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arrogated to himself this powerh. He actually exerted it while he continued upon earth; and in a more abundant measure after his exaltation to heaven. The effusion of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost is expressly ascribed to him. Hence we may understand why the Holy Ghost is so emphatically called the Spirit of Christ1.]

To excite her desire after it, he proceeded to set before her,

II. The properties it possesses

Contrasting it with that which he had solicited at her hands, he told her it was,

1. Satisfying in its nature—

[Water from an earthly spring will quench the thirst only for a short time; nor will it at all allay our appetite for other things. The men of this world are insatiable in their desire after the vanities of time and sense. The more they have of pleasure, riches, or honour, the more they want. But a draught of this living water will satisfy the soul: of this heavenly spring indeed, all who have once tasted, will wish to drink again; yea, they will pant after it as the hart after the water-brooks. But their desire of earthly things will be greatly abated. The consolations of the Spirit will be regarded by them as the only satisfying portion": they will make every thing else appear insipid, as the beholding of the meridian sun will obscure in their eyes the splendour of all inferior objects.]

2. Heavenly in its tendency

[The supplies of water in "a well" are constant and uniform so the Spirit operates in the heart of man. There will indeed be seasons when his operations will be less manifest: but he will always reside in us as a principle of lifeP: he will excite holy and heavenly affections in our breasts: he will keep heaven itself in our view: and the one aim of all his motions will be to lead us to everlasting life: nor, if we cherish his motions, will he fail of bringing us to the possession of its.]

INFER―

1. How glorious a person must Christ be!

h Thrice did he claim this authority in his conversation with the Samaritan woman, and often afterwards in the plainest terms. John xv. 26. and xvi. 7, 14.

i John xx. 22.

1 1 Pet. i. 11.

• Ps. lxxiii. 25.

a Gal. iv. 6.

k Acts ii. 33. before cited.
m Job xx. 22.

Phil. iii. 7, 8.

· Eph. i. 14.

n Isai. lv. 2.

P John xiv. 16, 17.

s Rom. viii. 13, 14.

[The Holy Spirit is God equal with the Father': yet Christ has power to send him into our hearts. He can as easily bestow him on us, as we can give a cup of water from a spring. Even though the whole world should ask him, he could impart the Spirit to all of them at the same instant". Let us then entertain worthy thoughts of him, and look to him for constant supplies of this living water*.]

2. How earnest should we be in our application for this heavenly gift!

[The worldly man is indefatigable in his pursuit of earthly vanities but which of them can be compared with this living water? Which of them can give us life? or satisfy the soul? or bring us to glory? O that we might thirst after this, and this alone! Then would the invitations of Christ be precious to our souls, and we should speedily receive his promised blessings ".]

3. How dead ought we to be to all earthly things! [Our Lord represents all who have received his Spirit as thirsting no more. Hence we can have no evidence that we have drunk of the living waters, but in proportion as our thirst for other things is abated. Let those, who profess to have the Spirit dwelling in them, consider this. The Scriptures that confirm this truth are numberless". May God impress them deeply on our hearts! Let the world then be crucified unto us, and us unto the world : and if we would indeed be found partakers of Christ, let us both live in the Spirit and walk in the Spirit.]

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THIS is part of the answer of our blessed Lord to the Samaritan woman. He had taken occasion, from an observation of hers, to shew her that he was well acquainted with the most secret history of her past life; and not from report merely, but from his own omniscient mind, from which nothing could be hid.

He had told her, that " she had had five husbands;" (all of whom, it is probable, had put her away for her adulteries;) and that "the person with whom she was now living was not her husband." She, wishing to get rid of so painful a subject, proposed a question relative to a controversy which then existed between the Samaritans and the Jews, as to the place where God was to be worshipped. Our Lord, satisfied with having discovered to her his character as a prophet of the Most High, graciously waved the prosecution of a subject which was so painful to her, and turned his attention to that which she had submitted to him. In reply to her question, he informed her, that the time was coming when all distinctions of places should be lost; so far, at least, as related to acceptable worship: for that all, of whatever place or country, who should worship God in spirit and in truth, should be accepted of him. At the same time he informed her that the question itself must be determined in favour of the Jews. The Samaritans, indeed, had much to say in their own behalf, and in support of the cause which they maintained. They could say, that on Mount Gerizim, for the sanctity of which they pleaded, Abraham himself had built an altara, as had Jacob also; (for Sichem, or Shechem, where he built it, was so close to Mount Gerizim, that a man's voice might be distinctly heard from the one to the other:) and that, consequently, that place had a prior claim to Zion, on which no altar had been raised, till many hundred years had elapsed. They could also with truth affirm, that Moses himself, under the special direction of Jehovah, had commanded, that all the congregations of Israel, as soon as they should gain possession of the Promised Land, should assemble round Mount Gerizim; and that from thence the blessings of Jehovah should be pronounced, whilst his curses should be declared from Mount Ebal, which was near to it. They could also appeal to the Jewish Scriptures, that Joshua and all Israel a Gen. xii. 6, 7. b Gen. xxxiii. 18-20. with Judg. ix. 7. c Deut. xi. 29. and xxvii. 11-13.

had actually complied with this command"; and had thereby sanctified that mountain in a more especial manner, and marked it out as the place which God had chosen for his more peculiar worship in all future ages.

But, in answer to all this, our Lord informed her, that the Samaritans "knew not whom they worshipped." Though they occupied the land of Israel, they were not Israelites, but foreigners, whom the king of Assyria had sent to occupy the land, when he carried captive the ten tribes of Israel. Nor did they, in reality, know the true God: for it was only in consequence of the judgments which God had inflicted on them for their idolatries, by sending lions to devour them, that they had ever thought of worshipping him at all. To avert his displeasure, they had desired that a Jewish priest might be sent back to the land, to instruct them how to worship Jehovah; but, at the same time, they retained their own idolatries; thus "fearing the Lord, and serving other Gods'." The Jews, on the contrary, worshipped Jehovah alone; (for never after the Babylonish captivity did they return to idolatry ;) and they possessed that revelation of God's will, through the knowledge of which alone any human being could be saved: "Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship; for salvation is of the Jews."

Thus was the controversy determined in favour of the Jews. But that being no longer of any consequence to the Church, we forbear to notice it any further; and shall fix our attention on that general declaration, which is still of as great importance as ever, that "salvation is of the Jews."

It is of them originally, as derived from them; and it is of them instrumentally, as communicated altogether by them.

I. It is of the Jews, as being originally derived from them

The way of salvation has been one and the same,

d Josh. viii. 33, 34,
e 2 Kings xvii. 24.
f 2 Kings xvii. 25-27.

from the very moment that the promise was given in Paradise, that "the Seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head." But, having been only traditionally handed down, it was but very imperfectly known, even in the family of Abraham; and by the world at large it was almost, if not entirely, forgotten. But it pleased God, when he brought out from their bondage in Egypt the descendants of Abraham, to give them a written revelation of his will, and to make known. to them the way of salvation, not only in its great leading article, the sacrifice of Christ, but in many minute particulars, as we shall see by an investigation of their Ceremonial Law.

The Jewish religion, so far as the way of salvation was concerned, was founded altogether on sacrifice. No person could approach unto God without a sacrifice but by means of sacrifices specially appointed, every one might hope to obtain forgiveness of sin, and acceptance with his reconciled God. For this end there were sacrifices offered every morning and every evening throughout the year; and on the Sabbath-day they were doubled: but on the great day of annual atonement they were multiplied, with the most significant rites that can be imagined. The high priest was to take the blood of the sacrifices, and to carry it within the vail, and to sprinkle it upon the Mercy-seat, and before the Mercy-seat, in token that the hopes of all Israel were founded upon the sacrifices thus offered as an atonement for their sins". After that was done, he was to offer incense, and then to come out and bless the people.

But, as has been observed, there were many peculiar ordinances appointed for their instruction, as to the more minute points to be attended to in this great work. On some occasions, the offenders themselves were to lay their hands upon the head of their sacrifices on some, the blood of the sacrifices was to be sprinkled on the offerers: on some the blood was to be sprinkled, mixed with water. And the efficacy of

Numb. xxviii. 3, 4, 9, 10.
h Lev. xvi. 14.
i Lev. xiv. 6, 7. Heb. ix. 19.

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