And thy righteousness shall go before thee;
The glory of Jehovah shall be thy reward.
Then, when thou callest, Jehovah will answer,

When thou criest out, he will say, 'Here am I.'

Here the prophet breaks completely with the pretentious, false type of religious faith which trusted to fasting and ceremonial rites to win the favour of God and at the same time ignored the claims of social justice. He has no sympathy with the ascetic, moping type of piety. He calls for a stalwart, kinetic faith that expresses itself in positive acts of social service. The perfect happiness and well-being both of society and of the individual servant are its fruits. He declares in fearless terms that the true servant of Jehovah is an upbuilder and that his reward is the superlative joy which comes not only from complete self-realisation but also from the consciousness of doing the will of God in human society.

THE SOCIAL TEACHINGS OF THE WISE

The Interest of the Wise in Social Questions. During the latter part of the Persian and especially during the Greek period the Jewish wise men or sages to a great extent took the place of the prophets. They accepted and applied to the problems of the individual the principles set forth by those earlier social teachers of the race. While the wise were primarily interested in the individual, they recognised that he could not attain his greatest happiness and well-being unless he learned to do his part as a member of society. Hence, one of the chief aims of the wisdom teachers, as stated in Proverbs 13, was that

Men may receive instruction in wise conduct,
In righteousness, justice, and uprightness;
That discretion may be given to the inexperienced,
And to the young knowledge and a purpose.

The wise also recognised that the happiness and welfare of the individual are to a great extent dependent upon social conditions. Hence they sought both to create a right social order and in so doing to conserve the best interests of the individual. Thus they anticipated Jesus in endeavouring to solve the problems of society by first rearing up socially minded citizens. Like the great Teacher they also recognised that, in the ultimate analysis, the interests of society and of the individual are absolutely identical. In common with their forerunners the prophets, the wise sought to inculcate principles rather than to lay down detailed laws or to establish fixed institutions. They strove to make real the promise of Jeremiah 3131-34 that each

man would not be obliged to ask another what were his religious or social duties but would find the guiding principle in his own heart. In other words, they sought to develop and train the moral and social consciousness of each individual.

The Rights and Duties of Husbands and Wives. The Jewish wise men were rigorous champions of sexual morality. They dealt very directly and frankly with what has ever proved a vexatious social problem. Their appeal was primarily to human reason. They earnestly sought to prevent adultery and all forms of sexual immorality (Pr. 515, 18-20):

Drink wine out of your own cistern,
And running water from your own well,
That your fountain may be blessed.
And rejoice in the wife of your youth,
Let her breast satisfy you at all times,
And be ever ravished with her love;

For why should you, my son, be ravished with a stranger,
And embrace the bosom of another woman?

To-day this is still a tragically pertinent question.

While the wise always emphasise the importance of fidelity in the marriage relations, they knew by experience as well as by observation how largely the happiness of the husband was dependent upon the character and conduct of the wife. Many of their proverbs are as amusing as they are pathetic (Pr. 21o):

It is better to dwell in the corner of a housetop
Than with a quarrelsome woman in a large house!

It is interesting to note that another sage, who felt that this statement of the fact was inadequate, has added in the same chapter (Pr. 2119):

It is better to dwell in the wilderness

Than with a quarrelsome or fretful woman!

Ben Sira, the noble wise man who lived just before the beginning of the Maccabean struggle (200-170 B.C.), was ap

DUTIES OF WIVES

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preciative of both the feminine character and figure (Ben S. 2614, 17):

A silent woman is a gift from the Lord,
And a well instructed soul is priceless.
As a lamp shining on the holy candlestick

So is the beauty of a face on a stately figure.

The wise were keenly alive to the value of a worthy wife (Pr. 124):

A good wife is a crown to her husband,

But one who acts shamefully is as rottenness in his bones.

Even more beautiful is Ben Sira's testimony (Ben S. 261-4):

A good wife-blessed is her husband!
The number of his days is doubled.
A worthy wife cherishes her husband,

And he fulfils the years of his life in peace.

A good wife is a good gift,

She shall be given as a portion to him who fears God.
Whether rich or poor his heart is cheerful,

And his face is merry at all times.

It is significant that the wise reserve for the concluding section of the book of Proverbs a brilliant picture of the ideal wife. It is interesting to note the virtues which they especially commend. She is faithful to her husband's interest, provides well for her family, and is sagacious in managing her business. It is evident from the description that the Hebrew wife enjoyed large degree of independence, as well as the complete confidence of her husband. Like the modern woman, she was active in works of charity (Pr. 3120):

She stretches out her hand to the poor,

And she reaches forth her hands to the needy.

Not only does she provide well for the needs of her household, but, like the woman of to-day, she has her own opinion and is

able to speak with authority on the vital questions of the hour (Pr. 3126):

She opens her mouth with wisdom,

And kindly instruction is on her tongue.

Such a woman is represented as enjoying not only the praise and esteem of her husband and children but also a noble reputation in the community. Even her husband shines with reflected glory (Pr. 3123):

Her husband is known in the gates,

When he sits among the elders of the land.

Full liberty and opportunity are granted her (Pr. 3130, 31):

Grace is deceitful and beauty is vain,

But a woman of intelligence shall be praised.
Give her the credit for the work of her hand,
And let her works praise her in the gates.

It is unquestionably a noble portrait which is here presented, and faithfully reflects the remarkable degree of independence vouchsafed to Hebrew women in ancient days. It only lacks the touch of intellectual and social companionship and warm affection between husband and wife to make the picture complete.

The Duties of Parents to Children. The wise men were the forerunners of the modern religious education movement. Their primary aim was so to train the individual in his earlier years that he might attain to complete and efficient manhood. They have aptly stated the fundamental principle of religious education in the proverb (Pr. 22°):

Train a child in the way he should go,

And even when he is old he will not depart from it.

They threw the responsibility for the moral and religious culture of the child in his earlier years almost entirely upon the