Psalm 46:4-7 There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High.… The fourth chapter of St. John and Psalm sixty-three show that by the river spoken of, the Holy Spirit of God is meant. Under the figure of a river the properties and excellencies of the Spirit of God, hero described as flowing through the Scriptures and the Church, are set forth. I. A RIVER FLOWS FROM A FOUNTAIN, and this river "proceeded out of the throne of God and the Lamb," the infinite bosom of our Father and our God. II. IT IS EXHAUSTLESS as the fountain from whence it flows. III. IT IS IN PLACES SHALLOW, whilst in others its depths cannot be fathomed. IV. IT IS ACCESSIBLE TO ALL. V. FERTILITY FOLLOWS IT. VI. ITS CHANNEL IS THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. VII. IT IS A HIGHWAY by which great treasures are conveyed to us; and it is a great means of communication between us and heaven. VIII. IT RISES TO THE HEIGHT OF ITS SOURCE. IX. IT REARS ALL DOWN BEFORE IT by its force and pressure. X. IT IS A DEFENCE to the city which it surrounds. XI. IT REARS OFF ALL IMPURITIES. XII. IT IS A GLADDENING SPECTACLE. Then let us value the work of the Holy Spirit. (J. Cummins, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High. |
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