October 25

The heart knoweth his own bitterness; and a stranger doth not intermeddle with his joy. - Proverbs 14:10.

IN nothing are we more likely to be mistaken than as to the joys and sorrows of our fellow-creatures. Now, as to human sorrows, “the heart knoweth his own bitterness.” We see persons whose cup runneth over, in the midst of abundance; yet they are the victims of uneasiness, and grief seems to feed upon their very vitals. And this may have been caused by some reproach under which they lie, and from which they cannot free themselves; or from some desire they cannot realize; or unrequited affection, or kindness which meets with no return.

Some sufferers seem almost forbidden by their connections and conditions in life to make known the cause of their distress. Some are ashamed to make known the occasion of their griefs. Ahab falls sick, and takes to his bed: he is ashamed to own the reason, but it turns out that, although he is a king, he is pining for the piece of garden-ground belonging to Naboth. Haman goes home and cannot eat, and, after enumerating all his possessions, says, “All this availeth me nothing, so long as I see Mordecai sitting at the king’s gate.” In how many instances are the sufferings of our fellow-creatures imaginary, though they appear real enough to those who endure them.

How much have Cowper, Howard, and others suffered! The “thorn in the flesh” may not be visible to us, because of the depth of its incision, but the pain it produces is not the less poignant: these are real sufferers, though the cause is not apparent to others. There are those who appear in company with a smile on their face, yet who retire to weep. Yes, these are real mourners. And let those who are the benefactors of our race remember this, and visit the widow and the fatherless in their affliction. But those who feel they cannot make known their sorrows to the dearest relation upon earth can retire and pour out their tears before God:-

“He’ll hear them in the painful hour,

And help them bear the heavy load.”

Then, again, with regard to human joy: how little do we know of this! When the eye is thrown over society, one seems at a loss to conjecture what it is that delights some people. There are some persons who turn the Scriptures into ridicule, who wonder that their fellow-creatures can be happy in conditions and circumstances which would render them miserable. Thus it is that “miser” signifies a miserable man, and applies to one who possesses much, but who uses and enjoys nothing; and it is impossible for us to see what pleasure such a creature can feel in counting over his silver and gold, or what gratification he can take in his sordid hoardings.

There is the joy of the luxurious man, and of the sensualist: with these may we never intermeddle, but become acquainted with that joy which is the glory of a man.