The three strong pillars of all well-being are: Truth, Justice and Peace. ரு CHAPTERS OF THE PHARISAIC FATHERS. E liveth long, who liveth well! All other life is short and vain; He liveth longest who can tell Of living most for heavenly gain, He liveth long, who liveth well! XX. JN Continuation. Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee.-Proverbs ii. 11. 'N seeking the path thou shouldst take in any action, see that it be one which is honorable to thyself and gives no just offense to others. Be as scrupulous about the lightest command as about the weightiest matter of duty, for no man can foresee the consequences of his actions. Consider three things that thou mayest be saved from falling into sin: Above thee there is an All-seeing Eye; around thee, an All-hearing Ear, and all thy deeds are recorded as in a book. How beautiful is the study of God's Law when con joined with a worldly avocation; for the efforts demanded by both stifle the voice of temptation. The Israelite should fulfill the Commandments only from the love of God; but if this love does not constrain him, let him be obedient still; for, in doing God's will, in the end he will learn to love Him. CHAPTERS OF THE PHARISAIC FATHERS. LAD with Thy light, and glowing with Thy love, As fits a soul new-touched with life from Heaven, As most to show the glory of that Source By whom her strength, her hope, her life are given. Ponder the path of thy feet that all thy ways may be established. Turn not to the right hand nor to the left; keep thy foot from evil.-Proverbs iv, 26, 27. WITH whom the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, his wisdom shall endure and he shall not be put to shame; and he who is as zealous in good works as in the study of the Word, his learning will avail him much. He who has earned the love of his fellow-men will receive favor from God. Sleeping through the morning hours, carousing at noondays, childish babbling and vulgar company in the evening waste a man's life. A mocking spirit and a frivolous mind are forerunners of immorality. Tradition is a rampart around the law; charity is a safeguard of wealth; good resolves are a fence around sobermindedness and silence is a hedge around wisdom. Store up knowledge in early life; for then memory is a clean page whereon it is easy to write; in later years memory is like paper which is already covered with various writings on which it is hard to write legibly. CHAPTERS OF THE PHARISAIC FATHERS. ND oh! in my exceeding weakness, Make Thy strength perfect; Thou art strong: Aid me to do Thy will with meekness,— Thou, to whom all my powers belong. Oh! let me feel that Thou art near me; XXII. WHO Continuation. I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in the right paths; now, when thou goest, thy steps shall not be straightened; and when thou runnest thou shalt not stumble.-Proverbs iv. 11, 12. learns from every Who is the strong is the wise man? he who one capable to instruct him. man? he who controls his passions. man? he who knows how to enjoy his portion in life; he is happy in this life, and blessed in the life to come. Who is the rich Who is the honored man? he who honors his fellowmen. Be attentive to every duty, however small, and flee from every sin, however trifling it may seem; for remember, one virtue leads to another just as one sin opens the way to another. Despise the power of no man, and hold no event as too removed from happening; for there is no man but has his day and no thing but has his place in the chain of events. Use not thy knowledge of Divine things as a crown wherewith to glory before men, nor as a spade wherewith to dig for treasure; for verily, those who do this labor in vain. CHAPTERS OF THE PHARISAIC FATHERS. Be strong and of good courage; I will not fail thee nor forsake thee.-Joshua i. 6. RY not to reason with a man whilst he is in the heat of anger; obtrude not thy consolations where the grief is still fresh; keep not a man too strictly to a promise made hastily, and rush not in to see a man in his downfall. Look not so much upon the pitcher, as upon what it contains. There are new and unsightly vessels which preserve old wine of the best sort; and there are old and costly ones which contain new wine and of the poorest kind. These are the three overmastering foes to a blessed life: Envy, Lusting and Ambition. CHAPTERS OF THE PHARISAIC FATHERS. If you prepare a dish of food carelessly you do not expect Providence to make it palatable; neither if, through years of folly, you misguide your own life, need you expect Divine interference to bring round everything at last for the best. RUSKIN. The Lord keepeth mercy for thousands: forgiveth iniquity, transgression and sin; but will by no means clear the guilty.—Exodus xxxiv. 7. Even unto his day of death Thou waitest for the sinner to repent and be forgiven.-From Jewish Ritual. |