But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price. The hidden man of the heart - Ὁ κρυπτος της καρδιας ανθρωπος. This phrase is of the same import with that of St. Paul, Romans 7:22, ὁ εσω ανθρωπος, the inner man; that is, the soul, with the whole system of affections and passions. Every part of the Scripture treats man as a compound being: the body is the outward or visible man; the soul, the inward, hidden, or invisible man. The term ανθρωπος, man, is derived, according to the best etymologists, from ανα τρεπων ωπα, turning the face upward. This derivation of the word is beautifully paraphrased by Ovid. The whole passage is beautiful; and, though well known, I shall insert it. After speaking of the creation and formation of all the irrational animals, he proceeds thus: -
"Sanctius his animal, mentisque capacius altae
Deerat adhuc, et quod dominari in caetera posset.
Natus Homo est: sive hunc divino semine fecit
Ille opifex rerum, mundi melioris origo;
Sive recens tellus, seductaque nuper ab alto
Aethere, cognati retinebat semina coeli. -
Pronaque cum spectent animalia caetera terram,
Os Homini Sublime Dedit; Coelumque Tueri
Jussit, et erectos ad sidera tollere veltus."
Metam, lib. i. ver. 76.
"A creature of a more exalted kind
Was wanting yet, and then was Man design'd;
Conscious of thought, of more capacious breast,
For empire form'd, and fit to rule the rest.
Whether with particles of heavenly fire
The God of nature did his soul inspire,
Or earth but new divided from the sky,
Which still retain'd th' ethereal energy. -
Thus, while the mute creation downward bend
Their sight, and to their earthly mother tend,
Man looks aloft, and with erected eyes
Beholds his own hereditary skies."
Dryden.
The word ανθρωπος, man, is frequently applied to the soul, but generally with some epithet. Thus ὁ εσω ανθρωπος, the inner man, Romans 7:22, to distinguish it from the body, which is called ὁ εξω ανθρωπος, the outer man, 2 Corinthians 4:16; ὁ κρυπτος ανθρωπος, the hidden man, as in the text; ὁ καινος ανθρωπος, the new man, the soul renewed in righteousness, Ephesians 2:15, to distinguish him from ὁ παλαιος ανθρωπος, the old man, that is, man unregenerate or in a state of sin, Romans 6:6. And the soul is thus distinguished by the Greek philosophers.
A meek and quiet spirit - That is, a mind that will not give provocation to others, nor receive irritation by the provocation of others. Meekness will prevent the first; quietness will guard against the last.
Great price - All the ornaments placed on the head and body of the most illustrious female, are, in the sight of God, of no worth; but a meek and silent spirit are, in his sight, invaluable, because proceeding from and leading to himself, being incorruptible, surviving the ruins of the body and the ruins of time, and enduring eternally.