Evening capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1888-1893, 1893-04-29
WARNING OF WISDOM.
INTERNATIONAL SUNDAY SCHOOL
LESSON FOR APRIL 30.

LeooON run RFhlG ~.
Exposition by Rev. Robert Court. d. d.
The Wages of wickedness--The Reck-
Iessness OF Unbelief-The Happiness of
obeying Wisdom.
Golden Text: See that you refuse not him
that speaketh Q4eb xii, 25).
Lesson: Prov. l, $685..
The wisdom of the Old Testament is
based on revealed religion. 1t begins with
the fear Of the Lord, includes love to God,
delight in His law and hatred Of evil and
has the promise of true life. Wisdom Great
ed and rules the world. Hence he who lives
wisely is in harmony with God. Hence,
too, wisdom is priceless To love 1t is to
love life, and to hate it is to love death and
to ruin ones self. This shows us that
the wisdom Of Proverbs and true re-
ligion are the same "Mashal," the He
brew word translated ''proverb," means
comparison" In l Kings v, 2, it is
written that King Solomon made 8 900 prov
cribs, yet this book contains but 915 verses,
and therefore all Solomon's proverbs have
not been preserved. "The data given in
the Bible appear to establish that the
greater part of the book Of Proverbs is the
work of King Solomon, spoken at first and
then written, part while he was alive and
part in the days of King Hezekiah, and
finally enriched after that time by the ad-
dition of other portions and sentences
emanating either from Solomon or from
other moralists'' c'Histoire de la Bible"
by NJ Vogue, grand rabbin and professor
in the Jewish seminary. Paris, 1881. This
- ss, i,,~t for fhnca bu.
potheses now current.
I-WIsDoM's INVITATION. Verses 1923. }
1. The publicity of wisdom's CALL (a)
Wisdom is here personified. The word is
the feminine plural. 1t is used as a singu-
lar, the plural form probably intimating
the riches of wisdom and it's many applica-
tions, "as though this wisdom were the
queen of all wisdoms, uniting in herself all
ywithout," in the open air, not indoors.
Hence her cry is loud. (b) Crying outside
intimates that she does not hide herself, nor
utter secret oracles. In ancient times both
priests and philosophers had double doc
trine-one for the many and another for the
few. 1t is the glory of the Christian re-
Hgion as 1t was of the Jewish that the
same law of the Lord, the same revelation
of Gods will, was for everybody. Wisdom
goes outside that she may with loud
voice impart her truths to all that will
listen. 1.-THE wisdom that speaks in the
Proverbs does not desire to be the mere
wisdom of the schools" (Oehler). (c) She
roes where the crowds are. "She giveth
her voice in the streets"-in the places of
public resort She calls where the crowds
gather, where men do congregate-in
the openings of the gates, where the
elders of the people meet, where the king
sits in Judgment. See for similar phrase
ology in describing the thronged places
lisa, 1, 20; Lam. ii, IL, 10. Words are
heaped on one another to emphasize the
publicity of wisdom's teaching. "Not in
solitude, but in the haunts of men, through
sages, lawgivers and teachers, and yet more
through life and it's experiences, she preach
es to mankind" Plumptre) So Socrates
had no taste for fields and trees. but sought
men in the workshops, in the streets, in
the temples and market place of Athens, to
impart unto them wisdom So Jesus went
out and spoke to crowds and told His dis
ciples to preach the gospel to every cres-
ture. Wisdom needs to be ashamed. She
is everybody's friend. She does everybody
good that takes her advice. Therefore she
hides not herself, but cries to everybody.
How true this is of the gospel In thou
sands of churches and Sunday schools, in
halls, on streets, in parks, on sea and on
land, the blessed voice of saving wisdom
calls to men, teaching, pleading. warning
sinners to be wise. Wisdom's words are
for all the world.
q. Those whom wisdom calls. (a) Three
classes are mentioned - the simple, the
scornful, the foolish. First, the simple ones
are those that are not experienced or in
structed in the ways of the world. They
are .'open," as the word describing them
implies, to delusion, falsehood, evil advice
-open to what will ruin them. To them
comes wisdom's cry, How long will ye love
to be cheated, deceived, imposed uponi 1t
| Is no excuse that they love what ruins them
that is the greater pity. The love Of folly
shuts out the entrance of wisdom. (b) The
| next class are the scorners-the Knockers OF
religion. AS the reign Of Solomon was a
prosperous one, the people were well OIL
and Just such well off people are ready to
become Knockers of those that fear God.
When man is not only foolish, but thinks
| wisdom is foolishness and religion farce
and fraud, there is very little hope OF re-
covering him from his delusion. The mock
er loses the faculty for discerning truth.
| he Only Is tut suCCcSoiui VI oSchSi w IL
is in earnest, who is sincere. (c) The third
class is the goddess fool, who is welded by
habit to wick kedness-hardened, obstinate
perverse, hating knowledge. wisdom and
righteousness-the worst class of the three
Can God turn such soulsY Not without
their own consent. Wisdom would not ad
dress il she despaired of their salvation.
s. Wisdom's invitation. (a) Wisdom viii
not despair of any. Even the simpleton
the mocker and the hardened offender may
be reclaimed and reformed 1t is here as II
4 is in the gospel-irst the call, then the cal
obeyed and finally repentance and trust II
the saving One Turn at my reproof
Nothing can be more reasonable. II one Il
going in the wrong direction, let him turn
II the road be to ruin. the only safety is II
turning back. Repentance is turning from
falsehood to truth, from folly to wisdom
| from sin and satan unto God. Turn ye
turn ye, for why will you diei" (b) But how
can one welded to folly. dead in sin. chainet
by habit, turn unto Godi Unhelped i
would be very hard work, perhaps i'm
possible, but with God helping 1t ma.
be done. And that Is just what God