Exodus 17:1-3 And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, after their journeys… I was told by a gentleman who walked over one of the battle-fields on a hot summer night, after a day of carnage, that the cry of the wounded was absolutely unbearable, and after giving all supply that he could, he put his fingers to his ears, for the cry all over the plain was from hundreds of dying men, "Water! Water! For God's sake, give us water." Coming home from the store on a hot summer day, in the eventide, every muscle of your body exhausted with fatigue, what do you first ask for? A cup of water — fresh, clear, sparkling water. This Bible is all agleam with fountains, and rivers, and seas. The prophet sees the millennium, and cries, "Streams in the desert." David thinks of the deep joy of the righteous, and calls it "A river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God." While the New Testament holds forth ten thousand chalices filled with living water for a thirsty world. I. Water is typical of the Gospel, because of its BRIGHTNESS. The fountain breaks forth from the side of the hill, flashing with gold, and silver, and beryl, and chrysolite; and as you see it, you almost clap your hands with gladness. But there is no brightness in it compared with this living fountain of the Gospel; for in each falling drop I see the glory of heaven. II. Water typifies the Gospel by its REFRESHMENT. How different you feel after you get a glass of cool water, or after you have plunged into a bath! On a hot summer day there is nothing that so soon brings you back from a bad temper or a disturbed spirit, and puts you into a happy frame of mind and body, as cold water. Blessed be God for water. I love to hear it fall in the shower and dash in the cascade, and to see it rush from the ice pitcher into the clear glass. Hand round this nectar of the hills and drink, all of you, to the praise of Him who brewed it among the mountains. Thank God for water. But there is a better refreshment even than that. There was a time when you were hounded by convictions. Sinai thundered. The wrath of God cried, "Fly." Justice cried, "Fly." Your own fears cried, "Fly." Mercy said, "Come, come!" and you plunged like a hart into the water brooks, and out of that flood your soul came up cool, and clean, and radiant; and you looked round and said, Come, and hear ye all that fear God, and I will tell you what He hath done for my soul." III. Water typifies the Gospel because of its ABUNDANCE. When we pour the water from the pitcher into the glass we have to be careful, or the glass will overflow, and we stop when the water has come to the rim. But when God, in summer, pours out His showers, He keeps pouring on and pouring on until the grass blades cry, "Enough!" and the flowers, "Enough!" and the trees, "Enough!" but God keeps pouring on and pouring on, until the fields are soaked, and the rivers overflow, and the cisterns are all filled and the great reservoirs are supplied, and there is water to turn the wheel, water to slake the thirst of the city, water to cleanse the air, water to wash the hemisphere. Abundance! And so with this glorious gospel. Enough for one, enough for all. Just after the battle of Antietam, with some of the other members of the Christian Commission, I went down to help look after the wounded, and on the afternoon of a very hot day I came to a pump of water. I saw a soldier, with musket, guarding the pump. I said, "Why do you not fill my cup?" He replied, "Water is scarce. Here is a great army, and we do not know where to get water after this is gone; and I have orders to give no more than that." What a poor supply for a thirsty man on a hot day I But, glory be to God! that in this gospel fountain there is water enough for all the armies of the earth, and for all the armies of heaven. You cannot drink it dry. IV. Water typifies the Gospel in the fact that it is PERENNIAL. In this hot summer weather some of the fountains have dried up; but stand you on the bank of the Amazon, or of the St. Lawrence, or of the Mississippi, or of the Ohio, and see if it runs dry. No; they have been flowing on for thousands of years, and they will probably flow on for thousands of years more. The trees of the forest have cast their leaves for ages into the bosom of these waters, and the birds of heaven have dipped their wings in the wave. And so it is with this gospel. It is a perennial gospel. On earth we only see a portion of that great River of Life; but after a while the river will rise, and it will join the tides of the celestial river that flows hard by the throne of God. (T. De Witt Talmage, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, after their journeys, according to the commandment of the LORD, and pitched in Rephidim: and there was no water for the people to drink. |
    |