Beware of the dog
Charles Spurgeon · John Ploughman's Pictures; or, More of His Plain Talk for Plain People
JOHN PLOUGHMAN did not in his
first book weary his friends by preach-
ing, but in this one he makes bold to try
his hand at a sermon, and hopes he will be ex-
(136)
BEWARE OF THE DOG. 137
cused if it should prove to be only a plough-
man's preachment.
If this were a regular sermon preached
from a pulpit of course I should make it
long and dismal, like a winter's night, for
fear people should call me eccentric. As it
is only meant to be read at home, I will
make it short, though it will not be sweet,
for I have not a sweet subject. The text
is one which has a great deal of meaning in
it, and is to be read on many a wall. *' Be-
ware OF THE Dog." You know what dogs
are, and you know how you beware of them
when a bull-dog flies at you to the full
length of his chain ; so the words don't
want any clearing up.
It is very odd that the Bible never says a
good word for dogs : I suppose the breed
must have been bad in those eastern parts,
or else, as our minister tells me, they were
nearly wild, had no master in particular,
and were left to prowl about half starved.
No doubt a dog is very like a man, and be-
comes a sad dog when he has himself for a
master. We are all the better for having
somebody to look up to; and those who
138 JOHN PLOUGHMAN'S PICTURES.
say they care for nobody and nobody cares
for them are dogs of the worst breed, and,
for a certain reason, are never hkely to be
drowned.
Dear friends, I shall have heads and tails
like other parsons, and I am sure I have a
right to them, for they are found in the sub-
jects before us.
Firstly, let us beware of a dirty dog — or
as the grand old Book calls them, " evil
workers " — those who love filth and roll in
it. Dirty dogs will spoil your clothes, and
make you as foul as themselves. A man is
known by his company ; if you go with
loose fellows your character will be tarred
with the same brush as theirs. People can't
be very nice in their distinctions ; if they
see a bird always flying with the crows,
and feeding and nesting with them, they
call it a crow, and ninety-nine times out of
a hundred they are right. If you are fond
of the kennel, and like to run with the
hounds, you will never make the world be-
lieve that you are a pet lamb. Besides, bad
company does a man real harm, for, as the
old proverb has it, if you lie down with dogs
you will get up with fleas.
BEWARE OF THE DOG. 139
You cannot keep too far off a man with
the fever and a man of wicked life. If a
lady in a fine dress sees a big dog come out
of a horse-pond, and run about shaking him-
self dry, she is very particular to keep out
of his way, and from this we may learn a
lesson, — when we see a man half gone in
liquor, sprinkling his dirty talk all around
him, our best place is half-a-mile off at the
least.
Secondly, bezuare of all S7tarling dogs.
There are plenty of these about ; they are
generally very small creatures, but they more
than make up for their size by their noise.
They yap and snap without end. Dr. Watts
said —
" Let dogs delight to bark and bite,
For God has made them so."
But I cannot make such an excuse for the
two-legged dogs I am writing about, for
their own vile tempers, and the devil to-
gether, have made them what they are. They
find fault with anything and everything.
When they dare they howl, and when they
cannot do that they lie down and growl in-
wardly. Beware of these creatures. Make
no friends with an angry man : as well make
I40 JOHN PLOUGHMAN'S PICTURES.
a bed of stinging nettles or wear a viper for
a necklace. Perhaps the fellow is just now
very fond of you, but beware of him, for he
who barks at others to-day without a cause
will one day howl at you for nothing.
Don't offer him a kennel down your yard
unless he will let you chain him up. When
you see that a man has a bitter spirit, and
gives nobody a good word, quietly walk
away and keep out of his track if you can.
Loaded guns and quick tempered people
are dangerous pieces of furniture ; they don't
mean any hurt, but they are apt to go off
and do mischief before you dream of it.
Better go a mile out of your way than get
into a ficrht ; better sit down on a dozen tin-
tacks with their points up than dispute with
an angry neighbor.
Thirdly, beware of fawning dogs. They
jump up upon you and leave the marks of
their dirty paws. How they will lick your
hand and fondle you as long as there are
bones to be got: like the lover who said
to the cook, " Leave you, dear girl ? Never,
while you have a shilling." Too much
sugar in the talk should lead us to suspect
that there is very little in the heart. The
BEWARE Oi^ THE DOG. 141
moment a man praises you to your face,
mark him, for he is the very gentleman to
rail at you behind your back. If a fellow
takes the trouble to flatter he expects to
be paid for it, and he calculates that he
will get his wages out of the soft brains of
those he tickles. When people stoop down
it generally is to pick something up,
and men don't stoop to flatter you unless
they reckon upon getting something out of
you. When you see too much politeness
you may generally smell a rat if you give
a good sniff Young people need to be on
the watch against crafty flatterers. Young
women with pretty faces and a little money
should especially beware of puppies !
Fourthly, beware of a greedy dog, or a
man who never has enough. Grumbling is
catching ; one discontented man sets others
complaining, and this is a bad state of mind
to fall into. Folks who are greedy are not
always honest, and if they see a chance they
will put their spoon into their neighbor's
porridge ; why not into yours ? See how
cleverl}^ they skin a flint; before long you
will find them skinning you, and as you are
not quite so used to it as the eels are, you
142 JOHN PLOUGHMAN'S PICTURES.
had better give Mr. Skinner a wide berth.
When a man boasts that he never gives any-
thing away, you may read it as a caution —
** beware of the dog." A hberal, kind-
hearted friend helps you to keep down your
selfishness, but a greedy grasper tempts you
to put an extra button on your pocket.
Hungry dogs will wolf down any quantity
of meat, and then look out for more, and so
will greedy men swallow farms and houses,
and then smell around for something else.
I am sick of the animals : I mean both the
dogs and men. Talking of nothing but
gold, and how to make money, and how to
save it — why one had better live with the
bounds at once, and howl over your share
of dead horse. The mischief a miserly
wretch may do to a man's heart no tongue
can tell ; one might as well be bitten by a
mad dog, for greediness is as bad a madness
as a mortal can be tormented with. Keep
out of the company of screw-drivers, tight-
fists, hold-fasts, and blood-suckers : " beware
of dogs."
Fifthly, beware of a yelping dog. Those
who talk much tell a great many lies, and '\{
you love truth you had better not love tJie7n.
BEWARE OF THE DOG. 143
Those who talk much are Hkely enough to
speak ill of their neighbors, and of yourself
among the rest ; and therefore, if you do
not want to be town-talk, you will be wise
to find other friends. Mr. Prate-apace will
weary you out one day, and you will be
wise to break off his acquaintance before it
is made. Do not lodge in Clack Street,
nor next door to the Gossip's Head. A
lion's jaw is nothing compared to a tale-
bearer's. If you have a dog which is
always barking, and should chance to lose
him, don't spend a penny in adv^ertising for
him. Few are the blessings which are
poured upon dogs which howl all night and
wake up honest householders, but even
these can be better put up with than those
incessant chatterers who never let a man's
character rest either day or night.
Sixthly, bcivare of a dog that worries the
sheep. Such get into our churches, and cause
a world of misery. Some have new doc-
trines as rotten as they are new ; others
have new plans, whims, and crotchets, and
nothing^ will oro rio-ht till these are tried ;
and there is a third sort, which are out of
love with everybody and everything, and
144 JOHN PLOUGHMAN'S PICTURES.
only come into the churches to see if they
can make a row. Mark these, and keep
clear of them. There are plenty of humble
Christians who only want leave to be quiet
and mind their own business, and these
troubles are their plague. To hear the gos-
pel, and to be helped to do good, is all that
the most of our members want, but these
worries come in with their *' ologies " and
puzzlements, and hard speeches, and cause
sorrow upon sorrow. A good shepherd
will soon fetch these dogs a crack of the
head ; but they will be at their work again
if they see half a chance. What pleasure
can they find in it ? Surely they must
have a touch of the wolf in their nature.
At any rate, beware of the dog.
Seventhly, beware of dogs who have re-
turned to their vomit. An apostate is like
a leper. As a rule none are more bitter
enemies of the cross than those who once
professed to be followers of Jesus. He who
can turn away from Christ is not a fit com-
panion for any honest man. There are
many abroad nowadays who have thrown
off religion as easily as a ploughman puts
off his jacket. It will be a terrible day for
BEWARE OF THE DOG. 145
them when the heavens are on fire above
them, and the world is ablaze under their
feet. If a man calls himself my friend, and
leaves the ways of God, then his way and
mine are different ; he who is no friend to
the good cause is no friend of mine.
Lastly, finally, and to finish up, bcivare of
a dog that has no inastcr. If a fellow makes
free with the Bible, and the laws of his
country, and common decency, it is time to
make free to tell him we had rather have
his room than his company. A certain set
of wonderfully wise men are talking very
big things, and putting their smutty fingers
upon everything which their fathers thought
to be good and holy. Poor fools, they are
not half as clever as they think they are.
Like hogs in a flower-garden, they are for
rooting up everything ; and some people
are so frightened that they stand as if they
were stuck, and hold up their hands in hor-
ror at the creatures. When the hogs have
been in my master's garden, and I have had
the big whip handy, I warrant you I have
made a clearance, and I only wish I was a
scholar, for I would lay about me among
these free-thinking gentry, and make them
146 JOHN PLOUGHMAN'S PICTURES.
squeal to a long metre tune. As John
Ploughman has other fish to fry, and other
tails to butter, he must leave these mis-
chievous creatures, and finish his rough
ramshackle sermon.
" Beware of the dog." Beware of all who
will do you harm. Good company is to be
had, why seek bad ? It is said of heaven,
** without are dogs." Let us make friends
of those who can go inside of heaven, for
there we hope to go ourselves. We shall
go to our own company when we die ; let
it be such that we shall be glad to go to it.