parliament, in a court of judicature, or in the company
of men of knowledge and sense; and indeed it is his
highest wisdom to keep silence, and not betray his ig 
norance: and so with regard to spiritual things; a
man that wisdoxn is too high for, and he has no share
of it, shall not or ought not to open his mouth where
Wisdom cries; even in the gates of the cities, or in the
public assemblies of the saints, oh. i. 21. and viii. 3.
Vet. 8. He that deviseth to do evil shall be called a
mischievous person.3 To do evil is natural to men, all
are prone to it; being conceived and born in sin, and,
from the womb, more or less commit it: but for a
man to sit down and contrive evil, as some men are
inventors of evil things; contrive new sins, or at least
new methods of sinning, such as new oaths, new games,
new ways or' tricking and deceiving men; and are
always studying and devising ways and means of com-
mitting sin, and doing that which is evil in the sight of
God and men. Such a man, with great propriety,
may be called, and will be called by those that know
him, a mischievous man, a very pernicious one, and to
be shunned and avoided as such; men will reckon
him and call him a master or author a of evil de-
vices, as it may be rendered; a name agreeable to his
character.
Vet. 9. The thoughts of foolishness is sin, &c.] The
thought of sin is sin {e}, before it comes into action; the
motions of sin in the mind, the workings of corrupt
nature in the heart, the sinful desires of the flesh and
of the mind: these are forbidden and condemned by
the law of God as sin, which says, Thou shall not covet,
and stand in need of pardoning grace and mercy; see
Rom. vii. 5, 7. Acts viii. 22. Or, the thoughts of a
foolish man are sin f; that is, of a wicked man; in all
whose thoughts God is not, but sin is; the imagination
of the thoughts of his heart is evil, and that continually;
he thinks of nothing else but sin, Gen. vi. 5. And the
scorner is an abomination to men; who not only thinks
ill of divine things, and despises them in Iris heart,
which is only known to God; but scoffs at them with
his lips, makes a jest of all that is good, derides reli-
gion and religious men; and to such he is an abomi-
nation: and indeed one that is proud and haughty,
scorner is his name, and that deals in proud wrath,
and scorns all around him, in whatsoever company he
comes, and that ridicules every person, and every thing
that is said in conversation, is usually hated and ab-
horred by all sorts of men.
Ver. 10. If thou faint in the da!! of adversity, &c.]
When under bodily afflictions, stripping providences,
reduced to great straits and wants; or under the
violent persecutions of men, which is sometimes
the case of the people of God; whose times are in his
hands, times of adversity, as well as prosperity; and
which are appointed by him, when. they shall come,
and how long they shall last; which is but for a short
time, it is but a day, and yet they are apt to faint
under them, through the number and continuance of
their afflictions; and especially when they apprehend
them to be. in wrath; when they have a sense of their
sins at such a time, and no view of pardon; when they
are under the hidings of God's face, their prayers do not
seem to be heard, and salvation and deliverance do not
come so soon as they expected; which, notwithstand-
ing, shews the truth of what is next observed.
strength is small; such who are truly gracious are not
indeed at such times wholly without strength; they
are in some measure helped to bear up; but yet their
sinkings and fainrings shew that they have but little
strength: they have some faith that does not entirely
fail, Christ praying for it; yet they are butof little faith;
they have but a small degree of Christian fortitude and
courage; there is a want of manliness in them; they
act the part of children and babes in Christ; they do
not quit thetnselves like men, and much less endure
hardness, as good soldiers of Christ, as they should;
they are, Ephraim-like, without a heart, a courageous
one, Hos. vii. 1L Some think the words have refe-
rence to what goes before, and the sense to be this, if
thou art remiss g; that is, if thou art careless and negli-
gent in time of health and prosperity, in getting wis-
dom, as thinking it too high for thee, yet. 7. in the
day of adversity thy strength will he small; thou wilt
not have that to support thee which otherwise thou
wouldest have had. A ben Ezra connects the sense
with the following, if thou art remiss, in helping and
delivering thy friend in affliction, ver. 11, 1.o.. in the
day of adversity, or of straithess, thy strength shall be
strait; thou shalt be left in thy distress and difficulties,
and have none to help thee.
Vet. 11. If thou forbear to deliver them that are
drawn unto death, &c.] Or taken for or unto death
in a violent way; whoare taken by thieves and robbers,
and used in a barbarous manner, as the man in the
parable, whom the priest and Levite took no notice
of, and was helped by the good Samaritan; or who are
unjustly sentenced and appointed to death by the civil
magistrate; if any know their innocency, it becomes
them to do all they can to save their lives, by bearing
a testimony for them; for a true witness deliver. eth souls,
ch. xiv. 25. or by interceding for them, and giving
counsel and advice concerning them, orby any lawful
way they can; as Reuben delivered Joseph, Jonathan
interceded for David, and Ahikam and Ebed-melcch
for Jeremiah. Life is valuable, and all means should
be taken to save it, and to prevent the shedding of
irmocent blood ;.and a man should not forbear. or spare
any cost, or pains, or time, to such service :. likewise
such as are drawn into snares and temptations,. into
immorality or heresy, which tend to the. ruin of the
souls of men, and bring them to eternal death; all
proper, methods should be taken to restore such per-
sons, to recover them out of the snare of the devil,
which is saving souls from death, and covering a mul,
titude of sins; see 2 Tim. ii. 25, 26. Jam. v. 19, 20,
And those that are-ready to be slain; or {l} bending  to


{d} \^twmzm leb\^ patronum malarum cogitationum, Montanus; domi-
num, Mercerus, Gejerus; auctorem, Michaelis.
{e} Nam scelum intra se tacitum qui cogitat ullum, facti crimen habet,
Juvenal. Satyr. 13. v. 209, 210.
{f} \^tlwa\^ stulti, Pagninu,s Junius & Tremellius, Mercerus, Piscator,
Gejerus.
{g} \^typrth\^ si remiseris, Tigurine versionl remissus fuisti, Pag-
ninus, Montanus, Mercerus, Gejerus; si remisse te geras, Junius &
Tremellius, Piscator; so Michaelis.
{h} \^twml Myxql\^ captos ad mortem, Montanus, Piscator, Schultens.
{i} \^grhl myjm\^ inclinantes ad necem, Mercerus; nutanes ad oc-
cisionem, Montanus, Cocceius; nutantes ad lanienam, Schultens.