366 Chap. z 3. 4nExpofition upon the Book of Joa. Verf. ilxd it fhould be your wifdom. Properly there is no wifdom in filence. Silence is a privative, at leali a negative. As dumbnefs is a total, fo filence is a tem- poraryprivation offpeech : But wifdom is a pofitive, and among habits theAloft excellent habit. He that is really a fool, is afoot though filent, he is not wifebecaufe he hides his folly, so that,when yob faith, It fhouldbe your wifdohs, his meaning is, this would be your wifell courfe ; of the two you would fhew your felves wifer men by filence, then by talking at fuch a rate of indifcreti- on as fome of you have done. Silence may be the covering of .41g3 wino: folly, but nofilence car, be the cureof it : or filence may caufe taceretis ut pu.. others to think we arewife, but it cannot make any man wife. taremini ofe (Prov. 17.28.) Solomon giveth us that rule, Even a fool when fapientes. Vulg. he holdeth his peace, is counted wife; he doth not fay he is wife, but he is counted fo; he is counted wife, becaufe he bath this happinefs not tó difcover his want of wifdom. Yet further, as a fool may gain the reputationof that wifdom which he hath not, if he be but wife enough to hold his peace fo a wife man may thew thewifdomwhichhe hath byholding his peace, when fpeaking is unfeafonable, or when himfelf may learn by giving others, who arewifer and more able than himfelf, the greater libertyof fpeaking. It is a good piece of learning to learn not to fpeak, as well as to fpeak well : nature teaches us to fpeak,art roifca:us pi- teaches us to fpeak well ; but virtue and grace teach us not to us non /004 ut fpeak.Awife manwill be filent as a learner,that he maybe fitted Npojt mho ad to fpeak as a teacher,The Apoftles Canon concerningwomen,hath Boquendum ova its ufe in refpeetofmany men,let them learn infalence, tTim.2.I I. referamus., dr Hence Obferve, paß multum f_ gir11, That in force cafes it is wifdom to be ¡dent. Bontaus ex da_ Solomon tells us EccIe . fcípulis eacüt_ l l ( f3.9) that there is a feafortforfilence mur magiftri. Every thing is beautifulan itsfeafon, fo filence, and fo is fpeech. Hieren. in 3. It is a great part of prudence to know when tobe filent, and cap. Ecelef: when to fpeak. There is (faith he) a time to keepfilence, and a time to fpeak: When itis a time to fpeak, filence is our folly, and when it is a time to keep tilence,fpeakingis our folly. There are feven fpecial feafonsof fpeaking, and (even of filence. The feven feafonsof fpeaking are thefe, t. ( Which is a general) When by fpeaking we may bring gloryto God) and do good to our brethren. a. When
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