Instead of usefulness, one might almost be tempted to say that the first
law of their nature is to _torment_ people; but the service they render
to the world at large must not be lightly esteemed.
1. The very torment of which they are so capable may be turned into a
visitation of _judgment_. When Isaiah refers to the scattering of the
Ten Tribes, he exclaims, "The Lord shall hiss for the fly that is in the
uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the
land of Assyria" (Isa. vii. 18). And the children will remember that
the ten plagues which fell upon Egypt included "swarms of flies" in all
the houses of the Egyptians. These little insects were used as the
scourges of mankind to wreak the vengeance of a broken law on the heads
of the transgressors. And especially is this the case with the law of
cleanliness. The one sin that the fly will not tolerate is the sin of
laziness and dirt. Wheresoever the filth is, there will the flies be
gathered together. Those who despise this first law of their being will
not offend with impunity; and if no other scourge be available, that
little torment--the common fly--will be commissioned to undertake the
duty.
2. But the sword they wield is double-edged. It not only flays the
law-breakers, it also slays the infection and the fever which have
followed in their train. They are _the scavengers of the atmosphere_.
They do for the air what the pariah dogs of the East do for the
earth--they gather up and remove everything that offends, everything
that occasions or breeds disease. Let no one say that the swarms of
flies bring the cholera and the fever. They are the camp-followers who
tread on the heels of those dreaded foes, and they feed upon and do
their best to remove the foulsome odours. We need not grudge the spider
his savoury morsel, but it will be a dark hour for the earth if he
should gain the mastery. If he should prove too much for the fly, we
shall be left to the miasmas and pestilences from which the presence of
the fly relieves us.
3. Even in its death the fly renders a most substantial service. It
forms the food of innumerable song-birds, which, apart from the fly,
would never be found in our land at all. How dull and lifeless would
the months of the summer be without the swallow, the willow-warbler, and
the fly-catcher. And yet these feed almost entirely on flies. "And if
the trout had not discovered what a savoury morsel the fly is that
dances on the stream, what a very dull, stupid amusement would fishing
be! Many a schoolboy would lose the greatest treat of a summer holiday
if there were no flies, and no trout that appreciated them."
The niche filled by the fly is therefore a very important one. It
neither lives a useless life nor dies a useless death. Its sphere of
usefulness is as striking and suggestive as the wondrous delicacy of its
form and structure, and they both point us to the Great Creator whose
greatness and goodness are manifested through all His works--
"Who sees with equal eye, as God of all,
A hero perish, or a sparrow fall."
And if the boy be the father of the man, we may justly emphasise another
lesson--that the law of kindness ought to rule in the least as well as
in the greatest--that he who begins by torturing a fly may end with
something far more solemn--_a human heart_.
*The Pearl-Oyster.*
"Neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under
their feet."--Matt. vii. 6.
The disciples of Jesus are here told not to talk too freely of their
spiritual enjoyments before men of debased tastes. Religion is brought
into contempt, and its professors insulted, when it is forced upon those
who cannot value it and will not have it. "Throw a pearl to a swine,"
says Matthew Henry, "and he will resent it, as if you threw a stone at
him; _reproofs_ will be called _reproaches_." Such men cannot
appreciate the jewels of Christianity, and like swine, which prefer peas
to pearls, they will trample them under their feet and turn again and
rend you.
On the other hand, this caution is not to be carried too far. We are
not to set down all our neighbours as dogs and swine, and then excuse
ourselves from trying to do them good on this poor plea. The Saviour's
golden rule shows us a more excellent way: "Whatsoever ye would that men
should do to you, do ye even so to them; for this is the law and the
prophets." We are to deal with each other as God deals with us. He
does not judge us uncharitably; but still less does He give that which
is holy to the dogs. He gives to each what is suitable to each. He
sends His _rain_ on the just and on the unjust; but He keeps His _love_
for those who worship and love His Son (John xiv. 21). And that is His
example to you and me. We must seek His Spirit to guide us in all
things, that being made wise with His wisdom, we may ourselves possess
the pearl of great price and not cast our pearls before swine.