"What can be done to press back the inflowing tide of evil? Let laws be enacted and rigidly enforced prohibiting the sale and the use of ardent spirits as a beverage. Let every effort be made to encourage the inebriate's return to temperance and virtue. But even more than this is needed to banish the curse of inebriety from our land. Let the appetite for intoxicating liquors be removed, and their use and sale is at an end. This work must to a great degree devolve upon parents. Let them, by observing strict temperance themselves, give the right stamp of character to their children, and then educate and train these children, in the fear of God, to habits of self-denial and self-control. Youth who have been thus trained will have moral stamina to resist temptation, and to control appetite and passion. They will stand unmoved by the folly and dissipation that are corrupting society. GW 388.1"
"Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people."
Both passages connect righteousness/virtue with the well-being of a community/nation. Proverbs states that righteousness exalts a nation, while White argues that temperance and virtue, instilled through proper upbringing, are essential to combatting the 'inflowing tide of evil' and the curse of inebriety.
"For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil."
Both passages discuss the role of law and authority in addressing societal problems. Romans 13:3-4 speaks of rulers as ministers of God who punish evil, while White calls for laws prohibiting the sale and use of alcohol. Both see law as a tool for promoting good and restraining evil, although White emphasizes the need for more than just legal solutions.