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THE GOLDEN VERSES OF PYTHAGORAS.
Then, this good truth it shall be thine to know,—
[1]That ofttimes men bid their own sorrows flow;—
Unhappy wretches, whose slow faltering sight
Refuse to see the blessings of the light;
And whose weak ears unconscious of a sound,
List not the cheering voices waving round.
[2]How few are they who judge where evils end,
And to what sad o'erthrow of mind they tend;
Who ignorant of right, unpracticed in the good
Roll reckless on in ways not understood:
Unnumber'd ills, a fierce and dread array,
In ambush hid, beset their rugged way.
Oh, melancholy strifes, attendants of their fate,
Approach unseen, and on their footsteps wait;
[3]Ills which the good, who Wisdom's voice obey,
Bid stand aloof, or turn their steps away.
- ↑ Do no evils, and no evils shall lay hold of thee. Depart from the unjust, and evils shall depart from thee. My son, sow not evils in the furrows of injustice, and thou shalt not reap them sevenfold. Ecclesiasticus, 7 ch., 1-3 ver.
- ↑ A deceitful balance is an abomination before the Lord: and a just weight is his will. Where pride is, there also shall be reproach but where humility is, there also is wisdom. The simplicity of the just shall guide them and the deceitfulness of the wicked shall destroy them. Riches shall not profit in the day of revenge: but justice shall deliver from death. The justice of the upright shall make his way prosperous: and the wicked man shall fall by his own wickedness. The justice of the righteous shall deliver them: and the unjust shall be caught in their own snares. Prov., 11 ch., 1-6 ver.
- ↑ For a description of wisdom, her praises, her excellence,
