that are written in this book concerning him, he is the root and offspring of David; David's root, as all his and our fruit is from him; David's Offfpring according to the flesh, by lineal defcent, the fon of David; David's fon, and David's Lord. He is likewife called the bright and morning-ftar, ver. 16. or day-ftar which arifeth in the hearts of his people, 2 Pet. i. 19. whereby they difcover the firft dawnings of grace upon their hearts; and who is willing to give this water of life to every poor thirsty foul who finds his need of it.

"And

And then follow the words of our text: the Spirit and the bride fay, Come." And the Spirit and the bride; which fhews that the Spirit of God, who works and operates upon the hearts of God's people, as much defires their falvation as Chrift who wrought it out for them. So does the bride the Lamb's wife defire the falvation of all God's elect, every poor thirty foul that thirfts for the water of life: So do thofe who give their attendance upon the gofpel and know it: "Him that heareth faith, Come." They exprefs their defire that others "And let might taste this water with themselves.

him that is athirst, come: and whofoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

In difcourfing on thefe words, I fhall,

Firft, Shew what is here held forth by the water of life.

Secondly, Shew who are the perfons that are invited to this water, namely, fuch who are athirst, and fuch who are willing to receive it.

Thirdly, Take fome notice of the invitation itself. Fourthly and lastly, Make fome improvement of the whole.

First,

First, We are to fhew what is here held forth by the water of life. The word waters hath various fignifications in the word of God, as firft, It fignifies great affliction, Pfalm lxix. 1.

"Save me,

O God, for the waters are come in unto my foul." "My foul is overwhelmed with distress and trouble, that I know not what to do," the foul then cries for deliverance out of the mire of fin and corruption; "Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not fink, let me be delivered from them that hate me, and out of the deep waters. Let not the water-flood overflow me, neither let the deep fwallow me up, and let not the pit fhut her mouth upon me," ver. 14, 15.

Depths of affliction expreffed by a water flood; which feems to carry away the foul in an inftant. When the enemy thus comes in like a flood, Ifai. lix. 19. The foul cries unto the Lord, that he might not fink, that his head might be preserved above water; so that he might not be drowned, entirely drowned, by thefe afflictions; when called to go through these waters. Ifa. xliii. 2. The conduct of proud and infolent men toward the godly, are likewife reprefented in the fcripture, as proud waters. overwhelming the fouls of God's people, Pfalm

cxxiv. 5.

But thefe are very different from the water in our Text. The water in our text, as it is called the water of life, is expreffive, 1. Of the immenfe ocean of God's everlasting love to his people in Christ. This is a river without a bank or thore: Waters to swim in, a river that cannot be paffed over, Ezek. xlvii. 5. O the length, the breadth, the depth, the height of this river; it is unmeafurable; it is full of water, Pfalm lxv. 9. an inexhauftible fulness, that never can be spent; a fea that never can be dried up; a fea of grace, and abundance of grace as it flows from the loving heart of Chrift to his church and people

people in all ages, and to all forts of pérfons in all forts of circumftances, in all diftref fes, under all perfecutions, through all temptations, and afflictions they may be expofed unto. Those. who know most of this boundlefs ocean, know but little of it. We may apprehend fomething of it, but can never comprehend it.

2. If we confider the faving influence this water of life hath upon the hearts of fuch who receive it, it' will appear to be precious water indeed. 1. As it imparts life to the happy subjects of it. Hence we find in our Lord's difcourfe with the woman of Samaria in the ivth chapter of St. John's gospel. After he had afked her to drink, of the water of the well fhe was then drawing at, fhe replies; "howis it, that thou being a Jew afkeft drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria," &c. Our Lord informs her," if thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that faith unto thee, Give me to drink, thou wouldeft have afked of him, and he would have given thee the living water:" which raised the poor woman's attention, and caufed a defire in her foul to know fomething of this water; therefore the enquires ver. 11. Whence he had it? Our Lord informs her how different this water was from that she was then drawing; "whofoever fhall drink of this water, shall thirft again: But whofoever fhall drink of the water that I fhall give him, fhall never thirst: but the water that I fhall give him, fhall be in him a well of water fpringing up into everlafting life.” And again, John vii. 38. "He that believeth in me, as the fcripture hath faid; out of his belly fhall flow rivers of living water:" which is fpoke of the Spirit, which they that believe on him fhall receive, ver. 39. The Spirit fhall be poured in abundance as waters upon their fouls: So that there fhall be

an

an overflowing of grace upon the hearts of God's elect. It fhall be ever fpringing up in their fouls. For as all their fprings are in Chrift, Pfalm lxxxvii. 7. the ocean and fountain of all; fo thefe fprings come from him continually, and are ever flowing into their fouls, to quicken, enliven, and animate them from time to time, fpringing up into life everlafting. Again, the faving influence this water of life hath upon the hearts of fuch who receive it, will make it appear to be ftill more precious, if we confider, 2dly. That this water of life is very refreshing water to poor thirty panting fouls. "When the poor and needy feek water and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirft: I the Lord will hear them; I the God of Ifrael will not forfake them. I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midft of the vallies: I will make the wilderness pools of water, and the dry land fprings of water," Ifa. xli. 17, 18.

O how defirable, think you, is water to a thirsty foul, whofe confcience has been fcorched with the flames of mount Sinai! How cooling thefe waters when administered to the poor, needy, and diftreffed foul that pants for Chrift, nothing elfe will refresh him. "As the hart panteth after the water-brooks, fo panteth my foul after thee, O God. My foul thirfteth for God, for the living God; when fhall I come and appear before God?" Pfalm xlii. 1, 2.

66

They long to drink with Chrift of the brook in the way, that they might be refreshed and lift up their heads," Pfalm cx. 7. Such know them to be refreshing waters who have drank freely of them. Their fouls in tinės paft have been fo faint, that they have had no ftrength in them; after that they "had forfaken the fountain of living water, and hewn out to themselves cifterns, broken cifterns C

that

that will hold no water, Jer. ii. 13. Alas! Thefe will not fatisfy or refresh their fouls; they are of no fervice to them till they return to the fountain they formerly drank of. Then O how refreshing! Ö how chearing to their fouls are thefe waters! This is a dry and barren wilderness, therefore fprings, fountains and rivers of water must be very defirable to those who are travelling through it. The Lord Jefus Chrift, under the character of a shepherd, "leads his fheep through this wilderness befide the ftill waters," Pfalm xxiii. 2. where he "causes them to lie down in green paftures:" (fuch is his care of them) fo that they are refreshed in their fouls while his comforts and confolations abound towards them; their fouls are as a watered garden, as a field which the Lord hath bleffed. "They grow as the lily, and caft forth their roots as Lebanon; their branches fhall spread, and their beauty fhall be as the olivetree, and their fmell as Lebanon. They fhall revive as the corn, and grow as the vine, the scent thereof fhall be as the vine of Lebanon," Hofea xiv. 5, 6, 7.

O how fruitful are their fouls when the grace of God defcends as "rain upon the mown grafs!" Pfalm lxxii. 6. How do they then "grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jefus Chrift?" 2 Pet. iii. 18. So refreshing is this water of life to replenish the fouls of all who receive it.

But O what a glorious time will that be! when we fhall be led to fountains of waters; when we fhall be taken to the fountain-head, to take our eternal fill of this water of life: our tongue fhall not fail for thirft any more for ever, for we shall "hunger no more, neither thirst any more, neither fhall the fun light upon us, nor any heat. For the Lamb who is in the midft of the throne fhall

feed