York's Walls

Last month, I walked around most of the walls of York. I have previously inspected those of Jerusalem which are even more impressive, but not so extensive. Erecting walls around a town is an obsolete form of defence, but I note the existence of ‘gated communities’ in this country, and wonder if the increased crime we seem to be experiencing will result in more of these springing up. Walls keep brigands out and the citizens in. Proverbs 25:28 states:

Whoever has no rule over his own spirit is like a city broken down, without walls.

What a curious maxim, with a range of applications. For failing to exercise control over oneself is to lower barriers and squander protections. Controlling the mouth (what goes into it and what comes out of it), the feet (where one goes) the hands (what one does), the eyes (what one sees) and the ears (what one hears) will keep the city within safe from dangerous foes.