Wisdom in Christian preaching involves discerning right action through humility, integrity, and love, often contrasted with pride or selfishness. Illustrations use images of decision-making, counsel-seeking, and the costs of choices to emphasize lasting values over superficial or impulsive reactions (Proverbs 3:13-18). It highlights the importance of practical faith and wise motivation in daily living (James 3:17).
Wise people learn from fools by careful observation without being noticed.
Fools learn nothing from wise men, but wise men learn much from fools. He alone is an acute observer who can observe minutely without being observed. Lavater.
Old age warns us to gain wisdom and prepare for eternity before this life ends.
Old age, says the proverb, is a courtier: he knocks again and again at the window and at the door, and makes us everywhere conscious of his presence. Woe to the man who becomes old without becoming wise; woe to him if this world shuts the door without the future having opened its portals to him. Tholuck.
Wise people use social opinion carefully to achieve their goals.
Social opinion is like a sharp knife. There are foolish people who regard it only with terror, and dare not touch or meddle with it; there are more foolish people, who, in rashness or defiance, seize it by the blade, and get cut and mangled for their pains; and there are wise people, who grasp it discreetly and boldly by the handle, and use it to carve out their own purposes.
— Mrs. Jameson
Knowing when to stop is wisdom; overdoing spoils the work and effort.
Apelles found fault with a certain painter, saying that he never knew when he had done enough, and so spoiled all by overdoing. Lysippus disarmed criticism by writing over his best pieces of carved work, "Lysippus hath something more to do at this work."
Philosophy offers guidance for life but falls short of bringing true peace and tranquility.
Philosophy is the art and law of life; and it teaches us what to do in all cases, and, like good marksmen, to hit the white at any distance. — Seneca. — Philosophy hath given us several plausible rules for attaining peace and tranquillity of mind; but they fall very much short of brieging men to it. — Tillotson.
Weigh purposes honestly before acting, using God's standards, not just desires.
Before proceeding to any work, we should weigh it. Letters are charged in the post-office according to weight. I have written and sealed a letter containing several sheets. I desire that it should pass; I think it will; but I know well that it will not be allowed to pass because I desire that it should or think that it will. I know well it will be tested by imperial weights and measures. Before I plunge it beyond my reach, I place it on a balance before me, not constructed to please my desire, but honestly adjusted to the legal standard. I weigh it there, and check it myself by the very rules which government will apply. So should we weigh our purposes in the balance, before we launch them forth in action.
Various proverbs warn to act with caution and foresight to avoid trouble.
Look before you leap. Beware of had I wist. — English. — Who sees not the bottom, let him not pass the water. — Italian. — Asses sing badly, because they pitch their voices too high. — German. — When the head is broken, the helmet is put on. — Italian. — Dig a well before you are thirty. — Chinese. — Who ties well unties well. Better is a turn of the key than a friar's conscience. — Spanish.
Early maturity does not guarantee lasting wisdom; patience and growth are valuable.
A man at five may be a fool at fifteen. It is better to knit than to blossom. — English. — Late fruit keeps well. — German.
Wisdom and wit are timeless treasures, shining forever like jewels on a finger.
PROVERBS, Definitions of The wisdom of many and the wit of one. Earl Russell.
Jewels five words long,
That on the stretched forefinger of all time
Sparkle forever.
— Tennyson
Quarrels are unprofitable and cause unrest; it is wiser to suffer wrong than contend.
I never love those salamanders that are never well but when they are in the fire of contentions. I will rather suffer a thousand wrongs than offer one. I have always found that to strive with a superior is injurious; with an equal, doubtful; with an inferior, sordid and base; with any, full of unquietness. Ep. Hall.
Reading cultivates wisdom and readiness, contrasting the craftiness of the unwise.
READING, Benefit of Reading serves for delight, for ornament, and for ability. The crafty contemn it; the simple admire it; the wise use it. Reading makes a full man; conference, a ready man; and writing, an exact man. He that writes little needs a great memory; he that confers little, a present wit; and he that reads little, much cunning to seem to know that which he does not. Lord Bacon.
Different types of readers illustrate varying spiritual receptiveness and discernment.
READING, Kinds of The first class of readers may be compared to an hour-glass; their reading being as the sand: it runs in and runs out, and leaves not a vestige behind. A second class resembles a sponge, which imbibes every thing, and returns it in nearly the same state, only a little dirtier. A third class is like a jelly-bag, which allows all that is pure to pass away, and retains only the refuse and drugs. The fourth class may be compared to the slave of Golconda, who, casting aside all that is worthless, preserves only the pure gems. Coleridge.
Appearances can be deceptive; true value and strength are often hidden.
All is not gold that glitters. Likely lies in the mire, and unlikely gets over. — English. — Every glowworm is not a fire. — Italian. — The mountain is in labor, and will bring forth a mouse. — Latin.
True wisdom is shown by mastering anger and governing oneself well.
What is the best government?—that which teaches us to govern ourselves.—Goethe.—He is a fool who cannot be angry; but he is a wise man who will not.—Proverb.—The constancy of sages is nothing but the art of locking up their agitation in their hearts.—La Roche-foucauld.
Speaking without understanding exposes ignorance; silence preserves respect and wisdom.
A courtier in the retinue of Alexander the Great paid a visit to the studio of Apelles the celebrated painter, and was received with the consideration due to his rank. This excited his vanity and talkativeness, which, unhappily, sallied forth upon the fine art in question, exposing his ignorance in a variety of questions and criticisms. Apelles interrupted him at length in an undertone: "Do you see those boys that are grinding my colors? While you were silent, they admired you, dazzled with the splendor of the purple and gold with which your habit glitters; but, ever since you began to talk about what you do not understand, they have done nothing but laugh at you."
Proverbs warn that the company you keep shapes your character and actions.
Tell me the company you keep, and I'll tell you who you are. Tell me with whom thou goest, and I'll tell thee what thou doest. — English. — He that goes with wolves learns to howl. — Spanish. — He that lies down with dogs gets up with fleas. — Spanish.
Wise advice to stop talking and listen to others in conversation.
Mr. Burridge being visited by a very loquacious young lady, who engrossed all the conversation of the interview with small-talk concerning herself, when she arose to retire, he said, "Madam, before you withdraw, I have one piece of advice to give you; and that is, when you go into company again, after you have talked half an hour without intermission, I recommend it to you to stop a while, and see if any other of the company has any thing to say."
True greatness is saying much in few words, not many words with little meaning.
How many are great talkers, or great orators, if that sounds better? We have the art of saying much on a little; whereas we most want the art of saying much in a little. Pavillon.
Speaking less around wiser people prevents folly and gains wisdom.
Let your words be few, especially when your betters or strangers, or men of more experience or understanding, are in the place; for you do yourself at once two great mischiefs: 1. You betray and discover your own weakness and folly. 2. You rob yourself of that opportunity which you might otherwise have to gain knowledge, wisdom, and experience, by hearing those that you silence by your impertinent talking. Sir M. Hale.
Wise cranes silence themselves to avoid attracting dangerous eagles.
The heights of Mt. Taurus are infested by eagles, who prey upon any cranes that may fly near them. When flying, the crane keeps up a constant cackle. This noise brings the eagles down upon them. It is said that the older cranes, sensible of their weakness, before they venture upon a flight take a stone in their mouths large enough to enforce silence.
Knowing theory is not enough; practical skill is essential.
One clear frosty morning, an eminent Cambridge don, famous for encyclopedic information, accompanied some of his young friends to the ice, and, in going, talked to them with such science about skating, that they expected from him marvellous feats of clever gyration. To their surprise, his skill proved to be but small, and his tumblers woful. "Doctor," at length cried one, as he lifted the fallen professor, "how is this?"—"Easily explained, easily explained," was the ready reply. "I, you see, am up in theory, but down in practice." S. Coley.
A clever plan fails when practice does not match theory.
Sir Isaac Newton had a pet cat and kitten, who frequently interrupted his studies by calling him to open the door. To prevent this, he cut a large hole in the door for the cat, and a small one for the kitten, and waited to see the success of his remarkable plan. Behold! the cat went through the large hole, and the kitten followed through the same hole!
Time subtly steals all from us, warning to use it wisely with repentance and wisdom.
Time is the most subtle, yet the most insatiable of depredators, and, by appearing to take nothing, is permitted to take all; nor can it be satisfied until it has stolen the world from us, and us from the world. It constantly flies, yet overcomes all things by flight; and, although it is the present ally, it will be the future conqueror, of death. Time, the cradle of hope, but the grave of ambition, is the stern corrector of fools, but the salutary counsellor of the wise; bringing all they dread to the one, and all they desire to the other: but, like Cassandra, it warns us with a voice that even the sagest discredit too long, and the silliest believe too late. Wisdom walks before it, opportunity with it, and repentance behind it: he that has made it his friend will have little to fear from his enemies, will have little to hope from his friends. Colton.
Custom becomes second nature; repeated use forms lasting habits.
Use will make a man live in a lion's den. Custom is second nature. Once a use, and ever a custom. — English. — Continuance becomes usage. — Italian.
Active use keeps us effective; inactivity leads to decay or corruption.
The used key is always bright. Drawn wells have sweetest water. Standing pools gather filth. — English. — "If I rest, I rust," says the key. — German.
True happiness comes from fulfilling promises made in times of weakness when well.
The Archbishop of Cologne, being asked by the Emperor Sigismund how to attain true happiness, replied, "Perform when thou art well what thou promised when thou wast sick."
Proverbs illustrate how a strong will enables success and perseverance.
Where there's a will, there's a way. Where the will is ready, the feet are light. One man may lead the horse to water; but fifty can't make him drink. Nothing is impossible to a willing mind. — English. — A good knight is not at a loss for a lance. A voluntary burden is no burden. A thing done perforce is not worth a rush. — Italian. — The will does it. The will is the soul of the work. — German.
True wisdom is rare and often more easily seen in others than in ourselves.
The intellect of the wise is like glass: it admits the light of heaven, and reflects it. — Hare. — It is more easy to be wise for others than for ourselves. — La Rochefoucauld. — No man is at all times wise. — Pliny. — Young men are apt to think themselves wise enough, as drunken men are to think themselves sober enough. — Chesterfield.
Wisdom and folly have been in constant conflict since the world's beginning.
"Hold thy peace!" says Wisdom to Folly. "Hold thy peace!" replies Folly to Wisdom. "Fly!" cries Light to Darkness; and Darkness echoes back, "Fly!" The latter chase has been going on since the beginning of the world, without an inch of ground gained on either side. May we believe that the result has been different in the contest between wisdom and folly?
— Hare
Childlike faith and the gospel will ultimately overcome worldly wisdom and philosophy.
Wisdom had had its time, and time enough; it had done its all, and that was little enough; it had made the world worse than it was before it stepped upon it; and "now," says God, "foolishness shall overcome wisdom; now ignorance, as ye call it, shall sweep away science; now (saith God) humble, childlike faith shall crumble to the dust all the colossal systems your hands have piled." He calls his warriors. Christ puts his trumpet to his mouth, and up come the warriors, clad in fishermen's garb, with the brogue of the lake of Galilee, — poor humble mariners. Here are the warriors, O Wisdom! that are to confound thee; these are the heroes who shall overcome thy proud philosophers; these men are to plant their standard upon thy ruined walls, and bid them fall forever; these men and their successors are to exalt a gospel in the world which ye may laugh at as absurd, which ye may sneer at as folly, but which shall be exalted above the hills, and shall be glorious even to the highest heavens.
— Spurgeon
Divine wisdom is evident in the natural world's intricate and purposeful design.
Were the air divested of its undulating quality, we should be deprived of all the advantages of speech and conversation, and of all the pleasures of music. Were it deprived of its reflective powers, the sun would appear in one part of the sky in dazzling brightness; while all around would appear dark as midnight, and the stars would be visible at noonday. Were it deprived of its refractive powers, instead of the gradual approach of day and the night, which we now experience, we should be transported all at once from midnight darkness to the splendors of noonday, and, at sunset, should make a sudden transition from the splendors of day to all the horrors of midnight. In fine, were the oxygen of the air completely extracted, destruction would seize on all the tribes of the living world, throughout all the regions of earth, air, and sea. Dr. Dick.
Practical wisdom and simple solutions can achieve great and seemingly impossible tasks.
The property of cords contracting their length by moisture became generally known, it is said, on the raising of the Egyptian obelisk in the square facing St. Peter's, at Rome, by order of Pope Sixtus V. The great work was undertaken in the year 1586; and the day for raising the obelisk was marked with great solemnity. High mass was celebrated at St. Peter's; and the architect and workmen received the benediction of the pope. The blast of a trumpet was the given signal, when engines were set in motion by an incredible number of horses; but not until after fifty-two unsuccessful attempts had been made, was the huge block lifted from the earth. As the ropes which held it had somewhat stretched, the base of the obelisk could not reach the summit of the pedestal; when a man in the crowd cried out, "Wet the ropes!" This advice was followed; and the column, as of itself, gradually rose to the required height, and was placed upright on the pedestal prepared for it. Biblical Treasury.
True wisdom surpasses all earthly riches and is a priceless, enduring treasure.
I called upon God, and the Spirit of Wisdom came to me. I preferred her before sceptres and thrones, and esteemed riches nothing in comparison of her. Neither compared I unto her any precious stone, because all gold, in respect of her, is as a little sand; and silver shall be counted as clay to her. I loved her above health and beauty, and chose to have her instead of light; for the light that cometh from her never goeth out. All good things together came to me with her, and innumerable riches in her hands. And I rejoiced in them all, because Wisdom goeth before them. Wisdom of Solomon.
GO17. WISDOM, Goddess of Minerva is the fabled goddess of wisdom. She had no mother, but sprang forth, full armed, from the head of Jupiter.
GO18. WISDOM, Human. An old man of very acute physiognomy, answering to the name of Jacob Wilmot, was brought before the Police Court. His clothes looked as if they might have been bought second-handed in his youthful prime; for they had suffered more from the rubs of the world than the proprietor himself. "What business?"—"None: I'm a traveller."—"A vagabond, perhaps?"—"You are not far from wrong: travellers and vagabonds are about the same thing. The difference is, that the latter travel without money, and the former without brains."—"Where have you travelled?"—"All over the continent."—"For what purpose?"—"Observation."—"What have you observed?"—"A little to commend, much to censure, and very much to laugh at."—"Humph! what do you commend?"—"A handsome woman that will stay at home, an eloquent preacher that will preach short sermons, a good writer that will not write too much, and a fool that has sense enough to hold his tongue."—"What do you censure?"—"A man who marries a girl for her fine clothing, a youth who studies law or medicine while he has got the use of his hands, and the people who elect a drunkard to office."—"What do you laugh at?"—"I laugh at a man who expects his position to command that respect which his personal qualities and qualifications do not merit." He was dismissed.
Haven.
GO19. WISDOM, Humility of. I have heard of a young man who went to college; and, when he had been there one year, his parent said to him, "What do you know? Do you know more than when you went?"—"Oh, yes!" said he: "I do." Then he went the second year, and was asked the same question, "Do you know more than when you went?"—"Oh, no!" said he: "I know a great deal less."—"Well," said the father, "you are getting on." Then he went the third year, and was asked the same question, "What do you know now?"—"Oh!" said he, "I don't think I know any thing."—"That is right," said the father: "you have now learned to profit, since you say you know nothing." He who is convinced that he knows nothing of himself, as he ought to know, gives up steering his ship, and lets God put his hand on the rudder. He lays aside his own wisdom, and cries, "O God! my little wisdom is cast at thy feet: my little judgment is given to thee." Spurgeon.
GO30. WISDOM, Neglect of. Nobody giving any attention to old Diogenes while discoursing of virtue and philosophy, he fell to singing a funny song; and multitudes crowded to bear him. "Ye gods!" he said, "how much more is folly admired than wisdom!" GO52. WISDOM, Proof of. The mouth of the whale offers an instance of ingenuity and foresight. Comparing it to human inventions, it is a shrimping-net. While no one could have divined that the largest animal of all creation should have been commanded to seek its food among the smallest, that millions should be daily destroyed to support one life; so, however, has it been ordered. But, had the whale been condemned to swallow all the water which it must draw into its mouth together with its prey, the inconveniences which would have followed are obvious. To prevent this, it is provided with a singular piece of machinery, consisting of a series of flat hoops, meeting from both sides of the mouth into arches, and carrying ranges of bristles, which form a strainer and also a kind of net. The water is thus rejected, and the mass of shrimps is delivered to the throat. Macculloch.
GO52. WISDOM, a Result. What we call wisdom is the result, not the residuum, of all the wisdom of past ages. Our best institutions are like young trees growing upon the roots of the old trunks that have crumbled away. Beecher.
GO53. WISDOM, Seeking. Most persons proceed as if they expected to obtain wisdom as Abu Zeid al Hassan declares some Chinese philosophers thought oysters got their pearls, viz., by gaping. Magoon.
GO51. WISDOM, Worth of. If the mountains were pearl, if every sand of the sea were a diamond, it were not comparable to wisdom. Without wisdom, a person is like a ship without a pilot, — in danger to split upon rocks. The price of wisdom is above rubies. The ruby is a precious stone, transparent, of a red fiery color. It is reported of one of the kings of India, he wore a ruby of that bigness and splendor, that he might be seen by it in the dark; but wisdom casts a more sparkling color than the ruby: it makes us shine as angels.
J. Watson. GO55. WISH, Punished. It is probable that God punishes the wish as much as he does the actual performance; for what is performance but a wish perfected with power? and what is a wish but a desire wanting opportunity of action, — a desire sticking in the birth, and miscarrying for lack of strength and favorable circumstances to bring it into the world?
Dr. South. GO56. WISHES, Common. Suppose an angel were to descend from heaven into the midst of a congregation assembled for worship, and promise to give each whatever he should ask for. If the angel should visit each in turn, and record each wish, what a record would he have of the worldliness, folly, guilt, or frenzy of the worshippers! Remember that God does so visit his congregations, saying to each, "What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee?" Think it over, and answer in the light of eternity.
GO57. WISHES, Magic. The story recounts how, when Fortunatus had been exposed to great dangers from wild beasts, and was in a state of starvation, he suddenly beheld a beautiful lady standing by his side, with a bandage over her eyes, leaning upon a wheel, and looking as if she were going to speak. The lady did not wait long before she addressed him in these words: "Know, young man, that my name is Fortune. I have power to bestow wisdom, strength, riches, health, beauty, and long life. One of these I am willing to bestow on you. Choose for yourself which it shall be." Fortunatus immediately answered, "Good lady, I wish to have riches in such plenty, that I may never again know what it is to be so hungry as I now find myself." The lady then gave him a purse, and told him, that, in all the countries where he might happen to be, he need only put his hand into his purse as often as he pleased, and he would be sure to find in it pieces of gold; that the purse should never fail of yielding the same sum as long as it should be kept by himself and children... The sultan led Fortunatus to a room almost filled with jewels, opened a large closet, and took out a cap, which he said was of greater value than all the rest. Fortunatus thought the sultan was joking, and told him he had seen many a better cap than that. "Ah!" said the latter, "that is because you do not know its value. Whoever puts this cap on his head, and wishes to be in any part of the world, will find himself there in a moment." The story has a moral ending, inasmuch as the possession of this inexhaustible purse and wish-cap are the cause of ruin to Fortunatus and his sons.
— Wheeler
Wit captivates quickly but reason provides steady, reliable guidance in life.
There is no quality of the mind nor of the body, that so instantaneously and irresistibly captivates as wit. An elegant writer has observed, that wit may do very well for a mistress; but that he should prefer reason for a wife. He that deserts the latter, and gives himself up entirely to the guidance of the former, will certainly fall into many pitfalls and quagmires, like him who walks by flashes of lightning rather than by the steady beams of the sun. C. Colton.
Wit surprises by connecting distant ideas in unexpected ways.
Wit consists chiefly in joining things by distant and fanciful relations, which surprise us because they are unexpected. . Kames.
Wit can be rewarded and used effectively, but true wisdom is more valuable.
Wit is one of the few things that has been rewarded more than it has been defined. A certain bishop said to his chaplain, "What is wit?" The chaplain replied, "The rectory of B— is vacant: give it to me, and that will be wit."—"Prove it," said his lordship, "and you shall have it." It would be a good thing well applied," rejoined the chaplain. The dinner daily prepared for the royal chaplains at St. James's was reprieved, for a time, from suspension, by an effort of wit. King Charles had appointed a day for dining with his chaplains; and it was understood that this step was adopted as the least unpalatable mode of putting an end to the dinner. It was Dr. South's turn to say grace; and, whenever the king honored his chaplains with his presence, the prescribed formula ran thus: "God save the king, and bless the dinner!" Our witty divine took the liberty of transposing the words by saying, "God bless the king, and save the dinner!" "And it shall be saved," said the monarch. C. Colton.
Wit's victories are swift and surprising but lack lasting strength and stability.
The conquest of wit over the mind is not, like that of the Romans over the body, a conquest regulated by policy, and perpetuated by prudence; a conquest that conciliated that it subdued, and improved all that it conciliated. The triumphs of wit should rather be compared to the inroads of the Parthians, splendid, but transient; a victory succeeding by surprise, and indebted more to the sharpness of the arrow than the strength of the arm, and to the rapidity of an evolution rather than to the solidity of a phalanx. C. Colton.
Zeal without knowledge is dangerous; it must be guided by discretion.
Phacton took upon him to drive the chariot of the sun; but through his rashness set the world in combustion. What a horse is without a rider, or a ship without a rudder, such is zeal without knowledge. St. Bernard hits full on this point. Discretion without zeal is slow-paced, and zeal without discretion is strong-headed; let, therefore, zeal spur on discretion, and discretion rein in zeal. Spencer. | APPLICATIONS, 1. 2. 634. 635. 1836. 2072. 2073. 2450-2456. 3222-3224. 6575-5579. | | --- | | ABSENT-MINDEDNESS, 3. 10. 11. 2332-2337. | | ABSTINENCE, 4-9. 139. 281. 770. 1650-1671. 2230. 6632-5626. 6039. 6040. | | ABSTRACTION, 10. 11. 3. 2336. | | ACTION, 12-20. 21-23. 24-28. 1358-1401. 1634. 6111-6131. | | ACTIONS, 21-23. 12-20. 24-28. 1603-1618. 2276. 6132-6138. | | ACTIVITY, 24-28. 12-20. 21-23. 1533-1542. 2650. 2321. 2563. 3248-3253. 3506-3517. | | ADAPTATION, 29-32. 627. 763. 1158. 1161. 2651. 4425. 4775. | | ADOPTION, 33-35. 3445-3451. 3689. 4123-4126. | | ADORNMENT, 37. 275. 1613. 1736. 2216-2229. 4272-4274. | | ADVENT, 38. 1166. 1677. 3415-3427. 3819. 6139. 6141. 6117. | | ADVERSITY, 39-46. 75-92. 320-330. 794. 1545-1552. 1980. 2417. 3669-3672. 5294-5301. 5791-5309. | | ADVICE, 47. 48. 1112-1117. 6233-6238. | | ADVOCATE, 49. 3333-3340. 3545-3548. 5490. | | AFFECTATION, 50-52. 272. 203. 1849-1854. 6251. 6252. | | AFFECTION, 53-71. 2235. 2862. 184. 3676-3721. | | AFFECTIONS, 72-74. 794. 865. 4318-4323. | | APPLICATION, 75-92. 39-46. 320-330. 251. 1006-1009. 1187-1193. 2110. 3377. 5305. 5294-5301. 5791-5309. | | AGE, 93-104. 2607. 3456. 3375. 4197-4210. | | AGED, 101-104. 618. 1078. 3456. 4197-4210. | | AGRICULTURE, 1542. 3248-3253. | | AIN, 105-108. 771. 3047. 3601. 3654. 3655. 4827-4830. 5063. | | ALLIEMENTS, 109-111. 195. 1220-1232. 4436-4471. 5306. 6530-6665. | | AMBITION, 112-120. 909. 1860. 1870. 3766. 4664-4687. | | AMEN, 121-123. | | AMLABILITY, 124. 3452-3471. | | AMUSEMENTS, 125. 126. 195. 537. 538. 1221-1232. 4349. 4877. 4878. 5674-5680. | | ANCESTRY, 127-129. 3508. | | ANGEL, 130. 131. 867. 1267. 1926. | | ANGELS, 130-137. 217. 1757. | | ANGER, 138-140. 1052. 1069. 2481. 4318-4323. 5620-5631. 6217-6219. | | ANIMALS, 150. 2751. 3466. 3929. | | ANNIBILATION, 151. 1268. 3187-3201. 5419-5452. | | ANSWER TO PRAYER, 152-156. 864. 1226. 3333-3340. 4526-4503. | | ANTIQUITY, 157. 4738-4739. | | ANXIETY, 158-161. 505. 530-543. 2250. 1489. 1490. 1553-1558. 1562-1564. | | APOSTAST, 162-166. 249-262. 2169-2171. 2631. | | APOSTATE, 166. 913. 1725. 1768. 1932. 2937. 3406. 3832. | | APOSTLER, 167. | # INDEX.
y number. The numbers refer to synonymous or of the topic in the Index. A dash between two to.
A 91-year-old man refused alcohol, saying he was not old enough to need it.
When the subject of forming a Temperance Society began to be agitated in the town of W—, it met with strong opposition from a class of temperate drinkers. The number, however, who were ready to join a Society, was considerable, and their character and standing in the community, respectable. Among this number was a gentleman who had attained the great age of ninety-one years. When it became known that this hoary veteran of other days was thinking of becoming a member of the Temperance Society, some of his drinking and compassionate neighbors expostulated with him in this manner:—“You have occasionally drank a little spirit during your whole life, and it has not injured you; surely it would be folly for you to deny yourself of this beverage for the little remnant of your days. Besides, old people, as their corporeal powers decay, need a little ardent spirit to sustain them.” The old man, whose head was whitened with the frosts of 91 winters, replied—“I do not know but old people need ardent spirit; but I am not old enough yet to need it.”
# 6. Lessons from the Brutes.
Ambition without purpose leads to endless striving without true fulfillment.
When Pyrrhus, king of Epirus, was making great preparations for his intended expedition into Italy, Cineas, the philosopher, took a favorable opportunity of addressing him thus:—"The Romans, sir, are reported to be a warlike and victorious people; but if God permit us to overcome them, what use shall we make of the victory?" "Thou askest," said Pyrrhus, "a thing that is self-evident. The Romans once conquered, no city will resist us; we shall then be masters of all Italy." Cineas added, "And having subdued Italy, what shall we do next?" Pyrrhus, not yet aware of his intentions, replied, "Sicily next stretches out her arms to receive us." "That is very probable," said Cineas, "but will the possession of Sicily put an end to the war?" "God grant us success in that," answered Pyrrhus, "and we shall make these are derived, and the objects to which they are intended to be appropriated, there ought to be no improvident expenditure of any kind. I know Mr. — who is employed in travelling and collecting for the Bible Society; he puts up at the principal inn in the place where he happens to visit, and rather than exert himself to rise early and travel in the stage coach, I have heard that he takes a post-chaise at the expense of the society. These things ought not to be countenanced. I invariably endeavor to travel on such occasions, sir, outside of the coach, and when, from indisposition, I am compelled to hire a post-chaise, I pay the extra expense out of my own pocket."
# BITION.
only the forerunners of greater things, for then Lybia and Carthage will soon be ours: and these things being completed, none of our enemies can offer any farther resistance." "Very true," added Cineas, "for then we may easily regain Macedon, and make an absolute conquest of Greece; and, when all these are in our possession, what shall we do then?" Pyrrhus, smiling, answered, "Why then, my dear friend, we will live at our ease, drink all day long, and amuse ourselves with cheerful conversation." "Well, sir," said Cineas, "and why may we not do all this now, and without the labor and hazard of an enterprise so laborious and uncertain?" Pyrrhus, however, unwilling to take the advice of the philosopher, ardently engaged in these ambitious pursuits, and at last perished in them.
Rowland Hill warns against becoming surety, knowing the dangers from personal experience.
It was the custom of this eminently useful minister, at the commencement of a new year, to preach an annual sermon for the "Benevolent Society of Surrey Chapel, for visiting and relieving the Sick Poor at their own Habitations," selecting, at the same time, a few of the most remarkable cases to read to his congregation, that had been visited during the preceding year. On one of these occasions, he narrated the afflictive circumstances of a lady, formerly of property and respectability, who had been plunged into the depths of poverty and want, in a time of sickness, through having imprudently become security for some relation or friend; and Mr. Hill took this opportunity of publicly warning and entreating all present to be on their guard against committing so fatal an error. "I would advise all my friends," said he, "to do the same as I do myself, when any request of this kind comes to me. I just walk out of one room into another, and consider what I can afford to give, and what I ought to give to the applicant; then I return and say, 'Here, my friend, I make you a present of this sum, and if you can get a few others to help you in the same way, perhaps you will get over your difficulty.' Then," said Mr. Hill, with emphasis, "I know the end of it, but were I to lend my name, or become surety, I know not how that might end."
Strange as it may appear, he was waited on a few months after this, by one of the members of the church, soliciting his kind assistance in procuring him a lucrative situation, then vacant in that parish and district, viz., a collector of the king's taxes; the person urged that it would be the making of him and his family, but that he must have two bondsmen for one thousand pounds each. Mr. Hill said, he would consider of it. This petitioner was well known to Mr. Hill; he had long held a confidential situation in his chapel, and was, besides, in a good trade and connection of business, with his friends. There was no reason to doubt his integrity; and he was one that Mr. Hill was desirous to oblige. The result was, he became one of his securities and prevailed on a gentleman at Clapham to be the other; and the situation was obtained. Alas! alas! for poor Mr. Hill and his brother bondsman! In three or four years, the collector was a defaulter to the amount of thousands. The securities were obliged to pay.
Using time wisely means learning from conversations rather than idle pastimes like card playing.
TABLE CONVERSATION.—Mr. Locke having been introduced by Lord Shaftesbury to the Duke of Buckingham and Lord Halifax, these three noblemen, instead of conversing with the philosopher, as might naturally have been expected, on literary subjects, sat down to cards. Mr. Locke, after looking on for some time, pulled out his pocket-book, and began to write with great attention. One of the company observing this, took the liberty of asking him what he was writing. "My lord," said Locke, "I am endeavoring, as far as possible, to profit by my present situation; for, having waited with impatience for the honor of being in company with the greatest men of the age, I thought I could do nothing better than write down your conversation; and, indeed, I have set down the substance of what you have said, this last hour or two." This
77. C.
Skill in a game does not prove sanity; cards were invented for an insane king.
Sir Walter Scott says that the alleged origin of the invention of cards produced one of the shrewsest replies he had ever heard given in evidence. It was made by the late Dr. Gregory, at Edinburgh, to a counsel of great eminence at the Scottish bar. The doctor's testimony went to prove the insanity of the party whose mental capacity was the point at issue. On a cross-interrogation, he admitted that the person in question played admirably at whist. "And do you seriously say, doctor," said the learned counsel, "that a person having a superior capacity for a game so difficult, and which requires, in a pre-eminent degree, memory, judgment, and combination, can be at the same time deranged in his understanding?" "I am no card-player," said the doctor, with great address, "but I have read in history that cards were invented for the amusement of an insane king." The consequences of this reply were decisive.
# CASTE.
own, that you are in error. How do you act in the field of Juggernaut? Do you not eat there with the lowest caste of India? There you know no distinction of caste, but all feed at one board." The Brahmin answered, "I can screen myself from the imputation you bring against us, for there we are in the presence of our god, there Juggernaut is in our midst, and there we can feast together." "Ah!" said the gentleman, "and I can justify the Christian practice on your own principles, for we are every where in the presence of our God." ### 78. CENSURE—CI
Endless disputing about wisdom leaves no time left to actually use it.
When Eudamides heard old Xenocrates disputing so long about wisdom, he inquired very gravely but archly, "If the old man be yet disputing and inquiring concerning wisdom, what time will he have left to use it?"
Cleverness and truth disarm conflict better than violence or dueling.
Cobbett, when challenged to fight, recommended the challenger 116-148
"to wait on you immediately on my arrival from London." "Pray, sir, who are you?" "George Faulkner the printer, sir." "You George Faulkner the printer! why you are the most impudent barefaced scoundrel of an impostor I have ever met with! George Faulkner is a plain sober citizen, and would never trick himself out in lace and other fopperies. Get you gone, you rascal, I will immediately send you to the house of correction." Away went George as fast as he could, and having changed his dress he returned to the Deanery, where he was received with the greatest cordiality. "My friend George," says the Dean, "... am glad to see you returned safe from London. Why, here has been an impudent fellow with me just now dressed in lace waistcoat, and he would fain pass himself off for you, but I soon sent him away with a flea in his ear."
# LING.
to draw a Cobbett in chalk upon the floor, and if he succeeded in hitting it, to send him instant word, in order that he might have an opportunity of acknowledging that, had the true Cobbett been there, he, in all probability, would have been hit too. But hit or no hit, the bullets could have no effect whatever, he maintained, on the original causes of the quarrel.
Demanding proof before retaliation shows wisdom over impulsive violence.
The eccentric mathematician, Professor Vince, of King's College, Cambridge, being once engaged in a conversation with a gentleman who advocated dueling, is said to have thrown his adversary completely hors du combat, by the following cute and characteristic reply to his question: But what could you do, sir, if a man told you to your face, "You lie?" "What could I do? why I wouldn't knock him down, but I'd tell him to prove it. Prove it, sir, prove it, I'd say. If he couldn't, he'd be the liar, and there I should have him; but, if he did prove that I lied, I must e'en pocket the affront; and there I expect the matter would end."
Humor and honesty defuse conflict and restore peace among adversaries.
When the question for the emblems and devices for the national arms of the United States, was before the old Congress, a member from the South warmly opposed the eagle as a monarchical bird. The king of birds could not be a suitable representative of a people whose institutions were founded in hostility to kings. Judge Thatcher, then representative from Massachusetts, in reply, proposed the goose, which he said was a most humble and republican bird, and would in other respects prove advantageous, inasmuch as the goslings would do to put on ten cent pieces, &c. The laughter which followed at the expense of the Southerner was more than he could bear. He construed the good humored irony into an insult and sent a challenge. The bearer delivered it to Mr. Thatcher, who read and returned it to him, observing that he should not accept it! "What, will you be branded as a coward?" "Yes, sir, if he pleases; I always was a coward, and he knew it, or he would never have challenged me." The joke was too good to be resisted even by the angry party. It occasioned infinite mirth in the Congressional circles, and the former cordial and gentlemanly intercourse between the parties was soon restored in a manner entirely satisfactory.
### 150. Dueling Suppressed.
Dr. Bacon advises studying what can be practically applied in future ministry.
"I received a most useful him," says Cecil, "from Dr. Bacon, then father of the University, when I was at college. I used frequently to visit him at his living, near Oxford; he would frequently say to me, 'What are you doing? What are your studies?' 'I am reading so and so.' 'You are quite wrong. When I was young, I could turn any piece of Hebrew into Greek verse with ease. But when I came into this parish, and had to teach ignorant people, I was wholly at a loss; I had no furniture. They thought me a great man, but that was their ignorance, for I knew as little as they did, of what it was most important for them to know. Study chiefly what you can turn to good account in your future life.'"
Choosing sobriety preserves one's limited sense and wisdom, avoiding loss through drunkenness.
BRIETY.—A gentleman on entering a stage coach, rubbing his head, with a yawn said, "My head aches dreadfully; I was very drunk last night." A person affecting surprise, replied, "Drunk, sir! what! do you get drunk?" "Yes," said he, "and so does every one at times, I believe. I have no doubt but you do." "No, sir!" he replied, "I do not." "What! never?" "No, never; and amongst other reasons I have for it, one is, I never find, being sober, that I have too much sense; and I am loth to lose what little I have." This remark put an end to the conversation.
Wise arbitration and practical action resolve disputes better than legal battles.
Two neighbors, who were brothers by marriage, had a difficulty respecting their partition fence. Although they had mutually erected a substantial fence, four and one half feet in height on the line separating the sheep pasture of one from the grain field of the other, yet the lambs would creep through the crevices and destroy the grain. Each asserted it to be the duty of the other to chink the fence. After the usual preliminaries of demands, refusals, threats, challenges, and mutual recriminations, they resolved to try the glorious uncertainty of the law; they were, however, persuaded by their friends to the more amicable mode of submitting the defence and final determination to a very worthy and intelligent neighbor, who was forthwith conducted to the scene of trouble, and in full view of the premises: each party in turn, in a speech of some length, asserted his rights, and set forth the law and the facts; at the conclusion of which, the arbitrator very gravely remarked: "Gentlemen, the case involves questions of great nicety and importance, not only to the parties in interest, but to the community at large; and it is my desire to take suitable time for deliberation, and also for advisement with those who are learned in the law, and most expert in the customs of good neighbors; in the meantime, however, I will just clap a billet or two of wood into the sheep holes;" and in ten minutes' time, with his hands, he effectually closed every gap. The parties silently retired, each evidently heartily ashamed of his own folly and obstinacy. The umpire has never been called upon to pronounce final judgment in the case; so the law case remains unsettled to this day.
Everything we make is available for free because of a generous community of supporters.
Donate