TRU BNER'S 
 
 ORIENTAL SERIES. 
 
LONDON: PRINTED BY 
 
 BALIjANTTNE, HANSON AND CO., CHANDOS STREET 
 
 AND PAUL'S WORK, EDINBUROH 
 
EASTERN 
 
 PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 ILL USTRA TING OLD TR UTHS 
 
 BY 
 
 THE REV. J. LONG 
 
 MEMBER OF THE BENGAL ASIATIC SOCIETY, F.R.G.S. 
 
 LONDON 
 
 TRUBNER & CO., LUDGATE HILL 
 1881 
 
 \_All rights reservedl 
 
 W 
 

 PREFACE 
 
 The materials from which this little work has been com- 
 piled are scattered over more than looo volumes, some 
 very rare, and to be consulted only in libraries in India, 
 Eussia and other parts of the Continent^ or in the British 
 Museum. The field has been so wide and the materials 
 so immense, that the work of condensation has been 
 almost as difficult as that of collecting ; many statements 
 are, therefore, simply suggestive; amplification would 
 require several volumes. The Author has spared neither 
 time nor labour in collecting and classifying the treasures 
 drawn from the rich and new storehouse of Eastern 
 Emblems and Proverbs, with the view of helping those 
 who have neither the means of collecting a large reference 
 library nor the time to spend in the search. 
 
 This work, begun a quarter of a century ago in the 
 jungles of India for the instruction of peasants and women, 
 is designed to afford some help to the following classes — 
 Orientalists, Lovers of Folk-Lore, Teachers, and Preachers. 
 The former desire to open a vista into the recesses of 
 Eastern thought on moral and religious subjects, especially 
 in relation to women and the masses ; the latter are anxious 
 to fix in the school, the pulpit, or the press great spiritual 
 truths by means of emblems and illustrations drawn 
 from the depths of the popular mind. Those classes may. 
 
 470174 
 
vi PREFACE. 
 
 in the pithy and pointed illustrations of Proverbs, find a 
 quarry out of which to draw some of their materials. 
 
 Orientalists are at last recognizing the truth* that 
 Proverbs are as deserving of their research as coins and 
 inscriptions ; and that whereas the latter refer chiefly to 
 kings and the upper classes, Proverbs throw a light on 
 \ the dark recesses of social life, on archaisms, old customs, 
 history, and ethnology. Even the Zenana, barred to the 
 stranger, opens its portals to let man have a peep in and 
 spy out the thoughts and feelings of woman, who, in the 
 
 \ East, depicts her feelings and thoughts in Proverbs and 
 racy sayings. 
 
 The Proverbs selected in this book, though limited to 
 those serving to illustrate moral and religious subjects, 
 show how widely scattered nations under similar circum- 
 
 ^ stances have come to similar conclusions ; many of these 
 resemblances arise from the identity of human nature, or 
 are a portion of the spiritual heritage which men brought 
 away with them from the cradle of the human race, and 
 improved on by subsequent communication ; by shewing 
 
 ' the acute observation and sharp moral sensibility of the 
 masses, they prove God has not left himself without 
 witness in the human breast; they, therefore, form a 
 
 f basis for those who are labouring to bridge over the gulf 
 between Eastern and Western thought. 
 
 The nineteenth century is pre-eminently distinguished 
 .for the attention it gives to elevating the masses by 
 knowledge conveyed to them through the acceptable 
 medium of parable and illustration. On this one point East 
 and "West concur — that, to tell on the minds of millions, 
 we must make full use of illustrations* from Nature and 
 
PREFACE, vii 
 
 picturing by words. Buddhist preachers and Sufy teachers 
 alike hoist the flag of Emblems, Parables, and Proverbs. 
 Even the Divine Founder of Christianity Himself adopted 
 the same method ; for " without a parable spake He not 
 to the people." 
 
 The modern missionary in the East, Spurgeon, Trench, 
 and Eyle in England, bear, in their preaching and writings, 
 testimony equally with the Buddhist and Biblical writings 
 to the value of the Emblem, Parable, and Proverb. The 
 following statement of Scarborough, in his " Chinese Pro- 
 verbs," echoes the same sentiment from far-off Kathay : — 
 
 " Used as quotations, the value of proverbs in China is 
 immense. So used in conversation, they add a piquancy and 
 a flavour which greatly delights the Chinese, and makes 
 mutual intercourse more easy and agreeable. But it is to 
 the missionary that the value of an extensive acquaintance 
 with Chinese proverbs is of the highest importance. Personal 
 experience, as well as the repeated testimony of others, makes 
 us bold to assert that even a limited knowledge of Chinese 
 proverbs is to him of daily and inestimable value. A proverb 
 will often serve to rouse the flagging attention of a congre- 
 gation, or to arrest it at the commencement of a discourse. 
 A proverb will often serve to produce a smile of good nature 
 in an apparently ill-tempered audience, and so to call forth a 
 kindly feeling which did not seem before to exist. And very 
 often a proverb aptly quoted will serve to convey a truth in 
 the most terse and striking manner, so obviating the necessity 
 for detached and lengthy argument, whilst they fix at a stroke 
 the idea you are wishing to convey." 
 
 The proverbs in this book have been selected for the 
 illustrations they contain. Proverbs are not the produc- 
 tions of the book-worm or the midnidit oil. Proverbs 
 
viii PREFACE. 
 
 were 'before looks — they come from the great books of 
 Nature and common sense — from powers of observation, 
 not blunted by book-cram ; hence among the Proverbs in 
 this book, though principally Eastern,"^ there are very 
 few that are not intelligible to the European mind; like 
 the Proverbs of Solomon, the Psalms, Bunyan's " Pilgrim's 
 1 Progress," and the Arabian Mghts, they speak in a 
 language " understanded by the common people." 
 
 While illustrations by Emblem and Proverb are 
 indispensable as media for conveying instruction in the 
 East, they are highly valued in Europe also. The fol- 
 lowing observations of Archbishop Trench will find a 
 response with all those who have aimed at winning the 
 attention of the working classes, the peasantry, and " the 
 Arabs of Society :" — 
 
 " Any one who by after investigation has sought to discover 
 how much our rustic hearers carry away, even from sermons 
 to which they have attentively listened, will find that it is 
 hardly ever the course or tenor of the argument, supposing 
 the discourse to have contained such; but if anything has 
 been uttered, as it used so often to be by the best Puritan 
 preachers, tersely, pointedly, epigrammatically, this will 
 have stayed by them, while all the rest has passed away. 
 Great preachers to the people, such as have found their way 
 to the universal heart of their fellows, have ever been great 
 employers ofproverls." 
 
 The Author will feel greatly obliged for any corrections 
 or additions to this work forwarded for him to the 
 Publishers. 
 
 * Many Eussian Proverbs are given, whicli were collected by 
 the Author in Moscow; but tbe Eussians are a semi- Oriental 
 people, and their Proverbs have an Eastern ring about them. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 PART I. 
 
 PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS CHIEFLY MORAL. 
 
 PAO 
 
 The Ant teaches the Sluggard i 
 
 Appearances Deceitful — Avoid the appearance of Evil. . 2 
 
 Angry as a Bear robbed of her Whelps .... 3 
 
 Man a Wild Ass's Colt 4 
 
 Beauty in the Ignorant as a Jewel in a Swine's Snout — 
 
 Beginning and Unable to Finish 5 
 
 The Glutton's God his Belly 6 
 
 Book Oram — Anger rests in the Fool's Bosom ... 7 
 
 Braying a Fool in a Mortar 8^ 
 
 The Shameless have a Brow of Brass 9 
 
 Deceitful Brethren as a Brook — a Busybody, as one taking a 
 
 Dog by the Ears 10 
 
 The Hypocrite's Words Smoother than Butter — Strife from 
 
 Wrath as Butter from Milk 12 
 
 Caste — Ceremonialism 13 
 
 The Wicked are Chaff— Cheerfulness 15 
 
 The Body a Clay House crushed before the Moth . . t6 
 The Wicked are Clouds without Water — A Boaster like 
 
 Clouds without Eain 18 
 
 The Fickle Hke the Morning Cloud and Early Dew— A For- 
 giving Spirit as Coals of Fire on an Enemy's Head . 19 
 Contentment with Godliness, Great Gain — A Threefold 
 
 Cord of Brotherly Unity 21 
 
 Worldly Joy is the Crackling of Thorns . . . . 22 
 
 Courteousness — A Cruel Man troubles his own Flesh . . 24 
 The Cursing of the Wicked Vain — Bad Company the 
 
 Unfruitful Works of Darkness 25 
 
 Owe no Debt but Love — Decision ; No Serving Two Masters 27 
 
:e contents. 
 
 AGE 
 
 Deeds, not Words — The Double-Minded ; Unstable as a 
 
 Wave 28 
 
 Cast not Holy Things to Dogs 29 
 
 Meek as a Dove 30 
 
 The Wicked are Dross 31 
 
 Man's Corruption like the Ethiopian's Skin . ... 32 
 
 The Eye of Faith 33 
 
 The Fire of the Tongue 34 
 
 Little Sins like Dead Flies in Ointment . • • • 35 
 
 Life a Flood 3^ 
 
 Life passes as a Flower 37 
 
 God-fearing the Fountain of Life— The Heart the Fountain 
 
 of Action — The Wicked are Foxes 38 
 
 Friendship, like Perfume, rejoicing the Heart • • • 39 
 
 The Wicked like Goats— All Flesh is Grass .... 40 
 
 Gratitude the Memory of the Heart 41 
 
 Idleness makes the House drop through .... 42 
 
 The Inner and the Outer Man 43 
 
 The Lamp of the Wicked put out — Man Fades as a Leaf . 44 
 
 Lip Love as Sounding Brass — Use the Means ... 45 
 
 Gravel of Deceit fills the Mouth 46 
 
 The Safe Guide 47 
 
 The Hoary Head of the Eighteous a Crown of Glory — The 
 
 Body a House 48 
 
 Hearing, not Doing, as a House on the Sands . . . 49 
 
 Moderation, i.e., Avoiding Extremes 50 
 
 The Mote in a Brother's Eye, a Beam in your Own — Stiff- 
 necked 51 
 
 Woman's Ornament the Hidden Man of the Heart . . 52 
 
 Patient as the Husbandman ....... 53 
 
 Cast not Pearls before Swine 54 
 
 Perfection — Sin as a Poisonous Serpent • • • • 55 
 
 Man as Clay ; God as the Potter 56 
 
 Prudence . 57 
 
 Punctuality, or Work while it is Day 58 
 
 God's Influence as Rain on the Mown Grass • • • 59 
 
 Redeeming the Time — Sparing the Rod, hating the Son . 61 
 
 The Root of all Evil is the Love of Money 62 
 
 Rottenness of the Bones is Envy 64 
 
 Hypocrites' Hope a Rush in the Mire — Hypocrites are 
 
 Whited Sepulchres 66 
 
 The Righteous the Salt of the Earth 67 
 
 Our Days on Earth a Shadow — God a Shepherd ... 68 
 
 Sowing to the Flesh Reaping Corruption .... 70 
 
CONTENTS. xi 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The Hypocrites' Hope a Spider's Web 71 
 
 The Lord the Stay of the Eighteous 72 
 
 The Nick of Time Taught by the Stork— The Sting of Death 
 
 is Sin 73 
 
 The Sinner's Heart Stony 74 
 
 The Swallow knows her Time, not so the Ignorant . . 75 
 Slander is a Mall, a Sword, and a Sharp Arrow — False 
 
 Sympathy 76 
 
 Temperance or Self- Control 77 
 
 Temptation . ^ ........ 78 
 
 Avoid Temptation 79 
 
 The Body a Tent 80 
 
 Life a Vapour 82 
 
 The Wages of Sin is Death — Providence a Wall of Fire to 
 
 protect the Good ^'^ 
 
 No Discharge in Death's Warfare 84 
 
 The Beginning of Strife the letting out of Water ... 85 
 
 The Dead as Water spilled upon the Ground . . . 86 
 
 The Wicked pass away as a Whirlwind . . . . 87 
 
 The Worm of Conscience 88 
 
 Man a Worm 89 
 
 The Tongue Fires the Wheel of Nature .... 90 
 
 PAKT II. 
 
 PKOVEEBS AND EMBLEMS MOEAL AND EELIGIOUS. 
 
 The Wicked deaf as an Adder to the Charmer's Voice . . 93 
 
 The Anchor of Hope 94 
 
 The Arrows of God's punishment — The Axe of punishment 
 
 at the Boot of the Tree .96 
 
 Sinners are Blind 98 
 
 The Book of Life 99 
 
 Who are Brands plucked from the Burning — Doing Good is 
 
 Bread cast on the Waters .100 
 
 God a Builder loi 
 
 The Burden of Sin — Trusting in Eiches compared to a Camel 
 
 passed through a Needle's Eye 102 
 
 The Wicked are Captives 103 
 
 Choked with Care — Chastity 104 
 
xu CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 God chastises Ms Spiritual Sons 105 
 
 Humble as little Children 107 
 
 Death of Righteous as a Shock of Corn . . . .109 
 Charity covers a Multitude of Sins— Let the Dead bury 
 
 their Dead iii 
 
 The Congregation of the Dead and the Fool — Drunkenness. 113 
 
 Riches have Wings like an Eagle 114 
 
 Education, or Bending the Twig — The Righteous are 
 
 Epistles not written with Ink 115 
 
 Providence guards the Righteous as the Apple of the Eye . 116 
 
 God our Father 117 
 
 Faith without Fruits is Dead .119 
 
 The Earth waxes old as a Garment 121 
 
 The Strait Gate and Narrow Way to Eternal Life— The 
 
 Girdle of Truth 122 
 
 Seeing through a Dark Glass 124 
 
 Hearers not Doers gazers in a Looking-glass . . .125 
 The wild Goat on the Mountains protected, so the Righteous 127 
 The Tongue a Helm — Providence as a Hen sheltering her 
 
 Chickens 128 
 
 Honesty — Hospitality — Who are God's Jewels . . .129 
 
 God a Judge 131 
 
 Knowledge 132 
 
 Sin, a Leprosy . . 133 
 
 God's People graven on the Palms of his Hands . . -135 
 
 Light — The Righteous Bold as a Lion 136 
 
 Time like a Mail-post, Swift Ships, Eagles . . . .138 
 
 An Oppressor like a Crouching Lion 139 
 
 A Living Dog better than a dead Lion — Man and Wife one 
 
 Flesh 140 
 
 The Miser — False Peace like Untempered Mortar . . 141 
 
 Mountains 142 
 
 The Spiritual Net — The Night of Life and Day of Eternity. 143 
 
 The Sensualist's Old Age 144 
 
 Oppressing the Poor a Sweeping Rain 147 
 
 The Righteous as the Palm Tree 148 
 
 Perseverance as the Husbandman — Polygamy . . .150 
 Prevention better than Cure — Pride . . . . .151 
 Punctuality and Watching opportunity — The Heavenly 
 
 Race 152 
 
 God will not Break the bruised Reed 154 
 
 God a Refuge and Shield 155 
 
 Rend the Heart not the Garment .156 
 
 Resignation — God's Grace a River ..... 157 
 
CONTENTS. xiii 
 
 PAGE 
 
 "The Sacrifices of the Body and of Praise . . . 159 
 
 The Troubled Sea of Evil Passions 160 
 
 Conscience seared as with a Hot Iron . . . . .164 
 
 The Seed of God's Word 165 
 
 Self-conceit — Selfishness 168 
 
 The Righteous as Sheep 169 
 
 The Shipwrecked Soul — Silence 170 
 
 Death a Sleep to the Righteous — Conscience Asleep . . 171 
 
 The Smoke of God's Anger 172 
 
 The Righteous a Soldier 173 
 
 The Righteous shall Shine as the Stars . . . .174 
 
 The Rich are only Stewards 175 
 
 The Stronghold, Faith in God 176 
 
 The Death of the Righteous an unsetting Sun . . .177 
 Earthen Vessels hold the Soul's Treasures .... 178 
 
 Christ the Lily among the Thorns 179 
 
 Treasures laid up in Heaven — Death's Shadowy Yalley . 180 
 
 The Spiritual Warfare 182 
 
 The Righteous are Watchmen 184 
 
 The Waterer Watered, or Fatness for the Liberal . . 186 
 The Wedding Garment, or Meetness for Heaven — The 
 
 Wilderness World . .187 
 
 The Wicked are Wolves and Locusts — The Words of the 
 
 Wise Goads and Nails 190 
 
 PART III. 
 
 PEOVERBS AND EMBLEMS RELIGIOUS. 
 
 Who is the Altar for Believers ? — Who has the Everlasting 
 
 Arms? 192 
 
 What Bags wax not Old 193 
 
 How Born again ? — Who is the Bread of Heaven ? . ,194 
 Who are Buried with Christ ? — Satan in everlasting Chains 
 
 of Darkness 195 
 
 The City in Heaven — Content 196 
 
 Christ drank a Bitter Cup . . . . • . . . 197 
 Hell is the Blackness of Darkness — Death-bed Repentance, 
 
 or making Swords when the War comes , , .198 
 
xiv CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Sin as a Debt Blotted out — The Dew of God's Providence . 199 
 
 The Spiritual Life mounting on Eagle's Wings . . . 202 
 
 The Earnest of the Spirit 203, 
 
 The Angelic Encampment — Example 204 
 
 The Great Family of Believers — Satan the Father of Lies . 205 
 
 Keep the Feet in God's House 206 
 
 God's Name on the Believer's Forehead — Christ the sure 
 
 Foundation 208 
 
 God the Fountain of Living Waters 210 
 
 The Fowler of Souls 211 
 
 Christ the first Fruits of them that Slept — Affiction's 
 
 Furnace 213 
 
 The Church a Garden enclosed 215 
 
 Faith more Precious than Gold 217 
 
 The Eighteous groan in their Bodily Tabernacle — The right 
 
 Hand of God dashes in Pieces his Enemies . . . 21S 
 
 The Soul thirsts for God lilce a Hart 22a 
 
 The Heavenly Home 221 
 
 The Righteous are God's Husbandry 222 
 
 The Incense of Prayer 224 
 
 Begotten to an Unfading Inheritance 225 
 
 Christ has the Keys of Death and Hell .... 226 
 
 The Eighteous are Kings 227 
 
 Christ's Kingdom Immovable 228 
 
 Who knocks at the Door of the Heart ? — Christ the Lamb of 
 
 God 229 
 
 The Spiritual Legacy 23a 
 
 Who comes as the Lightning ? 231 
 
 Christ the Lily of the Valley 232 
 
 Looking to Jesus 233 
 
 Meekness — Church Membership 234 
 
 Who are Spiritual Merchants ? 236 
 
 The Church compared to the Moon 237 
 
 The Holy Spirit's Influence like Oil 238 
 
 Who is the Great Physician ? 239. 
 
 Who are Pilgrims on Earth ? 241 
 
 Providence Eescues from a Horrible Pit — Atonement a 
 
 Propitiation through Faith in Christ .... 243 
 
 Death Eest to the Eighteous 244 
 
 Sparing the Eod hating his Son ...... 246 
 
 Who shall see God ?— Sins like Scarlet made White as Snow 247 
 
 Who are the Sealed Ones ? 248 
 
 The Woman's Seed bruises the Serpent's Head — Self- 
 respect — Who are Servants of Christ ? . . . . 249 
 
CONTENTS. XV 
 
 PAGE 
 
 The Shield of Faith . 250 
 
 Aflaiction refines as the Fire does Silver . . . .251 
 
 What are the Dead sown for ? 252 
 
 Who is the Morning Star ? 253 
 
 The Storm of God's Wrath 255 
 
 Who are Strangers on Earth ? 256 
 
 The Sun of Eighteousness with Healing on his Wings . 258 
 
 The Sword of the Spirit 26a 
 
 Heavenly Treasures in Earthen Vessels . . . .261 
 
 Man revives not as a Tree — ^Who walks with God ? . . 262 
 
 The Holy Spirit like Water 263 
 
 The Way to Heaven 264 
 
 Christ a Well of Water— The Holy Spirit's Influence like 
 
 the Wind 266 
 
 Christ's Yoke easy and his Burthen light .... 267 
 
 QrESTIONS ON AND HeADS OF THE EMBLEMS , . .268 
 
 Scripture Similes Illustrative oe Texts . . . .271 
 Illustrations in the Bible of Oriental Customs . . 274 
 Index ... 276 
 
EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS. 
 
 PART I. 
 
 The Ant teaches the Sluggard.— Peov. 6. 6-8. 
 
 Animals teacli us — tlms the ass knowing his owner while 
 man knows not God, Is. i . 3 ; the crow having no barns, 
 yet God provides for it ; the swallow knowing his time to 
 emigrate, but man forgets his time for departm^e from 
 the world, Jer. 8.7; and the ant here teaches. Chanahyea 
 states, the lessons which the dog teaches us are — " of con- 
 tentment with little — vigilant watching, gratitude and forti- 
 tude, the power of patience, indifference to cold and heat. 
 Tlie crow teaches providence for the future and agility ; the 
 cock — early rising, sharing food, and protecting w^omen." 
 With respect to Ants, their uniform care and promp- 
 titude in improving every moment as it passes, the 
 admirable order in which they proceed to the scene of 
 action, the perfect harmony which reigns in their bands, 
 the eagerness which they discover in running to the 
 assistance of the weak and the fatigued, the readiness 
 with which those that have no burden yield the way to 
 their fellows that bend under their load, or when the 
 grain happens to be too heavy, cut it in two, and take the 
 half upon their own shoulders, furnish a striking example 
 of industry, benevolence, and concord. The sldll and 
 vigour which they display in digging underground, in 
 building their houses, in constructing their cells, and their 
 
2 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 prudence and foresight in making use of the proper seasons 
 to collect a supply of provision sufficient for their purpose, 
 are admirable. 
 
 Hebrew. — As rust comes on iron, so do weeds on a field 
 
 unused. 
 Persian. — Water long stagnant becomes putrid. 
 Arab. — A well is not to be filled with dew. 
 Telugu. — Lame in the village, an antelope in the jungle. 
 
 " If you talk of work my body becomes heavy ; 
 If you talk of dinner my body swells with, delight." 
 
 Italian. — An idle brain is the devil's workshop. 
 Badaga. — The sluggard, like the peacock, is afraid of rain. 
 Tamul. — The horse opens the mouth when one says oats, 
 shuts it when one says bridle. 
 
 Appearances Deceitful. — Gen. 13. 10-13. 
 JBengal. — How long does a dam of sand last ? 
 Tamul. — A face like the moon, a mind of deadly poison. 
 Oriental. — Trust not to appearances — the drum which makes 
 
 much noise is filled with wind. 
 Turh. — Be the pig white or black it is still a pig. 
 JRussian. — The cow has a long tongue, but she is not 
 
 allowed to speak. 
 Tamul. — While squatting a cat, when springing a tiger. 
 Turh. — The vessel leans, but her course is straight. 
 China. — You may draw a tiger's skin, not his bones. You 
 
 may know a man's face, but not his mind. 
 
 Avoid the appearance of Evil.— i Thess. 5. 22. 
 
 Jajpan. — In a field of melons do not pull off your shoes. 
 Under a palm-tree do not adjust your cap. 
 
 Bengal. — Even a holy cow, if found in company with a 
 stolen one, may be impounded. 
 
 Basque. — Cover yourself not with the skin of a wolf, if you 
 would not be considered a wolf. 
 
 Telugu. — One associating himself with the vile will be 
 ruined ; it is like drinking milk under a palm- 
 tree, i.e., where, however innocent, it would be 
 suspected he was drinking toddy. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 3 
 
 The Angry Fool as a Bear robbed of her Whelps. 
 Peov. 17. 12. 
 
 The female bear is eminent for intense affection to 
 her young, and dreadfully furious when deprived of them. 
 Disregarding every consideration of danger to herself, she 
 attacks, with intense ferocity, every animal that comes in 
 her way, and, in the bitterness of her heart, will attack 
 even a band of armed men. The Eussians of Kamt- 
 schatka never venture to fire on a young bear when the 
 mother is near ; for, if the cub drop, she becomes enraged 
 to a degree little short of madness, and, if she get sight 
 •^of the enemy, will only quit her revenge with her hfe. 
 
 A she-bear destroyed the forty-two children who 
 mocked the prophet, 2 Kings 2. 24. God's fury with 
 the idolatrous Jews is compared to a bear bereaved, 
 Hos. 13.8. David had to defend himself against a bear, 
 I Sam. 17. 34-36. 
 
 Saul, I Sam. 20. 30, and Herod, Mat. 2. 16, are 
 striking examples of a fool in his wrath. 
 
 Jacob's sons, like a bear, for one man's faults destroyed 
 a whole city. Gen. 24. Said similarly destroyed the 
 innocent priests, i Sam. 22. 11 — 19; so Nebuchadnezzar 
 when he heated the furnace seven times, Dan. 3. 13-19. 
 
 Bengal. — Scratching the itch only produces a wound. 
 
 Telegu. — Pouring ghi on fire. 
 
 Giijerat. — Anger and water descend. 
 
 Tamul. — The irascible is like a man on horseback without a 
 
 bridle. 
 Bengal. — A fire in the thatch is quickly kindled, so anger. 
 Badaga. — If a jackal howls, will my old buiFalo die ? If an 
 
 angry man curses me, what shall I lose ? 
 Tamul. — Like the man who would not wash his feet in the 
 
 tank because he was angry with it. 
 Modern GreeJc. — The rancour of a camel is unforgiving. 
 Turk. — The torrent (anger) passes, the sand remains. 
 
 B 2 
 
4 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Man a "Wild Ass's Colt.— Job ii. 12. 
 
 The wild asses commonly inhabit the deserts of Great 
 Tartary, they migrate to feed in summer to the north and 
 east of the Aral Sea, in winter they retreat towards 
 India, they go also to Persia. Like wild horses, they are 
 very shy ; they will suffer the approach of man for an 
 instant, and will then dart off with the utmost rapidity, 
 fleet as the wind. The vast salt desert is their home,, 
 they scorn the multitude of the city ; the wild ass smiffetli 
 up tlie wind at her pleasure, Jer. 2. 24. The European 
 ass is an emblem of obstinacy and immobility, not so the 
 wild one. The Tartar asses exceed horses in speed, and 
 are never caught alive. Job 39. 5—8. 
 
 Ishmael is called a wild man like an ass. Gen. 16. 12. 
 Epliraim is compared to a wild ass, Hos. 8. 9, as he 
 traversed the desert as earnestly in pursuit of idols as the 
 wild untamed ass did in search of his mate, Jer. 14. 6. 
 The asses snuff up the wind like dragons, i.e., seek the air 
 for want of water to cool their internal heat. Job 24. 5. 
 Bohhers are called wild asses, so the Bedouins ; the desolate 
 city, a joy of wild asses. Is. 32. 14. Nehuchadnezzar lived 
 among wild asses, Dan. 5.21. 
 
 The natural tenacity of sin is also compared to the 
 Ethiopian's skin, Jer. 13. 23. 
 
 Turlc. — In washing a negro we lose our soap. 
 
 Tamid. — Though he wash three times a day, will the crow 
 
 become a white crane ? 
 Kurd. — Out of a dog's tail you cannot get fat. 
 Veman. — No man's disposition will alter, neither can a dog'& 
 
 tail be made straight ; the stubborn woman will 
 
 even put her husband in a basket and sell him. 
 Veman. — If you take a bear-skin and wash it ever so long, 
 
 will it, instead of its native blackness, ever become^ 
 
 white ? If you beat a wooden image, will it 
 
 hence acquire any good quality ? 
 Badaga. — Even if you give milk to a young snake, will it 
 
 leave off its habit of creeping under the hedge ? 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 5 
 
 Syriac. — If ye would be king (master of yourself) become 
 a wild ass, i.e., retire to solitude in tbe desert. 
 
 Beauty in the Ignorant as a Jewel in a Swine's 
 Snout.— Peov. II. 22. 
 
 A body may be beautiful, but the soul loathsome — such 
 were Absalom and Jezebel. 
 
 ChanaJcyea. — A handsome youth of high family, but without 
 
 learning, is like the palas (Butea frondosd) tree, 
 
 fair to see, but without scent. 
 Hindu Dramatist. — Men are foolish in cherishing the gay 
 
 blossoms of tbe palas^ whilst they neglect the fruit- 
 bearing amon, because its flowers are insignificant. 
 Drislitanta Shatak. — A bad person, though decorated, 
 
 remains the same as cowdung, which, though it 
 
 be fertilizing, does not become pleasing. 
 Bengal. — Outside smooth and painted, inside only straw — 
 
 like Hindu idols stuffed with straw. 
 Russian. — A head without a mind is a mere statue. 
 Urdu. — The fruit of the colocynth is good to look at, not 
 
 taste. 
 Tamul. — An ignorant man is despised even by women. 
 Afghan. — My friend is black, but so is molasses black, i.e.y 
 
 which is the best medicine for the wounded. 
 Persian. — The diamond fallen into the dunghill is not the 
 
 less precious ; the dust raised by high winds to 
 
 heaven is not the less vile. 
 Malay. — Like a broom bound with a silk thread. 
 Aral. — Thorny trees produce gum. 
 TurJc. — Man's perfection is interior ; a beast's, exterior. 
 Banslcrit. — The beauty of the cuckoo is the voice ; of women, 
 
 chastity ; of the deformed, learning ; and of 
 
 ascetics, patience. 
 Helrew. — The bee is little among such as fly; her fruit is 
 
 the chief of sweet things. 
 
 Beginning and Unable to Finish; not Counting 
 the Cost. — Luke 14. 28. 
 Bengal. — The bird cannot fly, it flaps its wings in vain. 
 Banjdbi. — A rat, too big for his hole, ties a blanket to his back. 
 Banjabi. — A rat, having found a bit of turmeric, set up as a 
 druggist. 
 
EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Sanskrit. — In the fighting of she-goats, in the gathering 
 of clouds at the dawn, in the squabble of husband 
 and wife, the beginning is great and the doings 
 small. 
 
 Bengal. — Digging for a worm, up rose a snake, j.e.,said when 
 quarrels arise from jesting. 
 
 Telugu. — Make the hedge when you have sowed the seed. 
 
 The Glutton's God his Belly.— Phil. 3 19. 
 The Bengalis call a glutton one all belly. The Egyp- 
 tians, on embalming a body, threw the belly into the 
 river, as the cause of all sin. Meat itself is not sinful, 
 hut the inordinate desire of it, longing after delicacies, 
 eating at unseasonable times, Ecc. 10. 16, 17, eating too 
 much, Luke 21. 34, injuring the understanding, Prov. 23. 
 2 1 . Solomon says put a knife to thy throat if thou be 
 given to appetite, Prov. 23. 2. Isaac's appetite was a 
 snare to him, Gen. 25. 28, 27. 4 : so Esau's, Gen. 25. 
 30; Eli's sons, I Sam. 2. 12; Belshazzar, Dan. 5. i ; 
 not so Daniel's, Dan. i . 8-16. 
 
 Veman. — Why suffer anxiety for the belly ? As to having 
 a belly, the frog that lives in a rock is thy equal. 
 
 Tamul. — The epicure digs his grave with his teeth. 
 
 China. — His eyes are bigger than his stomach.^ 
 
 ^Russian. — A full stomach is deaf to instruction. 
 Fool come to thrash — my stomach is aching. 
 Fool come to take wine — stop, let me take my caftan (coat) 
 from the nail — 
 i.e., he is great at drinking, slow at work. 
 
 Talmud. — The lion roars,not in a crib full of straw,but in one 
 full of flesh ; i.e.^ fulness of bread leading to pride. 
 
 Arab. — The belly of a man is his enemy. 
 
 Afghans express their belief that the evils of gluttony 
 arise more from the man than the food, by the 
 following: "Though the food was another's, the 
 mouth is your own ;" i.e., you eat too much, and 
 you throw the blame on the food. 
 
 Telugu. — He slipped, fell, and then said the ground was^ 
 unlucky. 
 
 * We have the same in EngHsh— which was tlie first used ? 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 7 
 
 Talmud. — Eight things are difficult to enjoy in abundance, 
 but in moderation are good : Labour, sleep, 
 riches, journeyings, love, warm water, bleeding, 
 and wine. 
 
 Afghan. — The full stomach speaks Persian, i.e., makes one 
 proud. Persian as spoken only by the learned 
 adds to their pride. 
 
 Book Cram. — 2 Tim. 3. 7. 
 MriclihaTcate. — Nature is woman's teacher, and she learns 
 
 more sense than man, the pedant, gleans from 
 
 books. 
 Talmud. — He is a box of books, i.e., learning without 
 
 judgment, or use of it. 
 Tamul. — He who is very learned is a learned fool. 
 Persian. — One pound of learning requires ten of common 
 
 sense to acquire it. 
 Sanslcrit. — Is the man possessed of books a pandit ? 
 Sanskrit. — Women are instructed by Nature, the learning 
 
 of men is taught by books. 
 Telihgu. — Though he have read all that can be read, and be 
 
 an acute disputant, never shall the hypocrite 
 
 attain to final happiness. His meditations are 
 
 like those of a dog on the dunghill. 
 Sanskrit. — Learning in the book is not learning, and money 
 
 in the hand of another is not money, in a time of 
 
 need. 
 
 Anger rests in the Fool's Bosom.— Ecc. 7. 9. 
 
 The bosom is the seat of love, so Christ carries the 
 lambs of the Church in his bosom, Is. 40. 11. The 
 beggar rested in Abraham's bosom, Luke 16. 22. 
 
 Christ took on him our natural infirmities ; he wept, 
 and was angry, on the Sabbath question, Mark 3. 5, in 
 driving away the money-changers, John 2. 13, 17, which 
 shows there might be gall in a dove, passion without sin, 
 fire without smoke, and motion without disturbance, for 
 it is not bare agitation, but the sediment at the bottom 
 which troubles and defiles the water, and when we see 
 it windy and dusty, the wind does not make, but only 
 
8 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 raises, a dust ; true anger, like the sword of justice, is keen 
 but innocent, Eph. 4. 26 ; it sparkles like the coal on the 
 altar with the fervour of pity. Anger passes through a 
 wise man's heart, but does not rest in it, as it did with 
 Cain, Gen. 4. 5—8, with Jacob's sons, Gen. 34. 7 ; and 
 with Herod, Mat. 2. 16. A gust of anger puts holy- 
 feelings to flight, as with David, i Sam. 25, Elijah, 
 I Kings 19. 4, Job, 3. i, Jonah, 4. 4, Paul. 
 
 Telugu. — Getting angry with a rat and setting a house on 
 
 fire. 
 Bengal. — Cutting off one's nose to hinder another's journey. 
 Bengal. — His anger exploded like gunpowder. 
 Bengal. — Should an angry man retire even to the forest 
 
 there is no peace for him. 
 Malay. — Anger has no eyes. 
 
 Modern Greek. — Anger is the last that grows old. 
 Arah. — Three things are only known in the following way — 
 
 a hero in war, a friend in necessity, and a wise 
 
 man in anger. 
 Arab. — Anger is the fire of the heart. Prov. 25. 28. 
 Telugu. — A man ignorant of his own powers and those of 
 
 his opponent, blustering in wrath, is like a bear 
 
 performing the torch-dance, i.e., in which of 
 
 course he will be burnt. 
 Arab. — Cure your anger by silence. 
 Sanskrit. — A good man's anger lasts an instant, a meddling 
 
 man's for two hours, a base man's a day and 
 
 night, a great sinner's until death. 
 
 Braying a Pool in a Mortar.— Pko v. 27. 22. 
 
 Veman compares the trying to produce good qualities 
 in a crooked heart to pouring milk and sugar over bramble- 
 berries, and boiling them, which will give no flavour. In 
 Turkey great criminals were beaten to pieces in huge 
 mortars of iron in which they usually pounded their 
 rice. The Jews were in Babylon under captivity, yet 
 were their proud hearts not humbled ; God sent them 
 messengers, but they ill-treated them ; the Chaldeans came. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 9 
 
 yet they bound the Prophet Ezekiel, Ezek. 2.3. The plough 
 breaks the earth in many places, but does not better it if 
 nothing is put in ; if nothing be sown, thorns and thistles 
 will come up : so afEictions may break our estate, yet if God 
 do not sanctify these afflictions they yield only the harvest 
 of tares. Mere affliction changes not the disposition, as 
 the fire softens not a stone ; pour vinegar from vessel to 
 vessel it never becomes wine, Is. i. 5. 
 
 Sanskrit. — Whoever treats kindly a bad man, ploughs the 
 
 sky, paints a picture on water, and bathes the 
 
 wind with water. Tit. 3. 10. 
 Telugu.—'No man's disposition will alter, say what we may ; 
 
 neither can a dog's tail be made straight ; the 
 
 stubborn woman will put her husband in a basket 
 
 and sell him. 
 Sanskrit. — It is possible to stop an elephant with a kick ; 
 
 for everything there is a remedy ; but no cure for 
 
 the headstrong. 
 
 The Shameless have a Brow of Brass.— Is. 48. 4. 
 
 Brass is a strong metal, hence the brazen serpent in the 
 wilderness was made of it, Num. 21. 9 ; so were the gates 
 ■of Babylon. The sinners' obstinacy is compared to a brow 
 of brass ; while the righteous, on the other hand, set their 
 faces like a flint against sin : of the former were Pharaoh, 
 Ex. 5. I ; Saul, i Sam. 15. 9-23; Jeroboam, i Kings 
 12. 28-33 — of the latter, Jacob, Gen. 32. 24-28 ; David, 
 I Sam. 17. 45 ; Stephen, Acts 7. 57. 
 
 Sinners are also said to have a hard or stony heart, 
 a seared conscience, to be past feeling; they are likened 
 to the deaf adder which will not hear the voice of the 
 serpent-charmer. Such were Samuel's sons, i Sam. 2. 
 25, 6. II ; Jerusalem, Ez. 9. 9, 10. 
 
 Mnnish. — The pig does not blush for its face. 
 
 Shdnti Shatak. — Dogs delight to devour human bones, which 
 are so disgusting, filled as they are with worms 
 and moisture, and they eagerly lick the putrid 
 
lo EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 juice as if it was palatable. Thus do mean 
 people appear shameless when perpetrating vile 
 actions, 2 Pet. 2. 22. 
 
 Deceitful Brethren as a Brook. — Job 6. 15. 
 
 Job lived in the barren dry desert of Arabia, where no 
 river is, and water is scarce ; there are torrents in winter, 
 swelling from the melting of the snow on the hills, as the 
 Ganges does, very noisy, but in summer dried up or 
 absorbed in the sand. The Arabs call a false friend a 
 mirage, or a torrent, swelling, noisy in prosperity, but 
 soon absorbed in the sand. Valleys in Arabia, that have 
 a quarter of a mile wide of water in winter, are yet quite 
 dry in summer. 
 
 Tyre trusted in its walls and port, and is now become 
 only a place for fishermen to dry their nets on. The rich 
 fool trusted in his wealth, Luke 12. 19, and it left him. 
 Solomon states : " Confidence in an unfaithful man in 
 time of trouble is like a broken tooth and a foot out of 
 joint," Prov. 25. 19. That affection which is knit in 
 God alone is indissoluble. The Jews trusted the Egyp- 
 tians, who proved like a broken reed (Is. 36. 6), which 
 not only fails the band that leans upon it, but pierces and 
 wounds it. 
 
 Bengal. — A loose tooth and feeble friend are equally bad. 
 Bengal. — A dam of sand and the love of the vicious have 
 
 the same fate. 
 CJianaJc. — A wicked person, though sweet speaking, is not 
 
 to be trusted ; honey is on his tongue, but in his 
 
 heart poison. 
 
 Busybody, as One taking a Dog by the Ears.— Peoy. 26. 17. 
 
 Prom an idle whim or a foolhardy venture, a man 
 thinks to show his prowess, fancying that he is able to 
 master the dog which others scarcely dare come near. 
 When he has taken it by the ears, he finds bis folly, for, , 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. w 
 
 if he continues to hold it, his time is lost, and if he lets 
 it go, it will fly at him before he can get beyond its reach. 
 He has exposed himself both to pain and ridicule by a 
 foolish attempt to get credit for courage and dexterity. 
 Of the eleven Apostles, as Peter spoke most, he erred 
 most, Mat. i6. 22, 26. 74. Paul condemns tattling women,, 
 I Tim. 5. 13. 
 
 Telugu. — Like a snake in a monkey's paw, i.e., Jacko finds 
 
 it difficult to hold it, and dangerous to let it 
 
 go. 
 Bengal. — Oil your own wheel first. 
 English. — He that intermeddles with all things may go 
 
 shoe the goslings. 
 Fersian, — A babbler, a dog without a taih 
 Bengal, — I bind him and he shrieks out, I loose him and he 
 
 wants to fight with me. 
 Tu7'Jc. — One rushing between two camels is kicked by 
 
 both. To live in peace one must be blind, deaf, 
 
 and mute. 
 Persian. — Whoever pats scorpions with the hand of com- 
 passion receives punishment. 
 Japan. — If dogs (busybodies) go about they must expect 
 
 the stick. 
 China. — It is not as safe opening the mouth as keeping it 
 
 shut. 
 Tamul. — Why should a man meddle with a hatchet lying on 
 
 the road and hurt his foot ? 
 Aral. — God grant us not any neighbour with two eyes. 
 China. — Let every man sweep the snow before his own 
 
 doors, not busy himself with the frost on his 
 
 neighbour's tiles. 
 Kurd. — When your house is of glass do not throw stones 
 
 at your neighbour's house. 
 Cingalese. — The man without clothes busying himself in 
 
 making jackets for dogs. 
 Telugu. — The tale-bearer is the associate of the villain; a 
 
 stripling is a fit minister for an inflexible king ; . 
 
 and the monkey is the only companion for the 
 
 baboon. 
 Hebrew. — Give the water no passage ; neither a wicked 
 
 woman liberty to gad abroad. 
 
12 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The Hypocrite's Words smoother than Butter.— Ps. 55. 21. 
 
 These words were applied by David to his son Absa- 
 lom, who drove him from Jerusalem, 2 Sam. 15, which 
 made the father wish for the wings of a clove to fly away 
 and be .at rest, as the dove, sent forth from the ark, found 
 no rest for the sole of her foot. Such a hypocrite was 
 Judas, who betrayed Christ by kissing him. 
 
 Bengal, — A hypocrite a ?waH«Za fruit, beautiful outside, bitter 
 within ; a tiger in a tulsi grove ; outside smooth 
 and painted, inside only straw, i.e.^ like the Hindu 
 idols stuffed with straw inside. The crow and 
 the cuckoo have the same colour, but a very 
 different voice. 
 
 Baghuvansa. — They concealed their anger under signs of 
 joy, as a lake with tranquil surface hides an 
 alligator. 
 
 Bengal. — The attachment of the insincere a razor's edge. 
 
 Afghan. — Under his arms a Koran, he casts his eyes on a 
 bullock. 
 
 Malay. — He sits like a tiger withdrawing his claws. 
 
 Telugu. — A bear's hug. 
 
 Telugu. — At home a spider (demure), abroad a tiger. 
 
 Bussian. — He kicks with his hind feet, licks with his 
 
 ^ tongue. 
 
 Malay. — To plant sugar-cane on the lips, i.e., a pleasing 
 manner, a false heart. 
 
 Modern Greek. — The mien of a bishop with the heart of a 
 miller. 
 
 Sanskrit. — A face shaped like the petals of the lotus ; a 
 voice as cool (pleasing) as sandal ; a heart like 
 a pair of scissors and excessive humility — these 
 are the signs of a rogue. 
 
 Strife from Wrath as Butter from Milk.- 
 In Arabia and Palestine butter is made from milk, put 
 into a goat's skin, turned inside out, pressed to and fro in 
 -one uniform direction, till the unctuous parts are separated, 
 Job 29. 6. An angry man is compared to a city whose 
 walls are broken down : such \vere Samson, Judg. 1 6 ; 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 13 
 
 Saul, I Sam. 20. 30-33 ; the mob at Epliesus, Acts, 16. 
 28-34 ; Christ was different. Mat. 27. 14. The fool's 
 wrath is heavier than a stone, Pro v. 27. 3. 
 
 SJidnti ShataJc. — The soul excited by anger is like furious 
 
 elephants breaking the cords with which they are 
 
 bound. 
 Turlc. — Anger is suppressed by sweetness, as a great wind 
 
 by a little rain. 
 Malabar, — Anger is as a stone cast into a wasp's nest. 
 Cingalese. — Provocation is a stone cast at a cobra. 
 Japan. — The cracked will break, i.e., people at variance 
 
 waiting for an opportunity to split. 
 Arab. — The highest government is governing anger. 
 Talmud. — Passions are like iron thrown into the furnace, 
 
 as long as it is in the fire you can make no vessel 
 
 out of it. 
 Malay. — Smouldering like burning chaff, i.e., nourishing 
 
 resentment. 
 Modern Oreelc, — The rancour of a camel is unforgiving. 
 
 Caste. Honour all Men. — i Pet. 2. 17. 
 Telugu. — The elephant is an elephant whether on high 
 
 ground or low. 
 Canara. — Does a light in the house of a low caste man not 
 
 burn ? 
 Turh. — White or black, a dog remains a dog. 
 Veman. — Why should we constantly revile the Pariah ? 
 
 Are not his flesh and blood the same as our 
 
 own ? And of what caste is He who pervades 
 
 the Pariah as well as all other men ? Acts ly, 
 
 26. 
 JPersian. — Contemn no one. Kegard him who is above 
 
 thee as thy father ; him who is thine equal as 
 
 thy brother ; and him who is below thee as thy 
 
 son. 
 Bengal. — Why not a squirrel instead of a cat, if it catch 
 
 mice? 
 
 Ceremonialism. — Mat. 15. 20. 
 China. — He sought his own ass, though he was sitting on it. 
 .Prahodig Chandrodag. — If funeral oblations nourish the 
 
,14 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 deceased, why is not the flame of an extinguished 
 taper renovated by pouring on oil ? i Kings i8. 
 26. 
 
 Veman. — Those who mortify their bodies, calling themselves 
 saints, are yet unable to cure the impurity of 
 their hearts. If you merely destroy the outside 
 of a white-ant hill, will the serpent that dwells 
 therein perish ? 
 
 Veman, — A thief if he goes to a holy place will only pick 
 the pockets of the comers ; he has no leisure to 
 draw near and bow to the God. If a dog enters 
 a house will he tend the hearth ? 2 Pet. 2. 
 22. 
 
 Veman. — Heligion that consists in contriving various pos- 
 tures and twisting the limbs, is just one straw 
 inferior to the exercises of the wrestler. Is. 
 
 58. 5. 
 
 Telugu. — Though a man may remove the distance of fifty 
 miles his sin is still with him. Gen. 42. 21. 
 
 Veman. — Will the application of white ashes do away the 
 smell of a wine-pot ? Will a cord cast over your 
 neck make you twice born ? 
 
 Canara, — Is a serpent killed by beating its hole ? Is sal- 
 vation obtained by castigating the body ? Is. 
 58.6. 
 
 Cingalese. — Charcoal cannot be made white even though 
 you wash it witli milk. 
 
 Cingalese. — Tour hands and your feet are the same even 
 though you go to Tutocorin. 
 
 Telugu, — Those who roam to other lands in pilgrimage to 
 find the God that dwells within them, are like a 
 shepherd who searches in his flock for the sheep 
 he has under his arm. John 4. 20-24. 
 
 Telugu, — Even a goat can attain to such " corporeal per- 
 fection" as consists in living on leaves : how apt 
 men are to fall into foolish whims ! 
 
 Tamul, — Will a crow become a swan by bathing in the 
 Ganges ? 
 
 Urdu. — Filth is got rid of by washing, but not bad habits. 
 
 Tamul, — Thougb one carries a thousand shells to Benares 
 his sin sticks to him. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 15 
 
 The Wicked are Chaff.— Mat. 3. 12. 
 Chaff is liglit and easily carried away by the wind ; 
 such are sinners, light in their behaviour, and easily 
 carried away by the wind of temptation and persecution. 
 It is of little valioe, and therefore given over to the fire, 
 Mat. 3. 12. A pound of wheat is worth a hundred- 
 weight of chaff; the husk, or chaff, however, is of use to 
 the corn in protecting the grain, so the world sometimes 
 protects the good. Grown together with the wheat for a 
 time, the flail in threshing separates it, so the Judgment 
 Day will for ever divide the sheep from the goats. Mat. 
 25. The wicked are also compared to had money, Jer. 
 6. 30; to had fish, Mat. 13. 48; to moth-eaten clothes. 
 Is. 50. 9 ; to wells ivithout water, 2 Pet. 2. 
 
 Bengal. — The white ant, the cat, and the wicked spoil good 
 
 things. 
 Veman. — Profitless are some men, and what though they 
 
 be born in the world, and what though they die ? 
 
 Are not the white ants of the hillock born also, 
 
 and do they not die also ? 
 Bengal. — 'Tis but threshing the chafi", i.e., labour in vain. 
 Tamul. — Though a kalam of chafi" be pounded, it will not 
 
 become rice. 
 Veman. — Even the poison-nut and the bitter margosa are 
 
 useful as drugs ; but the unfeeling vile wretch is 
 
 utterly unprofitable. 
 Sanskrit. — To address a judicious remark to a thoughtless 
 
 man is a mere threshing of chaff". 
 
 Cheerfulness. — Peov. 17. 13. 
 
 China. — A hut of reeds with mirth therein is better than a 
 
 palace with grief therein. 
 Modern Greek. — A hungry belly has no ears. 
 Tatnul. — Pood without hospitality is a medicine. 2 Cor. 9. 7. 
 Turh — Vinegar given is sweeter than honey. 
 
i6 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The Body a Clay House crushed before the Moth. 
 
 Job 4. 19. 
 
 These words were spoken by a spirit from the other 
 world, who addressed Job at midnight. 
 
 The grave is called the lioiise appointed for all living, 
 Job 30. 23. The body is compared to a house of day 
 which is easily sivcpt away by torrents, the walls of 
 which, owing to rents, are the abodes of snakes. Swal- 
 lows make their houses of clay. 
 
 MoMii calls the body " a mansion with bones for its 
 rafters and beams ; such a mansion let the soul cheer- 
 fully quit, as a tree leaves the bank of the river, or 
 as a bird leaves the branch of a tree ; thus he has 
 his body delivered soon from the ravening shark the 
 world." 
 
 In Arabia the houses in general are built of white 
 clay, and covered with reeds. Their foundations are 
 laid in the dust or sand, the country affording no firmer 
 basis on which to build ; they are exposed to all the acci- 
 dents of that climate, such as violent winds, and large 
 moving pillars of sand, called sand-floods, by which 
 they are liable to be blown down, or overwhelmed and 
 crushed to the ground, together with their inhabitants, 
 unless they can effect a timely escape. 
 
 These desolating calamities more generally begin about 
 sunrise, and usually continue till towards evening ; and 
 thus men perish from the morning to evening, without 
 any one regarding it. 
 
 Eobbers easily dig through the walls of houses of clay, 
 as is the case very often in Bengal. Job 24. 16. 
 
 The moth is a small insect which noiselessly and 
 gradually eats through garments, though very feeble. 
 Job 27. 18. The rich are no more spared than the 
 poor, but it especially attacks things not kept clean, 
 and does its works secretly, spoils by degrees ; so God 
 gives cleanness of teeth, the palmer worm, the pestilence. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 17 
 
 Amos 4. 8 ; the moth eats the inside when the outside is 
 good, so Sampson said when his locks were gone, I will 
 rise up, Judg. 19, 20 ; so the Jews, 2 Kings 15. 
 
 Small insects are a great plague. In Arabia and parts 
 of India people drink bad water^ from which comes an 
 egg that produces a worm in the body, from which often 
 comes palsy, gangrene, death. 
 
 The clothes-moth is of a white, shining, silver, or 
 pearl colour. It is clothed with shells, fourteen in 
 number, and these are scaly. This insect eats woollen 
 stuffs ; it is produced from a grey speckled moth, that 
 flies by night, creeps among woollens, and there lays 
 her eggs, which, after a little time, are hatched as 
 worms, and in this state they feed on their habitation, 
 till they change into a chrysalis, and thence emerge into 
 moths. The young m-oth, or moth-worm_, upon leaving 
 the Qgg which a papilio had lodged upon a piece of stuff, 
 commodious for her purpose, finds a proper place of 
 residence, grows and feeds upon the nap, and likewise 
 builds with it an apartment, which is fixed to the ground- 
 work of the stuff with several cords and a little glue. 
 From an aperture in this habitation the moth- worm 
 devours and demolishes all about him ; and when he has 
 cleared the place, he draws out all the fastenings of his 
 tent ; after which he carries it to some little distance, 
 and then fixes it with the slender cords in a new situation. 
 This perishing condition of a moth-eaten garment, as also 
 of the insect itself, is referred to in Isa. 51. 6, 8 : " TJie 
 earth shall wax old as doth a garment, and they that dwell 
 therein shall die in like manner." 
 
 He who builds his fortunes by methods of injustice is 
 by Job 27. 18 compared to the moth, which, by eating 
 into the garment wherein it makes its habitation, destroys 
 its own dwelling. The structure referred to is that 
 provided by the insect, in its larva or caterpillar state, as 
 temporary residence during its wonderful change from a 
 chrysalis to a winged insect. 
 
 c 
 
i8 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Urdu, — The body is a skin filled with wind. 
 
 Bengal. — Plastering an old hut. 
 
 Tamul. — The body is an inscription on water. 
 
 The Wicked are Clouds without Water. — Jude 12, 13. 
 
 Wicked like clouds without water in four points : — 
 Clouds without water may be of some use in giving 
 shade, but they do oiot fertilize the land, which full clouds, 
 called the bottles of Heaven, Job 38. 37, do; they are 
 empty, and easily carried away, as is seen in famines in 
 India arising from droughts ; they darken heaven, hence 
 the day of the Lord is called clouds and darkness, when 
 storms and lightning arise ; the clouds are God's chariot, 
 and He holds the winds in His fist, Prov. 30. 4. Christ is 
 the bow in this cloud, as he was the pillar of cloud in the 
 wilderness, the guide of His people, which had a dark side 
 to the enemy and a bright one to friends. 
 
 Clouds are sometimes very beautiful, but useless ; so a bad 
 
 person doing well in the world. 
 Malay. — Plourishing like a weed beside a cesspool. 
 
 A Boaster like Clouds without Rain.— Peov. 25. 14. 
 
 Such were the builders of Babel, Gen. 1 1 . 4-9. 
 
 Bengal. — A pedlar in ginger getting tidings of his ship. 
 Syriac. — Mount not a horse which does not belong to you — 
 
 i.e.^ boast not of an art you are ignorant of. 
 Tamul. — He is on foot, his words are in a palankin. 
 Tamul. — If a low-bred man obtain wealth he will carry an 
 
 umbrella at midnight. 
 Bengal. — A devotee of yesterday, with matted hair down 
 
 to his heels. 
 Tamul. — A gold vessel does not sound, a brass one does. 
 Bengal. — A truly wealthy man, one plough to seven tailless 
 
 oxen. 
 Bussian. — Boast of the day in the evening, Jas. 4. 13. 
 Sanskrit. — The little fish splashes in even a mouthful of 
 
 water. 
 Arab. — A learned man without work is a cloud without rain. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 19 
 
 The Fickle like the Morning Cloud and Early Dew. — 
 
 Hos, 6. 4. 
 
 The Lalita Vistara compares life to an autumnal cloud. 
 'The Shdnti Shatak says: "As the lightning by its flashes 
 merely drives away the darkness for an instant, so are 
 those who decide for a while to root out sensual desires 
 from their minds." The morning cloud is very beautiful 
 with its golden hues, and colours shifting and changing 
 every minute. Early in the morning every blade is 
 glistening with the early dew, and the light clouds are 
 painted with all those gorgeous colours by which they 
 seem to prepare themselves for the return of their absent 
 king, the sun ! Thus beautiful is early piety, as in 
 Samuel's and Timothy's case, though it did not pass away. 
 But how soon do those hues and those jewels of the 
 early morning pass away ! Long before the sun has 
 attained his meridian height, the sky has become cloud- 
 less, and the parched land seems in vain to thirst for the 
 refreshing dew and the kindly shower. 
 
 While in Egypt it rains sometimes only once in two 
 years, were it not for the dews of night and inundations of 
 the river, all vegetation would perish. Peter's resolution 
 not to deny Christ passed away as a morning cloud before 
 the sun of temptation; so did Judas's before the sun of gold. 
 
 Telugu. — Like the post fixed in the mud, which swings to 
 
 and fro. 
 China. — Who stands still in mud sticks in it. 
 Tamul. — A pUaut thorn will not penetrate. 
 Bengal. — One foot on land, the other on water. 
 Polish. — The stone often moved gathers no moss. 
 Malay. — Like a saw with a double edge. 
 Telugu. — Waking the master, giving the thief a stick. 
 
 A Forgiving Spirit as Coals of Fire on an Enemy's 
 Head. — Peov. 25. 21, 22. 
 
 Metal is difficult to melt placed on the top of a 
 lire of burning coals ; it may be placed at the sides, still 
 
 c 2 
 
20 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 no melting ; but put the coals on the top or head of the 
 vessel, and the metal soon flows down in a stream. So 
 your enemy's hostility to you may he softened by kind- 
 ness in every way ; as fire to the metal, so kindness to an 
 enemy. The Italians, however, say, revenge of a hundred 
 years old has still its sucking teeth — i.e., never grows old. 
 
 The sandal-tree, most sacred tree of all, 
 Perfumes the very axe which bids it fall. 
 
 Forgiveness, like fire, consumes the dross of passion, 
 purifies the metal of the soul, melts and makes malleable 
 the hardest metal of envy. 
 
 The hardest metals are melted by heaping coals of fire 
 upon them. Such was Saul, i Sam. 24. 16— 21, whose 
 hard heart was melted by David's spirit of forgiveness. 
 A forgiving spirit, or charity, covers many sins, Prov. 
 10. 12. 
 
 Tamul. — The rock not moved by a lever of iron will be 
 
 opened by the root of a green tree. 
 China. — The more we approach an enemy, the more the 
 
 tigers of the heart become lambs. 
 TurJc. — Provoke the bees, they only sting. 
 Aral. — Punish your enemy by benefiting him. 
 Aral. — The generous can be known by his eyes, as the 
 
 horse's age by its teeth. 
 ''ussian. — Love will teach even a priest to dance. 
 Mussian. — Sweet words break the bones. 
 Russian. — Bread and salt humble even a robber. 
 ^adi. — The sharp sword will not cut soft silk. 
 Sadi. — Ey gentleness you may lead an elephant by a hair. 
 Tamul. — The tree afibrds shelter to him who fells it ; the 
 
 earth supports him who digs it. 
 Welsh. — Paults are thick when love is thin. 
 Mahalherat. — Conquer a niggard by generosity, a liar by 
 
 truth, a cruel man by patience, and a bad man by 
 
 goodness. 
 Sanskrit. — With fire, fire is kindled, I John 4. 19. 
 Tamul. — A fracture in gold vanishes when exposed to fire ; 
 
 the anger of the good in like manner passes away. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 21 
 
 Contentment with Godliness, Great Gain.— i Tim. 6. 6. 
 Contrast Paul in prison, Phil. 4. 11, 13, 18, with 
 Ahab in a palace, i Kings 21. 4. He is poor that 
 wanteth more. 
 
 Chanakyea, — Contentment with Httle, sound sleep, vigilant 
 
 watching, gratitude and fortitude, are virtues 
 
 inherent in the dog, and are to be learnt from it, 
 
 Job 12. 7. 
 Aral. — The world is a corpse and those who seek it are dogs. 
 Afghan. — Like a mad dog, he snaps at himself. 
 Malay. — Will the dog be ever satisfied, however much rice 
 
 you might give him. 
 Tamul. — Wash a dog, place him in the middle of the house ; 
 
 he will wag his tail, go out and eat filth. 
 Sanskrit. — Who has reached the limit of desire? 
 Malabar. — Though you dip in the sea, you receive only as 
 
 much as your vessel will hold, Ph. 4. 1 1. 
 Arab. — The ass went seeking for horns, and lost his ears. 
 Telugu. — If you are content with a girdle, no poverty will 
 
 distress you, I Tim. 6. 8. 
 Arab. — Pood supports life, contentment the soul, I Tim. 
 
 6. 8. 
 -Fersian. — Live contented, you will be a king, I Tim. 6. 6. 
 China. — Tanks may be filled up, but man's heart can never 
 
 be closed. 
 Telugu. — When a Jangam (fakir) was told his house was 
 
 on fire, he said, I have my bag and my bowl with 
 
 me. 
 Arab. — To abstain from desires is riches. 
 Tamul. — A contented mind is a specific for making gold. 
 Talmud. — Who is the rich ? He who has subdued his pas- 
 sions. Who IS the wise ? He who learns from all. 
 
 Who is the hero ? He who subdues his passions. 
 Badaga. — He had nothing and was content. He became 
 
 rich and is discontented, Eccles. 6. 9. 
 
 A Threefold Cord of Brotherly Unity. — Eccl. 4. 12. 
 
 There is more pleasure in what is shared with another, 
 and help is often necessary — if one man, as Joseph, is in 
 a pit, he requires some one to take him out. God said 
 
22 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 of Adam in Paradise, " It was not good for man to be 
 alone/' Gen. 2. 18. The Bmnsanchis, a sect of Western 
 India, say regarding society, " A solitary lamp, however 
 brilliant, casteth a shadow beneath it ; place another lamp 
 in the apartment, and the darkness of both is dissipated." 
 
 Soldiers' union is their strength. A father, on his 
 death-led, represented unity by a bundle of sticks. 
 
 Love, like fire, streams forth by natural results and 
 unavoidable emanations ; like the vine, it withers and 
 dies if it has nothing to embrace. 
 
 The Apostles were sent forth two by two, Luke 10. i; 
 in the body all instruments of action are by pairs — hands, 
 feet, eyes, ears, legs. The live coal left alone soon loses its 
 vital heat. Iron sharpens iron, Prov. 27. 9, 17; Ex. 1 8. 7, 9. 
 
 Bengal. — "With men of one mind even the sea might be 
 
 dried up. 
 Bengal. — Love, like a creeper, withers and dies if it has 
 
 nothing to embrace. 
 Turk. — The vessel which trusts to a single anchor is soon 
 
 wrecked. 
 Badaga. — A single coal does not burn well j a companion- 
 less traveller finds the journey tedious, Ecc. 4. 9. 
 Bussian. — With one hand I do not even tie a knot. 
 Tamul. — Gruel served in the house of a united family is 
 
 enjoyable. 
 Afghan. — You cannot clap with one hand alone. 
 Mahalherat. — Kinsmen resemble firebrands ; separate they 
 
 smoke, united they blaze. 
 MaJiahJiaraf. — Those well united trees which stand together 
 
 in a clump, resist the fiercest winds, owing to 
 
 their mutual support. 
 Sanskrit. — A chariot will not go on one wheel. 
 Sanskrit. — Stay with five,* walk along with five, eat along 
 
 with five, with five there is no sorrow. 
 
 Worldly Joy is the Crackling of Thorns.— Eccl. 7. 6. 
 
 Thorns at first blaze under a pot as if they would give 
 out a mighty heat, but the water in it is cold. Such is. 
 * Eeferring to the Pauchayat, or Indian jury of five iDersons. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 23 
 
 worldly enjoyment : all noise and smoke — no heat ; cold 
 as moonbeams. Such is drunkenness — a sweet poison. 
 The wicked are compared to thorns because they are 
 very troublesome and useless, and often cause great pain ; 
 while the crackling is quickly over and with little effect, 
 as thorns when blazing, though they make such a noise 
 and fire, give little heat to the water. Similar is the 
 Bengali proverb, a fire of rags ; or the Basque, a fire of 
 straw. 
 
 All earthly things are like the earth, founded on 
 nothing; they are like Absalom's mule, they will most 
 fail us when we have most need of them, 2 Sam. 18.9; 
 a velvet slipper cannot cure the gout. 
 
 Dried cow-dung was the fuel commonly used for firing, 
 but this was remarkably slow in burning ; a very striking 
 contrast to thorns and furze, speedily consumed with 
 crackling noise. On this account the Arabs would 
 frequently threaten to burn a person with cow-dung, as 
 a lingering death. 
 
 Worldly joys are short, like a fly buzzing about a 
 candle. Herod the king was gorgeously arrayed, so that 
 the people worshipped him, but he was soon after devoured 
 by worms, Acts 12. 23. Queen Jezebel, a handsome 
 woman, enjoyed her grandeur but a short time, and was 
 eaten up by dogs, 2 Kings 9. 10, 35. Belshazzar in his 
 grand banquet at Babylon, a city larger and mightier 
 than Delhi, had his empire taken away at once, as fore- 
 shewn by a handwriting on the wall, Dan. 5. 5, 6. 
 
 Syrian. — Girl, do not exulfc in thy wedding dress, see how 
 
 much trouble lurks behind it. 
 China. — Look not at the thieves eating flesh, but look at 
 
 them suffering punishment 
 Cingalese, — Like getting on the shoulder of a man sinking 
 
 in the mud. 
 Talmud. — The world is like a wheel with buckets attached 
 
 — the empty become full, the full become empty. 
 Bengal. — The actor's promotion is nothing, only lasting 
 
 two hours. i 
 
24 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Arab. — The worst day for a cock is when his feet are 
 
 washed — i.e., previous to being killed, Jas. 5- 5* 
 Versian. — No honey without a sting, no rose without a 
 
 thorn. 
 China. — Dragging for the moon reflected in the water. 
 Badaga. — For the nourishment of a day he sacrificed the 
 
 food of a year. 
 Badaga. — In trying to save a drop of ghi (butter) he upset 
 
 the ghi-pot. 
 China. — To gain a cat but lose a cow. 
 Telugu. — Like going to Benares and bringing back dog's 
 
 hair. 
 Telugu. — Like a bag of money in a looking-glass, Ps. 73. 20. 
 China. — To fell a tree to catch a blackbird. 
 Talmud. — The thorns make a loud noise in burning ; not so 
 
 wood. 
 Shdnti Shatak. — The stomach is satisfied with little food, 
 
 even with vegetables ; but the heart, although 
 
 gratified with the fulfilment of more than an 
 
 hundred desires, is incessant in pursuing after 
 
 more, Eccl. 6. 9. 
 
 CoTirteousness. — i Pet. 3. 8. 
 
 Afghan. — Be it but an onion, let it be given graciously. 
 Sanskrit. — Complaisance empties the purse. 
 
 A Cruel Man troubles his own Flesh. — Peov. ii. 17 ; 12. 10. 
 
 The tender mercies of the wicked are cruel. So 
 Pilate, Luke 23. 16. JosejpKs hrethren illustrated it in 
 their treatment of their brother, whom they cast into 
 a pit, Gen. 37. 24. Adonizehek had his barbarity in 
 cutting off men's toes visited on himself, Judg. i. 6, 7. 
 Hamans cruelty involved his own sons, Esth. 9. 25 ; 
 on the other hand, David showed his kindness by 
 rescuing a lamb, even endangering his own life for it, 
 I Sam. 17. 34. 
 
 Afghan. — The kid's bleating is the wolf's laughter. 
 Urdic. — Boy's play is death to the birds. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 25 
 
 The Cursing of the Wicked Vain.— Peov. 26. 2. 
 Balaam^s curse came not on Israel, Neh. 13. 2 ; nor 
 ^Goliath's, i Sam. 17. 43. 
 
 Badaga. — The jackal howls — will my old buffalo die ? 
 Turh. — The dog barks — still the caravan passes. 
 Cingalese. — Will the barking of the dog reach the skies ? 
 Bengal. — A dog's bite is below the knees. 
 Tamul. — If a dog bark at the mountain, will the mountain 
 
 be injured, or the dog ? 
 Badaga. — If the cock crow, daylight will appear ; will it be 
 
 so if the dog barks ? Therefore do not listen to a 
 
 fool. 
 
 Bad Company the Unfruitful Works of Darkness. — 
 
 Eph. 5. II. 
 
 Shdnti Shatak states : " Oli ! ye mind like fish, swim 
 not in the waters of woman's beauty, for women are 
 like nets." The Telugus say : " Unless you had touched 
 garlic, your fingers would not have smelt ;" " among a 
 hundred crows what could one cuckoo do ?" ^' what does 
 a weaver want with a young monkey ?" " bad company is 
 friendship with a snake fencing with a sword." Veman 
 compares " entertaining a bad man in your house to a fly 
 entering the stomach ; will it not torment you ? How 
 should the saint mingle with men ? When a drop of 
 water is converted into a pearl, will it again unite with 
 its former wave ?" 
 
 Bad company is called the unfruitful works of dark- 
 ness ; they turn God's grace into lasciviousness, Jude 4, 
 like the soldiers who said, " Hail, king !" yet spat in 
 Christ's face. Fellowship with the wicked is necessary 
 in business, i Cor. 5. 10; the tares and the wheat are 
 together in the Church ; Christ went, however, as 
 a physician, not as an associate ; such as Joseph in 
 Egypt, Nehemiah in Persia, Lot in Sodom, Daniel in 
 Babylon. 
 
 Raghuvansa. — A good woman, beset by evil women, is like the 
 chaste mimosa surrounded by poisonous herbs. 
 
26 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 bengal. — He who goes to Ceylon becomes a demon. 
 Arab. — "When the crow is your guide he will lead you to the 
 
 corpses of dogs, Mat. .23, 16. 
 Malabar. — When we strike mud we get smeared over, 
 
 I Cor. 15. 33. 
 China. — The stag and the tiger do not stroll together. 
 Arab. — A torrent mixed with mud flowing on in darkness, 
 
 Ps. 5. 9. 
 Arab. — Follow the owl ; he will lead you into a ruined 
 
 place. 
 Talmud. — No man can remain with a snake in a cage. 
 Persian. — Friendship with a fool is like a bear's embrace. 
 Chanah. — Shun a wicked person, though endowed with 
 
 knowledge. A serpent, though adorned with 
 
 gems, inspires terror. 
 China. — The stag and the tiger do not tread the same path. 
 
 A friendship between coal and ice. 
 Talmud. — To the wasp we must say, Neither thy honey nor 
 
 thy sting — i.e., with some people have nothing 
 
 to do. 
 Arab. — Converse with the bad is going to sea. 
 Persian. — Yoke not a camel and a cat together. 
 Afghan, — A bear's friendship is to scratch and tear. ^ 
 Turk. — Yoke not to the same carriage a camel and an ox. 
 Afghan. — Who lives with a blacksmith will at last go away 
 
 with burnt clothes. 
 Bengal. — You only stink your hand by killing a musk 
 
 rat. 
 Modern Greek. — If you sit down with a lame man, you w:ll 
 
 learn to halt. 
 Bengal. — The ram has entered the horse's stable — i.e., a fool 
 
 among the intelligent. 
 Tamul. — The fowl brought up with the pig will eat dirt. 
 Polish. — Inquire after a neighbour before you purchase a 
 
 house ; inquire after a companion before you 
 
 m.ake a journey. 
 Bengal. — Elackness leaves the coal when the fire enters — 
 
 i.e., the improving effect of good company. 
 Talmud. — Near to the perfumer is fragrance. 
 Persian. — One scabby goat infects the flock. 
 Urdu. — No twisting a rope of sand. Is the bullock's sore 
 
 tender to the crow ? 
 Telugu. — Among a hundred crows what can one cuckoo do ? 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 27 
 
 Telugu. — The bullock pulled towards the sun and the 
 buffalo towards the shade. 
 
 Malay. — Will oil mix with water ? 
 
 Kurd. — Who talks with the smith receives sparks. 
 
 China. — Near putrid fish you will stink. Though convers- 
 ing face to face, their hearts have a thousand hills 
 between them. 
 
 Telugu. — If you drink milk under a date-tree, they will 
 say it is toddy. 
 
 Modern Greeh. — If you sit down with one who is squint- 
 eyed in the evening, you will become squint-eyed 
 or cat-eyed. 
 
 Sanskrit. — A bad man, though adorned with learning, is to 
 be shunned. Is a snake adorned with a gem not 
 to be feared ? 
 
 Owe no Debt but Love.— Rom. 13. 8. 
 
 See Parable of Debtor, Matt. 18. 28. 
 
 Bengal. — The goat tied up is at the will even of a child — 
 
 i.e., the debtor. Matt. 18. 30. 
 Turk. — Eather hungry on going to bed than debts ou 
 
 rising. 
 Telugu^. — Bice, water, and salt without debt are good. 
 Japan. — An angel in borrowing, a devil's face in returning. 
 JBas^ue. — He shuts one hole by opening another — i.e., he 
 
 pays his debts in opening new loans. 
 
 Decision. — No Serving Two Masters.— i Kikgs 18. 21. 
 
 Malay. — We don't feel cold on going into the deep water.. 
 
 Arab. — It is hard to chase and catch two hares. 
 
 Afghan. — Do not take hold of sword-grass ; but if you do, 
 
 grasp it tight. 
 Modern Qreeh. — Two water-melons cannot be carried under 
 
 one arm. 
 Mussian. — Better not to fire on the tiger than to wound her. 
 Syriac. — Be not water, taking the tint of all colours. 
 Galic. — Strike at every tree, yet none is felled. 
 Malay. — To be out of temper with water in the hold — i.e., 
 
 to be sulky and do nothing when the boat has 
 
 sprung a leak. 
 
.:2-8 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Talmud. — To the wasp we must say, Xeither thy honey 
 nor thy sting — i.e.^ with some people have nothing 
 to do. 
 
 Basque. — "Who goes quickly goes twice. 
 
 Telugu. — Before cutting down the forest, is it necessary to 
 consult the axe ? 
 
 Deeds, not Words. — Jas. 2. 6. 
 
 Afghan. — Who loves, labours. 
 
 Telugu. — Sweet words, empty hands. 
 
 Telugu. — Your mouth a sweet plum, your hand a thorn 
 bush. 
 
 Urdu. — A lofty shop, but tasteless sweetmeats. 
 
 Urdu. — Kindness, but no milk. 
 
 Turk. — Though they are brothers, their pockets are not sisters. 
 
 Turh. — To speak of honey will not make the mouth sweet. 
 
 Turk. — It is not by saying Honey, honey, that sweetness 
 comes into the mouth. 
 
 Bengal. — By words he softens the minds, but words will not 
 soften the rice. 
 
 Galic. — The nodding of the head does not make the boat 
 to row. 
 
 Telugu,— 'W\^ words leap over forts, his feet do not cross 
 the threshold. 
 
 Telugu. — Grreat words, but small measure. 
 
 ^Russian. — A tale is soon told ; a deed is not soon done. 
 
 Italian. — Words are women, deeds are men. 
 
 Telugu. — It is easy to talk, but hard to stay the mind ; we 
 may teach others, but cannot ourselves under- 
 stand : it is easy to lay hold on the sword, but 
 hard to become valiant. Matt. 7. 26. 
 
 Bussian. — Many counsellors, few helpers. 
 
 Telugu,. — If you do not ask me for food and raiment, I will 
 care for you as my own child. 
 
 Canara. — Knowledge consisting of words is an earthen 
 vessel with holes. 
 
 China. — We do not cook rice by babbling. 
 
 The Double-Minded.— Unstable as a Wave.— Jas. i. 8. 
 There are doiibU-tongiced, i Tim. 3. 8 ; the double- 
 minded, as tepid water, to be spued out, Eev. 3. 16. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 29. 
 
 Malay. — Do not embark in two boats, for you will be split 
 and thrown on your back, Luke 16. 13. 
 
 Arab. — Eiding two horses at the same time. 
 
 Turh. — Who stands hesitating between two mosques returns- 
 without prayer, Matt. 6. 24. 
 
 Russian. — He hunting two hares does not catch even one. 
 
 Arah. — Doubt destroys faith as salt does honey, Eom. 
 14. 23. 
 
 Bengal. — He sees Jagannath's car, and sells plantains at 
 the same time. 
 
 Modern Greek. — A rolling stone gathers no moss. 
 
 Telugu. — A double-minded man is a post in the mud swing- 
 ing to and fro — i.e., one who wakes the master, 
 and gives the thief a stick. 
 
 Cast not Holy Things to Dogs.— Matt. 7. 6. 
 Sacrificial remains were not to be given to dogs, a» 
 they were counted so unclean. 
 
 The wicked resemble dogs in ten points : — 
 
 1 . Biffer in disposition and size, yet all are dogs. The 
 young man that Jesus loved was a sinner as well as 
 Judas ; the Pharisee as well as the publican, Mark 10. 21. 
 
 2. Some are vile, beastly, eat dead bodies in the river, 
 licked Lazarus's sores, Luke 16. 21 ; Ahab's blood, 
 I Kings 22. 38. Such are men enslaved to diverse 
 lusts. 
 
 3. Churlish, snappish ; bay at the moon ; so the Jews- 
 gnashed on Stephen with their teeth. Acts 7. 54. 
 
 4. Bite and tear men ; so do bloodhounds, bulldogs, Jer. 
 15.3; such was Paul before his conversion. Some bark 
 and bite not; others bite, but bark not; so some injure 
 secretly, while chains are necessary for very fierce ones. 
 
 5. Some used as hunters; so the devil used persecu- 
 tors, Ps. 22. 16. 
 
 6. Bite each other ; so the Egyptians destroyed each 
 other as well as the Jews ; so in the case of Babylon and 
 the Jews. 
 
 7. Greedy, Is. 56. ii ; never satisfied. 
 
30 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 8. Become sometimes mad, then great miscliief arises, 
 Phil. 3. 2. 
 
 9. Lazy ; hence the proverb, " A dog's life, hunger and 
 ease ;" the prodigal son fed on husks, Luke 15. 16. 
 
 10. Shut out of doors. Without are dogs, Eev. 22. 15. 
 Some dogs watchful, loving, and protecting; yet all 
 
 dogs throw up when sick a loathesome vomit and swallow 
 it again; so those who turn hack to sin, Prov. 26. 11 ; 
 applied to the Gentiles by Jews, Matt. 15. 27. 
 
 Beware of dogs, Phil. 3.2; unfaithful ministers dumb 
 dogs. Is. 56. 10. A false teacher, so called, i Sam. 
 24. 14; so the Sodomites; Pharaoh. 
 
 Chanak, — What use of science to a man without sense, 
 
 or a looking-glass to a blind man ? 
 Telugu. — WHat does a bullock know of the taste of 
 
 parched grain ? What does an ass know of the 
 
 smell of perfume ? 
 JBengal. — Krishna's name in a crow's mouth. Peeding a dog 
 
 with pulse. 
 Arab, — The world is a carcase, and they who seek it are dogs. 
 Telugu. — AVill a dog recognize the priest ; it will only snap 
 
 at him, seize and tear the calf of his leg, Mat. 
 
 Telugu. — If authority be given to a low-minded man, he 
 will chase away all the honourable : can a dog 
 that gnaws shoes taste the sweetness of the 
 sugar-cane ? 
 
 Bengal. — The thief and hog have one road — i.e., impurity. 
 
 Meek as a Dove. — Matt. 10. 16. 
 
 A soft tongue breaketh the bone, Prov. 25. 15. 
 David, suffering from the wicked, wished to have the 
 wings of a dove, which flies very rapidly, and loves free- 
 dom like the dove imprisoned in the ark, Ps. 55. 6. 
 
 The meeh resemUe a dove in four points : — 
 I. Harmless in the midst of a crooked generation, 
 Phil. 2. 15; yet he is to be wise as a serpent, Matt. 
 10. 16. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 31 
 
 2. Hates impure things, not like the crow or jackal ; 
 the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove descended on John 
 at his baptism, Matt. 3. 16. 
 
 3. Shuns birds of prey; its mild eye very different 
 from the hawks ; it is mild, but sharp, enabling it to flee 
 from danger. 
 
 4. Loves its home: if taken hundreds of miles away, it 
 will find its way back ; hence it is used to carry letters 
 tied to its legs. The believer's home is with dove-like men 
 in the clefts of the Eock of Ages. 
 
 Abraham, though the elder, waived his right of choice 
 for the sake of peace, and promptly removed all occasion 
 of strife, Gen. i 3. 7—9 ; and God put honour upon him 
 after his disinterestedness, Gen. 13. 16. It is called 
 sheepishness to be meek, but it is a likeness to Him that 
 was as a sheep before the shearers, not opening his 
 mouth, Isa. 53. 7; it is a portion of His spirit. The 
 meek shall inherit the earth. Matt. 5.5. 
 
 Hebrew. — Kindle not the coals of a sinner, lest tbou be 
 
 burnt with the flame of his fire. 
 Fersian. — A pleasant voice brings a snake out of his hole. 
 Turh. — One drop of honey catches more bees than a ton of 
 
 vinegar. 
 TurJc. — Tread not on a sleeping snake. 
 Turlc. — Have in life the force of a lion, the sagacity of an 
 
 elephant, and the sweetness of the lamb. 
 China. — Eousing a sleeping tiger exposes to harm. 
 China. — Stir not the fire with a sword — i.e., provoke not 
 
 by anger. 
 Bussian. — Good greeting softens a cat. 
 Telugu. — The Ganges flows with a tranquil course, but a 
 
 foul stream rushes with a roar. Thus the base 
 
 can never be mild as the noble, Luke 21. 19. 
 
 The Wicked are Dross.— Ps. 119. 119. 
 The wicked are made of the earth, and return to it ; 
 they prosper in the earth ; not so the righteous. Nettles 
 grow in any soil, Ps. 37. i, 2 ; not so flowers. 
 
32 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The wicked like dross in six points : — 
 
 1. Eesemble the metal, but only in appearance-, so- 
 the wicked, Ps. 66. lo, have a name to live, Eev. 3. i. 
 
 2. To be hurnt and consumed in the fire ; not so silver, 
 which is only refined ; wicked like a house on the sand. 
 Matt. 7. 27 ; Ezek. 22. 20. 
 
 3. Mixed with pure metal only temporary ; so the 
 wheat and chaff. Matt. 13. 30 ; the sheep and goats are 
 only together for a time. 
 
 4. Unprofitable; the good are gold or diamonds, though 
 esteemed in the world the offscouring, i Cor. 4. 13. 
 
 5 . God takes away the dross by judgment, Matt. 3.12; 
 by church censures, i Cor. 5. 5. Dross more abundant, 
 Luke 13. 23, 24. 
 
 6. Not improved by fire as silver or gold is; Jerusalem 
 was thus compared to a pot, Ezek. 24. 6. 
 
 Tamul. — What avail heights in the dunghill ? is the town 
 
 disparaged by being low ? 
 Modern Cheek. — This fig-tree is for the fire — i.e., a useless 
 
 person. 
 Tamul. — Of what use is the ripening of a poisonous treo 
 
 in the middle of a village ? 
 
 Man's Corruption like the Ethiopian's Skin.— Jee. 13. 23. 
 
 Man is said. Job 15. 16, to drink in iniquity like 
 water — i.e., allusion to the prodigious quantity of water 
 swallowed by a camel on setting out on a journey. 
 Though the corruption from Adam cannot be changed 
 by nature, yet God's Spirit can do it by supernatural 
 power : thus Paul, from being a ]Dersecutor of the 
 Christians, in three days so changed as afterwards to 
 become a preacher of Christianity. 
 
 Bussian. — The wolf changes his hair, but yet remains the 
 wolf. However you bind a tree, it will always 
 grow upward. Though you put oil on a dog's 
 tail, it will never become straight. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 35 
 
 TJrdu. — If you put a crow in a cage, will it talk like a 
 parrot ? 
 
 Sanskrit. — The nim tree will not be sweetened though 
 you water it with milk. 
 
 Niti Sar. — Though the crow's beak be gold, and his feet 
 diamonds, yet the crow cannot become a swan. 
 
 Persian. — A black cat will not be washed white by soap. 
 
 Kurd. — Out of a dog's tail you cannot get fat. 
 
 Veman. — If you take a bear-skin and wash it ever so 
 long, will it, instead of its native blackness, ever 
 become white ? If you beat a wooden image,, 
 will it hence acquire any good quality ? 
 
 TurTc. — In washing a negro we lose our soap. 
 
 TJrdu. — Will the gall-nut become as sweet as the cocoa- 
 nut, though watered with honey ? 
 
 Bengal. — The nightingale lays its young in the crow's nest^ 
 but the young do not behave as crows. 
 
 Tamul. — Are young fish taught to swim? 
 
 Tamul. — Though we feed a snake with milk, it will yield 
 poison. 
 
 Sanskrit. — By slitting the ear and cutting the tail, a dog is. 
 but a dog, not a horse or ass. 
 
 The Eye of Paith.—HEB. u. 27. 
 
 The eye of faith differs from the eye of sense in two 
 points. The eye of sense grows dim with age, i Sam. 3.2; 
 the eye of faith brightens ; the eye of sense sees not far ; 
 the eye of faith sees beyond the stars, like Stephen, 
 Acts 7. 55 ; or Jacob, who lay at night on the desert, 
 with a stone for his pillow, yet saw a vision of angels, Gen. 
 28. 12. There are eyes full of uncleanness, 2 Pet. 2. 14 ; 
 the eyes of the fool are in the ends of the earth, Prov. 
 17. 24 ; the proud eye is a lofty one, Psa. 131. i. Eve 
 was deceived by the eye. Gen. 3. 6 ; so Achan's eye by 
 the garment, Jos. 7. 21; so Samson's eye by Delilah, 
 Judg. 16. I ; so Ahab, i Kings 21. 2 ; so Nebuchadnez- 
 zar, Dan. 4. 27-33. There are three eyes — the eye of 
 sense, common to the brute ; the eye of reason, peculiar 
 
 D 
 
34 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 to man, Mark 8.18; and the eye of faith, peculiar to the 
 righteous, which can see beyond this world, can see the 
 future, John 8. 56, can see minute things. Bartimeus 
 was blind, yet he had the eye of faith, Mark 10. 46. 
 
 Telugu. — The God who destroyed the eyes gave under- 
 standing as a compensation. 
 Turh. — Invisible things are more numerous than visible. 
 Modern OreeJc. — The eyes of the hare are one thing, those 
 
 of the owl another. 
 Veman. — Large is the eyeball, minute the pupil j yet in 
 
 the pupil alone exists the source of vision ; such 
 
 are the media through which we see the Deity. 
 Afghan. — Though the eyes be large, they act through small 
 
 pupils. 
 Bengal. — The lame can leap over mountains by God's aid. 
 
 2 Cor. 12. 9. 
 Sanskrit . — Who are destitute of sight ? Those who do not 
 
 perceive the future world. 
 Kurd. — All those who know have eyes and see ; all those 
 
 who know not have only two holes in the forehead. 
 Badaga. — The son of a king sees more with half an eye 
 
 than the son of a fool with two. 
 Aral). — Dim eyes do not ensue when the mind's eyes are 
 
 bright. 
 Veman. — Like as the fish in the waters, through desire of 
 
 the delicious bait, is fixed on the hook and perishes ; 
 
 so a man, if seized with desire, is also ruined, 
 
 Jas. I. 15. 
 Veman. — A good work performed with a pure heart, though 
 
 small, is not trifling. How large is the seed of 
 
 the banyan and the mustard tree ? Luke 21.2. 
 Arab. — The eyes are of little use if the mind be blind. 
 
 Mark 8. 18. 
 
 The Fire of the Tongue.—JAs. 3. 6. 
 
 The tongue like a fire in three 'points : — 
 Solomon writes : " A soft tongue breaketh the bone," 
 Prov. 25. 15 ; so Jacob found, Gen. 32. 4, that a gentle 
 answer softens the heart. The Bengalis say, " Quiet water 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 35 
 
 splits a stone ;" the Germans, " Patience breaks iron," 
 Gen. 32. 11-20; I Sam. 25. 35. 
 
 1. Fire gives heat which makes (passion) boil over, 
 while a man of understanding is of a cool spirit, Pro v. 1 7. 
 27; so Christ, Matt. 27. 12-14. 
 
 2. Kindles great things. Matt. 12. 36; hence fire 
 called a good servant, but a bad master. Pro v. 26. 1 8—20. 
 
 3. Scorches and gives pain ; so the wicked compared to 
 coals of juniper, Ps. 120. 4, which burn hot and long. 
 
 The fire of the evil tongue is kindled from hell ; not 
 so the zeal of the righteous, compared to a live coal, 
 Isa. 6. 6 ; the cloven tongues of fire were harmless. 
 Acts 2. 3. 
 
 Tamul. — The words of a babbler are fine dust. 
 
 AfgJian. — A great spear-wound is well to heal quickly ; a 
 
 severe tongue-wound becomes a sore in the heart, 
 
 healeth not. 
 China. — A man's conversation is the mirror of the heart. 
 Turh. — Who masters his tongue saves his head. 
 
 Little Sins like Dead Flies in Ointment. — Eccl. 10. i, 
 
 Telugu — " The remains of a debt, a sore, or a fire should 
 not be left, as they may increase." 
 
 Vcman — A stone in the shoe, a gadfly in the ear, a 
 mote in the eye, a thorn in the foot, and a quarrel in a 
 family, however small in themselves, are unspeakably 
 tormenting, 2 Cor. 12. 7. 
 
 The text refers to the acid salts in insects which dis- 
 pose syrups to fermentation, and then to putrescence, 
 causing a bad smell and sour taste, and so the whole 
 ointment is spoiled, as a little leaven leavens the whole 
 lump, I Cor. 5. 6 ; the tongue is a little fire, and kindles 
 great things, as the little lielm of a ship turns a big vessel, 
 Jas. 3. 4. A small leak will sink a great ship : break 
 one link in the chain, the whole goes. 
 
 D 2 
 
36 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 China. — It is with law as with dykes — in whatever part they 
 
 are broken, the rest becomes useless. No ease 
 
 for the mouth when one tooth is aching. 
 Malabar. — A coir improperly twisted will break the whole 
 
 mass. 
 'Russian, — A spoonful of tar in a barrel of honey, and all is 
 
 spoiled. 
 Oriental. — Good qualities efface not bad, as sugar mixed. 
 
 with poison does not prevent the poison being 
 
 mortal. 
 Kurd. — A vessel of honey with a drop of poison in it. 
 Cingalese. — The tree which (when young) you could have 
 
 nipped off with your nail you cannot afterwards 
 
 cut with your axe. 
 Modern Greeh. — A little bait catches a large fish. 
 Urdu. — It is a sin whether you steal sesamum or sugar. 
 Tamul. — Though the thorn in the foot be small, yet stay 
 
 and extract it. 
 China. — To spare a swelling till it becomes an ulcer, 
 
 Jas. 2. 10. 
 Malay. — One piece of arsenic suffices to kill a thousand 
 
 crows. 
 Telugu. — To look at it, it is like a musk rat ; but to dig 
 
 into walls, it is a bandicoot. 
 Tapan. — Poking out the eye with an insignificant twig. 
 Sehrew. — Of a spark of fire a heap of coals is kindled."^ 
 
 Life a Flood.— Ps. 90. 5. 
 
 This Psaka was composed by Moses towards the close 
 of his wandering in the desert, when human life had been 
 shortened, and when out of 3,000,000 Jews that came 
 into the wilderness only two adults were allowed to enter 
 Canaan. 
 
 There are more than 1,000,000,000 of people in the 
 world, composed, like the Ganges and Brahmaputra, of 
 streams of many nations ; they make a great noise ; like 
 a flood, rise suddenly, and as suddenly go down to the 
 
 * There is the well-known homely French and English proverb, 
 "For want of a nail the horseshoe was lost; for want of a shoe 
 the horse was lost ; for want of a horse, the rider was lost. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 37 
 
 ocean of Eternity. Some of these floods fertilize the 
 soil, while others sweep away cattle and villages ; so some 
 men lead the lives of sheep, others of goats. 
 
 China. — The waves flowing away chase those that precede ; 
 
 in the world the new-born chase away the old, 
 
 and they also pass away ; no feast lasts for ever. 
 Russian. — There are not two summers in one year, Jer. 
 
 8. 20. 
 Japan. — As the stars, so man appears little at a distance. 
 Persian. — The world is like an old building on the banks 
 
 of a stream — it carries away piece by piece ; in 
 
 vain you stop it with a handful of earth. 
 Telugu. — If the priest does not come, will the new moon 
 
 wait for him ? 
 Tamul. — Does any one desire to chew his betel over again ? 
 
 G-en. 47. 9. 
 
 Life passes as a Flower.— i Pet. i. 24. 
 
 Though the flowers are clad with a raiment superior in 
 heauty to Solomon's, yet the scythe of death, sunshine, 
 storm, rain, or worms sweep them away. The Prcibodh 
 Chandrodaya says the society even of friends is a flash 
 of lightning which is dazzling, but momentary. The 
 righteous, like a plant, may lose his flower on earth, but 
 he will he transplanted to the gardens of Paradise. 
 
 China. — The swallow plastering its nest is labour lost — 
 
 i.e., it soon migrates. 
 China. — "We find trees in the mountains 1,000 years old ; 
 
 we rarely find a man lOO years old. 
 TurJc. — Have you ever seen a day which ends not in 
 
 evening ? 
 Turk. — Happiness is like crystal — when it shines the most 
 
 it soon cracks. 
 Aral. — Every day in thy life is a leaf in thy history. 
 Modern Greek. — Many dead are sitting at the head of the 
 
 sick man — i.e., many of those who visit a sick 
 
 man die before him. 
 Afghan. — Life is not such a mouthful that a man should 
 
 gulp it down whole ; life is not so short that a 
 
 man should live heedless. 
 
38 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Arab. — Life like a fire begins in smoke, ends in ashes. 
 China. — The moon is not always round ; the clouds some- 
 times disappear. 
 Japan. — Life is a light before the wind, Job 7. 7. 
 Arab. — Like a moth falling on a lighted candle. 
 
 God-fearing the Fountain of Life.— Peot. 14. 27. 
 
 Fear of God differs fro^n the wicTced's fear in fve jjoints : — 
 
 One kind of fear lias torment, i John 4. 1 8 ; such was 
 Adam's, Gen. 3. 8-10, the devil's, Jas. 2. 19. The 
 other is reverential, and leading to watchfulness ; as 
 Joseph, Gen. 39. 9, Noah, Heb. 11. 7. This is the 
 beginning of knowledge, Prov. i. 7. 
 
 Arab. — The fear of God makes the heart shine. 
 
 Afghan. — The shelter of a tamarisk is equal to that of a 
 
 mountain for a man who fears not God — i.e., no 
 
 restraint in wickedness for those not fearing God. 
 Arab, — There are four things God cannot do : He cannot 
 
 lie; He cannot die; He cannot deny Himself;. 
 
 and He cannot look favourably on sin. 
 
 The Heart the Fountain of Action. — Mat. 15. 19. , 
 
 Sanskrit. — If the heart be impure, all actions will be wrong. 
 TurTc, — The eyes are a balance of which the heart forms 
 
 the weight. 
 Telugu. — A good work performed with a pure heart, though 
 
 small, is not trifling. How large is the seed of 
 
 the banyan and the mustard tree ? Luke 21.2. 
 Sanskrit. — The poison of a scorpion is in his tail, of a fly 
 
 in his head, of a snake in his fang ; but of a bad 
 
 man in his whole body, Isa. 1.5. 
 
 The Wicked are Foxes.— Luee 13. 32. 
 
 Herod the king was called a fox, because he tried to 
 catch Christ by cunning, Luke 13. 32, Mat. 2. 8 ; false 
 teachers are also so called, Ezek. 13.4; they used rough 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 
 
 39 
 
 garments to deceive, Zech. 13. 14, in imitation of tlie 
 true teachers, who wore sackcloth and hairy garments. 
 The wicked are like foxes in Jive points : — 
 
 1. Craftiness: The fox when pursued and caught pre- 
 tends to be dead ; he uses his tail to catch crabs ; he has 
 many entrances to his den ; he moves crookedly and 
 steals up lightly, E"eh. 4. 3, yet he does not escape. 
 
 2. Cruel and destructive. He destroys more than he 
 kills; makes havoc among grapes. 
 
 3. Attacks at night; the wicked called children of 
 darkness, i Thess. 5. 5. 
 
 4. Greedy. The fox eats all kind of filthy putrid 
 things, lives on filth, digs up dead bodies. 
 
 5. Moves in ]packs to destroy; so Samson used three 
 hundred of them with lighted brands to their tails to fire 
 the corn, Judg. 15. 4; the wicked combine to do evil. 
 
 Christ said even the foxes had holes, but he had not 
 where to lay his head, Luke 9. 5 8. 
 
 Turk. — The fox goes at last to the shop of the furrier. 
 
 Friendship like Perfume, rejoicing the Heart.— Ps. 27. 9. 
 
 Abraham was the friend of God, Jas. 2. 23 ; Jonathan 
 and David had close friendship, i Sam. 18. i. 
 
 UrdtL. — The friendship of the base is a wall of sand. 
 Arah. — A bad friend is like a smith, who, if he does not 
 
 burn you with fire, will injure you with smoke. 
 Arah. — A fool or unlearned is an enemy to himself : how is 
 
 he a friend to others ? 
 Arah. — Three things are not known except in three points : 
 
 courage except in war, the wise except in anger, 
 
 a friend except in adversity. 
 Afghan. — God will remain, friends will not, Prov. 18. 24. 
 Turk. — Priends are one soul in t«'o bodies. 
 Gujerat. — A rat and cat's friendship. 
 
 JBersian. — Friendship with a fool is the embrace of a bear. 
 Talmud. — A man without a friend is a left hand without the 
 
 right. 
 
40 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 China. — It is only with the eye of others we see our own 
 defects. 
 
 China. — Without a clear mirror a woman cannot know the 
 state of her face ; without a true friend a man 
 cannot discern the nature of his actions. 
 
 Afghan. — The ass's friendship is kicking. 
 
 Telugu. — The friendship between fire and water. 
 
 Japan. — A friend at hand is better than relations at a 
 distance. 
 
 Kirat Arjun. — The friendship of the bad is like the shade 
 of some precipitous bank with crumbling sides, 
 which, falling, buries him who sits beneath. 
 
 The "Wicked like Goats. — Mat. 25. 31, 33. 
 
 The devil is worshipped in some countries under the 
 form of a goat. 
 
 The goats like the wicked in four points : — 
 
 1 . Feed among sheep ; but the Great Shepherd will 
 separate them at the judgment-day ; so hypocrites in a 
 church as tares among wheat. 
 
 2. Mischievous; destroy trees, plants; hence bad princes 
 so called, Zech. 10. 3. 
 
 3. Unclean ; so the wicked, 2 Pet. 2. 7. 
 
 4. Greedy. A hundred goats will eat as much as a 
 thousand sheep; so Alutb coveted A^a&o^A's vineyard, though 
 he v/as so rich himself, i Kings 2 i . 
 
 Bengal. — What will not a goat eat or a fool say ? 
 Chanak. — An uneducated man in society is a crane among 
 swans. 
 
 All Flesh is Grass. — Isa. 40. 6. 
 
 What is more frail than grass ? In tropical countries 
 it comes up in the spring, flourishes for a short period, 
 and is then cut down ; or, if not severed from its root by 
 the scythe, it soon withers away. In India especially 
 the great heat of the sun quickly withers away the grass. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 41 
 
 which becomes quite brown, or disappears in the hot 
 weather. So weak are we, and so unable to resist the 
 stroke of death. We come np, and are cut down ! The 
 spring-time of life is soon gone, the season of harvest 
 comes, and death strikes the fatal blow. Nothing can 
 make man a solid substantial being, but the being born 
 again of the incorruptible seed, the Word of God, which 
 will transform him into an excellent creature, whose glory 
 will not fade like the flower, but shine like an angel's 
 face. 
 
 Gratitude the Memory of the Heart. 
 
 Praise, the expression of gratitude, is called the fruit 
 of the lips, Heb. 13. 15 ; a garment, Isa. 61. 3 ; see the 
 case of the lame man in the Temple, Acts 3.8; of the 
 chief butler. Gen. 40. 23; and of the parable of the two 
 debtors, Luke 7. 41—43. 
 
 Tamul. — A benefit conferred on the worthy is engraved in 
 
 stone ; on the unkind, written in water. 
 Malay. — The bean forgets its pod, Isa. ^l. I. 
 Bengal. — Having eaten his salt, he esteems his virtues. 
 Cingalese. — A line inscribed in water — i.e., the ungrateful. 
 Telugu. — Blows with stones to the bearing tree. 
 Talmud. — Do not throw a stone into the well out of which 
 
 you have drunk. 
 Tamul. — The physician who cured the striped tiger of his 
 
 sickness became his prey. 
 Tamul. — A benefit conferred on the worthless is an earthen 
 
 vessel falling on a stone. 
 Telugu. — A dog instinctively recognizes the kindness shown 
 
 to it ; how base is the man who feels not the good 
 
 that is done to him, Luke 17. 17. 
 Tamul. — The scorpion stings him who helps it out of the 
 
 fire. 
 Turk. — The dinner ended, we value no more the spoon. 
 Persian. — He eats the salt, breaks the salt-cellar. 
 Tamul. — The rogue feels only when he is punished : the 
 
 farmer feels grateful when the rain falls. 
 
42 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Bussian. — The sheep does not remember its father ; it bears 
 only grass in mind. 
 
 Idleness makes tlie House drop through. — Eccles. io. i8. 
 
 The ant makes hay when the sun shines — has no guide : 
 not so the idler, who lets the house leak. 
 
 The marks of the sluggard or idler are — ( i ) Loves not 
 difficulties : will not plough by reason of cold, Prov. 20. 
 4 ; (2) loves not disturbance, though death's handwriting 
 may be on the wall; (3) enjoys not the good in hand ; 
 roasts not what was taken in hunting, Prov. 12. 27 ; (4) 
 his way hedged with thorns, Prov. 15. 19; such were the 
 ten tribes — too lazy to go up to Jerusalem, i Kings 12.28; 
 so with the servant in the parable of the talents ; (5) 
 allows weeds on his fields, Prov. 24. 30 ; (6) desires only, 
 but makes no efforts ; so Balaam wished the death of the 
 righteous, but led not the life of the righteous, Num. 23. 
 10 ; (7) makes no iwogress, turns as a door on the hinges, 
 Prov. 26. 14 ; (8) makes excuses ; there is a lion in the 
 way, Prov. 22. 13. 
 
 Telngu. — The idle man eats like a bullock, and sleeps like a 
 
 Telugu. — In a neglected house devils take up their abode ."^ 
 
 Bengal. — The date fell on his moustaches ; he was too lazy 
 to put it into his mouth. 
 
 Hebrew. — Idleness is the mother of all vice. 
 
 Tamul. — Opening the mouth when one says gram (oats), 
 and shutting it when one says bridle. 
 
 Tamul. — Being without work, the barber is said to have 
 shaved his wife's head. 
 
 Bersian. — Water long stagnant becomes putrid. 
 
 Binnish. — By sleeping we do not gain money ; by sitting no- 
 fortune is to be had. 
 
 Arab. — A well is not to be filled with dew ; equivalent to 
 the French — " He that will eat the kernel must 
 crack the nut." 
 
 * Yery similar to the Italian proverb, which has found its way 
 into English, "An idle brain is the devil's workshoiD," 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 43. 
 
 Tamul. — Plants of learning must be watered with the rain 
 of tears. 
 
 The Inner and the Outer Man.— 2 Coe. 4. 16. 
 
 Also called the old and the new man, Eph. 4. 24; the 
 old and new Adam ; the flesh and the spirit, Eom. 8. i. 
 
 The Hindus write of various Jcoshas or sheatlis envelop- 
 ing the body. Peter calls the inner man the hidden man, . 
 I Pet. 3. 3-4. 
 
 By the outer man is meant the body and senses ; by 
 the mner man the heart and spirit ; both very different — 
 the bodily eye might grow dim while the eye of faith 
 grew brighter. The Arabs say, "Dim eyes do not injure 
 when the mind's eye is bright." His youth is renewed 
 like the eagle's, Ps. 103. 5. St. Paul's setting sun was 
 fine ; he was, like the swan, said to sing as sweetly in 
 winter as in summer. 
 
 Atmahodh. — The wise man during his residence in the body* 
 
 is not affected by its properties, as the firmament 
 ' is not affected by what floats in it. 
 Telugu. — The tamarind maybe dried,but it loses not its acidity. 
 Bengal. — A clever woman is not old, though aged, but has 
 
 the sweet sap of wit in her. 
 China. — The man grows old, not so his heart. 
 Persian. — Don't despise pepper because it is so small; eat, 
 
 and see how pungent it is, 2 Cor. 10. 10. 
 Bussian. — The needle is small, but pierces sharply. 
 Veman. — Though a vessel be broken, a new one is easily 
 
 procured. Is it then marvellous that after a 
 
 man's death he should acquire a new body ? 
 
 2 Cor. 5. 2. 
 Sanskrit. — The form is small, the qualities great. 
 Telugu. — An old tree has a firm core. 
 Tamul. — Though broken to pieces, a golden pot will still be 
 
 gold ; of what use is an earthen pot when broken ? 
 Cingalese.— A. gem is a gem, though found in a dunghill. 
 Veman. — "Worked chasings are various, but all gold is the 
 
 same ; these earthlg tenements vary, but the soul 
 
 is one; viands are many, but hunger is always 
 
 the same. 
 
44 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Telugu. — If you look at a grain of pepper, it is externally- 
 black ; if you bite it you perceive that internally 
 it is pungent. Thus imperceptible is the worth 
 of the excellent. 
 
 The Lamp of the Wicked put out.— Pitov. 13. 9. 
 
 Tlie wicked are driven away, Pro v. 14. 32. Lamps were 
 used by tbe Jews at weddings and on festive occasions, a 
 man in prosperity is compared to a blazing lamp in 
 adversity, he is ready to slip with his feet, Job 12. 5, or to 
 a lamp extinguished. The lamp of the wicked gradually 
 fails of oil. Mat. 25. 3—8, and in its extinction a stench 
 from the wick arises ; so the memory of the wicked. 
 
 Canara. — The fly (the poor man) is eaten by the frog (the 
 rich man), and both are eaten by the serpent 
 death, Prov. 30. 23. 
 
 SansJcrit. — -Time is stronger than all things else. 
 
 Man Fades as a Leaf. — Isa. 64. 6. 
 
 Life like a leaf in four joints : — 
 The change comes on graducdly ; we scarcely perceive 
 a difference day by day, but after the interval of a week 
 it is distinctly seen; the leaf changes from a green to a 
 pale hue when about to fall, the breeze snaps the link by 
 which the shred was joined to its branch, and wafts it to 
 its resting-place beneath the parent tree, where it rots or 
 serves as fuel or manure. Such is the strength of men : 
 the freshness of youth passes into the maturity of man- 
 hood, and thus by gradual steps the feebleness of age 
 comes on : grey hairs are on him, yet he knoweth it not, 
 Hos. 7. 9. " The dust returns to the dust." 
 
 The leaves with which the earth is strewn, and which 
 serve to manure it, will know no second spring ; not so 
 the body, which will rise in the morning of the resurrec- 
 tion, Dan. 12. 2. 
 
 A leaf is light and unsubstantial. A leaf fades in 
 various ways silently. The myriad leaves that glitter in 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 45 
 
 the sunshine of spring or flutter in the breeze will be 
 strewn on the ground in autumn ; but when one shall 
 fall and how long another shall hang who can tell ? 
 One falls withered by a worm at its root in early summer ; 
 a second is nipped by the frost, a third is shaken off by 
 a rough wind, and the fourth, soon after it has burst 
 from the bud in spring, is smitten by mildew. All will 
 fall at some time ; so with men. The population of the 
 globe, 1,000,000,000, will in a generation be off the tree 
 of life : some drop in childhood's spring, some in ripe man- 
 hood, and some hang on till the winter of age arrive. The 
 time is short to all, and the short time is uncertain to each. 
 The conquerors in the Grecian games were crowned 
 with leaves. These, though beautiful, soon faded away, 
 beauty, like glass, is brittle ; trusting in fading beauty is 
 like anchoring in a floating island. The righteous, though 
 his outer man decay, is an evergreen leaf. 
 
 China. — Man's life is like a candle in the wind, or hoar- 
 frost on the tiles. 
 
 Afghan. — Parents say, Our boy is growing up ; they forget 
 his life is shortening. 
 
 TurJc. — The dust of the tomb fills the eye of man. 
 
 Lip Love as Sounding Brass.— i Coe. 13. i. 
 
 Bengal. — By words only the moistened rice is not made into 
 
 a confection. 
 Bengal.— A false friendship is like a bank of sand. 
 Bengal. — iN^ow, you, as it were, give me the moon, but 
 
 shortly you will give me a flogging. 
 Bengal. — In words a tiger, in fighting a lizard. 
 Bengal. — My house is your own; but if you ask for food, 
 
 you are my enemy. 
 Telugu. — A barking dog never bites ; does gold ever ring 
 
 like bell metal ? 
 
 Use the Means. 
 Tehigu. — Grod gives food, but does he cook it and put it in 
 the mouth ? 
 
46 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Telugu. — Can your house be burnt down with hot water ? 
 Telugu. — By digging and digging the truth is discovered. 
 Telugu. — "When the field was sown without being ploughed, 
 
 it yielded without being reaped — i.e., it yielded 
 
 nothing. 
 China. — Better go home and make a net than go down the 
 
 river and desire to get fishes. 
 China. — No one can sew without a needle, no one can row 
 
 without water. 
 China. — A dry finger cannot lick up salt. 
 Afghan. — Though God is almighty, he sends not rain in a 
 
 clear sky. 
 Turk. — Don't descend into a well with a rotten rope. 
 • Turk. — "What can a stout ox do with a bad plough ? 
 Turk. — Knowledge is not acquired in a feather bed. 
 Turk. — AVho desires the rose must also consent to tlie 
 
 thorn. 
 Turk. — Knowledge is not gained on a bed of roses. 
 Mussian. — God help us, but don't lie on your back. 
 Russian. — -A good head has one hundred hands. 
 Talmud. — If a man goes not after wisdom it does not come 
 
 to him. 
 Telugu. — Scratching one's head with a firebrand — i.e., the 
 
 remedy worse than the disease. 
 Telugu. — Swimming over the Godaveri by catching hold of 
 
 a dog's tail, Luke 14. 31. 
 Tlrdu^. — He sets up for a druggist with one bit of assa- 
 
 foetida. 
 
 Gravel fills tlie Mouth of Deceit.— Peov. 20. 17. 
 
 The Lalita Vistara states : " Desires are regarded by 
 the wise as the edge of a sword covered with honey, or as 
 the head of a serpent leading to quarrels, as a corpse 
 among dogs." 
 
 Diverse weights are an abomination to the Lord, Hos. 
 12. 7, Deut. 25. 13—16. A bribe-taking judge is called 
 a briar, Micah 7. 4. 
 
 Jacob deceived his father with a kid. Gen. 27. 9-14, 
 &c. ; more than forty years after, his children deceive him 
 with a kid. Gen. 37. 31, 32. David artfully contrived 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 47 
 
 the murder of Uriah by the sword, 2 Sam. 11. 14, 15 ; 
 and the providence of God so appointed it that the sword 
 never departed from his house, 2 Sam. 12. 10. So with 
 Haman, Esther 7. 10, and the attempt to assassinate 
 Ahasuerus, Esther 2. 21—23. 
 
 The Jews put Christ to death that the Eomans might 
 not come and take away their place and nation ; by that 
 very act they drew down the vengeance of God, which God 
 appointed the Eomans to execute, John 11. 48. 
 
 Urdu. — A wooden pot cannot be often put on the fire — 
 i.e., deceit cannot be often repeated. 
 
 JBengal. — The low fellow's words are like the tortoise's head, 
 which can be drawn out or put in according to 
 circumstances. 
 
 Turh. — The liar's house is on fire, but no one believes it. 
 
 Telugu. — A trader in the air — i.e., an impostor. 
 
 Bengal. — He tells the thief to rob ; he bids the house- 
 holder be on his guard. 
 
 The Safe Guide.— Ps. 48. 14. 
 
 A guide is necessary in a strange place ; such the world 
 is — a wilderness where there are bad roads, few wells, 
 storms of sand arise, and the dread of robbers. 
 
 God directs men's steps ; so Pharaoh's daughter found 
 Moses when she went to bathe, Ex. 2. i 5 ; Saul, in search 
 of asses, obtained a kingdom, i Sam. 9. 3-15 ; Paul, on 
 his way to Damascus, saw Christ, Acts 9. ; David's case, 
 I Sam. 17. 53. 
 
 Biossian. — Man plans, but God fulfils. 
 
 China. — Man sees but the present, God all things. 
 
 Aral. — Man thinks, God guides. 
 
 Urdu. — God is the guardian of a blind man's wife. 
 
 China. — A man depends on God as a ship on its rudder. 
 
 Urdu. — One door is shut, but a thousand are open. 
 
 Mahalharat. — Like a gem strung upon a thread or a bull 
 tied by a nose rope, a man follows the command 
 of the Disposer (God) as the tips of grass are 
 swayed by the blasts of a strong wind. 
 
48 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The Hoary Head of the Righteous a Crown of G-lory. 
 
 Pkot. 1 6. 31. 
 
 The Jews required persons to rise up when at a distance 
 of four cubits from an old man. The Romans punished 
 with death those not rising up before the hoary ; and God 
 sent two bears to devour the men who called Elisha bald- 
 headed, 2 Kings 2. 23. 
 
 The Germans call grey hairs death's blossoms ; the 
 Bible says, if found in the way of righteousness, they are 
 a cTovm of life — i.e., unfading, and an ornament, a sign of 
 dominion and victory. Men are like vjiiw ; age renders 
 the good mellow, but makes the bad sour, or like chimneys 
 long foul, which, if not swept, are at length fired. Old 
 sinners are like vessels long abroach, in which nothing is 
 left but the lees and dregs of ignorance and sin. 
 
 Examples of good old righteous people in Samuel, i 
 Sam.- 2 5. I ; Elisha, 2 Kings, 13. 14; Jacob, (jqu. 47, 10 ; 
 Anna, Luke 2. 36. 
 
 The righteous, though old in body, is a new man in 
 religion, 2 Cor. 5 . 17; his youth is renewed like the 
 eagle's, Ps. 103. 5. 
 
 Aral. — Hoary hairs are death's messengers, Hos. 7. 9. 
 Afghan. — Though the mallet be old, it is sufficient to smash 
 
 the pitcher. 
 China. — In clothes we admire novelty ; in men, old age. 
 Aral. — The gravity of old age is fairer than the flower of 
 
 youth, Job 23. 6, 7. 
 Hebrew. — Wisdom is the grey hair unto men. 
 
 The Body of a House.-— 2 Coe. 5, i. 
 The Prohodh Chandwclaya compares the soul to a taper 
 confined in a dwelling which has nine openings. The 
 Shctnti Shatah says : " It is absurd to lament the loss 
 of youthful joy and a lively countenance, which floated 
 off like the sportive and short-lived billows in the Jumna." 
 Veman writes : " When a bubble stands on water, a rapid 
 rush in passing destroys it. Alas ! what affection men 
 feel for the frail earthen vessel of the body." 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 4^ 
 
 The word " house" sometimes means property, as when 
 referred to the Pharisees who devoured widow's houses^ 
 Matt. 23. 14. But "house" more generally means a 
 place to dwell in. The body is the earthly house in which 
 the spirit dwells, and the grave is called " the house 
 appointed for all living," Job 30. 23, because every one 
 now living must at last abide there as in a house. The 
 tabernacle and temple were called " the house of God," 
 as there God dwelt among his people by the signs of His 
 gracious presence, and His glory appeared in the cloud,, 
 and shone forth from between the Cherubim over the Ark. 
 And thus Jacob, when he set up the stone which had 
 formed his pillow, called the place Bethel, or the house of 
 God, to signify that the Lord had revealed himself in that 
 place, Gen. 28. 17. 
 
 Solomon says, Eccles. 12. 1-7, in old age the hee^pers of 
 the house, the knees, the pillars, tremble with paralysis ; 
 the grinders, or teeth, are like the women who ground 
 meal ; the eyes are the windows, the sight becomes dim. 
 Gen. 27. I ; 48. 10; the lattices of the windows afford 
 less light to pass through. Judges 5.28; 2 Sam. 6.16; 
 the doors are shut to enable the old to sleep ; the 
 daughters of music brought low, are singing or nautch 
 girls ; the house tumbles, and its tenant goes to his long 
 home. Who builds stronger than a mason, a shipwright,, 
 or a carpenter ? The gravedigger : the house that he 
 makes lasts till Doomsday. The believer's sun breaks 
 through the clouds of old age ; the golden chain, which 
 binds his heart to heaven, is waxing stronger and stronger,, 
 its links are growing more firm ; his house is tumbling, 
 but he has a building made without hands, 2 Cor. 6. i,. 
 in a city without foundations. 
 
 Hearing, not Doing, as a House on a Sandy Foundation. 
 
 Matt. 7. 26. 
 
 Tamul. — By pronouncing the word fire, will the mouth be 
 burnt ? 
 
 E 
 
50 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Telugu. — Will empty words fill bellies ? 
 
 Arab. — He who has made a hole in the corn-sack has 
 
 become a preacher. 
 Aral). — A learned man without practice is a cloud without 
 
 water. 
 Taniul. — Hunger is appeased by eating : will it be so by 
 
 looking at food ? 
 
 Moderation—/.^., Avoiding Extremes.— Phil. 4. 5. 
 
 Arab. — In shunning the bear he fell into the pit. 
 Persian. — Be not all sugar, or the world will swallow thee 
 
 up ; be not all wormwood, or the world will spit 
 
 thee out. 
 Turk. — To avoid the smoke, do not throw yourself into the 
 
 fire. 
 Bengal. — An excessive noise is of no use, Eccles. 7. 16. 
 Malay. — Prom fear of the ghost to clasp the corpse. 
 Talmud. — Eight things difficult to enjoy in abundance, but 
 
 in moderation good — labour, sleep, riches, jour- 
 neying, love, warm water, bleeding, and wine. 
 Malabar. — If you engrave it too much, it will become a 
 
 hole. 
 Tamul. — If taken to excess, even nectar is poison. 
 Malabar. — Even new clothes may be rent if pulled forcibly. 
 Mussian. — He ran from the wolf and fell in with the bear. 
 Talmud. — Three things in great quantity bad, but a little 
 
 good — leaven, salt, and liberality. 
 Malay. — To fall into the jaws of the tiger after escaping 
 
 from the mouth of the alligator. 
 Syriac. — Too much tying loosens. 
 Bussian. — Sweet as is honey, two spoonfuls of it cannot 
 
 be taken at one time. 
 China. — While keeping a tiger from the front door the 
 
 wolf enters in at the back. 
 China. — The excess of joy is sorrow ; of wine, drunkenness. 
 JBasq^ue. — The cord of a violin is broken in stretching it 
 
 too much. 
 Tamul. — Why eat, seeing you know not how to eat with 
 
 moderation ? 
 Telugu. — Because the sugar-cane is sweet, are you to chew 
 
 it with the roots ? 
 China. — To call the tiger to chase away the dog. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 51 
 
 Tamul. — It is said the snake, afraid of the charmer, sought 
 the friendship of the rat. 
 
 Basque. — By filling it too much the sack burst. 
 
 Tamul. — Joy and grief must be regulated by moderation. 
 
 Tamul. — Act as one who warms himself ; do not burn your- 
 self. 
 
 SansJcrit. — Excess is to be avoided in all things. 
 
 Oalic. — Though the old woman is better of warming, she is 
 not better of being burnt. 
 
 The Mote in a Brother's Eye, a Beam in Your Own. 
 
 Matt. 7. 3. 
 
 Humility teaches us to regard others as better than 
 ourselves. St. Paul, though the chief apostle, called him- 
 self the chief of sinners, i Tim. i. 15. 
 
 Russian. — A pig came up to a horse and said, Your feet are. 
 
 crooked, and your hair is worth nothing. 
 Bengal. — The sieve says to the needle. You have a hole in 
 
 your tail. 
 Tamul. — The defects in the eyelash are not apparent to the 
 
 eye. 
 Japan. — At the foot of the lighthouse it is dark. 
 Kurd. — No one says my milk is sour. 
 Cingalese. — The man without clothes busying himself in 
 
 making jackets for dogs. 
 China. — Let every one sweep the snow before his own 
 
 door, and not busy himself with the frost on his 
 
 neighbour's tiles. 
 China. — The crow mocked the pig for his blackness. 
 Kurd. — When your house is of glass, do not throw stones 
 
 at your neighbour's house. 
 Bohemian. — The pot punishes the kettle ; ye are both black. 
 Malay. — The mortar's complaint to a drug. 
 Modern GreeJc. — The ass said to the cock, Big-headed. 
 Sanskrit. — They know not their own defects who search for 
 
 the defects of others. 
 
 Stifif-necked.— Ps. 75. 5. 
 
 The Jews were called a stiff-necked people. Acts 7. 5 i. 
 The old world had its neck hardened by resisting the 
 
 E 2 
 
52 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 preaching of Noali for 120 years, i Pet. 3. 20 ; its people 
 were swept away by the Flood, altogether unexpectedly to 
 themselves, Lnke 17. 26, 27. So were Sodom, Gen. 19, 
 Eli's sons, I Sam. 3. 13. Pharaoh's hard neck was re- 
 proved by the Ten Plagues ; but continuing obstinate in 
 his rebellion against God, Pharaoh was overtaken with 
 sudden destruction at the moment he thought himself sure 
 of his prey, Ex. 14. 28. So Ahab, i Kings 17. i ;. 
 18. 18. 
 
 Tamul. — A stubborn wife is a mat rolled up — i.e., useless. 
 Bussian. — He bows to the ground, but bites his toes. 
 Tamul. — A stubborn man and a crocodile are ahke, they 
 will not lose hold of what they have seized. 
 
 Woman's Ornament the Hidden Man of the Heart. 
 
 I Pet. 3. 3, 4. 
 
 The hidden man of the heart here means a meek and 
 quiet spirit called the inner man, in contrast with the 
 outer man, the body or countenance ; thus Paul states, 
 though his outer man perish, his inner man is renewed 
 day by day, 2 Cor. 4. 16. See Solomon's description of 
 a virtuous woman, Prov. 31. 10—31; a contentious- 
 woman is compared to a continual dropping, Prov. 27.15; 
 she is a moth to consume her husband's estate. Women 
 are to adorn themselves with shamefacedness, i Tim. 
 2. 8, 9. 
 
 Ornaments in dress are condemned as exciting the 
 passions, encouraging pride, hindering ahns, i Tim. 2. 9, 
 10; wasting time, Eph. 5. 16, the prophets wore rough 
 garments, as Elijah, 2 Kings i. 8; Jezebel painted her 
 face; Herod was arrayed gorgeously, and was eaten 
 up of worms. Acts 1 2 ; so the rich man clad in purple 
 before going to hell, Luke 16; so Absalom. 
 
 Teltigu. — The tamarind may be dried, but it loses not its 
 
 acidity. 
 Veman. — Look closely at musk ; its hue indeed is dark, but 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 53 
 
 its fragrance perfumes all things; thus hidden 
 
 are the virtues of men of weight. 
 China. — We ask four things for a woman — that virtue 
 
 dwell in her heart, modesty in her forehead, 
 
 sweetness in her mouth, and labour in her hands. 
 CJianah. — As the sea defends the earth, a wall the roof, 
 
 a king the nation ; so does modesty a woman. 
 Ghanak. — As the voice forms the beauty of the cuckoo, 
 
 learning of an ugly man, mercy of an ascetic ; so 
 
 is conjugal fidelity the beauty of a woman ."^ 
 Arab. — An immodest woman is food without salt, Luke 
 
 14. 34- . 
 China. — Modesty is woman's courage. 
 Bussian. — The man is the head of the woman, but she rules 
 
 him by her temper. 
 Bussian. — The wife does not beat the husband, but her 
 
 temper rules him. 
 Japan. — When the hen crows the house goes to ruin. 
 China. — 
 
 A bustling woman and crowing hen, 
 
 Are neither fit for gods nor men. 
 
 China. — Silence and blushing are the eloquence of a woman. 
 
 Tit. 3. 3. 
 Fersian. — If you be a cock, crow ; if a hen, lay eggs. 
 JRussian. — It never goes well when the hen crows. 
 Bussian. — The hen is not a cock, nor is a woman a man, 
 
 Prov. 31. 10-31. 
 Bussian. — A woman's praise is in her household. 
 Kural, — 
 
 Of what avail are prisons barred, 
 Their chastity is women's guard. 
 Malay. — 
 
 A whole herd of buffaloes might be shut up in a pen, 
 There is one thing not to be guarded — a woman. 
 
 Turh. — Long hair, little brain, i Tim. 2. 9. 
 
 Patient as the Husbandman. — Jas. 5. 7. 
 
 Turlc. — The tree falls not at a single stroke. 
 
 Turk, — Patience is the key to joy. 
 
 Turk, — We mount the ladder step by step, 
 
 * The English proverbs are — Beauty is but skin deep ; is but 
 dross if honesty be lost. 
 
54 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Turk. — Bj patience grape juice becomes wine and the 
 
 mulberry leaf satin. 
 Turlc. — With zeal and patience the mouse pierces a plank. 
 Turh. — We always make advance, says the tortoise — i.e., 
 
 slow, but sure. 
 Arab. — Many locks are opened by patience. 
 Arab. — The noisy cat catches nothing. 
 Arab. — It may be a fire, to-morrow it will be ashes. 
 JPersian. — Patience is a tree whose root is bitter, but its 
 
 fruit very sweet. 
 Bengal. — Pull the ear, the head follows. 
 Bengal. — Having a firm hold on all sides, mount the horse. 
 Bussian. — The dog barks, the wind carries it away. 
 Afghan. — When a stone is stirred in filth the stench 
 
 increases. 
 Malabar. — By running in the boat, do we come to land ? 
 Tamul.— W\\\ the barking dog catch game ? 
 Malay. — Hillocks even are filled up by white ants. 
 Tamul, — If a cloth be spread on a thorn-bush, it must be 
 
 taken ofi" with great care, Prov. 19. 2. 
 Arab.— A. poor man without patience is a lamp without oil. 
 Sanskrit. — A jar is gradually filled by the falling of water-^ 
 
 drops. 
 
 Cast not Pearls before Swine. — Matt. 7, 6. 
 
 Tamul. — Like reading a portion of the Yeda to a cow 
 about to gore you. 
 
 Telugu. — ^A garland of flowers in a monkey's paw. 
 
 Japan. — Grold coins to a cat. 
 
 Tamul. — Though religious instruction be whispered into the 
 ear of an ass, nothing will come of it but the 
 accustomed braying. 
 
 Arab. — He who brings up the young of a snake will only 
 get stung. 
 
 Bersian. — It is folly to give comfits to a cow, Luke 7. 32. 
 
 Veman. — If an unlucky fool should even find the philoso- 
 pher's stone, it would never remain in his hands, 
 but vanish ; it would melt away like the hail- 
 stones that come with the rain, Prov. 12. 27. 
 
 Veman. — Though you anoint an ass all over with perfumes, 
 it feels not your fondness, but will turn again and 
 kick you, Mat. 7. 6\ Prov. 27. 22. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 55 
 
 Telugu. — What can a pig do with a rose-bottle ? 
 Sanskrit. — Beneficence shown to the mean is writing on the 
 sand. 
 
 Perfection. — Ps. 119. 96. 
 
 The more holy a man is, the more sensible he is of his 
 unholiness. 
 
 China. — There are two good men : one dead, the other 
 
 unborn. 
 Arab. — Only the grave-clothes change the physical nature. 
 I*ersian. — Sweetmeats without smoke. 
 Telugu. — The fire-place takes the crookedness out of the 
 
 stick — i.e. J the funeral pyre alone takes away 
 
 men's evil qualities. 
 Tamul. — Even an elephant may slip. 
 Persian. — Where is the person who has not soiled his 
 
 garments ? 
 Breton. — Who wishes a horse without defects ought to go 
 
 on foot. 
 Turk. — Who seeks a friend without a fault remains with- 
 out one. 
 Aral. — A good horse will stumble, a good knife will be 
 
 blunted. 
 Bengal. — Ink spots may be removed by washing ; natural 
 
 disposition only by death. 
 Japan. — The teeth sometimes bite the tongue — i.e., the best 
 
 friends will sometimes fall out. 
 China. — There are straight trees on the mountains ; no 
 
 straight men in the world. 
 
 Sin as a Poisonous Serpent. — Ps. 58. 4, 5. 
 
 The poison of serpents is like sin in five points : — 
 
 1 . Inflames ; so the fire of passion. 
 
 2. Spreads very quickly ; there are Indian cobras 
 whose poison kills in twenty minutes — like lightning the 
 poison goes through the body. Adam's sin has spread 
 through the world. 
 
 3. Small in the beginning, the wound of the cobra 
 scarcely visible, as the Bengali proverb — " It goes in a 
 
56 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 needle, comes out a ploughshare." Eve ate an apple, but 
 it poisoned the whole human race. 
 
 4. Bite not painful, but the effect deadly, Deut. 32. 33; 
 Job 20. 12 ; so the pleasures of sin for a season. 
 
 5. The serpent has a heautifid skin — such was 
 Absalom, beautiful but disobedient to his father David ; 
 he raised a rebellion against him. 2 Sam. 15. 6. 
 
 Telugu. — A year to a potter and a day to a cudgel, Eom. 
 5. '13. 
 
 Man as Clay ; God as the Potter.— Isa. 64. 8. 
 
 The nations before God compared to the drop of a 
 bucket^ Isa. 40. i 5 ; to the small dust of the balance, Isa. 
 40. 15. All things made on earth are frail, and easily 
 broken : and though they are finely figured, painted, and 
 gilded like porcelain, they are but earth still, and a fall 
 destroys them. 
 
 Man comes from the hands of the Maker, as clay from 
 the hand of the potter ; and is called a vessel, because he 
 has capacity to hold either good or evil, a vessel of wrath 
 or a vessel of destruction. Paul is called a chosen vessel, 
 and the wife the weaker vessel. 
 
 We are as clay in God's hands, and formed of the 
 dust ; He had the most absolute right to form us as vessels 
 to honour or to dishonour, and to endue us with powers 
 of mind and body of such extent, capacity, and efficiency, 
 as might seem good unto Him. He had a right to deter- 
 mine the duration and conditions of our being, to appoint 
 the bounds of our habitations, and all the circumstances 
 on which our happiness and welfare in any degree depend. 
 He was pleased to create man in his own image as a vessel 
 unto honour ; a little lower indeed than the angels, but 
 still endued with noble faculties, and crowned with 
 dominion over the beasts of the field ; when man " marred" 
 this Divine image and beauty by his own sinful folly. 
 God had the most absolute right either at once to "dash 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, $7 
 
 him in pieces as a potter's vessel," or to continue his 
 existence, and appoint him a new probation, on such con- 
 ditions as he might see fit to enjoin, with whatever 
 advantages or disadvantages he might be pleased to assign ; 
 man is like the moth which, flying at the candle, only- 
 gets burnt. 
 
 Persian. — The titmouse holds up its feet that the sky might 
 
 not fall upon it. 
 Telugu. — Like a grasshopper jumping into the fire — i.e., 
 
 to try to extinguish it. 
 Hussian. — The earthen pot cannot contend with the brass 
 
 one. 
 China. — On the %gg combating with the stone, the yolk 
 
 came out. 
 Persian. — The breath of the gnat will not put out the sun. 
 Oujerat. — Biting a stone breaks the teeth. 
 JBengal. — Who has made the thorn so sharp ? — i.e., a man's 
 
 abilities are from God. 
 Bengal. — "When one spits at the moon it falls back on 
 
 one's self. 
 China. — To run against a nail, Acts 9. 5. 
 Bengal. — The tailless ox pushing at the elephant. 
 
 Prudence. — Matt. id. 16. 
 
 Noah showed foresight in building the ark, Heb. 4. 7 ; 
 Pharaoh's servants, Exod. 9. 20, 21; so do the stork 
 and ant, Jer. ^. y. 
 
 Aral. — The chameleon does not leave one tree until he has 
 
 secured the other. 
 Bussian. — Measure your cloth ten times, you can cut but 
 
 once. 
 ^Chanak. — ^A wise man moves with one foot, stands fast 
 
 with the other, and does not quit the station he 
 
 occupies without well considering that which he 
 
 intends to go. 
 Arah. — If thou canst not take things by the head, then take 
 
 them by the tail. 
 Bussian. — A good fox has three holes. 
 Malabar. — Before you leap, look at the ground, Prov. 22. 3. 
 
58 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 African. — No one measures the river with both his feet. 
 Arab. — The servant, deceived by the cold of the morning, 
 
 provided no water for the heat of the day. 
 Sanshrit. — A king perceives by his ears ; the learned by 
 
 their intellect ; a beast by scent ; and fools by the 
 
 past. 
 Afghan. — Though your enemy be a rope of sand, call him- 
 
 a serpent — i.e.^ do not despise an enemy. 
 'Bengal. — Who sets the weir betimes, eats plenty of fish. 
 Gujerat. — A straight finger scoops not out clarified butter. 
 Turh. — Speak not of stones to a fool lest he cast them at 
 
 thy head. 
 Tamul. — Ants before rain carry their eggs to a higher place. 
 Turh. — Approach not bees without having thy head covered. 
 Sanskrit. — Fools learn only by the past — i.e., experience is a 
 
 dear school. 
 
 Punctuality, or Work while it is Day.— John 9. 4. 
 
 See the parable of the Foolish Virgins, who found the 
 door shut. The coming of the Bridegroom surprised the 
 wise virgins or bridesmaids with joy, the foolish with terror. 
 
 Jeremiah {^.7) reproves the people for not using their 
 opportunities ; he recommends them to be like the swallow 
 and stork, who prepare at a suitable moment to leave a 
 wintry climate for sunlit lands ; not like the ostrich, who 
 when pursued hides its head between its legs, fancying, 
 because he does not see the danger there will be none. 
 Time and tide wait for no man. Mat. 25. 10. 
 
 JPersian. — A poor man waited 1,000 years before the gate 
 
 of Paradise ; then, while he snatched one little 
 
 nap, it opened and shut. 
 I^ersian. — The stream which has passed down does not 
 
 come back to its former channel. 
 Arah. — Pour things cannot he brought back — a word 
 
 spoken, an arrow discharged, the Divine decree, 
 
 and past time. 
 Arah. — Occasions, like clouds, pass away. 
 Arah. — It is little use to hammer cold iron. 
 Bengal. — Having drunk the water, he asks the caste of the 
 
 giver. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 59 
 
 China. — It is little use to light a fire when the breeze is 
 
 blowing. 
 Talmud. — The owl and the hen waited together for the 
 
 morning: " The light is of use to me," said the hen ;. 
 . "but of what use is it to you?" I Theas. 5. 5. 
 
 God's Influence as Rain on the Mown Grass. — Ps. 72. 6. 
 
 The heart of man is often compared to the hard ground y. 
 which must be ploughed or softened before it can either 
 receive the good seed, or can bring forth such crops as 
 the sower looks for in their season ; it is sometimes 
 called a " stony heart ;" and the doctrine is then spoken 
 of as " a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces ;" or " a 
 two-edged^ sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of 
 soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow." God's 
 gentler influence is alluded to when it is likened to rain 
 or dew ; more gentle, but not less powerful, than when 
 it acts as a sword, or " as a firel' or as a hammer, or as 
 the rain of God's fury on the wicked. Job, 20. 23. 
 
 The ground is sometimes so hard and parched in sum- 
 mer in tropical countries that it might almost be taken 
 for rockj and can be broken only by the most violent 
 effort ; yet, when " a gracious rain" is sent upon it, by 
 degrees the hardness gives way, and it is again such as to 
 receive into its bosom the seeds which shall bear fruit in 
 due season. And thus has many and many a heart, which 
 seemed " as hard as a piece of the nether millstone," been 
 softened and penetrated by the heavenly doctrine in due 
 time. Job 23. 16. 
 
 Eain deserves to be called a present from heaven. As 
 the consequences of a continued drought would be fatal 
 to us, as seen in India, so the advantages which the re- 
 freshing showers afford are equally precious. The heat 
 of the sun acts without interruption on the different 
 bodies on earth, and continually draws thin particles from 
 them, which fill the atmosphere in the form of vapours. 
 We should breathe those dangerous exhalations with the 
 
^o EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 air, if now and then tliey were not carried off by the rain, 
 which precipitates them upon the earth, and thus clears 
 and 'purifies the air. The rain is not less useful in mode- 
 rating the burning heat of the atmosphere, as we see in 
 the rainy season in India, Isa. 44. 3, when the rain falls 
 from a higher region, and brings to the lower a refreshing 
 coolness, of which we always feel the agreeable effects 
 when it has rained. It is also to the rain we must partly 
 attribute the origin of fountains, wells, lakes, brooks, and 
 consequently rivers such as the Amazon of America, 180 
 miles wide at its mouth. We are supplied in abundance 
 with those sources of water in the wet and rainy seasons, 
 whereas they evaporate during a long drought. The earth 
 and vegetables languish for want of these fruitful showers, 
 without which everything would perish, for rain is in 
 many respects the food of vegetables; it circulates in 
 their finer veins, and in the vessels of plants and trees, 
 and conveys to them those beneficial juices which pre- 
 serve their life' and give them growth. When it pours 
 on mountains, it sweeps from them a soft, rich, and fruit- 
 ful earth, which it deposits in* the valleys where it falls, 
 and which it fertilizes. The valleys of the Ganges and 
 Nile have been thus formed. 
 
 Among the Egyptians the prophet carried in his hand 
 a pitcher, as a symbol of his dispensing the water of 
 learning. In the Lalita Vistara it is said that Sakhya 
 Muni "will render calm and cool by the rain of the 
 law those who are devoured by the fire of envy and 
 passion." 
 
 God's influence like rain in four 'points : — 
 
 1. Sometimes comes irresistiUg, Isa. 60. 10, 11. 
 
 2. Varies — sometimes in torrents, at other times in 
 showers. The feast of Pentecost, when 3,000 were con- 
 verted, was a torrent. Lydia's case was the gentle shower. 
 Acts 16. 14; so was Timothy's case. 
 
 3. Falls in drops in succession ; so line upon line, Isa. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 6i 
 
 28. 10. Men, like narrow-mouthed vessels, cannot receive 
 much at a time. 
 
 4. At God's 'pleasure. In some countries the rain falls 
 in torrents ; in Egypt scarcely any falls. 
 
 Redeeming the Time.— Eph. 5. 16. 
 
 The text treats of laying up time as a thing of value, 
 such as the dying, who know the preciousness of time ; 
 there is only one building eternal, 2 Cor. 5. i. Solo- 
 mon says, Eccles. 3. 3-7, there is a time to break down, 
 such as happened to the walls of Jerusalem, 2 Kings 25. 
 4-15; there is a time to cast away stones, as in building 
 memorials. Gen. 30., Jos. 4. 1-9; so Paul threw things 
 overboard in the shipwreck. Acts 27. 38. 
 
 The English say, " Time and tide wait for no man ;" 
 the Bengalis say, " When the rice rises in the pot, quick, 
 quick, quick ;" in hell they know the worth of time ; the 
 sinner's to-morrow will never come ; Jerusalem had its 
 time, but it knew it not, Luke 19. 42 ; a Jewish rabbi, 
 asked when a man should repent, said one day before his 
 death. Christ came in the fulness of time, Gal. 4. 4 ; 
 and our times are in God's hands, Ps. 31. 15. 
 
 Time brings changes ; thus one man who in the morning 
 was worshipped, in the evening was hung up as food for 
 crows, Esth. 7. i— 10; one great king became mad, 
 Dan. 4.32; see the fate of a king in the midst of a 
 feast, Dan. 5. 30. 
 
 Arab. — Opportunities pass away like clouds. 
 
 Persian. — The arrow, once shot, never returns to the bow% 
 
 Eccles. II. 3. 
 Mussian. — Summer never comes twice in a year. 
 Arah. — The best teacher is time. 
 Sanskrit. — Hepairing the tank after the water had escaped. 
 
 Sparing the Rod, hating his Son. — Peov. 13. 24. 
 Sweet honey is sucked out of the bitterest herbs; 
 
-62 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 scouring makes a vessel shine the brightest ; so with 
 punishment. Eli neglected to restrain his sons, i Sam. 
 3. 13; this proved their ruin, i Sam. 4. 11. Such 
 apparent kindness was cruelty. David did not restrain 
 Absalom, 2 Sam. 14. 25, and it led to his ruin, 
 I Kings 12. The best horse needs breaking, so the 
 best child restraining. 
 
 bengal. — Sand sharpens a knife, a stone an axe, good words 
 a good man ; so a thrashing does a rogue. 
 
 Talmud. — A word is enough for a wise man, a stick for a 
 fool. — So in Arabic. 
 
 Tehigu. — An iron ladle for a stone pot. 
 
 Afghan. — 
 
 The porcupine says, my soft httle son, softer than butter. 
 The crow says, O my son, whiter than muslin. 
 
 Afghan. — 
 
 The ungrateful son is a wart on his father's face. 
 To leave it is a blemish : to cut it a pain. 
 
 Illustrate Eli's sparing the rod by an Afghan proverb ? 
 
 The Root of all Evil is the Love of Money.— i Tim. 6. 10. 
 
 St. Paul calls covetousness idolatry, Eph. 5. 5 ; covet- 
 ousness imphes distrust of God, Luke 12. 29; we are to 
 ask only for our daily bread. Mat. 6. 34 ; hasting to be 
 rich leads to wrong means, as with Judas, Balaam, Ahab, 
 Ananias, Simon Magus ; their root of money-love spreads 
 like the banyan, its branches very wide in discontent and 
 carelessness of the poor. (See the parable of the Unjust 
 Steward and Eich Worldling, Luke 12. 15-21.) Christ 
 said, " Ye cannot serve God and Mammon ;" or, as the 
 Bengalis have it — " One foot on land, the other on water." 
 The ostrich cannot fly high because of its wings ; and Jacob 
 with his flock had to travel slowly. Gen. 33. 13. He is 
 not rich who possesses much, but wdio desires little ; the 
 evil lies not in the mere acquisition of money — thus 
 Abraham, the father of the faithful, was wealthy. 
 Gen. 1 3 . 2 ; so was David, the man after God's own heart. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 63 
 
 I Cliron. 28. 10; 29. I- 1 6. Theirs was not filthy lucre, 
 'Tit. I. 7. 
 
 TurTc, — The stomach of the covetous is satisfied ; his eye 
 
 never. 
 Malabar. — Money is the hatchet to separate pleasant friends. 
 Arah. — The gaping mouth of covetousness is not filled 
 
 except by the earth of the grave, Ps. 146. 4. 
 Arab. — Covetousness is the punishment of the rich ; a rich 
 
 miser is poorer than a poor man. 
 Arab. — Kiches are the fomenters of desire ; the thirst after 
 
 wealth is more vehement than after water. 
 Arah, — Covetousness has for its mother unlawful desires, 
 
 for its daughter injustice, for its companion 
 
 vileness. 
 TurTc. — To ask bounty from a covetous man is to dig a 
 
 trench in the sea. 
 Syrian. — Like the monkey's fat, which does not melt or 
 
 soften. 
 Kurd. — The camel carries sugar, yet eats thorns. 
 Telugu. — Avarice knows not shame ; sleep (of the covetous) 
 
 knows not comfort. 
 Persian. — The miser has locked up the gate of heaven. 
 MaJiabJiarat. — The bolt of the door of heaven is made by 
 
 covetousness. 
 Persian. — Fat does not come from a stone — i.e., the miser 
 
 is stony-hearted. 
 Bengal. — An ox carrying sugar — i.e., a miser enjoying not 
 
 what he has. 
 bengal. — Even iron swims for gain; from covetousness 
 
 came sin, from sin death. 
 Persian. — A man attempted to swim with a load of iron 
 
 on his back, Hab. 2. 6. 
 Afghan. — Though the river be large, it is on the dog's 
 
 tongue — i.e., misers have much, but can spend 
 
 little on themselves. 
 Afghan. — "Wealth is his who eats it (enjoys), not his who 
 
 keeps it. 
 Tamul. — Patient endurance is the root of religious merit ; 
 
 avarice the root of sin. 
 Arab, — The thirst after gold is worse than the thirst after 
 
 water. 
 Sanskrit. — Man is the slave of money. 
 
64 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Rottenness of the Bones in Envy.— Peov. 14. 30. 
 
 If tlie bones, the mainstay of the system, be rotten, the 
 whole body becomes sick — a slow and torturing death 
 takes place ; so envy is the soul's rottenness. 
 
 Envy converts the happiness of which it is the witness 
 into wormwood and gall for its own cup, and transforms 
 the honey of another man's comfort into the poison of 
 asps for its own bosom : it is an instrument of self-torment 
 — a burning ulceration of the soul — a crime which, par- 
 taking of the guilt, partakes as largely of the misery of 
 hell. Gain, the first murderer, slew his brother at the 
 instigation of this vice. Gen. 4. 4 ; ^aiil, under the influ- 
 ence of envy, plotted for years the slaughter of David, 
 I Sam. 18. Ahab, the king of Israel, pined for the vine- 
 yard of Naboth, and shed his blood to gain it, i Kings 21.; 
 it was envy that perpetrated that most atrocious crime on 
 which the sun refused to look, and at which Nature gave 
 signs of abhorrence by the rending of the rocks — the cruci- 
 fixion of Christ, Mat. 27, 18. 
 
 The envious man is a man of the worst diet, for he 
 consumes himself, and delights in pining : a thorn-hedge 
 covered with nettles ; a peevish interpreter of good things ; 
 and no other than a lean and pale carcase, quickened with 
 a fiend. Envy is painful to ourselves, and injurious as 
 rust is to iron or the moth to cloth ; therefore called " the 
 rottenness of the bones." It arises from pride, and is carried 
 out in covetousness and evil desire, ending in discontent. 
 Envy is discontentedness at another man's good and pros- 
 perous estate, holiness, esteem, renown, and ability. In 
 carnal things it is sordid, in higher things it is devilish. 
 In the one we partake with the beasts, who ravenously 
 seek to take the prey from one another ; in the other with 
 the devils and evil angels, who, being fallen from happi- 
 ness, now malign and envy those that enjoy it. St. James 
 3. 14, calls it " hitter envying," to distinguish it from that 
 holy emulation which makes us strive who shall excel 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 65 
 
 each other in the ways of godliness ; as also from true 
 zeal for God's glory. It proceeds from the overflow of 
 gall and choler, that root of bitterness that is in the 
 heart ; it is bitter to ourselves and others, it makes us 
 unpleasant to those with whom we converse ; and though 
 it be sweet for the present, yet, when conscience is opened, 
 and we taste the fruits of it, it proves bitterness in the 
 issue. Envy is but a cockatrice ^gg, that soon brings 
 forth strife. The world had an early experience of it. 
 Satan envied Adam and Eve. Pride the first sin in 
 Adam ; envy the second in Cain. There was envy between 
 Abraham and Lot's herdsmen, Gen. 13. 7, then Joseph's 
 brethren envied him, and conspired to slay him. Gen. 
 37. 4. So in Saul and David's case, i Sam. 18. 9. 
 
 Bengal. — In seeing another's wealth, it is not good to have- 
 the eyes smart. 
 
 Gulistan. — I can avoid injuring the mind of any one, but 
 what shall I do to the envious man who carrieth 
 the injury in his own breast ? Die, thou envious 
 wretch, since thou canst not be cured of the 
 disease under which thou labourest, but by death. 
 
 Arab. — Envy is a raging fever ; envy has no rest ; the wise- 
 no poverty. 
 
 TurTc. — No mountain without mist ; no man of merit with- 
 out detractors. 
 
 Oriental. — Virtue is always exposed to envy ; we cast not 
 stones at a barren tree. 
 
 Afghan. — The horses were shoeing themselves, the frogs 
 held up their feet — i.e., to be shoed also. 
 
 Tamul. — An enemy's envy is his own punishment. 
 
 Tamul. — Envy thou not the glory of a sinner. 
 
 Tamul. — Thou knowest not what shall be his end, Prov, 
 24. 20. 
 
 Japan. — Lepers envious of those with sores. 
 
 JEEelrew. — The ear of jealousy heareth all things. 
 
 Hebrew. — Envy and wrath shorten the life. 
 
 Hebrew, — Carefulness brings age before the time. 
 
 Hebrew. — The envious man has a wicked eye. 
 
66 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Hypocrites' Hope a Rush in the Mire.— Job 8. 11-15. 
 
 The Tehigus compare visionary hopes to a bag of 
 money seen in a looking-glass. The rush springs out of 
 the mire, and its growth is as rapid as its greenness is 
 bright " before the sun ;" while the bed in which it 
 grows is filled with the season rains, it flaunts itself as 
 if in scorn of the more valuable blade in the neighbour- 
 ing furrow, and gains more notice from the uninstructed 
 eye, yet it is always a worthless plant, and as soon as 
 the torrent is dried up by the heat of summer, it withers 
 in a day ; so the rich fool's hopes of long life, Luke 1 2. 
 16-20. So Goliath's head was cut off with the very 
 sword he hoped to kill David with, i Sam. 17. 44-51. 
 
 Hypocrites are Whited Sepulchres. — Mat. 23. 27. 
 
 Sepulchres were beautiful without, loathsome within; 
 hence they were away from cities, as those who touched 
 the dead were accounted polluted. 
 
 Hypocrites likened, Luke 1 1 . 44, to (/raves that appear 
 not, because covered with grass and weeds — their throat 
 an open sepulchre, Ps. 5. 9. 
 
 Paul called Ananias a loliited wall, Acts 23. 3. 
 
 These hypocrites worshipped God with their lips, 
 while their hearts were far from him. Mat. 15. 8, and 
 by their extortions they devoured widows' houses. Mat. 
 23. 14. 
 
 Cain was a hypocrite in worshipping God without 
 sacrifice and pretending not to know where his brother 
 was when he had killed him. Gen. 4. 9 ; so Judas when 
 he kissed Christ after he had betrayed him for 30 pieces 
 of^silver. Mat. 26. 49. 
 
 Chanah. — A friend who injures your business in your 
 absence, but speaks smoothly when you are 
 present, should be shamed as a bowl of poison 
 with milk on its surface. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 67 
 
 bengal. — The heron is (in appearance) a saint as lonj as 
 
 thejlsh is not in sight. 
 JBengal. — The female devotee pretends not to eat Jish, hut 
 
 there are three on her leaf. 
 
 The Righteous the Salt of the Earth.— Mat. 5. 13, 
 
 The righteous like salt in three '■points : — 
 
 Salt is remarkable for its own peculiar savour, by wliicli 
 its presence in any substance with which it can* unite 
 itself is at once detected ; spreading itself through any 
 thing with which it is thus mixed, it imparts its own 
 quality of saltness to the previous taste or savour. It 
 has also the quality of preserving from corruption, even 
 for a number of years, many substances that would other- 
 wise perish ; hence it is an emblem of what is enduring 
 or perpetual. 
 
 God appointed that salt should be used in all the 
 sacrifices offered to him : salt was the opposite to leaven, 
 for it preserved from putrefaction and corruption, and 
 -signified the purity and persevering fidelity that are 
 necessary in the worship of God. Every thing was 
 seasoned with it to signify the purity and perfection that 
 should be extended through every part of the divine 
 service, and through the hearts and lives of God's 
 worshippers. It was called "the salt of the covenant 
 of God," because, as salt is incorruptible, so were the 
 covenant and promise of Jehovah. Among the heathens 
 salt was a common ingredient in all their sacrificial offer- 
 ings ; and as it was considered essential to the comfort 
 and preservation of life, and an emblem of the most 
 perfect corporeal and mental endowments, so it was 
 supposed to be one of the most acceptable presents they 
 could make unto their gods, from whose sacrifices it was 
 never absent. 
 
 Salt is the symbol of luisdom, Col. 4. 6 ; of perpetuity 
 
 F 2 
 
68 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 and incorruption, Numb. 1 8. 19; 2 Chron. 13. 5, 4; of 
 hospitality, and of that fidelity wliicli is due from ser- 
 vants, friends, guests, and domestics, to those that 
 entertain them, and receive them at their tables : it is 
 used in this sense, Ezra 4. 14, where maintenance ;fronv 
 the kings taUe means salted loith the salt of the palace,. 
 In Eussia at the present day when the Emperor visits- 
 any of his subjects, bread and salt are presented to him 
 as an emblem of hospitality. 
 
 A little salt seasons much meat, and prevents its 
 perishing ; so Lot w^as the salt of Sodom, and had there 
 been ten righteous persons in it, the city would have 
 been preserved. Gen. 18. 32. Salt preserves the human 
 body from worms, so the righteous save society from 
 corruption. 
 
 Hebrew. — Alms are the salt of riches. 
 
 Badaga. — If the curry is without savour, you can put salt 
 into it ; but if the salt has lost its savour, with 
 what can it be seasoned? Mat. 5. 13. 
 
 Our Days on Earth a Shadow.— Job 8. 9. 
 Gotthold compares time to an image in the water easily 
 broken ; yet 'the shadow gives shelter for a time, as 
 Jonah found at Mneveh under the gourd, 4. 6. Life 
 like a shadow has little suhstance, is fleeting ; it is com- 
 pared in Job 8. 1 1, to a o^ush springing up in the mud,, 
 and drying up before the influence of the sun. 
 
 Afghan. — As the sun's shadow shifts, so there is no per- 
 manence ou earth. 
 
 Bengal. — A service fleeting as the palm tree's shade or the 
 cloud's shadow. 
 
 Bengal. — There is no hand to catch time. 
 
 Sanskrit. — Time is stronger than all things else. 
 
 God a Shepherd. — Ps. 23. i. 
 
 God a sliepherd in seven points : — 
 The shepherd knov:s his sheep, so as to be able to dis- 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 69 
 
 tinguish them individually, John 10. 14. Their number, 
 names, place, character, and condition. " I am the good 
 shepherd, and know my sheep." He provides for them. 
 The shepherd jprotects them, and for this purpose he is 
 usually provided with a staff or rod, a sling, and if need be 
 'with a sword or spear ; so David, i Sam. 1 7. 40. He leads 
 them often in a barren wilderness with no paths or water, 
 surrounded by wild beasts ; so God guides his people by 
 his Providence, Word, and Spirit. " I will go before 
 thee, and make the crooked places straight." " He leadeth 
 me," says the Psalmist, " in the paths of righteousness" in 
 •an even and quiet path, in opposition to a path among 
 thorns and stones and cliffs. When exposed to the 
 scorching heat of the sun, or when weary and exhausted, 
 he conducts them to some shady place where he " causes 
 them to rest at noon." By " noon is meant " " fiery 
 trial," whether arising from temptation, affliction, or per- 
 secution, or all together. The lamhs are the objects of 
 his special care and affection, when they become tired, or 
 come to some difficult part in the track, which they can- 
 not get over, the shepherd may be seen " gathering them 
 in his arms," and even " carrying them in his bosom." 
 Christ said, " Suffer the little children to come unto me, 
 and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of heaven. 
 And he took them up in his arms, put his hands on them, 
 and blessed them," Mark 10. 14-16. Hence also his 
 charge to Peter, "Feed my lambs," John 21. 15. He 
 numbers them when they return to the fold to see that 
 none be missing, and if there be an under-shepherd, that 
 he may account to the owner for the sheep committed to 
 his trust and care. When the flocks are large and 
 numerous, and several shepherds are required, 07ie is ap- 
 pointed over the rest as the chief shepherd. He restores 
 the sheep that has strayed, and goes after that which is 
 lost until he finds it. God, as a shepherd, has an immense 
 flock all over the world ; gives them peculiar food ; 
 a,lways abides. Believers are sheep, easily scattered when. 
 
70 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 away from the slieplierd, as were the Jews l3y the- 
 Babylonians. 
 
 Mahratta. — An herdsman, with his staff in his hand, guides 
 and protects his cattle. Will not God, with the 
 staiF of correction, guide and protect man ? 
 
 China. — When heaven rears a man, he grows very fat. AVhen 
 men rear one, he is but skin and bone. 
 
 Te'lugu. — Will he who plants the tree not water it ? 
 
 Modern Greek. — Appointing the wolf a shepherd. 
 
 I'ersian. — The sheep are not designed for the shepherd^ 
 but the shepherd for the service of the sheep. 
 
 TJrdio. — Put ants and dogs to guard sweetmeats. 
 
 Mussian. — The shepherd shears the sheep but does not 
 flay them. 
 
 Sowing to the Flesh Reaping Corruption. — Gal. 6. 8. 
 
 The principles of ruin are in ourselves, like the iron 
 which breeds rust, or like filthy garments which j)roduce 
 moths, or ill-humours in the body causing a fever. 
 
 The husbandman's labours are often blasted, not so 
 those of the righteous ; God will not forget the labour of 
 love, Heb. 6. lo. Husbandmen have to reap every year, 
 the righteous all at once. 
 
 Adonizebeh was paid in his own coin, Judg. i. / ; Ahah's 
 blood was licked up by the dogs ; and Haman was hung 
 on his own gallows, Esth. /. i o. David sowed adultery, 
 reaped the sword, 2 Sam. 12.9, 1 1 ; Joseph's brethren 
 sowed envy. Gen. 42. 21; Judas sowed coveteousness,, 
 reaped a halter. Matt. 27. 5. 
 
 The Buddhists of Ceylon say — " If any one speak or^ 
 act from a corrupt mind, suffering will follow the action, 
 as the wheel follows the lifted foot of the ox.'-' An 
 English proverb — " He has made his bed, and he must 
 lie in it," Job 4.8; they that plough iniquity reap the same,, 
 they sowing the wind reap the whirlwind, Hos. 8. 7. The. 
 Persians say, " He that plants thorns shall he not gather 
 roses; the field of wrong brings forth death as its fruits,, 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 71 
 
 Prov. 5. 22 ; lie is liolden with the cords of his own sin 
 so fire in his lips, Prov. 16. 27 ; Job 5.2. 
 
 Burma. — Suffering is the necessary consequence of sin, 
 
 just as when you eat a sour fruit a stomach 
 
 complaint ensues. 
 Bengal. — Put your hand in the fire, whether willingly or 
 
 no, you will get burnt. 
 Shanti Shatak. — To wherever you roam in sky or ocean, 
 
 yet your actions from birth up will follow you 
 
 before the Judge as the shadow the substance. 
 Telugu. — A man's shadow remains near himself. 
 Telugu. — If you expect much fruit from few offerings, 
 
 will it be obtained ? 
 Bengal. — Prom the jack do you get the mango juice ? 
 Bengal. — " As the sin, so the atonement." 
 Bengal. — " The ant's wings produce its own death.'* 
 Bane. — Whoever will eat the kernel must crack the nut. 
 Malabar. — When any one has learnt to steal, he must also 
 
 learn hanging. 
 Talmud. — The crow brought fire into the nest ; it warmed 
 
 him, but it burnt the nest. 
 TarJc. — Those who sow thorns can only reap prickles. 
 Bersian. — He that plants thorns shall not gather roses. 
 China. — Ivory does not come out of the rat's mouth. 
 Mussian. — It is not necessary to sow fools, they grow of 
 
 themselves. Grod is not in haste, but His aim is 
 
 sure. 
 
 The Hypocrites' Hope a Spider's Web.— Job 8. 14. 
 
 The Italians, to express the community of goods between 
 true friends, say they tie their purses with a spider's web 
 — i.e., easily broken. 
 
 The spider weaves its web out of its own bowels, and 
 with wonderful skill prepares a network which far sur- 
 passes the most curious product of human workmanship, 
 even the Kashmir shawl in the regularity and fineness of 
 its texture. The spider succeeds in fixing himself even 
 in the mansions of the great, and clings tenaciously to 
 
72 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 the haunt or home which she has chosen. Pro v. 30. 28. 
 Her web is admirably woven for the purpose which she 
 has in view ; and such insects, as are incautiously 
 entangled in it, become an easy prey. Yet is it also so 
 frail and slight that a breath might rend it ; and at last 
 it is brushed away in a moment by the meanest servant 
 of the house, the sweeper. So the hypocrite's hope is 
 spun out of his own fancies, as the spider's web out of her 
 own bowels ; and it consists either in a groundless con- 
 ceit of his own merits, or in an equally erroneous notion 
 of God's character. The spider when he suspects his 
 web — here called his house — to be frail or unsure, leans 
 upon it in different parts, propping himself on his hinder 
 legs, and pulling with his fore-claws, to see if all be safe. 
 If he find any part of it injured, he immediately adds 
 new cordage to that part, and attaches it strongly to the 
 wall. Wlien he finds all safe and strong, he retires into 
 his hole at one corner, and supposes himself to be in a 
 state of complete security ; the web looks very beautiful 
 in sunshine, in a moment, however, any accident, to say 
 nothing of a dirty broom, sweeps away himself and his 
 house. 
 
 'Bengal. — Trust to the cat, and the buttermilk on the shelf. 
 
 Arab. — More faithful than the earth — i.e.^ which renders 
 all things deposited in it. 
 
 Tamul. — Will they let a bug escape because it did not bite ? 
 
 Japan — A key to a thief. 
 
 Welsh. — To pawn a piece of flesh with a cat. 
 
 Bengal. — Dancing on an unbaked water vessel. 
 
 Talmud. — Be very humble ; the hopes of men are worms. 
 
 Oriental. — More disappointing than the fire of a glow- 
 worm. 
 
 The Lord the Stay of the Righteous.— 2 Sam. 22. 19. 
 
 A house or wall is tottering, a beam of wind stays it 
 up, such are the ropes to a ship, so creeping plants, 
 unable to stand upright, cling by their tendrils to some 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 73 
 
 stick which becomes their stay ; similarly the soul clings 
 to God by the tendrils of faith. 
 
 The Nick of Time Taught by the Stork.— Jer. 8. 7. 
 
 In many countries the storks and many birds are not 
 able to stand the winter ; on its approach they congregate 
 and depart in a body for the sunlit lands, returning in 
 the spring, so do the crane and swallow. Men know 
 the signs of the weather, and when it is time to start on 
 a journey ; but when the shadows of life's evening are 
 coming, people do not see the signs of death's approach, 
 Hos. 7. 9. The Italians- say, " time is an inaudible file," 
 which destroys gradually without its being noticed. 
 Christ reproached the people, that though knowing the 
 •signs of bad weather, they did not know the drift of 
 spiritual things, Mat. 1 6. 3 ; so God in Jeremiah reproaches 
 the people for not, like the birds, looking into the future ; 
 the wicked are like the ostrich, which, when pursued, 
 hides its head between its legs, fancying because it does 
 not see the coming danger that it will not ensue. 
 
 The Sting of Death is Sin. — i Coe. 15. 56. 
 
 There are various stings — those of an asp, a bee, a 
 nettle, a wasp ; all, however, infuse poison quietly and 
 sharply, and give pain. The devil is the old serpent, 
 who injects the poison of his sting into afflictions and 
 ■death, while Christ is the brazen serpent, by looking to 
 Whom the wounds are healed. No sting of death was 
 felt by David, 2 Sam. 23. 5 ; by Joseph, Gjen. 50 ; by 
 Jacob, Gen. 49. 1 8. There is, however, a love stronger 
 than death, and death may buzz about our ears, but it 
 has lost its sting. Is. 25, 8. 
 
 Bengal, — The commision of sin produces the fear of death. 
 
74 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The Sinner's Heart Stony.— -Ezee. 2,'^. 26. 
 The heart of the vAched is like a stone in four ^points : — 
 
 1. Hard, yields not to a blow, hence Job 41. 1—34,, 
 refers to the heart of the crocodile, hard as the nether 
 millstone ; arrows and spears are as stubble to him, they 
 will not enter — such were St€{phen's murderers. Acts 7. 57. 
 There are stones in India on which the rains and winds- 
 have been beating for many thousand years, yet they are 
 not worn, while the instruments used to break these 
 stones are often broken themselves, Luke 4. 29. The 
 seed that falls on stony soil springs not up, as there is no- 
 moisture in a stone. 
 
 2. Senseless, no feeling, Eph. 4. 19 ; the wicked go as- 
 an ox to the slaughter, feeling no danger of their lives ; 
 they have no shame, but a brow of brass. Is. 48. 4. 
 
 3. Heavy. — The thoughts of the wicked are not up to- 
 heavenly things, but down to the earthly ; their God is 
 their belly; they are of the earth, earthy, i Cor. 15. 47, 
 
 3. iVb motion, therefore no life. 
 
 4. Cold, as being without life. 
 
 But God's hammer, his word, Jer. 23. 29, breaks the 
 rock in pieces, and gives a heart of flesh, such as Paul 
 had, who from a persecutor became a preacher of Chris- 
 tianity ; so the hardened jailor when he became softened, 
 he began to cry out, Acts 16. 30. This hammer fastens 
 conviction as a nail in a sure place. Is. 22. 23. It softens, 
 and smashes the hardest rock. 
 
 Persian. — A drop of rain makes no impression on a bard 
 
 stone. 
 Kurd. — Grass grows not under a stone. 
 China. — The heart of the worthless is as unfixed and 
 
 changeless as a mountain stream. 
 Persian. — He tries to extract oil from the sand. 
 Tamul. — The solemn thoughts of the funeral pyre last till. 
 
 each one returns home. 
 Tamul. — Even stones may be dissolved, the heart of a fool' 
 not. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 75 
 
 He, Hastening with his Feet, Stumbles.— Peov. 19. 2. 
 
 Turk. — Step by step we mount the ladder. 
 
 Arah. — Patience is the key of joy, but haste is the key of 
 
 sorrow. 
 Telugu. — Why do you cry before you are beaten, he asked ; 
 
 you are going to beat me in future, replied the boy. 
 Afghan. — The Patau boy and his brother taking a short cut 
 
 fell over the cliffs. 
 Afghan, — He takes off his clothes before he reaches the 
 
 water. 
 China. — Silly birds fly first. 
 Mussian, — Hurry is good only for catching flies. 
 Sanskrit. — A small beginning is good. 
 Sanskrit. — Debt, a sore, and a stain, will be effaced by time.. 
 Sanskrit. — Slowly, slowly place the foot. 
 
 The Swallow knows her Time, not so the Ignorant. — 
 
 Jee. 7. 8. 
 The swallow, like various other birds, is a bird of pas- 
 sage. What was it that skimmed over the stream, where 
 the ripples are so bright in the morning sunshine ? It 
 was the first swallow of the returning spring. It has come 
 back in its season — the spring and summer — nor will it 
 leave again till the leaves, which in spring burst from 
 their buds, are withered and falhng. When cold and 
 winter are coming, the swallows often remain in a torpid 
 state in the holes of walls or the banks of rivers. The 
 swallow, like the Indian adjutant, is true to the divine law 
 which concerns its return and its departure. It knows 
 the time to come and the time to go, and neither loses the 
 summer pleasantness by delaying its return, nor runs the 
 risk of suffering from the winter frost by prolonging its 
 stay too late. How many do not begin the work of sal- 
 vation till summer is over, and the winter of life is well- 
 nigh at hand ; when, if they work at all, they work with 
 every disadvantage ! 
 
 Kiiral. — The learned have eyes, the ignorant have merely 
 two spots on the face. 
 
76 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Slander is a Mall, a Sword, and a Sharp Arrow. 
 
 Peov. 25. 18. 
 
 The slanderer wounds three at once — himself, liim he 
 speaks of, and him that hears. If we cannot stop other's 
 mouths, let us stop our own ears. As soon as a person 
 takes pleasure in hearing slander, he is to be ranked in the 
 number of slanderers. By the approbation of evil we 
 become guilty of it. The witnesses against Naboth showed 
 that a false witness is, in some respects, as bad as a 
 murderer, i Kings 21. 13. 
 
 In the case of the two false witnesses against Christ 
 the words were true, the evidence false; while they reported 
 the words, they misreported the sense, and thus swore a 
 true falsehood, and were truly foresworn, Mat. 26. 60, 61. 
 So the witnesses against Stephen, Acts 6. 13, 14; Prov. 
 12. 17. In these last two instances it was not by direct 
 falsehood, but by a partial statement of truth, that they 
 involved themselves in the murder of the innocent ; such 
 were the masters of the damsel possessed with a spirit of 
 divination. Acts 16. 21. 
 
 China. — Sitting alone, meditate on your own faults — i.e.., in 
 
 conversation talk not of others. 
 China. — The world's unfavourable view of your character 
 
 and conduct is like the fleeting clouds from which 
 
 the brightest day is not free. 
 Bengal. — The mud sticks not to the back of a pankhal fish ; 
 
 (which is smooth) ; so calumny with respect to 
 
 an innocent person. 
 
 False Sympathy. — Rom. 12. 15. 
 Urdu. — One man's house is on fire, another warms himself 
 
 by it. 
 Aral). — He roasted his fish in the conflagration. 
 Telugu. — "When the sheep cries will the wolf be grieved ? 
 Telugu. — When one man cried that his beard was on fire, 
 
 another followed him asking him for a light for 
 
 his cigar. 
 Telugu. — Is the bullock's sore tender to the cow ? 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 77 
 
 China. — He may sit in a tub of cold water, but it will not 
 
 steam. 
 Bengal. — Sprinkling salt on a new cut wound — sic Job's 
 
 comforters, Job 16. 2. 
 Polish. — The ox bores with his horns the wounds ; the 
 
 woman with the tongue in her mouth. 
 Tamul. — A word that lacks sympathy and a rafter that lacks 
 
 a nail, are useless. 
 Tamul. — It is said that the wolf wept because the sheep 
 
 were wet. 
 TiirJc. — If my beard is burnt, others try to light their pipe 
 
 at it, Luke 10. 32. 
 
 Temperance, or Self- Control.— Peov. 13, 28. 
 
 jRussian. — It is not the sword that kills nor the wine that 
 makes drunk. 
 
 Turk. — The knife does not make the cook. 
 
 China. — Who can govern himself is fit to govern the world. 
 
 Kural. — As the hook guides the elephant, we should with 
 the hook of firmness restrain our passions. 
 
 Turlc. — The chimney never takes fire except from within. 
 
 Mussian. — The nail is not guilty that the hammer beats it 
 into the beam. 
 
 Mahratta. — Man has five senses ; if any is not under 
 control his reason will ooze out there as water 
 out of a skin that is rent. 
 
 Bussian. — Shut the door on the devil, but he will enter by 
 the window. 
 
 Afghan. — Though the food was another's, the stomach was 
 your own — i.e., over-eating not the fault of the 
 food. 
 
 Tamul. — Why blame the arrow, the archer going free ? 
 
 Tamul. — No one cuts ofl" the hand because it has struck 
 the eye. 
 
 Mahdhhdrat. — The gods do not, like cattle herds, guard men 
 by carrying clubs ; but they endow with under- 
 standing him they wish to preserve. 
 
 Mahratta. — Man's body is a chariot, the charioteer is him- 
 self, and his passions are the horses ; if the latter 
 are well managed all goes well. 
 
78 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Temptation. — i Coe. 5. 9, 10. 
 
 Temptations to sin are represented in the Bible as 
 •stumbling-blocks to trip up the unwary ; as the wiles of 
 ihe devil ; as thorns in the flesh ; as fiery darts ; as sent 
 for sifting ; while we are to flee from sin as from the 
 face of a serpent. 
 
 Afghan. — Shoes are tested on the feet ; a man on trial. 
 TurTc. — If you wish to keep company with a wolf have the 
 
 dog near. 
 JBTiagavatgita . — 
 
 He who, as the tortoise does with its limbs, 
 Withdraw^s the senses from the sensual objects 
 
 everywhere, 
 His wisdom is confirmed. 
 China. — One dressed in clothes made of leaves going to put 
 
 out a fire is in danger. 
 €hina. — It is not beauty that beguiles men ; men beguile 
 
 themselves. 
 China. — Leisure breeds lasciviousness. 
 JRussian. — 
 ^. The priest comes to us by the trodden path ; 
 
 The devil comes to us by crossing the fields — 
 
 i.e., temptation comes from unexpected quarters. 
 Gruilty is the wolf that has eaten the sheep } 
 Not guiltless is the sheep that strays into the woods — 
 i.e., we must be on our guard, however, not to go 
 into his path. 
 Turk. — The heart is a child, it desires what it sees. 
 IktrJc. — The devil tempts man, but the idle man tempts 
 
 the devil. 
 Aral. — Where the eye does not see the heart does not 
 
 grieve. 
 Telugu. — 'J3y experience we learn our weakness. 
 Telugu. — A man will not build a hut until he has been 
 
 drenched, nor stoop until he has hit his head. 
 Veman. — 
 
 The crocodile in water can destroy an elephant ; 
 The crocodile out of water is destroyed by a dog — 
 i.e., go not on the devil's ground. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 79 
 
 Avoid Temptation.— Col. 2. 21. 
 
 Arab. — Follow the voice of a dog, not of a jackal ; the one 
 leads to the village, the other to the desert. If 
 you do not want a fool's medicine, keep away 
 from him. 
 
 Afghan. — Who lives with a blacksmith will at last carry 
 away burnt clothes. 
 
 Afglian. — Have your ass tethered if you have a thief as 
 your friend. 
 
 Afglian. — A low friendship lights a fire on the forehead. 
 
 Russian. — Do not tread, doggie, in a wolf's footsteps ; he 
 will turn round and eat you. 
 
 Russian. — Our eyes are our enemies. 
 
 China. — Throwing on stubble to put out the fire. 
 
 Tamul. — To roast a crab and set a fox to guard it. 
 
 Telugu. — Without eating, you can't tell the taste j with- 
 out going down into the water, you cannot tell 
 the depth. 
 
 China. — What the eye sees not, the heart is not vexed over. 
 The well fed and well warmed indulge impure 
 thoughts ; the pined and starved encourage 
 thoughts of stealing. 
 
 Afghan. — The bird sees the grain but not the snare. 
 
 Japan. — The bird flying in the air troubles not the water. 
 
 Telugu. — The fox offered his services for nothing — to guard 
 the sheep. 
 
 Urdu. — Can fish remain in a kite's nest ? 
 
 Telugu. — Like ghi (melted butter) poured on fire. 
 
 Veman Telugu. — A crocodile while swimming in water can 
 destroy an elephant ; out of the stream it is dis- 
 comfited easily by a dog. In the water a ship 
 will float smoothly ; out of it it cannot crawl even 
 a cubit. 
 
 Malahar. — If you sit close to the mortar you will be struck 
 by the pestle. 
 
 Tamul. — Play not with snakes ; sic English " Play not with 
 edged tools." 
 
 Afghan. — When edged tools are used, blood flows. 
 
 Persian. — Where there is much fire the elephant's foot slips. 
 
 China. — Throw on stubble to put out the fire. 
 
 Tu^rJc. — He who fears the fire shuns smoke. 
 
8o EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Arab. — It is only a wise man who despises himself. It is 
 only a fool that trusts his own judgment. 
 
 Syriac. — If you wish to be a king become a wild ass — i.e., 
 if you wdsh to be master of yourself withdraw 
 from society as the wild asses do. 
 
 The Body a Tent. 2 Cob. 5. 1-4. 
 
 All men are but passengers and pilgrims through this 
 world ; not real possessors of anything, but only tenants 
 and occupiers in this transitory life. Some dwell in 
 stately palaces ; and many more in poor cottages ; but 
 all are born to the same mortality. If the poor man's 
 hut drops into decay, he dies never the sooner ; and if the 
 house of the rich is founded upon a rock, he lives never 
 the longer. 
 
 The holy patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, inha- 
 bited no lofty cities, built no strongholds, but lived in 
 tents or tabernacles, with which they removed from place 
 to place, as God was pleased to order them, Heb. 1 1. 9 ; 
 very remarkable in their case, in the land which God had 
 promised to them for an inheritance : thereby signifying 
 that they did not accept of the earthly land, but looked 
 for a better country, that is, an heavenly. The children of 
 Israel, journeying to Canaan, lived by encampments in a 
 wilderness, removing their tents from place to place for 
 forty years, and ending their days in that unsettled way 
 of life. Even when the people were fixed in Canaan, 
 good men still devoted themselves to live as sojourners 
 and pilgrims ; thus the Bechabites, who renounced the 
 pleasures and possessions of the world, dwelt in tents as 
 their holy fathers had done before, Jer. 35. 7. Even 
 God himself was pleased to partake of the condition of 
 his people ; making himself even under the law, that 
 stranger upon earth which he was to be afterwards 
 under the Gospel as the place of his worship in the 
 wilderness, and long afterwards, was not fixed as a house, 
 but movable as a tent and a tabernacle ; and when Christ 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 8r 
 
 the Word was made flesli lie is said to have tabernacled 
 amongst us ; living as one who renounced this world and 
 all its possessions ; more unprovided with house and land 
 than the foxes of the earth or the birds of the air. The 
 passage from this world to the other is much more easy 
 to those who live in this manner. The man of the world,, 
 who fixes his abode here, is violently torn away at his 
 death, like the banyan tree pulled up by the roots, and 
 has no prospect after it : but he who lives in a tent can 
 easily remove. 
 
 It was an act of faith in Abraham to dwell in taber- 
 nacles in the land of promise as in a strange country. 
 His practice in this respect was a perpetual confession 
 that he regarded himself only as a stranger and traveller 
 on the earth, and that " he looked for a city which hath 
 foundations, whose builder and maker is God," The 
 feast of tabernacles was appointed to remind the children 
 of Israel of the wanderings of their forefathers in the 
 wilderness (when they dwelt in tents), and thus to suggest 
 to them continually the same thought, that this life is 
 only a pilgrimage, and that our true home is elsewhere, 
 that we have here no continuing city, but seek one to 
 come. The Jews even now live in tents or booths made 
 of trees when this feast comes round. Tents were some- 
 times placed on the house-tops, 2 Sam. 1 6. 22; some- 
 times under trees. Gen. 18. 8. 
 
 The Moguls lived often in tents, miles in circumference, 
 which cost many lacs of rupees, being decorated with silk 
 and gold ; still they were but tents, and exposed to being 
 blown down by storm or consumed by fire. 
 
 By faith the righteous continually regards the body as 
 a tent or tabernacle, a frail and uncertain habitation,, 
 suited to the condition of one who is only a traveller to 
 his true home, offering no effectual protection against the 
 many dangers to which he is exposed — a dwelling-place 
 which may be struck or taken down in a moment, opened 
 to heat or cold, rain or lightning. Peter (i Pet. i. 14) 
 
 G 
 
82 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 regarded the putting off his tabernacle as emancipation. 
 This short life is the first steps of a ladder, the top of 
 which, like Jacob's, is lost in the glories of heaven. 
 
 Hebrew. — The corruptible body presseth down the soul ; 
 The earthly tabernacle weigheth down the mind. 
 
 BJiagavatgita. — 
 
 As men abandon old and threadbare clothes to 
 
 put on others new ; 
 So casts the embodied soul its worn-out frame 
 to enter other forms. 
 
 Telugu, — Though a vessel be broken a new one is easily 
 procured. Is it, then, marvellous that after a 
 man's death he should acquire a new body? 
 2 Cor. 5. 2. 
 
 Bengal. — "When a cow dies, she is taken up and carried to 
 the river. When a man dies they cover him up 
 too, and do the same. 
 
 TurJc. — The Tartar who lives in a city believes himself in 
 prison. 
 
 BrclodJi Chandroday. — Tou should consider the society of 
 friends as a momentary flash of lightning. 
 
 JShdnti SJiataJc. — Our place is like a terrible wilderness ; 
 our body like a building with much fleshy lattice- 
 work in it ; our earthly friends are like travellers 
 whom we meet by chance and are soon separated 
 from. 
 
 Life a Vapour. — Jas. 4. 13, 14. 
 
 The Lalita Vistara compares life to the view of a 
 'dance — to the lightning — to a torrent rushing from the 
 mountain, — and so said Sakhya Muni, the Budhist, when 
 tempted to remain in his father's palace. 
 
 SJidnti ShataJc. — Human existence is like a bottomless 
 gulph, and human life like the fleeting scum 
 of its rolHng waves. 
 MaJia Mudgar, — Life is quivering like a drop of water on 
 
 a lotus-leaf. 
 Flrdusi. — 
 
 Look at the heavens, how they roll on. 
 And look at man, how soon he's gone ; 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. Z3 
 
 A breath of wind and then no more — 
 A world like this should man deplore. 
 Bengal. — An employ the shadow of a cloud. 
 
 The Wages of Sin is Death. — Eom. 6. 23. 
 
 The wicked are said to be liolden with the cord of 
 their own sins, Prov. 5.22; such was Saul : hence death to 
 the wicked is called the king of terrors, Job 18. 14 ; it is 
 likened to a wolf, Ps. 49. 14 ; a flood, Ps. 90. 5 ; dark- 
 ness. Job 10. 22. 
 
 God's punishment of sin or wages is compared to 
 dashing in pieces like a potter's vessel ; treading down 
 as the mire of the street or ashes ; grinding to powder ; 
 melting as a snail ; gnashing of teeth. Even in this life 
 the wages are — sickness, Deut. 28. 59 ; famine, Mat. 24. 
 7 ; war; fear. Job 18. 11. In the next it will be the 
 blackness of darkness, 2 Peter 2. 1 7 ; the wine of God's 
 wrath, Eev. 14. 10 ; everlasting contempt, Dan. 12. 2. 
 
 The devil is a bad master ; his servants work hard, 
 they are fed with husks in this life, Luke 15. 16. The 
 pay of sin is sickness. Lev. 26. 16 ; famine, Lev. 26. 19; 
 war. Lev. 26. 17. 
 
 China. — Unjustly got wealth is snow sprinkled with hot 
 water ; lands improperly obtained are but sand- 
 banks in a stream. 
 
 China. — "When the melon is ripe it will drop of itself. 
 
 China. — The day will come when the tumour will be 
 punctured. 
 
 Urdu.— -The cow will speak in the thief's belly, Gen. 4. 10. 
 
 Malay. — "When is it the ants die if not in sugar ? 
 
 Providence a Wall of Fire to protect the Good. 
 
 Zech. 2. 5. 
 
 Babylon had walls 300 feet high and 70 feet thick, 
 so that six carriages could drive abreast, yet the city was 
 taken owing to the gates having been left open when the 
 people were drunk. The walls of Gaur in Bengal were 
 
 G 2 
 
84. EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 1 00 feet liigli. The walls of Jericlw were high, but they 
 fell down at the command of God, Jos. 6. 20, who often 
 destroys walls by earthquakes. 
 
 Eastern shepherds and travellers, to protect themselves- 
 and their flocks from wild beasts at night, make fires 
 all around them, over which the most furious animals 
 dare not pass, not even the tiger, — being afraid of lire. 
 
 The righteous is travelling as a pilgrim through this 
 world, a howling wilderness ; the devil is a dragon, and 
 the wicked as lions are ready to devour him, but he 
 sleeps secure, surrounded with God a Wall of Fire ; so 
 the Jews walked through the Eed Sea, the waters stand- 
 ing up on both sides as a wall, Ex. 14. 22. 
 
 TurJc. — The nest of a blind bird is made by G-od. 
 Bussian. — "Without God not to the threshold, with him- 
 
 beyond the sea. 
 Veman. — Just as a showman plays his puppets, while he 
 
 lies hidden, so does the Deity, while he conceals. 
 
 himself, admirably govern man. 
 
 No Discharge in Death's Warfare.— Eccl. 8. 8. 
 
 Death is a warfare in which the arrows of pain and 
 fear are discharged, Eccles. 8. 8. The wicked are driven 
 away by death, and all their joys end ; the righteous 
 desire to depart, and all their sorrows end. Death is. 
 abolished by taking away its sting — sin, 2 Tim. i. 10. 
 
 Turlc. — Death is a black camel which kneels at every man's 
 
 gate. 
 Arab. — Caution secures not cowards against death ; it 
 
 comes from the sky. 
 TTrdu. — He who is prepared to die, what will he not 
 
 attempt ? 
 Arah. — When fate arrives the physician becomes a fool. 
 Tamul. — The ocean is knee deep to him who is dying. 
 Turh. — There are two things which no man fixedly regards, 
 
 the sun and death. 
 /Sanskrit. — All rivers go to the ocean. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 85 
 
 'Bengal. — The rain never streams up the thatch. 
 
 Bengal. — The milk once drawn never enters the cow's dug 
 
 again. 
 Afghan. — My father died and his fever ended — i.e., death 
 
 settles all accounts. 
 
 The Beginning of Strife, the Letting out of Water. 
 
 Peov. 17. 14. 
 
 A narrow channel cut in a dam will soon enlarge itself 
 and make a wide breach. So with strife. The strife be- 
 tween the herdsmen led to the separation of Abraham and 
 Lot, Gen. 1 3. 5 > Paul and Barnabas separated, Acts 
 15. 39. Daniel, dreading the beginning of sin, would not 
 take even the king's meat, Dan. i. 8-16. They felt that 
 sin was first thin like a spider's web, but soon becomes 
 thick like a cart rope. 
 
 Urdu. — Let him touch your finger he will soon seize your 
 
 wrist. So Solomon, 2 Kings 23. 13 ; Peter, 
 
 Mat. 26. 34, 58, 64. 
 Tamul. — Will the flood that has burst the dam return to 
 
 it at one's cry ? 
 Persian. — The tree that has just taken root may be pulled 
 
 up by the strength of a man. 
 Veman. — If there be one dry tree in a forest, it will pro- 
 duce flame by friction and sweep away the rest ; 
 
 thus if a base wretch be born in a noble race, he 
 
 will destroy it all. 
 Bengal. — Groing in a needle, coming out a ploughshare. 
 Bengal. — One drop of filth from a cow will spoil a vessel 
 
 of milk. 
 'Glianak. — To pay off" debts, quench a fire, and remove 
 
 disease is good, for should they increase, they 
 
 will not be stopped. 
 Italian. — If thou sufler a calf to be put on you, they will 
 
 soon put on the cow. 
 Spaniard. — Give me to sit down, I shall soon make a place 
 
 to lie down. 
 Tamul. — Where there are dogs there is quarrelling. 
 Servian. — Out of one quarrel one hundred sins. 
 
36 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The Dead as Water spilled upon the Ground. 
 
 2 Sam. 14. 14. 
 
 The dead return no more to this world ; they are as 
 water spilled on the ground which cannot be gathered up 
 again, like Pharaoh and his host which went to the 
 bottom of the Eed Sea (Ex. 15. 10), or David when he 
 lost his child, and stopped weeping, saying — I shall go 
 to him but he shall not return to me, 2 Sam. 12. 23 ;. 
 Job 14. 1-2 1. 
 
 Solomon uses a similar emblem of the tree fallen rising 
 no more, Eccl. 1 1. 3. The sound of the woodman's axe 
 gives note that some giant of the forest is about to fall : 
 soon the crashing boughs tell plainly that the work is 
 done, and the pride of the summer foliage is brought 
 down to the ground. A gap is made in the screen of 
 wood, and the eye can now wander over the soft meadows, 
 and the distant village, that were hid before. The fallen 
 tree lies in the direction in which it fell. While it still 
 flourished in its pride and glory, the direction as well as 
 the period of its fall was uncertain. It was possible that 
 it might fall toward the nortli, or toward the south : nor 
 was there any reason why it should not enjoy the sun- 
 shine and the rain through many a verdant summer. But 
 the word was given that the axe should be laid unto its 
 root; and now the direction in which it should fall is no 
 more a question. It is a fixed and unalterable fact. The 
 period during which one or the other direction could have 
 been given to its fall is past and gone for ever. So the 
 stroke of death fixes the direction and the character of 
 our future state of being, 
 
 Malahar. — Can jou draw out the water that has been 
 
 absorbed by a piece of iron ? 
 Japan. — A fallen blossom does not return to the twig. 
 Gujerat. — The deed is forgotten, but not what is written.. 
 Tamul. — If rice be spilled it may be picked up, but can 
 
 w^ater ? 
 Gujerat. — Drowning yourself the world is drowned. 
 
• ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 87 
 
 Cliina. — The roots of an old tree in the earth you may find ; 
 
 But a dead man is fully cut off from his kind. 
 
 Badage. — As long as you hold it in your hand it is a vessel, 
 
 fling it on the grouud you have only useless 
 
 pieces. 
 
 — *~^-* — 
 
 The "Wicked pass away as a Whirlwind. — Peov. 10. 25. 
 
 In eastern countries so rapid and impetuous some- 
 times is the whirlwind, that it is in vain to think of 
 flying ; the swiftest horse, though running a mile in two 
 minutes, or the fastest sailing ship, could be of no use 
 to carry the traveller out of danger. Torrents of burning 
 sand roll before it, the firmament is enveloped in a thick 
 veil, and the sun appears of the colour of blood. In the 
 frightful deserts of Senaar is pointed out a spot among 
 some sandy hillocks, where the ground seemed to be more 
 elevated than the rest, where one of the largest caravans 
 which ever came out of Egypt, to the number of several 
 thousand camels, was covered with sand, and every one 
 perished. 
 
 The destruction of Sennacherib's army was probably 
 effected under the direction of an angel by the blast of 
 the hot pestilential south wind blowing from the deserts 
 of Lybia, called the simoom. Sennacherib and his 
 immense army had come like a whirlwind, threatening 
 to bear down all before them, but they quickly vanished ; 
 
 1 85,000 Assyrians being destroyed in one night, 2 Kings 
 19. 35. The world of the ungodly perished by the 
 flood. Gen. 7. 21. In one day 23,000 Israelites who 
 had joined Baal-peor, were killed, Numb. 25. 4. 
 
 Afghan. — Priority is good in all things but death. Sinners 
 often die in a rage, like a poisoned rat in a hole. 
 
 The life of the wicked like a whirlwind rises suddenly, 
 Acts 2. 2. Jonah's ship was caught in a whirlwind, 
 Jon. 1.4; it is very swift, hence said to have wings, 
 
 2 Sam. 22. 14 ; very destructive, I Kings 19. 1 1 ; yet God 
 
SS EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 who holds the winds in his fists, Pro. 30. 4, made a 
 whirlwind to serve as Elijah's chariot to heaven, 2 Kings 
 2. 1 1. 
 
 Canara. — "When the washerman's corpse is brought out, 
 his secrets may be discovered — i.e., in the clothes 
 he has stolen, Is. 15. 4- 
 
 Yeman. — How long does the ball retain its elevation ? 
 
 Afghan. — When the knife is over a man's head, he remem- 
 bers God. 
 
 Selrew, — The hope of the ungodly is like dust (thistle- 
 down), that is blown away with the wind : like a 
 thin froth that is driven away with the storm ; 
 like as the smoke which is dispersed here and 
 there with a tempest, and passeth away as the 
 remembrance of a guest that tarrieth but a day. 
 
 What wicked army passed away as a whirlwind ? 
 
 The Worm of Conscience. — Maek 9. 48. 
 
 Conscience compared to a ivorm in three points. 
 I. Sprung hom filth ; earth is a dunghill; 2. produce 
 death by gnawing the internals, so Herod was eaten up 
 of worms ; 3. source of great _/9am, Acts 12. 23)4. medicine, 
 required, otherwise no internal cure. 
 
 Conscience is compared to a candle ; such Joseph's 
 "brethren found it; Gen. 42. 21, 44. 16 ; Pharaoh, Ex. 9. 
 27, 10. 17; Saul, I Sam. 24; Herod, Mark 6. 26 ; 
 Judas, Matt. 27. 4; Eelix, Acts 24. 25. It is called a 
 witness, Eom. i. 9, as Cain's wounded spirit led him to 
 wander as a vagabond. 
 
 Bengal. — No sin is hidden to the soul : only strike the 
 
 ground, and the guilty start up in terror. 
 Hussian. — The horse may run quick, but he cannot run 
 
 away from his tail. 
 China. — Men who never violate their consciences are not 
 
 afraid if you knock at their door at midnight. 
 Telugu. — When the thief, who stole the pumpkin, was 
 spoken of, he felt his shoulders — i.e., thinking 
 some mark mio;ht have been left there. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 89 
 
 jirah. — The worms of the vinegar are from the vinegar 
 itself — i.e., family disagreements are from the 
 family itself. 
 
 Tamul. — To a gloomy eye all obscure things are demons. 
 
 Man a Worm— Job 25. 5, 6. 
 {J^an like a luorm in five points.) 
 
 The SJidnti Shatak compares the wicked to dogs who 
 delight in swallowing human hones filled with worms 
 and moisture, eagerly licking the putrid juice as if it 
 were palatable. Man is compared in the Bible to earth, 
 dust, grass, a lie, vanity, in this text to a worm. 
 
 The butterfly spreads its wings, and the sun shines 
 upon its plumes ! The wisdom of the Creator has 
 adorned it with beautiful lines, and painted it with 
 .glorious colours ! It flies about and finds the plant which 
 is proper to feed its brood of caterpillars; and there it 
 lays its eggs to be hatched by the sun. In its infant 
 state it crawls about as a helpless worm, and feeds upon 
 green leaves. Then it folds itself up in a case like a 
 coffin, where it lies, as it were, asleep, till the time of its 
 change : when it breaks this covering, it comes forth 
 with wings and feathers like painted birds, to fly about 
 the air, and the dew of the fields and meadows, and visit 
 every sweet and pleasant flower. The white ant in India 
 ^Iso has its change when it gets wings. 
 
 We are now like the infant worms crawling about 
 upon this earth. But if we go on in the ways of God we 
 shall at length be changed from a worm into an angel. 
 But first we must be shut up in the grave, and hide 
 ourselves in the state of death till the resurrection. Then 
 we shall be raised to life and liberty, and put on a 
 spiritual body, and be able to visit and enjoy all the 
 wonders of God's works, such as poor helpless mortals 
 •cannot now see or understand. ! let us not forfeit this 
 
go EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 expectation for tlie sake of such low enjoyments as 
 caterpillars are capable of — grovelling on the earth ! 
 
 The worm of the text means that kind which breeds 
 in flesh, such as the worms that came out of the manna 
 •which was reserved contrary to God's commands, Ex. 
 1 6. 24. 
 
 1. Earth sprung, from corruption and putrefaction, so 
 man was made of clay, Gen. 2. 7 ; he loves earthly things, 
 and feeds like swine on the dunghill of vice. 
 
 2. Mean looking, so is man by sin, though once in 
 God's image and very beautiful. 
 
 3. Frail, trod on easily : so man's life is sometimes 
 ended by a fly or a bit of bread ; a worm cannot easily 
 escape from dangers, it becomes like seed a prey to fowls. 
 Mat. 1 3. 4 ; Herod was eaten up of worms. Acts 1 2. 23 ; 
 great men, like glowworms at night, may seem great, but 
 in the morning they are like others. 
 
 4. Various hinds, but all are worms, so the silkworm 
 which spins its dress out of its own bowels, the muck- 
 worm, the glowworm^ the caterpillar, Joel i . 4, the palmer- 
 worm, Am. 4. 9. 
 
 5. Alodc means suitable to those who dwell in it. Job 
 calls the grave his house. Job 17. 13; yet God says, 
 fear not, thou worm Jacob, Is. 4 1 . 14 ; though man 
 is now a worm yet he will hereafter nestle above the 
 clouds. 
 
 The Tongue fires the Wheel of Nature.— .Tas. 3. 6. 
 
 " This course of nature," means the vjlieel of nature ;, 
 and refers to a wheel catching fire from its rapid motion, 
 spreading its flames around, and so destroying the whole 
 machine, if not carefully greased or oiled to prevent friction 
 or hard rubbing; so will the w^ords of the tongue inflame the 
 mind, and burn up the whole body with the fever of pas- 
 sion, and the whole heart with anger, if the oil of love and 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 91 
 
 humility be not applied. The tongue sets on fire the 
 wheel of human Hfe, and thus destroys the whole life. 
 So Korah's party, speaking evil of dignities, were punished, 
 Num. 16. I. 
 
 Modern Greek. — The tongue has no bones, yet it breaks 
 
 bones. 
 Afghan. — May you never eat that leek which will rise up in 
 
 your own throat — ^.e., eat your own words. 
 TurTc. — The tongue kills more than the sword. 
 Turk. — Two ears to one tongue, therefore hear twice aa 
 
 much as you speak. 
 Turk. — A laden ass brays not. 
 China. — A word once spoken an army of chariots cannot 
 
 overtake it. 
 Urdu. — Tou might hold the hand that strikes you, but you 
 
 cannot hold the tongue. 
 ^Persian. — A bad word is like the sound of a dome — i.e.^ it 
 
 echoes back. 
 Arab. — The heart is the treasury of the tongue. 
 Japan. — The tongue, only an ell long, is angry with the 
 
 body, five feet long. 
 Bengal. — His tongue is a sweeper's shovel. 
 Telugu. — If your foot slip you may recover your balance, 
 
 but if your mouth slips you cannot recall your 
 
 words. 
 Syriac. — A foul-mouthed man is like a cobbler's scissors, 
 
 which cuts nothing but impure leather. 
 Turk. — We heal the wounds of a knife but not those of the 
 
 tongue. 
 Turk. — The tongue has no bone yet it crushes, 
 Turk. — The fool has his heart on his tongue : the wise his 
 
 tongue on his heart. 
 Turk. — An eye without light as a tongue without reason. 
 Bengal. — Days go, words spoken remain. 
 JPersian. — A long tongue makes life short. 
 Bersian. — Take care lest your tongue should cut off your 
 
 head. 
 Kural. — 
 
 The burn will heal : but festering stays 
 The wound a burning tongue conveys. 
 Badaga. — A famine may cease, but abusive words will be- 
 always remembered. 
 
^2 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS, 
 
 Hebrew. — To slip on the pavement is better than to slip 
 
 with the tongue. 
 Badaga. — You may close a well, but you cannot shut the 
 
 mouth of another. 
 Tkirh. — Who masters his tongue saves his head. 
 Tamul. — A slip of the tongue is worse than that of the feet. 
 
PART 11. 
 
 The Wicked deaf as an Adder to the Charmer's 
 Voice.— Ps. 58. 5. 
 
 Such were Pharaoh; the Jews, Mat. 23. 37, Mark 
 8. 18. 
 
 The wicked are said to have ttncirciimcised ears, Acts 
 7. 5 I, heaping up teachers they have itching ears, 2 Tim. 
 4. 3, stopped at the cry of the poor, Pr. 21. 21. 
 
 There are four different kinds of hearers, those like a 
 sponge that suck up good and bad together, and let both 
 run out immediately — having ears, and hearing not ; those 
 like a sand-glass that let what enters in at one ear pass 
 out at the other — hearing without thinking ; those like a 
 strainer, letting go the good and retaining the bad : and 
 those like a sieve, letting go the chaff, and retaining the 
 good grain. 
 
 Profession without practice is compared to failing 
 fountains, shells empty of kernels, tares among wheat. 
 Matt. 13, foolish virgins without oil. Mat. 25. 13, the 
 mirage ; lilies fair in show, foul in scent ; dead fish which 
 float down the stream, while living fish struggle against it. 
 
 Bengal, — In name he is Dharmadas (a servant of righteous- 
 ness), but he has no virtue. 
 
 ChanaJc. — Knowledge only in books (without practice),, 
 and wealth in the hands of others, are of no 
 use, as in the time of action they are not 
 available. 
 
 Tamul. — The toad living near the lotus tastes not its 
 
^94 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 honey ; the illiterate living near the learned 
 
 remain ignorant. 
 Tamul. — Reciting from the Yedas to a cow about to gore 
 
 you. 
 Telugu. — A bad man with your money, no men hear you 
 
 call them to eat with you food. 
 Arab. — As food is useless to a sick body, so is advice to 
 
 one in love with the world. 
 Tamul. — Will the cobra be affected by kindly intercourse ? 
 China. — A word is enough for the wise ; a stroke of a 
 
 whip for a good horse. 
 Sanskrit. — "Who are destitute of sight ? Those who per- 
 ceive not the future world. Who are the 
 
 deafest ? Those who listen not to good advice. 
 Malahar. — Ey closing the eyes it has become dark. 
 Sanskrit. — Who has no sense of his own, what will the 
 
 Shastra do for him ? What will a mirror do for 
 
 him who has lost his eyes ? 
 Sanskrit. — To address a judicious remark to a thoughtless 
 
 man is merely threshing chaif. 
 MaJiabharat. — He merely learned without understanding of 
 
 his own learns not the sense of books ; as a spoon 
 
 does not taste the flavour of broth. 
 
 The Anchor of Hope.— Heb. 6. 19. 
 
 Every man has some kind of hope. 
 
 This world, full of uneasy cares and unlimited desires, 
 is likened to the sea, which is ever restless ; treacherous 
 in its smiles ; swept by frequent tempests ; full of hidden 
 rocks and quicksands, the ruin of many a gallant ship. 
 Some on this sea make shipwreck concerning faith, 
 I Tim. I. 19 ; the Church of God has, however, to cross 
 its wild and stormy waves before it can reach " the 
 haven where it would be." The ark of N'oah, borne up 
 in safety above the waters of the flood, was in this respect 
 a type of the Church of Christ. 
 
 Hope is also compared to a house built on the 
 sand, Job 15. 2; or to a helmet, i Thes. 5. 8, pro- 
 tecting the head against spiritual enemies. The Arabs 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 95 
 
 'Call a water-melon hope, because of its tendrils which 
 cling to a prop. The merchant trades and the ploughman 
 ploughs in hope. Hope deferred makes the heart sick, 
 Prov. 13. 12, and the hope of the wicked is as the giving 
 up of the ghost, Job 4. 20 — i.e., like the last puff of breath 
 when the person is dying. 
 
 Hoj^e, is like an anclior in three ^points : — 
 
 1 . The anchor secures the vessel against tides or storms, 
 Heb. 6. 19. 
 
 2. The anchor is out of sight, so hope dwells on things 
 invisible, as Abraham hoped against hope in reference to 
 the birth of Isaac, waiting 2 5 years, Eom. 4. 1 8. So Paul 
 in the case of shipwreck, Acts 24. 15. 
 
 3. This anchor rests on the ground : the spiritual 
 anchor is fixed not on the mud of this world, but on the 
 rock of ages. 
 
 Maha Mudgar. — Day and night, evening and morning, 
 winter and spring come and go ; time sports with 
 our passing age, still the wind of hope ceases 
 not. The body dissolves, the head gets grey, 
 the mouth becomes toothless, the handsome 
 stick trembles in the hand, yet hope ceases not 
 to jest with us. 
 
 Arah. — He dehghting in the world drinks the milk of 
 vain hopes. 
 
 Bengal, — Dancing on an unbaked water- vessel. 
 
 Telugu. — Mountains are smooth at a distance and rugged 
 when near. 
 
 Arah. — Worldly hope is like the mirage, deceiving him that 
 sees it and hopes from it. 
 
 Telugu. — Measuring the air. 
 
 Talmud. — Be very humble, the hopes of men are worms. 
 
 Arab. — Hoping from the vile is seeking fat in a dog's tail. 
 
 Tamul. — The crane hoping to eat dried fish when the sea 
 should be dried up, wasted away in vain hope. 
 
 Arab. — The more you hope the more you suffer. 
 
96 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The Arrows of God's Punishment.— Deut. 32. 42. 
 
 " Arrows " mean God's judgments on the wicked, which 
 often fly through the world to punish them. The light- 
 ning and tempest, war, pestilence, and famine, all may be 
 his arrows to slay the ungodly, and to cut them off from 
 the earth. So God threatened the inhabitants of Jeru- 
 salem by his prophet, Ezekiel, and assured them that for 
 their wickedness he would " send upon them the evil 
 arrows of famine," Ez. 5. 16. 
 
 Arrows wound quickly and unexpectedly ; no noise is 
 made ; they stick sharply in the w^ounds ; such are God's 
 arrows of pestilence, Ps. 9 1 . 5 ; famine, as in David's case, 
 and the sword ; Job said (6. 4) God's arrows of disease- 
 and the sword were within him ; God's arrows for 
 crushing the wicked are compared to treading down the 
 grapes in a wine-press, Eev. 19. 15. 
 
 Persian. — God's club makes no noise, when it strikes there 
 
 is no cure for the blow. 
 Arah. — The corn goes from hand to head, but at last falls 
 
 into the mill. 
 Turk. — Even the Indian elephant fears the gadfly. 
 Mahahharat . — When men are ripe for slaughter, even straws 
 
 turn into thunderbolts. 
 Japan. — No escape from the net of heaven. 
 
 The Axe of Punishment at the Root of the Tree. 
 Mat. 3. 10-12. 
 
 Time has been figured as a scythe mowing down the 
 grass .; here God's vengeance is compared to an axe. The 
 King of Assyria is so called. Is. 10. 15. 
 
 The Church of God is often likened to a vineyard or 
 garden of fruit trees, from which the owner looks for 
 fruit in due season, and too often finds none. He is 
 unwilling, however, to relinquish his hope of a return for 
 all his labour, and continues year by year to prune with 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 97 
 
 the greatest skill, as well as patience, the plants which 
 so ill-repay his toil. 
 
 However high and stately may be the tree, and how- 
 ever green and luxuriant its foliage, the time comes 
 when the owner is tired with waiting for fruit, and 
 trying the effect of only cutting off branches ; he deter- 
 mines that he will lay the axe to the root, and remove- 
 the tree itself from the ground which might be so much 
 better filled. See parable of Barren Fig Tree, Luke i 3.. 
 
 How fearfully the event, thus figuratively described,, 
 was accomplished, when the temple of Jerusalem was 
 burnt, and the city taken by the Eoman General ; and 
 how afterwards, when the nation rebelled against their- 
 conquerors, Jerusalem was utterly destroyed ; and the 
 miserable survivors sold in vast numbers as slaves ! 
 
 What God wants is fruit, not leaves ; however rich 
 may be the foliage — in other words, however high the- 
 profession — it is utterly worthless in His sight, if there 
 be not the true fruits of repentance. 
 
 The Soul bartered for the World.— Mat. 16. 26. 
 
 BuddhagosJia, — Evils follow the fool, smouldering as fire 
 
 covered by ashes. 
 Malay. — The loss of a little mustard- seed is observed, while 
 
 that of an elephant is unknown. 
 China. — To gain a cat but lose a cow. 
 Badaga. — In trying to save a drop of ghe he upset the 
 
 ghe pot. 
 Tamul. — Is the foot to be cut off to try on a shoe ? 
 JBadaga. — For the nourishment of a day he sacrificed the 
 
 food of a year. 
 Tamul. — Like burning down the house for fear of rats. 
 Shdnti Shatak. — How vainly have I passed the whole of my 
 
 life ! Alas ! how inestimable a jewel have I 
 
 bartered for mere glass. 
 PancJiat antra. — The fool, in seeking riches, suffers one 
 hundredfold more than he who strives to attain 
 eternal happiness. 
 Sitojpadesha. — It is right to sacrifice one person for a 
 
 If 
 
^8 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 household, a family for a village, a village even 
 for one's country, but for one's soul we should 
 give up the world.* 
 Turlc. — For to save the head we sacrifice the beard. 
 
 Sinners are Blind. — Rev. 3. 17. 
 
 The Atmdbodli states, " The eye of ignorance does not 
 heboid God, as a blind man does not see the light." 
 Sinners are like the blind, who are not able to see the sun, to 
 know what colours and lights are; they see not the dangers 
 in the road. Mat. 15. 14. Those naturally blind regret 
 not seeing the light of the sun, and desire a guide ; not 
 so those spiritually blind ; the eyes of the rich man's 
 understanding were not opened till he reached hell, Avhere 
 he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, Luke 16. 23. 
 
 The man in the tombs was naked ; the wicked are 
 also blind ; they see not the light of life, discern not the 
 sun of righteousness ; have no true knowledge of si)iritual 
 objects ; nothing is nearer them than God, his unspeak- 
 able gifts, and their own heart, yet nothing is less known. 
 How oft they stumble and fall into sin without any 
 proper cause ! How constantly they wander out of their 
 proper course, and mislead those who follow them ! How 
 useless is the clearest light of the Gospel to them ! — 
 hence they feed on the w^ind, Hos. 12. i, and on husks, 
 Luke 15. 16, Deut. 28. 29. Diseased in every w^ay the 
 wicked, have the Uinchicss of ignorance, the deafness of 
 spiritual unconcern, the fever of impurity, the jaundice 
 of malice, the swelling tyinpany of pride, the vertigo of 
 inconstancy, the dropsy of covetousness, the palsy of 
 stupidity, the rottenness of envy, the rheumatism of 
 ■discontent, the delirium of constant levity, the moonstruck 
 madness of passion and rage, hardness of heart, and the 
 stings of conscience. 
 
 Chanak. — He who has no sense, what does the Shastra 
 do for him ? What does a mirror do for a man 
 without eyes ? "What does an eloquent man 
 
 * Engtish. — Sometimes the best gain is to lose. Mat. 5. 29. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 99 
 
 where there are no hearers ? "What do washer- 
 men in a country of naked y«^ir^ ? 
 
 Sanskrit. — Is a lamp pleasing to the blind, a song to the 
 deaf, or science to the fool ? 
 
 Sanskrit. — He who regards other men's money as clods of 
 earth, and all creatures as himself, he sees. 
 
 Persian, — He asked the blind man what did he want ; he 
 said the sight of my two eyes. Mat. 10. 46. 
 
 Servian. — Better sometimes a woman blind than one too 
 beautiful. 
 
 The Book of Life.— Rev. 20. 12. 
 
 There are the books of Nature, Providence, Revelation, 
 And here " the Book of Life" — an allusion to tlie register 
 book in which the names of all the tribes and families of 
 Israel were entered from generation to generation, so that 
 their claims to property and to the privileges of their fathers 
 could not be disputed, or a reference to a custom in the courts 
 of princes, of keeping a list of persons in their service, of 
 the ofticers in the armies, and even of the names of their 
 soldiers. When it is said that any one is " blotted out of 
 the book of life," this signifies erased from the list of God's 
 friends and servants, like as those guilty of treachery are 
 struck off the roll or list of officers belonging to a prince. 
 There are also books of judgment, which are said to be 
 -opened, and the dead judged out of them according to 
 their works. Rev. 20. 12 ; alluding to a custom of the 
 Persians, to write down every day what had happened, the 
 ^services done for the king, and the rewards given to those 
 who had performed them, as we see in the history of 
 Aliasuerus and Mordecai, recorded in the Book of Esther. 
 Ex. 32. 32. 
 
 This book of life is the oldest book. Rev. 13. 8 ; it is 
 written in Heaven, Heb. 12. 23; time destroys not its 
 writing as it does that on tombs or pillars. The life it 
 writes of is spiritual life, which differs from natural life in 
 — (i) the Holy Spirit being the parent, i Cor. 15. 45 ; 
 .there is hidden manna to eat, John 6. 55; (2) eternal, 
 
 II 2 
 
loo EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Natural life is common to devils, worms, trees, flies ; man 
 dies as the beast, but lives for ever in his soul. Life 
 preserves from corruption, so does spiritual life. 
 
 Who are Brands plucked from the Burning. — Zech. 3. 2. 
 
 The fire is already Itlackening and scorching the brand ;: 
 but there is yet time to snatch it from the flame, and to- 
 save it for some nobler use. Linger not, but seize it, ere 
 too late. Another minute, and you could not have plucked 
 it from the fire. It bears the marks of the j)eril from which 
 it has been scarcely saved ; but having thus far concerned 
 yourself to preserve it, you will not lightly throw it back 
 again in to the flame. All we are as brands plucked out of 
 the fire, and bear indeed the marks of the scorching flame ; 
 but God has not plucked out the brand only to cast it into- 
 a yet fiercer furnace. The Apostle Judas bid us, " save 
 others with fear, pulling them out of the fire." Each of 
 US is as a brand phicked out of the fire ; and it is owing 
 to the distinguishing mercy of God that we were not left 
 in the guilt of original sin, or were not left to perish in our 
 sin's fuel for hell-fire. 
 
 Persian, — He should be exposed to danger of death in order 
 that he may be content with fever. 
 
 Doing Good is Bread cast on the Waters.— Ecci. 11. i. 
 
 In the East rice is sown upon the waters, but before 
 sowing, the ground, while still covered with water, is trodden 
 by oxen which go mid-leg deep ; and as the rice is sown on 
 the water so it springs up through the water, and the height 
 of its stem is generally in proportion to the depth of the 
 water on the surface of the soil. 
 
 It is in reference to this practice of the rice in the rains 
 being formed into balls, and sunk in water, that the passage 
 in Is. 32. 20, is to be explained, " Blessed are ye that sow 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. lor 
 
 'beside all waters." In Egypt a rice crop comes up in six 
 months. 
 
 The relief given in secret to a stranger, who may never 
 be seen again, shall be blessed not only to him, but still 
 more surely to the donor ; it shall be found after many 
 •days ; so Abraham entertained angels, Heb. 13. 2, who 
 afterwards requited him. And the same may be said of 
 the word of good advice, given " in season" to some one at 
 a period of brief intercourse ; nor shall any effort fail of 
 due fruit, by which persons have shown forth their love to 
 •Christ their Saviour, Mat. 10. 42, Luke 19. 16. 
 
 The corn-seed thrown into the mud, at the subsidence 
 of the Xile, seems lost, but nothing is lost that is done for 
 Ood. The fruit will be found at the resurrection of the 
 just, Luke 14. 14; so also is the case with instruction. Is. 
 .55. 10, Prov. 19. 17, charity is loan to God. 
 
 JPersian. — Give in this world, receive in the next (Mat. 
 
 10.42). 
 Turh. — What you give in charity in this world you take 
 
 with you after death. Do good and throw it 
 
 into the sea — if the fish does not know it God 
 
 does. 
 Bussian. — Throw bread and salt behind you, you get them 
 
 before you. 
 
 God a Builder. — Heb. ii. 10. 
 
 God as a builder different from earthly hnilders in five 
 points. 
 
 A good builder must be clever to plan, so known to 
 God are all his works ; there was the pattern on the 
 Mount, Heb. 8.5; he lays a good foundation, so God laid 
 the pillars of the earth ; man's foundation has often bad 
 materials in it ; employ a variety of v^orkmen, so God has 
 angels, men. Nature, the firmament, in his hands, Ps. 19. 
 A variety of work — God made the fountains of the great 
 .. deep, the windows of heaven, hell the prison, and paradise 
 the garden ; he tells the number of the stars. 
 
I02 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Eartlily builders are mortal ; limited in knowledge ;. 
 build for others : improve in tlieir plans ; require 
 materials for a building. Ahraham looked for a city 
 without foundations, Heb. ii. lo. The :Z'f%?;s compare 
 one who uses bad agents to one scratching his head with 
 a firebrand ; but God can make the wrath of man to praise 
 him, Ps. y6. lo. 
 
 The Burden of Sin. — Mat. ii. 30. 
 
 A burthen presses heavily on the chest as the tenderest 
 part, so sin on the heart, provided it be not past feeling, 
 Eph. 5. 14 ; Christ, pressed by the weight of the world's 
 sins, sweat blood, Luke 22. 44 ; a burthen impedes action, 
 so does sin, Heb. 1 2. i ; believers are to bear one another's 
 burthens. Gal. 6. 6 ; not so did the priest who passed by 
 on the other side of the way, Luke 10. 31; the Jewish 
 law ordered one to relieve even the ass of an enemy. 
 Sin is to be carried not as a golden chain round the neck, 
 but as an iron chain round the feet. The devil, when he 
 mocked Eve, did not see sin a burthen, neither did the 
 old world when it ridiculed Xoah's building the ark,. 
 Gen. 3. 4. 5. A burthen is unpleasant. 
 
 CJiina. — Eorethought is easy, repentance is hard. 
 Bengal. — Eaith in God is the root of all devotion ; deliver- 
 ance from evil is only her servant. 
 Japan. — Good physic is bitter. 
 
 Trusting in Riches compared to a Camel passed 
 through a Needle's Eye.— Mat. i. 24. 
 
 Wlien Christ says it is easier for a camel to go through 
 a needle's eye than for a rich man to enter the kingdom 
 of heaven, he meant those who trusted in riches rather 
 than in God, those who use riches for purposes of pride, 
 oppression, sensuality, Jas. 2, 6 ; as Haman, Esth. ^. 11 ^ 
 Usan, Gen. 36. 7 ; for Ahraham was a rich man yet good^ 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 103 
 
 Gen. 13.2; so were Isaac, Gen. 26. i 3 ; so Jose^pJiy Gen. 
 45. 8; Joseph of Arimatliea, Mat. 27. 57. 
 
 Oriental. — Unmitigated evil is as rare 
 
 As wings upon a cat, or flowers of air, 
 
 As rabbits' horns, or ropes of tortoise hair, 
 
 Bengal. — Putting an elephant into a narrow dish ; a horse'a 
 eggs, or a flower in the air. 
 
 Cingalese. — Like seeking feathers from turtles. 
 
 Telugu. — Like fixing a pump in the sea. 
 
 Talmud. — To let a camel go through the hole of a needle. 
 
 Fersian. — A needle's eye is wide enough for a friend ; the 
 whole world is too narrow for foes. 
 
 The Wicked are Captives.— 2 Tim. 2. 26. 
 
 Truth only makes free. Christ, in his first sermon 
 which he preached at Nazareth, stated he came as a 
 Eedeemer to purchase the captives. Men are captives 
 to — (i) sin, Eom. 7. 14 — 26; ancient tyrants fastened 
 captives to a dead body face to face until they were 
 suffocated by the stench; (2) Satan, 2 Tim. 2. 26; (3) 
 the Law, Gal. 4. 25 ; (4) Death, in Heb. 2. 15, called 
 the king of terrors. The believer's body may be captive, 
 but his mind is free as in Paul's case. 
 
 Captives in war were often stripped naked, and thrown 
 into -a dungeon ; their eyes were put out, as Zedekiah's, 
 2 Kings 25. 7 ; or as the Mahrattas gouged out the eyes 
 of the Great Mogul in Delhi ; they were often loaded 
 with chains, devoured by vermin, fed on bread and water, 
 living in darkness among rats. 
 
 Bengal. — One at the will of another, an ox with his nose 
 
 pierced. 
 Japan. — The bird that flies upward does not ruffle the 
 
 water. 
 Telugu. — A scorpion under a shoe — i.e.^ held under restraint. 
 
104 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Choked with Care. — Luke 8. 14. 
 Cast thy burthen on the Lord, Ps. 55. 22; Bnth 
 committed her cares to God, Euth i. 16, 2. 12 ; so Ezra 
 in the desert, Ezr. 8. 21-23, 32. 
 
 China. — Past events as clear as a mirror, future as dark as 
 
 lacquer. 
 Bengal. — Anxiety is the fever of the mind ; the burning 
 
 sun acts like a fever on clothes. 
 Turlc. — To everyone his own care, the miller's is water. 
 Turh. — You cannot contract for the fish in the sea. 
 Turh. — Sorrow is to the soul what the worm is to wood. 
 Malay. — To grind pepper for a bird on the wing — i,e., care 
 
 for uncertainties. 
 Bengal. — Grass at a distance looks thick. 
 Sanskrit. — Mountains are beautiful at a distance, rugged 
 
 when near. 
 Bengal, — My mind is troubled in collecting money to pay 
 
 the rent, how then can I worship Vishnu ? 
 Bussian. — llust eats iron, care the heart. 
 Arab. — A heart free from care better than a full purse. 
 Oriental. — The grief of the morrow is not to be eaten 
 
 to-day. Mat. 6. II. 
 Bengal. — The ant's wings grow to its own death. 
 JLitopadesha. — Strive not too anxiously for thy support, thy 
 
 Maker will provide. No sooner is a man born than 
 
 milk for his support streams from the breast. 
 
 Chastity. 
 Samson, a giant, was made a dwarf in soul through his 
 passions; he ground in fetters of brass, Judg. 16. 20. 
 Lot was vexed with the filthy conversation of Sodom. 
 
 Kural. — Of what avail are prisons barred, 
 
 Por chastity is woman's guard. 
 Hebrew. — Impurity in the beginning like a spider's web, 
 
 in the end like a cart rope. 
 Tamul. — Beauty without chastity, a flower without fragrance. 
 Solomon. — A bad woman's lips a honeycomb, her end 
 
 wormwood. Prov. 5' S* 
 Badaga. — The unchaste will vanish away like a handful of 
 
 mud. Is. 51. 6. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 105 
 
 God Chastises his Spiritual Sons. — Heb. 12. 6, 8-1 1. 
 
 Chastisement is compared to a fan, Mark 3. 12; a 
 pruning hook, John 15. 2 ; plough, Jer. 4. 3 ; 2^ furnace, 
 like Egypt to the Jews, Is. 48. 10; corc?5, Job }i^. Z. 
 
 In Jer. 31. 18, Ephraim is represented chastised by- 
 God as a hulloclc unaccustomed to the yoke ; the bullock 
 rebels against the will of his master, though nourished 
 and supported by him ; it will not subserve his interests ; 
 when chastised, it rebels the more ; repeated strokes only 
 serve to inflame its rage ; nor will it ever submit until it 
 be wearied out, and unable to maintain its opposition ; 
 thus the sinner generally fights against God. 
 
 God chastised Solomon and David for their improve- 
 ment ; but he punished Saul with death for his offering 
 sacrifice and sparing Agag, i Sam. i 5 ; Peters denial of 
 Christ was worse than Ananiah's denial of a portion of 
 his goods ; yet how different the punishment. Pain is 
 God's chiselling to produce his likeness. 
 
 Christ learnt obedience from suffering, Heb. 5. 8 ; 
 so the Prodigal, Luke 15. 17; and we are silly 
 sheep, prosperity makes us stray the more, as sun- 
 shine on the dunghill only produces a greater stench, so 
 Jas. I. 2. 
 
 The Germans say a child may have too much of its 
 mother's blessing. Better the child weep than the father. 
 The Spaniards say more sprigs in the garden than the 
 gardener ever sowed. Did God hate his people, lie 
 would suffer them to go merrily to hell. Calm weather 
 lets Christ sleep ; the storm rouses him. 
 
 Friiits of Chastisement : — 
 
 1. Tests reality, as Solomon's sword did the true 
 mother, i Kings 3 ; as the storm did Peter's faith. Mat. 
 14. 30— 3 1 ; a painted faith no more avails than a painted 
 helmet. 
 
 2. Fructifies, as the palm-tree, by pressure, so prayer, as 
 
io6 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 with Manasseh in fetters, 2 Ch. 3 3 ; so Paul when blind,. 
 Acts 9. 9 ; the hammer of chastisement squares the 
 stones for the heavenly temple. 
 
 3. Kot a mark of vengeance for sin, Job 42. 10 ; 
 Paul's, Acts 28. 4 ; Siloam's tower, Luke 13. 4—5. Saint 
 Amhrose would not stop a night in the house of a man 
 who had never seen chastisement, lest some judgment 
 should seize him. 
 
 4. PcaceaUe fruits : the Prodigal, in some points,, 
 happier among swine than he had been in his father's 
 house. 
 
 Unsanctified affliction fjarhoils a wicked man for hell ;. 
 to the righteous affliction is not a fiery, but a brazen, 
 serpent. God beats his children as we do our clothes in 
 the sun only to beat out the moths. Manasseh got- 
 more good by his iron chain than by his golden chain. 
 
 JELitopadesTia. — On affliction's touchstone a man may learn 
 
 the value of his family and of his own mind. 
 Fersian. — Without a supple rod the ox or ass would not 
 
 obey. 
 Malay. — As a hen pecks her chickens — i.e., lightly. 
 Afghan. — Until you heat iron you will not lengthen it — i.e.^. 
 
 punishment makes the obstinate tractable. 
 Tamul. — Is it proper to tame a parrot and give it into the 
 
 claws of a cat ? 
 Afghan. — The prick of a needle on a cat's head is plenty. 
 Gvjerat. — "Water on a stone wets but enters not. 
 Russian. — No bones are broken by a mother's fist. 
 Vemana. — The washerman torments the cloth to take 
 
 the stains out, and then folds it. What then 
 
 though he who teaches thee chastises thee. 
 IPralodh Chandroday. — After mortifying the body, pure 
 
 spirit is discerned by reason, as rice is separated 
 
 from the husk by beating it. 
 Sanskrit. — A bad man, gold, a drum, a bad woman, a bad 
 
 horse, stalks of sugarcane, sesamur seed, and 
 
 low people, should be beaten to improve their 
 
 qualities. 
 Tamul, — A fruit must ripen of itself, must not be beaten. 
 
 by a cane into ripeness. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. loT 
 
 Humble as little Children. — Mat. i8. 2. 
 
 Christ the Lord of Glory became an infant wrapped in 
 swaddling clothes ; he carried the lambs of the flock in his- 
 own bosom. When his disciples repelled them he took 
 the little children up in his arms and blessed them, and 
 he has used children as an emblem of humility. He was 
 a teacher of babes, and has taught us humility by babes, 
 and particularly when the disciples disputed about pre- 
 eminence he set a child in the midst. See parable of 
 Marriage Feast, Luke 14. 7-1 1. 
 
 The Immhle like little cJiildren in six points. 
 
 1 . Docile; no prejudice, no habit to prevent its receiving 
 impressions, " train up a child in the way he should go,"" 
 Pr. 22. 6, so believers are made new men by the Spirit; 
 the mind of a child is compared to a sheet of white paper 
 on which you can write anything. David calls himself a 
 weaned child, Ps. 131. 2. 
 
 2. Confiding ; the young of animals are not so dependent 
 in reference to the world as are infants. This, however, 
 causes more love. The mother's smile and breast are every- 
 thing to the helpless babe ; so the believer depends entirely 
 on God for many years ; the father's house is its home. 
 " Ask and ye shall receive ; so Abraham went forth, not 
 knowing whither he went," Heb. 11. 8. Jacob in the 
 same spirit went down to Egypt. Moses forsook Egypt, 
 not fearing the king. Paul said, I know in whom I have 
 believed. 
 
 3. Humble and contented with little things. Christ said,. 
 I am meek and lowly in heart. Paul said, in whatever 
 state I am, I have learned to be content, Phil. 4. 1 1 ; sub- 
 missive obedience is easily taught to a child ; so with the 
 believer every high thing is cast down ; whom the Lord 
 lovetli He chasteneth. 
 
 4. Simple-minded ; a child tells its meaning at once, its 
 desires and aversions ; so the believer has God's glory as 
 
io8 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 his sole guide. " Beliold an Israelite indeed, in whom is 
 no guile," John i. 47. Still, to prevent imposition in the 
 world, the wisdom of the serpent is to be united to the 
 harmlessness of the dove. Gentle love to be without 
 dissimulation, anger endures only for a little. The Christian 
 -does good unto all, especially to those of the household of 
 faith. 
 
 5. Detached from the world, i Cor. 15. 20; to it business, 
 ambition, wealth, pleasures are nothing ; on the Exchange 
 it would find no pleasure, " not a grey head upon green 
 shoulders ; so the believer is not conformed to the world ; 
 his joys a stranger intermeddles not with ; weeping as 
 though they wept not, i Cor. 7. 30. 
 
 6. Attached to its father's house. Early recollections lead 
 him to it as a bird to its nest; so Jacob, domesticated in 
 Padan-Aram, longed for his father's house ; so Joseph when 
 he saw his brethern ; so the believer longs for heaven, as 
 the hart after the water brooks, for Jerusalem above is his 
 home, we in this tabernacle groan. 
 
 China. — "Who flies not high, falls not low. 
 
 Malay. — The leech wants to become a snake. 
 
 Mussian, — The blind cannot see, the proud will not. 
 
 China. — A great tree attracts the wind. 
 
 Arab. — His nose looks to heaven, his legs are in the water. 
 
 JPersian. — The bending of the humble is the graceful droop 
 
 of the branches laden with fruit. 
 Turh. — A low ass is easy to ride on. 
 Bengal. — Can the boat bear the ship's mast ? 
 Sanskrit. — Fruitful trees bend down ; the wise stoop ; 
 
 a dry stick and a fool can be broken not bent. 
 JPersian. — The humble man is like the earth which alike 
 
 kisses the feet of the king and of the beggar. 
 Japan.— 1^0 standing in the world without stooping. 
 ■iSj/riac.r—l^ you mount not on the ladder, you will not get on 
 
 the roof — i.e., submission to a superior, the way 
 
 to be superior. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 109. 
 
 Death of Righteous as a Shock of Corn. — Job 5. 26. 
 
 Death of righteous like shock of corn in eight points. 
 
 The wicked are compared to weeds to be burned, but 
 the righteous to corn in the harvest. See parable of Taret 
 and Wheat, Mat. 1 3. Autumn after the hot season 
 is pleasant, a time of the joy of harvest. Is. 9. 3 ; 
 the righteous in death is compared in the text to the 
 cutting of grain and to harvest home. 
 
 1. Sown in order to be reaped again; at first the leaf is 
 fresh, and the stalk firm, but not so beautiful as when the 
 stalk is thin, and the leaf sere, but grain yellow ; so the 
 body must die to be raised again. 
 
 2. Require 'preparatory agency ; so shoivers of grace to- 
 nourish the sun of God's favour and harden the grain, the 
 cleivs of the Spirit to refresh, and the winds of affliction to 
 keep the roots loose. Jacob, not knowing the preparatory 
 agency, said, All things are against me. Gen. 42. 36, when 
 he was on the eve of great prosperity ; God's chastening 
 gives the peaceable fruits of righteousness. 
 
 3. Only cut when fully ripe ; if cut too soon the ear is 
 watery, if too late dried up ; the sower waits for the 
 early and latter rain, the wicked are driven away, but the 
 righteous are always prepared by hope, Pro v. 14. 32; 
 Abijah and Josiah had their harvest in early youth; Xoali 
 and Abraham in advanced years. 
 
 4. The ripe corn is handled with care ; the scythe of death 
 is put to tlie roots, but the sheaves are bound up with 
 care. Lazarus was nursed by dogs in life, but angels took 
 charge of him in death, Luke 16. 21; many grains in the 
 natural harvest are lost, but not so with the righteous,, 
 John 10. 28. 
 
 5. WJien ripe housed in safety ; there may be anxiety 
 about the weather, but harvest home is a time of joy; the 
 grain is lodged in the granary ; no more tears. 
 
 6. WJien ripening hangs its head ; so with increasing 
 humility the righteous see more of their sin and of God's 
 
no EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 goodness ; Job repented in dust and aslies, Job 42. 6 ; 
 so Peter took off his coat at first through zeal, but finally 
 toaits to put off his tabernacle, 2 Pet. i . 14; so Paul at 
 first calls himself the least of the Apostles, next less than 
 the least of all saints, finally chief of sinners. 
 
 7. Ripening hcconics weighty ; the believer, a father 
 in grace, has a zeal and love with a steadier flame ; his 
 graces are complete ; hope with joy makes not ashamed. 
 
 8. Eipening corn becomes gradually looser, less need 
 of the earth, so Paul learned to be in all things content ; 
 the worldling is attached to a shadow, but Paul thinks 
 the world only dung. 
 
 9. Eipening easily distinguished from tares by the smell 
 and fruit; the righteous bring forth fruit in old age/ 
 Ps. 92. 15 ; tares are then distinguished from wheat. 
 
 I o. Eipened corn more susceptible of injury, as showers 
 'Or wind may lay it level, so Jacob on his bed said, My 
 soul, come not thou into their secret. Gen. 49. 6 ; David 
 wished for wings like a dove to flee away. 
 
 1 1 . Eipened corn apt to fall of its own accord, so 
 Paul wished to depart. The righteous seek a heavenly 
 country, Heb. 11. 16 ; hence no tears for them, Eev. 7. 
 J 4 ; they are clad in white robes. 
 
 TurJc. — Weep not over the dead but over the fool. 
 Canara. — An old man may have a youthful heart ; a poor 
 
 man may have a noble incUnation. 
 Canara. — Nothing like newness in clothes, like age in 
 
 men. 
 Oriental. — A good old man is like old wine which has 
 
 deposited its lees. 
 Arab, — The remembrance of youth is a matter of sighing ; 
 
 the remembrance of death refreshes the heart. 
 BogTiuvansa. — The men of feeble mind think the death of a 
 
 friend a thorn fixed within the heart, whereas the 
 
 wise men look on it as extracted — for death is the 
 
 gate to happiness. 
 RagJiuvansa. — The king performed the obsequies for his 
 
 deceased wife, of whom nothing, except her virtue, 
 
 was left. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, iir 
 
 Charity covers a Multitude of Sins.— Proy. io. 12. 
 
 Love pours water not oil on the flame, so with a 
 conciliatory demeanour; love has a large mantle to liide 
 faults ; so with Christ and his disciples, Mat. 26. 31,41 ; 
 John 20. 25-27. 
 
 Talmud. — To love a thing makes the eye blind, the ear 
 
 deaf. 
 Arah. — Love is the companion of blindness. 
 Galic. — Eaults are thick where love is thin. 
 
 Let the Dead bury their Dead.— Mat. 8. 23. 
 
 One of Christ's disciples asked him leave of absence 
 to go and bury his father. He replied, Your business is 
 to preach my religion, and let those who are dead to God 
 attend to burying the dead. A man in England, who 
 lived to the age of 84, but was converted when 80 years 
 old, had the inscription on his tomb : — " Died, aged 4 
 years," — i.e., he reckoned that he was only really alive 
 when he served God. 
 
 To be carnally minded is death, saith St. Paul, Eom. 
 Z. 6 \ and the poor Prodigal son in the parable, having 
 lived in that state of mind till his conversion, the father 
 says of him : " This thy brother was dead, and is alive 
 again," Luke 15. 24. Man has a soul and body, each of 
 which dies in its own way ; and so either of them may be 
 alive while the other is dead. There is a sense in which 
 Adam died on the day when he sinned ; and there is 
 another sense in which Adam lived 930 years. Adam 
 delivered down a natural life to all us that are born of 
 him; but the only inheritance he could leave to our 
 spirits was that death to which he was fallen. It is this 
 death of the spirit which makes it necessary for every 
 man to be born again. 
 
 There are multitudes of people who seem to live but 
 are no better than dead ; they are unburied dead ; in 
 
1 1 2 EASTERN PRO VERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 them no siglit, no sense of spiritual things, no appetite, no- 
 affection for them. We may preach to them all day long, 
 and do no more good by it than if we were to preach ta 
 a man in his coffin. If we were to cry into their ears, or- 
 blow a trumpet to give them warning of the fire of 
 judgment, and of eternal damnation, they would hear 
 nothing. If we offer to them the bread of life, they 
 want it not ; for a dead man hath no appetite. Were 
 the souls of men as visible as their bodies, we should 
 see as much difference betwixt devout believers and the 
 children of the world as between a living, healthy body 
 and a corj)se. They are tivicc rZeac?, as Jude 12 saith, 
 dead once by nature and dead again unto grace. The 
 pleasures of this world will extinguish the life of a 
 believer ; she that liveth unto this world is dead while 
 she liveth, i Tim. 5. 6. All heavenly affections will die. 
 On the other hand Abel while dead yet spoke — i.e., by 
 his works. 
 
 Sanslrit. — A man of evil repute is, though Hving, as one- 
 dead. 
 
 China. — Let the dead care for the dead, the Hving for the 
 living ; i.e., in reference to excessive sorrow for the^ 
 dead. 
 
 Kural. — He lives whose life in love is led : 
 Another reckons with the dead. 
 
 Arab. — A benefactor is aUve though removed to the 
 mansions of the dead, Heb. ii. 4. 
 The wicked is dead though in the mansions of the- 
 living. 
 
 JPersian. — AVhose soul is alive, his sensual desires are- 
 dead. 
 
 Syriac. — Seek death to obtain life. 
 
 Persian. — When I am dead the world is dead. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 113 
 
 The Congregation of the Dead and the Fool. 
 
 Peov. 21. 16. 
 
 Eight marks of fools, 
 
 1. Understand not who will show them any good, 
 Ps. 4. 6 ; prefer corn to peace ; leasts in man's form. 
 
 2. Hitrt themselves ; run into a hornet's nest, play 
 with serpents ; harbour a thief in the house. 
 
 3. Strive with one stronger ; so the potsherd with its 
 maker, Ps. 2. 9. God has even frogs, worms, and every- 
 thing at his disposal. 
 
 4. Take brass for gold ; so the mean things of earth 
 for heaven, Phil. 3. 8. 
 
 5. Feed on ashes, among swine, Is. 44, 20, Luke 15. 
 1 6 ; so the Prodigal son ; he labours for the wind, Ecc. 
 5. 15. 
 
 6. Sow when they should reap. So a death-bed re- 
 pentance. 
 
 7. Delight in mischief Ps. 28. 3. 
 
 8. To save their hat lose their head. 
 
 ChanaJc. — In the dusk we lose our way, and a fallen woman 
 
 is like a corpse. 
 Syrian. — Seek death to obtain life — i.e., kill passion to save 
 
 your soul. 
 Sijviac. — Put not a candle before a wall — i.e., by teaching a 
 
 fool. 
 Turk. — The fool is a cock which sings at the wrong time. 
 Turk. — Making a fool understand is like making a camel 
 
 leap a ditch. 
 
 Drunkenness. — Eph. 5. 18. 
 
 Exemplified in Noah, Gen. 9. 21 ; Belshazzar, Dan. 5. 
 4 ; Mneveh, Nah. i . i o. 
 
 Finnish. — The anvil proves the iron, the drink the man. 
 Turk. — -Yagabonds are at home in the drinkiug-shop. 
 Bussian. — A drunkard's money is in his hand but goes 
 through his fingers. 
 I 
 
I 14 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Mussian. — Drink one day, a headache the whole week. 
 Mussian. — A drunken peasant will fight with a turnip. 
 
 Bich.es have Wings like an Eagle. — Peov. 23. 5. 
 
 The eagle is the king of birds ; he has long wings ; he 
 can carry off a sheep in his talons, and fly high above 
 the storms and lightning. Wings mark speed ; hence 
 the expression, wings of the wind, Ps. 104. 3. Ships 
 are said to have wings. Is. 18. i — i.e., their sails. The 
 four wings of riches are, water, fire, debts, thieves. If 
 Nebuchadnezzar be in the palace among his nobles anon, 
 he is soon in the park among the beasts. Adonijah was 
 one day on the throne, on another seeking refuge for his 
 life at the horns of the altar. Zedekiah, on Jerusalem 
 being taken, saw his sons slain before his eyes, then his 
 own eyes being put out, he was bound in fetters and sent 
 to Babylon. Saman had great wealth, yet in one day 
 he was hung on a gallows sixty feet high, and thus his 
 riches fled. Josiah goes forth to battle, and is slain. 
 Ahah goes forth against the Assyrians, and is slain also. 
 Judas got thirty pieces of silver for betraying Christ, but 
 he went out and hanged himself. 
 
 Arab. — Riches diminish in the using, wisdom increases by 
 
 use. 
 TurJc. — Every ascent has a descent. 
 Afghan. — Wealth is a Hindoo's heard — i.e., uncertain. The 
 
 Hindoos shave when in mourning, which often 
 
 occurs, as the family connexions are numerous. 
 Teliigu. — Worldly prosperity is like writing on water. 
 Telugu. — Hiches flourish, like the charms of women, for a 
 
 season, hut rapidly fade away ; as moonlight dies 
 
 when a cloud passes over the sky. 
 Bengal. — Riches are like a tree on a river hank. 
 Bengal. — The boat is now carried on the cart, and the cart 
 
 on the boat. 
 Hindi. — Fleeting as the sunshine of noon. 
 Mahamudgar. — Boast not of wealth, family, youth ; fortune 
 
 takes them all away in the twinkling of an eye. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 115 
 
 Lalita Vistara. — Everything compounded is soon dissolved ; 
 
 frail as a vessel of earth or a city of sand. 
 JPrasJiotar Mala. — What is unsteady as the water drops on 
 
 the lotos leaf? Youth, riches, life. 
 
 Education, or Bending the Twig. — Phot. 22. 6. 
 
 ■ Japan. — Pearls unpolished shine not. 
 
 Malay. — A pestle by chiselling at last becomes a stick. 
 
 Malay. — A young buffalo need not be taught. 
 
 Malay. — Sores are not to be shown to flies, and children are 
 
 not to be taught to lie. 
 Malay. — You may place on the lap a betel-nut but not a 
 
 betle-nut tree. 
 Malay. — To give a calf to be brought up by a tiger. 
 ChanaTc. — Parents are the enemies of their children if they 
 
 refuse them education ; for they appear in society 
 
 as herons among the flamingoes. Prov. 22. 6. 
 Bulgarian. — We bend the tree when young, 
 Japan. — Like learning to swim in a field. 
 
 The Righteous are Epistles not Written with Ink. 
 
 2 COE. 3. 3. 
 
 God's writing things m a hook denotes his perfect know- 
 ledge, exact remembrance, and continued just regard to them. 
 His writing litter things against one, signifies his gradual 
 afflicting of him with severe and lasting troubles, as he did 
 Job. His writing his law in men's heart, and sealing them 
 with his Spirit, imports his applying his word by his Spirit 
 to their heart, that they may be conformed to his image 
 -and law, and comforted by his influence, Eom. 2. 15. 
 His writing men's names in heaven in his book of life, with 
 the living, with the righteous, imports his particular and 
 fixed choice of them to obtain everlasting life, Luke 10. 
 20. His writing his name in their foreheads imports his 
 rendering them like him in holiness, and enabling them 
 to make an open profession of his truth, Eev. 14. i. His 
 putting their tears into his bottle, and marlcing them in his 
 
 I 2 
 
ii6 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 book, imports his kind observation, and careful rewarding 
 thereof. 
 
 Afghan. — "What is white shines best amid black. 
 
 Providence guards the Righteous as the Apple of 
 the Eye.— Ps. 17. 8. 
 
 The ball of the eye is secured by the eyebrows, which 
 turn aside the perspiration of the forehead from the eye, 
 while dust and insects are kept off by the eyelids ; the 
 socket of bone the eye is placed in, protects the apple or 
 pupil of the eye, which is in the centre of this, surrounded 
 by the white of the eye. Such is God's protection. 
 
 Bengal. — He who has given Hfe will give food. 
 
 The Single Eye of pure Intention.— Mat. 6. 22. 
 
 Turk. — The eyes are a balance of which the heart forms the- 
 weight. 
 
 China. — A hair's breadth at the bow is a mile beside the butt. 
 
 Aral. — The contemplation of vice is a vice. Prov. 23. 3 r. 
 
 Turk. — The chimney catches fire from within. 
 
 Veman. — A feast given without kindness is a mere waste 
 of flour-cakes ; worship devoid of piety is a waste 
 of the sprouts used in sacrifice ; and gifts devoid 
 of charity are a mere waste of gold. I Cor. lO. 3 1 . 
 
 Oriental. — You cannot drive a straight furrow without a 
 straight eye. 
 
 Telugu. — Observances void of purity of heart ! to what end 
 are they ? to what is the preparation of food 
 without cleansing the vessel? Mat. 15. 8. 
 
 Telugu. — Those who mortify their bodies, calling themselves 
 saints, are yet unable to cure the impurity of 
 their hearts. If you merely destroy the outside 
 of a white ant hill, will the serpent that dwelt 
 therein perish ? 
 
 Telugu. — The hypocrite's meditations are like those of a dog 
 
 on a dunghill. 
 Tamul. — Like a jackal going round the grave of a child — i.e.y 
 not from respect, but to tear up the corpse. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 117 
 
 SJidnti Shatalc. — Praise to the stomach which is satisfied 
 with little food, but shame to the heart, which, 
 though it has a hundred desires satisfied, is pur- 
 suing after more. 
 
 Sanskrit. — As the spokes of a wheel are attached to the 
 nave, so are all things attached to life. 
 
 God our Father.— Heb. 12. 9. 
 
 Authority and dignity belong to a father, hence the 
 rulers of Israel were called fathers. Abraham com- 
 manded his children, and was hence called the Father of 
 the Faithful. 
 
 God like a good father in fifteen points : — 
 
 1. Compassionate to children, so were the Apostles, 
 1 Thes. 2. 1 1 ; hence Paul calls Timothy his son. Tit. 3. 
 4 ; John 3. 16 ; Ps. 103. 13 ; God treats them as lambs, 
 Is. 40. I I. 
 
 2. Reverenced by children and not rebuked. 
 
 3. (TO^'e?'?is with wisdom. 
 
 4. Gives being, so Jacob to the twelve Patriarchs, so 
 Abraham to the Jews numerous as the sand of the sea, 
 Acts y. S ; believers are begotten by the word of truth, 
 Jas. 1 . 18; I Cor. 4. I 5 ; God is the father of all men, 
 ' especially of all regenerate, Gal. 4. 6 ; Eph. 4. 6. 
 
 5. Nourishes, believers as new-born babes receive the 
 milk of the word, i Pet. 2. 2 ; a father gives a fish, not a 
 serpent. Mat. 7. 10; Ps. 34. 8-10. 
 
 6. Clothes, so Jacob made for Joseph a coat of many 
 •colours. God clothes the grass, so will He us. Matt. 6. 
 .30 ; He gives the robe of salvation, Isa. 61. 10. 
 
 7. Protects, covers them with his wings, so David, 
 I Chr. 16. 21, 22. 
 
 8. Delights even in their lisping, so prayer the 
 language of a sigh, Eom. 8. 26 ; though they chatter 
 like a crane, Isa. 38. 14; the publican only smote on 
 
1 18 EASTERN PRO VERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 his breast, yet God delighted in his humility, Luke i8. 
 
 13. 
 
 9. Sets a good example, merciful, Luke 6. 36 ; patient, 
 Col. I. II. 
 
 10. Loves best those most like Him, so Daniel was 
 greatly beloved, Dan. 9.2; so David a man after God's 
 own heart. Acts 13. 22 ; John the beloved disciple. 
 
 1 1. Educates; God's word makes wise unto salvation,, 
 2 Tim. 3.15; sends Prophets, Eph. 4. 1 1 ; in Christ hid 
 treasures of wisdom, Col. 2. 3. 
 
 12. Eeady to hear requests, 2 Cor. 6. 2 ; grants not 
 injurious things, Jas. i. 5,6; but takes away hurtful 
 things, so hedges their way with thorns, Hos. 2. 6. 
 
 1 3. Eegards them even at a distance, so in the parable 
 of the Prodigal son, Luke 15. 20. 
 
 1 4. Patient ; values sincerity ; the children have re- 
 belled. Is. I. 2-5. 
 
 15. Chastises, Pro v. 22. 15 ; He rebukes transgression 
 with a rod, sometimes he only remonstrates, Mic. 6. 3; 
 to be without chastisement a note of bastards, Heb. 1 2. 8 ; 
 punishment a mark of love, Eev. 3. 19; for our profit^ 
 Heb. 12.10; even then he is pained ; this chastisement 
 is in measure. 
 
 16. Makes provision for. Earthly fathers, often 
 passionate, though they be kings, yet of poor dignity, 
 often know not the condition of their distant children, 
 who may become poor. Is. 54. 10; cannot convert, Heb. 
 2. 14; Ex. 36. 26 ; estate divided or only given to one; 
 are mortal. 
 
 The wickedness of a child does not estrange the heart 
 of a parent, so God remembers we are but dust, Ps. 103. 
 1 4 ; he pities ; Christ our High Priest is touched with a 
 feeling of our infirmities. 
 
 Bengal. — The tree feels not its own fruit weighty. 
 Badaga. — Mix milk with water, it is still milk. Tour 
 
 mother might behave badly, still she is your 
 
 mother. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 119 
 
 Arab. — A blow from a lover as sweet as the eating of 
 raisins. 
 
 Bengal. — If you love me do not beat my dog. 
 
 Afghan. — Though a mother be a wolf she does not eat her 
 cub's flesh. 
 
 B^agJiwoansa.—H^sQ father can no more destroy his son than 
 the cloud can extinguish by its water the light- 
 ning which proceeds from itself. 
 
 Faith without Fruits is Dead.— Jas. 2. 17. 
 
 Eaith is the root, works are the fruit : to try to do 
 works without faith is like what the Bengali proverb 
 states, " Cutting away the root and watering the branches." 
 The Egyjptians painted a tongue with a hand under it, to 
 show that knowledge and speech are efficacious and good, 
 when that which is known and said is done. We must 
 be golden-handed as well as golden-mouthed. Blessed 
 are they that do his commandments, that they may have 
 right to the Tree of Life, Eev. 22. 14. Knowledge with- 
 out action is a man without arms ; it is wine shut up in 
 the vessel, that does good to none, and will corrupt at last 
 and mar the vessel. Such knowledge will be like the 
 poison that lies long in the body and at last kills without 
 remedy. So she that liveth in pleasure, i Tim. 5. 6. 
 
 In rain, not mere water fructifies, but a secret spirit or 
 nitre that descends with it. Doing is the noblest improve- 
 ment of being. The soul's essence is action. Eeligion, if 
 confined to the heart, is not so much entertained as im- 
 prisoned, that, indeed, is to be its fountain but not its 
 channel; fountains would not be so much valued if they 
 did not produce rivers. God planted religion among men 
 as a tree of life, which though it was to spring upward 
 directly to himself, yet it was to spread its branches to 
 the benefit of all helow ,- like incense, which, while it 
 ascends to heaven, it perfumes all about it. Not like the 
 man who tells me his heart is right with God when his 
 hand is in my pocket. 
 
I20 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The unripe fruit has little beauty, little flavour ; is 
 plucked with difficulty from the tree. But let the air 
 and light, the warm sun and the fruitful showers, unite 
 to swell it, and to ripen it ; it is beautiful, it is sweet, 
 falling from the bough into the hand of him that 
 touches it. 
 
 In Gal. 5. 22, 23, the fruits which the righteous 
 ought to bear are described ; those of the wicked are 
 given Gal. 5. 19— 21 ; the barren fig-tree was cut down, 
 Luke 13. 7. 
 
 Afghan. — Cold is not kept out with a " for God's sake," or 
 
 "for the Prophet's sake," but with four seer 
 
 (2 lb.) of cotton — i.e., cotton is used to stuff 
 
 quilts and make tbem warm. 
 Telugu. — Worship without faith is a mere waste of flowers 
 
 — i.e., flowers are used in worship. 
 ChanaJc. — Learning placed only in books, and wealth in the 
 
 hands of others, are of no use, as not available in 
 
 time of action. 
 Arah. — Where the mind inclines, the feet lead. Love 
 
 climbs mountains. 
 Arah. — There are three things never hidden: love, a moun- 
 tain, and one riding on a camel. 
 Persian. — Love and musk do not remain concealed. 
 China. — To come to the river wishing to fish is not enough ; 
 
 you must bring the net in your hand. 
 Sadi. — 
 
 Though the water of life from the clouds fell in billows, 
 And the ground were strewn over with paradise loam : 
 Yet in vain would you seek, from a garden of willows. 
 To collect any fruit as beneath them you roam. 
 Oriental. — Expecting good fruits from the wicked is draining 
 
 swallow's milk, plucking a hog's soft wool, sands 
 
 yielding pomegranates. 
 Bengal. — One knows the horse by his ears ; the generous 
 
 by his gifts ; a man by laughing ; and a jewel by 
 
 its brilliancy. 
 Tamul. — Will the tiger's young be without claws ? 
 Arab. — A learned man without works is like a cloud without 
 
 rain. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 121 
 
 Balhins. — A basket full of books — i.e., a man of knowledge, 
 but without using it. 
 
 Sanskrit. — A fallen woman is dead. 
 
 Fanch Tantra. — As shade and sunlight are ever closely- 
 joined together, so an act and the agent stick 
 close to each other. 
 
 The Earth waxes old as a Garment. — Heb. i. 10-12. 
 
 The earth itself is millions of years old, and lias 
 changed its garment — i.e., the surface — many times. The 
 Himalayas were once islands in an ocean which covered 
 all India, and the Bay of Bengal washed the foot of the 
 Himalayas. India was once not a continent but an 
 archipelago; its present mountains were then islands, 
 while the valley of the Ganges was formed from the earth 
 brought down from the mountains. England itself was 
 then a tropical climate ; sharks, alligators, and elephants 
 lived there, though it is now too cold for them. 
 
 The heavens will be folded up as a scroll, Is. 34. 4, 
 Eev. 6. 14. 
 
 Arab. — The garment of salvation never grows old, Is. 59* 
 
 17, Ps. 104. 2. 
 China. — The pleasure of doing good is the only one that 
 
 will not wear out. 
 Hebrew. — All flesh waxeth old as a garment. 
 JBhagavatgita. — 
 As their old garments men cast oiF, anon new raiment to 
 
 assume ; 
 So casts the soul its worn-out frame, and takes at once 
 
 another form : 
 The weapon cannot pierce it through, nor wastes it the 
 
 consuming fire ; 
 The liquid waters melt it not, nop dries it up the parching 
 
 wind; 
 Impenetrable and unburned ; impermeable and undried : 
 -Perpetual ever- wandering, firm, indissoluble, permanent, 
 
 iQvisible, unspeakable. 
 
122 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The Strait Gate and Narrow Way to eternal Life. 
 Mat. 7. 12. 
 
 The Katha Upanishad of the Yajur Veda states, " The- 
 way to the knowledge of God is considered by wise men 
 difficult, as the passage over the sharp edge of a razor." 
 Though the way to heaven does not allow the unclean or 
 lions to pass on it, the wayfaring man, though a fool,, 
 may find it, Is. 35. 8; it is not like the broad way, 
 crowded, or on an inclined plane, or easy like a boat 
 going with the tide, or ending abruptly as Sodom did in 
 brimstone; the way of transgressors is hard, as Samson, 
 Judg. 16. 16, Saul, I Sam. 31. 4, and the licentious 
 found, Prov. 2. 18, 5. 11 ; Josiah found the way that 
 seemed right to him ended in death, 2 Chr. 35 ; the way 
 of life goes to the eternal city, John 14. 6 ; the broad 
 way has many on it and is easy, leading to death, Prov. 
 4. 19. 
 
 Arab. — The ascent to virtue steep ; the descent to vice 
 
 smooth. 
 Fersian, — The water of life is in darkness — i.e., search is 
 
 necessary. 
 Persian. — Travel the highway, though it be roundabout — 
 
 i.e., short cuts are dangerous. 
 mtopadesh. — A stone is rolled up a hill by great exertions,. 
 
 but is easily thrown down. 
 
 The Girdle of Truth.— Eph. 6. 14. 
 
 Some girdles are made of gold or fine linen, yet are 
 perishable ; but truth is immortal ; as the Russian proverb 
 states. Truth is not drowned in water, nor turned m Jlre, 
 and the Bengali proverb, " False words and sprinkled 
 water remain not long." Better totter in our bodies than 
 in our words. Truth means the unleavened bread of 
 sincerity, i Cor. 5. 8. 
 
 The Shdnti Shatak, treating of the marks of the friends 
 of truth, states "they have as a father patience, as a. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 123. 
 
 mother forgiveness, as a wife peace of mind, their heir 
 truth, their sister pity, their brother temperance, the earth 
 their bed, their garment the air, and wisdom their nectar." 
 The Marhanda Purana writes of truth : — 
 
 Through truth only the sun sliines, on truth the earth stands. 
 To speak the truth is the highest duty, on truth the heaven 
 rests ; 
 
 Though we weigh a thousand Asvamedhs against truth, 
 Yet will truth outweigh a thousand Asvamedhs. 
 
 Hypocrisy and malice are called leaven as being sour^ 
 and making other things sour, working secretly, puffing. 
 Leaven also, from its diffusive nature, symbolized the rapid 
 spread of the Gospel, Mat. 13. 33. 
 
 Nathaniel was an example of sincerity, a man without 
 leaven, John i. 47 ; such was Paul. 
 
 Truth or sincerity is like a girdle in seven joints : — 
 
 1. A belt used by soldiers to protect the stomach and 
 vital parts. We are told to gird up the loins of our 
 mind, i Pet. i . i 3 — i.e., restrain earthly affections. 
 
 2. Cleaves close all round : therefore the clothes were 
 not easily loosed. The righteous should not turn to the 
 right hand or the left, i Kings 13; as the Bengali 
 proverb, " One foot on land, another on water." 
 
 3. Strengthens the loins : gird up thy loins, 2 Sam. 22. 
 40 ; God girds the loins of kings. Job 12. 18; sincerity 
 strengthens, i Kings 20. 1 1 ; sincerity is the girdle to 
 faith, hope, love. Matt. 6. 22. 
 
 4. A ]3reparation for tattle, Ps. 65. 3 : a war of words 
 necessary to contend for the faith, as the righteous is a 
 soldier. 
 
 5. A loreparation for travelling, as the garments were 
 long ; so Elisha's, 2 Kings 4. 29 ; so the spiritual 
 pilgrims have to travel far, and the storms of persecution 
 will blow away loose garments. 
 
 6. Preparatory to serving : so the servant ploughed 
 with loins girt, Luke 12. 35. 
 
Z24 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 7. An ornament, covers the joints of the armour, hides 
 seams ; sincerity covers low birth even in one of low 
 ■descent, Is. 43. 4 ; it covers poverty. All are yours, 
 I Chr. 3. 22. 
 
 China, — An untruthful man is iron without steel ; 
 
 An untruthful woman is rotten grass and tangled 
 hemp. 
 Afghan. — To lie is to leap from the house-top — i.e., a leap 
 
 in the dark. 
 Bengal. — A hero's word and an elephant's teeth remain fixed. 
 Talmud. — Lies have no legs. 
 JBengal. — Only a shrimp moves backward ; only a mean 
 
 person backs out of his word. 
 Turh. — The house of a liar is burned, but no one believes 
 
 it. 
 Bengal. — In promise he puts the moon in your hand. 
 JBengal. — A lie is water sprinkled — i.e., remains not. 
 Bengal. — Truth as a stone dissolves not in water. 
 
 Seeing through, a Dark Glass.— -i Cob. 13. n. 
 
 The eastern mirrors were made of ^polished steel, or brass, 
 hence the shy i^ compared in Job 37. 18, to a molten 
 looking-glass. The Moorish women in Barbary hang look- 
 ing-glasses on their breasts. 
 
 There were in Paul's time no windows of glass, but 
 talc or horn ones ; through these people saw very dimly ; 
 and such is our vision now of God's attributes, and of the 
 mysteries of religion ; Providence is a wheel within a wheel, 
 Ez. 1 . 16. Ships get on the rocks in a fog. 
 
 Bussian. — At night all cats are grey. 
 
 Tamul. — As the blind quarrelled about an elephant they had 
 
 examined. 
 Afghan. — The frog mounted on a clod, said he had seen 
 
 Kashmir. 
 Japan. — A small-minded man looks at the sky through a 
 
 reed. 
 Ja][)an. — To lap up the ocean with a shell. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 125, 
 
 Japan, — The frog in the well sees nothing of the high seas. 
 
 China. — Sitting in a well and staring at the stars. 
 
 Telugu. — Like one who does not know the alphabet attempt- 
 ing multiplication. 
 
 Tamul. — Sounding the ocean with a jackal's tail. 
 
 Hussian. — They will not see all the world by looking out of 
 their own window. 
 
 Prahodh Chandrody. — How can an answer be given to him 
 who does not comprehend his own spirit, any more 
 than it is possible to inform a blind man respect- 
 ing the figure of his body ? 
 
 Bengal. — Many elephants cannot wade^ the river ; the 
 mosquito says it is' on}y knee deep. Is. 45. 9. 
 
 Persian. — Thfe legs of those who require proofs of Grod's 
 existence are made of wood. 
 
 Telugu. — We cannot see our own forehead, our ears, or our 
 backs ; neither can we know the hairs of our head ; 
 if a man knows not himself how should he know 
 the deity ? 
 
 Sanskrit. — He who does not go forth and explore all the 
 earth is a well frog. 
 
 Aral. — The man is strange — who seeking a lost animal, 
 suffers his own soul to be lost — who ignorant of 
 himself seems to understand Grod — who doubts the 
 existence of God when he sees his creatures. 
 
 Hearers not Doers gazers in a Looking-glass. 
 
 Jas. I. 23, 25. 
 
 God lias given us a mirror in wliicli we may see the 
 true character of our soul ; we may thereby grow in self- 
 knowledge, and may adorn ourselves, not with what ministers 
 to pride and worldly vanity, but with the ornaments of 
 meekness and holiness, which are of great price in God's 
 sight. This mirror is his holy Word, which holds up to 
 ns the true lineaments and features of the soul, and shows 
 lis how greatly it has lost the beauty of the image and 
 likeness of God, and how it is disgraced and deformed by 
 spots and blemishes of sin. The swellings of pride, the 
 lines of envy and care, the shades of sensuality, sloth, and 
 
126 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 •earthliness appear too plainly, when we look into tliis 
 faithful mirror, which is not like flattering friends who say 
 ^smooth things to us, and sometimes puff us up witli the 
 notion that we are clothed with various graces ; but it tells 
 us the very truth concerning our spiritual state ; and no 
 veil of false excuses, or artful cloaking and colouring of our 
 faults, will disguise from us our true state, if only we never 
 neglect to consult this mirror in sincerity and with earnest 
 prayer. 
 
 There is looking without helping, as the Levite did, Luke 
 
 10. 
 
 Hearers not doers are also compared to those leading 
 captive silly women ever learning never coming to the 
 truth, 2 Tim. 3. 7 ; or to those hearing a fine song, Ezek. 
 33. 32 ; children with rickets have large heads, but weak 
 joints. God's word was designed as milk to enable persons 
 to grow, I Pet. 2. 2. A fresh corpse can have the image 
 of an object painted on the eye, but it reaches not to the 
 heart. Some hearers are like a sponge which suck up 
 everything, but all goes out again ; others like a strainer 
 letting go the good and retaining the bad ; while some are 
 like a sieve dropping the chaff and retaining the good grain. 
 
 China. — The doctrine that enters only into the eye and ear 
 
 is like the repast one takes in a dream ; Ez. 33. 32. 
 China. — Better return home and make a net than go down 
 
 the river and desire to get fishes. 
 China, — To look at a plum is not to quench one's thirst. 
 Bengal. — One man is being impaled, while the other counts 
 
 the joints on the stake. 
 Veman, — Let the sinner listen to holy texts he will not 
 
 relinquish his vile nature : though you wash a coal 
 
 in milk — will the blackness be removed ? 
 Yeman. — Whatever he devoid of understanding may read, 
 
 his virtue continues only so long as he is reading ; 
 
 even as a frog is dignified only so long as it is 
 
 seated on a lotus leaf. 
 Turk, — It is not in speaking continually of honey that 
 
 sweetness comes into the mouth. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 127 
 
 Arab. — Experience is the looking-glass of the intellect. 
 
 JPersian. — A mirror in an Ethiopian's hand, 
 
 ZJrdt^. — If the camel could see his hump, he would fall down 
 
 and break his neck. 
 China. — "Without striking the flint there is not even smoke. 
 Tamul. — If the men be ugly ; what can the glass do ? 
 Arah. — A learned man without practice, a cloud without 
 
 water. 
 JPersian. — One pound of learning requires ten of common 
 
 sense to apply it. 
 Buddhagosha. — A reciter of the law, but not a doer, is like 
 
 a cowherd counting the cows of others. 
 
 The Wild Goat on the Mountains protected, so the 
 Righteous. — Ps. 104. 18. 
 
 How safely does the wild goat rest on the side of the 
 precipitous mountain, or climb the dizzy height, where 
 man's brain would turn, and his feet would inevitably 
 slip 1 How freely and fearlessly does she leap from rock 
 to rock ! Her eye is as true, and her foot as sure upon 
 the steep and slippery crag, as on some beaten road ! 
 God has fitted her for "the high hills" on which he 
 has appointed her to live, and has endued her with 
 those faculties of the foot and of the eye, which enable 
 her, even in the darkest night, to walk on rocks and 
 precipices where man could not tread securely under the 
 noonday light. 
 
 The lesson taught is God's protecting providence, which 
 tempers the wind to the shorn lamb ; it is like Jacob's 
 ladder, extending from heaven to earth, though God's way 
 to us maybe in the sea. Is. 43. 16 — ^'.e., leaving no track. 
 God's acts are like clouds, which though black have the 
 rainbow of hope from Christ the Sun of Kighteousness, or 
 like wheels of quick and easy motion, which, though wheel 
 within wheel, are regulated by the main wheel. 
 
128 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The Tongue an Helm. — Jas. 3. 2-5. 
 We are told to keep the door of our lips ; tlie tongue 
 is little like a helm, or a bit in a horse's mouth, yet it 
 guides. Sennacherib's tongue brought death on 185,000 
 soldiers, 2 Kings i 8. 28 ; so Ananias and Sapphira's tongue 
 brought death. Acts 5. 8-10. 
 
 bengal. — His tongue is a sweeper's shovel. 
 
 Solomon. — A soft tongue breaketh the bone ; a wholesome 
 
 tongue is a tree of life. 
 Telugu. — If your foot slip you may recover your balance, 
 
 but if your mouth slips you cannot recall your 
 
 words. 
 
 Providence as a Hen sheltering her Chickens. 
 
 Mat. 23. 27. 
 
 A hen, on seeing the hawk that is hovering over her 
 young, hastens forward to meet her frightened brood. 
 Fearless in that defence she places herself in front of 
 the danger. She gathers her chickens under her wings. 
 Not one of them is denied admission to that hiding-place, 
 which they all so fondly seek, under a sense of their own 
 utter helplessness. 
 
 Christ had previously called the Pharisees the Gurus 
 (teachers) of that day — hypocrites, blind guides, serpents ; 
 in this text all is love to the people of Jerusalem, 
 700^000 in number. 
 
 Man is more inconsiderate than animals, than an ox 
 or ass. Is. 1.3. 
 
 1 . A lien is mry compassionate to her young ; so Christ 
 wept over Jerusalem, Mat. 23. 13. The hen even flies at 
 a dog approaching to her young ; so Christ resisted the 
 devil. Mat. 4. 6, 8. 
 
 2. A hen becomes tveaJc from nourishing her young ; 
 so Christ sweat great drops of blood. Mat. 26. 30; he 
 bore the heavy cross, Luke 23. 14. 
 
 3. A hen cluclis to warn her young of danger; so 
 God pleads — why will you die ? Ez. 14. 6. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 129 
 
 4. A hen's wings receive her young, Ps. 91.3. God 
 says, I have spread out my hands, Is. 65. 2, come to me 
 all that labour. Mat. 1 1. 28, 29. 
 
 A hen scratches to get meat for her young ; she fasts 
 herself to give meat to them; so God says, Ho every 
 one that thirsts. Is. 5 5 . i . A hen soon forgets her young 
 when grown. ]N'ot so God. Can a woman forget her 
 sucking child? Is. 49. 15. A hen loses her young in 
 spite of herself, God's people neyer perish, John 10. 28. 
 
 Telugu. — Will he who planted the tree not water it ? Luke 
 
 12. 24. 
 Fersian. — The provider of food (God) gives to daily food 
 
 wings in order to come. 
 
 Honesty.— EoM. 13. 13. 
 Christ gave the golden rule. Mat. 7.12. 
 
 Bengal. — The thief and the hog have one path. 
 
 Hebrew. — He that builds his house with other men's moneys 
 
 is like one that gathers himself stones for the tomb 
 
 of his burial. 
 
 Hospitality. — Rom. 12. 13. 
 Justus was hospitable to Paul, Acts 18.7. 
 
 Badaga. — He does not ask his friend to go away, but he 
 makes such a smoke in the house that his friend is 
 obliged to leave. 
 
 Telugu. — A kind reception is better than a feast. 
 
 Who are God's Jewels.— Mai. 3. 16, 17, 
 Jewels are much valued in every country ; hence the 
 New Jerusalem's gates are represented as made of pearls, 
 Eev. 21. 21. The jewels on the High Priest's breast- 
 plate symbolized the twelve tribes as dear to him. An 
 
 K 
 
I30 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 esteemed wife is called by tlie Hindus a jewel of a 
 woman. See parable of the Pearl, Mat. 13. 45. 
 
 TI1& righteous are like jeivels in seven points : — 
 
 1. All jewels are dug out of the earth from rubbish, 
 except the pearl found in the oyster ; the diamond is 
 only crystallized carbon or coal hardened in the earth ; 
 so believers at first of the earth earthy (i Cor. 15. 49) 
 dead in trespasses. ^ 
 
 2. Jewels receive a fine polish, which requires a long 
 time. A wheel is used for this purpose, so adversity 
 polishes believers to put on the new man as it did to 
 Joh and David ; the polishing continues till all the flaws 
 are removed, thus the Church hereafter by affliction's 
 rubbing, will be without spot or blemish. 
 
 3. Jeivels are rare. Many stones and metals are not 
 equal in value to a small one, so believers a little flock, 
 Luke 12. 32, not many wise called. Silver and gold were, 
 however, as stones in Solomon's times, i Kings 10. 27, 
 so again in the New Jerusalem. 
 
 4. Jewels are very heautiful — yellow, green, purple ; 
 so the graces are beautiful — as love with John, humility 
 as in Mary, patience as in Joh — whatever things are 
 lovely, Philip. 4. 8. Believers like jewels shine in the 
 dark, so believers are the light of the world, so Peter and 
 John's boldness was admired, though they were ignorant 
 men. Acts 4. 5. Stephen's face shone when dying. 
 Jewels are ornamental, set in a croivn, ring, or seal, used 
 by brides and kings ; so the believer's crown will be an 
 ornament to Christ's crown, Ex. 28. 29. To angels is 
 manifested the love of God to man. 
 
 5. Jewels are duralle ; such as the Kohi Nur of 
 Eanjit Sing. This is one cause of their value, so the 
 hidden man of the heart, i Peter 3. 4 ; when earthly 
 jewels shall be destroyed at the last day the righteous 
 shall shine forth. Mat. 13. 43 ; many seeming jewels are 
 only glass, so with hypocrites. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 131 
 
 6. Jewels are very valuable ; so the righteous are the 
 pearls of creation, of great price, Mat. 13. 45, redeemed 
 not with corruptible things, i Peter i. 17, the precious 
 sons of Zion were esteemed by the Chaldeans as earthen 
 vessels. Lam. 4. 2, yet regarded as the apple of God's 
 eye, Deut. 32. 10. Ten jewels — i.e., good men — would 
 have saved Sodom could they have been procured. 
 
 7. Jewels are kept carefully ; so believers are kept by 
 the power of God ; angels have charge over them, Mat. 
 4. 6. The Lord is their shade. 
 
 CTianak. — That jewel knowledge, which is not plundered by 
 kinsmen, nor carried off by thieves, which does 
 not decrease by giving, is great riches. 
 
 Urdu. — Among men some are jewels and some are pebbles. 
 
 SaiisJcrit. — The sandal grows not in every wood. 
 
 God a Judge. — Rev. 20. 12. 
 
 From God's judgment-seat there is no escape by 
 bribery. God spared not the devils, neither N'ebuchad- 
 nezzar nor Pharaoh. He is the Father of Lights, and 
 knows the law he himself made ; he is patient, because 
 he is eternal; he spared the world in ^N'oah's time 120 
 years; and the world has been spared now 6,000 years. 
 
 The eyes of the Lord are in every place, leholding the 
 evil aiid the good. There is no secret place in which the 
 sinner can hide himself ; for God, who is present every- 
 where, sees in the dark as well as in the light. He hears 
 us when we do not speak, because he hears our thoughts. 
 As the light of the sun reaches to the ends of the world, 
 .-so his power is everywhere, Ps. 139. 
 
 God differs from earthly judges in four points : — 
 
 The judge, who punishes sins in a court of justice, 
 
 receives his information from others, and can know only 
 
 that which the witnesses tell him. But God is both 
 
 judge and witness, and knows all things. When the 
 
 K 2 
 
132 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 judge has condemned a man and lie is put to deatli, lie 
 has no more that he can do ; but the power of God 
 reaches heyond the grave, for he can destroy both the 
 soul and body in hell. His hand shall find out those 
 whom the grave has hidden from our sight, and they 
 shall be brought forth, and placed before his judgment- 
 seat to be judged for their past lives. Thefts, murders,. 
 and other sins which were committed in the dark, and 
 were hidden from men so long as the offenders lived, 
 shall then all be discovered, and made known. With the 
 fear of this, the guilty shall tremble when they rise from 
 their graves ; then shall they call upon the mountains to 
 fall upon them, and hide them from the face of their 
 judge, Eev. 6. i6. 
 
 Bengal. — Sand sharpens a knife, a stone the axes, good 
 words a good man, a thrashing a rogue. 
 
 Bengal. — Before a turniDg-lathe a thing cannot remain 
 crooked. 
 
 K-*-< 
 
 Knowledge.— I Sam. 2. 3. 
 Empty knowledge puffs up, i Cor. 8. i, 2. 
 
 Menu. — A wooden elephant, an antelope of leather, and a 
 
 Brahman without knowledge — these three things 
 
 only bear a name, Eev. 3.1. 
 Atmabodh. — By ignorance the soul is ruined ; when this is 
 
 removed, the soul shall shine forth as the sun 
 
 when the clouds disappear. 
 Atmabodh. — The flame of knowledge which blazes forth 
 
 when the contemplation is unceasingly rubbed 
 
 upon the fuel of the soul, consumes all the stubble 
 
 of ignorance. 
 Atmabodh. — Knowledge alone effects emancipation, as fire 
 
 is indispensable to cooking. 
 Avyar. — He without knowledge is blind. 
 Kural. — Those who know have eyes and see ; those who 
 
 know not have only two holes in front. 
 Sanskrit. — The gem of learning is great wealth ; it cannot 
 
 be shared by cousins, nor lost by robbery, nor 
 
 exhausted by liberality, Mat. 6. 19. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 133 
 
 Sanskrit. — A reasonable word should be received even from 
 
 a child or parrot. 
 Arah. — Ignorance is the greatest poverty. 
 Sanskrit. — One void of learning is a beast. 
 Sanskrit. — The spring is the youth of trees, wealth is the 
 
 youth of meo, beauty is the youth of women, 
 
 intelligence is the youth of the young. 
 jirah. — One day of a wise man is worth more than the life 
 
 of a fool. 
 Niti Shatak. — The man without learning is a beast. 
 
 Sin, a Leprosy.— Is. i. 6. 
 
 Disease called an arrow flying at night, Ps. 90., such 
 -as cholera. David was a man after God's own " heart ;" 
 though living in a palace of cedar, he could not prevent 
 disease, the fruit of sin, from entering ; no soundness in 
 his flesh, no rest in his bones^ an emblem of sin ; this 
 was the man once so lively who danced before the ark, 
 Ps. z^. 7. 
 
 Sill is like leprosy in tiuelve 'joints : — 
 
 1. Painful. Pain is often useful in warning of danger 
 to the body ; thus fire warns, but the absence of mental 
 pain is often an opiate to the conscience ; thus Cain did 
 not feel at first that he was guilty of murder; he said, 
 Am I my brother's keeper ? Gen. 4., 9. So when 
 David committed murder he slept well. On another 
 occasion, however, he states the arrows of the Almighty 
 are within him. A pain often points out the seat of disease ; 
 opiates are not good in such a case. The pain of future 
 punishment should be anticipated like as in the case of 
 the men that heard Peter, and who were pricked to the 
 heart, Acts. 2. 37, others, however, as in Judas's case 
 suffer pain without any benefit. 
 
 2. Wastes the tody and heanty. His beauty consumes 
 like a moth, Ps. 39. 11. The Nazarites, whiter than snow, 
 became black as a coal, Lam. 4. 8. God saw once every 
 thing he made was good, even man's body, but sin has 
 
134 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 dimmed the fine gold. " They are altogether become filthy.'* 
 The jaundiced eye does not always see its own ugliness ; 
 so with the sinner. 
 
 3. Impairs the strength of the limhs. The strong becomes 
 rery weak, so the sinner — '•' sin revived, I died." The sick 
 man tries to walk, but falls ; he has the will, not the 
 power. The law in the members warring against the law 
 of the mind, Eom. 7. 23. 
 
 4. Spoils the appetite. Food is necessary, yet there is 
 no relish, hence death ensues ; the manna of God's word 
 is despised ; the honeycomb of the promises is loathed ; 
 the wine and milk of Gospel truth are rejected ; he turns 
 as a dog to his vomit, and eats husks. Job 31. 21. 
 Behold he prayeth, was the sign of Saul's spiritual appetite. 
 Acts 9. 1 1. 
 
 5 . Blasts the comforts of life. The ear enjoys not music ; 
 Job when a leper said. My soul chooseth strangling rather 
 than life. Job 7. 15. Vanity of vanities, says Solomon^ 
 Eccl. 1 . 2 ; as vinegar upon nitre, so songs to a heavy 
 heart, Pro v. 25. 20. 
 
 6. Unhinges the whole hody. The heart and limbs feel 
 local complaints. I am poured out like water, Ps. 22. 14; 
 so the conscience calls bitter sweet, the whole head is sick. 
 Tit. 1.5. The imagination is only evil. 
 
 7. Ternfiinates in death. The blood is affected, and 
 then the dust returns to dust ; he that liveth in pleasure 
 is dead, i Tim. 5. 6. How fearful are plagues, such as 
 small-pox, cholera, yet how much more so the disease of sin. 
 
 8. Deeply seated. Not skin deep, but affecting the 
 vital parts of the blood and the heart, which is deceitful 
 above all things. 
 
 9. Widely spread since Adam's time ; small-pox, 
 leprosy are spread to every part of the body, so man's 
 members are made instruments of unrighteousness ; " his 
 tongue, a world of iniquity ;" his eyes full of covetousness ; 
 his hands defiled with bribes ; his feet swift to shed 
 blood. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 135 
 
 10. Extremely complicated. Now the fever of agitated 
 passion, the palsy of want of natural affection, the decay 
 of spiritual affection — a complication of disorders, so that 
 what is a remedy in one case is a poison in another. 
 
 1 1. Hereditary. "What is born of the flesh is flesh." 
 " In sin did my mother conceive me,^' Ps. 5 i. 5. By one 
 man sin entered into the world, Eom. 5 . 12; so Gehazi's 
 family inherited from him the leprosy, 2 Kings 5. 27. 
 
 1 2. Most infectious. The atmosphere of the earth is 
 charged with disease which is caught from the air of a 
 room or from clothes ; but sin from a glance, or a word, 
 as in David's case. Evil communications corrupt good 
 manners. Only Christ was exempt from this infection ; 
 like a sunbeam he could penetrate impurity without being 
 soiled. 
 
 13. Very loathsome and malignant. The drunkard's 
 and libertine's complaints are such. The body, as in 
 leprosy, is often a putrid mass, so that friends cannot 
 come near. Paul says, " Who shall deliver me from the 
 (putrid) body of this death ?" 
 
 14. Incurable hy human means; sin, when it hath 
 conceived, brought forth dead. Quack doctors will not 
 do. No doctors can cure this leprosy. 
 
 Hussian. — The fleetest horse escapes not from its tail. 
 Tamul. — Is the young jackal to be trained to howl ? 
 Arah. — The shadow of the deformed is deformed. 
 Tamul. — A lame man is a hero before a cripple. 
 Tamul. — As if one changed his pillow to cure the headache. 
 Persian. — If you keep sour milk in a leathern bag lOO 
 
 years, it will still be sour milk. John 3. 5-7. 
 Urdu. — Put a dog's tail into a straight pipe for 1 000 years, 
 
 it will still be as crooked as ever. 
 
 God's People graven on the Palms of his Hands. 
 
 Is. 49. 15, 16. 
 
 God says a mother may forget her sucking child, but he 
 will not forget his people. Is. 49. 15. An engraving is not 
 
136 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 impressed on the surface as writing but is cut in or graven 
 with a pen of stone or of writing iron ; this impression is 
 not rubbed out like that of ink or on palm leaves, but 
 remains like the impression of the style on leaves. God's 
 having his people graven on the palms of his hands, 
 means their being in a secure place, and one easily observed 
 by the individual, 
 
 Hitopadesh. — He by whom swans are made white, and 
 
 parrots green, and peacocks variegated, will 
 
 provide thy subsistence. 
 Sanskrit. — A mother curses not her son ; the earth suffers 
 
 no harm ; a good man does no injury ; God 
 
 destroys not his creation. 
 
 Light.— Ps. 36. 9. 
 
 God the sun, the source of light, Jas. 1 . 1 7 ; communi- 
 cated to the body through the eye. Mat. 6. 22 ; the 
 path of the just like the shining light, Prov. 4. i 8 ; the 
 favour of God is light, Ps. 27. i, and is therefore agree- 
 able, Ecc. II. y. 
 
 TIpanishad. — It is through God's shining that all else 
 shines ; by his lustre the universe is illuminated. 
 
 The Righteous Bold as a Lion. — Peov. 28. i. 
 
 The roaring of a lion in quest of his prey resembles 
 the sound of distant thunder, and being re-echoed by 
 the rocks and mountains, appals the whole race of 
 animals, and puts them instantly to flight. So great are 
 the terror and dismay which his roaring produces, that 
 many animals, which by their swiftness might escape his 
 fury, astonished and petrified by the sound of his voice, 
 are rendered incapable of exertion. He never flies from 
 the hunters, nor is frightened by their onset; if their 
 numbers force him to yield, he retires slowly, step by 
 step, frequently turning upon his pursuers. He has been. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 137 
 
 known to attack a whole caravan, and when obliged to 
 retire, he always retires fighting, and with his face to his 
 enemies. " An army of deer with the lion as leader is 
 more terrible than an army of lions with a deer as 
 leader." 
 
 A lion was the symbol of a king; Judah is called, 
 from its brave character, a lion's whelp, Gen. 49. 9 ; 
 Babylon is called a lion on the eagle wings of conquest, 
 Dan. 7. 4 ; Paul was delivered out of the lion's mouth — 
 i.e., from the wicked — 2 Tim. 4. 1 7 ; ^N; ebuchadnezzar was 
 called a lion, Jer. 4. 7 ; Christ called the lion of the 
 tribe of Judah, Eev. 5. 5. 
 
 A lion is 
 
 1. Courageous; such was David, Ps. 27. 3 ; so Nehemiah 
 said, shall such a man as I flee, 'Neh. 6. 1 1 ; so Paul 
 boldly avowed his doctrine to be what the governor 
 called heresy. Acts 24. 14; he fought with beasts, i Cor. 
 15. 32 ; the Apostles said they must speak of the things 
 they had seen. Acts 4. 20 ; so Elijah, i Kings 10. 15, 19 ; 
 Is. 41. 14. The lion called the king of beasts, so 
 believers are more than conquerors, Eom. 8. 3 ; other 
 beasts fear it, so Herod feared John, Matt. 15.5. 
 
 2. Strong. Samson says, out of the strong lion came 
 forth sweetness, Judg. 14. 14; Christ as a lion is mighty 
 to save. Is. 9. 6 ; at times the lion is still when he crouches 
 -down before his spring ; Christ is now a lamb, but after- 
 wards will be a lion, on the last day, Am. 3.8. 
 
 3. Mild : to these submissive, yet firm ; so John before 
 Herod ; Paul before Pelix ; so Moses. 
 
 Russian. — Pear has many eyes ; he fearing the wolf enters 
 
 not the forest. 
 China. — Men who never violate their conscience are not 
 
 afraid of a knock at their door at midnight. 
 Urdu. — The leaf cracked, and your servant fled. 
 JPersian. — He fled from his own shadow. 
 -Arab. — No rehgion without courage. 
 
138 EASTERN PROVERBS AND ExMBLEMS 
 
 TuvTc. — Among ten men nine are women. 
 
 Canara. — An elephant fears not fishes, neither do the good 
 
 the bad. 
 African. — If a mouse were as big as a bullock, yet it would 
 
 be the slave of the cat. 
 
 Time like a Mail-post, Swift Ships, Eagles. — Job 9. 25, 26. 
 
 Time, in its rapid devastating course, is compared to a 
 flood, Ps. 90. 5 ; to a tale that is told, Ps. 90. 9 ; a liand- 
 Ireadtli, Ps. 39-5; a dream, Ps. 73. 20; a weaver's 
 shuttle. Job 7. 6f 
 
 In Job's days human life had been gradually shortening 
 from 500 to 70 years. 
 
 The dromedary post, though not as quick as a horse 
 in a given space, yet maintains an uniform continued 
 progress. 
 
 Time is like a mail-post, in four points : 
 
 1 . The postman rides on swift horses 150 miles a 
 day, while the caravan moves only at two miles an hour. 
 
 2. Changes in order to increase speed. 
 
 3. Delays little for rest or mere salutation, Luke 10. 4. 
 
 4. Alloivs no ohstruction on the road. The Persian 
 messengers could, by royal authority, press horses, men, or 
 ships, so as to expedite them, Esth. 3. 15. 
 
 The post may be stayed, but the sun never stops. 
 Swift ships — i.e., made of papyrus of the JSTile — which 
 cut through the water with easy speed. 
 
 Italian. — Time is an inaudible file. 
 
 Greek. — Man is a bubble. 
 
 Bengal. — There is no hand to catch time. 
 
 Canara. — Life is a lamp exposed to the wind, Jas. 4. 14. 
 
 Arab. — Who is able to restore Mhat was yesterday, or to 
 
 plaster over the rays of the sun ? 
 Persian. — The best teacher is time. 
 China. — As wave follows wave so new men take old men's 
 
 places. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 139 
 
 China. — Men live like birds together in a wood : 
 
 When the time comes each takes his flight. 
 
 China, — A generation is like a swift horse passing a 
 crevice. 
 
 China. — "When we take off our boots and stockings to-day, 
 That we shall wear them to-morrow who can say ? 
 
 Canara. — The pearl though originating in water does not- 
 become water again, Prov. 4. id), I Cor. 13. II. 
 
 Oriental. — The world has nothing constant, but its insta- 
 bility. 
 
 Aral). — Every day in thy life is a leaf in thy history, Prov. 
 27. I. 
 
 Kathd Saritsdgar. — The rivers, the flowers, the moon's- 
 phases, disappear but return, not so youth. 
 
 An Oppressor like a Crouching Iiion.— Ps. 10. 9. 
 
 A lion is proud, strong, and crafty, lying in wait for the 
 prey ; such were Nebuchadnezzar, Dan. 3, Manasseh, 2 
 Kings 21. 16, Behoboam ; Satan is compared to a roaring 
 lion, I Pet. 5. 8, active as with Job, knowing his time is 
 short, Eev. 12. 12. 
 
 Oppression is an abuse of power, the practice of unjust 
 and uncharitable actions as to a hired servant, Deut. 24.. 
 14, or widow, Ex. 22. 21—24. Oppression makes a wise 
 man mad, Ecc. 7. 7 ; grinds the face of the poor, Is. 3. 
 15; flays the poor, Mic. 3. 1-3. Envy one cause of 
 oppression, as in Ahab and ^aboth's case ; pride another,, 
 as in Jezebel's case. 
 
 Telugu. — There is no justice in oppression, and no sight in 
 
 a blind eye. 
 Bengal. — The landlord loves the peasant with the same 
 
 love as the Musalman has to the fowl — i.e., which. 
 
 he fattens in order to kill. 
 
S40 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 A Living Dog better than a dead Lion.— Ecc. 9. 4. 
 
 *' Half a loaf'i^ better than no bread." 
 
 " He with one eye sees the better for it." 
 
 " A standing thistle better than the falling cedar." 
 
 " A living sheep better than the dead camel." 
 
 " A living hodman better than the dead Emperor." 
 
 This text points out the value of life, using as an em- 
 blem the dog, the meanest of animals. Matt. 15. 26, and 
 the lion, the noblest, Pro v. 30. 30. 
 
 Man and Wife one Flesh.— Matt. 19. 5. 
 There is an union, but not like the one in Nebuchadnez- 
 zar's image, Dan. 2. 33. No bitterness is to be shown, 
 Col. 3. 19. The Egyptians represent a man without a 
 woman by a single mill-stone, which cannot grind alone. 
 
 Talmud. — Even though the wife be little, bow down to her 
 
 in speaking, i.e., do nothing without her advice. 
 Jainwriter. — The husband and wife must, like two wheels, 
 
 support the chariot of domestic life, otherwise it 
 
 must stop. 
 Aral. — "Women are parts cut out of men. Gren. 2. 23. 
 China. — Husband and wife in perfect accord ; 
 
 Are the music of the harp and lute. 
 China. — A good man will not beat his wife ; 
 A good dog will not worry a fowl. 
 Badaga^ — If you yoke a buffalo and an ox together, the 
 
 one will push for the swamp and the other for the 
 
 hill. 
 Arab. — A mule yoked with horses. 2 Cor. 6. 14. 
 Persian. — Tied by the neck, i.e., married to a bad woman. 
 Persian. — A bad wife is a tree growing on the wall, i.e., 
 
 like the fig tree which undermines the wall by its 
 
 roots. 
 Mussian. — A wife is not a guitar, i.e., which having done 
 
 playing with you hang on the wall. 
 Telugu. — The house is small and the wife like a monkey. 
 China. — A widow is a rudderless boat. 
 Basque. — He who marries a wolf often looks towards the 
 
 forest. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 141 
 
 Talmud. — Grod did not make woman from man's head, that 
 
 she should not rule over him ; nor from his feet, 
 
 that she should not be his slave; but from his side, 
 
 that she should be near his heart. 
 
 JBhagavalgita. — Women like flowers are of tender fabric ; 
 
 and should be softly handled, Eph. 5. 25. 
 Badaga. — A passionate wife is as bad as a house that leaks. 
 Bartrihari. — This is the fruit of love among married people, 
 one mind among two persons ; where there is dis- 
 cord, it is the marriage of two corpses. 
 MrichJiahati. — 
 
 Look round the garden, mark these stately trees. 
 Which duly by the king's command attended ; 
 Put forth abundantly their fruits and flowers, 
 And clasped by twining creepers ; they resemble 
 The manly husband, and the tender wife. 
 
 The Miser. — Luke 12. 19. 
 
 SansJcrit. — A miser's wealth goes by fire, robbers, and kings. 
 
 Telugu. — Practising the humility of a fox, he heaps up 
 wealth and does not use it ; thus is rice sprinkled 
 at the mouth of a bandicoot trap, Prov. 13. 11. 
 
 Badaga, — A miser is a tree with fruit you cannot get. 
 
 False Peace like Untempered Mortar.— Ezek. 13. 10. 
 
 In Persia, proper mortar is made of plaster, eartli_, and 
 chopped straw well kneaded together ; but often to save 
 expense they put much water to a little plaster, which 
 looks as well but is not plaster. There is no cement in a 
 house so built ; it is like the house on the sand, which 
 the whirlwind or flood breaks down, Mat. 7. 27, like 
 some of the bridges in India, cemented by rubbish, not 
 by mortar, or like the virgins without oil, Mat. 25. i — 1 3. 
 Such is all false peace without repentance and faith in the 
 atonement of Christ, like that of the rich fool, Luke 12. 19. 
 
 Bhagavadgita. — The soul floats like the lotus on the lake 
 unmoved, unrufiled by the tide, Acts 20. 24 
 16-25. 
 
142 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Modern Greek. — No one is disgusted with his own bad 
 smell. 
 
 Telugu. — Like sprinkling rose-water on ashes. 
 
 Arab. — Temperance is a tree which has contentment for 
 its root, and peace for its fruit. 
 
 Malayalim. — Time shows the value of a bridge built of 
 wood, Prov. 5. 3, I Cor. 3. 13. 
 
 Modern Greeh. — Neighbour ! your house is on fire. Impos- 
 sible, I have the keys. 
 
 'Russian. — The bell calls to church, but goes not in itself. 
 
 Oriental. — The prosperity of an ignorant man is like a 
 garden on a dunghill. 
 
 China, — "We never wander so far away as when we think 
 we know the way. 
 
 Cingalese. — Like changing the pillow when suffering from 
 headache. 
 
 Modern Greeh. — He who eats flax-seed eats his own 
 shirt — i.e., the future sacrificed to the present. 
 
 Tamul. — As quiet as a snake in a box. 
 
 Bhagavatgita. — "Without quiescence there can be no bliss. 
 E'en as a storm-tossed ship upon the waves, 
 So is the man whose heart obeys his passions, 
 "Which like the winds will hurry him away. 
 
 BuddhagosJia. — "Who subdues his passions is a lake without 
 mud. 
 
 Arah. — Patience is the key to joy. 
 
 Mountains.— Dan. 2. 45. 
 
 Their solid strength, untouched by visible decay, gave 
 ^mountains the name of the pillars of heaven, Job 26. 11. 
 Their majesty defies the turbulence and confusion of the 
 ■world at their feet, yet God weighs them in a balance. 
 Is. 40. 12. 
 
 MagJiuvause. — The storm may uproot the trees, but not 
 
 the mountains, Ps. 125. 2. 
 A-vah. — "When we cross one mountain, another appears. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 143 
 
 The Spiritual Net. — Mat. 13. 47. 
 
 As the sea is a frequent type or emblem of the world, 
 so " the fishes of the sea," which take their course at 
 willj and so often prey upon one another throughout that 
 waste of waters, represent the vast numbers who know 
 not God, and walk in the way of their own hearts, with- 
 out any sure guide or rule of conduct, and too often only 
 envying and provoking, hating and devouring, one 
 another. Into this broad sea of the whole world a net 
 was to be cast ; and instead of their lowly labours on the 
 little sea of Galilee, the Apostles were to be employed 
 in gathering men out of every clime and country into 
 the Church of God, and in drawing them under the 
 blessed restraints and holy discipline of " the obedience 
 of faith." A net will indeed gather of every kind, and 
 when it is drawn to the shore, a separation is made of 
 the fishes which are worth the pains of taking out of the 
 sea, and of such as are nothing worth, and may be cast 
 away. Thus among those who are gathered into the 
 visible Church of Christ, there " are good and bad," many 
 false professors as well as sincere servants of God ; nor 
 will the good be separated from the bad until the net is 
 drawn completely to the shore, which will not be till 
 the end of the world. The fish, whether big or little, are 
 taken out of the sea of this world, a stormy place full of 
 rocks, subject to tempests. 
 
 The Night of Life and Day of Eternity. — Rom. 13. 12. 
 
 The Shdnti Shatak states, '' The world is like a wild 
 desert, the house of our body is full of holes, our fancies 
 are a night which throws the veil of illusion over us : be 
 watchful and defend yourself with the sword of know- 
 ledge, the shield of resignation, and the armour of 
 'Caution." 
 
 Morning comes after night, so the morning of eternity. 
 
144 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Ps. 49. 14; morning longed for, Ps. 130. 6; morning 
 makes things manifest, Isa. 58. 8, i Gor. 4.5; morning 
 brings joy, birds sing, flowers are fresh, Isa. 26. 19; 
 morning foreshows the king of day. 
 
 Life like niglit in four points : — 
 
 1. A state of darkness; whereas light symbolizes 
 knowledge, Is. 8. 20; holiness, i John i. 7; comfort, 
 Ps. 97. 11; and glory, Col. i. 12. 
 
 2. The time of sleep, i Thess. 5. 7, hence sleep is 
 called the son of night. Half our days we pass in the 
 shadow of the earth, and the brother of death (sleep) 
 extracts a third part of our lives. 
 
 3. Time of danger beasts and thieves prowl about,. 
 Is. 21. 12; heaven is light, " the inheritance of the saints 
 in light." 
 
 4. Inactivity y ignorance, Luke i. 79, night an emblem 
 of death, John 9. 4. The Arabs say he who has done- 
 justice in the night has built himself a house for the- 
 next day. 
 
 Afghan, — "When night comes fear is at the door; when 
 
 day comes fear is on the hills. 
 Aral. — Night is blind, I Thess. 5. 7. 
 Mussian. — At night all cats are black. 
 Oriental. — The prosperity of the ignorant is like a garden 
 
 on a dunghill. 
 Arab. — Nightly prayer makes the day to shine. 
 Bengal, — AVhere there is fear of the tiger it is evening. 
 Arab. — The day blots out the dread of night. 
 Turk. — JSlight is the day of the wicked. 
 
 The Sensualist's Old Age.— Eccles. 12. 1-7. 
 
 This is a description of the dreary old age of the man 
 who when young would go on in the way of his heart ; 
 not as the good old age of Abraham and David, Gen. i 5 . 
 15, I Chron. 29. 28, or the serene old age of Isaac^^. 
 Jacob, Moses, and Joshua, Is. 40. 30-31. The pious 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 145 
 
 old renew their youth as the eagles, they bring forth 
 fruit in old age, Ps. 92. 15. 
 
 In the 1 2 th chapter of Ucclesiastes, the Preacher 
 Solomon admonishes to dedicate youthful days to the 
 service of our Creator, considering the evil days of the 
 winter of life which are coming on, when the faculties 
 of our minds and bodies often fail. For then, the sun 
 and the moon and the stars are darkened — i.e., the superior 
 powers, which rule in the body of man, as the heavenly 
 luminaries do in the world — viz., the understanding and 
 reason, the imagination and the memory — are obscured as 
 when the clouds interpose between us and the lights of the 
 firmament. In the earlier season of life, the clouds of 
 affliction having poured down their rain, they pass away, 
 and sunshine succeeds ; but now the clouds return after the 
 rain — i.e., old age itself is with the wicked a continual 
 sorrow, and there is no longer any hope of fair weather. 
 The keepers of the house, the arms and hands, which are 
 made to guard and defend the body, begin to shake and 
 tremUe ; and the strong men, the shoulders, where the 
 strength of the body is placed, and which were once able 
 to bear every weight, begin to stoop and how themselves / 
 the grinders, the teeth, begin to fall away, and cease to do 
 their work, because they are few. Also those that look out 
 of the windows are darkened — i.e., the eyes, those windows 
 of the soul, through which we look at all things abroad, 
 become dim ; and he that uses them is as one who looks 
 out of a window in the night. Tlie dooi^s are shut in the 
 streets — i.e., difficulties and obstructions attend all the 
 passages of the body, and digestion becomes weak when 
 the grinding is low. The youthful and healthy sleep 
 soundly, and are apt to transgress by taking too much 
 rest ; but the aged sleep with difficulty, and rise up at 
 the voice of the hird, at the crowing of the cock. The 
 daughters of music are brought low ; the voice falls, and 
 becomes hoarse ; the hearing is dull ; and the spirits, now 
 less active than they used to be, are less affected by the 
 
 L 
 
146 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 powers of harmony ; and so the old sit in heaviness, 
 hanging down their heads, as virgins drooping under the 
 sorrow of captivity. Old age, being inactive and help- 
 less, becomes afraid of that ivliich is high ; it is fearful of 
 climbing because it is in danger of falling ; and, being 
 unfit to endure the hardships of fatigue, and the shocks 
 of a rough journey, the fears which are in the way dis- 
 courage the old from setting out. Then the almond 
 tree flourishes — i.e., the hair of the head becomes white as 
 the early almond blossoms in the hard weather of the 
 winter before the snows have left ; and even the grass- 
 hopper becomes a burthen — i.e., the legs, once light and 
 nimble to leap, as the legs of that insect, and which used 
 with ease to bear the weight of the whole body, are now 
 become a burthen, and can scarcely carry themselves ; 
 and, when the faculties thus fail, the desire fails along 
 with them, for nothing is desirable when nothing can be 
 enjoyed. 
 
 Such are the evil days which come upon many when 
 their youth is passed in sin, and prepare the way for death, 
 when man goeth to his long home. Then the silver cord, 
 the nerves^ whose coat is white and shining as a cord of 
 silver, is loosed, and no longer does its office. The circula- 
 tion of the blood stops at the heart, the fountain of life, 
 as when a pitcher, which draws water, is broken at the ivell, 
 or the watering wheel, circulating with its buckets, which 
 it both fills and empties at the same time, is broken at the 
 cistern. Thus do the vital motions all cease in death ; and 
 the dust returns to the earth, to become such as it was before 
 man was made out of it ; and his immortal spirit returns 
 ^mto God, the fountain of immortality from whom it pro- 
 ceeded. 
 
 Arab. — Hoary hairs are death's messengers. 
 
 Arab. — The gravity of old age is fairer than the flower of 
 
 youth. 
 China. — In clothes we value novelty : in men old age. 
 China. — A wall is cracked and lofty, its fall must he speedy. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 147 
 
 Afghan. — Oh ! greybeard, thou eatest earth — i.e., money to 
 
 an old man is as useless as earth. 
 Afghan. — The ass grown old did not know his master's 
 
 house. 
 Arab. — The cat became blind but still was hankering after 
 
 mice. 
 Bengal. — Plastering an old hut with clay and cow dung — 
 
 i.e., passing off a vile article as excellent. 
 Helrew. — Old age is a crown of nettles : youth is a crown of 
 
 roses. 
 .SansTcrit. — The old who cannot enjoy sensual objects nor 
 
 yet abandon them, resembles a toothless dog lick- 
 ing a bone. 
 ■SansJcrit. — Wealth stops at the house, friends and relatives 
 
 at the grave, good and evil deeds follow the dying 
 
 man. 
 
 Oppressing the Poor a Sweeping Rain.— Peov. 28. 3. 
 
 The periodical rains which follow the long-continued 
 drought of summer in Eastern countries, sometimes occasion 
 a devastation unknown in a European climate. The rivers 
 and brooks, in consequence of the periodical rains, over- 
 flowing their bounds, carry ruin into the most cultivated 
 districts, but especially among the dwellings of the poor, 
 which, being usually built of mud, or of bricks burnt only 
 in the sun, are the first to fall before the torrent, involvina: 
 the inhabitants in destruction. 
 
 The giants before the flood were oppressors. Gen. 6. 4, 1 2, 
 1 3 ; so were the Egyptians, Ex. i . i 3 ; so Jezebel, i Kings 
 21. 7—13, devoured by dogs, 2 Kings 9. 30-37 ; not so 
 Job, 31. 13-15 ; or those obeying the law of Moses, Deut. 
 I 5. 7-1 1, 24. 10-15. See the parable of the Unmerciful 
 Servant, Mat. 18. 30-34. 
 
 Oppression of the poor is called d. 'panting after the dust 
 on their head, Amos. 2. 7 — i.e., thereby the oppressors 
 incline to rob them of everything, and crush them to the 
 dust of death. It is represented as a selling the poor for a 
 pair of shoes, Amos 8. 6^ to mark how ligMy the oppressor 
 
 L 2 
 
148 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 esteems tliem, and for how little lie is disposed to ruin tliem. 
 It is called a criisliing and treading upon them, Amos 5. 
 1 1, to signify the grievous, afflictive, and debasing tendency 
 thereof. It is called a slaying of them; a cliopping their 
 hones, Mic. 3. 3 ; a frightening and tearing them in the 
 manner of lions, wolves, or bears ; to denote the inhuman 
 cruelty contained in it, and the utter ruin effected by it. 
 It is rej^resented as a huilding of houses and cities hy Mood, 
 Hab. 2. 12; because oppressors rear these structures with 
 the wealth extorted from others, to the endangering of their 
 life. It is called an eati7ig of God's people as bread, Micali 
 3. 3, to mark the pleasure and greed wherewith wicked 
 men persecute the persons, ruin the character, and consume 
 the substance of the godly. 
 
 The widow of Zarephath, i Kings 17. 12, was happier 
 than Queen Jezebel, the oppressor ; while the rust of the 
 rich man's gold shall eat his flesh as fire, Jas. 5. 2—3, it 
 shall also, like the dust, be a testimony against him, Mark 
 6. II. 
 
 Solomon writes, the teeth of the oppressor are knives to. 
 devour the poor from off the earth, Prov. 30. 14. We 
 are to open our mouth for the dumb, Prov. 31.8. 
 
 bengal. — The relation of the carviDg knife to the pumpkin. 
 
 China. — Unjustly-got wealth is snow sprinkled with hot 
 water. Lands improperly obtained are but sand- 
 banks in a stream. 
 
 The Righteous as the Palm Tree. — Ps. 92. 12. 
 
 The righteous resemUe the palm tree in five points : 
 
 1. The 'palm tree grows in the desert. Earth is a desert 
 to the righteous ; true believers are even refreshed in it 
 as a palm is in the Arabian desert ; so Lot amid Sodom's 
 wickedness, and Enoch, who walked with God amongst 
 the antediluvians. 
 
 2. The palm tree grows on the sand, hut the sand is not 
 its food ; water below feeds its tap roots, though the 
 heavens above be brass. Some righteous live not as the 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 149 
 
 lily, by green pastures, Hos. 14. 5, or willow by water- 
 courses, Is. 44. 4, but as the palm of the desert ; so 
 Joseph among the Cat- worshippers of Egypt, Daniel in 
 voluptuous Babylon. Faith's penetrating root reaches 
 the fountains of living waters. 
 
 3. The palm tree is heautiful, with its tall and verdant 
 -canopy, and the silvery flashes of its waving plumes ; so 
 the believer's virtues are not like the creeper or bramble, 
 tending downwards ; their palm branches shoot upwards, 
 and seek the things above. Col. 3. i ; some trees are 
 •crooked and gnarled, but the righteous is a tall palm, as 
 ^ son of the light. Mat. 3. 12, Phil. 2. 15. The Jews 
 were called a crooked generation, Deut. 32. 5, and Satan 
 a crooked serpent. Is. 27. i; but the believer is upright 
 like the palm. Its beautiful unfading leaves made it an 
 emblem of victory ; victors in heaven are represented as 
 having palms in their hands, Eev. 7. 9 ; it was twisted 
 into verdant booths at the Feast of Tabernacles ; and 
 the multitude, when escorting Christ to his coronation 
 in Jerusalem, spread leaves on the way, John 12. 13. 
 No dust adheres to the leaves as it does with other leaves ; 
 the righteous is in the world, not of it ; the dust of earth's 
 desert adheres not to his soul. The leaf of the palm is 
 the same — it does not fall in winter, and even in the 
 summer it has no holiday clothing ; it is an evergreen : 
 the palm tree's rustling is the desert orison. 
 
 4. The palm tree is very useful. The Hindus reckon 
 it has 360 uses. Its shadow shelters, its fruit refreshes 
 the weary traveller ; it points out to water. Such were 
 Barnabas, a son of consolation. Acts 4. 36, Lydia, Dorcas, 
 Acts 9. 39, and others, who on the king's highway showed 
 the way to heaven, as Philip did to the Ethiopian eunuch, 
 Acts 8. 34. 
 
 The palm tree hears fruit even to old age. The best 
 dates are produced when the tree is from thirty to one 
 hundred years old, and 30olbs. of dates are annually 
 yielded ; so the righteous grow happier and more useful 
 
ISO EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 as they become older ; knowing their own faults more,, 
 they are more mellow to others ; like the sun settings 
 beautiful, mild, and large, looking like Elim in the desert, 
 where the wearied Jews found twelve wells and seventy 
 palm trees, Ex. 15. 27. 
 
 Perseverance as the Husbandman. — Jas. 5. 7. 
 
 Arab. — A poor man without patience is like a lamp without- 
 oil. 
 
 Arab. — When you are an anvil, be patient ; when a hammer, 
 strike. 
 
 Malabar. — You must not cast away the paddle when you 
 approach the shore. 
 
 Bengal. — The bundle was pressed hard, but the knot was 
 left loose — i.e., business neglected at the close. 
 
 Malabar. — By practice you may lift up even elephants. 
 
 Telugu. — With a single blow he opens not nine nuts. 
 
 Niti Shatah. — The perseverance of a man of constant mind 
 can never be overwhelmed by misfortune, as the 
 flame of the torch turned upward never goes 
 down, 2 Cor. 6. lO. 
 
 TIrdu. — The crows keep cawing, but the corn grows not- 
 withstanding. 
 
 Turh. — Little by little we become fat. 
 
 Telugu. — He watched the field until the harvest, and then 
 let it go to the jackals. 
 
 Polygamy. 
 
 Malay. — Two wives under one roof: two tigers in one 
 ,cage. 
 
 Bengal. — Who has two wives has much sorrow, I Kings 
 II. 4. 
 
 Telugu. — Two swords cannot be contained in one scabbard. 
 
 Afghan. — Who likes squabbles at home contracts two- 
 marriages. 
 
 Tamul. — Why fire the house of a man who has two wives ; 
 i.e., the fire of anger and jealousy is enough. 
 
 Malay. — The desire of the heart might be to grasp moun- 
 tains, but what use when the arm will not reach 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 151 
 
 round ? — i.e.^ a man desiring to marry above his 
 station. 
 
 Prevention better than Cure. 
 
 bengal — When the thief has escaped men are very wise. 
 
 Gujerat. — Diseases and delays indulged augment. 
 
 'Polish. — What I see not with the eye cannot pain the 
 
 heart. 
 Arab. — Shut the window from which a bad smell comes. 
 Sanskrit. — Keeping away from the mire is better fhan 
 
 washing it off. 
 Tamul. — Eelying on the efficacy of the proposed remedy, 
 
 will you put your hand in a snake's hole ? 
 
 Pride. — Peov. 21.4. 
 
 Exemplified in Haman, Esth. 3. 15, Nebuchadnezzar, 
 Dan. 4. 30, Agrippa, Acts 12. 21-23, Herod, Acts 12. 
 21-23, Pbaraoh, Ex. 5. 2. 
 
 Afghan. — To every man his own understanding is king. 
 
 China. — We fill tanks, but the heart of man who can fill ? 
 
 Telugu. — Like the bat, which thinks it holds up the sky. 
 
 Canara. — He has to live on gruel, yet requires some one to 
 wipe his moustache. 
 
 Afghan. — The fox thought his own shadow very large. 
 
 Basqiie. — Pride sought flight in heaven, fell to hell. 
 
 Canara. — What is extended will tear : what is long will 
 break, Prov. 16. 18. 
 
 Telugu. — A tooth projecting beyond the lips ; a wick too 
 big for the dish. 
 
 Arab. — His head in the dirt, his tail to the sky. 
 
 Mahabharat. — 
 
 The sinner is ever like a great inflated skin ; 
 The imaginations of conceited fools are baseless. 
 
 Turk. — He who falls from a horse or ass prepares a bed ; 
 He who falls from a camel prepares a tomb. 
 
 Tamul. — When a sieve full of pride is sifted nothing re- 
 mains. 
 
 Sanskrit. — No greater enemy than pride. 
 
152 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 China. — 
 
 To pretend to satisfy his desires by possession, 
 Is extinguishing fire with straw. 
 Arab. — Content enjoys riches, covetousness produces cares ; 
 every ambitious man is a captive, and every 
 covetous one a pauper. 
 Jajpan. — Be a serpent save in the poison — i.e., learning 
 without pride, Mat. lO. 1 6. 
 
 Punctuality and Watching opportunity.— Ern. 5. i6. 
 
 Telugu. — When the dog comes a stone cannot be found. 
 
 When the stone is found the dog does not come. 
 Japan. — To cut a stick when the fight is over. 
 China. — Lighting a fire when the breeze is blowing. 
 Canara. — A word in season is good ; out of it, like a silk 
 
 cloth torn. 
 Arab. — To hammer cold iron. 
 Talmud, — While you have the shoes on your feet tread 
 
 down the thorns. 
 JBengal. — They fetch the salt after rice is eaten. 
 Hussian. — Hurry is good only for catching flies. 
 Sanskrit. — By delay (in using it) nectar becomes poison. 
 
 The Heavenly Race. — Heb. 12. i, 2. 
 
 World's race differs from the heavenly in six points : — 
 It was the practice in ancient Greece to celebrate once 
 every four years with great solemnity certain games, as 
 trials of bodily strength or skill in wrestling, leaping, 
 running, the quoit ; these were attended by a vast 
 assemblage of people of all ranks. The p^Hze that was 
 contended for was a crown or chaplet of leaves, with 
 which the victor was crowned, while his name was 
 proclaimed by heralds in the presence of the whole 
 assembly ; judges were appointed to decide on the merits 
 of the candidates, and to see that the several contests 
 were conducted according to the laws that were laid 
 down. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 153 
 
 The foot-race was one of the principal of these games ; 
 -and St. Paul has in many places alluded to it in illustra- 
 tion of the Christian life, I Cor. 9. 24—27, as a continual 
 strife or contest for victory over our manifold, corrupt, 
 and deceitful lusts ; and he encourages us to maintain 
 the conflict by the thought that we are contending for 
 •a glorious prize in the presence of a great crowd of 
 witnesses. The croion for which we contend is not a 
 chaplet of fading leaves, but a crown of righteousness 
 and glory, i Cor. 9. 25. The witnesses of our manful 
 efforts are the great company of those cited by the 
 Apostle, who have before us gained this mastery over 
 sin, the world, and the devil, and have now by faith and 
 patience attained the promises ; we contend for the prize 
 of our high calling in the presence of God and of his 
 holy angels. 
 
 A man, who was about to contend in a foot-race, would 
 first lay aside every %veiglit that might be about his 
 person, and would disencumber himself of every needless 
 garment. Yet Paul ran his race in Eonie, when he was 
 a prisoner in chains. Thus we are to prepare ourselves 
 for our course by laying aside every weight ; and " the 
 sin that doth so easily beset us." He who does not take 
 pains to divest himself of covetousness, sensuality, pride, 
 and other too-easily besetting sins, is as one who should 
 lade himself with thick clay when about to start upon a 
 race, Habak. 2. 6. 
 
 When once the candidates started on their course, 
 they did not suffer themselves to relax in their efforts 
 until they had reached the end. They did not linger 
 on the way, nor stop to look back with satisfaction on 
 the progress which they had made ; but they thought 
 • only of what yet remained to be done ; and they kept 
 the eye steadily fixed upon the mark or goal. If they 
 found themselves disposed to give way, they remembered 
 the prize which was such an object of desire, and pressed 
 forward with renewed spirit, Eev. 2. 10. It will not do 
 
154 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 for us to relax our efforts to obtain the mastery over our 
 own lusts and passions as they will gain upon us if we 
 give them the least advantage, Thess. 3.13. 
 
 In the heavenly race all may be winners ; there is no 
 jealousy, the strong are to help the weak ; there is joy 
 in running, Ps. 19.5; the value of the prize is an 
 exceeding weight of glory ; the spectators are angels, 
 devils, and God ; the Judge is impartial, and perfect in 
 knowledge. 
 
 Tamul. — To advance a span and fall back a cubit. 
 Japan. — Fall seven times, stand up the eighth time. 
 Urdu. — Sweetmeats are not distributed during a battle. 
 Tamul. — A noisy dog is not fit for hunting. 
 Tamul. — He lacks sense who broods over the past. 
 Tamul. — When on the way to heaven do you carry a 
 
 spinning wheel under your arm ? 
 Russian. — Who hunts the bear does not sleep over the 
 
 sport. 
 AfgTian. — He who stands still in mud, sinks. 
 Japan. — To give wings to a tiger. 
 
 God will not Break the bruised Heed.— Mat. 12. 20. 
 
 See the parable of the Publican, Luke 18. 9—14, 
 illustrating God's kindness to the humble and penitent. 
 
 The bruised reed, which has been crushed by some 
 weight that has passed over it, and appears to be bowed 
 hopelessly to the ground, is the emblem of one who has 
 been crushed under the burthen of his sins, and of all that 
 sorrow and remorse which are sure to follow in their train. 
 Judas was so weighed down with remorse that he went and 
 hanged himself. Mat. 27. 5. 
 
 " The smoking flax'"' is another emblem of the same case ;, 
 and with this additional resemblance. If the flax which has 
 been lighted will not burn, its smoke is so offensive, that 
 all cry out impatiently to have it quenched as soon as 
 possible. And this fact is elsewhere used to show how 
 abominable are the wicked in the sight of their holy 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 155 
 
 Maker ; for lie says of tliem, and especially of such as say 
 to their fellow-sinners : " Stand by thyself, for I am holier 
 than thou :" " These are a smoke in my nostrils (Is. 65. 5), 
 a fire that burneth all the day" — that is, not a quick and 
 pleasant flame, but a mere smouldering fire ; such as lingers 
 in flax when too damp for any flame to break out, and 
 emitting only a noxious smoke. God will not rashly 
 snap asunder the last thread by which a spiritual life keeps 
 its hold on the soul of one who has fallen. It is far better 
 to be as a bruised reed (of a contrite and humble spirit), 
 than to be as the cedars of Lebanon that are exalted and 
 lifted up, or as the oaks of Bashan, on which the day of 
 the Lord of Hosts shall be, Isa. 2. 1 3. 
 
 God a Refuge and Shield. — Ps. 17. i ; Gen. 12. 1-4 ; 
 Dan. 2. 16-19. 
 
 God is a hiding place. Is. 32. 2, and a strong tower — i.e.y. 
 a refuge in time of war. Pro v. 18.10. But the name "refuge" 
 has a very particular meaning. If any Israelite killed a 
 man by accident, God told Moses that he must not be 
 treated as a murderer, because he did not design to murder, 
 l!^um. 35. But, lest the kinsman or relation of the person 
 killed should take away the life of the manslayer, which 
 was allowed to be done in the case of murder, he was to 
 hui'ry off with all speed out of his way, and to take refuge 
 in one of the six cities appointed for the protection of such 
 persons. These cities were well supplied with water, and 
 plenty of provisions, so that there was no occasion to go 
 out of them to buy, which would endanger the manslayer. 
 The roads to these places were all plain and easy of access, 
 kept in good order, and provided, wherever it was necessary, 
 with bridges to cross streams of water, and wherever two 
 roads met, there were hand-posts pointing to the proper 
 direction, on which was written in large characters, so that 
 it might easily be read, " Eef uge, Eefuge." So God is our 
 
156 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 refuge, to whom we may flee in distress, as tlie manslayer 
 •did to the city of refuge. 
 
 Rend the Heart, not the Garment. — Joel 2. 13. 
 
 Eending the garment was a sign of grief, as Jacob did, 
 Oen. 37. 34, Job. i. 20. 
 
 The Eussians have a proverb " People sometimes sin 
 like David, but do not sorrow like him," 2 Sam. 12. 13. 
 Eepentance is compared to awakening, Eph. 5 . 1 4, a 'prick- 
 ing at the heart. Acts 2. 37, smiting, Luke 18. 13, coming 
 to oneself, Luke 15. 17. The tear of repentance is dropped 
 from the eye of faith; repentance consists in attrition, as 
 when a rock is broken in pieces, and in contrition, as when 
 ice is melted in water ; the former is the work of the law, 
 the latter of tlie Gospel — the one is like a hammer, the 
 other like dew. Ice must not only be broken, but melted, 
 so the coldness must be taken out of the heart. False 
 repentance is the sudden torrent after rain in the mountains; 
 or like people who throw their goods over in a storm, and 
 wish for them again in a calm. False repentance is also 
 compared to the sow returning to wallowing in the 
 mire, 2 Pet. 2. 22. See parable of Prodigal Son, Luke 
 15. 11—32. The true is the stream flowing from a living 
 fountain. 
 
 Divinely applied to our heart, the Gospel is not only a net 
 but a plough, breaks up the fallow ground, tears up the roots 
 of corruption, and prepares us for receiving the good seed of 
 grace. How proper for its operation, the winter of adver- 
 sity and spring-tide of youth I How necessary that every 
 application be attended with the dewy influence of the 
 Holy Spirit ! 
 
 The hypocrite's repentance is like Jonah's gourd, which 
 <jame up in a night and perished in a night, Jonah 4. 10, 
 or a deceitful bow, Hos. 7. 16. 
 
 Examples of true repentance in rending the heart are 
 jnet in Manasseh, 2 Chr. 33.12-13, Mneveh, Jonah 3. 5-8, 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 157 
 
 Peter, Mat. 26. 75, the thief on the cross, Luke 23. 40- 
 41, Ahab rent his clothes and his heart, i Kings 21. 
 27—29. Examples of false repentance in Pharaoh, Ex. 9. 
 27-34, Saul, I Sam. 15. 24-30, Judas, Mat. 27. 3-5, 
 Jews pricked to the heart. Acts 2. 37. The furrow will 
 be crooked if the eye looks back. The plough of repent- 
 ance breaks the hard stony soil of the heart, kills the weeds ; 
 Luke 9. 62. 
 
 Aral. — The fasting of desires after worldly pleasures the 
 best fasting. 
 
 Afghan. — Paradise is a good place, but the getting there is^ 
 by lacerating the heart. 
 
 Aral. — It is more useful to fly from yourself than from a 
 lion, Pom. 7. 24. 
 
 Aral). — The best part of repentance is little sinning. 
 
 Turk. — Only a fool falls twice into the same hole. 
 
 Arah. — The tears of repentance are cool, and refresh the eyes. 
 
 Bussian. — Are there tears, there is conscience. 
 
 MrichTialcati Natah. — 
 
 Why shave the head and mow the chin 
 
 "Whilst bristling follies choke the breast : 
 
 Apply the knife to parts within, 
 
 And heed not how deformed the rest : 
 
 The heart of pride and passion weed, 
 
 And then the man is pure indeed, Mat. 23. 25. 
 
 Resignation. 
 
 See Job's case. Job i. 20-22; Moses, Ex. 3. 23-27; 
 David, 2 Sam. 23. 25. 16. 10-12 ; Jacob, Gen. 43. 14. 
 
 ^Persian. — God rights him that keeps silence. 
 
 Talmud. — Be as strong as a leopard, light as an eagle, quick 
 
 as a goat, and brave as a lion, to do the will of thy 
 
 heavenly father. 
 
 God's Grace a River. — Kev. 22. i. 
 
 The river of God's grace differs from earthly rivers in nine 
 'points : — 
 In this text, as in various others in the Bible, there is 
 an allusion to the flowing rivers, on the banks of or near 
 
158 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 which the eastern gardens were planted and cities were 
 •erected ; and the church of God is called a city, because 
 like a city it is composed of many individuals living 
 together, having the same common privileges ; which is 
 refreshed and delighted by this river common to all — i.e., 
 by the spiritual blessings which God bestows upon it, 
 regaling all its spiritual senses, and supplying all its 
 spiritual need. 
 
 A flowing river is often spoken of in Scripture, when 
 it is intended to describe the abundance of anything, 
 Job 29. 6. "The rock poured me out rivers of oil" — i.e., 
 :great plenty and abundance of oil, Ps. 36. 8 ; " Thou 
 shalt make them drink of the river of thy pleasures ;" 
 that is, thou shalt make them partake of that abundant 
 pleasure, delight, and satisfaction which thou didst not 
 only enjoy thyself, but bestowest upon thy peojDle. In 
 Job 40. 23, it is said of the hippopotamus, " He drinketh 
 up a river" — i.e., a great quantity of water. " Thou 
 waterest the earth with the river of God," Ps. 6 5 . 9 ; that 
 is, with plentiful showers of rain from the clouds ; and 
 *' river" may denote the constancy and ^perpetuity of these 
 pleasures as well as their plenty, John 7. 38. "He that 
 believeth on me, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living 
 water" — i.e., he shall be endued with the gifts and graces 
 of the Spirit in a plentiful measure, which shall not only 
 refresh himself, but shall break forth and be communi- 
 cated to others also for their refreshing. In Psalm 46. 4, 
 the words mean the gracious presence of God, and the 
 blessings following thence, which shall make Zion, or the 
 Church of God, glad. 
 
 God is compared to a place of hroad rivers. Is. 33. 21 ; 
 by him saints, in their situation and blessings, are 
 ■ adorned and beautified ; by him the air — i.e., the soul's 
 breathing, is rendered pure and wholesome ; by him they 
 ;are completely defended from every foe; by him they 
 have full aceess to the profitable commerce of the celestial 
 ■country ; in him how wide their prospect into eternity. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 159 
 
 into things in heaven and on earth ! How inexhaustible 
 his fuhiess to quench their thirst ; to satisfy their desires, 
 refresh their souls, and ^itrge away their filth. 
 
 A river, however large, like the Amazon, which is 1 80 
 miles wide, springs from a small fountain, scarcely seen, 
 like the founts of the Ganges at Gangautri ; the river of 
 grace rises far aiuay in heaven from the throne of God. A 
 river, not like a tank, has much water constantly flowing; 
 all may come to it. Is. 55. i ; — it sometimes overflows, 
 so at Pentecost, and in the time when God's knowledge 
 shall cover the earth. In its course it is impetuous, 
 •carries away impediments; so Paul went out a lion, 
 came in a lamb. Acts 9. 6 ; it fertilizes, the righteous are 
 compared to willows by the watercourses. Is. 44. 4 ; the 
 banks of Indian rivers are very fertile ; its waters are 
 carried to the ocean, so all grace ends in God; the water 
 is always new and fresh, hence grace compared to a tree 
 of life bearing twelve manner of fruits every month. 
 
 The river of God's grace differs from earthly rivers in 
 these points — it never dries up ; is never frozen up ; 
 breeds no noxious animals ; its channel is not shifted ; 
 never muddy ; cleanses the soul ; its fountain — the Holy 
 Spirit — is eternal ; its waters as clear as crystal ; no 
 trail of the serpent ; no tigers near this river ; no gold 
 alloyed ; no blighted flowers. 
 
 The Sacrifices of the Body and of Praise. — Rom. 12. i. 
 
 Paul wished to be delivered from his body of death, 
 referring to the custom of fastening a living body to a 
 dead one until the criminal so fastened died from the 
 stench of the putrefying corpse ; and yet this vile body, 
 which will be glorified, is to be used in God's service, — 
 but the sacrifices to God are a broken spirit. Sacrifice 
 was the immediate commerce of a creature with its God, 
 in which the Lord of all condescended to receive offerings 
 -at our hands. Paul in this view offered his body as a 
 
i6o EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 sacrifice, and lie was beheaded, 2 Tim. 4. 6. We are to- 
 offer the meat-offering of charitable distributions, the 
 drink-offering of penitent tears, the hen-offering of prayer, 
 the peace-offering of praise, and the whole burnt-offering 
 of w^orldly desire. The priests before offering sacrifices 
 must be washed, annointed, and put on white garments ; 
 they must have clean hands. Is. 52. 11, so must we 
 spiritually. The sacrifice was not to be offered with 
 strange fire ; Nadab and Abihu were killed for doing so ; 
 neither w^ere the blind to be offered. Lev. 22. 22. The 
 sacrifices of the wicked are an abomination, Pro v. 21. 27; 
 so Absalom found, 2 Sam. 15. 7-13 ; Jeroboam in his 
 worship, I Kings 12. 26—33 \ Jezebel's fast, in order to 
 murder Naboth, i Kings 21. 9—12; the Pharisee in his 
 prayer, Mat. 23. 14. 
 
 Tamul. — Flowers beyond reach are sacred to God ; those 
 within reach are for themselves. 
 
 The Troubled Sea of Evil Passion.— Is. 57. 20. 
 
 Passions, like the sea, are generally considered as^ 
 terrible, yet they have their use. Men do not reflect 
 on the wonders and blessings which the sea presents to 
 us in so visible a manner; it conveys ships, cools the- 
 air, yields plenty of fish, supplies water to tlie clouds, 
 and salt ; the saltness of the sea is such that a pound of 
 its water contains two ounces of salt. The sea salt 
 appears to be lighter than that which we use in common ; 
 yet it is not drawn into the air by evaporation, nor does 
 the salt diminish by the continual i)ouring in of fresh 
 water from all the rivers flowing into it, yet not filling 
 it ; this saltness is necessary for certain purposes ; it 
 prevents the water from corrupting, and contributes to 
 make it so heavy that the greatest ships may be trans- 
 ported from one place to another. The creatures of which 
 the sea is full ought also to excite our wonder and 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. i6r 
 
 admiration, as well as its deptli, in some places as much 
 as five miles. 
 
 Evil 'passions Wee the troubled sea in seven points : — 
 
 The quiet spirit of a good man is like the clear water 
 of the fountain ; but the restless mind of the wicked is 
 like the dirty waves of the sea, when the mire of the 
 bottom is stirred up by their motions. Such were 
 Samson Judg. 1 6. 1 6, Saul, i Sam. 1 6. 14. The wdcked 
 are devoured by foolish lusts, i Tim. 6. 9. Our wicked 
 passions, such as pride, wrath, and envy, disturb our 
 hearts, like the winds which blow upon the sea, and 
 nothing can quiet them but the word and grace of Jesus 
 Christ, who spoke to the raging waves, and commanded 
 them to be still ; so can He now command our restless 
 spirits, and restore them to peace ; so that there shall be 
 a calm within us. 
 
 The wicked and their passions are like the sea, (i) a 
 collection of many waters (the sea in scripture sometimes 
 means numerous armies) ; so the passions various, Jer. 
 51.42. 
 
 2. Sometimes roars and sivells, the waves rise in great- 
 storms 60 feet; such are persecutors swollen with pride, 
 Ps. 65. 7. 
 
 3. Bounds set by God. The sea shut up by doors ; 
 hitherto shall thou come. Job ^^. 8. God set the 
 sand as the ocean's boundary, Jer. 5. 22, the clouds as 
 its garment. Job 38. 9, and darkness as its swaddling 
 bands. Job 38. 9. Still at God's commands ; so God 
 quiets the wicked. The winds and seas obeyed Jesus, 
 Mat. 8. 26 ; so God stilleth the tumult of the people, 
 Ps. 65, Jer. 5. 22. 
 
 4. Monsters in it, Job 41. 31, some are 80 feet in 
 length ; so Daniel's four beasts of the sea or monarchs, 
 Dan. 7. 3 : the Eoman beast had great teeth ; such was 
 the emperor Nero, who killed his own mother. 
 
 5. Restless tides, currents, winds always agitate it 
 
 M 
 
i62 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 sucli was Hainan against Mordecai — i.e., the sea is always 
 in motion even in a calm ; hence the peace of heaven is 
 represented as there being no more sea, Eev. 21. i — i.e., 
 no more trouble. The Bible compares the tranquillity 
 ■of heaven to a sea of glass — i.e., still without storms, no 
 separation. Mud and dust are cast out, so from the 
 wicked heart arise envy, malice, and the filthy waves of 
 passion. 
 
 So men change from restlessness. Ahasuerus turns 
 off Vashti his queen, and entertains Esther, a Jewish 
 maiden. Reiiben is imstable as water. Gen. 49. 4. 
 Pliaraolb now on the throne, anon in the bottom of the 
 sea. Hezekiah healthy, now anon hears, set thy house 
 in order for thou shalt die. Jerusalem besieged and 
 freed in one night. In youth we are for pleasure, in 
 manhood for fame, in age for riches, as if thick clay must 
 be a provision for heaven. There is no constancy in 
 health or wealth. 
 
 6. Deceitful ; the sea allures by its calmness, then 
 heavy storms arise ; so the world promises content, but 
 that cluster never grew on the w^orld's thorns ; it gives 
 an hour's pleasure and violent torture. Dives' dainties 
 now bite like a serpent. Achan's wedge of gold pur- 
 chased the stones that beat out his brains. Judas' s thirty 
 pieces bought the halter that hanged him. Sechem's lust 
 brought the sword upon himself and the city; like a man 
 in the sea with his pockets full of gold, which hastens 
 his drowning. Job presented kindness to Amasa, but it 
 is cruelty, he kissed and killed him, 2 Sam. 20. Agag 
 is hewn in pieces, and Jezebel was eaten by dogs like a 
 piece of carrion. Jael began with milk and butter, but 
 ended with a hammer ; so Adonijah, i Kings 1.50. 
 
 7. The sea-water is unsatisfying. A Persian proverb 
 states : " He who covets this world's goods, is like one 
 who drinks sea-water ; the more he drinks, the more he 
 increases thirst, nor does he cease to drink until he dies." 
 
 We all have to pass over this worldly sea, but v/e have 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 163 
 
 the Bible as our chart. Christ is the Pilot, and the 
 winds from heaven waft iis on ; hope is our anchor — we 
 can thus escape the hidden rocks and whirlpools which 
 abound in this sea. 
 
 Tamul. — Will the headache be cured by changing the 
 
 pillow ? 
 Lalita Vistara. — Men consumed by desire can gain as little 
 repose as fire can be extracted from rubbing two 
 pieces of green wood under the water. 
 Ilalidbharat. — Passions, when uncontrolled, are sufficient 
 to destroy a man, as unbroken and unchecked 
 horses can destroy an unskilful charioteer on the 
 road. 
 Telugu, — Like flies that, longing for honey, approach it, 
 enter, are intoxicated, and unable to extricate 
 themselves, — so, plunged in a multitude of 
 passions, a sinner perishes without escape. 
 Talmud. — Passions are like iron thrown into the furnace, 
 as long as it is in the fire you can make no 
 vessels out of it. 
 Telugu. — If thy heart become calm as the breezeless 
 firmament and the unruffled waveless deep, 
 changeless and unfluctuating — this is deno- 
 minated freedom. 
 "Persian. — "What fear need he have of the waves of the sea 
 
 who has Noah for his pilot ? Mat. 8. 26. 
 Syriac. — Let not your beast run in a meadow without a 
 
 wall — i.e., passions without a bridle. 
 Syriac. — Be not as water which takes the tint of all colours. 
 <Jhina. — The water that bears the ship is the same that 
 
 engulfs it. 
 Turk. — Trust not the promise of the great, the calm of the 
 sea, the evening twilight, the word of a woman, 
 or the courage of the horse. 
 Afghan. — Neither does a libertine's eye rest nor a thief's 
 
 hand. 
 Veman. — Cupidity makes a man as restless as a dog. 
 
 Mat. 21. 5. 
 JBhagavatgita — As a lamp, standing in a windless place, 
 moves not — that is the likeness of the devotee, 
 whose mind is subdued, who is collected in self- 
 devotion. 
 
 :\r 2 
 
l64 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Hebrew. — "Were there no passions no one would build a 
 house, marry, bring up children, or drive any 
 trade. 
 
 BuddhagJiosa. — No fire like passion ; no spark like hatred ;. 
 no snare like folly ; and no tyrant like greed. 
 
 Wiagavatgita. — The heart which follows the dictates of the- 
 moving passions, carries away his reason, as the 
 storm the bark in the raging ocean. Prov. 25. 28. 
 
 Conscience seared as with a Hot Iron. — i Tim. 4. 2. 
 
 Men's conscience is compared to a candle, Prov. 20. 27^ 
 to lighten us in the darkness of this world, to a judge,. 
 John 3, 20; a witness, Horn. 9. i ; a ii-OTm, Mat. 10.. 
 44. 
 
 The Telegus, referring to a conscience dead to all moral 
 restraint, say " it is a tongue without nerves moving all 
 ways." Eeason is compared by Plato to a cliarioteer driving 
 his two horses, concupiscence and anger. 
 
 Conscience called God's mcegerent ; named, Luke 11. 35, 
 the light within, as a law also enlightens and directs ; a 
 blind man sees not evil coming, neither do sinners good 
 and evil, life and death. Sin blackens and darkens the 
 light of conscience ; dirfc obstructs the sun's rays ; so David's 
 soul was darkened when his eye was dimmed by adultery. 
 Nathan awoke him, 2 Sam. 12. 7. Holiness compared to 
 white, shines as crystal, or is transparent, but only when 
 the sun is on it. 
 
 Conscience is called by Christ the eye of the soul, which,, 
 if single, the body is full of light ; the affections are apt to 
 go to excess ; like a balance when one side moves up, and 
 the other moves down, so with the Jlesh and spirit, Gal. 5. 
 7; thus — (ci) Sensuality blinded Samson and Herod, (h) 
 Intemperance others, Hos. 4. 1 1 ; fumes of meat and drink 
 obscure the upper regions, hence Paul's watching and fast- 
 ing, 2 Cor. II. 27; he who comes to make his belly his 
 business will quickly come to have a conscience of as large 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 165 
 
 a swallow as his throat ; loads of meat and drink are fit 
 for none but a beast of burthen to bear; and he is much 
 the greater beast of the two, who comes with his burden in 
 his belly than he who comes with it on his back, Pro v. 23. 
 29 ; such as are hest at the hansel are generally iveahest at 
 the hook, (c) Covetoicsness buries the soul underground in 
 ■darkness, while the body is above it, Deut. 16. 9, i Sam. 
 12. 3, Ecc. 7. 7. {d) Amhition looks high, and giddiness 
 from it makes a mist before the eyes. Satan, like an expert 
 ^westler, usually gives a man a lift before he gives him a 
 throw. Sensuality, covetousness, pride are the devil's 
 trident to strike men's hearts. 
 
 The conscience is seared when a man's wounds cease to 
 smart, only because he has lo^t\ns, feeling ; they are never- 
 theless mortal ; he does not see his need of a surgeon ; 
 acquitment before trial can be no security in this case. 
 Great and strong calms usually portend and go before the 
 most violent storms. 
 
 China. — A fleshy pupilless eye (a mind with conscience 
 
 bhud). 
 Talmud. — The flesh of the dead feels not the knife — i.e., is 
 
 past feeling. 
 Arab. — Eeckon him with the beasts who does not distinguish 
 
 good from evil. 
 Bengal. — He hides his head in the bushes — i.e., fancying he 
 
 is not exposed. 
 China. — Talent without virtue like silver without a master. 
 
 The Seed of God's Word.— Luke 8. ii. 
 
 The Word of God is compared in Scripture to a key, to 
 open out the treasures of Divine Wisdom; as milk, to 
 nourish the feeble-minded ; as fire, to consume or enliven ; 
 and to gold, for its value and use : here it is compared to a 
 seed on account of its hidden qualities, its power of spread- 
 ing from a small beginning. There is a tree in ]Srew 
 
i66 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Zealand, 400 feet liigli and 50 feet in circumference, yet 
 this has sprung up from a small seed. 
 
 The Word of God like seed in seventeen points : — 
 
 1 . Seed is smcdl, compared vAth its future produce ; so 
 faith is like a grain of mustard seed or leaven which 
 leaveneth the whole lump ; the seeds of faith, in the 
 1 1 th chapter of Hebrews, " yield plentiful fruit." 
 
 2. Seed must he soivn. Industry and forethought are 
 required, but bad seed springs up of itself, for God cursed 
 the ground, so that it gave of itself thorns and thistles. 
 The seeds of faith spring up as the gifts of God, as the 
 radicle from the kernel; when God sows in the wilderness 
 an oasis springs up. 
 
 3. A good seed requires good soil. The application of the 
 plough is, however, necessary, as weeds grow anywhere ;. 
 Christ in his parable mentions three soils as unproductive. 
 Our heart is the soil, and conviction the plough : we must 
 be moistened by the tears of godly sorrow, saturated by 
 the dews of God's grace, like the 3,000 pricked to the 
 heart who were baptized. Acts 2. 40, 41. 
 
 4. Seed must he hicried. Some seeds, though thrown on 
 the surface, however, strike their roots deep, and require 
 soil above them. Mat. 13.6, but in other cases the root 
 and stem soon wither; so Lydias's heart was opened. Acts 
 16. 14; believers are rooted and grounded in love, 
 
 Eph. 3. 18. 
 
 5 . Seed lies for a time in the earth in darkness. Some- 
 times a very short time — so the thief on the cross. 
 Egyptian mummy seed, after being buried 3,000 years, 
 springs up — so the Prodigal son came to himself after he 
 had spent all in riotous living, and was feeding swine ; so 
 Manassch, after many years, sought in affliction his father's 
 God, 2 Chron. 33. 13, "cast thy bread on the waters," 
 Eccl. 1 1 . I ; one soweth, another reapeth. 
 
 6. Seed once sovjn makes steady progress. Christ speaks 
 of the blade, the ear and the full corn, Mark 4. 27, 28 ;, 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 167 
 
 grow in grace. They shall bring forth fruit in old age, 
 Ps. 92. 14. The righteous shall grow like a cedar of 
 Lebanon, Ps. 92. 12. 
 
 7. ^md depend^s on the influence of heavy rain, ivhich 
 waters the earth. Light, soil^ and moisture are necessary ; 
 we must wait for the latter rain ; so Paul plants, ApoUos 
 waters, but God gives the increase, i Cor. 3. 6. God will 
 pour floods on the dry ground. Is. 44. 3. 
 
 8. Seed matured yields a rich return. God's word is 
 compared to rain that returns not again, Is. 55. 10. 
 You shall reap if you faint not, Gal. 6. 9, and have a 
 hundredfold more in this present time, Luke 18. 30. 
 
 9. Froduce is as the seed soiun. There is a great 
 variety of seeds, but the generic distinction remains, as 
 figs come not of thistles, Mat. 7. 16. He that sows to 
 the flesh, reaps corruption. Gal. 6.^.; he sowing the wind 
 reaps the whirlwind, Hos. 6. 7. Haman sowed pride, 
 reaped defeat; so the drunkard. Pro v. 23. 29 ; so the 
 rich man drowned in destruction, i Tim. 6. 9 ; so war 
 from lust, Jas. 4. i. 
 
 I o. Water is reqiiired ; hence the thorny ground 
 allows none ; early rain necessary after the seed is sown, 
 and the latter rain when the corn is ripe, Jer. 5. 24 : so 
 the dews of the Spirit. 
 
 1 1 . The seed dies — i.e., the albumen dissolves ; an em- 
 blem of the Eesarrection, i Cor. 15. ^^6. 
 
 12. If soivn too deeply no air comes : hence ploughing 
 brings the seeds up : for malting barley, heat, moisture, 
 and air are necessary, thereby the starch is changed into 
 sugar : the seed to sow is reserved from the choicest 
 grain by the husbandman. 
 
 13. A skilful sower required. Such was Christ. 
 
 14. Seeds must be covered from the birds, Mat. i 3. 4. 
 I 5 . The sooner the seed is sown the better the crop, 
 
 2 Tim. 3. 15. 
 
 1 6. Diligence needed ; winds, storm, thunder hinder not 
 the sower. 
 
168 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 17. Seeds must he luidely scattered, i Cor. i. 16. Seed 
 must be sent from land to laud, and handed down to others; 
 some seed bad, some not successful. 
 
 When the corn is fully ripe it bends down the ear ; so 
 the believer is to be clothed with humility, i Pet. 5. 5. 
 
 Tamul. — Those who are of inferior stature may accomplish 
 
 great things. 
 Tamul. — The seed of the banyan is small, but the tree 
 
 affords a large shade. 
 Persian. — Vegetables do not grow on a stone ; what fault 
 
 in the rain? Mat. 23. 37. 
 Tamul. — Though it may rain to the end of the world, a 
 
 broken potsherd will not germinate, Mat. 13. 5. 
 Afghan. — When you fixed your hopes on the soil you lost 
 
 your seed in it — i.e., by neglecting to weed and 
 
 water. 
 
 Self-conceit. — Peov. 26, 12. 
 Wise in one's own eye, Pro v. 3. 7. 
 
 Afghan. — The fox thought his shadow very large — i.e., a 
 
 little man puffed up. 
 Syriac. — If the camel had seen his hunchback he would 
 
 have fallen and broken his neck. 
 Oriental. — When the wolf is alone he is a lion. 
 China. — He who cannot sleep finds his bed badly made. 
 Japan. — To hide the head but not hide the tail — i.e., as the 
 
 ostrich. 
 
 Selfishness. 
 
 Afghan. — The one was dying and the other was asking his 
 
 daughter of him. 
 Panjali. — The goat was weeping for his life, the butcher for 
 
 his fat. 
 Afghan. — What does the satiated man know of the hungry 
 
 man's state. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 169 
 
 The Righteous as Sheep.— Mat. 10. 16. 
 
 The righteous resemhle sheep in ten points : — 
 
 1. Cleanliness. Not like swine, dogs, or wolves, the 
 righteous come out of the wilderness of sin, yet, as subject 
 to Jilth, need washing, i Cor. 6. 11, Ps. 51. 7: hence 
 they love still water, Ps. 23. 2 ; 2 Sam. 24. 17. 
 
 2. Harmless : innocent as doves, but wise as serpents, 
 Mat. 10. 16: not crafty as foxes, or devouring as a lion, 
 I Cor. 14. 20. 
 
 3. Meek. So Christ was led as a lamb to the slaughter, 
 Is. 5 3. 7 ; so Stephen and Job ; so David, Ps. 39. 9 ; and 
 Aaron when his sons were killed. 
 
 4. Profitable ; in life by fleece, in death by their flesh. 
 So the blood of the martyrs was the seed of the Church ; 
 so saints are lights. Ten saints would have saved Sodom, 
 Gen. 18. 32 ; being dead they yet speak, Heb. 1 1. 4 : so 
 Jacob proved to Joseph, and Joseph to Potiphar. 
 
 5. Obedient: follow the shepherd ; the shepherd knows 
 their name ; calling them they follow him, John i o. 4. 
 
 6. Feeble, Gen. 33. 13. They are apt to go astray, 
 I Sam. 17. 20 : they have many enemies — wolves, dogs, 
 Eom. 8. 36; nourished for slaughter, Ps. 64. 22 ; subject 
 to many diseases, Jer. 7. 28. 
 
 7. Love union. Saints are like David and Jonathan 
 scattered by dogs they soon unite, Acts 4. 23. 
 
 8. Live on little : often on barren commons ; so the 
 righteous are content, i Tim. 6. 8. 
 
 9. JVeed a shepherd, Acts 10. 3, to select pasture, i Pet. 
 5. I ; to select shade, Ps. 23. 2 ; sheep may be lost, not 
 so believers : pigs and cats find out their way, not so 
 sheep. When one strays the others follow, 2 Sam. 20. 
 1,2; Acts 5. 36, ^y. Sheep may return of themselves, 
 
 the spiritual sheep never. 
 
 10. Love green pastures, Cant. i. 7. 
 
 China. — A sheep was never known to climb a tree. 
 
1 70 EA STERN PRO VERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The Shipwrecked Soul. — i Tim. i. 19. 
 
 The body has been compared to a casket, the soul to a 
 jewel ; in the text the soul is like a shij), launched at birth 
 on the river of life, constructed with great skill, fitted up 
 for a long and dangerous voyage over the ocean of life ;, 
 exposed to the storms of temptation, the rocks of sin, the 
 waves of passion, needs a good bottom of faith, so necessary 
 to prevent a leak, the wind of Gods Spirit to fill the sails 
 of the affections, and the compass of God's word; Christ 
 is the pilot. 
 
 Turh. — The soul is the ship, reason is the helm, the oars are 
 the soul's thoughts, and truth is the port. 
 
 Malay. — The boat which is swamped at sea may be baled 
 out, but a shipwreck of the affections is final. 
 
 Silence. — Luke 21. 19. 
 
 Solomon states, "Where no wood is the firegoeth out; sO' 
 where there is no talebearer, the strife ceases, or is silent." 
 
 Sanskrit. — Silence is the ornament of the ignorant. 
 
 Arab. — Silence is the remedy for anger. 
 
 Syrian. — Shut your door and you will not fear an enemy- — 
 i.e., silence the remedy against calumny. 
 
 Sanskrit. — By silence there is no quarrel ; by vigilance no- 
 fear. 
 
 Turh. — Two ears to one tongue, therefore hear twice as 
 much as you speak. 
 
 Modern Greek. — The tongue has no bone, yet it breaks 
 bones. 
 
 Aral. — Silence is the sweet medicine of the heart, Ps^ 
 
 37. 7. 
 Sanskrit. — Where frogs are the croakers, there silence is 
 
 becoming. 
 Turk. — A great river makes no noise. 
 Avyar. — Do not come near one in a passion. 
 EstJionian. — Time heals wounds. 
 Avyar. — A calumnious mouth is a fire in a wind. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. i/r 
 
 Death a Sleep to the Righteous.— John ii. ii. 
 
 Sleep called death's brother. Death is a departure, Phil. 
 I. 23, from a wilderness to the promised land ; the wicked 
 are driven away, Pro v. 14. 32. Sleep in death is apphed 
 in Scripture only to the righteous, as to Lazarus, Solomon, 
 Hezekiah, Jehoshaphat, Stephen. 
 
 Death is like natitral sleep in four points : — 
 (i) Calm in its commencement y people know not when 
 they are dropping off to sleep. We gradually become 
 insensible to outward things ; such was Moses' death. (2) 
 Hest from labour ; life is warfare ; death is peace ; the 
 slave hears not the voice of the oppressor. Job 3. 18. (3) 
 Aiuakeniiig to vigour after sleep. Is. 26. 19; Isaiah calls 
 the grave a bed. (4) Mind active even in dreams. 
 
 Conscience Asleep.— Eph. 5. 14. 
 
 An impenitent sinner is said both to be " asleep" and also 
 to be " dead." He is " dead," because his soul is destitute 
 of spiritual life ; as, however, it has a capacity for receiv- 
 ing spiritual life, he is compared also to one who is "asleep,'^ 
 but who can wake again. 
 
 A man who is buried in sleep is unconscious of all that 
 is going on around him. His mind is entertained, indeed, 
 with dreams, which for the time lie takes for reahties, 
 while the real and important business of life is totally 
 unheeded and neglected by him. Matters which affect his 
 interest, or even his life, may be transacted around him,_ 
 he is dreaming on ; and when he awakes, he will find how 
 material it would have been to him to have resisted the 
 drowsiness in which his faculties for the time were lost. 
 The building may be in liames, or the thief may have 
 broken through the house, but the owner sleeps on in total 
 ignorance of his danger or his loss, until it is too late to- 
 escape the one, or to prevent the other. The ship was on 
 
172 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 the point of being engulfed in tlie raging waves, when 
 Jonah was fast asleep ! 
 
 In sleeping we are disturbed by vain hopes and fears ; 
 on awakening they are all gone, Job 20. 8. In dreams 
 we run away when there is no danger, and are delighted 
 with that which is nothing but a shadow. We think we 
 are flying through the air, while we are motionless in our 
 bed ; we think we have found great treasures, but we awake 
 and are as poor as ever. Of that which is real we have 
 no knowledge, while our mind is thus filled with shadows : 
 but, perhaps, we dream that we are sailing on the water, 
 while the chamber in which we sleep has taken fire ; and 
 we know it not till the flames reach our body and awaken 
 us ; then we start up, but it is too late to escape. 
 
 Shdnti ShataTc. — The careless sinner is a moth, unaware of 
 approaching evil, hovering over a lighted lamp 
 until consumed by it, or a fish falling into the 
 hands of the angler. 
 
 Telugu, — "What matters it whether we drink milk in a dream 
 out of bell-metal or gold? Is. 14. 20. 
 
 Arab. — To sleep on the mountain peaks. 
 
 Malay. — To fight in a dream — i.e., labour in vain. 
 
 Tamul. — The wealth seen in a dream, the water observed in 
 a mirage. 
 
 Veman. — They live lilce a silkworm in a cocoon, seemingly 
 secure, but in reality helpless, Prov. 7. 22. 
 
 Mahaiharat. — Seeing thy spirit abides like a bird in a body, 
 which resembles mere foam, why sleepest thou in 
 this dear abode, which is so transitory ? 
 
 The Smoke of God's Anger.— Is. 65. 2-5. 
 
 Nothing is more offensive to the nostrils than smoke, 
 Prov. 10. 20. The expression, " There went up a smoke 
 out of his nostrils," signifies God's wrath against those 
 who did what was offensive to him. When Sodom and 
 Oomorrah were destroyed by brimstone and lightning, a 
 <lense smoke arose from the ruins indicating the terrible 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 173, 
 
 fire that was tliere, Gen. 19.28; so God is said to be to 
 the wicked a consuming fire, Heb. 12. 29; as fire he 
 ajijDeared in the burning bush, Ex. 3. 2 ; on Sinai, Ex. 19. 
 18, to Isaiah, 6. 4, Ezeldel, i. 4, John, Eev. i. 14, and as 
 a flaming fire will he appear at the fJudgment Day, 2 Tim. 
 1.8; then all will be confusion, as when fire breaks out, 
 Eev. 6. 10; it will be sudden, like at Belshazzar's feast, 
 Dan. 5. 5; it will destroy everything; while the wicked 
 will be only stubble, Nah. i . i o, the righteous will be as 
 the burning bush on which fire had no effect, Ex. 3. 2. 
 God's anger is described in Job, 37th chapter. 
 
 Smoke quickly disappears, not so the smoke of God's 
 anger, Eev. 14. 1 1. In Eev. 9. 2, the smoke which rose 
 from the bottomless pit refers to gross errors which darken 
 the understanding. 
 
 The Righteous a Soldier. — 2 Tim. 2. 3, 4. 
 
 A soldier is one employed in military affairs, bearing- 
 arms under military command. Mat. 8. 9. Every true 
 believer is a soldier to fight the good fight of faith against 
 the world, the flesh, and the devil. Is. 51. 9, Col. 2. 15, 
 2 Tim. 4. 7. 
 
 The righteous is like a soldier in huelve points : 
 
 1. Under a captain. Christ is the Captain of our 
 salvation, Heb. 2. 10; there is a covenant in Baptism. 
 
 2. Leaves all other luorldly affairs, 2 Tim. 2. 4. The 
 righteous forsake all, as did the apostles ; their heart was 
 set on things above, they minded not the things of the 
 flesh, Eom. 8. 5 ; they were crucified with Christ, Col. 
 3. I — i.e., a painful separation from the world like 
 crucifying. 
 
 3. When enlisted is armed, so the believer has armour,. 
 Eph. 6. 10, 12, but only one offensive weapon, the sword. 
 
 4. Uniform vjorn to distinguish him, so the garment of 
 love and humility, i Pet. 5.5. 
 
.174 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 5. Clad at the Kings expense. The believer's white 
 raiment, an emblem of purity, was purchased with Christ's 
 blood, Eev. 7. 14. 
 
 6. Enemies fixed for him. The world, the flesh, and 
 the devil. Paul writes, that the believer is more than a 
 conqueror, Eom. 8. 37. 
 
 7. Obedience in everything, Mat. 8. 9 ; so Paul, Acts 
 26. 19. 
 
 8. Order and discipline, i Cor. 14. 33. 
 
 9. Acquainted with devices of the enemy; wise as 
 serpents, 2 Cor. 2. 11. 
 
 I o. Courage necessary, no turning back, Heb. 11. 38, 
 the cause good, Is. 41. 10, a good conscience, i Pet. 3. 16, 
 ^ure of victory, Eev. 12, 11. 
 
 1 1. Endures hardships, Mat. 10, 22, Heb. 11.38, David 
 watered his couch with his tears. 
 
 1 2. The righteous soldier is sure of mctory, more than 
 conqueror, Ptom. 8. 37. 
 
 Tamul. — Of what use is a moustache to a sneaking soldier? 
 China. — To hide the head and leave the back exposed, Eph. 
 
 6. 13. 
 Breton. — A cat in gloves is no use to catch mice. 
 Telugu. — Even a sheep will bite a man without a stick. 
 Tamul. — Those who regard relationship are not fit for 
 
 military service, 2 Tim. 2. 4. 
 Tamul. — The handle of the axe is the enemy of its kind. 
 China. — Armies are kept l,000 days to be used on one. 
 Niti ShataJc. — Eortune conquers the wise no more than a 
 
 straw ; the elephant, whose cheeks are streaked 
 
 with the marks of passion, is not fastened by the 
 
 filaments of the lotus. 
 
 The Righteous shall shine as the Stars. — Dan. 12. 3. 
 
 The bodies of the righteous after the resurrection will 
 be bright and dazzling, like Christ's body on the mount 
 of transfiguration, Mat. 17. i ; Paul, on his way to 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 175 
 
 Damascus, saw a light brighter than the sun, the efful- 
 gence of which blinded him for three days, Acts 1 1 . 
 
 The righteous ivill he like the stains in five points : — 
 
 (i) A great ornament to the Heavens; (2) they 
 differ in brightness, i Cor. 15. 40 ; (3) guide mariners on 
 the ocean and travellers at night, so believers on the 
 dark ocean of life ; (4) though distant, they exercise an 
 influence, as a cloud of witnesses, Heb. 12. i; but many 
 do not, as there are stars so far from this world that 
 their light has not reached the earth from the time of 
 Adam's creation, though travelling like the sun's light 
 at the rate of 1 2,000,000 miles in a minute ; many of 
 them are bigger than the earth, though they seem so 
 small, and are so remote that a cannon ball would take 
 700,000 years to reach the nearest of them ; (5) their 
 nnmher is immense ; the redeemed in Heaven are a great 
 multitude whicli no man can number. 
 
 Tamul. — Though astrological calculations prove false, the 
 stars will not. 
 
 The Rich are only Stewards.— i Coe. 4. 2. 
 Parahle of the Steward. — Luke 19. 11—27. 
 
 In this place, as in many others, Glod compares 
 himself to a master, and we are placed on earth not to do 
 our own will, but the will of him who placed us here ; 
 we have nothing which is j)roperly our ovm, but what- 
 ever we seem to have is entrusted to us by another, who has 
 left us in charge for a season, and will call us to account 
 when he shall return, Luke 1 6. We are not our own, but 
 are bought with a price ; and it is therefore our great duty 
 to glorify God in our body and in our spirit, which are 
 his, I Cor. 6. 20. 
 
 The various faculties of our soul and body ; the 
 opportunities afforded by having our days lengthened; 
 the gifts of station, education, friends, and worldly 
 
176 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 substance ; the knowledge of religious truth and all the 
 means of grace ; the various occasions for doing or 
 receiving good ; these and numberless advantages and 
 blessings, which are daily and hourly extended to us, 
 must all be accounted for. 
 
 The rich are stewards, having a great master, the King 
 of Heaven; a great charge, their souls; and much entrusted 
 to them ; they must improve their property (see parable 
 of the Talents, of the Barren Fig Tree, and of the Rich 
 Fool, who thought he was absolute proprietor ; hence Christ 
 said it was easier for a camel to go through a needle's 
 eye than for those trusting in riches to enter heaven — i.e.^ 
 an impossibility in human sight — as the Bengalis say, 
 " A horse's eggs, or putting an elephant into a narrow 
 dish." 
 
 Tamul. — Money is a man-stealer. 
 
 Talmud. — Eiches without wisdom is food without salt. 
 
 China. — Fortune is the good man's prize, but the bad 
 
 man's bane. 
 Tiravellavar. — When the good man gets riches it is like 
 
 fruit falling in the midst of a village — i.e., all 
 
 partake of it. 
 Canara. — The riches of the good are like water turned off 
 
 into a rice field. Prov. 19. 1/ and 1 1. 25. 
 China. — Wealth among men is like dew among plants ; 
 
 Poani on the waves is the fame which earth 
 
 grants. 
 Itaghuvansa. — The good, like clouds, receive only to give 
 
 away. 
 Sanskrit. — The rivers themselves drink not their water ; 
 
 nor do the trees eat their own sweet fruit. The 
 
 clouds eat not the crops ; the riches of the good 
 
 are employed for the benefit of others. 
 
 China. — Wealth is but dung — i.e., useful only in being 
 
 spread. 
 
 — »-«>4 — 
 
 The Stronghold, Faith in God. — Is. 26. i. 
 
 In times of plunder and war in India property and 
 people were insecure, hence they were taken to strong- 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 177 
 
 holds for protection. Oiide, in the days of the king^. 
 had many of these. 
 
 Faith is like a stronghold in three points : — 
 (i) Built on a rock to prevent its being undermined 
 such were the fortresses of Gwalior, Chunar, Dowlatabad 
 the believer dwells in the munition of rocks, Is. 33. 16 
 Christ is the rock of ages, i Cor. 10. 4. (2) Strongly 
 defended; yet Babylon, with its walls 300 feet high and 
 gates of brass, was taken. Tyre like Calcutta, a great 
 trading-place, is now only a rock for fishermen to dry 
 their nets, though it was once a stronghold. Jerusalem 
 had three walls round it, yet it was ploughed up ; not so 
 the heavenly Jerusalem, God is to it a wall of fire. (3) 
 Fully supplied with provisions and arms, not like 
 Jerusalem where the women eat their own children, or 
 Carthage where the women cut off their hair to make 
 bow-strings ; in the believer's weakness is God's strength 
 made perfect, 2 Cor. 12.9. Elijah was surrounded by a 
 strong army, but he saw the mountain full of Angels under 
 the form of horses and chariots of fire, 2 Kings 6. 17. 
 
 Aral. — The strength of the heart is from the soundness of 
 the faith. Mat. 17. 20, Heb. 11. 33-38. 
 
 The Death, of the Righteous an unsetting Sun. 
 
 Is. 60. 19, 20. 
 
 The righteous dying sets like the sun in one part of 
 creation, but it is only to rise amid glowing clouds and a 
 clear blue sky in another region ; but even when setting 
 his light lingers, and the western clouds are bright with 
 his beams. The heat of the day has gone, and man ceases 
 from labour. Even the twilight is beautiful — at eventide 
 it shall be light, Zech. 1 4. 7. The Hindu writings state that 
 old age "is like a dried-up stream, fallen as a tree levelled 
 by thunder, dreaded as a house in ruin ; it takes away 
 vigour, as if a man were placed in a marsh." Very 
 different is the English proverb, " Nothing old but shoes 
 
178 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 and hats." Solomon compares the path of the just to the 
 light shining more and more to the perfect day, though 
 the morning might be cloudy and stormy ; such as was 
 that of Simeon^s, Luke 2. 28-32, Peter's, 2 Pet. i. 3, 
 1 1— 1 6 ; they were not like the wicked, driven away in his 
 wickedness. 
 
 As the Aloe is green and well liking, till tbe last best summer 
 
 of its age, 
 And then hangeth out its golden bells to mingle glory with 
 
 corruption ; 
 As the Meteor travelleth in splendour, but bursteth in dazzling 
 
 light; 
 Such is the end of the righteous ; their death is the sun at 
 
 its setting. 
 
 Modern GreeJc. — The more a good tree grows the more shade 
 
 does it afford. 
 Japan. — The heart is the same at sixty as at three. 
 CJiind. — By length of journey he knew the horse's strength. 
 
 So length of days shows a man's heart. 
 
 Earthen Vessels hold the Soul's Treasures. 
 
 2 COE. 4. 7. 
 
 The body is compared to an earthen vessel as being 
 brittle, leaky, mean, of little value. The unsearchable 
 riches of Christ are the soul's treasures. 
 
 Bengal. — In a coarse torn bag to put fine rice. 
 
 Arab. — Grood honey in a dirty vessel. 
 
 Aral). — Though thebowbe crooked the arrowreaches its mark. 
 
 Persian. — The ignorant is in the midst of riches like an 
 
 earthen vessel covered with gold j the learned 
 
 man in the midst of poverty like a precious stone 
 
 encased in a vile metal. 
 Veman» — When one has learned to speak prudently, why 
 
 should we think of his youth or age ? May not 
 
 a lamp burn bright though held in the hand of 
 
 an infant ? 
 Badaga. — So busy in saving a grain of salt he lost the 
 
 salt vessel. 
 Tamul. — The vessel may be crooked : what matters it if 
 
 bakes the bread ? 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 179 
 
 Persian. — The diamond fallen into the dunghill is not the 
 less precious. The dust which the wind raises 
 to the sky is not the less vile. 
 
 Christ the Lily among Thorns.— Cant. 2. 2. 
 The wicked compared to thorns in nine points : — 
 
 1. Little use or value except for hedges or fuel, Pro v. 10. 
 20 ; so Antiochus, Dan. 11. 21 ; men gather not grapes 
 from thorns, Mat. 7. 16. 
 
 2. Change 7iot their nature, the same in the garden as 
 in the jungle, so Pharaoh was not changed by miracles 
 nor Saul by being made king, so Jeroboam worshipped 
 a calf notwithstanding God's promises. 
 
 3. Uncimiber the earth ; draw away its moisture, so the 
 Canaanites, Num. 33. 55 ; Josh. 23. 13 ; Abimelech called 
 the bramble was made king, killed his seventy brethren, 
 plagued the Shechemites, Judges 9. i ; so the barren 
 fig-tree, Luke 1 3. 7 ; when the wicked perish there is 
 shouting, Prov. 11. 10. 
 
 4. Loiv things ; mount not as the cedar ; they over- 
 run fields. 
 
 5 . Annoy ly their pricking ; so the Canaanites were 
 thorns in the Jews' sides, Num. 33. 55, Josh. 23. 
 13 ; so the Samaritans to the Jews, Neh. 6. 6 ; scoffing 
 at the Jewish sabbaths and sacrifices, Neh. 4. 2, 3 ; so the 
 priests threatened the apostles, Acts 4. 1 7 ; so Saul breathed 
 out slaughter, Acts 9. i ; Christ was called a wine-bibber, a 
 Samaritan or devil ; Paul was called a pestilent fellow. Acts 
 24. 5. Ahab said to Elijah, Are thou the troubler of Israel ? 
 
 1 Kings 18. 17 ; Lot's righteous soul was vexed in Sodom, 
 
 2 Pet. 2. 7, 8 ; Delilah vexed Samson, Judges 16. 16. 
 
 6. Care needful in ivalking among them, otherwise one 
 gets entangled and scratched ; Christ warned us to be 
 wise as serpents. Mat. 10. 16; Paul was scratched by 
 the Jews who were thorns ; thorns hindered the growth 
 of good seed, Mat. 1 3. 7. 
 
 N 2 
 
i8o EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 J. Sometimes useful as hedges, so the earth helped the 
 woman, Rev. 12. 16. 
 
 8. Hard and knotty, 2 Sam. 23. 6. 
 
 9. Thorns tlirovm into the fire, Is. 10. 17; Ps. 9. 1 7; 
 Is. 30. 33 ; so Saul and his family, the Jews. 
 
 Telugu. — A jackal's rage — i.e., a contemptible thing. 
 Italian. — A thorn is small, but he who has felt it does not 
 forget it. 
 
 Treasures laid up in Heaven. — Mat. 6. 20. 
 
 Veman observes : " If you consider your possessions^ 
 as your own fools alone will agree with you ; that alone 
 is yours which you have bestowed on others." 
 
 Earthly treasures can be destroyed by fire, floods, 
 the Hindus could be secured against Mahrattas and 
 thieves, white ants, rust, Job 20. 5-29. No treasures of 
 Moguls. The earth itself, with its treasures, is kept in 
 store reserved unto fire, 2 Pet. 3. 7; Solomon calls ill-got 
 riches treasures of wickedness, Pro v. 10. 2, as Eehoboam 
 found, so did Nebuchadnezzar, Dan. 4. 3 i. 
 
 See the parable of the hid treasure, Mat. 1 3. 44, and. 
 of the rich fool. 
 
 Telugu. — Worldly possessions are like a drop of water on a 
 lotus leaf. 
 
 Death's Shadowy Valley.— Ps. 23. 4. 
 
 Life is a journey through a waste howling wilderness^, 
 the dark valley of the mountain of death forms its close, 
 bounded by the river of death. 
 
 Death is like some valleys in seven joints : — 
 
 I . Dark ; the sunbeams enter not, so no natural light 
 illumines the grave's path ; it is like a dark tunnel. The 
 apostles feared when they entered the cloud. Mat. 17. 5. 
 Satan wraps the valley often in clouds of doubt and dark- 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. i8i 
 
 ness — a darkness that may be felt ; so the Jews, when 
 entering the dark cleft of the Eed Sea, found it "a land of 
 darkness," Job i8. 5-21; the righteous in death, how- 
 ever, have no sting, i Cor. 15. 57 ; the Sun of Eighteous- 
 ness illumines the gloom. 
 
 2. Lonely ; mountain passes are solitary — all pass 
 ^through this, but none meet even though they die 
 together. Angels, however, are present, but as a matter 
 of faith more than of consciousness. Jacob said of the 
 desert, "How dreadful is this place?" Gen. 28. 17. 
 Moses, entering the cloud, exclaimed, " I exceedingly 
 quake," Heb. 12. 21. The Jews crossed the Eed Sea 
 at night when quite dark. 
 
 3. Sometimes Pam/^t/^; thorns, stones, and briers abound ; 
 so death is the wrenching of soul and body ; even Christ 
 prayed that the cup might pass from him. Mat. 26. 39. 
 
 4. Dangerous ; robbers, wild beasts in the dark possess 
 the valley ; the domain of death, the king of terrors. Some 
 have passed through this valley amid showers of stones, 
 others wrapped in flames, others knee-deep in blood. 
 
 5. Leads to a strange land. Separates temporal and 
 seen from eternal things ; no correspondence with friends ; 
 in a moment, millions of miles distant from earth. 
 
 6. A route never retraced ; the great gidf between ; 
 this tree sprouts not again. Job 14. 7 ; no work, no 
 •device in the grave, Ecc. 9. i o. 
 
 7. Has two terminations ; the gate of life, the gate of 
 'death, the land of rest, and that where the worm never 
 •dies, like Pharaoh's butler and baker, who looked forward 
 to the third day, but with very different feelings. Gen. 40. 
 
 All have to pass this valley ; it is the house appointed 
 for all living. Job 30. 23; the righteous walk in the 
 valley implying calmness, Prov. 14. 32; as to them the 
 shadow of death is like the shadow of a sword harmless. 
 Death is even counted a treasure, Phil, i . 2 1 . 
 
 Tamul. — Is it kind to abandon one in the middle of a 
 river ? 
 
2 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Tamul. — I rest my foot on a branch breaking, and mj 
 hand on one about to break. 
 
 The Spiritual Warfare.— 2 Cob, 10. 3. 
 
 Life is compared in the Bible to a dream, an eagle 
 hastening to its prey, a hand-breadth, a swift ship, a tale 
 told ; in the text to a war. The Niti Shatak states " time 
 no more conquers the wise than a straw the elephant ; he, 
 whose cheeks are streaked with the marks of passion, is 
 not fastened by the filaments of the lotus^ 
 
 What a strange thing is war, yet it is everywhere, and 
 vile as it is and very destructive to life and comfort, we 
 ourselves are engaged in it, whether we will or not ; 
 there is war in the natural creation; the hawk is always 
 in arms for the seizing of his prey ; the tiger and the 
 wolf are at war with cattle ; birds and beasts are per- 
 secuting one another ; and the innocent birds are destroyed 
 by the cruel and rapacious. Even in seas and rivers, 
 there are sharks, alligators, and pike which devour other 
 kinds. Among mankind, nation rises in arms against 
 nation, and kingdoms are divided against themselves. 
 The invisible world is also at war ; there was war in 
 heaven, Eev. 12.7, when Satan and millions of Angels 
 rose in rebellion against God, prompted by pride and 
 jealousy. God himself has his enemies among Angels 
 that excel in strength; principalities and powers are 
 confederate against all the great and merciful designs of 
 heaven ; and the war, which they began there, is carried 
 on upon earth against us (men) and our salvation. We 
 are, therefore, born to a state of war, and are accordingly 
 enlisted as soldiers at our baptism under Jesus Christ the 
 captain of our salvation, under whose banner we are 
 to fight against His and our enemies. Our Christian 
 profession is called a fight of faith, i Tim. 6. 12, because 
 it is subject to all the dangers, losses, fears, and mis- 
 carriages of war; and the same rules are to be observed,. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 183 
 
 the same measures followed, in the one case as in the 
 other ; with this difference, that spiritual dangers are a 
 thousand times worse than hodily, and call for more valour 
 and more vigilance. 
 
 Being, therefore, soldiers, we are to do as soldiers do. 
 To put on the whole armour of God ; the helmet to save 
 the head in natural war ; and there is the protection of 
 God, the helmet of salvation in spiritual war. The shield 
 of faith, which we are to hold up against the fiery darts 
 of the enemy. The sword of the spirit, the word of God, 
 sharper than any two-edged sword, which, when skilfully 
 used, will give mortal wounds to the adversaries of our 
 faith. We must practise the pi-udence which is necessary 
 in earthly war, considering that we are here in an enemy's 
 country, in continual danger of being surprised by evil 
 spirits, who are always upon the watch, and, therefore, w^e 
 must be soher and vigilant. A drunken soldier, in a time 
 of war, is in danger of death — a drunken Christian is in 
 danger of damnation. All levity, dissipation, and foolish 
 jesting are to be avoided, as tending to make the mind 
 effeminate and careless, and insensible of its dangerous 
 situation in this life ; in consideration of which we are to 
 pass the time of our sojourning here in fear, di,^ they do who are 
 encompassed with enemies. We are to study the interests 
 of the two parties at war. The last enemy is death, our 
 worst the enemy within. The grand enemy of man, which 
 is the devil, has his allies who assist him in his warfare 
 against us ; these are the world and the flesh. The world 
 receives his principles, and works with him by the great 
 force of custom, fashion, and example ; the flesh wars 
 against the spirit, and is to be denied and mortified as we 
 stop and seize the supplies of provision when they are 
 upon the road to the camp of an enemy. As the mind 
 of a soldier is intent upon victory, and he runs at all 
 hazards to obtain it, so has the Christian the same object 
 in view ; sin and death are to fall before him, and the 
 kingdom of heaven is to be the prize. 
 
i84 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 In war soldiers must submit to hardships from want of 
 clothes, houses, food, sleep ; but they look forward with 
 joy to the expiry of their time of enlistment, Job 7. 2. 
 So believers wish like the dove to flee away and be at 
 peace, Ps. 55. 6. 
 
 Malabar. — We lie straight only in our coffin, Eom. I. 24. 
 Urdu. — A snake in the sleeve. 
 Arab. — The best fighting is against yourself. 
 BJiagavatgita, — The soul floats like the lotus on the lake, 
 
 unmoved, unruffled by the tide, Acts 20.24; 16. 25. 
 Bengal. — The crocodile in the water and the tiger on shore, 
 
 both strive to break my neck. 
 Telugu. — Like fish going against the stream. 
 Basque. — The wolf and the dog agree at the expense of the 
 
 goat which they eat together. 
 TurTc. — The world is a mill : sometimes it grinds flour ; one 
 
 day it will grind us. 
 
 The Righteous are Watchmen.— Mat. 26. 42, 43. 
 
 The Shdnti Shatah compares man to " one in a ferry- 
 boat crossing the whirling gulf of this world, which he 
 must do with watchfulness so as not to be drowned in the 
 abyss." David says, his soul watched for the Lord more 
 than they that wait for the dawn, Ps. 130. 6 ; an allusion 
 to the watchmen on the city wall or the watchers of the 
 temple who passed the night there in devotional exer- 
 cises, anxious to catch the first beams of the morning sun 
 on the hallowed day of atonement. 
 
 Watchmen were set on high towers to give notice of 
 fire, or the invasion of an enemy's approach, hence called 
 seers, i Sam. 9. 9; Is. 21. 11 ; watchman, what of the 
 night. Is. 21. II; the night is far spent, Eom. 13. 12. 
 
 The 7'igliteous are ivatchmcn in seven 'joints : — 
 
 I. Must have sharp eyes to be overseers, see to a dis- 
 tance, Ez. 33. 6; if the blind lead the blind both fall 
 into the ditch, Mat. 15. 14. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 185 
 
 2. Must be active, not drowsy, look for the morning, 
 Ps. 130. 6, otherwise wolves come in. Acts 20. 29; while 
 men slept the enemy sowed tares, Mat. 13. 25. 
 
 3. Must endure hardship, the heat of the day, cold of 
 night ; sentinels are out in all weathers, so Paul, 2 Cor. 
 II. 23—30; the Apostles were beat. Acts 16. 22. 
 
 4. Consult not their own interest, Paul sought not theirs 
 but them, 2 Cor. 12. 14, Is. 58. i. 
 
 5. Charged with the care of others, Heb. 13. 17; 
 death the punishment of sleeping on their post. 
 
 6. Appointed to the duty, Ez. 33. 7. 
 
 7. Prevent evils of fire hj forewarning, so angels were 
 watchmen to Lot in Sodom, Gen. 19. 
 
 Angels called watchers, Dan. 4. 1 7 ; hence represented 
 
 full of eyes, Ez. i . 1 8 ; said to have wings to move about, 
 
 Zech. I. ii; i Kings 22. 19; 2 Kings 6. 17; gave 
 
 warning to Lot, observant. All men have to set a watch 
 
 ■on the door of their lips, Ps. 141. 3. 
 
 Malay. — The crow knows the instant we look at it, 
 
 and the bison will perceive the approach of the 
 
 hunter. 
 Kurd. — Think of the wolf, but keep a rod in readiness for 
 
 him. 
 Basques. — When you have the wolf in your company, you 
 
 ought to have the dog at your side. 
 Modern GreeTc. — When the fox is hungry he pretends that 
 
 he is asleep — i.e., in order to catch the chickens. 
 Ai^ah. — "The mouse fell from the roof. Take some 
 
 refreshment," said the cat. " Stand thou off,'* 
 
 was the reply — i.e., trust not an enemy. 
 Arab. — They trusted the key of the pigeon-house to the 
 
 cat. 
 Welsh. — The fence of a bad farmer is full of gaps. 
 Tamul. — Like a cat on a wall watching his position. 
 Bengal. — The fowl knows the serpent's sneezing. 
 Talmud. — Repent a day before your death. 
 Afghan. — Though the cock crows not, morning will come. 
 Servian. — When you go as a guest to the wolf, see that 
 
 you have a hound with you. 
 
i86 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Russian, — Thieves are not abroad every night, yet every 
 
 night make fast. 
 TurTc. — The day dawns late in the house where the cocks 
 
 are numerous. 
 Menu. — "Women, if confined at home by faithful guardians, 
 
 are not really guarded ; but those women, who 
 
 guard themselves by their own will, are well 
 
 guarded. 
 Turh. — He is a fool who falls twice into the same hole. 
 What six proverbs illustrate the need of watch- 
 fulness ? 
 
 The Waterer Watered or Fatness for the Liberal. 
 
 Peov. II. 25. 
 
 Liberality is called a sowing, 2 Cor. 9. 6 ; a lending, 
 Prov. 19. 7. Abraham was no loser by his liberality to 
 Lot Gen. 13. 9, 14, 15), nor by his hospitality to the 
 three men Gen. 13. 2). He thereby entertained angels 
 unawares ; in the care he took of the religious instruction 
 of his servants, he was rewarded by their fidelity to him, 
 as appears from the conduct of his eldest servant. Gen. 
 24. The widow's oil increased not in the vessel, but by 
 pouring it out, 2 Kings 4. I, 7. The harley hreacl in 
 the Gospel multiplied by breaking and distributing it ; 
 the grain brings increase not by the lying in a heap in 
 the garner, but by scattering it upon the land, so with 
 the graces of faith, hope, and love ; the talent gathereth 
 nothing in the napkin but canker and rust. 
 
 China. — As the rivers pour their waters back again into the 
 
 sea, so what a man has lent is returned to him 
 
 again. 
 Arab. — The garment in which you clothe another will last 
 
 longer than that in which you clothe yourself. 
 Bengal. — A giver is like a cocoa-nut, hard without, good 
 
 within ; a miser is like a bambu, hard without, 
 
 but hollow within. 
 Persian. — A closed fist (miser) is the lock of heaven ; an 
 
 open hand (liberal) is the key of mercy. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 187 
 
 Arab. — A rich miser is a summer cloud without rain. 
 
 Arab. — Spend that which will not remain with you ; pur- 
 chase that which will remain. 
 
 Arab. — Purchase the next world with this, so shalt thou 
 gain both. 
 
 China. — Wealth is but manure — i.e., useful only in being 
 spread. 
 
 Telugu. — Doing with this hand, receiving the reward with 
 the other."^ 
 
 Turh. — You will not carry away with you but those things 
 which you have given. 
 
 Turk. — "Who gives alms sows one and reaps one thousand. - 
 
 The Wedding Garment, or Meetness for Heaven. 
 
 Mat. 18. 3. 
 Urdu. — The deaf man is fit for heaven — i.e., he hears no 
 
 evil. 
 Bussian. — The cat wishes for fish, but fears the water. 
 Telugu. — If you put a crow in a cage will it talk like a 
 
 parrot ? 
 Tamul. — Though the little bird soar high, will it become a kite ? 
 Talmud. — This world is the antechamber of the next, a 
 
 preparation before entering the palace. 
 Afghan. — Asses cannot be tethered in heaven — i.e., though 
 
 there be room, it is only for men. 
 Telegu. — They seated the dog in the palankin, on seeing 
 
 filth it jumped down and ran after it. 
 China. — The pig who has been fed on dirt nauseates rice 
 
 boiled in milk. 
 Veman. — A thief, if he goes to a holy place, will only pick 
 
 the pockets of the comers ; he has no leisure to 
 
 draw near and bow to the God. If a dog enters 
 
 a house, will he tend the hearth ? 2 Peter 2. 22. 
 Persian. — The ass of Jesus does not go to Mecca. 
 
 The Wilderness World.— Cant. 8. 5. 
 
 The Shdnti Shatak states " our mortal bodies are liable 
 to decay — our earthly friends a^re like passengers on a 
 
 * The Germans say, Many will swallow an egg and give away 
 the shell in alms. 
 
1 88 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 journey whom we meet casually and from whom we 
 soon separate." In the wilderness the sun smites by 
 day and the cold by night, serpents infest the rocks, 
 while sand-storms often overwhelm the traveller, or the 
 simoom destroys thousands of men and camels, some- 
 times they perish by thirst ; like this is the world which 
 -Solomon, the wisest and richest of men, called vanity 
 of vanities, Ecc. i. 2, and Paul called dross and dung, Phil. 
 3. 8. Man is born to trouble as the sparks that fly up- 
 wards, Job 5. 6. People hasten through a desert looking for 
 rest at the end, Heb. 4. i, like Lot, they must not linger 
 in Sodom; all creation is groaning under the curse, 
 Eom 8. 22. 
 
 In reading of the journey of the Hebrews from Egypt 
 to Canaan by the way of the wilderness, we see a pattern 
 of our own life, and of all the trials we are to undergo 
 in our progress through this world to the kingdom of 
 heaven. The Jews' journey began with baptism in the 
 Red Sea, a deliverance from Pharaoh and his host, so 
 our baptism, with which our Christian life begins, is an 
 escape from the Spiritual Pharaoh. As they were 
 supported by manna, and the waters of the rock, so must 
 we live by bread from heaven, and our thirst must be 
 satisfied by the waters of life. The end of this our 
 pilgrimage upon earth is the possession of the heavenly 
 land, which God hath promised to us, but in the way to 
 it, we must undergo trials and temptations of every sort, 
 and die in this wilderness, as Moses and his people did, 
 before we can obtain it. As they proceeded by encamp- 
 ments, and wandered many years in the wilderness, so is 
 our life a pilgrimage, and their example assures us that 
 we have here no abiding place, no fixed habitation ; like 
 them we have the pillar of cloud by day and of fire by night. 
 
 The world a wilderness in fifteen points : — 
 
 I . A VMste wild place, little planting ; so the earth in 
 .spiritual matters. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 189 
 
 2. Abounds in thorns; tlie wicked are briars destined 
 to be burnt, Heb. 6.'^. 
 
 3. Dangerous ; wild beasts numerous, the wicked are 
 compared to wolves, bears, lions, dogs, Deut. 8. i 5 ; Jer. 
 2. 6 ; Mat. 12. 43 ; hence is God a wall of fire to keep 
 off beasts, Zech. 2. 5 ; thieves abound. Acts 21. 38; Job 
 was robbed in Arabia ; people travel in caravans com- 
 posed of persons of different countries, this keeps off 
 robbers, so is the communion of saints necessary. 
 
 4. No path, liable to wander, hence a guide necessary 
 through the sands. Is. 35. 8. Lonely. 
 
 5. Storms frequent; the simoom buries thousands 
 of men and animals. So passions. 
 
 6. The sand is hurning ; the sky is as brass ; water 
 and shade wanting. 
 
 7. Though barren, oases are found — i.e., cultivated spots 
 for a short rest, so for the Christian are ordinances. 
 
 8. Foggy and misty, so Satan raises heresies to hide 
 sin (misleads travellers). 
 
 9. Food little, so the husks of this world, Luke 15. 
 16 ; the believer gets manna from heaven. 
 
 1 2. Lightly equipped to travel easier, Heb. 1 2. i ; the 
 covetous man loads himself with thick clay, Hab. 
 2. 6. 
 
 13. A varied route — mud, good roads, desert, green 
 fields, slough of despond, valley of humiliation, mountains 
 of opposition, the rock of ages. 
 
 1 4. A strange country passed through, Heb. 11. 13; Ps.. 
 39. 12 ; stay only a day or two in each place, Heb. 
 13.14. 
 
 I 5. Congenial companions and fellow-travellers divide 
 griefs and double joys, Ps. 119. 74, Ecc. 4. 9-10 ; relieve 
 the tedium of the way. 
 
 OOurTc. — A traveller amid the discomforts of a bad khan 
 (inn), reflects he has only to pass the night 
 there. 
 
I90 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 China. — To meet an old friend in a distant country is like 
 the delight of rain after a long drought. 
 
 Afghan. — The world is a traveller's serai (inn). 
 
 Tamul. — Conversation on a journey is equal to a convey- 
 ance. 
 
 Tarh. — Though the ass goes to Mecca he becomes not a 
 pilgrim for this. 
 
 Mamayane. — As two logs of wood meet on the wide ocean 
 and soon part, so wives, relatives, riches, having 
 come into contact with men, hasten away again. 
 
 Tlie Wicked are Wolves and Locusts.— Mat. io. i6. 
 
 Stephen, surrounded by the fierce Council, when they 
 gnashed upon him with their teeth, stopped their ears, and 
 ran upon him with one accord, although they had just 
 before seen his face, as though it had been the face of an 
 angel, Acts 7.57; Stephen was like him who is brought 
 as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her 
 shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth. 
 
 Wolves are fierce and cowardly ; they often carry off 
 children and devour them ; they love to hunt in packs, 
 are particularly fierce against sheep, fond of darkness, 
 hence bad judges were compared to evening wolves, 
 Zeph. 3. 3. The wicked are also called slaves of sin, 
 John 8. 34, dry bones, Ez. 37. 3. 
 
 The wicked are compared to locusts, Eev. 9. 3, as 
 being cunning, Prov. 30. 24-27, voracious, rapid in move- 
 ;inent, carried about by every wind, very numerous. 
 
 Modern Greek. — Nourish a wolf in winter that he might 
 devour you in summer. 
 
 The Words of the Wise Goads and Nails. — Ecc. 12. 10, 11. 
 
 As the elephant, when sluggish and disobedient, must 
 be quickened and corrected by the goad, which has a 
 stinging, correctly aiming, and deeply penetrating effect. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 191 
 
 SO does our sleeping conscience need the continual pricks 
 and admonitions of a faithful expounder of Scripture, both 
 for correction and instruction in righteousness, 2 Tim. 3. 
 16. And as it is the use of "nails" to fasten what is 
 loose, or what would otherwise drop to pieces, so the exhor- 
 tation of a wise preacher should fix in our treacherous 
 memory what we might otherwise " let slip." 
 
 God's word is compared to a hammer breaking the rock 
 in pieces, but the hand of God is required ; according to 
 the strength and skill of the holder is the blow ; this 
 hammer fastens the nails of conscience and of promise ; it 
 pierces even a stone. 
 
 Fit words are apples of gold in pictures of silver, Pro v. 
 2 5. 1 1 ; this is a definition of a parable or a proverb which 
 sets off grave sentiments by elegant language, as the 
 appearance or imitation of finely-coloured fruit is improved 
 by its shining as through a veil, through the network of 
 a silver vessel finely carved, or like oranges in baskets of 
 silver. The beauty of truth is heightened by the veil of 
 imagery. Christ, without a parable, spoke not unto the 
 people. 
 
 Arah. — Proverbs are the lamps to words. 
 
 Persian. — A word and a stone thrown away do not return. 
 
 Persiafi. — Great talkers are like broken pitchers, everything 
 runs out of them. 
 
 Tamul. — The force of an elephant is subdued by a goad. 
 
 Tamul. — An elephant requires a goad, and boiled rice a 
 chilli (a spice). 
 
 Hebrew. — "What flowers are to gardens, spices to food, gems 
 to a garment, and stars to heaven, such are pro- 
 verbs interwoven in speech. 
 
 SansTcrit. — Chewing the chewed — i.e., repeating idle words. 
 
 China. — Good words are a string of pearls. 
 
 Telugu. — Sweet as a cuckoo warbling in a garden are the 
 charming words of the wise ; but the words of 
 sinners are vile as the cawing of a crow. 
 
 Arah. — Truth is a cutting sword. 
 
PART III. 
 
 Who is the Altar for Believers ?—Heb. 13. 10. 
 
 Christ's sacrifice like an altar in six points : — 
 
 I. All, even the most polluted, might approach it» 
 Christ was also the brazen serpent on high, John 3. 14 ; (2) 
 Its horns or four corners a place of refuge for the guilty, 
 I Kings 2. 28 ; (3) The altar the only place for sacrifice, 
 so prayer can be offered only through Christ's mediation, 
 Heb. 9. 28; (4) The incense for it was beaten and 
 prepared, so prayers must be from an humble spirit ; 
 no strange incense allowed to be offered ; incense to be 
 offered morning and evening, so special prayer then; 
 (5) The altar was sprinkled with Uood once a year, so 
 Christ was once offered ; (6) Fire was necessary to kindle 
 the incense on it, so the Holy Spirit's influence is requisite. 
 
 Who has the Everlasting Arms ? — Deut. 2,3- 27. 
 
 God's strength is denoted by his arms. A stretched- 
 out arm attributed to Him, Jer. 27. 5. 
 
 I . The arm an essential part of man, man's strength 
 in labour and fighting is shown by it, Ex. 15.16; so is 
 the power of God to protect us from three enemies, the 
 flesh, the devil, and the world ; God lays bare His holy 
 arm, Is. 52. 10 — i.e., as servants strip up their sleeves and 
 make their arms ready for service. 
 
EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS. 193 
 
 2. Holds tilings; so God led the Jews through the 
 wilderness by his glorious arm, Is. 63. 12. 
 
 3. Sign of lom ; young lambs carried in arms, Is. 40. 
 1 1 ; outstretched by father to call back his child. Thus 
 Laban embraced Jacob, Gen. 29. 13; and on meeting 
 them Jacob embraced Joseph's sons, Gen. 48.10; so Esau 
 embraced Jacob at meeting. Gen. 33. 4. 
 
 4. Sign of strength, so Sampson broke with his arm 
 the cords like flax, and slew many men with the jawbone 
 of an ass, Judg. 15. 15, and overthrew the house of the 
 Philistines, so God's arm brought salvation. Is. 63. 12. 
 
 Man's arm is of flesh, and cursed is he that makes 
 flesh his arm, Jer. 17. 5; God's of spirit, Job ii. 9; 
 man's arm short, God's long, Jer. 5o. i ; man's arm for a 
 time, God's always ; no king saved by the multitude of 
 an host, Ps. 33. 16. 
 
 Persian. — God, who gives teeth, also gives bread. Is. 49. 
 
 15. 
 Bengal. — If a man's destiny be crooked, even in a jungle of 
 
 dark grass, a tiger attacks him. 
 China. — To catch a man with his teeth. 
 MaJiahharat. — Long are the arms of a clever man. 
 
 What Bags wax not Old? — Luke 12. 33. 
 
 Men count up their money, put it into bags, seal them 
 up that they may be safe, and reserved for a long time. 
 
 God seals up the sins of his people in His bag. Job 
 14. 17 ; thus IsraeV s defection was remembered after 390 
 years, Ps. 25. 7; his hones are fuU of the sins of his 
 youth. Job 20. II; Saul was dead, but his sin was alive, 
 there was a triennial famine on account of Saul having 
 slain the Gibeonites. God brought the sin of Joseph's 
 brethren, committed twenty years before to their mind. 
 Gen. 42. 21 ; old sins will be old serpents, and sting unto 
 death, Num. 32. 23. 
 
 
 
194 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Canarese, — Alms are food prepared for a journey, Eev. 
 
 14.13. 
 Bablinical. — The pious need no memorial ; their deeds are 
 
 their memorial. 
 
 How Born again ? — John 3. 3. 
 
 A Brahmin is called dvija, twice-born — i.e., first by 
 nature, and second by dedication to his religion. A 
 Christian is twice-born in regeneration, which is com- 
 pared to an old tree grafted, through which its nature 
 is changed and improved, and the old stock is made 
 to bear good fruit. A child when new born is a perfect 
 man as to limbs, though not yet at their full growth and 
 size ; similar is God's grace in the new birth. Christ, in 
 his conversation with Mcodemus, showed the need of the 
 new birth. 
 
 The new birth of a Christian is expressed by the 
 emblems of a resurrection, Col. 3. i ; a transformation, 
 Eom. 12, 2, having a heart of fleshy Ez. 36. 26 ; a oiew 
 creation, 2 Cor. 5.17; putting off the old man, Eph. 4. 
 2 2 ; metal figures cast in a moidd, Eom. 4.17; adoption, 
 Eom. 8. 15. 
 
 Believers are called by the world its offscouring, but 
 by God His jewels, yet though by nature children of wrath, 
 by the new birth they become sons of God ; like the 
 angels, they have access to their Father, Eom. 8. 14; 
 their petitions are heard, Mat. 7. 7-1 1, and they become 
 heirs of God, 4. 7. 
 
 Salcontala. — How could a mortal to such charms give birth ? 
 The lightning's radiance flashes not from earth. 
 
 African. — The daughter of a crab does not give birth to a 
 bird. 
 
 Who is the Bread of Heaven?— John 6. 51. 
 Man has a soul as well as a body, and as the body 
 cannot live without food, so neither can the soul. The 
 soul can never die like the body ; the death of the soul 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 195 
 
 is when it has no life to love and serve God ; like a dead 
 body it can serve no one; is displeasing to God, as 
 a dead body is offensive to ns. Our Lord Jesus is called 
 " bread" because all our spiritual life must come from 
 him. Bread, to do us good, must be eaten ; and, by faith, 
 we feed on Jesus Christ. Faith, then, is the mouth of 
 the soul, or the way by which this spiritual nourishment 
 is received into the soul. Jesus is called the " Bread of 
 Life" and the " Living Bread" to those who believe or trust 
 in him ; he gives this spiritual life to serve God here, and 
 this is but the beginning of a life which shall never end, 
 for he who eats of this bread " shall live for ever." 
 
 The hungry know the value of bread, Pro v. 27. 7 ; gold 
 is no use in a starving city, and all need bread, for hunger 
 will eat through a stone wall. 
 
 Who are Buried with Christ ?— Rom. 6. 4. 
 
 The old man — i.e., our corrupt nature, derived from the 
 first man, dies by the painful lingering death of spiritual 
 crucifixion to the world ; it becomes dead to sin but alive 
 to righteousness, Eom. 6. 1 1, and is buried with Christ, a 
 great honour, not like Jehoiakhn, said to have had the 
 burial of an ass, Jer. 22. 19. 
 
 Satan in Everlasting Chains of Darkness. — Jude 6. 
 
 Chains signify the degradation of the devils ; they are 
 — (i) marks of hondage, as Paul wore them before Felix, 
 Acts 26. 29 ; pride compassed the wicked as a chain, Ps. 
 73. 6, while love is to the good, the bond of perfectness. 
 Col. 3. 14 ; (2) heavy, i Kings 12. 10 ; Peter was fastened 
 with two chains to prevent his escape. Acts 12. 6 ; (3) a 
 subject of reproach, 2 Tim. i. 6. The devils are banished 
 from the presence of God, the light of heaven, and now 
 in their dungeon, lead a severer captivity than the Jews 
 endured in Egypt. 
 
 2 
 
196 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The City in Heaven. — Heb. 12. 22. 
 
 An earthly city differs from the heavenly in five jpoints — 
 
 Earthly cities were often founded by blood and rapine,. 
 Mic. 3. I o, or Kke Babel to perpetuate a name, Gen. 1 1. 4 ; 
 built of stone or wood surrounded with walls, infested by 
 dogs, often burnt or sown with salt, Judg. 9.45; the city of 
 the heavenly Jerusalem has God as its architect ; nothing 
 evil in it. A city, from its numerous inhabitants, is called a 
 mother, 2 Sam. 20. 19; while Babylon was called a widow 
 as desolate, Isa. 47. 9. The city in heaven is — (i) 
 well situated far above earth ; (2) surrounded by walls of 
 salvation. Job i. 10, its walls of gold and streets of pearl; 
 no enemy can approach it ; the palace and court of 
 the king; guarded by holy angels, Ps. 34. 7, Dan. 4. 23 ; 
 (3) various nations in it, a great multitude of which no 
 men can number, Eev. 7. 9 ; (4) enriched by the best of 
 earth and creation; (5) its citizens are all first-born — i.e.^ 
 the choicest, the first-born, thus had a double portion, and 
 were superior in rank. Gen. 49. 3. The term first-born is 
 applied also to inferior things, Job calls worms the 
 first-born of death, 18. 1 3, as death is called by the Arabs 
 the mother of vultures. 
 
 Content.— I Tim, 6. 8. 
 
 Arah, — Content lies in three things — satisfied with what is 
 
 given — no reliance on what is in men's hands — 
 
 acquiescing in God's decrees. 
 Hebrew. — "Who is rich ? He who is content with what he 
 
 has. 
 Tamul. — Though the river is full to overflowing, a dog laps 
 
 — i.e., amid the greatest abundance one enjoys 
 
 only what is required. 
 Taheram. — Trees are carried away by the flood, while rushes^ 
 
 remain. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. ig? 
 
 Christ drank a Bitter Cup.— Mat. 26. 39. 
 
 The master of a feast appointed to each of his guests 
 Ms particular cup, Jer. 25. 15. This cup denoted Christ's 
 intense sufferings, Mat. 20. 22, he sweat blood ; wine 
 mixed with bitter ingredients was given to malefactors 
 before being put to death, to render them insensible to the 
 acute pain of hanging on a cross. Christ refused to drink 
 the latter cup. Babylon is represented, Jer. 51. 7, as a 
 golden cup in the hands of Jehovah — i.e., to give pain ; 
 the cup of salvation, Ps. 16. 13, denoted the joy from the 
 river of God's pleasure, Ps. 36. 8 ; the cup of the wine 
 of God's wrath, Eev. 14. 10, was the vengeance of God 
 apportioned to each. 
 
 Joseph's cup was that out of which he drank, and which 
 was taken from Benjamin's sack. Gen. 44. 1 2 ; and the cup 
 which our Lord gave to his disciples at the Last Supperwas 
 one out of which they drank the wine. " The cup of sal- 
 vation," is an expression taken from the custom of the Jews 
 •of making a feast after presenting their thank-offerings, 
 when the priests and offerers ate and drank together. 
 Among other rites, the master of the feast took a cup of 
 wine in his hand, and solemnly blessed God for it, and for the 
 mercy which was at that time acknowledged, and then gave 
 it to all the guests, of which every one drank in his turn. 
 Christ, suffering on behalf of sinners, in the hour of his 
 agony, prayed, " ! my Father, if it be possible, let this 
 cup pass from Me," Mat. 26. 39. When afflictions are the 
 result of God's vindictive justice, then "cup" has a more 
 awful sense, and the wicked are often threatened with the 
 dregs, which is the most unpleasant part of the liquor, 
 Isa. 51.17. 
 
 Japan. — A good medicine tastes bitter. 
 
 Telugu. — Are there sweet diseases and delicious medicines ? 
 
198 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Hell is the Blackness of Darkness.— Mat. 22. 13, 
 
 Heaven is compared to a hanquet in which, amid blazing 
 lights, chosen guests sit down; no night there; but hell is 
 the cellar outside all in darkness ; this implies terror as in 
 Egypt, Ex. 10. 21 ; separation from good people, they 
 stumble and wander ; evil deeds in secret are called 
 chambers of imagery, Ez. 8. 12. 
 
 Some fires have light but are dark. Hell is the blackness- 
 of darkness, Jude 13; in earth there is some light ; in 
 hell none natural, artificial, or spiritual ; in earth some 
 comfort, in hell none. The Egyptian darkness might be 
 felt, Ex. 2. 22, but was only for a time. 
 
 Death-bed Repentance, or making Swords when the 
 War comes.— Luke 12. 20. , 
 
 I*ersian. — Barley at the foot of a steep ascent is useless 
 — i.e., You have starved your horse, so that he 
 has become thin and weak, it will be to no pur- 
 pose to feed him when you come to a steep 
 ascent — i.e., Preparation for an enterprise should 
 be made beforehand. 
 
 JRussian. — "When he was drowning he promised an axe y 
 when he was rescued he gave only the handle. 
 
 Oriental. — The wise know how to quit the world before the 
 world quits them. 
 
 Turk. — He who at eighty begins to learn music can hear 
 himself at the judgment day. 
 
 Arab.— While the antidote is coming the snake-bitten man 
 dies. 
 
 Kurd. — When the hen dies her eyes are fixed on the dung- 
 hill. 
 
 Gujerati. — When thirsty to dig for water. 
 
 Telugu. — Three causes of transient repentance — viz., the 
 pains of travel, the effects of preaching, and the 
 sight of death. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 199 
 
 China. — It is too late to pull the rein when the horse is on 
 the edge of the precipice. It is too late to stop 
 the leak when the vessel is in the midst of the 
 river. 
 
 Turlc. — "We die as we live. 
 
 Sin as a Debt Blotted out. — Acts 3. 19. 
 Chanak writes, " to extinguish fire, remove disease, and 
 pay debts are of use as they increase if they remain." 
 Sinners are debtors, the money duty to God, Gal. 5.3; 
 Eom. 8. 12, 15, 27. 
 
 Tk& wicked are had debtors in six points : — 
 
 1. Unconcerned about the debt, so Cain who slew his 
 brother, Gen. 4. 7; Mat. 18. 24; Luke 16. i. 
 
 2. Wasteful about saving up ; so the prodigal son. 
 
 3. Love not to see the creditor or settle accounts; who 
 is God, say the wicked. 
 
 4. Afraid of the bailiff, so Cain afraid of every one he 
 met. Gen. 4. 13, 14; Adam hid himself. Gen. ^. S ; so 
 Telix, Acts 24. 25. 
 
 5. Dilatory, so the debtor who asJcs a suspense, 
 Mat. 18. 29 ; so excuses for the supper, Luke 14. 18. 
 
 6. Unable to pay, Eom. 3.19; hence punishment, 
 2 Kings 4. I. Death will arrest, Eccl. 8. 8. 
 
 God forgives the Debt, now by 
 
 1. Staying the process, Job 33. 19, 21, 24. 
 
 2. Cancelling the bond, Col. 2. 14; the handwriting 
 against us, he abolishes the old covenant, Heb. 8. 1 3 ^ 
 sins cast into the depths of the sea, Mic. 7. 1 9. ' 
 
 3. Acquittance written on the conscience, Eom. 8. 6. 
 
 The Dew of God's Providence.— Hos. 14. 5. 
 
 The dew arising from the moisture evaporated by the 
 sun in the day, and falling by night, refreshes the parched 
 
200 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 earth, and often supplies the want of rain. The short- 
 lived character of the form of godliness, without the 
 power, is compared to early dew exhaled soon by the 
 sun, Hos. 6. 4. The love of brethren is compared to the 
 dew, Ps. 1 33. 3. God's Word is said to drop as rain, and 
 distil as dew, Deut. 32. 2. God's influences are likened 
 to a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest, Isa. 1 8. 4. The 
 refreshing, vivifying influence of God's spirit is in this 
 text compared to the silent but powerful dew as the dew 
 of herbs, Isa. 26. 19. 
 
 Providence like the dew in seven jpoints : — 
 
 1. Dew comes from above, from the air, not from the 
 clouds ; " drops down ;" so Christ promised to send from 
 above the Comforter, John 14. 16. Every good gift is 
 from above, Jas. i . 1 7. 
 
 2. Deiu is the residt of the sun's influence. The sun 
 evaporates the water which the cold makes to descend, 
 hence the brighter the sky the more dewy the night ; so 
 Christ shed down the Spirit. The sun must withdraw 
 for the dew to fall ; so Christ said he must go, but the 
 Spirit will abide, John 14. 16. 
 
 3. Deio falls from a calm unclouded sky. "Wind or a 
 cloud will dissipate it ; Christ, the Sun of Pdghteousness, 
 dispels the clouds of unbelief. If we walk in the light 
 we have fellowship with God; when the mind is so 
 clouded by passion, the dew of the Holy Spirit does not 
 fall. 
 
 4. The dew's descent is silent and iinperceptiUe ; rain 
 falls in torrents. Dew is seen only by its crystal drops. 
 Job 38. 28; 2 Sam. 17. 12. The dew like gravitation 
 is known by its effects. The Kingdom of God cometh 
 not by observation. The still small voice alone is heard, 
 I Kings 19. II, 12. Conversion is a change taking place 
 in the mind ; hence the Spirit's influence is compared to 
 the wind, John 3. 2 ; we cannot see it or tell whence it 
 comes, but we know it by its effects. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 201 
 
 5. The dew's influence is all pervading. Where dash- 
 ing rain will not enter dew will; it rests on blades of 
 grass ; the traveller's head is filled with dew ; so under 
 Christ's influence. All partake, it pervades each. All 
 things are become new; the dry bones live, Ezek. 37. 3* 
 
 6. Dew often copious, always seasonable. In Israel 
 once for 3 J years there were no dews — how lamentable 
 were things, 2 Sam. i . 2 1 . The Spirit in the latter day 
 is to be poured on young and old. When the weather is 
 hottest, the dew is heaviest ; so Stephen, when stoned, 
 saw heaven opened. Acts 7. 5 5 ; so John, banished to 
 Patmos, was in the Spirit and saw wonderful visions, 
 Eev. I . I o. Innumerable are the drops of dew ; such are 
 Ood's graces. 
 
 7. The dew's effects are most ohvious and salutary, 
 Egypt would be almost uninhabitable, were it not for 
 the dews ; the dew of heaven was promised to Ishmael. 
 When the ground is parched the dew gives new life ; so 
 the letter kiUeth, but the Spirit gives life, 2 Cor. 3. 6. 
 The sun hardens the soil. The growth of plants from 
 the dew is often wonderful ; so the believer strikes his 
 roots deep in the Eock of Ages, and in humility bends 
 towards the dust, but the refreshing, sheltering branches 
 shoot up in beauty, the flowers and leaves from the dew- 
 drops look as pearls, so beautiful are they — so the robes 
 of righteousness. A fragrant smell arises in the morning 
 from the dew on flowers; so Christ is the savour of 
 sweet ointment, " Awake, north wind ;" dead souls are 
 nauseous. Fruitfulness and moisture are necessary to 
 the growth of plants, the dew of heaven, and fatness of 
 the earth are conjoined to the fruits of the Spirit ; the 
 righteous bring forth fruit in old age ; are we withered, 
 God is no niggard with gifts. God will open the windows 
 of heaven, Mai. 3. 1 1. 
 
202 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The Spiritual Life mounting on Eagle's Wings. 
 Is. 40. 30, 31. 
 
 Sjpiritual life like the eagle in eight points : — 
 
 1 . The eagle is the king of birds as the lion is of beasts, 
 so the saints are the excellent in the earth, Ps. 16. 2, 3, 
 more excellent than their neighbours, of whom the world 
 was not worthy, Heb. 11. 38. Behevers are sons of God 
 and of royal blood, Eev. 1.6; while the wicked feed on the 
 wind, or husks, Hos. 12. i, the righteous have spiritual 
 manna and angels as attendants. 
 
 2. Long and quick sighted, Job 39. 29, hence a man 
 is called eagle-eyed. The eagle can look at the sun, or see 
 from above fish in the water, so believers behold the glory 
 of God with open face, 2 Cor. 3. 18 ; and as the secrets of 
 the Lord are with them that fear him, Ps. 25. 14, Gen. 
 18. 17, they see the end of the wicked, 2 Sam. 14. 20. 
 
 3. 8wift, they have long wings ; hence Solomon says,. 
 "Eiches make themselves wings, and lly away like an 
 eagle," Ps. 23. 5. David, lamenting the death of Saul 
 and Jonathan, says, " They, as friends, were stronger than 
 lions and swifter than eagles," 2 Sam. i. 23. Nebitcliad- 
 nezzar came as an eagle against the temple. Job compares 
 life to an eagle, 9. 26, Ez. 17. 2-10, Eev. 14. 6 ; hence, 
 ^Nebuchadnezzar is represented as a great eagle, with 
 great wings and long feathers — i.e., having various nations 
 in his empire, and took the highest branch of a cedar. 
 The Eomans are called eagles, Deut. 28. 49. The prayer 
 of the righteous swiftly reaches heaven. 
 
 4. Mount high, out of sight ; lost in the clouds, above 
 the tempest and lightning, trees appear as shrubs, a city 
 as a village ; worldlings are moles or worms which grovel 
 in the earth, but believers have their conversation in 
 heaven, Phil. 3.20, mounting up on the wings of faith and 
 prayer. Col. 3. 3, not like Nebuchadnezzar, who built his 
 nest on high for purposes of pride, Dan. 4. 30. 
 
 5. Not tired in their flight. Believers do not faint,, 
 Is. 40. 3 1 ; though the flight to heaven be long, yet the 
 wings of faith and love bear them up. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 203 
 
 6. Aim at high things, not at flies or worms. A 
 Eussian proverb says, "Eagles catch no flies," Ph. 3. 8 ; 
 not like the crow, who goes out early for this purpose, 
 Job 39. 27, 28. 
 
 7. NestU on high, Ez. 17. 37, amid lofty rocks above 
 the clouds, Avhere no enemy can come. 
 
 8. Lively in old age, by moulting the eagle's youth is 
 renewed, Ps. 103. 5. On getting new feathers his power of 
 flight is renewed. The eagle is so strong as to be able to 
 carry away a lamb or a child. Believers put on the new 
 man, the old is cast off". Angels have immortal youth. 
 
 The young are home on the mother's ivings, Deut. 32. 
 1 1 — 14, so the Jews, Ex. 19. 4. 
 
 Aitareya Veda. — Though a hundred bodies like iron chains 
 hold me down, yet like a falcon I quickly rise. 
 Persian. — The lion does not eat the dog's leavings. 
 
 The Earnest of the Spirit. — 2 Cob. i. 22. 
 
 In various parts of India at the ceremony of betrothal 
 the bride's father offers to the bridegroom's father, as an 
 earnest, betel-nut, turmeric, and flowers ; betel-nut, clothes. 
 and flowers are offered on a similar occasion. 
 
 An earnest is something of valne which one person gives 
 to another to hind a bargain. If one has a house to sell, 
 and any one is disposed to buy it, it might not be quite 
 the proper time for the seller to give him immediate posses- 
 sion, or for him to settle all the terms ; but to make sure 
 of the house, the buyer would give a part of the payment, 
 and this would show that he was in earnest, and engaged 
 to have it, and that the seller was quite in earnest, and 
 engaged to sell it. Then, to have the Spirit of God in 
 us, is to have God's earnest that he will give us heaven. 
 And how shall we know that God's Spirit is acting in us ? 
 Why, when he is acting hy us. If we are " led by the 
 Spirit" we shall "walk in the Spirit," Eom. 8. 14. We 
 cannot have the Holy Spirit if we lead unholy lives. 
 
204 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The Angelic Encampment. — Ps. 34. 7. 
 
 Angels are said to be full of eyes, before and behind, 
 Bev. 4. 6, to denote their knowledge of the past and future, 
 I Pet. I. 12. Angels are called a Jiost, Gen. 32. i ; com- 
 manded by Christ, the Captain of Salvation ; they protect 
 the saints ; they slumber not like some watchmen, are 
 called holy watchers, Dan. 4. 1 3 ; the figure of Cherubim, 
 an order of angels, had four faces — that of a man, repre- 
 senting their majesty, prudence, and beauty; that of a 
 lion, their strength and courage; that of an ox, their 
 patience and diligence ; and that of an eagle, their quick 
 vision and continued vigour. 
 
 The great Mogul at Agra used to have an encampment 
 several miles in circumference, accommodating many 
 thousand soldiers ; it was soon broken up, and removed 
 to another place. The angels' encampment has many 
 milKons of troops in number, Dan. 7. 5-14. Christ on 
 the Cross said he could call to his aid twelve legions 
 of angels, or 80,000. Those angels are encamped, and 
 are powerful; they broke the iron gates, Acts 12. 10; 
 caused earthquakes. Mat. 28. 2; destroyed 185,000 
 Assyrians in one night ; killed all the first-born in Egypt 
 in one night ; they are orderly ; Michael and his angels 
 fought mth the devil, Eev. 1 2. 7-9. They smote Herod 
 for his pride. Acts 12. 23, Balaam for his covetousness, 
 Sodom for its sin. Gen. 19. 11. 
 
 Example. — i Pet. 2. 21. 
 
 China. — The best cure for drunkenness is when sober to 
 observe the drunken man. 
 
 Arab. — The mistakes of a learned man are like a ship- 
 wreck, which wrecks many others with it. 
 
 Basque. — Corruption begins from the head — i.e.^ from the 
 chiefs. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 205 
 
 The Great Family of Believers.— Eph. 3. 14. 
 
 God is our father, the Church our mother; all the 
 faithful are our brethren. The many millions of angels 
 in heaven are comprehended within this family as well as 
 the saints upon earth. As faithful people are our 
 brethren, it must be our duty to love them, and to bear 
 in mind that wise advice of Joseph to his brethren, see 
 that ye fall 7wt out hy the way, Gen. 45. 24. In our 
 journey through life, we are under so many trials and 
 afflictions, that it is both foolish and wicked for the 
 faithful to add to one another's troubles by strife and 
 envying, by quarrellings and disputings. Proud people 
 are ashamed of their poor relations ; but we must not be 
 ashamed to own the poorest child in the family of God, 
 who, perhaps after a laborious life of faith and patience, 
 will be our superior in the kingdom of heaven. 
 
 A family is a resting-place from worldly cares, so is 
 the family whose father is God ; Christ the elder brother 
 or head, Col. i . 1 7 ; the Holy Spirit the guide ; and all 
 true believers members. 
 
 Bussian. — Away from our native country even a crow is 
 
 dear. 
 Basque. — Blood boils without fire — i.e., injury done to 
 
 one's relations. 
 China. — A powerful man regards no burden ; a tradesman 
 
 no distance ; to a learned man no country is 
 
 foreign, and a fine speaker finds no enemy, 
 
 Eph. 2. 19. 
 Malay. — "Will a man put out his salt in the rain ? — i.e., a 
 
 man exposing the faults of his family. 
 Basque. — The big fish Hves on the little ones. 
 Spanish. — The wrath of brothers is the wrath of devils. 
 
 Satan the Father of Lies. — John 8. 44. 
 Jesus Christ is the true light ; but the devil is the prince 
 of darkness, the god of this world, who blinds men's eyes- 
 that they may not see the truth, 2 Cor. 4. 4. The 
 
2o6 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Saviour is a shepherd who gives his life for the sheep ; 
 but the devil is a lion who goes about seeking what he 
 may devour, i Pet. 5.5. The one is a la7nb, meek and harm- 
 less ; the other a serpent, full of devices and more subtle 
 than any beast of the field. The one raises men to life ; 
 the other was a murderer from the beginning. The one is 
 our advocate with the Father, suffering and pleading for the 
 pardon of our sins; the other is the accuser of the 
 brethren; first tempting them to fall into sin, and then 
 accusing them that they may fall under the judgment of 
 God. Jesus Christ is the truth and the devil is the father 
 of lies. And lastly, Jesus Christ is the true God 
 worshipped by all believers, and the devil is the false 
 god worshipped under a variety of names. The children 
 of the devil are like the devil, as the young viper is like 
 the old one. 
 
 Judas, the traitor, was hence called a devil, John 6. 70, 
 as God is called the father of mercies, so is the devil of 
 lies ; he was first an angel of light, and then by his lies 
 induced one-third of the angels to rebel against God ; • he 
 told lies to Eve in the garden. Gen. 3. 6, and to Christ 
 in the desert. The devils are also compared to hirds 
 of prey for their piercing eye, sudden pouncing, residence 
 in the air, Eph. 2. 2, yet Satan was once called the 
 son of the morning. Is. 14. 12. The Danes call lies 
 the devil's daughters. 
 
 Spanish. — When the devil says his prayers he is about to 
 
 cheat — i.e., an angel of light. 
 Afghan. — She herself commits the sin and curses Satan for it. 
 Aral. — He gives advice such as the cat gave to the mouse 
 
 or the devil to men. 
 
 Keep the Feet in God's House.— Ecc. 5. i. 
 
 This text means take heed to your ways in God's 
 house. See that ye walk circumspectly. As in walking 
 we take as much care as we can to keep our feet from 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 207 
 
 stumbling ; so, in going to the house of God, we must 
 take care about the state of our minds. When Moses 
 saw the Angel of the Lord in the burning-bush, the voice 
 of God said to him, " Put off thy shoes from off thy 
 feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground," 
 Ex. 3. 5 ; and when Joshua saw the same Angel, he 
 said, " Loose thy shoe from off thy foot, for the place 
 whereon thou standest is holy," Josh. 5 . 15. In both 
 these instances it is believed that the Lord Jesus Christ 
 took human form in appearance, before he really took 
 our nature, and died to redeem us, and, by commanding 
 the removal of the shoe from the foot, he showed that 
 nothing which was defiled could acceptably appear in his 
 presence. So Jacob in the desert. Gen. 28. 17. 
 
 Look before you leap. He that hastens with his feet 
 sinneth, Prov. 19. 2 ; John 18. 10. Chanak says, " A 
 prudent man moves with one foot, but does not move 
 the other till he considers where he goes to." The 
 Philistines were punished for touching the ark, i Sam. 
 6. 19 ; a beast that touched Sinai was to be killed, 
 Heb. 12. 20; Nebuchadnezzar was chastised for using 
 at a feast the vessels of the temple, Dan. 5. 23. 
 The sacrifice of fools is an offering without obedience. 
 Christ flogged those that bought and sold in the temple, 
 John 2. 15. 
 
 Chinese. — Destroy all passion when you light Buddha's lamp. 
 Malabar, — Sport not with a king, nor with fire, water and 
 
 elephants. 
 Veman. — Observances void of purity of heart ! to what end 
 
 are they ? to what is the preparation of food 
 
 without cleansing the vessel ? Mat. 15. 8. 
 Malalar. — Elephants will fall down if the feet slide. 
 Bussian. — Set a fool to worship and he will break his neck. 
 Persian. — "What has a dog to do in a temple? 
 Tamul. — A cat that lives in the temple fears not the gods 
 
 — i.e. J familiarity breeds contempt. 
 
2o8 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 God's Name on the Believer's Foreliead.— Rev. 22. 4, 5. 
 
 The Vishnuvites have the tihiJ^;, or forehead mark, a 
 longitudinal line marked in vermilion ; the Sivites a 
 parallel line of a turmeric colour. The Athenians marked 
 an owl on their captives' forehead ; idolaters put on such 
 the mark of their god as Jupiter's thunderbolt, ISTeptune's. 
 trident. The forehead is the most conspicioous part ; the 
 countenance being the index of the mind, and implies 
 an 02Kn confession, as Paul was a chosen vessel to bear 
 Christ's name before the Gentiles, Acts 9. 15, 16. It 
 was a custom of ancient date in Asia to mark servants 
 on the forehead ; hence in Ezek. 9. 4, the Angel sets a 
 mark on the foreheads of the men who cry for the abomi- 
 nations of the time. The Jews were forbidden to brand 
 the forehead, Lev. 19. 28. Only the High Priest bore 
 on it a plate of gold, on which the name of God was 
 written. 
 
 Paid said, I bear on my body the marks of the Lord 
 Jesus — i.e., the scars of the stripes he received, Gal. 6. 1 7. 
 Believers have God's mark in regeneration, and sancti- 
 fication impressed on them, i Pet. 2. 9 ; the name is 
 Jehovah, Zech. 14. 20; written not with ink, but with 
 the Spirit of the Living God, 2 Cor. 3. 3. 
 
 Christ the sure Foundation. — Is. 28. 16; i Pet. 2. 6-8. 
 
 God's Chui'ch is compared to a building, as the temple 
 was the visible residence of God. " Ye are the temple of 
 God," I Cor. 3. 16. 
 
 A good building must — 
 
 I. Be erected on a solid foundation : all rests on the 
 foundation. Christ is the " rock of ages," " the foundation 
 of Apostles and proyhets, Christ being the chief corner- 
 stone^' Eph. 2. 20, as well as the foundation. Some build 
 on the sand of self-righteousness, but " God lays in Sion 
 a tried stone, a precious corner-stone," Is. 2^. 16. The 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 209 
 
 foundation is out of sights so Christ must be strong to bear 
 the superstructure ; earthquakes cannot destroy it. 
 
 2. Have a regular and orderly erection, the rule of archi- 
 tecture applied to its building, so Israel's Church was "accord- 
 ing to the pattern shown in the mount," Heb. 8. 5. Sin 
 breaks up the harmony of society, grace unites in a church, 
 " God is not the author of confusion." " That he migM 
 gather together in one all things.'"* On the regularity of a 
 building depends much of its strength, so " the unity of 
 the spirit in the bond of peace," how symmetrical was 
 Solomons temple, so the spiritual one, "the whole building 
 fitly framed." 
 
 3. Be composed of many stones. Every stone has its 
 place, though there be many; some are polished, as James, 
 Cephas, John " pillars," some of these are hidden, some 
 form the coping, yet all are on the foundation. Some 
 houses are of turf, or layers of brick, or sandstone, or 
 marble, but God's houses are of lively stone, i Pet. 2. 4 ; 
 pictures, statues, sometimes seem alive, but here the stones, 
 are living — i.e., active. 
 
 4. Undergo a great transformation. Polished statuary 
 and fine buildings are originally from the quarry, so- 
 believers were encrusted with fleshly lusts, sunk in the mire 
 of spiritual corruption ; so Paid the blasphemer preached 
 the faith he once destroyed, " Look unto the rock whence 
 ye were hewn." 
 
 5. Have a skilful architect in their transformation, 
 Christ is such, Heb. 3. 4. Stones are inactive to raise them- 
 selves from the quarry; scaffolding and masons are required; 
 so in Solomon's temple, Jews, Canaanites, Tyrians, were 
 employed ; Cyrus was subsequently God's servant for its 
 rebuilding, Ez. 5. 13; in the scaffolding of Solomon's 
 temple no noise of axe or hammer was heard. 
 
 6. Be cemented in the strongest way. ThQir position unites 
 stones, but the best union is cement, the whole body com- 
 posed of that which every joint supplieth, Eph. 4. 6 ; love 
 is the hond of perfectness, Col. 3. 14. Earthquakes may 
 
 P 
 
2IO EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 split the building without breaking the cement, "who shall 
 separate," Eom. 8. 35. 
 
 7. Be formed into a complete habitation , vast in extent, 
 and ornamental, " a fount for cleansing, illuminated by the 
 seven spirits of God ;" it has a fhrone of grace.Heb. 4. 6. 
 
 Malahar. — The foundation for a thatched and for a tiled 
 house will be laid the same way. 
 
 Fersian. — A little water is sufficient for clay already 
 moistened — i.e., little instruction will suffice for 
 him who has got a foundation by previous study. 
 
 God the Fountain of Living "Waters. — Jee. 2. 13. 
 
 "Water is essential for life as well as for health, it is con- 
 tinually applied in Holy Scripture to represent the 
 necessity of divine grace ; and thus a well or spring of 
 water becomes an emblem of the eternal source of all 
 spiritual blessings, and of salvation itself. The blood of 
 our blessed Saviour, by which his people are washed from 
 the defilements of sin, is called a fountain opened to the 
 house of David, and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, 
 for sin and for uncleanness, Zech. 13. i. The quickening 
 and refreshening influences of the Holy Spirit, are in like 
 manner compared by our Lord Himself to rivers of living 
 water, John 7. 38 ; God declaring Himself "a fountain of 
 living waters," sets Himself forth as the source of all 
 temporal and spiritual good. 
 
 With what eager longing must the pilgrims crossing the 
 desert look forward to their repose on the favoured spot, 
 where a perpetual spring creates a little island of verdure 
 or oasis in the midst of the burning plain ! 
 
 God is called " The Fountain of Living Waters," — i.e., 
 waters always moving, flowing, and in action ; the con- 
 stant supply of all the comfort and relief we can possibly 
 need ; in contrast to dead or stagnant waters, which con- 
 stantly send forth a noisome smell. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 211 
 
 The sun has not the less light for filling the air with 
 light. A fountain has not the less for filling the lesser 
 vessels. There is in Christ the fulness of a fountain. The 
 overflowing fountain pours out water abundantly, and yet 
 remains full. God is such an overflowing fountain ; he 
 fills all, and yet remains full. As the worth and value of 
 many pieces of silver is in one piece of gold, so all the 
 petty excellences scattered abroad in the creature are 
 united in God. 
 
 God is like a foimtain in eight points : — 
 
 (i) The source of rivers, so God of life, natural and 
 spiritual, Eev. 21. 6 ; (2) yields abundantly : God is an 
 ocean of goodness ; (3) pours freely into low places, Jas. 
 4. 6 ; so the founts of the Ganges, rising in the snows of 
 Gangotri, flow into the Ganges valley; (4) free to all. Is. 
 54.1; (5) clear: rivers have sediment in them; (6) 
 pleasant : refreshes the garden of the Church ; water makes 
 vegetation spring up, even in the sandy deserts ; (7) con- 
 stant : tanks dry up often in hot weather. Abraham's 
 servants dried up the well ; but this is a fountain sealed 
 against filth. Cant. 4. 12; (8) often hidden : yet known 
 by its waters. Christ's fountain was opened on the cross 
 when his side was pierced, and when he sweat blood; the 
 dying thief was a monument of its efficiency. 
 
 BagJiuvansa. — The roads leading to perfection, which vary 
 according to the different revealed systems, all 
 end in Thee (God), as the waves of the Ganges 
 flow to the ocean. 
 
 JBJiagavat Gita. — On God all this universe is woven, as gems 
 on a string. 
 
 The Fowler of Souls.— Eph. 6. 1 1. 
 
 We sometimes see a fluttering of wings among the grass 
 on a bank, which shows that some poor bird is taken 
 in the snare, and is vainly struggling to be free, but the 
 
 P 2 
 
^12 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 snare was set so skilfully that the bird could see nothing 
 of its danger, but flew into it unawares. 
 
 There is an enemy who is ever setting snares in our 
 path — Satan; and the snares are those many false 
 reasonings and vain seductions by which he misleads to 
 their ruin such as are unwary and unstable. To one 
 he says, " Stolen waters are sweet, and bread eaten in 
 secret is pleasant," Pr. 9. 17. Satan tried to sift Peter 
 like wheat, Luke 22. 31 ; against some he sends fiery 
 darts, Eph. 6. 16, with others he wrestles, Eph. 6. 11. 
 Satan as a fowler is crafty, appears in disguise as an 
 angel of light, 2 Cor. 11. 14; cruel, hunts and persecutes 
 God's people, who are like the dove before the hawk. 
 He is also for his destructiveness called the great Dragon,. 
 Eev. 20. 2. 
 
 Persian. — He is put into a sack with a bear — i.e., in the 
 
 hands of one too strong for him. 
 Persian, — The devil does not spoil his own house, Mat. 
 
 12. 26. 
 
 Christ a Friend.— John 15. 15. 
 
 Christ's friendship differs from earthly friendship in 
 five points : — 
 
 True friendship implies sympathy : such Job's friends 
 showed not, but- Christ is touched with a feeling of our 
 infirmities, Heb. 4. 15. Union: can two walk together 
 unless they be agreed ? Saul and Jonathan had their 
 hearts knit, i Sam. 18. i, so Christ to his people, Eph. 
 2. 14—16, Prov. 27. 17. Love : the offspring of desire ; 
 Christ loves to the end, and has peculiar knowledge, the 
 fuel for this love, John 10. 27 ; but the love of Christ 
 passes knowledge. Intercourse : absence regretted : Christ 
 was a great friend to Lazarus and the Bethany family. 
 Christ is said to sup with the believer, Eev. 3. 20. John 
 lay on Christ's bosom, John 13. 23. Secrets are made 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 213 
 
 Ivnown, so Abraham, the friend of God, found, Gen. 18. 
 17, Prov. 27. 6 ; faithful are the wounds of a friend. 
 
 Christ's friendship is never broken up — formed with 
 mean persons — Christ forsakes not in adversity, and even 
 lays down his life — no king a friend to a beggar ; Christ 
 the companion of publicans and sinners — no time or cir- 
 cumstances change it — always able as well as willing ; as 
 shown in Dorcas and Lazarus's case. Acts 9. 38-41, 
 •John 1 1 . 
 
 Persian. — Those false friencis whom you see are Hke flies 
 around the sweetmeats. 
 
 Naladayur. — friendship with the mean, like the shadow of 
 morning, will continually decrease. 
 
 Christ the first Fruits of them that Slept. — i Coe. 15. 20. 
 
 The first fruits of the harvest were the pledge of the 
 whole, such was Christ's resurrection of ours, or as the 
 swallow and budding of flowers are of spring ; when the 
 body which called the worm its sister shall shine as the 
 sun. The first fruits, like the first born, were esteemed the 
 most valuable, hence the Canaanites caused their first- 
 born to pass through the fire, in order to appease the 
 anger of their deities ; one of the kings of Moah, when in 
 -danger from enemies, offered up his eldest son, 2 Kings 
 3. 27. Cain brought to God the first fruits of the 
 ground, as Abel did the firstlings of the flock, Gen. 4. 4 ; 
 the Jews always did so, N'um. 18. 12. 
 
 Aflaiction's Furnace. — Is. 48. 10. 
 
 There are two furnaces, one of sanctified affliction, as 
 Egypt was to the Jews, Deut. 4. 20, i Pet. i. 6, 7 ; the 
 fiery furnace injured not the three Hebrew children, Dan. 
 3.25; the other of unsanctified like Nebuchadnezzar's fiery 
 furnace which consumed the evil, Dan. 3. 22 ; the former 
 is like a pruning-knife which improves the plant, the latter 
 like a chopper that cuts it off. Mat. 13. 42—50. 
 
214 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 God's afflicted people are compared to silver. The 
 precious metals are first taken out of the earth. They 
 are then impure — mixed with other substances, and in 
 this state they are called ores. In order to refine them 
 they are put into a furnace, and exposed to great heat. But 
 this does not injure them ; it only takes from them what 
 is impure, and leaves the gold or the silver bright, beau- 
 tiful, and clear. The refiner watches the metals all the 
 time they are in the fire ; and when he finds that they 
 are so clear and pure that he can see his own face reflected 
 in them, he takes them out of the furnace and uses them 
 for the purposes he intended. 
 
 Afflictions of righteous and wicked differ in four points : — 
 
 In Malachi 3. 3, God compares the afflictions with 
 which he tries his people, to the furnace into which 
 the gold and silver are cast to be refined and purified. 
 God loves and values his people. He calls them his 
 " treasure,^' his " jewels." But, like the gold and silver^ 
 they have that in them which is impure — sin. And this 
 sin must be taken away. God's people must be made 
 pure and holy before he can have pleasure in them and 
 use them for his service, or take them to adorn his glorious 
 home in heaven. And how does God purify them ? Sin 
 must be taken away by Christ, and the heart must be made 
 clean by the Holy Spirit. God has many ways of working 
 all this in his people, and one way is by affliction. Like 
 the refiner, he puts his precious gold and silver into the fur- 
 nace — the furnace of affliction. He sends sorrow and pain 
 and sickness upon them. And why ? Not to hurt them : 
 no; but just for the same reason that the refiner puts his 
 metals into the fire, to melt, to soften, to purify them. And 
 then, like the refiner, God watches over them. He does not 
 let them suffer more or longer than is right ; and when 
 he has made them what he intended by putting them into 
 the furnace, he takes them from it. "What God desires is to 
 see his own image, his own likeness, reflected in his people. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 215 
 
 A silver coin or medal is generally stamped with the 
 image of the sovereign ; this can be done only when the 
 metal is soft, and it is made soft by the heat of the fire. 
 So, God's people should bear the likeness of Christ, their 
 King, stamped upon them in their conduct ; and God 
 sends affliction to soften their hearts, that they may more 
 easily receive that holy impression, and so become more 
 and more like Jesus. 
 
 SansJcrit. — A bad maD, gold, a drum, a woman, a bad horse, 
 stalks of sugar-cane, sesamum seed, and Sudras, 
 should be beaten to improve their qualities. 
 Atmdbodh. — After mortifying the body, the pure spirit is 
 discerned by reason, as rice is separated from the 
 husk by beating it. 
 Bengal. — The crocodile on the water and the tiger on land 
 
 both strive to break my neck. 
 Tamul. — Though worn by attrition, the sandal-wood loses 
 
 not its savour. 
 China. — Clouds pass, but the rains remain. 
 Sanskrit. — A crane's meditation — i.e., seem to be medi- 
 tating, when they are ready to pounce on the fish. 
 SansJcrit. — He who is wise is strong ; the foolish have no 
 
 strength . 
 Sanskrit. — Fools learn by the past — i.e., experience a dear 
 school. 
 
 The Church a Garden enclosed.— Cant. 4. 12. 
 
 The Church like a garden in seven points : — 
 Paradise means a beautiful garden, to which Christ 
 refers, Luke 23. 43; Babylon had hanging gardens on 
 the roofs of the houses. 
 
 As the waste wilderness is the emblem of the world, 
 so a choice garden is set forth as an image of God's 
 Church, as is also a vineyard, Mat. 20. I- 16. A garden 
 is a place enclosed out of the common waste ground, and 
 set apart for special culture and fruitfulness. Its site is 
 chosen for advantage of soil and shelter; as well as for 
 that abundant supply of water, which is so needful for the 
 health and produce of its plants. Care is ever taken to 
 
2i6 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 screen it from every rude hlast, to maintain or improve the 
 natural goodness of the ground, and to make the water 
 flow in such channels as may conduct it most easily to 
 the several plots and borders. In laying out a garden, 
 it is divided and arranged according to some well- 
 ordered pattern ; and he, who is set " to dress it and to 
 keep it," is ever careful both to remove whatever is 
 common and unsightly, and to fill every nook and angle 
 with the choicest flowers, and the most useful and 
 delicious fruits. The owner of the garden delights to 
 come into it when the tender shoots are first showing 
 themselves above the ground, or when it is in all 
 the pride of summer beauty or autumnal fruitfulness, 
 Eev. I. 13. Its sunny stillness and repose invite to 
 peaceful meditation. life exact order, its smooth lawns, 
 its many-coloured borders, cool shades, and clear waters 
 are soothmg to the eye that is wearied wdth the glare and 
 confusion of the crowded marts ; while the soft breeze 
 that whispers among the fruits and flowers is laden with 
 the most grateful fragrance. 
 
 It is thus that God has chosen out of the world a 
 Church, or " peculiar people," to be his own portion and 
 inheritance. He fe^ices a.nd protects it from the enemies 
 that seek its ruin ; he is a wall of fire, and sets in it the 
 choicest plants, to bear those fruits and flowers which are 
 of price in his sight. So Abraham gave the flower of 
 faith, Moses of meekness, Peter of boldness, Paul of zeal. 
 Gal. 5. 22. It is the Paradise of his beloved Son, who 
 is the second Adam, and whose care it is to remove from 
 it the ^ueeds of sin and selfishness, and to preserve it in 
 that godly order, and that blessed unity, which makes it 
 the image upon earth, not only of the heavenly peace, 
 but even of the Divine Unity itself. His Holy Spirit is 
 the fountain in the midst of the garden which nourishes 
 and refreshes the plants ; and is also the gentle hreath 
 which bears the fragrance of its flowers to Him who is 
 pleased to receive graciously what in itself is unworthy of 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 217 
 
 being offered to Him. He sets His servants to tend and 
 clierish the various plants on which He is pleased to set 
 such store, and to see, when He shall come into His 
 garden, that there be nothing there to offend those eyes 
 which are too pure to behold iniquity. Whatever 
 resembles the fruits of the evil world must be rooted 
 out ; whatever is useful and lovely must be planted and 
 fostered. 
 
 Faith more Precious than Gold.— i Pet. i. 7. 
 In Eev. 3.18, Divine Grace, which stands the fiery trial, 
 is called gold, faith in the text is not mere knowledge. 
 
 Faith like gold in ten points : — 
 
 1. Scarce, so the grace of God. 
 
 2. Searched after, men go to deep mines for gold, or 
 to California; so search the Scriptures, John 5. 39. 
 
 3. Tried in fire, to distinguish it from false metal, 
 sometimes a touchstone used, so God's word like faith 
 is tried by fire, so Abraham three times, Job six times. 
 
 4. Precious in its nature, hence faith called lively, 
 effectual, i Thess. 1.3; faith precious as bought with 
 Christ's blood, wrought by God's Spirit, object of is 
 Christ ; unites to God, eye of the soul ; unfeigned work- 
 ing by love, Gal. 5.6; holy, procured by Christ's blood. 
 Col. 2. 12; its fruits, Heb. 1 1 ; faith made a river 
 go back, caused a man to give half of his goods to the 
 poor, Luke 1 9. 8 ; and people to burn bad books. Acts 
 
 19.19. 
 
 5. The Chief Metal. Babylon called the golden city. 
 Is. 14. 4 ; the skull called the golden bowl, Ecc. 1 2. 6. 
 
 6. Much in little, compared with brass, so with faith. 
 
 7. Weighty and firm, so faith in adversity, Heb. 1 1. 
 
 8. Splendid, used in crowns ; Babylon had a golden, 
 eup, Eev. 1 7. 4. 
 
 9. Forms fine vessels, as the vessels in Solomon's 
 temple ; so saints are golden candlesticks, Eev. i. 20. 
 
2i8 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 10. BuraUe, wastes not in fire, so the three Hebrew- 
 children, Dan. 3. 
 
 Chinese. — True gold fears not the fire. 
 
 The Righteous G-roan in their Bodily Tabernacle. 
 
 2 COE. 5. 4. 
 
 The righteous groan from six causes : — 
 
 Creation itself groans, being under a curse for sin, Eom. 
 8. 22. The soul dwells in the body as in a tent which 
 is easily taken down, being made of frail materials that 
 flood or fire soon destroys ; the body soon returns to dust. 
 
 The soul's dark cottage battered and decayed 
 
 Lets in new light through chinks which time has made. 
 
 Eew care to ornament a tent, as they are but a short 
 time in it ; it is crazy and leaky in bad weather^ so disease 
 makes the body. 
 
 It is better to groan for a while in this tabernacle than 
 for ever under God's vengeance ; the tears from groaning, 
 God puts in his bottle, Ps. 5 6. 8. This groaning arises from 
 the burthen of the tody, which hinders the soul rising on 
 eagle's wings ; from Satan's temptations, i Pet. 1.6; bad 
 company, 2 Pet. 2.7; afflictions, Ps. 42. 7 ; indwelling sin^ 
 Eom. 7. 24. 
 
 JSfaladiyar. — The soul carries the skin bag — the body. 
 
 The Right Hand of God dashes in Pieces his Enemies. 
 
 Ex. 15. 6. 
 
 His right hand in the text imports a signal display of 
 his Almighty power, his love, mercy, or wrath in relation 
 to the exalted station of Christ. It imports the highest 
 power, authority, glory, and dignity. Elymas the 
 sorcerer was struck blind by God's hand. Acts 13. 11. 
 Hand denotes strength, thus Ishmael's hand as an Arab 
 
ILLLSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 219 
 
 Tobber was against every man, Gen. 16. 12. Christ sits 
 at the Father's right hand — i.e.y the seat of power, Mark 
 14.62. The hollow of his hand denotes his easy com- 
 prehension, protection, and support of all things. Qod's 
 arms, hands^ fingers, denote Almighty power manifested 
 in acts of sovereignty, justice, and grace. God is called 
 the head of Christ, to him, as man and mediator, he is 
 the undoubted superior, and it is his to support, rule, and 
 direct him, as such. His countenance and face, when 
 represented as set ^against any, denote the manifestation 
 of his indignation and wrath ; in other circumstances, 
 they signify the discovery of his glory and grace. God's 
 eyes import his knowledge, his care, and regard ; but 
 sometimes the display of his wrath. His ears denote his 
 perfect knowledge, his exact observation and favourable 
 regard. His nostrils and nose signify his anger, his 
 approbation, and his exact judgment. His mouth and 
 lips denote his will, authority, and wrath. His hack 
 imports his anger and disregard. His lowels are his 
 most ardent love, his tender mercy, and unbounded com- 
 passion. His losoin imports secrecy, safety^ eminent 
 nearness, amazing intimacy, and endeared love. His feet 
 are the less glorious manifestations of his presence ; the 
 exercise of his power and providence, for the relief of his 
 people and overthrow of his enemies. 
 
 Pilate washed his hands in Christ's case to denote that 
 his power was used innocently. Mat. 27. 24. Persons 
 were consecrated by the imposition of hands to denote 
 spiritual power imparted. Gen. 48. 14. 
 
 Bussian. — God is an old worker of miracles. 
 
 Svetasvatare JJpanished. — Without hands or feet, God 
 grasps and moves ; without eyes he sees ; with- 
 out ears he hears ; he knows whatever is 
 knowable, but no one knows him. 
 
220 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The Soul thirsts for God like a Hart.— Ps. 42. i. 
 
 Prayer compared to the importunate friend at midnight, 
 Luk© II. 5—8 ; the importunate undow, Luke 1 8. 5 ; wrest- 
 ling Jacob, Gen. 32. 21—32; called ^pouring out of the heart, 
 Ps. 62. 8; drawing near to God, Heb. 10. 22; looking 
 up, Ps. 5. 3 ; waiting as a servant. 
 
 The deer are accustomed to gather themselves at noon 
 to the cool solitude and refreshing brook, and are often 
 seen reclining in groups upon the mossy bank, or quenching 
 their thirst in the shallow stream. Sometimes the 
 hunters scare them from their nook, and chase them over 
 the open brow above the woods under the sultry sun. 
 Panting with the heat and exertion, they make for their 
 favourite haunt and the quiet brook. Prom some change 
 of purpose, the pursuers discontinued the chase ; and the 
 frightened and exhausted creatures are suffered to plunge 
 into the copses, and find their way to the shades for 
 which they longed. How eager must have been their 
 draught, when they reached the brook ! — how grateful 
 and refreshing the plunge into the flood, and the rest 
 amidst the moss and fern ! Such is the soul in the 
 •desert of this world thirsting for the true amrita, or 
 waters of life, flowing from God's throne. 
 
 Urdu. — The thirsty person goes to the well, not tlie well to 
 
 him. The thirsty is most eager for water. 
 JPersian. — When one is thirsty, one thousand pearls are 
 
 not worth one drop of water. 
 Turk. — It is the squalling child that gets the milk. 
 Badaga, — Do we give milk to the cat that cries, or to the 
 
 cat that does not cry ? 
 China. — Even the ripest fruit does not drop into one's 
 
 mouth. We must knock that it might be opened. 
 Bussian. — Pray to God, but continue to row to the shore. 
 
 "We must watch, as well as pray. 
 Talmud. — Should man not go after wisdom ? wisdom will 
 
 not come to him. 
 Sanskrit. — The king is the strength of the weak, crying is 
 
 the strength of children. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 221 
 
 What six proverbs illustrate tlie thirst of prayer ? 
 Urdu. — Hunger is the best sauce and fatigue the best 
 pillow. 
 
 The Heavenly Home.— John 14. 2. 
 
 Heaven unlike a good eartlily home in three points : — 
 
 Heaven is represented under the emblems of " a better 
 country" "a paradise'' without any serpent, "a city'* 
 paved with gold, " a palace ;" but " home" is an emblem 
 familiar to all — -all can understand the '' father's house." 
 
 Allusion in the text to the temple of Jerusalem where 
 God dwelt, i Kings 8. 10, 11, with many chambers for 
 priests and Levites. Kings' palaces have many rooms. 
 The Vatican, the Pope's residence, has 4,000 chambers. 
 
 In this world we are only 'pilgrims ; heaven is our 
 home. 
 
 Heaven like a good earthly home in six points : — 
 
 1. Place of hirth — earliest recollections: early recollec- 
 tions, like the tamarind roots are not easily pulled up, 
 cling to the memory, so heaven to the believer ; he is 
 "horn from above." The heavenly Jerusalem is the 
 mother of us all, " light from heaven first illumined him," 
 hence he seeks the things above ; his religious affections 
 fixed on an unseen world. 
 
 2. Residence of our hest friends, our family, and the old 
 servants attract us to it, so heaven the residence of the 
 Father of mercies, of " Christ, our eldest brother," the 
 spirits of just men made perfect, " our younger brethren," 
 besides ministering spirits. No family contentions there ; 
 the Father of lights there without variableness, Jas. i. 17. 
 
 3. Source of siveetest comforts: the child found in 
 clothes and education, the prodigal son thought of his 
 father's house, Luke 15. 17; so the Christian has hread 
 from heaven and the water of life, they shall go no more 
 out ; " the lamb shall feed them." 
 
222 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 4. Security : a father's house a sure refuge ; " no 
 plague comes nigh our dwelling," Ps. 9 1 ; " no lion shall be 
 there." " Under the shadow of the wings of the Almighty." 
 
 5 . Hcibitation to which a right is claimed ; the child 
 considers the father's things "ours," my father, your 
 father. Though here we may not have where to lay our 
 head, there is heaven, " a building of God." 
 
 6. Free of care : children have no anxiety to provide 
 for the family ; " they shall enter into peace." They 
 shall sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Mat. 
 8. II. 
 
 The earthly father's house often desolaie after years, 
 but Christ the " same yesterday and for ever." Earthly 
 abode a shifting one, small in tents ; heaven has many 
 mansions, the ''palace of the great king," "if children, 
 then heirs." David said, "Though father or mother 
 forsake me," believers, though here they may wander in 
 dens and caves, Heb. 11., " shall sit with Christ on his 
 throne," " as one whom his mother comforted, so will 
 God.'"' " Forget thy father's house" — i.e., the earthly. 
 
 The Righteous are God's Husbandry.— i Coe. 3. 9. 
 The righteous God's husbandry in tioelve points : — 
 
 The relation of Christ to his Church is pointed out in 
 the Bible under a variety of pleasing images, such as of a 
 luilding, jewels, friends (see Parable of Vineyard, Mat. 
 21. 33) ; here it is under that of a well-managed farm. 
 
 1. Believers are God's special property. Ground in 
 commonage is not well cultivated, it must become the 
 property of some person to be attended to; so the Lord's 
 portion is his people, purchased from the waste of this 
 world, of a price, if not according to the intrinsic value, 
 yet according to the interest taken by the purchaser. 
 
 2. Meted out, separated. Boundaries for farms are 
 necessary, so the boundaries of the visible and invisible 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 223 
 
 churcli, of the church and the world — " I have chosen you 
 out of the world." 
 
 3. Fenced and protected, A stone may be a landmark, 
 or a furrow may be a line of division ; but a fence is 
 necessary to prevent trespass. " My beloved had a garden, 
 he fenced it." Church discipline and laws are a fence; 
 so is God's providence. " Hast thou not set a fence 
 around Job ?" " A garden enclosed is my sister." Come 
 out from among them and be separate. 
 
 4. Subject to a spiritual cidtivation. The fruits of 
 righteousness are the great object. Many improvements 
 of late have been made in agriculture ; so it is necessary 
 to improve in spiritual husbandry. God says, " What 
 could I have done more for my vineyard than I have 
 done ?" 
 
 5. An adequate land of labourers is provided. Labourers 
 are necessary for a farm ; among the Jews, a whole tribe 
 was set apart for this spiritual work ; God gave some 
 apostles and some prophets ; he finds labourers idle in the 
 market ; sees and thrusts them out ; " he that puts his 
 hand to the plough and looks back is not fit for the king- 
 dom of God." 
 
 6. Suitable instruments are furnished. Man's hand 
 could do little without the spade and plough. God's word 
 is the plough to root out weeds. The fallow ground of 
 the heart must be ploughed up. Weeds must be destroyed, 
 and the light must enter ; " the word of God is sharper 
 than a two-edged sword ;" the ploughshare of conviction 
 breaks up the fallow soil ; such were those who were 
 pricked to the heart when Peter preached. Acts 2. 37. 
 " The peaceable fruits of righteousness," rending the heart, 
 not the garment. The mattock of the law from Sinai 
 will break very hard soil. Is. 7. 2 5 ; so the hammer of 
 God's word, Jer. 23. 29. Affliction destroys the weeds of 
 corruption. 
 
 7. The soil is improved and enriched. Drainage for 
 some, manure for other, soils is necessary ; as the field 
 
 \ 
 
224 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 becomes fertile from blood and bones, so tlie blood of 
 atonement purges the conscience from dead works. God 
 gives a heart of flesh. 
 
 8. The soil must he sown with heavenly seed. Without 
 this seed vice will spring up ; sowing requires good seed, 
 good soil, and a good season ; no good seed of itself, John 
 
 3.6. 
 
 9. The crop must he watched and dressed. Seed must 
 be pressed into the soil, and protected from vermin and 
 cattle; the crop is sometimes over-luxuriant. 
 
 10. Tlie soil must he watered. Egypt was watered by 
 the foot to convey water in rivulets. Blessed are they 
 that sow beside all waters " floods on the dry ground." 
 
 1 1. Fruit is expected : hence the waiting for the latter 
 rain. " The harvest of the earth will be gathered" in by 
 God, then the joy of harvest home, Is. 9. 3. 
 
 1 2. Zow lands are more fertile than high. Eain descends 
 on the valley and remains, Jer. 1 7. 8. 
 
 Fruit was sought on the fig-tree three years, Luke 13.7, 
 hence Christ cursed it. The husbandmen that would 
 not cultivate were destroyed, Mark 12. 9. The seven 
 Churches of Asia had their hedges broken down. God is 
 the sole j)roprietor, and cannot be dispossessed. He is never 
 weary, and never grows old, Is. 40. 28; he can make bad 
 trees good and sends rain. 
 
 The Incense of Prayer.— Rev. 5. 8. 
 
 Prayer like incense in Jive points : — 
 
 Incense was made from the gum extracted from the 
 bark of a tree ; being used in sacrifices, it was brought 
 as a present to the Infant Saviour, Mat. 2. 11. It was 
 a symbol of prayer as it ascended, so did Cornelius's 
 prayer. Acts i o. 4, Ps. 1 4 1 . 2 ; was made pure from the 
 gum of a tree in Arabia ; was purifying, removing the 
 smell from the burning flesh and blood of the sacrifices ; 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 225 
 
 was fragrant y Ex. 30. 34 ; 'pleasant , so when Hannali 
 prayed she was no more sad, i Sam. i. 18. 
 
 The 24 elders are represented, Eev. 5. 8, 8. 3, 4, as 
 having an harp and a cup full of incense, which is the 
 prayers of the saints. Daniel hazarded his life to offer 
 this incense, Dan. 6. i o. 
 
 Prayer is compared to knocking, Luke 11. 5-8 ; to 
 wrestling. Gen. 32. 24; to an importunate widow, Luke 
 18. 1-8. 
 
 Arabic. — Prayer is the pillar of religion. Acts 10. 4. 
 Arabic. — Prayer comes not in answer to the cat's prayer. 
 Afghan. — To say bismillah (in Grod's name) brings a bless- 
 ing, but not in jackal hunting. 
 
 Begotten to an Unfading Inheritance.— i Pet. i. 4. 
 
 Heaven is the inheritance of those who, by the new 
 birth, belong to the Church of the first horn, who get the 
 blessing of the spiritual birthright. In an inheritance 
 the heirs are (i) limds of the house, the prop of the 
 family ; believers are joint heirs with Christ, who is the 
 heir of all things. 2. The heir must be qualified to- 
 manage the estate properly, so believers are made 
 partakers of the divine nature, 2 Pet. 1 . 4 ; the proud 
 God knoweth afar off, Ps. 138. 6. (3) The estate 
 is in proportion to the wealth of the donor. God is 
 Lord of all. (4) An inheritance is future, but this is 
 kept in heaven, and as certain as money in a good bank ; 
 here the heirs have little, but are like the Jews in the 
 wilderness who had no house, yet called God their 
 dwelling place, Ps. 90. i. God's promises are a heritage, 
 Ps. 119. II. 
 
 The Inheritance of the righteous differs from an earthly 
 inheritance in five ^points : — 
 
 Earthly inheritances are small, subject to law suits, 
 limited in duration, unsatisfying, common to the wicked 
 
 Q 
 
226 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 and good, often pillaged or wasted as the prodigal son did 
 his. 
 
 Justice. 
 
 'Fuslitu. — The mouth eats the food, and the eyes bear the 
 
 shame. 
 FusTitu. — She commits the sin, and blames Satan for it. 
 Pushtu. — The oxen eat up the crops, and they cut off the 
 
 ear of the donkey. 
 
 Christ has the Keys of Death, and HelL— Rev. i. i8. 
 
 Wlien a person is put into office, he is often intrusted 
 with keys; thus a jailor has the keys of a prison. 
 Ancient keys were often made of wood ; and, to be strong, 
 they were made very large, so that they were carried on the 
 shoulder ; and, in the east, the carrying of a key on any- 
 great occasion was a mark of a person's holding some 
 office of rank and power. Thus it is said of Jesus, " And 
 the government shall be upon his shoulder," Is. 9. 6 ; 
 that is, he shall have power as one that carries the key 
 to mark his authority. 
 
 Silence was represented by the Greeks as a golden 
 key on the tongue. Authority to explain the law and 
 the prophets was given among the Jews by the delivery 
 of a key ; in the case of one rabbi after his death they 
 put his key and his tablets into his coffin, because he did 
 not deserve to have a son to whom he might leave the 
 ensigns of his office. 
 
 Christ said to Peter / loill give unto thee the Keys of 
 the Kingdom of Heaven, Mat. 16. 19, as stewards of a 
 great family, especially of the royal household, bore a 
 key, probably a golden one, in token of their office ; the 
 phrase of giving a person the key naturally grew into 
 an expression of raising him to great power. Is. 22. 22, 
 Eev. 3. 7. This was with peculiar propriety applicable 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 227 
 
 to ministers, tlie stewards of tlie mysteries of God, 
 I Cor. 4. I. The Bible is tlie key of knowledge, Luke 
 II. 52. Peter's opening the kingdom of heaven, as being 
 the first that preached it both to the Jews and to the 
 Gentiles, may be considered as an illustration of this 
 promise ; as also the power given of binding and loosing. 
 Jesus Christ declares he who believes on him shall 
 never see death — i.e., Spiritual death. The Danes say " A 
 .golden key opens every door except that of heaven." 
 
 Talmud. — A man knowing law, but without God's fear, is 
 
 a man having the key of the inner, but not of 
 
 the outer chamber. 
 Arabic. — Patience is the key to joy ; penitence to pardon ; 
 
 modesty to tranquility. 
 Atmabodh Prahasiha. — Without knowledge resembling fire 
 
 for cooking, no liberation. 
 
 The Righteous are Kings. 
 
 The righteous like kings in six points : — 
 
 Death is called in the Bible the king of terrors. Job 
 18. 14, as the alligator is called a king. Job 41. 34. 
 
 Believers are like kings occupied with high things, 
 Ph. 3. 20 ; shall rule the Idngdoms of this world, when 
 they become the kingdom of God, Eev. 11. 15 ; Dan. 9. 
 2 7, highly honoured ; high horn. Christians born from 
 -above, i John 3. i ; well attended, angels their servants, 
 Heb. I. 14; croioned, 2 Tim. 3. 8. 
 
 Chanak says " a learned man and a king are not on an 
 equality ; the king is honoured only in his own country, 
 the learned everywhere." 
 
 Christ is called King of kings, while the church is 
 styled his daughter all glorious within, Ps. 45. 13. 
 Christ is the only begotten son ; the treasiires of wisdom 
 are hid in him, i Cor. i. 24; he was proclaimed by a 
 star, and by the angels singing to the shepherds ; his 
 palace was the heaven of heavens ; angels his attendants 
 
 Q 2 
 
228 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 and ambassadors ; all are his subjects, even the wind» 
 obey him, while rulers like Cyrus and Nebuchadnezzar,, 
 work out his will. 
 
 Christ's Kingdom Immovable.— Heb. 12. 28. 
 
 Far able of Marriage Feast, Mat. 22. I— 14 ; Far able of 
 the Great Supjper, Luke 14. 16—21. 
 
 Christ's friends are heirs of a kingdom, but not of this 
 world, where everything is so uncertain. Christ said his 
 kingdom was not of this world, John 18. 36. 
 
 Christ's kingdom differs from earthly kingdoms in five 
 jpoints : — 
 
 1 . Its throne is stable : a throne is a great object of 
 human ambition, yet like a high tree yields soonest to the 
 storm. Job 12.21, such are earthly kingdoms, but in heaven 
 " the Lord reigneth." Christ once took the form of a 
 servant, " but he is now highly exalted," ruling with the 
 ancient of days God the Father; he has an everlasting 
 dominion, Dan. 4. 34. 
 
 2. Its constitution unalterable — i.e., these fundamental 
 ordinances which determine the form of governments 
 Christ's is an absolute monarchy, but it is the rule of 
 absolute wisdom, goodness, and truth ; a change of earthly 
 government upsets men's minds, but Christ's kingdom is. 
 stable. 
 
 3. Its ijrivileges inviolable " life that never ends," 
 ^property secure, " an inheritance incorruptible,^' liberty 
 " from the bondage of corruption," " the son makes free." 
 Every Englishman's house is his castle, but the believer's 
 abode is more so; he dwells under the shadow of the 
 Almighty. Every Englishman has a right to be 
 tried by his peers ; Christians have a divine advocate ; 
 " who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect," 
 Piom. 8. 33. All in this kingdom are brethren; all 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 229 
 
 things are yours — the true eciucdity — all raised to be kings 
 •and priests. 
 
 4. Its 'prosperity imperishcible ; wealth takes wings ; all 
 the old empires have perished ; weather and disease blast 
 the best expectations ; but to the believer all things shall 
 work together for good ; the poor of this world are rich in 
 faith. 
 
 5. Its duration eternal: Dan. 7. 14; Egypt ^ Balylon, 
 ^eece, Borne, all perished. David's stem buried in the 
 rubbish of a carpenter's shop, but Christ's kingdom is 
 •eternal, not supported by human ambition or an arm of 
 flesh. "The kingdom of this world will become the 
 kingdom of our God." Christ will be " King of kings," 
 Ps. 146. 10. 
 
 Who knocks at the Door of the Heart ? 
 Rev. 3. 20. 
 
 The Prodigal Son, Luke 15. 1 7— 1 9. — The Marriage 
 Supper, Luke 14. 16. 
 
 God's ways are not as our ways; with man the inferior 
 waits on the superior, in the text the great God waits on 
 the lukewarm Laodiceans. The door is the heart ; this is 
 barred by nature against Christ through vile lusts and 
 passions, and by unbelief. 
 
 Christ continues to knock by his word, Heb. 4. 1 2, by 
 Jiis Spirit, by his Providence. 
 
 China. — Men will be no more virtuous without exhortation 
 than a bell sound without being struck. 
 
 Telugu. — Unless the child cries, even the mother will not 
 give it suck. 
 
 Christ the Lamb of God.— John i. 29. 
 Christ was like a lamh in four points : — 
 (i) Harmless, Heb. 7. 26, John 21. 15, he was sur- 
 rounded by wolves, by Satan a roaring lion, and by Herod 
 
230 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 a fox ; (2) meek, bore the wrongs of spitting on and 
 scourging when led to the slaughter, Heb. 12. 3 ; (3) con- 
 tented, Christ had not where to lay his head, Mat. 8. 2 ;, 
 (4; used in sacrifice, Eev. 12. 1 1; Christ like the scapegoat 
 bore our sins away into the wilderness, so the AsvamedJi^ 
 or horse-sacrifice of the Hindus, was designed to typify 
 a sacrificial purpose. An hypocritical power is compared 
 to a lamb with two horns, but speaking as a dragon,. 
 Eev. 13. II. In the millennium the lamb is to dwell 
 with the wolf. Is. 1 1. 6, 65. 25. 
 
 The Spiritual Legacy.— Luke 22. 29. 
 
 These words were spoken by Christ previous to his 
 Crucifixion, giving to his disciples high honour in the next 
 world : his legacy. A legacy is a proof of friendship, a 
 sign that death does not dissolve it, so Christ, eighteen 
 hundred years ago, in an upper-room, eating his Last Sup- 
 per gave this proof ; the next day he was to hang on a 
 Cross; he sealed this legacy by breaking bread, and 
 drinking wine. 
 
 Christ's legacy differs from a common legacy 
 in six points : — 
 
 This Legacy is — (i) in the Bible; we are to search the 
 Scriptures as the miner searches for gold, or as people 
 examine a will immediately after the death of the testator ;, 
 (2) Eternal; some are left things acquired by fraud or 
 force, and therefore disputed ; tliis property does not cor- 
 rupt the possessor, i Pet. 1.4; (3) The legatees are 
 ruined sinners; blessed are the poor in spirit. Mat. 5.;, 
 (4) Ratified by a seal ; baptism and the Lord's Supper ; 
 the Sunday is the memorial of it; (5) Unconditional ; no 
 debt or mortgages entailed; Boaz's kinsman wished Naomi's, 
 property, but not without the condition of marrying 
 Piuth : so Moses rejected the treasures of Egypt, when the 
 condition implied forfeiting the reproach of Christ ; (6) 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 231 
 
 Enough for all ; when the division is small, quarrels are 
 apt to arise, as in Abraham's, Isaac's, and David's families, 
 but this kingdom is boundless; many mansions in the 
 Father's House. 
 
 Who conies as the Lightning ?— Mat. 24. 27. 
 
 Christ's second coming compared to a hridegroom, Mat. 
 25. I— I 3, a sitpjper, Eev. 19. 6-9, a restitution, Acts 3. 21. 
 We are to wait for it, Eom. 8. 19-22, to hasten to it, 
 2 Pet. 3. 12. The Virgin's cry was at midnight. Mat. 
 25. 6 : at midnight the first-born of Egypt died, Ex. 12. 
 29 : at midnight 185,000 Assyrians were smitten. 
 
 The sudden flash, which brings so near to us the thought 
 of an awful power that might consume us in a moment, 
 should remind us of Christ's coming. He came at first in 
 great humility, and many years passed by before he mani- 
 fested forth his glory, that his disciples should believe on 
 him. But when he shall come again, he will be seen 
 " in the clouds of heaven.-" " Every eye shall see him, 
 and they also who pierced him." Erom one end of 
 heaven to the other, his presence like lightning will be 
 made manifest : and his coming will be as sudden as it 
 will be terrible to the wicked. The heavens shall pass 
 away, 2 Pet. 3. 9. 
 
 At Christ's first coming : He was a babe ; a servant, his 
 forerunner, John a fakir in the desert; fishermen his 
 attendants ; acted as a mediator ; spat on, derided. 
 
 At His second coming : He will be King of kings ; the 
 trump of the archangel shall sound; angels, archangels, 
 his attendants ; Judge and Lord of all. 
 
 Christ's coming is also compared, Eev. 3. 3, to a thief 
 in the night. The thief comes to destroy, so in the day 
 of the Lord, the wicked shall be cut asunder. Mat. 24. 37. 
 The thief comes with weapons, so Christ comes in flames 
 of fire, 2 Thes. 5. 7— 8 ; and he comes unexjoectedhj when 
 men are at ease and asleep, like as in the days of ISToah, 
 
232 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Mat. 24. 37 ; all will be friglit and confusion ; they will 
 call on the rocks to cover them, Eev. 6. 16, 17. The 
 thief comes with iviched intent, Christ, on the other hand, 
 to punish injustice, and deliver his people ; the thief's 
 coming may be prevented, but the day of the Lord will 
 come, 2 Pet. 3. 10. The thief injures a few; Christ 
 executes judgment on all. 
 
 Telugu. — If the thief said beforehand that he was coming, 
 
 I would have secured witnesses. 
 Talmud. — The owl and the hen waited together for the 
 
 morning : " The light is of use to me," said the 
 
 hen, " but of what use to you ?" 
 Bussian. — Prepare for death, but neglect not to sow. 
 
 Christ the Lily of the Valley.— Cant. 2. i. 
 
 Christ is compared to a lily among thorns ; like a lily 
 he is fragrant, Gen. 8. 21, white and 'pure, Eev. 19. 8, 
 fruitfid, not destroyed by the snow of persecution, 
 hea^itifid, like a lily among thorns. Sadi compares an 
 amiable youth to a white lily in a bed of narcissuses. 
 
 The simple beauty of the lilies drew on them their 
 Creator's approving notice, when, in the days of his flesh, 
 he went in and out among men, and was himself capable 
 of being soothed by the works which he made so fair and 
 pleasant for the children of men. Those sweet and 
 lovely flowers were then as unreprovable in his sight as 
 in the day when he first "saw that they were good." 
 Man, for whose delight and solace they were made, was 
 now sinful and fallen ; but the handiwork of God in these 
 his humbler creatures, was still such as he could behold 
 with complacency. "They toil not, neither do they spin;" 
 the bright clothing, which it is so pleasant to behold, is 
 furnished for them without any task imposed on them of 
 painful labour; and they close their flowers at night 
 without any anxious care, lest the kindly shower or the 
 genial sun should fail them on the morrow. Mat. 6. 28. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 23 
 
 Our Saviour does not mean to discourage the toils of 
 honest industry and wise foresight, or obedience to the 
 law which is laid on all of us, " Six days shalt thou 
 labour ;" but he means, that in these innocent " flowers 
 oi the field," we should see an emblem of those who are 
 " without carefulness ;" and who, having diligently done 
 whatever their hands find to do," are enabled to trust 
 Ood for the result. 
 
 BuddhagosJia. — The righteous shines amongst the ignorant 
 as the liUes in a heap of rubbish. 
 
 Looking to Josus.—Heb. 12. 2. 
 
 As the weary traveller at night looks for the morning 
 star, so is Christ's advent regarded. The wicked have to 
 look for a fearful judgment day, believers for Christ's 
 coming in the clouds, Phil. 3. 20. 
 
 A man's looks often indicate his frame of mind ; the 
 eye is a mirror of the passions of the soul; it expresses 
 like the tongue, joy, and grief, thus the look of a dying 
 husband on his surviving wife or of a drowning man 
 wishing aid. 
 
 Looking to Jesus implies — (i) distinct knowledge, Hos. 
 4. 5 ; (2) eagerness for relief, Ps. 123. 2, Jonah 2. 4 ; 
 (3) humUe dependence ; (4) affection. 
 
 This looking implies likeness, 2 Cor. 3.18. A cat may 
 look at a king, but the looking does not change her. In 
 this looking we are to look off from other things, we are 
 not to let the plough stand to catch a mouse. 
 
 JBancJiatantra. — The lost, the dead, aud the past the wise 
 
 mourn not over. 
 Persian. — One's eyes are more delighted at seeing the 
 
 faces of friends, than by beholding a garden or a 
 
 parterre. 
 
234 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Meekness. 
 
 Tamul. — Are there any snakes who will not bite those who 
 
 tread on them ? 
 Arahic. — Mild speech enchains the heart. 
 Syriac. — He who gives not wood to the fire prevents 
 
 burning. 
 Tamul. — A loving disposition is a river without a ripple. 
 JProhodh Chandroday. — The equanimity of rational men i& 
 
 steady as the clear unruffled ocean, so that they 
 
 bear with reproach from persons whose eyebrows^ 
 
 gathered up in black anger, present a fearful 
 
 appearance, and whose eyes are red as the setting 
 
 sun. 
 Turh. — Have the sweetness of the lamb, the force of the 
 
 lion, and the sagacity of the elephant. 
 China. — Stir not a fire with a sword — i.e., provoke not a 
 
 fool. 
 Syriac. — Shut your doors, and ye will not fear enemies — 
 
 i.e., be silent, no fear of calumny. 
 TurJc. — Tread not on a sleeping snake. 
 
 Church Membership. — Kom. 12. 4, 5. 
 
 The text refers to the different offices and qualifica- 
 tions of Christians. See the Fable of the Belly and 
 Members. 
 
 The Church is called the body of Christ, and He is the 
 head, Eph. 1.22, which implies sur>eriority and sympathy, 
 I Cor. 1 1 . 3 ; when the head is cut off the body, in one 
 minute life ceases. 
 
 Christ, the Head who is in heaven, is also dwelling by 
 his Spirit in all his members, so as to make them one 
 with him and with each other by an union which is 
 closer than that of parent and child. If we are " the 
 body of Christ," then we have the comfort of knowing 
 that Christ is our life. He is to our souls what the living 
 principle is to our bodies. Being our " Head," he is our 
 counsellor and guide in all difficulties and anxieties. Being 
 our " life," he is our strength in all assaults of Satan, in 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 235 
 
 all trials and temptations. So that it is not our own 
 strength nor our own wisdom that we depend upon ; but 
 the strength and wisdom of Christ. As " the members of 
 Christ," we shall regard both our souls and bodies with a 
 more solemn and reverential feeling, and shall fear above all 
 things to defile by any wilful sin what is his and not our own. 
 
 Tlu Church like the 'body in four 'points : — 
 
 That is scarcely to be called a member of our body 
 which is of no icse to the body, nor can he be called a 
 true member of Christ who is of no use to the Church 
 (which is Christ's body) according to the calling in life 
 which God has appointed for him. The apostle says, 
 " There are many members in one body, and all have not 
 the same office." All have some office, but all have not 
 the same office. And thus in Christ's body, every 
 member is appointed to some useful office, some work 
 of faith and labour of love, in the daily duties of his 
 various callings. No two members are appomted to the 
 same office, but all have some service or other assigned 
 to them. The services of some are more honourable 
 than the occupations of the other ; but there is no 
 member of Christ that is not called to serve God in 
 some course of useful and dutiful obedience. The eye 
 cannot say to the hand, " I have no need of thee," nor 
 again the head to the feet, " I have no need of you." If 
 any member could sever itself from the rest in a proud 
 independence it would utterly perish. The members 
 have the same care one of another. The little brook,, 
 which waters a few fields, fulfils the office assigned to it 
 by Providence as truly as the mighty river which bears, 
 on its bosom the commerce of a nation. 
 
 Japan. — The back and the belly are not interchangeable. 
 
 Tamul. — Who would wish to cut off the hand because by 
 mistake it struck the eye ? 
 
 Persian. — The hands do not perform the business of the 
 heart, but the heart performs that of the hands. 
 
 Bengal. — Axq the five fingers equal in length ? 
 
236 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Tamul. — The head is the chief member of the body, though 
 the others may be larger. 
 
 Malay. — If the right thigh be pinched, pain will also be felt 
 in the left. 
 
 Hebrew, — All the fingers are not equal. 
 
 Turk. — Two hands are made for the service of a single 
 head. 
 
 Urdu. — Sometimes a boat on a waggon (carrying on shore) , 
 and sometimes a waggon on a boat (in crossing a 
 river). Individuals of difierent rank can help 
 each other. 
 
 Urdu. — Is the flesh separate from the nail ? 
 Persian. — One roof and two winds — i.e., persons of oppo- 
 site tempers living together. 
 
 Persian. — The knijfe does not cut off its own handle. 
 
 Who are Spiritual Merchants.— Peov. 3. 13, 14. 
 Tlic rigJiteous as spiritual merchants in seven points : — 
 
 Some supposed in Paul's time that gain was godliness ; 
 this is not true, yet godliness with contentment is great 
 gain, I Tim, 4. 8. 
 
 The righteous is a good merchant y Mat. 13. 45. 
 Must be diligent, Heb. 6. 11, ^punctual, Ecc. 9. 10, 
 regular in correspondence like the importunate widow, 
 Luke 18. I ; useful, Christians are the salt of the earth, 
 but losses at times occur from storms, robbers. His 
 articles of trade are the gold of God's love, Eev. 3.18; 
 the pearls of Christ's blessings. Mat. 13. 45 ; the oil and 
 wine of God's spirit, Ps. 23. 5 ; the spices of graces, 
 Cant. 3. 6. His capital is Christ's offices, as prophet, 
 priest, and king ; the port he trades to is a distant one. 
 Is. 33. 17 ; a rich one, a royal one, all made kings and 
 priests there; a heavenly. Ph. 3. 20; his profits are 
 satisfying, enduring, Jas. 4. i 3. The spiritual merchant 
 deals not in adulterated articles ; is sure of his profit ; he 
 has arms of defence, Eph. 6. 1 1 . 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 237 
 
 MaJiabJiarat. — Amass that wealth which has nothing to 
 fear from kings or thieves, and which does not 
 desert thee in death. 
 
 The Church compared to the Moon. — Cant. 6. 10. 
 
 The Church is called a pillar, i Tim. 3. 15, illustrated 
 hy the parables of the Tares and Wheat, the I^et, the 
 Mustard Seed. 
 
 The moon receives her brightness from the sun. She 
 is dark herself, and reflects his hght. One-half of her 
 orb is always illuminated therewith — a circle of beautiful 
 splendour ; but the whole of that circle is not always 
 visible, sometimes but a thread-like portion thereof, and 
 sometimes it is entirely hidden from the eyes. The 
 moon is not in darkness, when we see not her light ; 
 her face still looks towards the sun, and is bright with 
 his brightness ; but we are so placed not to have the full 
 view thereof. 
 
 Such is the Church ; it is dark itself, but reflects the 
 light of its Lord. For the graces of Christ beheld by 
 faith produce like graces in the soul. 
 
 The Church like the moon in seven ^points : — 
 
 (i) Receives light from the sun ; Christ is the Sun of 
 Eighteousness, Mai. 4. 2 ; (2) Dispenses and reflects what 
 she receives, Mat. 5. 14; (3) Gives light at night, so 
 Christians in this dark world ; (4) Though fair has 
 spots, Jud. 12 ; (5) Sometimes full, sometimes loaning ; 
 the Church now in prosperity, again persecuted, but the 
 wicked have reserved for them the blackness of darkness, 
 2 Pet. 2. 17 ; (6) Above the earth, so Christians, Ph. 3. 
 20 ; (7) Acts by tmseen influence, like the moon on the 
 tides and weather. 
 
 RabUns. — Be rather the tail of a lion than the head of a 
 
 fox, Ps. 84. 10. 
 Bengal. — The moon mocks the thieves. 
 
238 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 CingJialese. — Like the moon shining in the desert. 
 JPolish. — Life is like the inoon — now dark, now full. 
 
 The Holy Spirit's Influence like Oil.— Ps. 23. 5. 
 
 The Holy Sjpirit like oil in five points : — 
 High priests and kings were appointed to office by 
 anointing with oil ; in this way Saul was made king, 
 I Sam. 10. I . Christ was anointed to heal the broken- 
 hearted, Luke 4. 18, hence his name. Cyrus, though a 
 heathen, was called God's anointed, Is. 45. i. 
 
 The Holy Spirit's influence is like oil in its effects ; in 
 — softening, hard tumours are mollified, so the swellings 
 of pride ; healing, draws the bad humours out, so the 
 wounded traveller had oil poured into his wounds, Luke 
 10. 34; the sick were anointed with oil, Jas. 5. 14 ; 
 refreshing, used in banquets, and called the oil of joy ; 
 made a person active, hence wrestlers and warriors used 
 it for their limbs ; makes the face to shine, Stephen's 
 face shone like that of an angel. Acts 6. 15. 
 
 Christ's name is compared to ointment poured forth 
 in its prciousness. Mat. 26. 7, fragranee. Brotherly love 
 is compared, Ps. 123. 2, to oil in its qualities of soften- 
 ing, making supple, fragrant, healing, precious, poured 
 forth. 
 
 PJiariseeism or Straining at a Gnat while Swallowing a 
 Camel. — Mat. 23. 24. 
 
 The Pharisees urged the murder of Christ, yet refused 
 to take the money as the price of blood, Mat. 26. 65. 
 The Budhists strain water to prevent their swallowing 
 insects. Christ called their pride and hypocrisy leaven, 
 as being sour and penetrating. 
 
 Tamul. — A terrible ascetic, an atrocious cheat. 
 
 Bengal. — Scented oil on the head, the body, so filthy as to 
 
 drive away sleep. 
 China, — "Water under the grass. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 239 
 
 China, — The mouth of a Euddha, the heart of a snake. 
 
 JBadaga. — If he is in the wilderness, he is a robber. If he 
 comes to the village, he wishes to be a guru — i.e.^ 
 a religious teacher, Mat. 23. 4-7, 14. 
 Veman. — His forehead is that of a worshipper ; his mouth 
 that of a wolf; and his heart that of a roaming 
 demon : is he so shameless as to say he has learnt 
 of the divinity ? 
 
 Japan. — To clothe a wolf in priest's clothes. 
 
 Tamul. — He tells lies by thousands, and builds a temple. 
 
 Who is the Great Physician ?— Mat. 9. 12. 
 
 Christ went about healing all manner of diseases and 
 spiritual maladies ; lie said the whole have no need of a 
 physician, but those who are sick. 
 
 Christ a good physician in ten ^points : — 
 
 1. Good natural qualifications: Christ has infinite 
 intelligence; "all things are naked to his eyes," Heb. 
 4. 13; he has infinite power ; we are his workmanship. 
 His heart is tender ; a High Priest touched with a feeling 
 of our infirmities. A merry and feeling heart does good 
 like a medicine, particularly so with a physician ; but 
 Christ has sympathy, as he suffered being tempted. 
 
 2. Training : A doctor must know the structure of 
 the body, the symptoms of disorders, and the properties 
 of medicines. Christ partook of flesh and blood, Heb. 
 2. 14. 
 
 3. Authorized by competent authority ; Christ called 
 of God as was Aaron, lifted up as a serpent in the 
 wilderness. The Lord anointed him to bind up the 
 broken-hearted, Luke 4. 18; his miracles were his 
 diploma, John 5. 36, 37. 
 
 4. Efficient medicines provided: he sent his word, 
 and healed them, Ps. 107. 20, to be spiritually minded 
 is life and peace. These medicines are not dear or 
 
240 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 difficult to procure ; the word can be received into the 
 heart by simple faith ; all can come to his dispensary, he 
 varies his medicine according to the disease. 
 
 5. Experience: Christ has had 6,000 years' practice 
 ever since it was said the seed of the woman shall bruise 
 the serpent's head. Age does not impair his skill ; he 
 saves to the uttermost, even in Heaven the song is- 
 worthy the lamb; cholera baffles doctors, but Christ 
 searches the reins, and checks all diseases ; he can make 
 Paul's thorn in the flesh contribute to his humility, 
 
 6. Attentive : Comes at all times without being asked^ 
 and watches the crisis. 
 
 7. Generous to the poor : Christ takes no fees ; says 
 buy without money or price. Is. 55. i ; Christ is the poor 
 man's doctor ; he healed the woman who had spent all 
 her money on doctors, Luke 8. 43. 
 
 8. Perseveres : Christ makes the dry bones live, Ez. 
 37. 4; he has the brand plucked from the burning. 
 
 9. Successful : Christ said come all that labour. 
 Adam's rebellion, Noah's drunkenness, Manasseh's tyranny 
 were cured; even death is cured. Is. 25. 8. The Persians 
 say of ordinary physicians — when fate arrives the phy- 
 sician is a fool. 
 
 I o. Accessible ; Christ is always so ; he never sleeps. 
 
 Clirist differs from earthly physicians in nine points : — 
 (i) Sometimes deceived, kill sometimes instead of curing; 
 (2) require to be sent for, Luke 19. 10; (3) charge for 
 services. Is. 5 5- i? (4) make few sacrifices for their 
 patients. Christ gave his blood; (5) cannot raise the 
 dead ; (6) sometimes impatient ; (7) visit only one patient 
 at a time; (8) subject to disease themselves, Heb. 2. 17 ;. 
 (9) their medicines lose their virtue by long keeping. 
 
 Talmud. — A doctor at a distance is blind. 
 
 Bengali. — He who has had the ringworm knows what it 
 
 really is. 
 Tamul. — Paith in medicine makes it effectual. 
 Japan. — No medicine for lovesickness and a fool. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 241 
 
 Tamul. — Is there any medicine for a bad temper ? 
 Russian. — A golden bed cannot cure the sick. 
 Tamul. — The friendship of the doctor ends at the threshold. 
 Telugu. — Are you to ask the bullock before you put on the 
 
 pack-saddle ? 
 Urdu. — The barber washes everyone's feet, but thinks it 
 
 beneath him to wash his own. 
 Tamul. — He who has killed 1,000 persons is half a doctor. 
 Urdu. — There is no physic for false ideas. 
 
 Who are Pilgrims on Earth.?— Heb. ii. ii, 13. 
 
 Moses gave his son the name of Gershom (the 
 stranger), to signify he was not in his own land, though 
 it gave him shelter when treated with neglect by his own 
 countrymen, and driven away from a royal court, Ex. 
 2. 22. 
 
 The Jews' journey in the desert — a type of the Christian 
 jpilgrimage in ten points : — 
 
 1. A journey from a house of hondage ; the Jews 
 worked in hot weather in Egypt, a land like a furnace, and 
 were deprived of their children; so the righteous were 
 slaves to Satan, and their offspring were heirs to misery, 
 serving divers lusts, i Pet. 2. 1 1. God says to them, as 
 the angel did to Lot, " Escape for thy life, look not back," 
 Gen. 19. 17. 
 
 2. A journey through a dangerous desolate wilderness, 
 hunger, fiery serpents, burning sand, flinty rock, a land of 
 drought, of the shadow of death, Deut. 8.15; so is this 
 world ; no food for the soul, temptations for the trial of 
 faith, storms, quicksands of affliction, the enemies of the 
 Christian are fear, Prov. 22. 13 ; unbelief; sloth, i Tim. 
 5. 13; covetousness. Mat. 16. 24; presumption. 
 
 3. A journey to a land of Promise : the Jews in the 
 wilderness saw this not, yet they had God's word for it ; 
 
 E 
 
242 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 the stones were iron ; a land of fountains flowing with 
 milk and honey, Deut. 8. 8 ; so the Patriarchs were not 
 mindful of that country from whence they came out, 
 Heb. II. 15. 
 
 4. A long and roundabout journey. The Jews might 
 have reached Canaan in one month instead of forty years, 
 but thereby their trial and punishment were intended, 
 Deut. 8. 2 ; so Christians have a variety of experience, 
 joy, and sorrow ; rest will be therefore more sweet. 
 
 5. Kely on a heavenly guide coming up from the wil- 
 derness leaning on the beloved, Cant. 3. 8 ; underneath 
 are the everlasting arms, Deut. 33. 27. A journey under 
 Divine Government; the Jews were few in Egypt, yet 
 kings were reproved for their sake ; they multiplied in 
 slavery; in Babylon God was with the Jews, but in 
 the desert there was the pillar of cloud by day, of fire 
 by night; they had angels' food; their garments and 
 shoes waxed not old ; so Christ is with his Church to the 
 €nd of the world. Mat. 28. 20; as an eagle over her 
 young ones^ Deut. 32. 1 1; they mount up with wings as 
 eagles. Is. 40. 31; there are various pretended ways, but 
 Christ is the true one. 
 
 6. A journey with a lia'p'py termination; Jordan crossed, 
 each sat under his vine and fig-tree, so a rest. for God's 
 people. Is. 35. 10 ; aU journeys in this world not certain 
 of success. 
 
 7. Enter by the straight way — of religious conviction, 
 their foot on the flesh, their eye on the cross. 
 
 8. Their Provision on the way, bread from heaven. 
 
 9. Perseverance — of all that came out of Egypt few 
 entered Canaan, so Lot's wife with regard to Sodom, like 
 man putting his hand to the plough and looking back, 
 Luke 9. 62. 
 
 10. In motion always, but towards home. Gen. 47. 9. 
 
 Afghan. — To every one his home is kashmir — i.e., very 
 good. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 243 
 
 Badaga. — A single coal burns not well, a single traveller 
 
 finds the way heavy. 
 Bamayan. — As a man going to another village stays outside, 
 
 and next day leaving that abode proceeds on his 
 
 journey, so home and property are only men's 
 
 resting places. 
 
 Providence Rescues from a Horrible Pit.— Ps. 40. 2. 
 
 This text alludes to the custom of digging pits to 
 catch wild beasts, and covering them with straw or dust, 
 or such like things, that they might not be discerned. 
 The Psalmist in this, as in some other passages of his 
 writings, means by digging a pit to express the mis- 
 chievous designs of the wicked, who, in trying to do him 
 harm by their subtlety, treated him as men did wild 
 beasts which they endeavoured to catch. Joseph was 
 cast into a pit by his envious brethren, where they would 
 have left him to perish, if Judah had not interposed on his 
 behalf. Gen. 37. 26. 
 
 " Pit" also signifies the grave, and the Psalmist ex- 
 presses the despair he should be in if God slighted him. 
 He should become as a dead man, lost and undone. 
 Nothing is so painful to a gracious soul as the want of 
 God's favour and the sense of his displeasure. His 
 frowns are worse than death and the grave. " Pit" also 
 means trouble. Despondency of spirit under the sense of 
 God's withdrawings, and prevailing doubts and fears about 
 our eternal state, are like unto a horrible pit and miry 
 clay. David found himself sinking more and more into 
 inward disquiet and perplexity of spirit, out of which he 
 could not work himself. 
 
 Atonement a Propitiation through Paith in Christ. 
 
 EoM, 3. 25. 
 
 Christ's death as an atonement was typified by the 
 Baschal Lamh, Ex. 1 2 ; the smiting the rock, Ex. 1 7. 6 ; 
 
 R 2 
 
244 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 our sins are imputed to Christ, as Adam's were to us, Eom^ 
 5 . 1 2—2 1 ; in England, when a woman is married, her hus- 
 band is responsible for her debts ; the Church is Christ's 
 bride, and he pays her debts, so David was kind to the- 
 house of Saul for Jonathan's sake. 
 
 The atonement was also typified by sacrificing the 
 firstlings of the flock, Gen. 4. 4 ; by Isaac, about to be 
 offered, Gen. 22. 2; by the mercy-seat not approached 
 without blood, the scapegoat was type, Lev. 16. 21, The 
 atonement is a washing out stains, Ps. 5 1 , 2 ; a passing 
 "by, Mic. 7. 1 8 ; scattering a cloud that hides the sun ; re- 
 moving sin faraway, Ps. 103. 12 ; healing, Ps. 30. 2. The 
 brazen serpent which cured the Jews bitten by the snakes 
 on their looking at it typified the eye of faith looking on 
 Christ, curing the soul bitten by the serpent — sin. 
 
 If the mercies of God be not loadstones to draw us to 
 heaven, they will be millstones to sink us to perdition ;, 
 the wicked are no better for mercies, as the Dead Sea 
 or ocean is no sweeter from the rivers of fresh water that 
 flow in. 
 
 Death Rest to the Righteous.— Job 'j.t,-, 3. 17-19. 
 Best spiritual differs from worldly rest in four points : — 
 
 The saints are weary of battling with their three great 
 enemies — the world, the flesh, and the devil, like Job, 2 
 Pet. 2. 8. Paul wished to depart and be with Christ. 
 On Jewish monuments is this inscription: "Eest 
 in peace in Eden." This rest is not the rest of a stone, 
 but is a change to a better state, not like the rest of 
 Jonah in the whale's belly. How strong was Job's wish 
 for rest when he had to clean his burning boils with a 
 potsherd, 2. 8 ; his flesh was clad with worms, 7. 4, 5 ; 
 his breath was corrupt ; his bones cleaved to his skin ; 
 his friends knew him not, 19. 14. 
 
 The righteous ought not to be in death like a child 
 compelled by the rod to give up play ; but like one who,. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 245 
 
 tired of play, wishes to go to bed, or like a seaman who 
 only waits for a favourable wind to raise his anchor, 2 
 Thess. I. 6, 7. 
 
 How faithfully does the labourer exert his strength, 
 that he may honestly earn the hire for which he has 
 undertaken to bear the burden and heat of the day ! 
 Now and then he looks wistfully at the lengthening 
 ■shadows, and notices how far the sun has gone down 
 in the heavens. Job 7. 2. Most welcome to him will be 
 >the hour of rest and payment ; but he does not suffer him- 
 self to suspend his work until the time agreed upon is 
 come. The time for rest will come when the time for 
 *work is over. Thus is man set upon the earth to work 
 .the work of God for an appointed season ; and thus 
 faithfully should he spend himself, and be spent in the 
 service of his gracious Maker. He owes to his Maker 
 every faculty of soul and body ; and that gracious Being 
 has promised to all who serve him truly a rich reward 
 when the day of life is over. The reward, indeed, will 
 be of grace and not of debt, for at best we are unprofit- 
 able servants, who have done only what it was our duty 
 to do. And which of us has done even so much ? 
 
 On the other hand, the grave to the ivicked is a 
 -slaughter-house ; death like a wolf feeds on them ; like 
 sheep they are laid in the grave where their beauty 
 •consumes, while the upright shall have dominion over 
 them in the morning of the Eesurrection, Ps. 49. 14, 
 Prov. 7. 22. 
 
 Telugu. — The man who has crossed a river and reached the 
 shore, cares no longer for the hide-sewn boat ; 
 why should the man who has attained happiness 
 trouble himself about the body? 2 Cor. 5. I, 
 Phil. 3. 13. 
 
 Urdu. — When I die, I shall get a good nap. 
 
 Atmabodha. — Having crossed the sea of Pascination, and 
 having killed the giants, Inclination, Aversion, 
 the wise shall, married to Peace, eiyoy repose 
 of soul. 
 
246 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 He sparing the Rod hates his Son.— Pe. 13. 24. 
 
 The bee sucks sweet honey out of the bitterest herb \ 
 Bo God will by afflictions teach his children to suck sweet 
 knowledge, sweet obedience, out of all the bitter afflic- 
 tions and trials he exercises them with ; that scouring 
 and rubbing which frets others, shall make them shine the 
 brighter; that weight which crushes and keeps others 
 under, shall but make them, like the palm-tree, grow 
 better and higher. Stars shine brightest in the darkest 
 night ; torches give the best light when beaten ; grapes 
 yield most wine when most pressed ; spices smell sweetest 
 when pounded ; vines are the better for bleeding ; gold 
 looks the brighter for scouring ; the juniper smells 
 sweetest in the fire. 
 
 Joseph''s advancement might have been fatal to him, 
 had he not been previously prepared for it by a long 
 course of suffering. We should have looked upon him 
 with concern, had we seen him in bonds and known his 
 innocence. But God, who had a far more indulgent and 
 tender compassion for him, left him in a condition from 
 which we would have delivered him, Gen. 37. 23-36, 
 39. 20, 21. 23. So with the Israelites in the wilder- 
 ness, and God's love in subjecting them to such trials in 
 it, Deut. 8. 3-6, 15, 19. 
 
 Proud Nebuchadnezzar became humble after his awful 
 punishment, Dan. 4. 34-37. So with Jehoshaphat — 
 God destroyed his fleet to disengage him from his con- 
 nexion with wicked Ahaziah, 2 Chron. 20. 35-37, and 
 it seems to have had this effect, i Kings 22. 49. It is-. 
 a mercy to have that taken from us that takes us from 
 God. The people of Judah were sent into captivity to 
 Babylon for their good, Jer. 24. 5— 7 ; and in this, as 
 appears from Ezra, Ezra 9. i o, and from Nehemiah, N'eh. 
 9, the effect was good. PauVs thorn in the flesh was 
 sent to preserve him from pride, 2 Cor. 12.7; these 
 examples show that the gem cannot be polished without 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 247 
 
 friction, nor man perfected without adversity, that 
 affliction is an angel of mercy sent to lead ns out of 
 Sodom ; that the way of the Cross is the royal way to 
 the Crown ; and that the waters, which drowned the 
 world, only lifted up the ark. 
 
 Who shall see God ?— Mat. 5. 2. 
 
 Out knowledge of God in heaven is expressed hy seeing 
 in four points : — 
 
 The Hindus express by darsJian the privilege after a 
 long pilgrimage of seeing the idol. Knowing God is 
 explained by the emblem of seeing, because sight is 
 (i) the clearest of the other senses, as light is given, so 
 our knowledge comes from God; (2) the sense most 
 universally exercised; (3) pleasant y Ecc. 1 1. 7, seeing a 
 friend is very different from hearing about him, the eye is 
 the window of the soul ; (4) the most comprehensive the 
 eye is never satisfied with seeing. 
 
 Dirt loves not a sunbeam, nor the impure to see God, 
 Gen. 3. 8, 4. 14. Moses saw God through Christ, Num. 
 22. 8, so did Jacob, Gen. 32. 30. Believers while pure 
 walk in the light of God's countenance ; like the moon 
 dark when away from the sun ; bright when facing it. 
 
 Sins like Scarlet made White as Snow. — Is. i. 18. 
 
 Scarlet is obtained from the eggs of an insect found 
 on the leaves of the oak in Spain ; being bright is used 
 for clothing, Said's daughters wore it, 2 Sam. I. 24. 
 IsTeither dew, rain, washing, nor long wear can remove 
 the scarlet die, it is the fastest colour, so with sin the 
 stain is not removed by ordinary means ; a scarlet thread 
 was fastened to the scapegoat on the day of atonement; 
 white, on the other hand, was the emblem of purity, 
 Eev. 1 . 1 4 ; hence the ISTazarenes, a sect of the Jews, 
 were said to be purer than snow. Lam. 4. 7. 
 
248 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Who are the Sealed Ones?— 2 Tim. 2. 19. 
 
 The Holy Spirit like a seal in three ^points : — 
 
 The ancient Hebrews wore seals in rings on their 
 fingers, and in bracelets on their arms. The wicked 
 queen Jezebel wrote the condemnation of Naboth, whose 
 death she plotted to get his vineyard for her husband 
 Ahab, and sent it to the elders of Israel, signed with his 
 seal, I Kings 21. 8. 
 
 So the ambitious Haman sealed the decree of king 
 Ahasuerus against the Jews with the king's seal, Esth. 
 3. 12, 8. 8 ; it is afterwards stated that the king took off 
 his ring, which he had taken from Haman, and gave it 
 to Mordecai. The seal was a mark to prove that things 
 were genuine, as in the above cases it showed that the 
 royal authority was granted for the purposes named 
 within ; at other times, it was a pledge for fulfilling terms 
 agreed on between two parties, and also to secure any- 
 thing by closing it up. So God, when he seals us by his 
 Holy Spirit, marks his image upon us. God is holy; 
 and we cannot be marked with his seal unless we are 
 made holy too. When the Holy Spirit so seals us, he 
 also secures us to the day of redemption, as a thing is 
 shut up from harm by being sealed up ; in this way men 
 seal up their writings and treasures, marking them with 
 their own seal, that none may break in and steal 
 them. 
 
 The Jews used to write on the head of a corpse 
 with ink, " May he be in the bundle of life, Jehovah the 
 Lord ;" this was called sealing the dead. The seal makes 
 impressions like itself, so the believer is changed into 
 the same image, 2 Cor. 3. 18 ; the wax must be soft to 
 receive the impression, Heb. i o. 1 6 ; so the heart ; the 
 wicked have stony hearts; the things are secured, so 
 believers sealed on their forehead, Eev. 7. 3 ; they are a 
 fountain sealed — i.e., secured against weather, sand, 
 beasts, Cant. 4. 1 2 ; the sins of the wicked are sealed up 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 249 
 
 in a bag — i.e., not forgotten, but the seal of the Holy 
 Spirit on the believer is God's image. 
 
 The Woman's Seed bruises the Serpent's Head. 
 Gen. 3. 15. 
 
 In the Iceland Mythology the Deity is said to have 
 bruised the Serpent's head, so among the Hindus Krishna 
 tramples on the Serpent's head, who bites his heel. 
 
 Jesus Christ was the seed of the woman — i.e., born of 
 the Virgin Mary ; he destroyed the Serpent's — i.e., Satan's 
 head, or power ; the head of the Serpent is the seat of 
 life. Satan is the old Serpent, Eev. 12.9. 
 
 Satan is like a serjpent in five points : — 
 
 1. Subtle, lies in wait in holes to catch his prey, so 
 the Egyptians behaved to the Babylonians. 
 
 2. Poisonous, Deut. 32. 24, yet Paul by Divine aid 
 shook off a viper. Acts 28. 8. 
 
 3. Watches opportunity to sting ; so Ahab could not 
 sleep on account of Naboth's vineyard. 
 
 4. Feeds on dust ; Satan's food, sin. 
 
 5. Fair in appearance, 2 Cor. 11. 14. 
 
 Self-respect. 
 
 Arabic. — He who makes himself bran is pecked by hens. 
 Syriac. — Cut your vine with your own hand, not with the 
 hand of others. 
 
 Who are Servants of Christ ?— 2 Tim. 2. 24. 
 
 The Jews had a class of house servants, as the Hindus 
 had, who were slaves sold for debt or by their parents ; but 
 among the Jews they were set free on the seventh year, 
 unless they had with their own consent their ears bored 
 with an awl, and fastened to the doorposts. 
 
250 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 The devil's children are like them — bond slaves of sin. 
 Believers were slaves to the world, the flesh, and the 
 devil, but are redeemed by Christ, who freed them from 
 hereditary bondage. Christians, though servants, as the 
 sons, of a king by regeneration, have a liigh dignity in the 
 court of heaven ; such a servant was Joshua to Moses,, 
 Elislia to Elijah. Moses was the servant of the Lord,, 
 Jos. I. 2. 
 
 Christians are like good servants of Christ being 
 appointed, Is. 40. 10 ; obedient, Luke 22. 27 ; trusted. Gen. 
 41. 42; delight in work; act according to orders, Ex. 25. 
 40 ; expect wages ; render an account, Mat. 18. 23. 
 
 Angels, though far higher in rank, power, and intellect 
 than any kings of earth, yet act as servants. They took 
 charge of a beggar's soul, when only the dogs attended 
 to liis body ; these angels are called servants, Heb. i . 1 4 ; 
 they proclaimed their Master's will to Lot, Gen. 1 8 ; to 
 Elijah, 2 Kings i. 3 ; to Daniel, 9. 21 ; opposed God's 
 enemies, so Michael fought with the dragon, Eev. 12. 9 ; 
 executed God's judgments in Egypt, Ex. 12.23; blinded 
 the Sodomites, Gen. 19. 11; and smote a king. Acts 12. 
 23 ; defending the godly, they hold the four winds, Eev. 
 7. 1-3; they protected Elisha, 2 Kings 6. 17; were 
 guides, and carried Lazarus into Abraham's bosom ; 
 will be the reapers in the day of judgment. Mat. 24. 31. 
 
 The Shield of Faith.— Eph. 6. 16. 
 
 As the soul is the life of the body, faith is the life 
 of the soul, and Christ the life of faith. Eaith is the 
 master-wheel that sets the other wheels in motion. 
 Eaith is also compared to gold tried in the fire, i Pet. 
 1.7. 
 
 A shield was made of hides, or even gold, so as to be 
 proof against fiery darts ; it was large, so as to defend 
 the vital parts, and movable, to protect the head, arms„ 
 and chest. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 251 
 
 A shield made of iron warded off darts and sword cuts, 
 so faith, spiritual assaults, 2 Kings 6. 15. Abraham's 
 servant committed himself in trust, Gen. 24 ; so Moses, 
 Ex. 33. 15 ; Buth I. 16 ; Paul in prison. Acts 16. 25. 
 
 Telugu. — Like a gadfly on a tiger's side. 
 
 Affliction refines as the Fire does Silver.— Mal. 3. 2. 
 
 Affliction like refining silver in eleven points : — 
 
 This simile is taken from the refiners, who in their 
 crucible separate by fire the dross from the ore ; so 
 believers have the fiery trial of trouble, i Cor. 3.13. 
 
 1. A refiner's work is to try and refine metals; so 
 affliction tries people^s graces, Is. 48. 10. 
 
 2. The metal hefore refinement is full of dross, Mat. 
 
 15. 19, Job 25. 4, so we are by nature sinners. 
 
 3. The metal is not pliable hefore refinement, so our will 
 is stubborn; Job said, God makes my heart soft. Job 23. 
 
 1 6, Jer. 9. 7. 
 
 4. More fire required to hasten the work ; so in heavi- 
 ness through manifold temptation, i Pet. 4. 1 2. 
 
 5. The dross removed makes the metal, though less in 
 quantity, yet of more value. Is. 13. 12. 
 
 6. Eefining required several times ; so silver seven times 
 refined. God has many modes of refining — fires, floods, 
 storm, disease, Ps. 37. 20. 
 
 7. The fire is not ioY ivasting t\iQ metal, but for purify- 
 ing it, chastened for our profit, Heb. 1 2. 2. 
 
 8. Fine vessels made by this process, 2 Tim. 2. 20. 
 
 9. The refiner refines but a little at a time; God, 
 however, refines a kingdom. Alloy is put in to make 
 metal pliable ; but the Holy Spirit is the hammer of 
 God's word. 
 
 10. The metal is not left in the fire after purifying. 
 
 11. The refiner uses fuel; so the wicked are God's 
 
252 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 fuel to refine the good; such were Pharaoh, Babylon 
 made a burnt mountain, Jer. 51. 25, the great captains, 
 Eev. 6. 1 7. 
 
 Tamul. — Though gold be put into the fire to be refined, its 
 
 hue is not lost. 
 Canarese. — Sandal wood in burning gives off perfumes ; so 
 
 the afflictions of the good, Heb. 12. ii. 
 Tamul. — Rape-seed and sugar-cane are profitable when 
 
 crushed. 
 BagTiuvansa. — Iron by rust becomes soft ; why not the soul 
 
 by grief? 2 Cor. 7. 10. 
 JPolish, — He who does not understand how to pray, learns 
 
 it when he goes to sea. 
 Chinese. — Though the screen be torn, its form is still pre- 
 served. Though the good man be in want, his 
 
 virtue still remains. 
 Afghan. — Though the cloud be black, white water falls from 
 
 it — sic, " a silver lining to the cloud." 
 
 What are the Dead sown for?— i Coe. 15. 42. 
 
 The Resurrection is called a morning, Ps. 49. 14, after 
 the night of life, it makes things manifest, its sun comes 
 out and joy arises. Wonderful is the progress of the 
 seed from its first to its second life ; for it has two lives. 
 During its first life, it grows, and ripens in the plant 
 which bears it, and then falls away to the earth out of 
 which it grew. But it has a second life after its resur- 
 rection from the earth ; from whence it springs up with a 
 life of its own, and with a new body. Prom every seed 
 grows a plant of the same kind with that which bore the 
 seed. God giveth to every seed its own hody. 
 
 The Word of God teaches us to expect two lives. The 
 one is our present earthly life which we have of our 
 parents ; the other is the life which we shall have after 
 we have been buried. Our body will be a spiritual one, 
 not an animal one, as now, having carnal appetites and 
 desires. Por as the seed is not quickened except it die, so 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 253 
 
 "we cannot obtain eternal life, but by the way of death. 
 The grave is as the furrow of the field in which the seed 
 is sown; and as the sunshine of the spring raises the seed 
 to life, so shall the Sun of Eighteousness return to raise 
 all those who are buried in the earth. The time is coming 
 when they that are in their graves shall hear his voice, 
 and come forth, as Lazarus came forth from the tomb when 
 Jesus called him. The good seed of wheat and other 
 grain is gathered for use, and laid up in the barn, as the 
 righteous, when they die, are gathered to their fathers ; 
 but the evil seeds of the thistle are blown about by the 
 winds, and scattered over the face of the earth. 
 
 Our bodies every seven years change every particle; so 
 the seed in the darkness of the ground decomposes, draw- 
 ing its new body from earth, water, and air, until it 
 becomes like the banyan or cotton tree ; so the body in 
 the grave may be like a worm, but it will become like a 
 butterfly. Seeds in Egyptian mummies have germinated 
 after a thousand years. We cast our rice seed into muddy 
 waters, it sinks, but soon a plentiful rice harvest appears. 
 
 KatTia VpanisJiad. — Like corn a mortal ripens, like corn ho 
 is produced again. 
 
 Who is the Morning Star?— Rev, 22. 16. 
 
 Angels are called morning stars, as being made in the 
 morning of creation. Job 38. 7. The dawn said in the 
 Vedas " to be born in the eastern quarter of the firma- 
 ment, displaying a banner of light bringing health to 
 human habitations, many tinted ;" angels as the morning 
 star beautiful, so Stephen's face when dying like an 
 angel's. Acts 6. 1 5 ; Satan was called Lucifer — i.e., an 
 angel of light. 
 
 The morning star, called the day star, arising in the 
 hearts, 2 Pet. 1.9; the King of Assyria is so called. 
 Is. 14. 12, as Babylon was the first of kingdoms, 
 
254 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Christ like the Morning Star in nine ^points : — 
 
 1. Solid light, twinkles not, fixed in its orb, so no 
 intermission in Christ, his spiritual light the same yester- 
 day, to-day, and for ever, Heb. 13. 8 ; so Christ will 
 never leave, Heb. 13. 5 ; Mat. 28. 20. 
 
 2. Harhinger of the sun, so when the day-spring came, 
 people that sat in darkness saw the light, Mat. 4. 1 6 ; 
 forerunner of the morning of the resurrection, Ps. 49. 1 4 ; 
 the night of life is far spent, the day of resurrection is 
 athand, Eom. 13. 11, 12. 
 
 3. Ornaments the heavens, beautiful to see, so is Christ 
 above Moses, Ps. 47. I ; David in his day said I shall be 
 satisfied when I awake after his likeness, Ps. 17. 15; 
 Paul said I have a desire to depart. Ph. i. 23. 
 
 4. Guides mariners, when they have lost the polar 
 star, so Christ, the light of life, warns against the rocks 
 and shoals of the world, the flesh, and the devil, in the 
 ocean of life. 
 
 5. Most useful in lointry darkness ; so are Christ's offices, 
 now of prophet, priest and king in this dark world. 
 
 6. A star of the first magnitude; John, Peter, James 
 were stars, but Christ, though the offspring of David, was 
 the brightness of the Father's glory, Heb. 1.3. 
 
 7. Terrible to thieves, indicating the departure of dark- 
 ness, so Satan, at the dawn of redemption, attempted 
 Christ's destruction in the temple. Mat. 4. 5 ; Jews said, 
 let us kill the heir. Mat. 21. 38; the Jews led 
 Christ to the brow of the hill, Luke 4. 29 ; so the devils 
 thought he was come to torment them before the time. 
 Mat. 8. 29. 
 
 8. The same as the evening star, so Christ is the Alpha 
 and Omega, the author and finisher of our salvation, 
 Eev. I. 8 ; Heb. 12. 2. 
 
 9. Clouds hinder not its course ; so Christ will come and 
 will not tarry, Heb. 10. 37 ; Galileo said, men may 
 imprison me for believing the earth moves, but it moves. 
 
, ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 255 
 
 It is hard to kick against the pricks, Acts 9. 5 ; the 
 blood of the martyrs was the seed of the Church. 
 
 The morning star is created ; Christ made the heavens, 
 Ps. 102. 25 ; is of a fiery red colour. Christ is meek, 
 a mild light ; the morning star and sun are different ; 
 Christ is both. The morning star gives light only by 
 night, Christ is an everlasting light, Is. 60. 20 ; the 
 morning star enlightens only this world ; Christ both 
 worlds. The morning star shall be dissolved; Christ 
 never, Heb. 13. 8. 
 
 The Storm of God's Wrath.— Is. 25. 4. 
 
 The wrath of God wreaks itself by various agencies, 
 Deut. 28. 22; heaven is represented as our Father's house, 
 a marriage feast, the household of God, while earth is 
 stormy, but Christ is a hiding-place from the wind. Earth- 
 quakes have destroyed cities, as Lisbon ; so the blast of 
 the Prince of the Power of the Air blew down Eden, 
 hence David wished for the wings of a dove, when assailed 
 by storm of calumny, Ps. 55. 6; so many make shipwreck 
 of faith. 
 
 God's wrath compared to a winepress, Eev. 14. 19; 
 to wiping out as a dish as God did Jerusalem, 2 Kings 
 21. 13. 
 
 God's storm is of God's sending, as in Jonah's case, 
 Jonah I. 4; liail showers destroyed the Amorites, loind 
 buried the Egyptians like lead in the sea, Ex. 15. 10; 
 hrimstone was rained on Sodom, Gen. 19. 24 ; so Tophet 
 was ordained of old, Is. 30. 33. 
 
 The sinner first raised it, Is. 17. 15. 
 
 Storms are of fearful violence, Ps. 107. 27; in a storm 
 ships mount up to heaven and stagger like a drunken man, 
 so the great day of wrath is come, and who will be able 
 to stand ? Eev. 6. 1 7, 
 
 Aerial storms are fierce, but short. 
 
256 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Who are Strangers on Earth? 
 Heb. II. 9. 
 
 The righteous like strangers on earth in five points : — 
 
 A traveller sat by a well in a wilderness ; he had been 
 expelled from his country because he took the part 
 of slaves against their royal oppressors. He quenched 
 his thirst, and showed his politeness to several maidens, 
 and procuring drink for their flocks ; invited to their 
 house, he spent forty years there in seclusion as a shep- 
 herd. A son was born to him, named Gershom or the 
 stranger ; the father's name was Moses. 
 
 David, though a king, acknowledged he was a stranger 
 on earth, i Chron. 29. 15; saints are citizens of the New 
 Jerusalem, Heb. 12. 22, being born from above, they have 
 a new fatherland ; they therefore rejoice as though they 
 rejoiced not, i Cor. 7. 30 ; they abstain from fleshly lusts, 
 
 1 Pet. 2. 1 1 ; take joyfully the spoiling of their goods, 
 
 2 Cor. 4. 8, 9 ; fall not out with their companions on the 
 way. Gen. 45. 24. Abraham left his country because it 
 was idolatrous, Josh. 21, 2, 3. The patriarchs lived in 
 tents to show they were strangers. 
 
 The righteous are strangers on earth as to — (i) place ^ 
 heaven is their home, as they are born anew ; the earth 
 to them is like a wilderness with its brackish water, burn- 
 ing sands, flerce storms, such as are in Central Asia ; (2) 
 the people, worldly people have the devil as their father, 
 believers in God bear the image of the heavenly; (3) 
 employment, while one does the works of the flesh, the 
 other does those of the Spirit ; minding the one thing 
 needful ; their God is not their belly ; (4) manners, 
 believers are clothed with humility, roll not sin as a sweet 
 morsel under their tongue; they have put off the old 
 man; (5) language, believers talk of subjects which are 
 sealed to the world, &c., they have little intercourse with 
 worldly people. 
 
 Believers as pilgrims or travellers, finding no rest for 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 257 
 
 their soul on earth, carefully consider the cost, the 
 difficulty, the danger, of their journey to Heaven ; wisely 
 they put on the light, the new, the defensive, and never 
 worn out garments of salvation, and take to them the 
 whole armour of God, for their safety against foes. 
 Wisely they receive Jesus and his fulness as their gold, 
 their treasure, to bear their expenses on the way. They 
 receive his father for their companion; his Spirit to be 
 their guide ; his word to be their director and compass ; 
 his love, his power, and promises for their supporting 
 staff. Carefully they ask for the good well-beaten old 
 way of holiness, and continue walking therein ; sweetly 
 they drink out of its wells of salvation, and refresh them- 
 selves, but do not tarry in the inns of ordinances built 
 close at hand I Now their duty is pleasant and easy ; 
 anon it is rugged and difficult. Now, they enjoy the 
 fine weather of peace and prosperity ; clear vievjs of Jesus 
 and his countenance, wide prospects of his loveliness 
 and love ; clear discoveries of the vanity of this world, 
 of the happiness of their present, and of the glory of 
 their future state ; anon they are distressed with cold 
 winters of trouble, storms of temptation, dark nights of 
 sin and disorder, that they know not what to do, or 
 whither to go. How oft fearfully pinched for provision 1 
 How oft the wells of promises seem dry, and inns of 
 ordinances are found empty ! How oft exposed to the 
 gazing, ridicule, and malice of carnal men ! How oft by 
 Satan and their lusts harassed and robbed of their grace, 
 or its evidence ! How oft tempted like Lot's wife to 
 turn back ! But, through every tribulation they push 
 forward to the city, the celestial kingdom of God, and 
 with so much more cheerfulness, if they enjoy the 
 company of eminent saints ; they go from strength to 
 strength till they appear before God in Zion. They are 
 called strangers and sojourners with God on earth. How 
 strange to carnal men is their state of union and com- 
 munion with Christ ! How strange their birth from 
 
 s 
 
258 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 above ! Their having God their father ! Christ their 
 husband ! Glorified saints their principal people ! In 
 what strange, what celestial country, are their portion, 
 their inheritance, their hopes, their affections, their 
 thoughts, their desires ! With what strange robe of 
 divine righteousness, implanted grace, and Gospel holiness 
 are they decked ! What strange armour of God they 
 have put on ! How strangely they speak the spiritual 
 language of prayer and praise I Pour out their hearts, 
 behave as becomes the high calling of God ! Walk with 
 Father, Son, and Holy Ghost whom the world see and 
 know not ! Feed on the strange provision of Jesus' person, 
 righteousness, and benefits ! How employed in the 
 unknown labour of numbering their days ; of considering 
 their latter end ; of ploughing up the fallow ground of 
 their heart ; of sowing to themselves in righteousness ; 
 of buying without money and without price; of denying 
 and loathing themselves ; of warring with principalities, 
 powers, and spiritual wickedness ; of renouncing the profit, 
 pleasure, and honour of this world ; of extracting good 
 from evil and sweet out of bitter ; of loving their enemies^ 
 and rendering them blessing for cursing. 
 
 The Sun of Righteousness with Healing on his Wings. 
 Mal. 4. 2. 
 
 In the Vedas the sun is called " ray-diffuser, deep- 
 quivering, life-bestowing, golden-handed, the eye of the 
 universe, the soul of all that moves." 
 
 In Judea every morning about sunrise a fresh breeze 
 blows from the sea across the land ; from its utility 
 in purifying the infected air, it is called the doctor ; 
 this salubrious breeze, which attends the rising of the 
 sun, may be considered the wings of the sun. So Christ 
 is the one mediator, the sun of our system ; he is the 
 eye of the world, gives light to all, drives away gloom ; 
 like the sun he operates differently, hardens clay, and 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 259 
 
 softens wax, eclipses the light of the stars by his own. 
 Flowers, as the tulip and marigold, open to the solar, so 
 do believers' hearts to Christ's, beams. 
 
 Sick or delicate people generally feel worse during 
 night, when the sun ceases to shine ; the morning dawn 
 often revives them after a bad night. All the candles in 
 the world put together could not give a light equal to that 
 •of day ; which can come only from the sun ; so with human 
 intelligence compared to Christ. 
 
 The sun shines on all, penetrates deeply, exhales the 
 noxious vapours from the earth, cheers by its light: 
 veiled sometimes by clouds, it soon disperses them, and 
 the light of the stars grows pale before it. 
 
 The sun is the source of light and beauty ; without it 
 all is gloom and dulness. David calls it God's taber- 
 nacle ; in Chaldea they worshipped the sun ; we are to 
 nse it, however, to lead us unto God as our rock, as an 
 emblem of God's unchangeableness, and of his being 
 the foundation of inexhaustible, overflowing benevolence. 
 As the sun is a type of God's effulgence and energy, so 
 the term Sun of Eighteousness is peculiarly applicable to 
 Christ. 
 
 Christ is like the sun in four points : — 
 
 1 . The sun is the centre of the planets, his attraction is 
 an adamantine chain which, hanging on nothing, keeps the 
 planets in their place, so Christ is the head of the Church, 
 Eph. 5. 23. Look not to yourselves, but to Christ. 
 Thirty planets, with orbits millions of miles in diameter, 
 some performing their revolution in a century, move 
 round this sun ; so Christ is the head of all principalities 
 and of angels, Eph. i . 2 1 . 
 
 2. The sun shines hy its oiun light, not so the planets ; 
 the light, though 95 millions of miles distant, comes in 
 eight minutes. David compares the sun's rising to a bride- 
 groom, Ps. 1 9. 5 ; so is Christ the brightness of the Father's 
 glory, his eyes penetrate like the sun's rays, his light is 
 
 S 2 
 
26o EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever ; but the svui 
 has spots, in the Spiritual Sun there is no darkness, 
 I John I. 5. The sun, however, shall wax old as a gar- 
 ment, not so Christ, Heb. i. 1 2. The sun was stopped by 
 Joshua, not so the Sun of Eighteousness ; various rays- 
 from the sun concentrate in the rainbow, so God's 
 attributes blended in Christ's — righteousness and peace 
 have kissed each other, Ps. 135. 10. Christ seen of 
 angels, received into glory the gaze of Intelligences in 
 other regions of creation. 
 
 3. Tlu sun is the source of light, heat, heauty : in 
 Christ is the true light, John 1.7; the day-spring from 
 on high. Light reveals things as a ray does particles of 
 dust, so the publican found, Luke 18. 13. The sun's 
 light awakens life in the spring, so in Ezekiel's valley of 
 dry bones the breath of life, Ez. 37. 
 
 4. The suris rising is gradual hut punctual, so Christ 
 illuminated first the Jews, then the heathen. 
 
 Atmaloda T'raJcasiJca . — Knowledge overcomes ignorance as 
 sunlight darkness. 
 
 JRig Veda. — The dawn, the breath and Hfe of all that 
 breathes and lives, awaking day by day myriads 
 of prostrate sleepers as from death, causing the 
 birds to flutter from their nests, and rousing 
 men to ply with busy feet their daily duties. 
 
 KatTid TTpanisliad. — As the sun, the eye of the whole 
 world, is not sulhed by the defects of external 
 objects, so the inner soul of all beings is not 
 sullied by the misery of the world. 
 
 The Sword of the Spirit.— Eph. 6. 17 ; Heb. 4. 12. 
 
 There are two words of God, one written on paper — 
 the Bible, the other written by the Spirit on the heart- 
 Christ is also called the word of God as being the Eternal 
 Son. 
 
 God's revelation is compared to — a letter from the father 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 261 
 
 of mercies to his children at school — a lanqitet where all 
 are invited — a prism which only glistens when in the 
 light' — a portrait of an absent friend — a storehouse of 
 spiritual weapons — a telescope revealing the glories of the 
 upper world. David compares it to silver tried in a 
 furnace of earth seven times refined, Ps. 12. 6. 
 
 Heavenly Treasures in Earthen Vessels.— 2 Coe. 4. 7. 
 
 The body is compared to an earthen vessel, as being 
 brittle, leaky, mean, of little value, yet it has the souls 
 treasure in it ; as the Bengalis say — " like fine rice in a 
 torn bag." 
 
 Treasure in earthen vessels may refer to the lamps which 
 were concealed in Grideon's pitchers till they were broken, 
 when he alarmed the army of the Midianites while asleep 
 in their camp, Judg. 7. 16. So the Gospel is put into 
 earthen vessels, and proves a glorious light to some, 
 while it is hidden to others. Christ says lay not up 
 treasures on earth, Mat. 6. 19, or in an earthen house 
 easily dug through by robbers. 
 
 The Gospel is a treasure, for the reception of it into 
 our hearts makes us " rich in faith ;" presents to us 
 *' the unsearchable riches of Christ ;" and teaches us to 
 lay up for ourselves " durable riches and righteousness." 
 The dying believer, though ever so rich in this world, loses 
 everything at last which he has in it; but, if he has 
 Christ for his portion, he is richer than all the world he 
 leaves behind him ; for everything belonging to the 
 world must perish — moth and rust consume them — but 
 nothing can deprive us of this treasure, " for who shall 
 separate us from the love of Christ ?" 
 
 Bengal. — Even in sweet mangoes worms breed. 
 Bengal. — Families and water descend — ^.<?., decay. 
 Tamul. — A crooked pot will hold sugar. 
 Kurd. — The camel carries sugar, eats thorns. 
 
262 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Sanskrit. — A diamoud is trodden under foot, and glass is 
 
 worn on the head ; even in that stage glass is 
 
 glass and a gem a gem. 
 Mahahharat. — Neither mother, nor children, nor kinsmen, 
 
 nor dear familiar friends follow a man in death ; 
 
 he departs alone. The deeds alone which he has 
 
 done are his fellow-travellers. 
 
 Man revives not as a Tree.— Job 14. 7, 12. 
 
 The Romans made trees a symbol of death, planted 
 those in burial-places, from whose roots no germs arise^ 
 such as the pine, cyprus. Man does not revive to return 
 from death to the scenes of his earthly occupations ; not 
 so a tree. Night comes, but so does the morning, with 
 fresh fragrance glittering with dew. Winter ravages, but 
 the embryo blossom survives and spring comes. When 
 the trimh of the tree is cut down, it dies not altogether, 
 life remains within ; but man cut down does not spring up 
 
 Chinii. — ^Withered trees in spring burst forth afresh ; but 
 
 man cannot be twice young. 
 Japan. — Elowers on a dead tree. 
 Japan, — The flower returns not to the branch. 
 
 Who walks with God?— Ge??. 5.22. 
 Spiritual like material walking in five points : — 
 
 Communion with God is represented by going up 
 through the wilderness, leaning on the Beloved, Cant. 
 8. 5, with hope and earnest desire to obtain the better 
 country. 
 
 Walking refers to religious conduct. Thus EnocJi 
 walked with God, and he was not. Gen. 5.24; Noah 
 walked before God, Gen. 6. 9 ; Josiah after the Lord, 
 2 Kings 23. 3 ; believers walk in the spirit. Gal. 5- 25 ; the 
 Churches, after Paul's conversion, walked in the comforts 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS, 263 
 
 of the Holy Ghost, Acts 9. 3 1 ; Nebuchadnezzar condemned 
 those that walked in pride, Dan. 4. 37. 
 
 Walking implies — (i) Life, the believer has a resur- 
 rection from the death of sin. Gal. 5. 24 ; (2) Light, to 
 see the road; (3) Motion, not mere knowing, but doing, 
 I Kings II. 38; (4) Progress, steady, like an elephant, 
 not by jerks as a goat goes ; Paul forgot the things be- 
 hind in pressing on, Phil. 3. 13; (S) Perseverance, so 
 Hezekiah on his death-bed, 2 Kings, 20. 3 ; (6) a Road, 
 the old path trodden by Abel, and marked out by sacri- 
 fices ; (7) an Olject, through the wilderness to the 
 heavenly Canaan ; circumspectly, " like a cat on a wall 
 covered with bottles." 
 
 Walking in noble company is a great privilege for an 
 inferior; Christians were slaves to Satan; converted, 
 they walk with God as their Father. Thus did Enoch 
 walk with God, and he was not, for God took him. Gen. 
 5. 22. 
 
 — » ♦ I 
 
 The Holy Spirit like Water.— Rev. 22. i. 
 
 The Gospel is the ministration of the Spirit; hence 
 the Spirit with his gifts is often compared to water, as 
 Christ said to the woman of Samaria, John 4. 14. 
 
 The Holy Spirit like water in nine points : — 
 
 1. Water comes from the ocean and clouds and returns 
 to them ; so the Holy Spirit the Comforter comes from 
 the Father the Ocean of Being, John 15. 26. 
 
 2. Cleanses the soul from sin, i Cor. 6. 11, John 
 15.3; so Christ's blood through the Eternal Spirit, Heb. 
 13. 14, I Pet. I. 22. 
 
 3. Cools; so evil desires cooled by the Holy Spirit, 
 I John 1.7; Saul's lust of blood was cooled. Acts 9. 20 ; 
 but Dives begged for water to cool his tongue, Luke 1 6. 24. 
 
 4. Fructifies ; man naturally is as the wild heath in the 
 desert from drought, not like grass kept green. Zaccheus 
 
264 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 the publican on his conversion, cried out, " The half of 
 my goods I give to the poor," Luke 1 9. 8 ; so those who 
 laid their money at the Apostles' feet. Acts 4. 37. 
 
 5. Softens, Ps. 65. 10. Water softens and prepares 
 the earth for the plough. Saul so fierce, cried out, 
 "What wilt thou have me to do," Acts 9. 6. Three 
 thousand were pricked to the heart. Acts 2. 37. 
 
 6. Quenches thirst. The desires of the soul are only 
 satisfied by the Holy Spirit. 
 
 7. Accessible to all, cheap, Is. 55. i. Ho! every one 
 athirst come to the river of water of life, Eev. 22. 7. 
 
 8. Extinguishes fire ; so the fire of passion and of 
 pride is extinguished. Too much earthy water may 
 surfeit ; it may become muddy. The Eomans symbolized 
 diseases by muddy waters. One of their punishments 
 was to throw a criminal into a lake of muddy water. 
 Many go long distances to get good water, but the 
 Spiritual Water is in the reach of all. The water of 
 purification among the Jews was mingled with the ashes 
 of the red heifer being sprinkled by a branch of hyssop 
 on the unclean party and he was purified, Ex. 12. 22. 
 God will sprinkle clean water on the wicked. 
 
 9. Penetrates easily ; so the Spirit is poured out ; floods 
 on the dry ground, Joel 2. 28, Is. 44. 3. 
 
 The Way to Heaven.— John 14. 6. 
 
 The loay to heaven differs from earthly ways in nine 
 'points : — 
 
 The Hindus call panth or way the line of doctrine of 
 any sect followed, in order to attain to mttJdi or deliver- 
 ance from sin. Way signifies the chief means to an end, 
 and is applied to the Scriptures, Ps. 119. 27, to God's 
 counsels, to God's works. This spiritual way is — (i) easy 
 to find. Is. 35. 8 ; (2) clean, no mud of sin ; (3) never out 
 of repair. Christ the same now as 6,000 years ago; 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 265 
 
 (4) no lion or wild beasts on; (5) costUj, tlie blood of 
 Christ made it; (6) not lonely, many believers on it, 
 Heb. 12. I ; (7) no toll, all may come; (8) wide, Christ 
 sends out to the highways and hedges, Mat. 22. 9. 
 The way to the cities of refuge was forty-eight feet wide. 
 The map of the Bible shows this path; (9) the end 
 pleasant — Heaven. 
 
 The veil that was hung before the Holy of Holies, and 
 which none might pass through, but the high priest once 
 a year, signified to us that there was no direct way to 
 Heaven under the law. " By the law- is the knowledge 
 of sin," not the means of deliverance from the power or 
 punishment of sin. And by the rending of the veil at 
 the time of our Saviour's death, was signified that a way 
 was henceforth opened to the penitent unto life eternal, 
 even by the blood of Jesus Christ. In the passage — 
 " I am the way, the truth, and the life," our Lord meant, 
 " I am the way to Heaven." He had just before told 
 his disciples, that he was soon going to leave them, and 
 to prepare a place for them, meaning that he was going 
 to Heaven, and there they should follow, and be happy 
 with him for ever. But his disciples did not quite 
 understand him, and when he said, "Whither I go ye 
 know, and the way ye know," Thomas replied, " Lord, we 
 know not whither thou goest ; and how can we know the 
 way ?" Christ meant, that he was going to Heaven, 
 and that there was no getting there but through him, 
 just as a way leads to a place, or, in other words, we 
 must follow him, and he will show us the way; for 
 like him we must have holy lives, like him we must 
 pass through the grave, like him our bodies must rise 
 
 Japan. — A road of l,000 miles begins with one step. 
 Urdu. — Who leaves the highway for a byepath will soon 
 
 lose his way. 
 JPersian. — Travel the highway though it be roundabout. 
 
266 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Christ a Well of Water.— John 4. 14; Zech. 13. i. 
 
 These words were uttered by Christ when wearied and 
 thirsty in the heat of the day ; he drank well-water 
 received from a Samaritan woman — a pariah. Wells were 
 greatly valued in deserts, hence the march of caravans 
 was regulated by the wells, Ex. i 5. 27 ; Lot's and Abra- 
 ham's herdsmen strove about the possession of a well. 
 Gen. 26. 15. But wells often dry up, or are filled up with 
 sand. Christ the same always : the wicked are compared 
 to wells without water, 2 Pet. 2. 1 7. Sec Fountain, p. 38. 
 
 The Holy Spirit's Influence like the Wind.— John 3. 5-8. 
 The Holy Spirit' s influence like ivind in six points : — 
 
 "We see not the wind itself, but we see what it does^ 
 whether when the forest is bowed by some mighty teni- 
 ;pest, as in a cyclone, or when the corn waves under the 
 gentle hreeze, soft as the dew, and the flowers of the gar- 
 den give out their fragrance, as they tremble at its softest 
 touch. 
 
 It is thus with God's Holy Spirit. It is mysterious in 
 its coming and in its influence. Unseen itself, it is seen 
 in its effects. The mighty change which the world has 
 undergone, since first the doctrine of the Cross was 
 preached by peasants of Judea, with no human aid to 
 support them, is the work of the unseen but ever-present 
 Spirit, by which the false philosophies and vain supersti- 
 tions have fallen before the truth, as Dagon before the 
 ark, I Sam. 5. 3. 
 
 The Holy Spirit like the wind in six points : — 
 
 The wind is — (i) invisible, though its effects are seen 
 in cyclones, when it travels at 120 miles an hour, so the 
 Spirit's influence in conversion ; (2) comes at God's com- 
 mand ; he gathers the winds in his fist, Prov. 30. 4 ; 
 (3) purifi,<is, drives bad vapours away ; so grace does evil 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF OLD TRUTHS. 267 
 
 passions ; (4) penetrates, passes through a large city and 
 over hundreds of miles; (5) various, the north wind 
 piercing, the south wind warming ; so the Holy Spirit 
 rebukes some, comforts others, tempests destroy big ships 
 and large trees ; (6) sets in motion ; we cannot sail 
 across the ocean of life without the wind of the Spirit. 
 Providence has Iiis way in the sea, and he flies on the 
 wings of the wind, Ps. 18. 10. 
 
 AtmdbodJia PrcilcasiJca. — The Spirit is in contact with matter 
 without being contaminated by it, just as the 
 crystal permits the colour of the cloth to be seen 
 through it without being in any way defiled 
 by it. 
 
 Christ's Yoke easy and his Burthen light. — Mat. ii. 28-30. 
 
 Asses or oxen are yoked or harnessed to a cart ; some- 
 times this yoke is heavy, and the burthen of the cart falls 
 on the neck, which becomes chafed ; the animal is, how- 
 ever, the property of the owner, who does what he likes. 
 Men are under the yoke of Satan ; they are slaves, and 
 Christ comes with the ransom money. Bullocks often, 
 though well-fed, do not like to submit to the yoke, and 
 kick against it, Jer. 31. 18, but must at last submit ; so 
 the sinner must bridle his tongue and passions — lie must 
 not be stiff-necked. 
 
 Eeconcile the easy yoke with the narrovj way ? 
 
QUESTIONS ON THE EMBLEMS. 
 
 Between the afflictions of the righteous and the wicked four 
 
 points of difference. 
 Affliction is compared to eleven different objects. 
 Hope like an anchor in three points. 
 God's akm differs from man's arm in three points. 
 What eight animals are the wicked compared to ? 
 What three birds teach men lessons ? 
 To what two birds are the righteous compared ? 
 The hodi/ is like what the Arabs are fond of, and in three points. 
 The Church like the body in four points. 
 God as a builder differs from earthly builders in five points. 
 The WICKED like caj)tives in four points. 
 The HUMBLE like little children in six points. 
 Christ's second coming compared to five different things. 
 Mortifying the flesh like Crucifixion in three points. ^ 
 
 Christ and his work compared to fifteen objects. 
 Courage of the righteous compared to what animal ? 
 
 Death of the righteous like a shock of corn in eight points. 
 
 The heavenly city differs from an earthly city in five points. 
 
 The WICKED like dross in six points. 
 
 Conscience compared to five different objects. 
 
 Death of the righteous and wicked compared to twelve different 
 things. 
 
 The Devil compared to what five animals ? 
 
 The Holy Spirit like dew in seven points. 
 
 The meek like a dove in four points. 
 
 Wicked like dogs in ten points. 
 
 Double-minded like what three objects. 
 
 Praying is like mounting on eagle's wings in nine points. 
 
 Envy is compared to what is often seen in a hospital. 
 
 Taith compared to what four objects ? 
 
 The fickle compared to what the sluggard does not see 
 
 God like a father in ten points. 
 
QUESTIONS ON THE EMBLEMS. 269 
 
 Gob like a fotmtain in eight points. 
 
 Christ's tiiiendship differs from earthly friendship in five points. 
 
 The Church like a garden in seven points. 
 
 Truth a girdle in seven points. 
 
 The WICKED like goats in four points. 
 
 Paith like gold in ten points. 
 
 Hearers, not doers, compared to what vain people like. 
 
 Heaven compared to seven things. 
 
 The Heavenly home differs from the earthly one in three points. 
 
 The righteous like God's husbandry in ten points. 
 
 Humility like four objects. 
 
 Holiness compared to seven things. 
 
 The Holy Spirit compared to nine objects. 
 
 House, to what part of a, is Christ compared? 
 
 Hopes of the world like what is found in a dirty house. 
 
 Hopes of the wicked compared to four objects. 
 
 The IGNORANT compared to fifteen objects. 
 
 Earthly inheritance differs from the heavenly inheritance in six. 
 
 points. 
 Prayer like incense in five points. 
 What insect teaches man a lesson ? 
 The idle compared to four things. 
 God's people his jewels in nine points. 
 
 God differs from Qdxi\^'^ judges in four points. 
 The SPIRITUAL KINGDOM differs from an earthly kingdom in nine 
 points. 
 
 The righteous like hings in six points. 
 
 Christ's second coming like lightning in three points. 
 
 Christ's legacy differs from a common legacy in four points. 
 
 Christ like a lamb in four points. 
 
 Sin like leprosy in thirteen points. 
 
 Life is compared to a thing you do not see at night. 
 
 Life is compared to a thing you do not see in summer. 
 
 Life is compared to what thieves are fond of. 
 
 Merchant, the righteous, a spiritual, in seven points. 
 
 God's Word like milk in three points. 
 
 This World like night in four points. 
 
 Old age compared to seven things. 
 
 Holy Spirit's influence like oil in four points. 
 
 Pardon op Sin compared to three things. 
 
 Prayer compared to five objects. 
 
 Providence compared to three things. 
 
 The Righteous like the palm tree in five points. 
 
 The Righteous like a pilgrim in nine points. 
 
 Hell like a prison in six points. 
 
270 QUESTIONS ON THE EMBLEMS. 
 
 Christ differed from other phpicians in nine points. 
 
 Punctuality taugbt by what bird ? 
 
 Sin like a poisonous serpent in five points. 
 
 God's Punishment compared to eight objects. 
 
 The Spiritual differs from the worldly race in six points. 
 
 God's Influence like rain in seven points. 
 
 The Resurrection like what four objects. 
 
 Rest spiritual differs from worldly rest in four points. 
 
 Riches compared to a certain bird. 
 
 The river of God's Grace differs from an earthly river in nine points. 
 
 Christ like a rock in ten points. 
 
 Evil Passions like the sea in eight points. 
 
 God's Word like seed in twelve points. 
 
 The Righteous like soldiers in twelve points. 
 
 The Righteous strangers on earth in five points. 
 
 Affliction like refined silver in ten points. 
 
 The Righteous are servants in six points. 
 
 The Righteous like sheep in ten points. 
 
 The Sinner's heart a stone in four points. 
 
 Storm of God's wrath differs from earthly storms in four points. 
 
 The Righteous shall be like stars in five points. 
 
 Christ like the stm in four points. 
 
 Death of the righteous like sleep in four points. 
 
 Providence like a good shepherd in five points. 
 
 The Righteous like something very valuable got from the sea. 
 
 The Holy Spirit like a seal in three points. 
 
 Time like to what five objects ? 
 
 The Tongue like to what five objects ? 
 
 Wicked like thorns in six points. 
 
 Righteous like what four trees ? 
 
 The Righteous are watchmen in seven points. 
 
 The Way to heaven differs from earthly ways in nine respects. 
 
 Spiritual like material walking in five points. 
 
 The Holy Spirit like water in nine points. 
 
 The World like a wilderness in eight points. 
 
 The Holy Spirit like wind in six points. 
 
 Words and Deeds compared to five objects. 
 
 •Conscience like a worm in three points. 
 
 Man like a worm in five points. 
 
 Wicked like what is often seen in hot countries. 
 
 World's Pleasures brief, like what grows of itself. 
 
 World compared to a thing found chiefly with the poor. 
 
SCRIPTUEE SIMILES ILLUSTEATIYE 
 OF TEXTS. 
 
 Adopiion^ Believers have received the spirit of . Rom. 8. 15. 
 
 Arm of flesh, he trusting in, cursed . . . Jer. 16. 5. 
 
 Bride of Christ, the Church the . . . . Rev. 21.9. 
 
 Bloody woe unto him that builds a town with . . Hab. 2. 12. 
 
 Bees, Jews chased by Canaanites as . . . Deut. i . 44. 
 
 Billows of sorrow went over David . . . Ps. 42. 7. 
 
 Bucket, nations as a drop of a . . . . Z?. 40. 15. 
 
 Bullocks unaccustomed to the yoke are the obstinate Jer. 31. 18. 
 
 Bulls, the wicked compass the righteous as . . Ps. 22. 12. 
 
 Bulwarks, salvation of God as . ... Is. 26. i. 
 
 ^/7>;-, a bribe-taking judge as a .... Mic.y.4. 
 
 Burden cast on the Lord Ps. 55. 22. 
 
 Cake, Ephraim is a cake not turned . . . Eos. 7. 8. 
 
 Ca^e full of unclean birds, Babylon is, Rev. 18. 2, 
 
 and sinners are Jer. 5. 27. 
 
 Carl rope, sin drawn in as with a . . . . /5. 5. 18. 
 
 Candlestick of the unfaithful removed . . . Rev. 2, 5. 
 
 6(?cZ(:(fr, righteous flourish as a Ps. g2. 21. 
 
 Crooked nation the Jews, Beut. 32. 5; so sinners . PA. 2. 15. 
 
 Crows fed by God, though they sow not . . . Luke 1 2. 24. 
 
 i^e^f 6?, the wicked twice ..... Jude 12. it,. 
 
 i)/*/^, Jerusalem wiped out as a .... 2 Kings 21. i-^. 
 
 Bream, the wicked fly away as a . . . . Job 20. 8. 
 
 Dro;? of a bucket, the nations before God as . . Z^. 40. 15. 
 
 Broioned in perdition by foolish lusts . . . i Tim. 6. 9. 
 
 Bust, small, of the balance, the nations like . . Is. 40. 15, 
 
 Brinking in iniquity like water .... Job 15. 16. 
 
 Z)?<pe//?^^ of Christ in the heart by faith . . . Eph. 2,' ij- 
 Bnemy, death the last, to be conquered . . .1 Cor. 15. 26. 
 
 2?V^^^ the good fight of faith . . . . . i Jm. 6. 12. 
 
272 SCRIPTURE SIMILES 
 
 Filthy lucre Tit. i. 7. 
 
 Finger of God seen in Moses' miracles . . . Fx. 8. 19. 
 
 Gaining the world losing the soul .... Luke 9. 25. 
 
 Groans of creation for sin Eom. 8. 22. 
 
 Ifrt/^m^ between two opinions . . . . i Kings iS. 21, 
 
 Ilandbreadth, our days as an, before God . . Fs. 39. 5. 
 
 Harvest, the, of repentance passed .... Jer. 8. 20. 
 
 Heath in the desert, is like trusting only in man . Jer. 17. 6. 
 
 Hedge of thorns, way of slothful as a . . . Frov. 15. 19. 
 
 Heel lifted up by Judas against Christ . . . Fs. 49. 9. 
 
 Helmet, the Christian's, the hope of salvation . . i 'Lhess. 5. 8. 
 Hiding-place from the wind, Christ a . . .Is. 32. 2. 
 
 Hireling, man looks for the reward of his work as an Job 7. 2. 
 
 Hissing, Babylon shall be as an . . . . Jer. 51. 37. 
 Honeijcomh, a bad woman's lips like, but her end 
 
 wormwood Proe?. 5.3. 
 
 Horn of the righteous shall be exalted , . . . Fs. 112. 9. 
 
 Hosts of angels praise God . . . . . Fs. 148. 2. 
 
 Idolatry, covetousness is Col. 3. 5. 
 
 Itching ears to those heaping up teachers . . 2 Tim. 4. 3 . 
 
 Lead, Egyptians sunk like, in the "Red Sea . . Fx.\^.\o. 
 
 Loan to God, the merciful man makes . . . Frov. 19. 17. 
 
 Madness in the heart of the wicked . . . Eccl. 9. 3. 
 
 J^oMer of all is Jerusalem above .... Gal. ^.26. 
 
 Noonday, innocence of righteous manifested as . Fs. 2,7. 5. 
 Nose of Sennacherib, God put his hook in . .2 Kings 19. 28. 
 
 Nursing fathers, kings will be to the Church . . Is. 49. 23. 
 
 Ocean depths, the Believer's sins cast into . . Mic. 7. 19. 
 
 Or^;^, day of judgment shall burn as . . . Mai. 4.1. 
 
 P«;^/i of the just, a shining light .... Frov. 4.. 18. 
 
 P«y«7?o;^, the believer hid in God's . . . . P5. 27.4, 5. 
 
 Fierce themselves with many sorrows, the rich do . i Tim. 6. 9. 
 
 P/7^^^/<?^, God's judgments laid to the . . . Zs-. 28. 17. 
 
 Fillar in God's temple, the believer is a . . . Fev. 3. 12. 
 Fags, our righteousness as filthy . . . .Is. 64. 6. 
 
 Fain of God's fury on the wicked .... Job 20. 23. 
 
 Rivers, broad, God as a place of . . . . Z^. 33. 21. 
 
 Schoolmaster the law to bring us to Christ . . Gal. 3. 24. 
 
 Scroll, heavens will depart as a . . . . Rev. 6. 14. 
 Shadow of evening desired by the servant, so death 
 
 wished for by Christian Job 7. 2. 
 
 Shining of face by wisdom Led. 8. i. 
 
 Song, a lovely one, those hearing not doing are like . Fz. 33. 32. 
 
 6'^m?^ between life and death .... Pi^. i. 23. 
 
 Staying on Ggd, the mind is in perfect peace . . Is. 26. 3. 
 
ILLUSTRATIVE OF TEXTS. 273 
 
 SprinJding of the conscience with pure water . . Ileb. 10. 22. 
 
 Store for fire, earth kept as a 2 Pet. 2,. 7. 
 
 Stubble before the wind, the wicked as . . . Is. 40. 24. 
 
 Tooth broken, confidence in the unfaithful as . . Prov. 25. 19. 
 
 Toiver of refuge is God to the righteous . . . Prov. 13. 10. 
 
 rz-ee of life, a wholesome tongue as a . . . Prov. 1$. 4. 
 
 7nm;} of God at last day i Thess. 4. j6. 
 
 Fail on the Jew's heart when Moses read . . 2 Cor. 3. 15. 
 
 Vessels of wrath fitted to destruction are the wicked. Rom. 9. 22. 
 
 F'^^^z^r^, earth changed as a Heb.i.ii. 
 
 Washing their robes in the Lamb's blood . . Rev. 7. 14. 
 
 Water., as cold, to a thirsty soul, so good news . Prov. 25. 25. 
 
 /r^e shifting, the doubting like .... Jas.i.6. 
 
 fPa.v meltetli, so the wicked perish .... Ps. 68. 2. 
 
 /F^^w^r*? child, David's soul as a .... P*. 131.2. 
 
 Winepress of God's wrath, trodden by the wicked . Rev. 19. 15. 
 
 Witness, conscience Sk Rom. 2.1^. 
 
 Wolvesy the wicked inwardly as ravening . . . Mat. 7. 15. 
 
 Wrestling against the flesh, the devil, and the world Eph. 6. 12. 
 
ILLUSTEATIONS IN THE BIBLE OF 
 ORIENTAL CUSTOMS. 
 
 Abraham entertains angels under a tree, chapatis or 
 
 flour cakes prepared Gen. iS. 4. 
 
 A wife selected for Isaac by an {ghatalc) intermediate 
 
 agent Gen. 24. 4. 
 
 A stone anointed by Jacob witli 0// . . . Geii. 2Z.\Z. 
 
 Laban refused to marry his younger daughter to 
 
 Jacob before the elder was married . . . Gen. 29. 6. 
 
 Esau reconciled to Jacob falls on his knees . . Gen. 33. 4. 
 Jacob orders his family to change their garments 
 
 before worship ... . . Gen. 35. 2. 
 
 Water to wash the feet of Joseph's brethren . . Gen. 43. 24. 
 
 The Egyptians would not mt with the Jews . . Gen. 43. 32. 
 Joseph gave his brethren changes of raiment after the 
 
 feast G^(?«. 45.22. 
 
 Moses ordered to pit off his shoes on holy ground . Kv. 3.5. 
 
 First born of man and beast sanctified to God. . Ex. 13. 2. 
 
 The Jews danced before the golden calf . . . Ex. 32. 19. 
 
 The^;r on the altar perpetually burning . . Lev. 6. 13. 
 
 7r<r/ifi?n;^^ seed with the foot Dent. \\. 10. 
 
 Deborah the prophetess lived under a palm tree . Judges 4. 5. 
 The servant, Uriah, slept at the door of the King's 
 
 house 2 Sard. 11. 9. 
 
 David, after grieving for his child, anoints his body, 
 
 and changes his garments .... 2 Sam. 12.20. 
 
 The Idol Baal said to be slee'ping . . . . i Kings 18. 27. 
 
 Naboth refuses to sell his fathers inheritance . . i Kings 21. 3. 
 
 Queen Jezebel eaten by dogs i Kings 21. 23. 
 
 A present from the king to Elisha .... 2 Kings 8. 8. 
 
 The Jewish women tinkled with their feet . . Isaiah 3. 16. 
 
 God puts a hook in the nose of the Assyrian king . Isaiah yj. 29. 
 
 Women sewing pillows to all arm-holes . . . Ezek, 13. 18. 
 
ILLUSTRATIONS OF ORIENTAL CUSTOMS. 275 
 
 Pharisees sounded a trumpet on givinj^ alms . . Mat. 6. 2. 
 Two women grindinpj at a mill on Jerusalem being 
 
 besieged by Romans i^f/a;^. 24. 41. 
 
 A woman poured fragrant ointment on Christ. . Mat. 14. 3. 
 
 The ^^if^^i^ c/^«;;i^^r for Christ's Last Supper . . Mark 14. 14. 
 
 Christ in a caravan when young .... Luke 2. 44. 
 
 Where the carcass is tlie vultures will be . . Luke 17. 2,7- 
 
 Marvel at Christ's talking with a looman . . John 4. 27. 
 
 Blind man's sins of 2^ former birth . . . . John 9. 2. 
 
 Lazarus' sisters go to his grave to loeep . . . John 11. 31. 
 
 Christ's coat without seam John ig. 2^' 
 
 Peter went to the housetop to pray . . . Jets 10. 9. 
 
 Por Peter and Paul ^«r/^;2(/5 were brought . . Acts 14. it,. 
 
 Paul brought up at the feet of his guru (teacher) . Acts 22. 2. 
 
 See also Gen. 15. 4; 16. 3 ; 24. 11 ; 33. 60; 29. 18; 43. 34. 
 Lev. 22. 13. Num. 6. 18; 22. 6. Deut. 23. 10; 25. 4. Josh. 15. 8 
 I Sam. 9. 7 ; 17. 43. i Kings 3. 4, 20, 38. 2 Kings 5.12. Job 24 
 16. Ps. 26.6; 44.20; 45.7; 58.4.5; 78.63; 80.13; 81.3 
 104. 2; 133.2. Prov. II. 21; 21. I. Eccl. 9.8. Cantic. 5.3 
 Is. 18.2; 32.20; 45.3; 46.7; 60.4. Jer. 16. 6; 44. 17. Lam 
 I.I. Ez. 9. 4; 23.40; 44.25. Amos 5.19; 6. II; Mat. i. 18 
 2. 18; 5. 8; 6. 5; 6.7; 7. 26; 10. 12; 14. II, 21; 18. 25; 22. 24 
 28. 9. Mark 7.2; 10. 5 ; 14. 14 ; 20. 52 . Luke 2.7; 3.4; 5.14; 
 8. 27; 14. 16; 15. 22; 18, 15. John 2. 8; 4. 20; 5. 9; 8. 6. Acts 
 14. u. I Cor. 10. 25; II. 6. Gal. 6. 17. Rev. 13. 15. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 Ai>DER, wicked as a deaf, 93 
 Affliction, a chastening, 105; a cup, 
 
 197; a furnace, 213; a refining, 
 
 -251; a rod, 61, 246 
 Almsgiving a watering, 1 86 
 Altar, Christ an, 192 
 Anchor of hope, 94 
 Angels encamp, 204 
 Anger, rests in fool's bosom, 7; of 
 
 God as smoke, 172; anger produces 
 
 strife, 12 
 Angry fool as a bear, 3 
 Ant teaches sluggard, i 
 Appearances deceitful, 2 
 Appearance, evil, avoid, 2 
 Apple of eye. Providence guards as, 
 
 116; apples of gold, 191 
 Arms, everlasting, of God, 192 
 Arrows of punishment, God's, 96; 
 
 arrows of slander, 76 
 Ass, wild, man as, 4 
 Atonement, an altar, 192; a blotting 
 
 out, 199; a bitter cup, 197; a 
 
 making white, 247; a propitiation, 
 
 Axe of punishment, 96 
 
 Bags of holiness, 193 
 
 Bear robbed of whelps, angry as, 3 
 
 Beautiful but ignorant, as a jewel 
 in a swine's snout, 5; beauty fades 
 as a leaf, 44; beautiful as a moth, 
 16 
 
 Beginning, not finishing, 5 ; be- 
 ginning of strife, 85 
 
 Belly of glutton his god, 6 
 
 Bible, as seed, 165; sword of the 
 Spirit, 260 
 
 Blind, sinners, 98 
 
 Blotting out debt, 199 
 
 Boaster, a rainless cloud, 18 
 
 Body, crushed as the moth, 16 ; an 
 earthen vessel, 178, 261; as giass, 
 
 40; house of clay, 16 ; a house, 48 ; 
 
 a sacrifice, 159; a tent, 80, 218 
 Bones, rottenness of envy in, 64 
 Book cram, 7 
 
 Book of life at judgment, 99 
 Born again, 194 
 
 Bosom of fools, anger rests in, 7 
 Brands plucked from the fire, 100 
 Brass, sounding, lip- love as, 45 ; 
 
 shameless have brow of brass, 9. 
 Bread cast on waters, 100; Christ 
 
 the bread, 194 
 Brook, deceitful brethren as, 10 
 Brotherly love a three-fold cord, 
 
 21 
 
 Brow of brass, shameless have, 9 
 
 Builder, God a, 10 1 
 
 Buried with Christ, who, 195 
 
 Burthen of sin, 102 
 
 Busy bodies taking dog by the ears, 
 
 10 
 Butter, words of hypocrite are, 12 ; 
 
 as butter from milk, so strife from 
 
 wrath, 12 
 
 Camel and needle's eye, 102 
 
 Captives, wicked are, 103 
 
 Caste, 13 
 
 Ceremonialism, 13 
 
 Chafi", wicked as, 15 
 
 Chains of darkness, 195 
 
 Charity covers sins, 1 1 1 
 
 Chastising of sin, 105 ; chastising a 
 rod, 61, 246 
 
 Chastity, 104 
 
 Cheerfulness, 15 
 
 Children, humble as, 107 
 
 Choked with care, 104 
 
 Christ, an altar, 192 ; bread, 194; 
 first fruits of sleepers, 213 ; a 
 foundation, 208; a friend, 212; a 
 head, 234; a lamb, 229; a lily, 
 239 ; his legacy, 230 ; his second 
 
INDEX, 
 
 VI 
 
 coming like lightning, 231 ; look- 
 ing to, 233 ; a physician, 239 ; a 
 rose— star of morning, 253 ; sun, 
 176; way, 122; well, 266; woman's 
 seed, 249 ; epistles of Christ, 
 
 115 
 
 Chukch, a great family, 205 ; a gar- 
 den, 215 ; its head Christ, 234; a 
 kingdom, 228 ; the moon, 237 
 
 City, the heavenly, 196 
 
 Clay, man as, Grod the potter, 56 ; 
 body, a house of, 16 
 
 Cloud, boaster a rainless, 18; the fickle 
 a cloud, 19 ; wicked a cloud with- 
 out water, 18 
 
 Coals of fire and melting love, 19 
 
 CoMPANT, bad, as darkness, 25 
 
 Conscience asleep, 171; seared, 164; 
 worm of, 88 
 
 Content, 196; gain of, 21 
 
 Conversion, a, born again, 194; brands 
 from burning, 100 
 
 Cord of love, threefold, 2 1 
 
 Corn, shock of, death of righteous as, 
 109 
 
 Courage of righteous as lions, 136 
 
 Courteousness, 24 
 
 CovETOuSNESS, root of all evil, 62 
 
 Crackling of thorns, the world as, 22 
 
 Crown of glory for old age, 48 
 
 Cruel man troubles his own flesh, 24 
 
 Cup, bitter, of Christ, 197 
 
 Darkness, bad company as, 25; chains 
 
 of outer darkness, 195 
 Day of eternity, 143 ; our days a 
 
 shadow, 86 
 Bead bury dead, in; righteous dead 
 
 and corn, 109 ; dead and tree, 262 ; 
 
 dead and water spilled, 86 
 Death, congregation of, 113; keys of 
 
 death, 226 ; death of righteous a 
 
 sleep, 171: an unsetting sun, 177; 
 
 a sting, 73 ; a valley, 180 ; death, 
 
 wages of sin, 180 ; warfare of, 84 ; 
 
 a rest, 244 
 Debt of love, 27 
 iJeceit, bread of, as gravel, 46 ; a 
 
 brook, 199 
 Decision, 27 
 Deeds, not words, 28 
 Dew of the morning, the fickle as, 19 ; 
 
 Providence as dew, 199 
 Dogs and holy things, 29 ; living dog 
 
 and dead lion, 140; busybody taking 
 
 dog by ears, 10 
 Door of heart, who knocks at, zzg 
 
 Double-minded, 28 
 Dove, meek as, 30 
 Dross, who are, 3 1 
 Drunkenness, 113 
 
 Eagles' wings, mounting on, 2 32 ; 
 
 riches fly as, 114 
 Earnest of the Spirit, 203 
 Ears of wicked hear not, 93 
 Earthen vessel of body, 178 
 Education, 1x5 
 Encampment of angels, 204 
 Envy, rottenness of the bones, 64 
 Epistles not in ink, 115 
 Ethiopian's skin, natural sin, 32 
 Example, 204 
 Eye of faith, 33; mote in eye, 51; 
 
 eye, single, of purity, 107 
 
 Faith, a dead, 119; an eye, 33; 
 
 as gold, 217; a shield, 250; a 
 
 stronghold, 176 
 Family, the greatest, 205 
 Father, God a, 117; father of lies, 
 
 Satan, 205 
 Fear of Gfod, fountain of life, 38 
 Feet keep in Grod's house, 206 
 Fickle as morning cloud, 19 
 First fruits of sleepers, Christ, 213 
 Flesh, the cruel troubles his, 24; sow- 
 ing to, 70 ; one, man and wife, 1 40 
 Flies in ointment, little sins as, 35 
 Flood, life as, 36 
 Flower, life as, 37 
 Fool, as a bear, 8 ; brayed in a mortar, 
 
 8 ; among the dead, 1 1 3 
 Forehead of righteous, God's name 
 
 on, 208 
 Forgiving like coals of fire, 19 ; God 
 
 by forgiving blots out, 199 
 Fountain, God a, 210; God's fear a 
 
 fountain, 38 ; heart fountain of 
 
 action, 38 
 Fowler, Satan a, 211 
 Foxes, wicked as, 38 
 Friend, Christ a, 212 ; friendship, 39 
 Fruits of righteous, 1 19 
 Furnace of afiiiction, 213 
 
 Garden, spiritual, 215 
 Garment, the earth an old, 12 1 
 Gate of holiness, narrow one, 122 
 Girdle of truth, 122 
 Glass, the world a dark, 124; looking- 
 glass, heaven like a, 125 
 Glutton, the belly his god, 6 
 Goads, words of wise are, 190 
 
278 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Goate, wicked ae, 40 ; wild goats, 
 righteous protected as, 127 
 
 God a builder, 101 ; a father, 1 17 ; a 
 fountain, 210; a judge, 131; a 
 potter, 56 
 
 Gold, less value than faith, 217 
 
 Gospel net, 143 
 
 Grace a river, 157 
 
 Grass, man as, 40 
 
 Gratitude, 41 
 
 Grave a rest to righteous, 244 
 
 Gravel in the mouth, deceit, 46 
 
 Graving on hand by Providence, 135 
 
 Groans of body, 218 
 
 Guide, God a sure, 47 
 
 Hand, the right, of God, 218 
 Hart, thirst, so prayer, 220 
 Hastening with feet stumbles, 75 
 Head, hoary, of righteous a crown, 
 
 48 
 Hearers not doers a looking-glass, 
 
 125 ; a house on sand, 49 
 Heart of sinner stony, 74 
 Heaven a city, 196; a home, 221 ; 
 
 a treasure house, 180; wedding 
 
 garment for, 187 
 Hell, blackness of darkness, 198 
 Helm, the tongue a, 128 
 Hen, Providence shelters as a, 128 
 Hidden man of the heart is soman's 
 
 ornament, 52 
 Holiness has God's name on the fore- 
 head, 208 ; a gate, 122 ; a race, ' 
 
 152 ; a service, 249 ; walking with | 
 
 God, 262 ; a wedding garment, 
 
 187 ; white raiment, 203 
 Holy Spirit, an earnest, 203; as 
 
 oil, 238 ; as rain, 59 ; seals, 248 ; 
 
 as water, 263 ; wind, 266 
 Home, heavenly, 221 
 Honesty, 129 
 Hope, an anchor, 94 ; hope of the 
 
 hypocrite a rush, 66 ; vain hope a 
 
 spider's web, 71 
 Hospitality, 129 
 House, the body, 48 ; house of old 
 
 age, 144 ; house on sand, 49 ; 
 
 heaven. Father's house, 221 
 Humble as little child, 107 
 Husbandman perseveres, 150 
 Husbandry, righteous, are God's, 222 
 Hypocrite as spider's web, 7 1 ; whited 
 
 sepulchre, 66 ; as butter, 12 
 
 Idleness makes the house drop 
 through, 42 
 
 Ignorant and beautiful, as jewel in 
 swine's snout, 5 ; ignorant and the 
 swallow, 75 
 
 Incense of prayer, 224 
 
 Inheritance, the unfading, 225 
 
 Inner man, 43 
 
 Intermeddler takes dog by the ears, 
 10 
 
 Jewels, who are God's, 129 ; jewel 
 
 in swine's snout, 5 
 Joy, worldly, the crackling of thorns, 
 
 22 
 Judgment Day, Book of Life opened, 
 
 99; God the Judge, 131 
 Justice, 226 
 
 Keys of death, who keeps, 226 
 Kings spiritual, who, 226 
 Kingdom, the immovable one, 228 
 Knowledge, 132 
 
 Lamb of God, 229 
 
 Lamp of wicked put out, 44 
 
 Leaf, man^fades as a, 44 
 
 Legacy, the spiritual, 230 
 
 Leprosy, the spiritual, 133 
 
 Liberality as bread on the waters, 
 100 ; a watering, 186 
 
 Life, a flood, 36 ; a flower, 37 ; a 
 leaf, 44 ; a night, 143 ; a post, 
 26 ; a shadow, 168 ; a vapour, 82 ; 
 a warfare, 182 ; a worm, 89 
 
 Lightning, Christ's coming as, 231 
 
 Lily among thorns, 1 79 
 
 Lion, righteous as, 136 ; a dead lion 
 and dog, 140; oppressor a crouch- 
 ing lion, 139 
 
 Looking to Jesus, 233 
 
 Love to enemies coals of fire, 19 ; lip 
 love, 45 
 
 Meekness, as a dove, 30, 234 
 
 Members of Christ, who, 234 
 
 Merchant, the spiritual, 236 
 
 Masters, two, no serving, 27 
 
 Means, use the, 45 
 
 Miser, 141 
 
 Moderation, 50 
 
 Moon and Church, 237 
 
 Morning star, who, 25 
 
 Mortar, braying a fool in, 8 ; un- 
 
 tempered mortar, so false peace, 
 
 141 
 Mote in brother's eye, 5 1 
 Moth, body as, 16 
 Mountains, 142 
 
INDEX. 
 
 279 
 
 Nail, wise words of as a, 190 
 Neck, stiff, 51 
 Night of life, 143 
 
 Obstinate neck-hardened, 5 r 
 
 Oil, Holy Spirit as, 238 
 
 Old Age an old house, 48 ; old age 
 
 of the righteous a crown, 144 ; a 
 
 shock of corn, 109 ; an unsetting 
 
 sun, 177 
 Oppression a crouching lion, 139 ; a 
 
 sweeping rain, 147 
 Ornament, woman's the liidden, 52 
 
 Palm, righteous flourish as a, 148 
 
 Passions as seas, 160 
 
 Patient as husbandmen, 53 
 
 Peace false as untempered mortar, 
 141 
 
 Pearls before swine, 54 
 
 Perfection, 55 
 
 Perseverance, 150 
 
 Physician, the great, 239 
 
 Pilgrims on earth, 241 
 
 Pit of destruction, 243 
 
 Plough, gospel a, 223 
 
 Poison, sin a, 55 
 
 Polygamy, 150 
 
 Post, time as a, 138 
 
 Potter, God as a, 56 
 
 Prayer, hart's thirst, 220; as incense, 
 224 ; mounting on eagle's wings, 
 202 
 
 Prevention better than cure, 151 
 
 Pride, 151 
 
 Pkovidencb, arms of, 192 ; graves 
 his people, 135; dew, 199; as a 
 hen, 128 ; guards as apple of eye, 
 116 ; a shepherd, 68 ; wall of fire, 
 83; sure guide, 47; a stay, 72 
 
 Prudence, 57 
 
 Punctuality, 58, 152 
 Punisliment an arrow, 90 ; an axe, 
 96; a storm, 255 
 
 Purity a single eye, 107 
 
 Race, heavenly, 152 
 
 Raiment, white of, holiness, 247 
 
 Rain, God's influence as, 59; sweep- 
 ingrain, an oppressor as, 147 
 
 Redeeming time, 61 
 
 Reed, humble as, 154 
 
 Refuge, Providence a, 155 
 
 Rending of repentance, 156 
 
 Repentance, a rending, 156 ; death- 
 bed, 198 
 
 Rest of the grave, 244 
 
 Resurrection a reaping, 252 
 
 Rich, and needle's eye, 102; money on 
 
 eagle's wings, 114; stewards, 175 
 Righteous God's husbandry, 222 ; 
 
 jewels, 129; palm trees, 148; 
 
 salt, 67; sheep, 169; stars, 174; 
 
 soldiers, 173; trees by river side, 
 
 174 
 River of God's grace, 157 
 Rod of chastisement, 61, 246 
 Root of all evil, covetousness, 62 
 Rottenness of bones is envy, 64 
 Rush in the mire, worldly hope as, 66 
 
 Sacrifice of the body and of praise, 
 
 159 
 
 Salt of the earth, 67 
 
 Sand, house on, 49 
 
 Satan father of lies, 205 : in chain?, 
 
 195 
 
 Scarlet, sins red as, 247 
 
 Sea of passion, 160 
 
 Sealing of the Spirit, 248 
 
 Seared conscience, 164 
 
 Seed, woman's, bruises serpent's 
 
 head, 249; seed of God's word, 165 
 Self-conceit, 168 
 Self-respect, 249 
 Selfishness, 168 
 Sepulchres, whited, 66 
 Serpent, 249 
 Servants, God's, 249 
 Shadow, life a, 68 
 Sheep, righteous are, 169 
 Shepherd, the good, 68 
 Shield of faith, 250 
 Ship, time as a swift, 1 2)^ 
 Shipwrecked soul, 170 
 Silver refined, the righteous are, 251 
 Sin a burthen, 102 ; a debt, 199; as 
 
 Ethiopian's skin, 32 ; leprosy, 33 ; 
 
 little sin, as dead flies, 35 ; poison, 
 
 55 ; wages of, 83. 
 Slander a sharp arrow, 76 
 Sleep of death, 171; sleep of con- 
 science, [71 
 Sluggard taught by ant, i 
 Smoke of God's anger, 172 
 Soldier, the spiritual, 173 
 Sowing to the fiesh, 70; sowing ofbhs 
 
 dead, 252 
 Spider's web, a hypocrite, 71 
 Star of the morning, Christ the, 253 ; 
 
 righteous as a star, 74 
 Stay, Providence a, 72 
 Stewards, rich are only, 175 
 Stiff-necked, 51 * 
 
►8o 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Sting of death, sin, 73 
 
 Stony heart, 74 
 
 Stork knows his time, 73 
 
 Storm of Grod's wrath, 255 
 
 Strangers on earth, 256 
 
 Strife, beginning of, as letting out 
 
 ■water, 85 
 Stronghold, God the, 176 
 Sun of righteousness, Christ the, 176; 
 
 sun of the righteous sets not, 1 77 
 Swallow, ignorant, worse than, 75 
 Swine's snout, jewel in, 5 ; pearls 
 
 before SM'ine, 54 
 Sword, the spiritual, 260 
 Sympathy, false, 76 
 
 Talking, not doing, as sounding brass, 
 
 45 
 Temperance or self-control, 77 
 Temptation, 78 
 Tent, body a, 80, 218 
 Thorns crackling, so worldly joy, 12 
 
 wicked are thorns, 179 
 Time a mail-post, T38 ; a ship, 138 
 
 redeeming, 61; known to stork, 73 
 Tongue, a fire, 34 ; a helm, 1 28 
 
 wheel of nature, fired by, 90 
 Treasure, heavenly, in earthen vessels, 
 
 178, ■261; treasure in heaven, 180 
 Tree,man revives notas,262: righteous 
 
 a tree, 1 74 
 Truth a girdle, 122 
 
 Valley of death, 180 
 Vapour, life a, 82 
 Vessels, earthly, 178, 261 
 
 "Wages of sill— death, 83 
 
 Wall of fire round the good, 63 
 
 Walking with God, 262 
 
 War of death, 84; spiritual war, 182 
 
 Watchmen, spiritual, 184 
 
 .Water, letting out, as strife, 85; dead 
 
 as water spilled, 86 ; Holy Spirit 
 
 as, 263 ; liberal as, 186 
 Wave, double-minded as, 28 
 Way, narrow, 122 ; Christ the, 122 ; 
 
 way leading to heaven, 264 
 Web of spider and vain hopes, 71 
 Wedding garment of holiness, 187 
 Well, Christ a, 266 
 Wheel of nature, fired by tongue, 90 
 Whirlwind; wicked pass a, 87 
 White garments, 247 
 Wind, Holy Spirit as, 266 
 Wicked, an adder, 93 ; v/ild ass, 4 ; 
 
 blind, 98; captive, 103; chafi", 15 ; 
 
 clouds without water, 18 ; dross, 
 
 31; hear not, 93; foxes, 38; goats, 40; 
 
 lamp put out, 44 ; locust, igo ; a 
 
 sea, 160; thorns, 179 ; whirlwind, 
 
 87 ; wolves, 190 
 Wilderness of the world, 187 
 Wings of riches, 114 ; wings of the 
 
 sun, 258 
 White garments of holiness, 247 
 Wife and husband one flesh, 140 
 Witness, a false one, 76 ; the witness 
 
 of believers, 202 
 Wolves, wicked are, 1 90 
 World a dark glass, 124 ; a night, I43; 
 
 an old garment, 121; a wilderness, 
 
 187 
 Worm of conscience, 88 ; man a worm, 
 
 89 
 Words, fit, apples of gold, 191 ; good 
 
 words goads and nails, 190 
 Wrath from strife as butter from milk, 
 
 12 ; God's wrath, 255 
 Woman's ornament, the hidden man of 
 
 the heart, 52; woman's seed bruises 
 
 serpent's head, 249 
 Writing, righteous are God's, 1 15 
 
 Yoke of Christ easy, 2C7 
 
 fRINTED BY BALLANTYNE, HANSON AND CO. 
 LONDON AND EDINBURGH 
 
TRiiBNER'S ORIENTAL SERIES. 
 
 Messrs. TRUBNER & CO. beg to call attention to their 
 ORIENTAL SERIES, in which will be collected, as far as 
 possible, all extant information and research upon the History^ 
 Religions, Languages, Literature, cfcc, of Ancient India, China, and 
 the East in general. 
 
 The Oriental Series will be on a comprehensive design, and 
 no labour or expense will be spared to render the undertaking 
 worthy of its subject. Messrs. Trubner & Co. have already- 
 secured the services of eminent Eastern students and writers ; 
 and while the labour proposed must necessarily prove vast, they 
 intend to accomplish it by working with many able hands over 
 the whole field, under careful and well-organised Editorship. 
 
 THE FOLLOWING WORKS ARE NOW READY:— 
 Second Edition, post 8vo, cloth, pp. xvi.— 427, price i6s. 
 
 ESSAYS ON THE SACRED LANGUAGE, WRITINGS, 
 AND RELIGION OF THE PARSIS. 
 
 By martin HAUG, Ph.D., 
 
 Late of the Universities of Tubingen, Gottingen, and Bonn ; Superintendent 
 of Sanskrit Studies, and Professor of Sanskrit in the Poona College ; 
 Honorary Member of the Bombay Branch Royal Asiatic Society, &c. 
 
 Edited by Dr. E. W. WEST. 
 
 I. History of the Researches into the Sacred Writings and Religion of the 
 
 Parsis, from the Earliest Times down to the Present. 
 II. Languages of the Parsi Scriptures. 
 
 III. The Zend-Avesta, or the Scripture of the Parsis. 
 
 IV. The Zoroastrian Religion, as to its Origin and Development. 
 
 The Author of these Essays intended, after his return from India, to 
 expand them into a comprehensive work on the Zoroastrian religion ; but 
 this design, postponed from time to time, was finally frustrated by his 
 untimely death. That he was not spared to publish all his varied know- 
 ledge on this subject must remain for ever a matter of regret to the student 
 of Iranian antiquities. In other hands, the changes that could be introduced 
 into this Second Edition were obviously limited to such additions and 
 alterations as the lapse of time and the progress of Zoroastrian studies have 
 rendered necessary. 
 
 In the First Essay, the history of the European researches has been extended 
 to the present time ; but for the sake of brevity several writings have been 
 passed over unnoticed, among the more valuable of which those of Professor 
 
TRUBNER'S ORIENTAL SERIES. 
 
 Hiibschmann may be specially mentioned. Some account has also been given 
 of the progress of Zoroastrian studies among the Parsis themselves. 
 
 In the Second Essay, additional information has been given about tha 
 Pahlavi language and literature ; but the technical portion of the Avesta 
 Grammar has been reserved for separate publication, being better adapted 
 for students than for the general reader. 
 
 Some additions have been made to the Third Essay, with the view of 
 bringing together, from other sources, all the Author's translations from the 
 Avesta, except those portions of the GMhas which he did not include in the 
 First Edition, and which it would be hazardous for an Editor to revise. 
 Further details have also been given regarding the contents of the Nasks. 
 
 Several additional translations having been found among the Author's 
 papers, too late for insertion in the Third Essay, have been added in an 
 Appendix, after careful revision, together with his notes descriptive of the 
 mode of performing a few of the Zoroastrian ceremonies. 
 
 The Author's principal object in publishing these Essays originally, was 
 to present in a readable form all the materials for judging impartially of the 
 scriptures and religion of the Parsis. The same object has been kept in view 
 while preparing this Second Edition, giving a large quantity of such materials, 
 collected from a variety of sources, which may now be left to the reader's 
 impartial judgment. 
 
 The value of this Second Edition is greatly enhanced by the addition of many 
 posthumous papers, discovered by the Editor, Dr. E. AVest, at Munich. They 
 consist of further translations from the Zend and Pahlavi of the Zend-Avesta, 
 and also of numerous detailed notes descriptive of some of the Parsi ceremonies. 
 
 "We have, in a concise and readable form, a history of the researches into the 
 sacred writings and religion of the Parsis from the earliest times down to the 
 present. "— Ti »ies. 
 
 Post 8vo, cloth, pp. viii. — 176, price 7s. 6d. 
 TEXTS FROM THE BUDDHIST CANON 
 
 COMMONLY KNOWN AS " DHAMMAPADA." 
 With Accompanying Narratives. 
 
 Translated from the Chinese by S. BEAL, B.A., Professor of Chinese, 
 University College, London. 
 
 Among the great body of books comprising the Chinese Buddhist Canon, 
 presented by the Japanese Government to the Library of the India Office, 
 Mr. Beal discovered a work bearing the title of " Law Verses, or Scriptural 
 Texts," which on examination was seen to resemble the Pali version of 
 Dhammapada in many particulars. It was further discovered that the 
 original recension of the Pali Text found its way into China in the Third 
 Century (a.d.), where the work of translation was finished, and afterwards 
 thirteen additional sections added. The Dhammapada, as hitherto known 
 by the Pali Text Edition, as edited by Fausboll, by Max Miiller's English, 
 and Albrecht Weber's German translations, consists only of twenty-six 
 chapters or sections, whilst the Chinese version, or rather recension, as now 
 translated by Mr. Beal, consists of thirty-nine sections. The students of 
 Pali who possess Fausboll's text, or either of the above-named translations, 
 will therefore needs want Mr. Beal's English rendering of the Chinese 
 version ; the thirteen above-named additional sections not being accessible to 
 them in any other form ; for, even if they understand Chinese, the Chinese 
 original would be unobtainable by them. 
 
 "Mr. Beal's rendering of the Chinese translation is a most valuable aid to the 
 critical study of the work." — Times. 
 
 •■ "Mr. Beal, by making it accessible in an English dress, has added to the great 
 services he has already rendered to the comparative study of religious history." — 
 Academy. 
 
TR UBNER'S ORIENTAL SERIES. 
 
 " Valuable as exhibiting the doctrine of the Buddhists in its purest, least adul- 
 terated form, it brings the modern reader face to face with that simple creed and rule 
 of conduct which won its way over the minds of myriads, and which is now nominally 
 professed by 145 millions, who have overlaid its austere simplicity with innumerable 
 ceremonies, forgotten its maxims, perverted its teaching, and so inverted its leading 
 principle that a religion whose founder denied a God, now worships that founder as 
 a god himself. " — Scotsman. 
 
 Post 8x0, cloth, pp. xxiii. — 360, price i8s. 
 THE HISTORY OF INDIAN LITERATURE. 
 
 By ALBRECHT WEBER. 
 
 Translated from the Second German Edition by John Mann, M.A., and 
 Theodor Zachariae, Ph.D., with the sanction of the Author. 
 
 Dr. BuHLER, Inspector of Schools in India, writes: — "I am extremely- 
 glad to learn that you are about to publish an English translation of Pro- 
 fessor A. Weber's ' History of Indian Literature.' When I was Professor of 
 Oriental Languages in Elphinstone College, I frequently felt the want of 
 such a work to which I could refer the students. I trust that the work 
 which you are now publishing will become a class-book in all the Indian 
 colleges, as it is the first and only scientific one which deals with the whole 
 field of Vedic, Sanskrit, and Prakrit literature." 
 
 Professor Cowell, of Cambridge, writes: — "The English translation of 
 Professor A. Weber's ' History of Indian Literature ' will be of the greatest 
 use to those who wish to take a comprehensive survey of all that the Hindu 
 mind has achieved. It will be especially useful to the students in our 
 Indian colleges and universities. I used to long for such a book when I was 
 teaching in Calcutta. Hindu students are intensely interested in the history 
 of Sanskrit literature, and this volume will supply them with all they want 
 on the subject. I hope it will be made a text-book wherever Sanskrit and 
 English are taught." 
 
 Professor Whitney, Yale College, Newhaven, Conn., U.S.A., writes :— 
 " I am the more interested in your enterprise of the publication of Weber's 
 Sanskrit Literature in an English version, as I was one of the class to whom 
 the work was originally given in the form of academic lectures. At their 
 first appearance they were by far the most learned and able treatment of 
 their subject ; and with their recent additions they still maintain decidedly 
 the same rank. Wherever the language, and institutions, and history of 
 India are studied, they must be used and referred to as authority. " 
 
 " Is perhaps the most comprehensive and lucid survey of Sanskrit literature 
 extant. The essays contained in the volume were originally delivered as academic 
 lectures, and at the time of their first publication were acknowledged to be by far 
 the most learned and able treatment of the subject." — Times. 
 
 Post 8vo, cloth, pp. xii. — 198, accompanied by Two Language 
 Maps, price 12s. 
 
 A SKETCH OF 
 THE MODERN LANGUAGES OF THE EAST INDIES. 
 
 By ROBERT N. CUST. 
 
 The Author has attempted to fill up a vacuum, the inconvenience of 
 which pressed itself on his notice. Much had been written about the 
 languages of the East Indies, but the extent of our present knowledge had 
 not even been brought to a focus. Information on particular subjects was 
 only to be obtained or looked for by consulting a specialist, and then hunting 
 down the numbers of a serial or the chapters of a volume not always to be 
 
TRUBNER'S ORIENTAL SERIES. 
 
 found. It occurred to him that it might be of use to others to publish in an 
 arranged form the notes which he had collected for his own edification. 
 Thus the work has grown upon him. 
 
 " Supplies a deficiency which has long been felt."— Times. 
 
 *' The book before us is then a valuable contribution to philological science. It 
 passes under review a vast number of languages, and it gives, or professes to give, in 
 every case the sum and substance of the opinions and judgments of the best-informed 
 writers." — Saturday Review. 
 
 Second Corrected Edition, post 8vo, pp. xii. — ii6, cloth, price 5s. 
 
 THE BIRTH OF THE WAR-GOD. 
 
 A Poem. By KALIDASA. 
 
 Translated from the Sanskrit into English Verse by 
 
 Ralph T. H. Griffith, M.A. 
 
 " A very spirited rendering of the Kumdrasambhava, which was first published 
 twenty-six years ago, and which we are glad to see made once more accessible." — 
 Times. 
 
 "Mr. Griflath's very spirited rendering of the Kumdrasambhava, first published 
 twenty-six years ago, is well known to most who are at all interested in Indian 
 literature, or enjoy the tenderness of feeling and rich creative imagination of its 
 author." — Indian Antiquary. 
 
 " We are very glad to welcome a second edition of Professor Griffith's admirable 
 translation of the well-known Sanskrit poem, the Kumdrasambhava. Few transla- 
 tions deserve a second edition better." — Athencmm. 
 
 Post 8vo, cloth, pp. 432, price i6s. 
 
 A CLASSICAL DICTIONARY OF HINDU MYTHOLOGY 
 
 AND RELIGION, GEOGRAPHY, HISTORY, AND 
 
 LITERATURE. 
 
 By JOHN DOWSON, M.R.A.S., 
 Late Professor of Hindustani, Staff College. 
 
 In this work an endeavour has been made to supply the long-felt want of 
 a Hindu Classical Dictionary. The late Professor Wilson projected such 
 a work, and forty years ago announced his intention of preparing it for the 
 Oriental Translation Fund, but he never accomplished his design. The main 
 portion of this work consists of mythology, but religion is bound up with 
 mythology, and in many points the two are quite inseparable. Of history, 
 in the true sense, Sanskrit possesses nothing, or next to nothing, but what 
 little has been discovered here finds its place. The chief geographical names 
 of the old writers also have received notice, and their localities and identi- 
 fications are described so far as present knowledge extends. Lastly, short 
 descriptions have been given of the most frequently mentioned Sanskrit 
 books, but only of such books as are likely to be found named in the works 
 of English writers. 
 
 This work will be a book of reference for all concerned in the government 
 of the Hindus, but it will be more especially useful to young Civil Servants 
 and to masters and students in the universities, colleges, and schools in India. 
 
 " This not only forms an indispensable book of reference to students of Indian 
 literature, but is also of great general interest, as it gives in a concise and easily 
 accessible form all that need be known about the personages of Hindu mythology 
 whose names are so familiar, but of whom so little is known outside the limited 
 circle of savants." — Times, 
 
 " It is no slight gain when such subjects are treated fairly and fully in a moderate 
 space ; and we need only add that the few wants which we may hope to see supplied 
 in new editions detract but little from the general excellence of Mr. Dowson's work." 
 — Saturday Review. 
 
TRUBNER'S ORIENTAL SERIES. 
 
 Post 8vo, with View of Mecca, pp. cxii. — 172, cloth, price 93. 
 
 SELECTIONS FROM THE KORAN. 
 
 By EDWARD WILLIAM LANE, 
 Hon. Doctor of Literature, Leyden ; Correspondent of the Institute of France ; Hon. 
 Member of the German Oriental Society, the Royal Asiatic Society, &c. ; 
 ■ Translator of " The Thousand and One Nights ; " Author of an " Ai-abic- English 
 Lexicon," &c. 
 
 A New Edition, Eevised and Enlarged, with an Introduction by 
 Stanley Lane Poole. 
 
 Extract from Preface. 
 There has always been a wish to know something about the sacred book 
 of the Mohammedans, and it was with the design of satisfying this wish, 
 whilst avoiding the weariness and the disgust which a complete perusal of 
 the Koran must produce, that Mr. Lane arranged the " Selections " which 
 were published in 1843. • • • It has proved of considerable service to students 
 of Arabic, who have found it the most accurate rendering in existence of a 
 large part of the Koran ; and even native Muslims of India, ignorant of 
 Arabic, have used Lane's "Selections " as their Bible. 
 
 "... Has been long esteemed in this country as the compilation of one of the 
 greatest Arabic scholars of the time, the late Mr. Lane, the well-known translator of 
 the ' Arabian Nights. ' . . . The present editor has enhanced the value of his 
 relative's work by divesting the text of a great deal of extraneous matter introduced 
 by way of comment, and prefixing an introduction." — Times. 
 
 *' Mr. Poole is both a generous and a learned biographer. . . . Mr. Poole tells ua 
 the facts ... so far as it is possible for industry and criticism to ascertain them, 
 and for litei-ary skill to present them in a condensed and readable iovm.."— English- 
 man, Calcutta. 
 
 Post 8vo, pp. xliv. — 376, cloth, price 14s. 
 
 METRICAL TRANSLATIONS FROM SANSKRIT 
 WRITERS. 
 
 With an Introduction, many Prose Versions, and Parallel Passages from 
 Classical Authors. 
 
 By J. MUIR, CLE., D.C.L., LL.D., Ph.D. 
 
 The present embraces the contents of the little work entitled " Religious 
 and Moral Sentiments, metrically rendered from Sanskrit Writers," &c., 
 published by Messrs. Williams k Norgate in 1875, together with Three 
 collections of Versified Translations subsequently printed, but not published, 
 and a reprint of the metrical pieces contained in Volumes II. and V. of the 
 author's "Original Sanskrit Texts," &c. 
 
 "... An agreeable introduction to Hindu poetry." — Times. 
 
 "... A volume which may be taken as a fair illustration alike of the religious 
 and moral sentiments and of the legendary lore of the best Sanskrit writers." — 
 Edinburgh Daily Review. 
 
 Post 8vo, pp. vi. — 368, cloth, price 14s. 
 
 MODERN INDIA AND THE INDIANS, 
 
 BEING A SERIES OF IMPRESSIONS, NOTES, AND ESSAYS. 
 
 By MONIER WILLIAMS, D.G.L., 
 
 Hon. LL.D. of the University of Calcutta, Hon. Member of the Bombay Asiatic 
 Society, Boden Professor of Sanskrit in the University of Oxford. 
 
 Third Edition, revised and augmented by considerable Additions, 
 with Illustrations and a Map. 
 
 This edition will be found a great improvement on those that preceded it. 
 The author has taken care to avail himself of all such criticisms on particular 
 
 A 2 
 
TRUBNER'S ORIENTAL SERIES. 
 
 passages in the previous editions as appeared to him to be just, and he has 
 enlarged the work by more than a hundred pages of additional matter. The 
 chapter on the " Villages and Rural Population of India," and several other 
 sections of the work, are quite new. 
 
 •' In this volume we have the thoughtful impressions of a thoughtful man on some 
 of the most important questions connected with our Indian Empire. ... An en- 
 lightened observant man, travelling among an enlightened observant people, Professor 
 Monier Williams has brought before the public in a pleasant form more of the manners 
 and customs of the Qvieen's Indian subjects than we ever remember to have seen in 
 any one work. He not only deserves the thanks of every Englishman for this able 
 contribution to the study of Modern India— a subject with which we should be 
 specially familiar — biit he deserves the thanks of every Indian, Parsee or Hindu, 
 Buddhist and Moslem, for his clear exposition of their manners, their creeds, and 
 their necessities." — Times. 
 
 In Two Volumes, post 8vo, pp. viii. — 408 and viii. — 348, cloth, price 28s. 
 
 MISCELLANEOUS ESSAYS RELATING TO INDLA.N 
 
 SUBJECTS. 
 
 By BRIAN HOUGHTON HODGSON, Esq., F.R.S., 
 
 Late of the Bengal Civil Service ; Corresponding Member of the Institute ; Chevalier 
 of tbe Legion of Honour ; Honorary Member of the German Oriental Society and 
 the Society Asiatique ; Member of the Asiatic Societies of Calcutta and London ; 
 of the Ethnological and Zoological Societies of London ; and lato British Minister 
 at the Court of Nepal. 
 
 CONTENTS OF VOL. /. 
 
 Section I. — On the Kocch, B6d6, and Dhimdl Tribes.— Part I. Vocabulary. — 
 Part II. Grammar. — Part III. Their Origin, Location, Numbers, Creed, Customs, 
 Character, and Condition, with a General Description of the Climate they dwell in. 
 — Appendix. 
 
 Section II.— On Himalayan Ethnology. — I. Comparative Vocabulary of the Lan- 
 guages of the Broken Tribes of N^pal.— II. Vocabulary of the Dialects of the Kiranti 
 Language.— III. Grammatical Analysis of the Vayu Language. Tlie Vayu Grammar. 
 — IV. Analysis of the Billing Dialect of the Kiranti I-anguage. The B^hing Gram- 
 mar. — V. On the Vayu or Hayu Tribe of the Central Himalaya.— VI. On tue Kiranti 
 Tribe of the Central Himalaya. 
 
 CONTENTS OF VOL. II. 
 
 Section III. — On the Aborigines of North-Eastem India. Comparative Vocabulary 
 of the Tibetan, B6d6, and Gar6 Tongues. 
 
 Section IV. — Aborigines of the North-Eastem Frontier. 
 
 Section V.— Aborigines of the Eastern Frontier. 
 
 Section VI. — The Indo-Chinese Borderers, and their connection with the Hima- 
 layans and Tibetans. Comparative Vocabulaiy of Indo-Chinese Borderers in Arakan. 
 Comparative Vocabulary of Indo-Chinese Borderers in Tenasserim. 
 
 Section VII. — The Mongolian Affinities of the Caucasians. — Comparison and Ana- 
 lysis of Caucasian .and Montr olian Words. 
 
 Section VIII. — Pliysical Type of Tibetans. 
 
 SkctiON IX.— The "Aborigines of Central India. — Comparative Vocabulary of the 
 Aboriginal Languages of Central India. — Aboiigines of the Eastern Ghats. — Vocabu- 
 lary of some of the Dialects of the Hill and Wandering Tribes in the Northern Sircars. 
 — Aborigines of the Nilgiris, with Remarks on their Affinities. — Supplement to the 
 Nilgirian Vocabularies. — The Aborigines of Southern India and Ceylon. 
 
 Section X. — Route of Nepalese Mission to Pekin, with Remarks on the Water- 
 Shed and Plateau of Tibet. 
 
 Section XI.— Route from Kdthmdndu, the Capital of Nepal, to Darjeeling in 
 Sikim.— Memorandum relative to the Seven Cosis of Nepal. 
 
 Section XII. — Some Accounts of the Systems of Law and Police as recognised in 
 the State of Nepal. 
 
 Section XIII.— The Native Method of making the Paper denominated Hindustan, 
 N6palese. 
 
 Section XIV. — Pre-eminence of the Vernaculars ; or, the Anglicists Answered : 
 Being Letters on the Education of the People of India. 
 
 " For the study of the less-known races of India Mr. Brian Hodgson's " Miscellane- 
 ous Essays " will be found very valuable both to the philologist and the ethnologist." 
 —-Tivm. 
 
TRUBNER'S ORIENTAL SERIES. 
 
 Third Edition, Two Vols., post 8vo, pp. viii.— 268 and viii.— 326, cloth, 
 price 21S. 
 
 THE LIFE OR LEGEND OF GAUDAMA, 
 
 THE BUDDHA OF THE BURMESE. With Annotations. 
 
 The Ways to Neibban, and Notice on the Phongyies or Burmese Monks. 
 
 By the Right Rev. P. BIGANDET, 
 
 Bishop of Ramatha, Vicar- Apostolic of Ava and Pegu. 
 
 "The work is furnished with copious notes, which not only illustrate the subject- 
 matter, but form a perfect encyclopaedia of Buddhist lore."— Times. 
 
 " From long residence in Burmah, and high scholarship. Bishop Bigandet has 
 been enabled to produce a work which will furnish European students of Buddhism 
 with a most valuable help in the prosecution of their investigations." — Edinburgh 
 Daily Review. 
 
 " Bishop Bigandet's invaluable work on Buddha and Burmese Buddhism first 
 appeared in a single volume published at Rangoon in 1858, . . . and no work founded 
 — rather translated — from original soxirces presents to the Western student a more 
 faithful picture than that of Bishop Bigandet." — Indian Antiquary. 
 
 " Viewed in this light, its importance is sufficient to place students of the subject 
 under a deep obligation to its author." -:rCalcutta Review. 
 
 " This work is one of the greatest authorities upon Buddhism." — Dublin Review. 
 
 *' . . . A performance the great value of wliich is well known to all students of 
 Buddhism."— Tadief. 
 
 Post Svo, pp. xxiv. — 420, cloth, price i8s. 
 
 CHINESE BUDDHISM. 
 
 A VOLUME OF SKETCHES, HISTORICAL AND CRITICAL. 
 
 By J. EDKINS, D.D., 
 
 Author of "China's Place in Philology," "Religion in China," &c., &c. 
 
 "It contains a vast deal of important information on the subject of Chinese 
 Buddhism, such as is only to be gained by long-continued study on the spot." — 
 AthenoBtcm. 
 
 " " It is impossible within our limits even to mention the various subjects connected 
 with Buddhism with which Dr. Edkins deals. The title of the work inadequately 
 represents the range of its contents." — Saturday Revieio. 
 
 . " Upon the whole, we know of no work comparable to it for the extent of its 
 original research, and the simplicity with which this complicated system of philo- 
 sophy, relicjion, literature, and ritual is set forth. It is clearly the fruit of a lifetime 
 of observation and study in one of the most recondite subjects, through the medium 
 of a language of incomparable diflaculty . " — British Quarterly Review. 
 
 " The whole volume is replete with learning. ... It deserves most careful study 
 from all interested in the history of the religions of the world, and expressly of those 
 who are concerned in the propagation of Christianity. Dr. Edkins notices in terms 
 of just condemnation the exaggerated praise bestowed upon Buddhism by recent 
 English writers."— iJficord. 
 
 Post Svo, pp. 496, cloth, price i8s. 
 
 LINGUISTIC AND ORIENTAL ESSAYS. 
 
 Written from the Year 1846 to 1878. 
 
 By ROBERT NEEDHAM CUST, 
 
 Late Member of Her Majesty's Indian Civil Service ; Hon. Secretary to 
 
 the Royal Asiatic Society; 
 
 and Author of " The Modern Languages of the East Indies." 
 
 " We know none who has described Indian life, especially the life of the natives, 
 
 with so much learning, sympathy, and literary talent."— .<lcadewiy. 
 
TRUBNER'S ORIENTAL SERIES. 
 
 " It is impossible to do justice to any of these essays in the space at our command. 
 . . . But they seem to us to be full of suggestive and original remarks. Praise is the 
 sium of what we have to offer him on the present occasion."— 5«. James's Gazette. 
 
 " His book contains a vast amount of information, which will not only be of the 
 greatest service to those especially connected with India, but also of much interest to 
 every intelligent reader. It is, he tells us, the result of thirty-five years of inquiry, 
 reflection, and speculation, and that on subjects as full of fascination as of food for 
 thought." — Tablet. 
 
 " The essays contained in this interesting volume have been written by the 
 talented author at various periods during the last quarter of a century, and exhibit 
 such a thorough acquaintance with the history and antiquities of India as to entitle 
 him to speak as one having a,uthoTity."—Edi7ib%irgh Daily Review. 
 
 " The author speaks with the authority of personal experience It is this 
 
 constant association with the countiy and the people which gives such a vividness 
 
 to many of the pages He always writes with a kindly heart, and he has 
 
 the unspeakable advantage of knowing his subject from a continued experience of 
 years." —Athenceum. 
 
 Second Edition, post 8vo, pp. xxvi. — 244, cloth, price los. 6d. 
 
 THE GULISTAN; 
 
 Ob, rose garden OF SHEKH MUSHLIU'D-DIN SADI OF SHIRAZ. 
 
 Translated for the First Time into Prose and Verse, with an Introductory 
 
 Preface, and a Life of the Author, from the Atish Kadah, 
 
 By EDWARD B. EASTWICK, C.B., M.A., F.R.S., M.R.A.S., 
 
 Of Merton College, Oxford, &c. 
 
 " It is a very fair rendering of the original. " — Tivies. 
 
 "The new edition has long been desired, and will be welcomed by all who take 
 any interest in Oriental poetry. The Gulistan is a typical Persian verse-book of the 
 liighest order. Mr. Eastwick's rhymed translation . . . has long established itself in 
 a secure position as the best version of Sadi's finest work." — Acadeiny. 
 " It is both faithfully and gracefully executed." — Tablet. 
 
 Post 8vo, pp. civ. — 348, cloth, price i8s. 
 
 BUDDHIST BIRTH STORIES; or, Jataka Tales. 
 
 The Oldest Collection of Folk-lore Extant : 
 BEING THE JATAKATTHAVANNANA, 
 
 For the first time Edited in the original Pali. 
 
 By V. FAUSBOLL. 
 
 And Translated by T. W. Rhys Davids. 
 
 Translation. Volume I. 
 
 " It is now some years since Mr. Rhys Davids asserted his right to be heard on 
 this subject by his able article on Buddhism in the new edition of the ' Encyclopaedia 
 IJritannica.' . . . Apart altogether from the light which these stories throw upon 
 the earliest Buddhist teaching, they have an interest from the fact that they are the 
 oldest collection of folk-lore in the world." — Leeds Mercury. 
 
 "All who are interested in Buddhist literature ought to feel deeply indebted to 
 Mr. Rhys Davids. His well-established reputation as a Pali scholar is a sufficient 
 guarantee for the fidelity of his version, and the style of his translations is deserving 
 of high praise." — Academy. 
 
 " It is certain that no more competent expositor of Buddhism could be found than 
 Mr. Rhys Davids, and that these Birth Stories will be of the greatest interest and 
 importance to students. In the Jataka book we have, then, a priceless record of the 
 earliest imaginative literature of our race; and Mr. Rhys Davids is well warranted 
 in claimi!ig that it presents to us a nearly complete picture of the social life and 
 customs and popular beliefs of the common people of Aryan tribes, closely related to 
 ourselves, just as they were passing through the first stages of civilisation. These 
 «tories, to which at the present day the Singhalese peasant li.stens llirou^^h the long 
 summer night, when the Buddhist clergy hold their annual missions at the sacred 
 season of Was, and which in other vestures are the delight of children throughout 
 the Western world, carry us back to what M. Laboulaye happily calls ' the infancy of 
 humanity which we misname antiquity.' * C'est alors que I'esprit humain a cree ces 
 rycits qui edifiaient les plus sages, et qui aiijourd'hui, que I'humanite est vieille, 
 n'amusent plus que les enfants — ^grands et petits.* "St. James's Gazette. 
 
TRUBNER'S ORIENTAL SERIES. 
 
 Post 8vo, pp. xxviii. — 362, cloth, price 148. 
 
 A TALMUDIC MISCELLANY; 
 
 Ok, a thousand AND ONE EXTRACTS FROM THE TALMUD, 
 
 THE MIDRASHIM, AND THE KABBALAH. 
 
 Compiled and Translated by PAUL ISAAC HERSHON, 
 
 Author of " Genesis According to the Talmud," &c. 
 
 With Notes and Copious Indexes. 
 
 " To obtain in so concise and handy a form as this volume a general idea of the 
 Talmud is a boon to Christians at least." — Times. 
 
 " This is a new volume of the ' Oriental Series,' and its peculiar and popular 
 character will make it attractive to general readers, Mr. Hershon is a very com- 
 petent scholar. He thinks, however, that if the translation of the whole were made 
 into English, not one in a thousand would have patience to read consecutively the 
 first twelve pages. The present selection contains samples of the good, bad, and 
 indifferent, and especially extracts that throw light upon the Scriptures. The 
 extracts have been all derived, word for word, and made at first hand, and references 
 are carefully given. The extracts are curious and interesting, and will speak for 
 themselves." — British Quarterly Review. 
 
 " Mr. Hershon's book, at all events, will convey to English readers a more complete 
 and truthful notion of the Talmud than any other work that has yet appeared. " — 
 Daily News. 
 
 " Without overlooking in the slightest the several attractions of the previous 
 volumes of the ' Oriental Series,' we have no hesitation in saying that this surpasses 
 them all in interest. The Talmud is the great repository of Jewish learning ; and, if 
 we except the Sacred Scriptures, which are of a unique character, was for centuries 
 almost the sole literature of that wonderful people, ' of whom as concerning the flesh 
 Christ came.' It touches in so many points the Book of Books— although in the value 
 of their teaching they are poles asunder— that in making acquaintance with it, we 
 feel as if we were so far treading familiar ground. . . . Mr. Hershon is a thoroughly 
 competent and accurate scholar, whose peculiar fitness for the task of preparing this 
 volume was fully recognised by so distinguished a Hebraist as Dr. Delitsch, by whose 
 approving criticism he was encouraged to prosecute the work. The book now forms 
 the fullest account of the Talmud that has been submitted to English readers, and 
 while it will be exceedingly interesting to the general reader from the light it throws 
 on Jewish thought and Jewish ctistoms, and from the curiousness of its lore, clergy- 
 men will find an additional attraction in the many side lights which it affords for the 
 interpretation not only of the Old Testament but of the New. " — Edinburgh Baily Review. 
 
 " Mr Hershon has done this ; he has taken samples from all parts of the Talmud, 
 and thus given English readers what is, we believe, a fair set of specimens which 
 they can test for themselves. Canon Farrar has written a Preface which must be 
 estimated apart, it being only the expression of his opinion ; but Mr. Hershon's own 
 labours are worthy of attentive perusal. "— 27ie Record. 
 
 " Altogether we believe that this book is by far the best fitted in the present state 
 of knowledge to enable the general reader or the ordinary student to gain a fair and 
 unbiassed conception of the multifarious contents of the wonderful miscellany which 
 can only be truly understood — so Jewish pride asserts — by the life-long devotion of 
 scholars of the Chosen People." — Inquirer. 
 
 ' ' The value and importance of this volume consist in the fact that scarcely a single 
 extract is given in its pages but throws some light, direct or refracted, upon those 
 Scriptures which are the common heritage of Jew and Christian alike. It is a volume 
 which evidences gi-eat industry on the part of Mr. Hershon, and one which cannot 
 but prove of permanent value to the theological student." — John Bull. 
 
 " His acquaintance with the Talmud, &c., is seen on every page of his book. As 
 it is a law of hydrostatics that water never runs above its level, so this ' Miscellany ' 
 could have been produced only by one thoroughly acquainted with the Talmud, the 
 Midrashim, and the Kabbalah. It is a capital specimen of Hebrew scholarship ; a 
 monument of learned, loving, light-giving labour." — Jewish Herald. 
 
 Post 8vo, pp. xii. — 228, cloth, price 7s. 6d. 
 
 THE CLASSICAL POETRY OF THE JAPANESE. 
 
 By basil HALL CHAMBERLAIN, 
 Author of " Yeigo Heiikaku Shirafl." 
 
 " A very curious volume. The author has manifestly devoted much labour to the 
 task of studying the poetical literature of the Japanese, and rendering characteristic 
 specimens into English verse." — Daily Ne%cs. 
 
TRUBNER'S ORIENTAL SERIES. 
 
 '* Mr. Chamberlain's volume is, so far as we are aware, the first attempt which has 
 been made to interpret the literature of the Japanese to the western world. It is to 
 the classical poetry of Old Japan that we must turn for indigenous Japanese thought, 
 and in the volume before us we have a selection from that poetry rendered into 
 graceful English verse." — Tablet. 
 
 " These short extracts are sufficient to indicate how ably Mr, Chamberlain has 
 succeeded in his difficult task. For a more intimate acquaintance with the excellence 
 of his style we must refer the reader to the book itself. It is undoubtedly one of the 
 best translations of lyric literature which has appeared during the close of the last 
 year." — Celestial Empire. 
 
 "Mr. Chamberlain set himself a difficult task when he undertook to reproduce 
 Japanese poetry in an English form. But he has evidently laboured con amove, and 
 his efforts are successful to a degree. We can only now cordially recommend the 
 work to the public, not only to those connected with Japan, but to aU who delight 
 in pretty poetical productions." — London and China Express. 
 
 Post 8vo, pp. xii. — 164, cloth, price los. 6d. 
 
 THE HISTORY OF ESARHADDON (Son of Sennacherib), 
 KING OF ASSYRIA, B.C. 681-668. 
 Translated from the Cuneiform Inscriptions upon Cylinders and Tablets in 
 the British Museum Collection ; together with a Grammatical Analysis 
 of each "Word, Explanations of the Ideographs by Extracts from the 
 Bi-Lingual Syllabaries, and List of Eponyms &c. 
 
 By ERNEST A. BUDGE, M.R.A.S., 
 Assyrian Exhibitioner, Christ's College, Cambridge, Member of the 
 Society of Biblical Archaeology. 
 " Students of scriptural archaeology will also appreciate the ' History of Esar- 
 haddon.' " — Times. 
 
 " There is much to attract the scholar in this volume. It does not pretend to 
 popularise studies which are yet in their infancy. Its primary object is to translate, 
 but it does not assume to be more than tentative, and it offers both to the professed 
 Assyriologist and to the ordinary non-Assyriological Semitic scholar the means of 
 controlling its results." — Academy. 
 
 "Mr. Budge's book is, of course, mainly addressed to Assyrian scholars and 
 students. They are not, it is to be feared, a very numerous class. But the more 
 thanks are due to him on that account for the way in which he has acquitted himself 
 in his laborious t&sk..'^ —Tablet. 
 
 Post 8vo, pp. 448, cloth, price 2is. 
 
 THE MESNEVI 
 
 (Usually known as The Mesneviyi Sherif, or Holy Mesnevi) 
 
 OP 
 
 MEVLANA (OUR LORD) JELALU 'D-DIN MUHAMMED ER-RUML 
 
 Book the First. 
 Together with some Account of the Life and Acts of the Author, 
 of his Ancestors, and of his Descendants. 
 Illustrated by a Selection of Characteristic Anecdotes, as Collected 
 by their Historian, 
 Mevlana Shemsu-'D-Din Ahmed, el Eflaki, el 'Arifi. 
 Translated, and the Poetry Versified, in English, 
 By JAMES W. REDHOUSE, M.R.A. S., &c. 
 " A complete treasury of occult Oriental lore." — Saturday Review. 
 ' • This book will be a very valuable help to the reader ignorant of Persia, who is 
 desirous of obtaining an insight into a very important department of the literature 
 extant in that language."— ra^fei. 
 
TRUBNER'S ORIENTAL SERIES. 
 
 Post 8vo, pp. xvi.— 280, cloth, price 6s. 6d. 
 
 EASTERN PROVERBS AND EMBLEMS 
 
 Illustrating Old Truths. 
 
 By Rev. J. LONG, 
 
 Member of the Bengal Asiatic Society, F.E.G.S. 
 
 The following Works are in preparation : — 
 
 Post Bvo. 
 
 INDIAN POETRY; 
 
 Consisting of Translations of the " Gita Govinda," — the Indian Song of 
 Songs, and other Sanskrit Poems. Two books from the Iliad of India 
 (Mahabharata) and Proverbial Wisdom from the Shlokas of the 
 Hitopadesa. 
 By EDWIN ARNOLD, C.S.L, Author of "The Light of Asia." 
 
 Post Z\o. 
 
 THE SANKHYA KARIKA. 
 
 By IS'WARA KRISHNA. 
 
 Translated, with an Introduction and Notes, by John Davies, M. A. 
 
 (Cantab.) 
 
 An Exposition of the System of Kapila, with an Appendix on the 
 
 Nyaya and Vais'eshika Systems. 
 
 Post 8vo, cloth. » 
 
 THE RELIGIONS OF INDIA. 
 
 By a. BARTH. 
 Translated from the French with the authority and assistance of the Author. 
 
 Post 8vo. 
 A MANUAL OF HINDU PANTHEISM. VEDANTASARA. 
 
 Translated, with copious Annotations, by Major G. A. JACOB. 
 
 Post 8vo. 
 
 THE BHAGAVAD-GITA. 
 
 Translated, with Introduction and Notes, 
 By JOHN DAVIES, M.A. (Cantab.) 
 
 Post Bvo. 
 
 THE SARVADARSANA SANGRAHA. 
 
 Translated from the Sanskrit, with Notes 
 By E. B. COWELL and A. E. GOUGH. 
 
 Post Bvo. 
 
 THE QUATTRAINS OF YUMAR CHAYYAM. 
 
 Translated by E. H. WHINFIELD, M.A., 
 Barrister-at-Law, late H.M. Bengal Civil Service. 
 
TRUBNER'S ORIENTAL SERIES. 
 
 Post 8vo. 
 
 THE MIND OP MENCIUS ; 
 
 Or, political ECONOMY FOUNDED UPON MORAL 
 PHILOSOPHY. 
 
 A Systematic Digest of the Doctrines op the Chinese Philosopher 
 
 Mencius. 
 
 Translated from the Original Text and Classified, with 
 Comments and Explanations, 
 
 By the Rev. ERNST FABER, Rhenish Mission Society. 
 
 Translated from the German, with Additional Notes, 
 By the Rev. A. B. HUTCHINSON, C.M.S., -Church Mission, Hong Kong, 
 
 Author of " Chinese Primer, Old Testament History," " Parallel Harmony 
 
 of Holy Gospels," " Translation of the Athanasian Creed," " The 
 
 Book of Psalms," " The Complete Book of Common Prayer, 
 
 with Ordinal," &c. &«. 
 
 Post 8vo, cloth. 
 
 THE POEMS OP HAPIZ OP SHIRAZ. 
 
 Translated from the Persian into English Verse, 
 
 By E. H. palmer, M.A., 
 
 Professor of Arabic in the University of Cambridge. 
 
 ♦ Post 8vo. 
 
 THE SIX JEWELS OP THE LAW. 
 
 With Pali Texts and English Translation, 
 By R. MORRIS, LL.D. 
 
 In Two Volumes, post 8vo, cloth. 
 
 BUDDHIST RECORDS OP THE WESTERN WORLD, 
 
 BEING THE SI-YU-KI BY HWEN THSANG. 
 
 Translated from the Original Chihese, with Introduction, Index, &c.. 
 
 By SAMUEL BEAL, 
 
 Trinity College, Cambridge ; Professor of Chinese, University 
 College, London. 
 
 Post 8vo, cloth. 
 
 INDIAN TALES PROM TIBETAN SOURCES. 
 
 Translated from the Tibetan into German, with Introductions, by Anton 
 Schiefner, of the Imperial Academy of St. Petersburg. 
 
 Rendered into English, with Notes, by W. R. S. Ralston. 
 
 LONDON : TRUBNER & CO., 57 and 59 LUDGATE HILL. 
 
 1000— 1 4/5/8 1. 
 

 ,^^ RETURN TO the circulation deskof any 
 A rib^''^*y °^ California Library 
 ^v Of to the ^ ■' ^■^^^^Ipi-v-. ^ *^ 
 
 NORTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITr *f' 
 BIdg. 400, Richmond Field Station 
 University of California 
 l^ Richmond, CA 94804-4698 ^ 
 
 ALL BOOKS MAY BE RECALLED AFTER 7 DAYS 
 
 • 2-month loans may be renewed by calling 
 (510)642-6753 
 
 • 1-year loans may be recharged by bringing 
 books to NRLF 
 
 • Renewals and recharges may be made 
 i 4 days prior to due date 
 
 ; DUE AS STAMPED BELOW 
 
 MAY 1 4 2003 
 
 f 
 
 • 
 
 * A 
 
 > ■ 
 
 M 
 
 I 
 
 -* 
 
 t 
 
 I 
 
 - 
 
 DD20 15M 4-02 
 
 ^V 
 
II 
 
 U.C, BERKELEY LIBRARIES 
 
 CD3im33Tfi