Two great principles of life are stated in the beginning of this chapter: not to engage oneself for the future, and not to be lazy and indolent for the present. God has set us in this place, bumble diligence as a duty now—His ordinance since the fall. “In the sweat of thy brow thou shalt eat bread.” “If a man will not work, neither let him eat.” On the other hand, engaging for the future is that, the result of which no man can command. The contrary of peaceful labor for one's need is the violence and rapine already spoken of and condemned as one of the two great characters of sin, at least as towards men. The other is, besides wrong, defrauding a brother in the tenderest point, sinning against oneself in corruption and lust— “one's own body,” as Paul speaks: all surely evil withal in God's sight. If a man has engaged himself, he is not to slight of course his engagement, but to take it as a present obligation; but if he would be free, go and get the person he is pledged for to discharge it at once. Otherwise we are in a way we cannot control in the hands of others, so as not to be free to serve God's will, and perhaps to meet an unknown result though under obligation to do so. Christians will find this rule of immense importance for the quiet and peacefulness of their lives, and the violation of it sorrow and trouble of heart. Indolence and laziness carry their own judgment with them, as every one has seen, poverty will come as one that travelleth.
It is remarkable to see the Spirit of God so graciously descend to their details, in the way of practical wisdom, and the results that flow from conduct in this world, but on which so much depends of the peacefulness of the spirit in our path. There are warnings as to oneself.
What follows describes the perverseness of the wicked man, the man of Belial, the man who is void of God in his mind and follows vanity consequently. In every moment he is at mischief: His eyes, his feet, his fingers, all seem to carry on mischief. Perverseness is in his heart: so it works, through all that he can signify anything with; he devises mischief continually, causing discord amongst others—a sad picture. But we cannot but feel how we are occupied with evil here, for we are in an evil world, and our path is through it. Only I have to learn it thus in the word by faith, and not in the practice of it, or by familiarity with the practice of it in the world. But judgment comes on such. He is unexpectedly destroyed without remedy. He has been occupied with evil; there remains but judgment. ‘Judgment' here is the instruction of Proverbs; and surely, though there is not a direct government by it, so it is continually in the world even now. The character of the man of Belial and vanity is then described in the traits which the Lord hates.