That's a Devilish Thing to Say! Quiz

Answer: idle hands

This is a warning against laziness. My mother would quote it whenever she found me sitting thinking, and would promptly follow up with some chore that I disliked. I sometimes wondered - who was finding work for me? I never dared ask!

Answer: in an empty pocket

This saying means that when you are short of funds you may easily be tempted into doing something illegal or immoral.

Another interpretation, which is what I used to think was its meaning, is that the devil caused the empty pocket and now he is dancing with glee because he has made someone poor. That doesn't have any moral meaning, though. but it is much more satisfying somehow.

Answer: he will appear

This saying was originally "Talk of a wolf", which was once a real threat because wolves were indigenous to England. When they were eliminated, however, another threat had to be found for this saying and the devil stepped in.

Answer: any blackberries left unpicked after 29th September

There is a tradition used by Milton in his poem "Paradise Lost", which says that the devil was once an angel in Heaven, but after he blasphemed, the archangel, St Michael, ousted him from Heaven and he fell to earth. He landed on September 29th (St Michael's Day)in a bramble bush.

He promptly cursed the bush, its prickles and its blackberries, so you are advised not to pick or eat any of them after September because from then on, they belong to the devil and have been cursed by him.

Answer: Winston Churchill, inspirational Prime Minister of England

Martin Luther, preaching in the sixteenth century was said to have set Christian words to the tunes of current drinking songs, although this is no longer thought likely. Charles Wesley wrote such rousing hymns that he was accused of using popular tunes, but once again it was an attribution that is probably wrong. (note that the question says "attributed to".) William Booth on the other hand, is noted for writing hymn words to such well known tunes such as "Brahms' Lullaby" and "Home on the Range" and these actually feature in the Salvation Army book of hymn tunes.

Answer: Needs must when the devil drives

When the devil is in the driving seat, you can't expect to have a fair choice. Thus, "Needs must...." The other sayings I invented, although there are similar ones about.

Answer: you know

It may be better to accept the certainty of a less welcome option than the promise of something unfamiliar.

This is a Greek story: There was once a group of frogs who wanted a king, so they appealed to Zeus. He gave them an old wooden log, but it did nothing so they asked for something alive. This time Zeus gave them a long, thin, water snake, who soon ate up all the frogs. The moral is obvious.

Answer: shame the devil

This was always said to me as a child when I was caught out in a lie. That was all very well, but I was not brave enough to face the consequences - not like Hugh Latimer, Bishop of Winchester, who insisted on claiming that he believed in Protestantism even to the extent of being burned at the stake for it.

Answer: his due

Sometimes you find someone you do not like does something of which you approve. (After all, it can happen!) If you acknowledge this deed, you may say you are giving the devil his due.

Answer: needs to use a long spoon

This is a very old saying. Chaucer wrote about it in the "Squire's Tale" in his "Canterbury Tales" and Shakespeare made Stephano say, in "The Tempest", that he is not going to remain in Caliban's company because he thinks he is a devil and he (Stephano) has no long spoon.
It is a warning against keeping bad company.