THE EPISTLE OF ST PAUL TO TITUS. CHAPTER I. VERSES 7, 8. 7 For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre; 8 But a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate. V. 7. NOT GIVEN TO WINE] Mee paroinon, 'not near wine' not a banqueter. [See Note on 1 Tim. iii. 3.] V. 8. SOBER] Sophrona, sober-minded.' = TEMPERATE] Enkratee, temperate' self-restraining (as to the appetites) = abstinent. This word seems to answer to neephaleon in 1 Tim. iii. 3. [See Note on 1 Cor. ix. 25.] CHAPTER II. VERSE 2. That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience. SOBER] Neephalious, 'abstinent.' [See Note on 1 Thess. v. 6.] These variations of translation in the English version are much to be regretted, since they hide the nice and just distinctions of the original, which point at once to a more comprehensive and more specific form of temperance than the world is willing to practice. These are, (1) the general virtue of temperance as self-restraint; (2) that moderation of the soul called 'patience,' or 'gentleness'; (3) that subjective virtue called sound-mindedness, compounded of right seeing and right willing; (4) the personal and specific practice of abstinence from things evil; and, therefore (5), the discountenancing of drinking-fashions and feasts. To confound all these under the vague and modern meaning of 'temperance,' is as absurd in criticism as it is injurious in morals. 3 CHAPTER II. VERSES 3-6. The aged women likewise that they be in behaviour as becometh, holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; 4 That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, 5 To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed. 6 Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded. V. 3. NOT GIVEN TO MUCH WINE] Mee oino pollo dedoulōmenas, 'not addicted to much wine.' W. H. Rule, D.D., in his‘Brief Inquiry,' admits—“ Grape-juice was chiefly known in antiquity as the casual drink of the peasantry; when carefully preserved, as the choice beverage of epicures. The Roman ladies were so fond of it that they would first fill their stomachs with it, then throw it off by emetics, and repeat the draught" (Wetstein in Acts ii. 13). We have referred to Lucian for ourselves, and find the following illustration :-"I came, by Jove, as those who drink gleukos, swelling out their stomach, require an emetic” (Philops. 39). [See Note on 1 Tim. iii. 8.] V. 4. THAT THEY MAY TEACH THE YOUNG WOMEN TO BE SOBER] Hina sõphronizōsi tas neas, in order that they may cause the young women to be soberminded.' V. 5. TO BE DISCREET] Sophronas, 'sober-minded.' V. 6. TO BE SOBER MINDED] Sophronein, to be sober-minded.' CHAPTER II. VERSES II, 12. 11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world. SOBERLY] Sophronos, 'sobermindedly.' The apostle most appropriately and expressively connects the denial or suppression of worldly lusts with the design of living 'sober-mindedly, righteously, and devoutly in the present age.' The connection of intoxicating liquor with such worldly lusts and the absence of sober-mindedness, rectitude, and piety, is too prevalent and flagrant to be denied. The grace of God-the Divine favour embodied in the Divine precepts, and impressing their holy dictates on the heart— is beautifully said to be 'teaching us' the denial of those lusts. Yet 'teaching' is too weak a rendering of paideuousa, which signifies 'training' or 'disciplining.' The office of Divine grace is not to sanction unsafe indulgence, and then prevent the natural consequences, but to train the soul to the avoidance of all illicit desires and fleshly tastes, and, in short, of whatever is found in practice to interfere with the highest development of the Christian life. Though drunkenness never be exhibited, yet an appetite for alcohol may exist, pernicious to both body and soul, In the United States, a few years ago, this text was a favourite argument for the toleration of slavery; and the criticism employed might be exactly paralleled by the arguments of English divines in favour of strong drink. The claim for gratitude and obedience made by God upon His people-and allowed in their triumphant songs-was for deliverance from slavery-deliverance from the house of bondage; and the mission of our Lord was announced as that of opening the prison-doors that the oppressed might go free. Is it credible that the Christian apostle could mean to approve the institution of slavery? Is it a correct inference that, because, in the then state of the world, when the people had no political power to wield,-when it would have been sheer madness to attempt to disturb the social framework of political despotism,-therefore Paul held that people, under constituted governments of their own, ought not to abate an infamous and inhuman system? He was preaching another Gospel, which, however, held seminally in its principle the doom of all slaveries; and even then, in the exhortation to Onesimus to exercise patience, Paul does not forget to teach Philemon that, in the light of Christianity, fraternity and fetters are incompatible. THE GENERAL EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS. CHAPTER XIII. VERSE 16. But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased. God is well-pleased with well-doing and almsgiving because He is Himself ever doing good and communicating blessings to His creatures; and in imitation of Him we should not forget to present Him with such sacrifices,—the most grateful and becoming that can be offered. We may conclude from this passage, that wise efforts such as the Temperance Reform really is, for the prevention of poverty and suffering, ‚—are well-pleasing to the Most High; for they seek the welfare of body, mind, and spirit, and they never fail to realize their ends whenever they are permitted to operate. In the offering of such sacrifices, all Christian churches and Christian professors would be most consistently engaged; and if so employed, how immensely would the well-being of the human family be promoted ! THE GENERAL EPISTLE OF ST JAMES. CHAPTER I. VERSES 13-15. 13 Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man : 14 But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. 15 Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. Obs. 1. As God cannot tempt men to evil, we may be fully assured that He cannot approve the use of that which is intrinsically an insidious temptation to evil, involving the ruin of millions of our species. Dr Thomas Reid, Professor of Moral Philosophy, nearly a century ago, pointed out the true causation of the drinker's lust and the drunkard's appetite:-"Besides the appetites which Nature hath given us, for useful and necessary purposes, we may create appetites which Nature never gave. The frequent use of things which stimulate the nervous system produces a languor when their effect is gone off, and a desire to repeat them. By this means a desire of a certain object is created, accompanied by an uneasy sensation. Both are removed for a time by [the use of] the object desired; but they return after a certain interval. Such are the appetites which some men acquire for the use of tobacco, for opiates, and for intoxicating liquors " (Works, Hamilton's Ed., p. 553). God creates no deceitful meats or drinks. 2. As subjective temptation lies in human lust (i. e. illicit or ill-regulated desire of any degree), it becomes our plain and positive duty to avoid whatever stimulates this lust; but who can name a stimulus to the chief vices of mankind comparable to intoxicating drink? 3. The craving for drink is most prolific in bringing forth sin, and of sin the issue is death, physical and moral, temporal and eternal. Strong drink is a deceitful but ceaseless destroyer; and as every lust of the flesh finds in it its appropriate fuel and fire, its aggregate influence on human seduction and ruin baffles alike calculation and conception. CHAPTER III. VERSE 8. But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. AN UNRULY EVIL] Akatascheton kakon, an 'uncoercible evil.' Codexes Aleph, A, and B reads akatastaton kakon, 'a disorderly (or seditious) evil.' |