they shall not enter into his rest. He cannot change, he cannot lie. When he proclaims the doom of the wicked with an oath, it is irrevocable. Neither will

he recall his word when it is a word of promise, confirmed by his oath, to inspire with confidence and impart strong consolation to those, who have fled for refuge to lay hold on the hope set before them. Vow unto the Lord and pay thy vows; bind thyself to him in covenant to be his for ever.

THE SCORNER.

A SCORNER loveth not one that reproveth him: neither will he go unto the wise.

Judgments are prepared for scorners, and stripes for the back of fools.

A scorner seeketh wisdom, and findeth it not: but knowledge is

easy unto him that understandeth.

Smite a scorner, and the simple will beware: and reprove one that hath understanding, and he will understand knowledge.

Scornful men bring a city into a snare: but wise men turn away wrath.

SIN presents itself under a diversity of aspects, and an exhibition of one form of it will often involve others with which it is blended. Scorn implies pride, selfconceit, and imperiousness, and is the lofty disdain with which one regards whatever belongs to another. The scorner being too proud to learn, takes much for granted, and hence his judgments are harsh and his conduct precipitate. He disregards laws and customs; disdains the opinions and counsels of others; treats things sacred with contempt, and regards even the threats of God with defiance. When occupying high stations, so far from condescending to those beneath him, he holds them in contempt, cares not for their good opinion, and will not therefore strive to conciliate it. He despises reproof, holds himself superior to all accountability, and esteems himself wiser and better than those around him. Not only are his feelings haughty, but his bearing is repulsive. With such a disposition he comes into contact with religion, not with the humility and tractableness of a learner, conscious of ignorance, but with the proud bearing of one who

knows everything already, and is above vulgar prejudices. Nay, everything sacred is treated as if fabulous, and adapted only to the ignorant. He scorns to be won by the invitations of the gospel; he scorns to be influenced by the threats of the law. To him the obligations of religion are a nullity, and hell a bugbear. Having walked in the counsels of the ungodly, and stood in the way of sinners, he reaches the point of hopeless iniquity by sitting in the seat of the scornful. How dangerous is such a man when entrusted with power! Pernicious in his example, and rash in his policy, he will endanger whatever is committed to him. As is his crime, so will be his punishment. As a despiser of God, God will despise and utterly blot out his name, and from his proud elevation will hurl him into degradation and ruin.

My soul, cultivate the temper which is furthest removed from that of the scornful. Respect thy fellow men, and reverence thy God. Distrust thyself; scorn not the counsels of the wise, and be ever impressed with the solemnities of religion. Thus shalt thou be in friendship with God, and escape the judgments which he has prepared for scorners.

FOLLY.

LET a bear robbed of her whelps meet a man, rather than a fool in his folly.

He that begetteth a fool doeth it to his sorrow; and the father of a fool hath no joy.

Though thou shouldest bray a fool in a mortar among wheat

with a pestle, yet will not his foolishness depart from him.

It is as sport to a fool to do mischief; but a man of understanding hath wisdom.

He that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him.

ALL sin is folly, but the wise man seems here especially to refer to what is now usually intended by the term, namely, indiscretion and want of practical good sense. There are none more capricious in their conduct, or less trustworthy, than persons of this description. They may be compared to a flimsily constructed boat cast upon the waves, with sails set, and neither ballast nor steersman. They have not knowledge enough to steady them, nor discretion enough to manage the helm. The fool always supposes himself to be wise, and his presumption never fails to betray his ignorance. He has more glibness of tongue than activity of brain, and hence he deals more in words than ideas. Always prepared, in his own judgment, to express an opinion on all subjects, he exposes himself to contempt; and yet he has too little discernment to perceive the low estimate in which he is held. Silly thoughts, trifling conversation, and frivolous manners, are his chief characteristics, and with these he becomes the sport or the nuisance of the society into which he intrudes.

If folly always resulted from mental incapacity, it might be pitied if not tolerated; but it is oftener

voluntary, as resulting from vain self-confidence, which despises instruction, and neglects the means of improvement. It refuses to study the proprieties of time and place, and hence is always impertinent. In company it sets itself before wisdom, and insists upon talking when it should be a listener. In deportment it is a harlequin, which is ever annoying those around it with its caps and bells. There are rich fools, and fashionable fools, and fools highly connected, and they remain fools under all circumstances; but of all the tribe, the irreligious fool is the most intolerable. He rashly ventures where angels fear to tread; he handles the mysteries of God with an irreverence that shocks; he is confident where wise men modestly hesitate; he is flippant and frivolous on themes most sacred and awful; in a word, he makes a mock of sin, and says in his heart, "There is no God."

Who has not met with such persons, and who ever wishes to meet with them a second time? Who wishes to be exposed to their tongue, and who does not wish to keep aloof from their mischievous influences? A cautious man had rather encounter a bear rendered furious by the loss of her cubs, than a fool in his folly. Solomon regarded this vice as among the most incorrigible. There is no reason to appeal to, no fulcrum on which to rest the lever by which they might be moved. Reproof reaches them not, correction does not improve them; and even if brayed in a mortar, the essential folly still remains. Even Solomon seemed perplexed to know precisely how to deal with them, and eventually came to the conclusion, that as fools were always capricious, so they were to be treated differently under different circumstances. There were times when a fool