Chapter 18
The Healing of the Waters
IN
Patriarchal times the Jordan Valley was "well watered everywhere, . .
. even as the garden of the Lord." It was in this fair valley that
Lot chose to make his home when he "pitched his tent toward
Sodom." Genesis 13:10, 12. At the time that the cities of the plain
were destroyed, the region round about became a desolate waste, and it has
since formed a part of the wilderness of Judea.
A portion of
the beautiful valley remained, with its life-giving springs and streams,
to gladden the heart of man. In this valley, rich with fields of grain and
forests of date palms and other fruit-bearing trees, the hosts of Israel
had encamped after crossing the Jordan and had first partaken of the
fruits of the Promised Land. Before them had stood the walls of Jericho, a
heathen stronghold, the center of the worship of Ashtoreth, vilest and
most degrading of all Canaanitish forms of idolatry. Soon its walls were
thrown
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down and its
inhabitants slain, and at the time of its fall the solemn declaration was
made, in the presence of all Israel: "Cursed be the man before the
Lord, that riseth up and buildeth this city Jericho: he shall lay the
foundation thereof in his first-born, and in his youngest son shall he set
up the gates of it." Joshua 6:26.
Five
centuries passed. The spot lay desolate, accursed of God. Even the springs
that had made residence in this portion of the valley so desirable
suffered the blighting effects of the curse. But in the days of Ahab's
apostasy, when through Jezebel's influence the worship of Ashtoreth was
revived, Jericho, the ancient seat of this worship, was rebuilt, though at
a fearful cost to the builder. Hiel the Bethelite "laid the
foundation thereof in Abiram his first-born, and set up the gates thereof
in his youngest son Segub, according to the world of the Lord." 1
Kings 16:34.
Not far from
Jericho, in the midst of fruitful groves, was one of the schools of the
prophets, and thither, after the ascension of Elijah, Elisha went. During
his sojourn among them the men of the city came to the prophet and said,
"Behold, I pray thee, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my
lord seeth: but the water is nought, and the ground barren." The
spring that in former years had been pure and life-giving, and had
contributed largely to the water supply of the city and the surrounding
district, was now unfit for use.
In response
to the plea of the men of Jericho, Elisha said, "Bring me a new
cruse, and put salt therein." Having received this, "he went
forth unto the spring of the waters,
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and cast the
salt in there, and said, Thus saith the Lord, I have healed these waters;
there shall not be from thence any more death or barren land." 2
Kings 2:19-21.
The healing
of the waters of Jericho was accomplished, not by any wisdom of man, but
by the miraculous interposition of God. Those who had rebuilt the city
were undeserving of the favor of Heaven; yet He who "maketh His sun
to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on
the unjust," saw fit in this instance to reveal, through this token
of compassion, His willingness to heal Israel of their spiritual maladies.
Matthew 5:45.
The
restoration was permanent; "the waters were healed unto this day,
according to the saying of Elisha which he spake." 2 Kings 2:22. From
age to age the waters have flowed on, making that portion of the valley an
oasis of beauty.
Many are the
spiritual lessons to be gathered from the story of the healing of the
waters. The new cruse, the salt, the spring--all are highly symbolic.
In casting
salt into the bitter spring, Elisha taught the same spiritual lesson
imparted centuries later by the Saviour to His disciples when He declared,
"Ye are the salt of the earth." Matthew 5:13. The salt mingling
with the polluted spring purified its waters and brought life and blessing
where before had been blighting and death. When God compares His children
to salt, He would teach them that His purpose in making them the subjects
of His grace is that they may become agents in saving others. The object
of God in choosing a people before all the world was not
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only that He
might adopt them as His sons and daughters, but that through them the
world might receive the grace that bringeth salvation. When the Lord chose
Abraham, it was not simply to be the special friend of God, but to be a
medium of the peculiar privileges the Lord desired to bestow upon the
nations.
The world
needs evidences of sincere Christianity. The poison of sin is at work at
the heart of society. Cities and towns are steeped in sin and moral
corruption. The world is full of sickness, suffering, and iniquity. Nigh
and afar off are souls in poverty and distress, weighed down with a sense
of guilt and perishing for want of a saving influence. The gospel of truth
is kept ever before them, yet they perish because the example of those who
should be a savor of life to them is a savor of death. Their souls drink
in bitterness because the springs are poisoned, when they should be like a
well of water springing up unto everlasting life.
Salt must be
mingled with the substance to which it is added; it must penetrate, infuse
it, that it may be preserved. So it is through personal contact and
association that men are reached by the saving power of the gospel. They
are not saved as masses, but as individuals. Personal influence is a
power. It is to work with the influence of Christ, to lift where Christ
lifts, to impart correct principles, and to stay the progress of the
world's corruption. It is to diffuse that grace which Christ alone can
impart. It is to uplift, to sweeten the lives and characters of others by
the power of a pure example united with earnest faith and love.
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Of the
hitherto polluted spring at Jericho, the Lord declared, "I have
healed these waters; there shall not be from thence any more death or
barren land." The polluted stream represents the soul that is
separate from God. Sin not only shuts away from God, but destroys in the
human soul both the desire and the capacity for knowing Him. Through sin,
the whole human organism is deranged, the mind is perverted, the
imagination corrupted; the faculties of the soul are degraded. There is an
absence of pure religion, of heart holiness. The converting power of God
has not wrought in transforming the character. The soul is weak, and for
want of moral force to overcome, is polluted and debased.
To the heart
that has become purified, all is changed. Transformation of character is
the testimony to the world of an indwelling Christ. The Spirit of God
produces a new life in the soul, bringing the thoughts and desires into
obedience to the will of Christ; and the inward man is renewed in the
image of God. Weak and erring men and women show to the world that the
redeeming power of grace can cause the faulty character to develop into
symmetry and abundant fruitfulness.
The heart
that receives the word of God is not as a pool that evaporates, not like a
broken cistern that loses its treasure. It is like the mountain stream,
fed by unfailing springs, whose cool, sparkling waters leap from rock to
rock, refreshing the weary, the thirsty, the heavy-laden. It is like a
river constantly flowing and, as it advances, becoming deeper and wider,
until its life-giving waters are spread over all the
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earth. The
stream that goes singing on its way leaves behind its gift of verdure and
fruitfulness. The grass on its banks is a fresher green, the trees have a
richer verdure, the flowers are more abundant. When the earth lies bare
and brown under the summer's scorching heat, a line of verdure marks the
river's course.
So it is with
the true child of God. The religion of Christ reveals itself as a
vitalizing, pervading principle, a living, working, spiritual energy. When
the heart is opened to the heavenly influence of truth and love, these
principles will flow forth again like streams in the desert, causing
fruitfulness to appear where now are barrenness and dearth.
As those who
have been cleansed and sanctified through a knowledge of Bible truth
engage heartily in the work of soulsaving, they will become indeed a savor
of life unto life. And as daily they drink of the inexhaustible fountain
of grace and knowledge, they will find that their own hearts are filled to
overflowing with the Spirit of their Master, and that through their
unselfish ministry many are benefited physically, mentally, and
spiritually. The weary are refreshed, the sick restored to health, and the
sin-burdened relieved. In far-off countries thanksgiving is heard from the
lips of those whose hearts are turned from the service of sin unto
righteousness.
"Give,
and it shall be given unto you;" for the word of God is "a
fountain of gardens, a well of living waters, and streams from
Lebanon." Luke 6:38; Song of Solomon 4:15.
Preparing For Eternity
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