:12.”

But all who thus attempt to cover their sins are guilty of the extreme folly.

They “can never prosper.” They may have temporal prosperity as much as others; but in their souls they cannot prosper, Job 31:33.

They cannot prosper in this world.

They can have no peace with God or in their own consciences; for God has said, “There is no peace to the wicked!”

They can have no victory over sin; for God will not interpose to deliver them from bonds, which they themselves are pleased with.

They can have no delight in holy ordinances, either in the public assembly, or in their secret chamber. They may, like Ezekiel’s hearers, be pleased with hearing a man that can play well upon an instrument, Ezekiel 33:31-32; but they can have no fellowship with God; for “what fellowship has righteousness with unrighteousness, or light with darkness? 2 Corinthians 6:14.”

They can have no bright and cheering prospects of the eternal world; for they have no evidence within themselves of their acceptance with God, nor any “fitness for the inheritance of the saints in light.”

Much less can they prosper in the world to come.

There the impenitent and unbelieving will meet their deserved recompense. No joy awaits them there.

They did not seek heavenly glory, and therefore they shall not find it!

They came not weary and heavy laden unto Christ; and therefore they have no part in the rest which he alone can give.

They did not humble themselves before God; and therefore they can never be exalted by God.

Let us now contemplate, on the other hand,

II. The benefit of true repentance.

True repentance consists of two parts:

1. A confessing of our sins.

Confession is of absolute and indispensable necessity. We never can humble ourselves aright without it. Nor ought we to rest in mere general acknowledgments; we should search out our sins; we should say, “Thus and thus I have done!” We should go farther, and enter into the particular aggravations of our sins, in order the more deeply to affect our own hearts, and to fill our minds with self-loathing and self-abhorrence.

Not that God needs to be informed; he knows all our iniquities, and all the circumstances with which they have been attended. But by spreading them all before God, we give the more glory to him as a God of infinite mercy and compassion; at the same time that we prepare our own minds for a due reception of mercy at his hands.

2. A forsaking of our sins.

If we hold them fast, it is a clear proof that our repentance is not genuine. Nor must we forsake them merely as a man parts with a limb, which, if not amputated, would destroy his life. We may indeed take into our consideration the danger arising from them, as our Lord tells us in the case of “a right hand or right eye,” which, if retained, would plunge us into everlasting perdition! But we must regard them as odious, and hateful, and abominable; and long for deliverance from them as we would for deliverance from the most loathsome disorder.

These two, a confessing, and forsaking of sin, must go together. Supposing we could put away our sins for the future, it would still befit us to bewail those which are past; and, if we bewail them ever so bitterly, still must we not rest without gaining the victory over them, it is the union of them both that marks true penitence.

Where such repentance is—there God will bestow his richest blessings.

It is said in a subsequent part of this chapter, that “a faithful man shall be blessed.” And this is true of all who deal faithfully with their own souls and with their God, in bewailing and mortifying their most secret corruptions. This is strongly asserted by all the inspired writers. “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon! Isaiah 55:7.” To such both the faithfulness and the justice of God assure a perfect remission of all sin! 1 John 1:9-10. Nor will God delay to manifest his love, when once he sees our souls truly humbled for sin. The self-condemning publican was justified even before he left the spot where his confessions were made, Luke 18:14.

David speaks of the same truth as realized also in his experience. While he forbore to humble himself, he was kept in a state of darkness and misery; but “as soon as he began to confess his sins unto the Lord, the Lord forgave the iniquity of his sin, Psalm 32:3-5.”

And need we say what “mercy” God will grant to penitents in the last day? Surely all the manifestations of his love which he gives to them in this world, are but as a twinkling star compared with that full splendor of the Sun of Righteousness, which in that day every contrite soul shall enjoy. The joy of the Father over the returning prodigal, with all the music, and feasting, and dancing—are but faint images of what shall be realized in Heaven over every true penitent through all eternity!

From hence we may learn,

1. Why it is that men know so little of spiritual prosperity.

Repentance is a work to which we are very averse! If we did but occasionally set apart a day for solemn fasting and prayer, and set ourselves more diligently to the great duty of humiliation before God—we would have more delightful visits from him, and richer communications of his grace to our souls.

2. How painful will be the self-condemnation of all who perish!

The promise in our text will then be remembered with unutterable shame and sorrow. What a reflection will it be: “I might have obtained mercy, but would not seek it;” God said to me, “Only acknowledge your iniquity, Jeremiah 3:12-13;” but I would not deign to acknowledge it. Truly, the easy terms on which salvation might have been obtained, will form the bitterest ingredient of that bitter cup which the impenitent soul will have to drink to all eternity!

3. What obligations we owe to the Lord Jesus Christ!

It is through him, and through him alone, that repentance is of any avail. There is nothing in repentance that can merit forgiveness; all the merit is in Christ Jesus—even in his obedience unto death; it is that which cancels all our guilt; it is that which purchases our title to the heavenly inheritance. While therefore we confess and forsake our sins, let our eyes be directed to Him as our only hope, even to him, “in whom all the seed of Israel shall be justified, and in whom they shall glory.”

Charles Simeon

Proverbs 28:11

“The rich man is wise in his own conceit; but the poor that has understanding searches him out.”

Proverbs are, for the most part, very obscure; they are intended to convey an abundance of instruction in a small space; and the truths contained in them are almost always such as escape the observation of unthinking men, and such as militate against their most received opinions.

That the rich have greatly the advantage of the poor in reference to knowledge in general, must be confessed; for they have leisure time, which the poor cannot command; and instruction, which the poor cannot obtain.

Hence it is generally supposed that the rich have the same advantage in reference to divine knowledge. But this is by no means true. On the contrary, the poor have, in reference to divine knowledge, the advantage over them. And this is what Solomon affirms, in the words before us, “The rich man is wise in his own conceit; but the poor that has understanding searches him out.”

In support of Solomon’s assertion, I will show,

I. That the poor have really the advantage of the rich in reference to divine knowledge.

Elihu, intending to incriminate Job, observed, “Great men are not always wise, Job 32:9.” And if this is true in relation to the affairs of this world, much more is it so in reference to the concerns of eternity Nor indeed are the poor always wise in this respect; yet have they, on the whole, the advantage of the rich.

1. They had the advantage in the days of old.

Look at those who received the testimony of our blessed Lord. It was said with a kind of triumph, “Have any of the rulers and of the Pharisees believed on him? John 7:48.” Whereas we are told, on the other hand, that “the common people heard him gladly, Mark 12:37.”

And such was also the experience of the Apostles; it was chiefly among the poor that their ministry was attended with success; as Paul observes, “Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things–and the things that are not–to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him! 1 Corinthians 1:26-29.”

2. They have also the advantage at this day.

It was to be one mark of the Messiah’s advent, that “to the poor the Gospel should be preached, Matthew 11:5.” By them, too, was the Gospel to be received, while by the rich it should be rejected and despised. Nor did our blessed Lord merely affirm this, but he accounted it a fit subject of praise and thanksgiving, “I thank you, O Father, Lord of Heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and prudent, and have revealed them unto babes! Matthew 11:25-26.”

And now look around, and see if it is not thus at this day. Who are they that value the Gospel? Who are they that attend it, wherever it is preached with effect? Some, indeed, there are of the wise and rich; but very few in comparison; so few, that if a man of wealth and learning show a decided love to the Gospel, he is regarded almost as a phenomenon; and that, too, no less by the Church than by the world itself.

The great mass of religious people are of the poorer class; so that at this day, no less than in the apostolic age, when that appeal of the Apostle James is made to us, “Hearken, my beloved brethren, has not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he has promised to them that love him, James 2:5,” there is but one answer that can be given to it; we must say: It is even so; it is from among the poor, and not from among the rich, that God has formed his Church; it is “of unhewn stones that his altar is made, Exodus 20:25;” and “of these very stones that he has raised up children to Abraham, Matthew 3:9.”

Seeing, then, that what we have asserted is an unquestionable fact, let us,

II. Account for it.

We might be satisfied with referring it, as our blessed Lord does, to the sovereign will of God, “Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in your sight, Matthew 11:26,” should be quite sufficient for us. But we may trace the fact to natural causes.

The rich, from the very circumstance of their elevation in society, are under considerable disadvantages, beyond what are experienced by the poor:

1. The rich are more blinded by prejudice (preconceived opinions).

Into the minds of the higher orders of society prejudices are instilled from their earliest infancy. Religious people are kept at a distance from them; religious books are taken out of their hands; and religious opinions are branded with every epithet that can render them odious. For one word that would lead them to God, a hundred are spoken to draw them away from him. Let them betray a love to earthly trifles, and no one will offer a sentiment to turn them from such an evil way; but let them betray a decided love to heavenly things, and multitudes will exert themselves in every possible way to divert them from so dangerous a path. Hence their prejudices are all on the side of evil and of the world.

And how great the effect of prejudice is, may be seen in the adherents both of Judaism and Popery. One would imagine that the superstitions both of the one and of the other must give way before the light of the New Testament; but prejudice, as has been said, has neither eyes nor ears. Truth has no force, and argument has no power, when set before one whose mind is filled with preconceived opinions. The Apostle says of the Jews, that “to this day a veil is upon their hearts; so that, when Moses is read to them, they cannot see the true scope of his instructions, 2 Corinthians 3:14-15.”

And precisely thus it is also with the rich, when the Gospel is preached to them, “Their eyes are blinded; and they cannot discern” the truth of those things which are proposed to their consideration, 2 Corinthians 4:4.

But the poor are, comparatively, but little subjected to this influence. People take not so much pains to prejudice the minds of the poor; and they are left more to think and act for themselves. Hence, when truth is proposed to them, they are more open to conviction, and more easily brought under its power. And this is one reason why even the “publicans and harlots enter into the kingdom before the Scribes and Pharisees!”

2. The rich are more enslaved by cultural customs and etiquette.

The rich, amidst all their boasted liberty, are the truest slaves that the world contains. If negroes are afraid of the scourge of their masters, so are the rich afraid lest they should be subjected to the lash of censure among their equals. Let an opportunity of spiritual instruction be afforded to them, they would be afraid to avail themselves of it, if it were offered at a place not frequented by the rich, or by a person not approved among them. Even though in their hearts they would be glad to hear the instruction, they dare not go over the line prescribed by custom and fashion, lest they should bring upon themselves some reproach. They would be ashamed to be found reading the Bible; and would be in perfect horrors if they were discovered weeping for their sins. True, a rich Papist would not blush at being known to follow the superstitious usages of his Church, because other rich people both approve and follow the same superstitions; but a rich Protestant would not dare to spend a day in fasting and prayer, because the rich of his own community pour contempt on piety, and on the means by which piety is advanced in the soul.

But the poor are more free to follow the dictates of their conscience; and when they “have a spiritual understanding,” they will follow them; they will not be content to “continue in the broad road, because of the many who walk there; or to desert the narrow path, because there be but few who find it, Matthew 7:13-14;” they are more independent of the opinions of the world; and are prepared to say with Joshua, “Let others think or act as they please, I will serve the Lord! Joshua 24:15.”

3. The rich are more deluded by pride.

The rich, on account of their wealth and influence, have great deference paid to their opinions. The flattery which they receive is extremely pleasing to them; and they soon begin to think that they are indeed as wise as their fawning sycophants represent them to be. Hence they become very confident in their own opinions, and cannot bear contradiction upon any subject. They suppose, too, that they are as competent to judge of religion as of any other subject; and will lay down the law upon the subject of divine truth as confidently as if they had the wisdom of Daniel or Paul.

But the poor man, who has been taught of God, sees at once how ignorant these people are on those subjects on which they presume to dogmatize with such unblushing confidence. The proud rich man will tell us how erroneous it is to represent our fallen nature as so depraved; and what a licentious doctrine that of salvation by faith alone is; and that a life of entire devotedness to God is no better than wild fanaticism or puritanic hypocrisy.

But “the poor man, that has understanding, searches him out;” he has within himself the evidence of those truths which the conceited man decries. John says, “He who believes on the Son of God has the witness in himself, 1 John 5:10;” and this internal evidence is more to him than all the assertions which conceit can dictate or arrogance maintain.

He knows his own depravity;
he feels his need of the Savior;
he tastes the sweetness of true religion;
and from God he inherits a blessing, Matthew 5:3.

While the rich despiser of his faith receives nothing but woes at the hand of his offended God! Isaiah 5:21.

Improvement.

1. Do not envy those who are rich in this world.

Truly they are encompassed with snares, and exposed to great dangers.

The advantages which they possess are very trivial; (what necessities has the richest man beyond food and clothing, which the poor possess as well as they?)

But their disadvantages are very great; so great, that “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of Heaven.” Remarkable, in this view, is that advice of Solomon, “Labor not to be rich; cease from your own wisdom, Proverbs 23:4.” The errors here pointed at are almost inseparable from each other; and every one who is truly wise will be on his guard against them both.

2. Seek to be “rich towards God!”

That is true wisdom; and the more you possess of spiritual riches, the more truly humble you will be before God. Indeed, a poor pious man is, in God’s estimation, as high a character as exists on earth! When God’s only-begotten Son became incarnate, this was the character he assumed. Seek to be conformed to him, and you need not desire anything beyond. Nothing is of any value without piety; nor can anything add to piety, when it fully occupies the soul! Philippians 3:7-8.

Charles Simeon

Proverbs 28:5

“Evil men do not understand justice, but those who seek the LORD understand all things.”

There are, in the Holy Scriptures, broad, and, if I may so call them, sweeping expressions, which, if taken in their strict and literal sense, have not so much as even the semblance of truth. Yet they are not liable to be misunderstood, because every sincere reader will of necessity supply the restrictions which are necessary for a just interpretation of them. For instance: no one who read the words of the above verse, would suppose that Solomon ever intended to assert that all who sought the Lord were at once brought to the knowledge of all arts and sciences, and to an acquaintance with all the languages of the earth.

As we do with all Scripture, every expression must of necessity be restricted either by the subject of which it treats, or by the context in which it stands.

The words before us are used in a way of contrast with those which precede them. The writer has just said, that “Evil men do not understand justice;” that is, they do not understand what they are doing, or what they ought to do, or the true end and scope of God’s dealings with them. But those who seek the Lord are well instructed in these things; they may be as ignorant of worldly things as any other people; but of things relating to their spiritual and eternal welfare they have a discernment which no ungodly man either does, or can, possess. Taking the word’s with this restriction, I shall,

I. Confirm the sentiment.

Here I might enumerate a great variety of particulars, such as the evil of sin, the beauty of holiness, the glory of Christ, which a spiritual man alone can truly apprehend. But, as the expression is broad and comprehensive, so shall my illustration of it be; so that the contrast between the spiritual and carnal man may more forcibly appear. Of those, therefore, who seek the Lord, I will say:

1. The genuine Christian understands the true state and character of the world around them.

That everything bears the appearance of some great change that has been wrought upon it, is obvious to all. The very elements bear this stamp upon them; as does also the whole creation, animate and inanimate, rational and irrational. No one can conceive of the world, or anything in it, as having preserved that degree of perfection in which it was originally created. The ungodly therefore, as well as others, are sensible that there is a great deal of disorder in the world.

But the godly man alone sees this in any degree according to its real extent. He sees that the whole universe is up in arms against Almighty God, under the command of that wicked fiend, who, having himself rebelled against his Maker, is laboring to bring every creature into a participation of his crime; and who, having succeeded in this enterprise, is justly called, “the god of this world.” He sees that this contest is carried on, not by those only who are sunk in open profligacy, but by the most moral and sober of mankind; who, in fact, are as much “alienated from God” as others, and have their own “minds as much at enmity with him” as any other people upon earth.

He sees, in a measure, what men ought to be, and what they are; and that all, without exception, are “living unto themselves, and not unto their God.” The different orders of men are, in his eyes, only like different parts of one great army; differently dressed indeed, and differently employed; some under the very garb of friends, while others are arrayed as open and determined foes; but all are acting, in their respective places, for the establishment of Satan’s kingdom, rather than of Christ’s.

This, I say, the godly man sees, in perfect correspondence with what Paul has declared, “There is none righteous, no, not one; there is none that understands; there is none that seeks after God; they are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that does good, no, not one! Romans 3:10-12.”

2. The genuine Christian understands the real happiness of man.

The world at large conceive of this as consisting in temporal enjoyment. Pleasure, riches, and honor are looked upon as the great sources from whence happiness must flow; and where these are not eagerly coveted, there is something of a temporal nature substituted in their place; some fond conceit, or a mere state of carnal ease, devoid either of any strong emotions, whether of pain or pleasure.

But the godly man knows that there is no genuine happiness but in God:
in a sense of his acceptance by God,
in a performance of his will,
in a prospect of his glory.

There is in his views, and those of an ungodly man, a most perfect contrast with respect to this matter; each coveting what the other despises, and each regarding as contemptible what the other desires. Our blessed Lord’s words will put this matter in the clearest light. See Luke 6:20-26.

The rich, the mirthful, the honored—are by the ungodly regarded with admiration and envy; by the godly, these things are regarded with pity and compassion.

The poor weeping and persecuted saint, on the contrary, is by the ungodly despised; while the godly desires the experience of such a one with the fondest delight.

In a word, while to the inquiry, “Who will show us any good?” the ungodly man says, ‘Give me a supply of food, and wine, and oil;’ the godly man pours out his soul in that petition of the Psalmist, “Lord, lift up the light of your countenance upon me! Psalm 4:6.”

3. The genuine Christian understands the proper tendency of all that God is doing in the world.

God is seen both in his Word and works; and both in the one and in the other he appears to an ungodly world—to obstruct, rather than to advance, the happiness of his creatures. The Word is too strict in its requirements to suit our fallen state; and the dispensations of his Providence are calculated only to embitter life by continual troubles or bereavements.

Far different from these, however, are the opinions of a godly man. The whole inspired volume, whether it promises or threatens, prohibits or enjoins, is in the godly man’s eyes a fountain of good, springing up to everlasting life! And all the diversified afflictions which arise, are regarded by him as blessings in disguise; as messengers sent to “humble us, and to do us good at our latter end,” by weaning us from things visible and temporal, and stimulating us to lay hold on those which are invisible and eternal!

As an ignorant novice may dread a cross-wind, as calculated only to retard the vessel in which he is embarked—the experienced mariner will welcome it, as filling all his sails better than a wind that is the most direct. In the same way, while the ungodly man sees afflictions only as calamities which he would most avoid—the godly man welcomes them from God’s hands, in the assured hope that “his light and momentary afflictions will work out for him a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory! 2 Corinthians 4:17.”

Thus, to go no further, it sufficiently appears how much clearer insight the godly man has into God’s Word and works, than the ungodly man can pretend to. And now let us,

II. Account for this fact.

I readily concede, that, in point of natural talent or acquired learning—the godly man may be inferior to others. But in spiritual discernment—he is superior to the wisest philosopher on earth. Does anyone inquire how this should be! I answer:

1. The genuine Christian has God himself for his teacher.

All God’s people “are taught by him;” and it is in consequence of their “having heard and learned from the Father,” that they attain to a knowledge which no other person can possess, John 6:45. Were I to say that “the Spirit of God opens the eyes of their understanding,” and “brings them out of darkness into marvelous light,” I would say enough to justify all the assertions which I have made; nor would anyone have a right to ask from me an explanation of the process by which this mysterious work is accomplished.

Yet I think that the mode of divine teaching may be in some little measure comprehended by means of a suitable and familiar illustration. There are different ways in which an object which is obscure may be rendered visible:
one way is, by bringing it nearer to us;
another is, by removing intervening obstacles;
another, by shining stronger light upon it;
and another, by strengthening the organs of vision to behold it.

In the same way, without entering into a minute consideration of all these particulars, we may observe, in general, that God’s methods of instructing us by his Spirit are somewhat analogous to these; in that he brings home with power to our souls the truths which we hear, and inclines our hearts to embrace them. The telescope, which brings distant objects to our view, and the microscope, which enables us to discern things which are too small to be seen by the naked eye—make no difference whatever either in the objects themselves or in the organs whereby we perceive them. The things themselves, and our faculties also, all remain the same, whether the instruments are used by us or not. In the same way, there is no difference in the truths which are heard by different people, or in the capacity of those by whom they are perceived; the difference is in the manner in which the truths are presented to the mind; and if we, by instruments of human contrivance, are able thus to bring to the sight of men things that are invisible to the naked eye—then we may well suppose that God is able to bring home to the souls of men truths which the unassisted mind is unable to apprehend.

But I think we may get a juster view of this, by considering how it is that the imperfections of our sight are remedied in common life. When we have an indistinct vision of objects before us, it is for the most part owing to this; through an excess or defect of convexity in our eye, the object before us either falls short of the retina, or goes beyond it; and the use of glasses is, by a suitable medium to bring the object on the retina, so that it may be distinctly impressed thereon, in all its just symmetry and proportions.

In the same way, the Spirit of God, by giving to us “an honest and a good heart,” imprints upon the tablet of our souls the truths, of which, without his aid, we could have no just perception; and thus we are enabled to understand what others are not able to discern. And thus is fulfilled what John has said, “The spiritual man judges all things; yet he himself is judged of no man; for who has known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ,” and therefore are qualified to judge both ourselves and others! 1 Corinthians 2:15-16.

Now, I the rather dwell on this, in order to remove from the minds of objectors the idea that we lay claim to anything like miraculous inspiration. We do indeed say, that God alone can enable us to discern the things of the Spirit, 1 Corinthians 2:12; but we say, also, that he does this through the use of our own faculties, under the direction and influence of his Spirit; and thus “he reveals to babes and sucklings the things which he has hidden from the wise and prudent! Matthew 11:25.”

2. The genuine Christian has an inward experience of the things which he knows.

The apostle John affirms this very thing, “He who believes on the Son of God has the witness in himself, 1 John 5:10;” that is, he has in his soul a distinct perception of those truths which he has received through the medium of his understanding. And this also, I think, may, through a familiar illustration, be made perfectly intelligible to our minds.

We know that our senses are given us for the purpose of discerning the distinctive excellencies of everything around us. It is not sufficient that one faculty alone be brought to bear upon the object that is set before us; we must exercise upon everything that very faculty which is pre-eminently formed to discover and appreciate its excellence.

Suppose we see, for instance:
the sun, without feeling its beams;
or a flower, without having our smell regaled by its fragrances;
or honey, without tasting its sweetness;
or a singing bird, without hearing his melodious notes.

It is obvious that we can form but a very inadequate notion of these things, for lack of an acquaintance with their chief excellencies. In like manner, we cannot judge of a diamond by the touch, when its brilliancy has never been submitted to our sight. It is through the apprehending of everything by its appropriate sense, that we attain just and adequate perceptions of it.

In the same way, the Apostle tells us, that the godly man “has all his senses exercised to discern good and evil, Hebrews 5:14;” and hence it is, that having within himself a perception of them which no other man can enjoy, he possesses also an evidence which no other man can attain.

Now this test may be applied to everything that is of a spiritual nature; and the perception arising from it is fitly called “a spiritual discernment, 1 Corinthians 2:14.” And by this, I say again, “we understand all things;” as John also has told us, “You have an anointing of the Holy One, and you know all things, 1 John 2:20; 1 John 2:27.”

Here is contained all that I have spoken; namely, the extent of the knowledge possessed by God’s people, and the means by which they are enabled to attain it: “We know all things,” because God himself is our teacher; and by the unction poured out, that is, by the “eye-salve which he puts upon our eyes,” he gives us the actual perception of everything in our own souls, Revelation 3:18, and, consequently, the clear and proper understanding of it.

Methinks you are now ready to inquire,

1. How shall I attain this spiritual understanding?

I answer: Not by mere study, even of the Scriptures themselves; but rather by “seeking after God” in spirit and in truth. This is the particular point suggested in my text, “Those who seek the Lord understand all things.” You will remember what our Lord has said, “If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it is of God, John 7:17.” This is that which I have spoken of before; it supposes that there is in us that “honest and good heart,” which alone receives the Word aright, and alone enables us to “bring forth fruit with patience, Luke 8:15.”

I would not depreciate books of human composition, and still less the Scriptures of truth; but we must never forget, that “though Paul should plant, and Apollos water—but it is God alone who can give the increase! 1 Corinthians 3:5-7.” In fact, this is the reason why many hear the Gospel for years without any saving benefit to their souls; they will not humble themselves before God, and seek for mercy through Christ, and give themselves up unreservedly to God; and therefore they remain forever without any true understanding of the word, and any sweet experience of its power. You must first be melted by it; and then you will be “poured into its mold,” and attain, by means of it, that knowledge of God which is life eternal!

2. How shall I manifest my spiritual understanding to the world?

If “God have given you an understanding to know him, 1 John 5:20,” then show it, not by a fond conceit of your own attainments, or a contemptuous spurning of others as blind and carnal; but by a holy life and conduct, such as none but those who are taught of God can maintain. If you know more than others, you should be prepared to answer that question, “What do you do more than others? Matthew 5:47.”

“The tree must be known by its fruit;” and, if you have received a superior illumination in your mind, you must “walk worthy of that high distinction,” and “shine as lights in a dark world.” If the Lord, by his Spirit, have written his Word upon your hearts—then must you show forth that Word in your lives, and be in the world as “epistles of Christ, known and read of all men! 2 Corinthians 3:2.”

Charles Simeon

Proverbs 28:4

“They that forsake the Law, praise the wicked; but such as keep the Law, contend with them.”

Man, as a social being, has an influence on those around him; and his actions should be considered, not merely as they affect himself, but, in their social aspect, as tending to make an impression upon the minds of others. In this point of view, a great measure of responsibility attaches to us, far beyond what, at first sight, we would be ready to imagine. Our good or evil conduct operates as an example, and approves a similar conduct in others; so that, in our daily actions, we, though unconscious of it, are doing good or evil to an unknown extent. This is proclaimed in the words before us, “They that forsake the Law, praise the wicked; but such as keep the Law, contend with them.”

From these words I shall be led to show the effects of piety and impiety on the surrounding world.

I. The effects of IMPIETY on the surrounding world.

Whatever be men’s line of conduct, they must, of necessity, “have pleasure in those who pursue the same, Romans 1:32.” Those they will of course choose for their companions; and if for no other reason—yet in their own vindication they will approve of and applaud their ways. The proud will commend the proud, and “call them happy Malachi 3:15;” as will the worldling also “bless the covetous, whom God abhors Psalm 10:3.”

Indeed, it may be laid down as a general rule, that if only you “do well to yourself,” by studying your own ease, interest, and honor—then “all men will praise you” as wise, and worthy of imitation, Psalm 49:18. It is a matter of course that “the world will love its own John 15:19.”

This, however, is a very partial view of our text; the true sense of which lies much deeper. The praise which an ungodly man will give to those who are like himself, is bestowed not only occasionally with the lips, but uniformly and without intermission in the life. A man who refuses submission to the will of God, and “forsakes his Word,” does by that very act clearly declare to all around him:

1. That obedience to God’s Law is unnecessary.

He will acknowledge the Scriptures to be a revelation from God; and would be greatly offended, if his belief in that revelation were questioned. But his faith in Scripture is nothing more than a speculative assent; he regards not the authority of God in it; and by his contempt of that authority he says, in fact, that a submission to it is unnecessary.

The language of the heart and of the life is interpreted in this way by God himself, “You have said, It is vain to serve God; and what profit is it that we have kept his ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the Lord Almighty! Malachi 3:14. “And this construction is just; for what a man avows to be unnecessary for himself, he must be understood as maintaining to be unnecessary for others.

2. That not even the Gospel itself entails any obligation upon us.

Many who profess to believe the Gospel, and to make it the ground of their hope towards God—yet feel no constraining influence from all its wonders of love and mercy. They practically say, ‘True, the Lord Jesus Christ came into the world, and “died the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, 1 Peter 3:18.” But what has this to do with the regulation of our lives? We need not be “brought to God” in this world; it will be quite sufficient to be brought to him in the world to come; and we may be sure, even from this very mercy given unto us, that God will accept us, even though no change shall have taken place in our hearts and lives. He has sent his Son indeed, as we are told, “to bless us, in turning every one of us from our iniquities, Acts 3:26;” but we need not be anxious about experiencing any such effect of the Redeemer’s mission; we may live to ourselves, and obtain his favor, as effectually and as certainly as if we lived entirely for him.’

3. That the way of wickedness is preferable as it respects this present world.

Finding pleasure only in the things of time and sense himself, he encourages the same worldly taste in others. For, for what end “has God given us all things richly to enjoy,” if we are not to enjoy them?

As for a compliance with the precepts of Scripture:

It is obvious that it must require continual self-denial; and what happiness can there be in that?

It must detach us, also, from those who are most able and willing to administer to our happiness; and how can that operate, but to our disadvantage?

As for repentance, and holy exercises of every kind—they may be very good in a dying hour; but to a person in health they can be a source of nothing but gloom and melancholy.

Thus he sanctions the ungodly in the whole of their conduct, and encourages them in all the delusions by which they are misled.

4. That there is no punishment from God in the world to come.

This necessarily follows from all the rest; for, if he really thought that God would execute his threatenings against the violators of the Word, he would be more attentive to his own ways. But he persuades himself that God is too merciful to punish anyone in the eternal world; or, at all events, for such slight offences as he commits; and, by his open contempt of God’s threatened judgments, he says to all around him, that they have nothing to fear, since “the Lord will do neither good nor evil. Zephaniah 1:12.”

The exact description of these people is given by the Psalmist, when he says, “In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God. His ways are always prosperous; he is haughty and your laws are far from him; he sneers at all his enemies. He says to himself, “Nothing will shake me; I’ll always be happy and never have trouble.” His mouth is full of curses and lies and threats; trouble and evil are under his tongue! Psalm 10:4-7.”

The very reverse of this is the influence of the godly.

II. The effects of PIETY on the surrounding world.

The man who forsakes the Word, praises the wicked; but the man who keeps the Law, contends with them. He does this,

1. By the silent testimony of his life.

A godly man is like “a light shining in a dark place.” However unobtrusive his conduct may be—it forms a contrast with that of all around him, and especially with that of those who move in his sphere of life.

If he is young, his sobriety is a reproach to all the giddiness and folly of his youthful acquaintances.

If he is of a more advanced age, his zeal for God reproves the worldliness and indifference of his most respected neighbors.

Whether we view his abstinence from sin, or his practice of holiness—he equally casts reflections on the great mass of mankind.

“They are of the world, and speak of the world. He is of God, and both speaks and acts for God, 1 John 4:5-6.”

“He is not conformed to the world” in any of its vanities, Romans 12:2.

“He comes out from the world, and is separate; and will not so much as touch the impure thing! 2 Corinthians 6:17.”

He endeavors so to walk in the world, as to “keep his garments clean, Revelation 16:15,” and undefiled with any of the world’s abominations.

He is even “crucified to the world, and regards it as a man would who was suspended on a cross, and looking for a speedy death, Galatians 6:14.”

At the same time he gives himself to holy exercises; and determines, with God’s help, to fulfill every duty, as in the presence of his God. He shows:
that he has other views, other desires, other pursuits, than the world has any conception of;
that he belongs to another world;
that his citizenship is in Heaven; Philippians 3:20;”
and that, “though in the world, he is not of the world, even as the Lord Jesus Christ was not of the world! John 17:16.”

Now all this, of necessity, attracts notice, and constrains all who behold him to say, “If he is right—then we must be wrong.” The effect of his conduct is precisely like that of Noah’s, when he built the ark. It is said of Noah, that “being moved with fear, he prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by which he condemned the world, Hebrews 11:7.” How did this act of his condemn the world? He was, it is true, “a preacher of righteousness;” but it was not so much his preaching, as his practice, which was here said to condemn the world.

His faith condemned their unbelief;
his fear condemned their security;
his obedience condemned their disobedience.

He needed not to say anything; his conduct spoke sufficiently; and the consciences of the beholders made the application.

Thus it is, in a measure, with every godly man; he is “an epistle of Christ, known and read of all men, 2 Corinthians 3:3.” The ungodly world may shut their eyes against the light of God’s written Word; but they are forced to see the life of the godly man, whether they will or not; and in him they see what is the line of conduct which God requires, and how far they are from walking according to it.

That the world consider themselves as condemned by the godly, is evident, from the indignation which they manifest when the light of God’s truth is made to shine before them. They instantly endeavor, by every possible means, to extinguish the light, or at all events to induce the godly to put their light under a bushel, and to hide it from their eyes. “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed! John 3:19-20.

They will reprobate the opinions of the godly; but they would never concern themselves about the opinions of the godly, if they could but induce them to alter their conduct. It is their conduct that reproaches them, and that forms the real ground of their indignation against them. “If you were of the world,” says our Lord, “the world (whatever your opinions might be) would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hates you! John 15:19.”

Let piety enter into any family among us, and we shall see a fulfillment of that word, “Do you think that I came to send peace on earth? I came not to send peace, but a sword! Matthew 10:34-36.”

2. By the open avowal of his opinions.

A faithful servant of God, in whatever line he moves, will not be ashamed of Christ, but will “confess him openly before men, Matthew 10:32.” This he feels to be a bounden duty. He does not wish to make a parade of his religion; but he is commanded to “let his light shine before men, Matthew 5:16;” and not only “not to have fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but, when opportunity occurs, to reprove them, Ephesians 5:11.” Hence, though he is cautious “not to cast pearls before swine, who would only trample them under their feet, Matthew 7:6,” he is “ready to give to every inquirer a reason of the hope that is in him with meekness and fear, 1 Peter 3:15.” Nor will he be afraid to reprove sin, where he has any hope that his admonitions will be well received.

“We had previously suffered and been insulted in Philippi, as you know, but with the help of our God we dared to tell you his gospel in spite of strong opposition! 1 Thessalonians 2:2.” Not fearing the face of man, but declaring, before all, and without reserve, “the whole counsel of God! Acts 20:27.”

Though he moves in a private sphere, he will exert his influence, so far as it extends, for the suppression of evil, and for the diffusion of piety through the world. This indeed will raise up enemies against him; for men will “hate him who reproves in the gate, Isaiah 29:21.” They hated our blessed Lord principally on this account; as he himself told them, “The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify that what it does is evil!

John 7:7.”

It was Micaiah’s reproofs which incensed Ahab against him, “I hate Micaiah because he does not speak good concerning me, but trouble! 1 Kings 22:8. And it was the faithfulness of John, in reproving Herod’s adultery with his brother Philip’s wife, that brought down Herod’s vengeance upon him, Mark 6:25-27. But, notwithstanding all the odium that such fidelity will bring upon him, the true Christian will exercise it as occasion serves, declaring candidly his conviction, that “the broad road of the world leads to destruction, and that the narrow way alone will issue in eternal life! Matthew 7:13-14.”

From this subject we may clearly learn,

1. How much guilt attaches to us all.

I will not now speak of those who have lived in open and flagrant sin; though, of course, all that I shall say will apply with double force to them. But I will speak of those who, though moral and discreet, have not given up themselves sincerely to God; or who grew up to maturity before they fully embraced the Gospel.

Look back to your early childhood; your example even at that time had an influence on your youthful companions; and said to them, in language which they clearly understood, that there was no occasion for them to seek after God.

As you grew up towards manhood, your influence became proportionably extended, and proportionably more injurious also. Go now to your different companions, and to the thousands who, unknown to you, derived from your example encouragement in sin; go, tell them how you regret the injuries you have done, and how anxious you are to repair the evil, by making known to them the way of life and salvation. Thousands, alas! are gone beyond the reach of any effort, and are already enduring in Hell the miseries which you contributed to heap upon them! But of those to whom you may gain access, how many, do you suppose, would listen to your advice? There would scarcely be found one among them all that would not laugh in your face, and account you either a fool or mad.

King Manasseh, by his influence and example, did evil to as great an extent as any man who ever lived; but when he exerted his royal influence to reclaim the people he had seduced to sin, he could not prevail; they would still, notwithstanding all his edicts, and all his example too, continue to “offer sacrifices on their high-places,” instead of conforming themselves to the commandments of God, 2 Chronicles 33:15-17.

Thus, even supposing that we are now walking in the ways of God, the influence of our former lives will continue to operate to the ruin of many souls, and to the unspeakable augmentation of our own guilt! Contemplate this, I beg you, my brethren; and remember, that though you may never have committed one single sin that should expose you to shame before men, you are guilty in the sight of God, to an extent that no language can paint, and no imagination can conceive!

Nay, as strange as it may seem, the very blamelessness of your conduct before men, inasmuch as it has attracted a greater measure of their admiration, has unhappily contributed, even beyond the example of the generality, to deceive their minds, and to ruin their souls! I must then say to every one among you, that the injury which in your days of thoughtlessness you have unconsciously done to the souls of men—should be a ground of the deepest humiliation to you, to the last hour of your lives.

2. What a pre-eminent measure of guilt is contracted by the backsliding professor.

While others, by their ungodly lives, encourage sin in all around them—you do it with far greater effect! For you are understood as speaking from experience; while others deliver only, as it were, a hasty and ill-formed opinion. You are considered as proclaiming:
that there is no excellency, no reality, in Christ;
that the ways of the world, from which for a season you had departed, are not either so dangerous or so sinful as you had ignorantly supposed;
that, in fact, there is no sincerity in those who profess godliness;
and that, if all were as honest as you, they would, like you, throw off the religious mask at once!

Ah! think what a stumbling-block you lay in the way of others; how you “crucify the Son of God afresh;” and what cause multitudes will have to curse your very name forever, while they call for vengeance on your souls for contributing so largely to their eternal ruin!

And here let me speak to those who do not indeed draw back to open sin, but only so far as to conceal their principles in order to fit in with the world. You may account this prudence—but God will account it treason; and the Savior, whom “you thus refuse to confess, will refuse to acknowledge you in the presence of his Father! Matthew 10:32-33.” Consider this; and know assuredly on what terms your sentence shall be passed in the last day, “If we endure, we will also reign with Him. If we deny Him, He also will deny us. If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself, 2 Timothy 2:12-13;” but will assuredly execute judgment, in perfect conformity to this rule.

3. What an incentive we have to cultivate piety in the highest possible degree.

The more our light shines before men, the more shall we put to shame the wickedness of the ungodly, and encourage the exercise of all that is good in the world. And who can tell how far our influence may extend? If we are the means of leading one sinner to repentance, “we save a soul from death, and cover a multitude of sins! James 5:19-20.” And what may be the ultimate effects on that person’s family, or even on his remotest posterity, who can tell? Let this then operate as an inducement with us to “shine as lights in the dark world! Philippians 2:15-16.” The saving of our own souls may be our first motive; nevertheless, a strong additional motive we may find in the subject before us. Nor ought it to have light weight on our minds; for, while we benefit the world, we greatly honor our God; who is most glorified in those who most reflect his image, and most advance his kingdom in the world.

Charles Simeon

Proverbs 27:19

“As in water face answers to face, so the heart of man to man.”

There are many things which are justly considered as axioms of a truth of which we are fully convinced, because they are the result of observation and experience; yet, being declared also by the voice of inspiration, they come to our minds with authority, and demand from us an unhesitating acquiescence. Such is the truth which we have just read from the Book of Proverbs.

Any man conversant with the world, knows that human nature is, to a certain degree, the same in every age and in every place. But there are, among men, so many discrepancies arising out of incidental circumstances, and so many changes in the same people, that if the heart-searching God himself had not determined the point, we should scarcely have ventured to speak respecting it in terms so strong and unqualified as Solomon has used in the passage before us. His words, beyond all doubt, are true; but yet, if not well understood, they are capable of much misapprehension and perversion. In discoursing upon them, I will:

I. Explain Solomon’s assertion.

It needs explanation; for if we were to take it as importing that all men in all circumstances manifest the same dispositions and desires—then it would be the very reverse of what we see and know to be true. It is evident, that, though Solomon does not make any distinction, he does not intend to confound all people in one common mass, and to affirm that, under all their diversified conditions, they are all alike; he supposes that, among the people so compared, there exists a similarity, which may render them proper objects of comparison.

1. Solomon takes for granted that there is in them a similarity of age.

If we take men in the various stages of human existence, from infancy to old age, we know that there exists in them a vast diversity of sentiment. To imagine that among them all, that there should be found the same views, desires, and pursuits—would be to betray an ignorance and folly bordering on absurdity. Old men and children can no more be supposed to accord with each other in such respects, than light and darkness.
Children must be compared with children;
young men must be compared with youths; and
old men must be compared with those that are advanced in years.

2. Solomon takes for granted that there is in them a similarity of character.

There is in the natural constitution of men a great difference. Infants at their mother’s bosom display an astonishing variety of character; some being mild, gentle, placid; others, on the contrary, being filled with the most violent and hateful dispositions.

Education, too, will operate very forcibly on men, and lead them to habits widely different from each other. One who is brought up in the unrestrained indulgence of every vicious appetite, cannot be supposed to resemble one who has been well instructed in all virtuous principles, and subjected to all beneficial restraints.

Still less can the godly and the ungodly be supposed to agree. Divine grace puts men far asunder, and induces opinions and conduct widely different from any that are found in unconverted men.

In comparing these different people, a due respect must be had to their several characters; or else our judgment concerning them will be extremely erroneous.

3. Solomon takes for granted that there is in them a similarity of condition.

What community of sentiment, generally speaking, can there be between a prince and a peasant? Or what between an unlettered countryman and a sage philosopher? Take a man under the pressure of disease, poverty, disgrace—and what will you expect to find in him that accords with the feelings of one who is living in the fullest enjoyment of ease, and opulence, and honor? Look at even the same person, when, either in a way of elevation or depression, he is changed from the one condition to the other; and you will find in him, for the most part, a corresponding change of views and habits.

I say then, that, to apprehend our text aright, we must consider it as declaring, not that all people, whatever their circumstances may be, are alike; but that all people under the same circumstances, due allowance being made for any difference existing from constitution, age, education, habit and grace—will be found to bear a very strong resemblance to each other.

Taking the assertion of Solomon in this qualified sense, I proceed to,

II. Confirm his assertion.

The reflection of a countenance from water will bear a strict resemblance to him whose countenance it is. And a similar correspondence will be found between the hearts of men, who, according to the foregoing limitations, are fit objects of comparison.

1. A resemblance will be found in all who are in an unsaved state.

All unsaved men resemble each other in this—they supremely desire the things of time and sense. In this also they resemble each other—they dislike spiritual and eternal things. Here we may range through all the gradations of men, from the prince to the peasant; and through all their ages, from infancy to old age; yes, and through all the different periods of time, from the beginning of the world to the present hour; and we shall not find so much as one differing from the rest. The testimony of Almighty God is this, “Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the Law of God, neither indeed can it be! Romans 8:5; Romans 8:7.” Here both of these points are asserted, with equal clearness, and with unquestionable authority.

If the point is doubted, look for a person who, from his youth up, has shown a superiority to the pleasures, honors, interests of this world, and sought his happiness in communion with God, and in the exercises of prayer and praise. Alas! not one such person will you find! The hearts of all have been in perfect agreement with each other, even as the face that is reflected, with the face that inspects the mirror.

2. A resemblance will be found in all who are awakened to a sense of their perishing condition.

Let but the eyes of anyone be opened to see his real state before God, and he will begin immediately to tremble before God. No sense of earthly dignity will uphold a man at that hour. Felix on the throne of judgment, and Belshazzar in his drunken carousals, become as weak as other men; and manifest the convictions of their mind, that “it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” Not the most obdurate sinners in the universe can any longer defy the arm of divine justice; the very instant they see themselves liable to its stroke, their spirits sink within them. Even the murderers of our blessed Lord, while yet their hands were reeking with his blood, cry out in agony of mind, “Men and brethren, what shall we do? Acts 2:37.”

In another thing, too, they all agree; they all, without exception, seek, in the first instance, to conciliate God’s favor by some works of their own. They will repent; they will reform their lives; they will perform the duties which they have hitherto neglected; they will exercise benevolence to the utmost of their power; they will do anything, if by any means they may recommend themselves to God as objects of his mercy. Those among them who have been somewhat better instructed, will allow to Jesus Christ the honor of saving them; but still they must do something to entitle them to come to him, and to warrant their hope in him.

None, in the first instance, see, nor, if they were instructed, would they approve, the Gospel method of salvation, simply by faith in Christ. To renounce every kind and degree of hope in themselves is, to their proud hearts, an act of humiliation, to which they cannot submit. They think, so entirely to set aside good works, is to disparage them, and to approve a neglect of them; and therefore they cannot cast themselves wholly and entirely on the merits of a crucified Redeemer. This reluctance to glorify Christ in the salvation of sinners, is indeed, overcome sooner in some than in others; and in this respect “the publicans and harlots for the most part enter into the kingdom sooner than the Scribes and Pharisees, Matthew 21:31,” because they are sooner convinced that they have nothing of their own to rely upon; but in all is there the same tendency to establish a righteousness of their own, and a difficulty in being brought to “submit to the righteousness of Christ, Romans 9:30-33; Romans 10:1-3.”

3. A resemblance will be found in all who are truly converted to Christ.

To every truly converted man, without exception, “Christ is precious,” even preciousness itself! 1 Peter 2:7. Can you find one true convert to whom Jesus is not “fairer than ten thousand, and altogether lovely? Song of Solomon 5:10; Song of Solomon 5:16.” You might as well look for one in Heaven itself, as on earth! It is not possible to have “tasted how gracious He is,” and not love him, and serve him, and glory in him!

Equally characteristic also of the true believer is the love of holiness. Sin is no longer that pleasant morsel which they would roll under their tongue; it is hateful and abominable in their eyes; and they would gladly have it crucified within them. The divine image is that which they now desire; and after which they pant, as the deer after the water-brooks.

In all, indeed, these marks are not alike visible, because all are not alike gracious; but in all, according to their measure of the grace of Christ, is holiness found. But if there is a professor of religion in whom no holiness is found, I do not hesitate to say, that he does not belong to Christ, but must take both his name and portion with the hypocrites!

Of course, when I speak of the love of holiness, I comprehend it in all its parts, and consider it as extending equally to both the tablets of the Law. The man who has a scriptural hope in the Lord Jesus Christ will not fail to “purify himself, even as Christ is pure! 1 John 3:3.”

APPLICATION

1. This subject is of real and important use, for our humiliation.

See the portrait of human nature as drawn in the first chapter of the Epistle to the Romans. See it as again exhibited in Romans 3:10-19: “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”

“Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.” “The poison of vipers is on their lips.”

“Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”

“Their feet are swift to shed blood; ruin and misery mark their ways, and the way of peace they do not know.”

“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God!”

Take this looking-glass then, brethren, and behold your own faces in it; and say whether you have any reason for self-admiration and self-delight? The true character of your hearts is this, “They are deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked! Jeremiah 17:9.” If there is any superiority in the conduct of any, you owe it, not to the superior quality of your hearts, but to the preventing and assisting grace of God! And the best among you may look upon the vilest of the human race and say, ‘Such a one might I have been, but for the grace of God!’

2. This subject is of real and important use, for our consolation.

When under peculiar temptations, we are ready to think that there is no one like us, and that no one was ever tempted as we are. But “there has no temptation taken anyone of us, but what is common to man, 1 Corinthians 10:13.” And when we know this, it is a rich source of consolation to us. Not that the trials of others can do us any good; every man must bear his own burden, whether it is greater or less; but, when a man supposes that he alone is subjected to any peculiar trouble, he is ready to imagine that he is an outcast from the Lord, and that there is no hope for him in God.

The removal of this painful apprehension, however, raises him from his dejection, and emboldens him to maintain the conflict with all the enemies of his salvation. He will then chide himself, and say, “Why are you cast down, O my soul? and why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; for I shall yet praise Him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God! Psalm 42:11.”

3. This subject is of real and important use, for our encouragement.

If in the Scriptures we see what human nature is, we see also what divine grace is, and what it can effect in the heart of man! After a most horrible description given by the Apostle, of people who were to be excluded from the kingdom of Heaven, he says to the Corinthians, “And such were some of you; but you are washed, but you are sanctified, but you are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God! 1 Corinthians 6:10-11.”

And the change wrought on the day of Pentecost, on the murderers of our Lord, abundantly shows what may be expected by all who believe on him. The same holy joy shall animate their souls; and the same Almighty power renovate them after the divine image. It was to Christians scattered throughout the world that Peter said, “Through believing in Christ, they rejoiced with joy unspeakable and full of glory; receiving even now the end of their faith, even the salvation of their souls! 1 Peter 1:8-9.”

What, then, may not we also expect, if we truly believe in Christ! Truly, as in water face answers to face, so shall our hearts respond to the hearts of the primitive saints, in all that is good and great. Our victories shall be the same as theirs, as shall also be our triumphs and our joys. Let this encourage us to go forward in our heavenly way, expecting assuredly that we in due time shall “see the good of God’s chosen ones, and rejoice in their gladness, and glory in their inheritance, Psalm 106:5.”

Charles Simeon

Proverbs 27:4

“Wrath is cruel, and anger is overwhelming; but who can stand before envy?”

Man is an enemy to his fellow man; nor is there anyone who does not on some occasion experience reason for this complaint. But, if some find means of aggression, others obtain means of defense:
some in their own powers;
others in the assistance of friends;
others in the arm of the law;
others, where all these powers fail them, derive a measure of consolation from submission or flight.

The most “cruel wrath, and most outrageous anger,” may, by one or other of these means, be withstood, or tolerated, or escaped. But there is one weapon from which there is no flight, and against which there is no protection; and that is, envy! “Wrath is cruel, and anger is overwhelming; but who can stand before envy?”

In order to bring the subject of envy fully before you, I will show,

I. What an odious principle it is.

1. Consider what envy is.

Envy, as existing in the soul, is a sense of pain arising from the real or supposed excellence of another, accompanied with a desire to deprive him of it, and to possess it ourselves. The excellence may be either natural or acquired. Any faculty of body or mind which renders a man estimable in the world is a proper object for envy to fix upon, and against which to direct its poison arows. So, in like manner, any attainment of wealth or honor will call forth envy’s malignant efforts against the person in whom such a distinction has been found, especially if the distinction so obtained has been an object of desire to the person beholding it, and apparently within his reach; for envy finds scope for operation only between people among whom some kind of rivalry exists. A peasant does not envy either a king or a philosopher; because the dignity of the one, and the wisdom of the other—are altogether beyond a hope, I had almost said a possibility, of his attainment. Envy includes in it a desire of the distinction that calls it forth, and a pain of seeing it possessed by another, when by possibility it might have been possessed by one’s-self.

2. Next mark its odiousness.

Nothing excites envy but what is either really, or in the person’s estimation, good; nor does envy ever exert itself, but for the destruction of the happiness of him in whom that good is found.

It is the happiness of another, that gives pain to the envious man!

The destruction of the other’s happiness is the great object that would afford him pleasure.

Envy’s actings, indeed, are not open, like those of wrath and anger; on the contrary, they are as secret as possible; and they put on, as far as possible, a subtle garb, a garb of candor and of equity. But its inseparable attendants are of the same odious character with itself; namely, “quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, factions, slander, gossip, arrogance and disorder, 2 Corinthians 12:20.”

Indeed, envy is very nearly allied to murder; for, as it is invariably connected with, anger, envy is murder in embryo! 1 John 3:15; and hence in the Scriptures it is generally associated with murder, “The works of the flesh,” says the Apostle, are hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, Galatians 5:20-21;” and in another place he says of unconverted men, that they are “full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity, whisperers, backbiters,” and so on, Romans 1:29-30.

It indeed may appear harsh to load this principle of envy with such horrid accusations; but they are true, and all verified by experience.

Why did Cain slay his brother? it was because he saw his brother receiving from God tokens of approbation which were denied to him, Galatians 4:5; Galatians 4:8.

And whence was it that Joseph’s brethren took counsel to slay him? it was on account of his enjoying higher favor with his father than they, and his receiving more remarkable communications from God, Genesis 37:11; Genesis 37:18-20.

But, in truth, we do not view this principle aright, unless we see in envy the very image of the devil himself. No other principle in the heart of man bears so strong a resemblance of the devil as envy. See our first parents in Paradise, as happy as it was possible for creatures in a state of probation to be. The devil saw and envied them their bliss, and never rested until he had robbed them of it! 2 Corinthians 11:3. Nor does he behold one of their descendants turning to the Lord, without using every effort in his power to divert them from their purpose, and to destroy their souls! 1 Peter 5:8.

And what does he gain by this? Is he himself rendered happier by depriving others of their bliss? No! he only augments his own guilt and misery! And yet such is the malignity of his disposition, that he can find no employment to his mind but this; and, so far as he is capable of a momentary mitigation of his pains, he finds it only in robbing man of his happiness, and God of his glory. This is the very character of the envious man, whose “wisdom,” as James says, “is not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish! James 3:14-16.”

The fact is, that so odious is this principle in the estimation of the whole world, that there is not to be found on earth a person who will acknowledge himself to be actuated by it; though the real truth is, that there is not an unconverted man in the whole universe who is not, as I shall have presently to show, under its pernicious influence. But the very circumstance of all people disavowing it, while they will readily acknowledge that they are led captive by pride, or anger—is sufficient to show how odious it is in itself, and how despicable in the eyes of every living man!

The evil of envy will yet more strongly appear, while I show,

II. What a destructive principle it is.

There is not a person in the universe able to stand before it. Its workings are inconceivably subtle.

People are not always aware what principle it is which stirs within them, when they are under its influence. Joshua conceived that he was only showing a commendable regard for the honor of Moses, when he desired that Eldad and Medad, who were prophesying in the camp, should be silenced. But Moses reproved him, saying. “Do you envy for my sake? Would to God that all the Lord’s people were prophets! Numbers 11:29.” And surely those who, in order to grieve the Apostle Paul, preached Christ out of envy and strife Philippians 1:15, gave themselves credit for a purer motive in their performance of that duty.

There are a variety of ways by which men contrive to hide their envy from themselves. They see some evil in the conduct which they blame; or, if it was not evil in itself, it was faulty in the time, or manner, or measure, in which it was done; or, if no fault attach to it in any of those respects, it was from an improper motive. In short, something shall be found in everything that a person does, either to make it appear blame-worthy, or, at all events, to abate its excellence; and the person judging of these things will not openly condemn them, but only utter praise in a fainter tone, and in more qualified terms, so that the measure of praise accorded to the agent may be diminished, and his merits be comparatively obscured. This, to the person forming the judgment, shall appear only strict justice; but God, who sees the heart, will designate it envy.

It finds an advocate in every bosom.

There is in all a wish to be exalted among their equals; and if there is any person who has raised themselves by their own merits above the common standard, then every mind will be gratified with hearing of something which shall divest them of their imputed excellence, and reduce them to their former level. Hence the envious man finds an ally in every bosom, and a readiness in all around him to listen to any representation that is of an unfavorable nature; because every person seems to himself elevated in proportion as others are put down.

The means of misrepresentation are infinite in number; and if every statement were carefully investigated before it was received, a man of wisdom and discretion might defy them all; but when every misrepresentation that envy can suggest is listened to with pleasure, and received without inquiry—then who must not fall before it?

The more excellent any conduct is, the more liable it is to envy’s assaults.

Even piety itself is not beyond its reach; for Solomon speaks of it as a peculiar vanity and source of vexation, that “for every right work, a man is envied of his neighbor. Ecclesiastes 4:4.”

To say the truth, piety is more the object of envy than anything else; not because others affect it for themselves, but because, in the common opinions of mankind, it gives to its possessor a transcendent excellence, and raises him almost into a higher order of beings.

This was a peculiar source of Cain’s resentment against his brother Abel, 1 John 3:12; as it was of Saul’s against David, Psalm 38:20; and of the Jews against Christ himself! John 8:45-48. “For he (Pilate) knew it was out of envy that they had handed Jesus over to him! Matthew 27:18.”

Take an act of Christ’s, the restoring of Lazarus from the grave; a more benevolent act could not be conceived, nor one which more strongly carried its evidence of a divine mission along with it. Was it possible for envy or enmity to be provoked by that? Yes! The very act instantly produced a conspiracy against the life of Jesus; against the life, too, of the man who had been raised by him! John 8:45-48; John 8:53; John 12:10-11. Was it so, then, that all the wisdom, or piety, or benevolence of our blessed Savior himself could not elude this detestable enemy of God and man? No; not even he could stand before it; but, as the Evangelist informs us, he fell a prey to its insatiate rage! Matthew 27:18; Matthew 27:20. Against all his disciples, too, envy raged in like manner, Acts 13:44-45; Acts 17:4-5; Acts 17:10-14. In the same way, it is in vain for anyone, who will serve God with fidelity, to hope for an escape from envy’s virulent assaults 2 Timothy 3:12.

Methinks you are now prepared to hear,

III. What a damning principle it is.

God has marked his indignation against envy even here on earth.

Greatly does this principle embitter the life of him in whom it dwells. Its operation is not momentary, like that of anger. Envy lurks in the bosom; it corrodes the mind; it makes a man completely miserable. We may see its operation in Saul. Saul heard the women, out of all the cities of Israel, celebrating the praises of himself and of David, “As they danced, they sang: “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.” Saul was very angry; this refrain galled him. “They have credited David with tens of thousands,” he thought, “but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?” And from that time on Saul kept a jealous eye on David. 1 Samuel 18:7-12.

This may enable us to understand what Solomon meant, when he called “envy, the rottenness of the bones, Proverbs 14:30.” For as the corporeal system must be altogether enfeebled and destroyed when the bones are rotten; so the moral constitution of the soul is rendered one entire mass of corruption, when a man lies under the dominion of this hateful principle of envy! He is, in fact, as near to the consummation of his misery in Hell as the other is to the termination of his life on earth.

But who can tell with what judgments it shall be visited in the eternal world?

It is not possible that a person under the dominion of envy should ever behold the face of God in peace. “God is love;” love is his very nature and essence; but envy is hatred in its most hateful form, as terminating upon an object—not for any evil that is in him, but for the good which he manifests, and for the success he meets with in the exercise of what is good.

How can two such opposites meet together? As well might light and darkness coalesce, as God and an envious man delight in each other in Heaven. It is said in God’s blessed Word, that “without charity, whatever we possess, or do, or suffer for God—we are only as sounding brass or a tinkling cymbal, 1 Corinthians 13:1-3.” But in that very place we are told, that “love does not envy! 1 Corinthians 13:4.” What, then, are we to infer from this, but that, as envy proves an entire lack of charity, so it proves, equally and unquestionably, a state of mind that is wholly incompatible with the favor of God and the felicity of Heaven.

But, that we may be assured of God’s indignation against it, let us see what God said to Edom by the Prophet Ezekiel, “As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, I will treat you in accordance with the anger and envy you showed in your hatred of them, and I will make myself known among them when I judge you! Ezekiel 35:11.” True indeed it is, that in this passage God is only denouncing temporal judgments; but it amply shows what are his opinions respecting envy, and what will be his judgment upon it in the day that he shall judge the world.

Having thus exposed, in some measure, the true character of envy, I beg permission to suggest to you some cautions in relation to it.

1. Be careful to never needlessly excite envy.

Knowing, as you do, how common an evil envy is, and how deeply rooted in the heart of man—you should guard against everything which may call it into action. Whatever you possess, either of natural or acquired excellence—do not make an ostentatious display of it; but rather put a veil over it, as it were, that its radiance may not offend the eyes of those who behold you. The less value you appear to put upon your attainments, and the less you arrogate to yourselves on account of them, the less will others be disposed to grudge you the enjoyment of them, and to despoil you of the honor due to them.

It was unwise in Jacob to mark his partiality towards his son Joseph, by “a coat of many colors;” and he paid dearly for it by the sufferings it entailed. For your own sakes therefore, as well as for the sake of others, it will be wise for you to bear your honors meekly, and to show that you are “little in your own eyes.”

2. Be careful to never wickedly indulge envy.

Envy is a principle in our fallen nature—far more powerful than men in general are apt to imagine. “Do you think that the Scripture says in vain, The spirit that dwells in us lusts to envy? James 4:5. See also Titus 3:3.” If you will watch the motions of your own hearts, you will find a sad propensity to envy, whenever a powerful occasion arises to call it forth. Suppose a person, whom you have regarded as inferior to yourself in industry and talent, has got ahead of you, and attained a higher eminence than you in your own peculiar line; are you not ready to ascribe his success to chance, or to the partiality of friends, rather than to his own intrinsic merit? And would it not be gratifying to you to hear a similar judgment passed on him by others?

Suppose he were by any means to fall from his eminence; would not his degradation give you pleasure? If you praise him, is it with the same decisive tone as you would have wished for, if the praise had been conferred on you? It is when your own honor or interest comes in competition with that of another, that envy betrays its power over you; and if you have been observant of the workings of your own mind and heart, you will be no strangers to the operation of this principle within you.

But remember what has been said of the odiousness and enormity of envy; and cry mightily to God to deliver you from its pernicious influence. Remember how transitory is all distinction here on earth; and content yourselves with the honor which comes from God, and will endure forever.

3. Be careful to never basely fear envy.

Though you are not to make an ostentatious display of any excellence you may possess, and especially of piety—you are not to put your light under a bushel, through the fear of any hostility which a discovery of it may provoke. Whatever your duty is, whether to God or man, that you are to do; and to leave all consequences to the disposal of God’s all-wise Providence. It should be in your mind “a very small matter to be judged of man’s judgment, 1 Corinthians 4:3.”

If you have “the testimony of your own conscience that you are serving God in simplicity and godly sincerity”—that should bear you up against all the obloquy that the envy or malignity of others can heap upon you. You must expect that “those who render evil for good will be against you, if you follow the thing that is good;” and you must commit yourself to Him who judges rightly, and who will, in due season, both vindicate your character, and make your righteousness to shine forth as the noon-day!

4. Be careful to never angrily resent envy.

Supposing you to be traduced and injured in a variety of ways, “what temptation has befallen you, but that which is common to men?” Instead of grieving that you are persecuted for righteousness sake, you should rather regard the hatred of men as a homage paid to your virtue; and should “rejoice that you are counted worthy to suffer shame for Christ’s sake.”

You will remember the prayer of our blessed Lord for his murderers, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” This is the pattern which it befits you to follow. Your envious neighbors really do not know what they are doing; they are not aware by what spirit they are actuated, or what evil they commit. Instead, therefore, of being angry with them for the evil they do to you, you should rather pity them for the evil they do to themselves.

This was the way in which David requited Saul, sparing him when he had him in his power, and mourning for him when he was removed to another world, 1 Samuel 24:9-11; 1 Samuel 24:16-18 and 2 Samuel 1:17; 2 Samuel 1:24-27. Your rule, under all circumstances, must be this, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good,” Romans 12:21

Charles Simeon

Proverbs 27:1

“Boast not yourself of tomorrow; for you know not what a day may bring forth.”

The opinions of men are not less opposite to the mind of God in what relates to practice, than in the most mysterious doctrines of our holy religion. We are told, that “the things of the Spirit are esteemed as foolishness by the natural man;” and to what an extent they are so, is visible in the commendation universally given to a worldly spirit, and in the contempt poured upon heavenly-mindedness—as though it were the offspring of folly and wild enthusiasm. But in the judgment of God there is no truer mark of wisdom than to consider earthly things as transient and worthless, and to place one’s-self continually as on the brink and precipice of eternity! To this effect Solomon speaks in the passage before us; in discoursing on which, we shall,

I. Explain the caution here given.

It is of great importance to distinguish between providing for tomorrow, and presuming upon tomorrow:

Providing for tomorrow is necessary for our very existence, since without it, the whole world would be in a state of stagnation.

But the acting as if we were certain of another day, is the error against which we are cautioned.

1. We presume upon tomorrow, when our affections are inordinately set upon present things.

If we feel eager desires after any earthly thing, so as to envy the possessors of it, and account the attainment of it necessary to our happiness;
or, if we take such delight in what we do possess, as to forget that this world is not our rest, and that infinitely higher joys are prepared for us above;
or if we grieve exceedingly on account of some loss we have sustained
—then we manifest that we have been promising ourselves many days, and even years to come; for, would a person be very solicitous about a vanity that he thought might very probably last but a day? Or would he so congratulate himself on a possession which he apprehended to be of such short continuance? Or would he lay so much to heart the loss of anything which he had expected to enjoy but a little time?

We cannot but see that in proportion as he was impressed with a sense of the shortness and uncertainty of time, and its nothingness in comparison with eternity—his affections would be moderated towards every object of time and sense; he would “rejoice as though he rejoiced not, and weep as though he wept not, and use everything as not abusing it.”

2. We presume upon tomorrow, when we are but little interested about eternal things.

Everyone knows that sin must be repented of; and that, if we die under the guilt of sin, then we must surely perish.

But this is not all; we must be born again and be made new creatures in Christ Jesus; and though this is not generally understood, every one has an idea that he must become religious before he dies, if he would find acceptance with God in the world to come.

Now if people are deferring the great work of religion—then whence can that delay arise but from their expectation of some more convenient season, when they shall execute their purposes of reformation and amendment? Or if they commit sin, whence can they be emboldened to do so, but from a secret confidence that they shall live to repent of it; and to rectify what they know to be amiss?

Would any man deliberately do what he knows must be undone, or leave undone what he knows he must do in order to his eternal salvation—if he were assured that he had not one day more to live? And would not the probable nearness of death influence him in like manner in proportion as it was felt?

The whole world standing greatly in need of this caution, we proceed to,

II. Enforce the caution here given.

The reason urged by Solomon commends itself immediately to our hearts and consciences.

1. We know not what shall be on the morrow.

Today we perhaps are enjoying all that our hearts can wish; our bodies are rigorous, our spirits mirthful, our friends numerous, our means of gratification greatly diversified, and accessible at all times.

Tomorrow we may be cast down from our pinnacle of happiness; our honor may be laid in the dust; we may be languishing on a bed of sickness; and deprived of all the comforts of life; and our reverse of fortune may be yet further aggravated by the loss of all our friends.

The case of Job, if more recent instances were lacking, would sufficiently show what may happen to us all! Job 1.

See, in spiritual concerns, the case of David. Psalm 30:6-7.

Shall we then be promising ourselves years of happiness in the enjoyment of earthly things, when we consider how unstable they are?

Again; today we are sinning in expectation that we shall, at some future period, repent. Tomorrow possibly we may, like Nebuchadnezzar, be deprived of reason; or, like Pharaoh, be sealed up by God under final impenitence!

Now is it not madness to risk the salvation of our souls upon the hope of having everything that can conduce to our eternal welfare continued to us to the latest period of our lives? Should we not rather set ourselves to redeem the present time, and to “work while it is day, lest the night should come wherein no man can work! Ephesians 5:16. John 9:4.”

2. We know not whether we shall even live to see the morrow.

What man is there that has “made a covenant with death, and an agreement with the grave” so as to be assured he shall live another day? Has he this assurance:
from within himself,
or from those around him,
or from God?

Not from within himself, since neither youth nor health is any security against the stroke of death!

Not from others, since physicians, however useful in their place, can afford us no help, when God shall call away our souls.

Not from God; for though he promised to protract Hezekiah’s life for fifteen years, he has not engaged to preserve our life so many minutes.

If, with the Rich Man in the Gospel we are saying, “Soul, you have much goods laid up for many years,” God may say to us, “You fool, this night shall your soul be required of you! Luke 12:19-20.”

Who then, that knows the uncertainty of life, will presume upon its continuance? Let us look at the many thousands who, though but lately they seemed as likely to live as ourselves, are gone into eternity; gone too, before they had prepared to give up their account to God; and surely we shall cry with the Psalmist, “Lord, so teach us to number our days, that we may instantly apply our hearts unto wisdom! Psalm 90:12.”

This subject naturally leads us to address,

1. The careless.

Is it not sufficient that God has exercised such long-suffering towards you, but will you still continue to provoke him? James 4:13-16. “O be wise, and consider your latter end.” “Today, while it is called today, harden not your hearts;” lest while you are saying, “Peace and safety!” sudden destruction comes upon you! Hebrews 3:7-8; Hebrews 3:13. 1 Thessalonians 5:3.

2. The lukewarm.

Lukewarmness in religion is as odious to God as an utter neglect of it, Revelation 3:15-16. It is not by a round of formal duties, but a strenuous exertion of all your powers that you are to obtain the prize; for though Heaven is the gift of God through Christ, it is bestowed on only those who labor for it, John 6:27. Whatever then your hand finds to do, do it with all your might! Ecclesiastes 9:10.

3. The zealous.

Endeavor to realize more and more the uncertainty of life, that, like the Apostle, you may “die daily.” And, as you know not but that on the morrow you may be numbered with the saints in glory, let nothing be deferred until tomorrow, which you can do for God today. Thus will death, however sudden, be welcome to you!

Charles Simeon

Proverbs 26:12

“Do you see a man wise in his own conceit?
There is more hope for a fool, than for him!”

The Scripture never seeks to please the fastidious ear of man, but calls both people and things by their appropriate names. Sin is declared to be the extreme folly; and those who commit it, are proclaimed to be fools.

In the eleven verses preceding our text, the folly of fools is mentioned no less than ten times; and from this humiliating picture our text derives a force and emphasis which no single expression could give. The import of the text, as connected with the context, is this: The condition of a fool is, as you have seen, awful in the extreme; but “Do you see a man wise in his own conceit? There is more hope for a fool, than for him!” This is a solemn declaration, and worthy of the deepest attention. Let us consider it,

I. As a general truth.

Here we may distinctly notice:

1. The character described.

There is in man a strange conceit, and a proneness to take very undue credit to himself for his abilities and attainments. Some are so confident in their own wisdom, that they seem to think they cannot err; and they would have it supposed that they possess, almost by intuition, what others have attained only by laborious investigation. People of this description will not condescend to examine their opinions by any test; nor will they listen to any statements that are opposed to them. Confidence is to them in the place of proof; and any attempt to controvert their opinions, excites only their indignation or contempt.

2. His hopeless condition.

Truly pitiable is the condition of “a fool.” He is ignorant of all that constitutes true wisdom; he is also, in a great measure, incapable of receiving instruction; and the instruction he does receive, he is incapable of turning to a good account, or of making a suitable improvement of it.

Of such a one there certainly is but little hope; yet is the conceited person in a more hopeless state than he. If in respect of capacity he have the advantage, he labors under a tenfold disadvantage, by reason of his precipitancy, his self-confidence, his pertinacity. The endeavors used to convince him of his errors do but rivet him the more firmly in them; and opposition to him serves but to increase his obstinacy.

Thus, while the conceit of his mind indisposes him for the proper exercise of his judgment in relation to truth, it unfits him for the reception of any benefit from the wisdom of others; so that to bring him to sound wisdom and discretion is indeed a hopeless task! If he will not deliberate and weigh matters for himself, or listen to instruction and advice from others; and if the means used to rectify his views do but confirm him the more in his delusions, there is indeed no hope for him; and “You cannot separate fools from their foolishness, even though you grind them like grain with mortar and pestle! Proverbs 27:22.”

The declaration in our text will be found still more weighty, if considered,

II. With a more especial reference to saving religion.

A man that carries his self-conceit into religion is indeed in a most deplorable state.

Truth, in general, is too pure and refined to obtain ready admittance into such a mind as his; but religious truth is altogether folly in his eyes! “The natural man,” even though not blinded by that measure of conceit of which we have been speaking, “receives not the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness unto him; neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned, 1 Corinthians 2:14.” But where, in addition to the natural blindness of the human mind, there is a large measure of prideful conceit, the state of that man is bad indeed; because every truth of the Gospel not only offends him, but offends him in proportion to its sublimity and importance.

The total corruption of our nature,
the necessity of a new birth by the operation of the Spirit of God,
justification by faith in the Lord Jesus,
and an entire dedication of the soul to God
—all appear to him extravagant and absurd; he sees no occasion for such humiliating and self-denying doctrines; nor will he believe them, whatever testimony be adduced from the Holy Scriptures in support of them. In vain are God’s express declarations brought before him; he believes his own conceits in preference to them; and every person who would persuade him to examine with candor, he regards as a deluded fanatic. Such a person, therefore, is never likely to come to the knowledge of the truth.

But, besides the obstacles which he meets with from the sublimity of the truths, and the blindness of his own mind—he has another source of blindness peculiar to himself; for God is particularly offended by such conduct, in reference to his revealed will; and he will “give such a one up to his own delusions to believe a lie! 2 Thessalonians 2:11-12,” and to harden himself in his impenitence and unbelief; and if once a man has provoked God so to withdraw his Holy Spirit from him, and to surrender him up to the power of sin and Satan, he will never be undeceived, until he shall open his eyes in the eternal world!

The fool then, I say, is in a more hopeful state than he!

The fool, notwithstanding his ignorance, may learn; and if he will only submit himself to divine teaching, he shall learn. Nor shall his weakness be any bar to his instruction; for God has said, that “What he has hidden from the wise and prudent, he has, of his own good pleasure, revealed unto babes! Matthew 11:25-26;” and so plain shall his ways be made to them, that “a wayfaring man, though a fool, shall not err therein! Isaiah 35:8.” Of the fool, then, we may have a hope, because he will use the appointed means of instruction, and will embrace truth as far as he discerns it. But the conceited man will not condescend to be “taught of God,” and therefore must continue ignorant even to the end, and “perish at last for lack of knowledge!”

On this subject I would found a general exhortation.

Self-conceit, when strongly manifested in relation to earthly things, generally excites pity and contempt; but when exercised in reference to spiritual things, is deemed good and wise. But I entreat all to be on their guard against it. It is most dangerous and fatal to the soul. Humility is at the very root of divine knowledge; nor can any saving acquaintance with the Gospel spring up without it.

This, then, I say to all:

Be sensible, that, instead of being “rich and increased with goods, and in need of nothing,” as too many suppose themselves to be, you are in yourselves wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked! Revelation 3:17.”

Bear in mind, that the Scriptures alone are the fountain and standard of truth. Everything must be brought “to the Law and to the testimony;” and “whoever speaks not according to the written word, he has no light in him! Isaiah 8:20.”

Remember, too, that it is only by divine teaching that we can understand the Scriptures! If the eyes of our understanding are not enlightened by the Spirit of God, notwithstanding the light that shines around us—then we shall go on still in darkness, even as Paul did, in his unconverted state; and as the twelve Apostles did, in the midst of all their Master’s instructions, until after the resurrection of their Lord, Ephesians 1:18. Luke 24:45.

And do not forget, that this instruction must be sought by earnest prayer. God alone can give it; and it is only in answer to prayer that he will impart it to us, Proverbs 2:1-6.

Moreover, after you have been guided into truth, you must still be on your guard against the same propensity which acts so powerfully in the unconverted mind. Many, after all their partial illumination, are drawn aside after “philosophy and vain deceit! Colossians 2:8.” If you would be preserved in the right way, you must not only “be converted, and become as little children,” but retain a childlike simplicity even to the end. To your last hour you need to be reminded of that counsel given to the Christians at Rome, “Do not be wise in your own conceit! Romans 12:16.” You need to be guarded against “thinking that you know anything” perfectly; for, while you are under such an impression, “you know nothing yet as you ought to know! 1 Corinthians 8:2.” “If you will be truly wise, it is by becoming fools in your own estimation, that you are to be made wise! 1 Corinthians 3:18.” If you will not follow this counsel, “God will take you in your own craftiness! 1 Corinthians 3:19-20.”

I must then, as God’s ambassador to you, call your attention to the warning which he has given you by the prophet Isaiah, “Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight! Isaiah 5:21.” And to all I must recommend those petitions of God’s most favored saints, “Open my eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of your Law! Psalm 119:18;” and, “What I see not, Teach me! Job 34:32.”

Charles Simeon