NATIONAL LIBRARY OF MEDICINE
Washington
Founded 1836
U. S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare



             Public Health Serrice 
 
 
<~<jzet££;/   s^t*
THE
HEALING  WATERS
          BETHESDA;


                      A

    SERMON, PREACHED AT BUXTON WELLS,

                      TO


THE COMPANY ASSEMBLED THERE FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE
               ■' .1
               MEDICINAL WATERS.


     ON WHITSUNDAY, JUNE 2, 1811.
   REV. CLAUDIUS BUCHANAN, D. D.
I.ATE VICE PROVOST OF THE COLLEGE OF FORT WILLIAM, IN BENGAL
               LONDON:

PRINTED FOR T. CADELL AND W. DA VIES, STRAND

               BOSTON :

 RE-PRINTED BY MUNROE & FRANCIS, CORNHILL.
1812. 
\
/ 
THE
HEALING  WATERS
                    OF
          BETHESDA.
JoftN v. 2, 3, 4.—" There is at Jerusalem, by the sheeji-market,
  a Pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue, BeThesda, hav-
  ing Jive /torches.   In these  lay a great multitude of impotent
  folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the wa-
  ter.   For an angel went down at a certain season into the fiool
  and troubled the water ; whosoever then, first, after the troub-
  ling  of the water, stepped in, was  made whole of whatsoever
  disease he had.'*

X KNOW not any subject contained in  the Scriptures, the con-
templation of which is better suited to  the circumstances of us
who are here assembled, than that of the healing waters of
Jerusalem.   There are now collected here, as formerly at  Be-
thesda, " a great  number of infirm persons, of halt and withered,"
who have come to the healing waters at  this place ; and who ex-
pect a cure,  not  from the hand of man, but of  God.  We have
come to try the efficacy of waters which  flow by the divine com-
mand  ;  medicinal waters,  which owe nothing to human  art or
power, and whose nature and origin man does not even fully un-
derstand.*

  • Bnxton is situated on the ridge of that mountainous region commenc-
inir in Derbyshire, which extends to the northern extremity of the kingdom,
and which has been called by some geographers the British Appeninc.  The
medicinal well is nearly in the middle of England, and is supposed to be
S "of 1500 feet above the surface of  the sea.  It further occupies  a
ITt intei-e Sng situation, as being surrounded by beds of shells, corals and
Ter marine products, the remains of the antediluvian world, and indelibly
testimonies of the truth of the Mosaic Record.   The temperature of the air
 nTese regions is  always cooler  than in the lower countnes  There is
generally a turbulent atmosphere ; but this renders the change of air great- 
4
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESBA.
   The first view of the scene  before  us  will suggest  to Our
minds  some interesting topics of reflection1.
   While we behold this healing fountain flowing like a torrent,t
and consider  its long duration,  and the  benefit derived from it
to multitudes  perhaps in every age, we have to  admire an illus-
trious instance of the wisdom and goodness of  God in  creation.
How wonderful that this salubrious spring should retain the same
degree of heat, through every change of  season,  and from age
to age  \\  And again, what limit shall we assign to its duration *
It is probable  that it was first opened  " when the  foundations of
the earth  were laid,"  and that it will continue to  flow till time
shall be no more.  The same  power which gave virtue  to the
well of  Bethesda, hath  opened  the  fountain of health   in this
 tr, and more salutary in certain complaints, than in any other part  of north-
 ern Europe.  From vestiges lately discovered, it is ascertained that build-
 ings were erected at the Well of Buxton, in the time of the Romans. In the
 middle ages it acquired  the name of St. Anne's Well.  In the reign of
 Queen Elizabeth a Treatise was written on the " Virtues  of the  Water of
 Buck-stones, by Dr. Jones of Derby," and it appears at that time  (1572) to
 have been a place of great resort.   But it is only within these  few  years
 that buildings have been erected for invalids suitable  to the importance of
 the place.  For these the nation  is indebted  to the  Duke of Devonshire.
 His Grace is proprietor of Buxton, and of the  country round it, and he has,
 with a liberality which ought to be more known and celebrated, erected a
 suit of extensive and magnificent  buildings, called the Crescent,  and a
 spacious and elegant church, both of hewn stone ;  also  pools for bathing,
 besides various other edifices for the accommodation  of the visitors  and
 invalids ; the whole expense of which is stated to have been not less than
 150,000/.  The munificence of this  nobleman, referring as  it  does to the
 health of his countrymen, is entitled to a national acknowledgment.
  t " The quantity of water flowingfrom the  springs has been calculated to
 " be after the rate of sixty gallons in a minute."—Dcnman on the Buxton Wa-
 ters, p. 56.

  \ The heat of  the medicinal spring, called St. Ann's Well, of which the
 invalids drink,  " is always  81 by Farenheit's thermometer.  The heat of
 the medicinal pool in which the invalids bathe, is precisely and  invariably
 82 by  Farenheit's thermometer-  The  temperature  of these waters does
 not in  any degree depend on rain, or other accidental circumstances."
 Denman, p. 53. 57.
  Philosophy has long attempted to investigate this  subject,  but as  vet
 without any satisfactory result.  " Hast thou entered into the springs of the
 " sea ? or hast thou walked in search of the depth ;"—Job xxxviii.  16.   We
 neither understand accurately by what means the waters acquire their boat
nor, when they have acquired it, how the  temperature  should always con-
tinue the same,  without being  aifected, like  f very other  substance  of
this earth, by heat and cold, and distance from the sun   " Philosophers "
says Dr. Hunter,  " have differed much  in their opinions about the  cause of
" heat in warm waters  ; but I do not find  that any of them have as  vet
" been  able to lay down an hypothesis, which is not liable  to some obiee
 f* tions."—Hunter on the Nature and Virtues of Buxton Waters, d  8 
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.
5
place.   These, therefore, may be called God's waters.  They
flow by the divine  mercy, and we expect that they  will prove
beneficial to our infirm bodies only by the divine blessing.  Let
us, then, approach them with sentiments of  gratitude and piety,
having our  minds prepared to give God the glory for any ben-
efit we may derive  from the use of them.
   In viewing any striking object in the works of creation, it is
useful to reflect in what manner our blessed Saviour would have
improved the scene ;  for He was wont to derive instructive les-
sons from the operations of nature, and even from the usages and
works of man.  Of this there is an instance recorded in the Gos-
pel, which bears some analogy to the scene  which now presents
itself to our view in this place.  It was a custom of the Jews, on
the last day of  the Feast of Passover,  to  draw water from the
 fountain of Siloam, which sprang from mount Zion, and  to bear
 it in solemn procession to the  Temple, where it was poured out
 before the Lord.   These « waters of Siloa which flowed  softly"
 (Is. viii. 6.)  from  their fountain, not  far from the  Temple  of
 God,* and refreshed the inhabitants of Jerusalem, had been cel-
 ebrated by the prophet Isaiah as  an emblem of Messiah's gentle
 reign  ; and the Evangelist  John  alludes to the  same emblem,
 when he says « Siloam being interpreted, signifies sent ;" that
 is, a type of him who is « the sent"  of God ;  and the custom of
 drawing  water from  the well of Siloam on a certain *lay, was
 founded on the words of the same prophet Isaiah ; « Therefore
 "with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells  of salvation."-

  Is. xii. 3.f                                   .            t, „
    Our Saviour beholding this solemnity of drawing water on the
  .reat Feast-day, improved it to a spiritual purpose ; «In the last
  « day, that great  day of the Feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying,
  u If any man thirst, let him come to me and drink ; hj.that be-
  a lie Jh  on me as the Scripture hath said, Out of his befly shall
  « flow rivers of living water.   But this spake he of the  Sriurr,

    * —And Siloa's brook that flowed
      Fast by the oracle of God.    .   Milton.
  t This fact of drawing water ^*£^^%X£
by the Rabbins.  The water was earned in zgokten «r           ^ ^
Jas called ^ ^? f^t ^^^\STJSm ln The  answer:
Gemara it  is inquired,   ^nc* ^.^ with j0y shall ye draw wat<?r 
b
the healing waters or bethesda.
« which they that believe on Him should receive ; for the Holy
« Ghost was not yet given."—John vii. 37.
  Thus did our Lord spiritualize the scene.   He shewed the in-
habitants of Jerusalem, that their drawing water from the fount
of  Siloam, was a  just figure of their " receiving the Holy
" Spirit," which should soon be poured  out from  on high, and
" which they that believed on him  (not in that age  only,  but in
tl every age) should receive."*
  Under the authority then  of our Saviour's example, who ren-
dered the scenes of nature a theme of instruction, we  may be
permitted, in the application of this discourse, to  consider the
healing  influence  of the Fountain in this place, in a  spiritual
sense.   The chief object of the discourse itself will be,
  First, To inquire into what may have been the design of insti-
tuting the miracle of the healing waters at Jerusalem.   And,
  Secondly, To shew that  these waters,- which healed the disea-
ses of the body, were an emblem of the influence of the heavenly
Gospel, which  heals the diseases of the aoul,  and fits it for the      >
kingdom of God.
  I. We are first to inquire, « for what end God may have been
" pleased to institute the miracle of the healing waters  at Jeru-
u salem ?"  The fact recorded in this place by the Evangelist,
has been but seldom noticed; but to me  it seems to involve con-
siderations of much interest, and is itself a subject of instructive
contemplation.
  For a period of nearly four hundred years, there had been now
no prophet in Israel ;  and the  prophecies concerning the Mes-
siah had not been fulfilled.  There was  no « open vision," nor
other symbol of the divine  presence, and the people were grad-
ually declining to infidelity.  In these circumstances it may have
pleased God to arrest the attention of the nation  by a new evi-
dence of his  presence, and to sustain the hope of  those  " who
waited for the consolation of Israel," by affording a new proof that

  * It is a remarkable fact, that the spiritual import of drawing water from
Siloam was understood, and has been acknowledged and  recorded by the
Rabbins.  " Why is  Siloam  called r\2H\& n>3 Beth Suaba, the  place of a
" draught ?  Answer :  a»3wy ob>D tnpn ftp Because, thence they draw the
»*^Holy Spirit."—Talmud Hierosol. in Succah, fol. 55.
  The Jews of this day might derive a strong  confirmation of the truth of
the Gospel, if they would read their own ancient Targums.
  It is to be noted that Siloam and Shiloh, another name  for Christ, are
distinct words derived from different root9.  They have no relation to each
other. 
               THE HEALING WATERS OP BETHESDA.              *
he had not forsaken his people.  This new evidence may also be
considered as an emblem of  the Gospel  itself, which  was soon
to appear, being at once  a manifestation of power and of mercy ;
and it further resembled the same Gospel, in its being  open to
the view of all, and accessible to all ; the place selected  for its
exhibition being in the very midst of Jerusalem.
   " Now there is," saith the Evangelist, " at Jerusalem, by -the
« sheep-market, a Pool, which  is called in the Hebrew tongue,
" Bethesda."   Bethesda signifies  The house of Mercy ; a name
which had been given to it in consequense of the merciful cures
effected by its waters. " For, at a certain season," continues the
Evangelist, " an angel went down and troubled the water ;  and
whosoever, first, after the troubling of  the  water, stepped in,
was made whole of whatsoever disease he had."*
   This  then was the kind of  evidence, by  which it may have
pleased God to shew his people  that he had  not forsaken them,
and to confirm their  faith in the  certain fulfilmeg^ of the evan-
 gelic promises by the mouth of his holy prophets.
   But again,  the Gospel was a  dispensation  of  such transcen-
 dent dignity and excellency, that it was  worthy of a prefigura-
 tion, or typical representation of its nature and effects before its
 arrival ; even  as the person of its great author had a harbinger
 or precursor  " to prdpare his way"  and to direct  the  eyes of
 all  men to wait his approach.   There  was a famed prediction
 of the prophet Zechariah, which would  probably  be often  con-
 templated by  the pious Israelites about this  period, with great
 solicitude :  " In that day (viz. the day of the  Messiah) there
 « shall  be a fountain opened  to  the house  of David and to the
 « inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness."  These
 words referred to the diseases of the soul.   And now, behold, &

   * The Pool of Bethesda was supplied with water from the  fountain of
  Siloam, the before-mentioned type of the Messiah's kingdom.  It may be
 proper to observe that the fountain of Siloam is not  the same as the pool ot
 Siloam.   « Upon the very highest point of the hill of Jerusalem, and from
 " whence it had a fall either way, there sprang the sweet and gentle: t.un-
 « tain, Siloam ;  from which two  streams descended,  one to the pool ot
  » Bethesda, and the other to the pool of Silvam.—Lightfoot, vol i. p. "»*■
   Josephus relates that the fountain of Siloam was flowing in his tame, bi
 thatit failed duringthe  siege of Jerusalem by Titus  ^^^^.
 attributed directly to thexlivine interposition, added much to the distress
 of the besieged city."—^m. de Bell. lib. v. cap. 26- 
 8             THE HEALINO WATERS OF BETHESDA.
fountain is opened to the inhabitants of Jerusalem,  for the dis-
eases of the body.  What a lively prefiguration this of the foun-
tain which was soon to be opened by  « the blood of Christ which
" cleanseth  from all sin !"—1 John i. 7.   And  so  well known
was this public  interposition of the divine power at Bethesda,
that suitable buildings were erected  at  these waters of mercy,
for the reception of those who were diseased ; and « five porch-
es" or porticos  were built around the pool  for the accommoda-
tion of the people.  " In these  porches,"  saith the Evangelist,
" lay a great multitude of infirm persons, of blind, halt, and with-
" ered, waiting for the moving of the water."
   Our blessed Saviour, who went about doing good, visited this
recess of misery.  He came to the pool of Bethesda, and in its
porches beheld a just representation of the world, into which he
had descended, filled with beings languishing under the various
spiritual diseases which sin hath introduced.  And  having sur-
veyed the  various cases  of misery which presented  themselves,
he selected one of the most helpless objects, for the exercise  of
his mercy.
  " A certain man was  there which  had an infirmity thirty and
" eight years.   When Jesus saw him lie,  and knew that he had
" been now a long time  in that  case, he saith unto him,  Wilt
" thou be  made whole ? The  impotent man answered,  Sir,  I
" have no man, when the water is  troubled, to put  me into the
" Pool ; but while I  am coming, another steppeth down  before
" me.  Jesus saith unto him, Rise,  take up thy  bed and walk.
" And, immediately, the man was made whole, and took up his
" bed and  walked."
  Jesus did not  say  unto him, « Go down to  the  water and
" wash ;" for this institution of mercy at Bethesda  was now to
be superseded by a  new dispensation ;  and the ministry  of an-
gels was to be  succeeded  by the ministrations of the Son  of
God.
   II.   We come now to the important  part  of our discourse,
which is, to consider  these waters at Bethesda which  healed the
body,  as an emblem of the divine effects of the Gospel in purify-
ing the soul, and fitting  it for the  kingdom of God.   So just is
this emblem, that Baptism by water was  afterwards  expressly
appointed by our Saviour himself,  as the initiatory rite of his 
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.
C
religion.*  By this institution of Baptism our Lord would signi-
fy to us, That the soul must be cleansed and purified by the in-
fluences of the Holy Spirit, even as the body is washed with pure
water.   The import of this sacred rite  is well explained in the
following words :  " After that the kindness and love of God our
« Saviour toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness
« that we have done, but according to his mercy,  he saved  us
" by the washing of regeneration, and renewing  of the Holy
« Ghost.—Titus iii. 5.   Here we see  that  these  expressions,
 The washing of regeneration,  and  the renewing of the  Holy
 Ghost,  are  synonymous.  And this beautifully  illustrates the
 whole doctrine of Baptism, shewing it  to be a spiritual washing,
 typified by a bodily ablution.

  The soul of man requires to be  purified by  a heavenly influence.

   But  are we to understand  that the  soul  of man  is in such a
  state by nature, as to require such ablution  ?  So hath the great
  author of our religion  declared ;  »  Verily, verily, I  say unto
  « you, Except a man be born of water, and of the spirit, he can-
  « not enter into the kingdom  of God."—John iii. 5.  And again
  he saith to Peter, « If I wash  thee not,  thou hast no  part with
  me."__John xiii. 8.  And with this corresponds the doctrine of
  our own church.  In the service of Baptism we pray that God
  would « sanctify the water to the mystical washing away of sin ;
  « —that he  would grant to the person now to be baptized there-
  « in, that thing which  by nature  he cannot  have : that he
  « may be regenerated by water and the Holy Spirit, and receive
  « the benediction of the heavenly washing, that so he may come
  « to the eternal kingdom which God hath promised  by Christ
  « our Lord."  It is moreover  asserted by our church,  that  men
  are « by nature born in sin, and the children of wrath."

    * Jerom, on this chapter (John v ) observes  that "By these waters of
   .. Bethesda, the Lord exhibited the waters oJapU^         ^ get
   4SS"JSeSKsln^^aU^ner ofdLasesof sin, «*
   «^k£?those tiiat descend to it dead, to come out ahve. 
01
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.
   But if such be the state of man by nature, how arc wc to un-
 derstand what  is  sometimes asserted  of the dignity of human
 nature ?  There is a sense in which we may speak of the digni-
 ty of  human nature, which we shall  now  explain.  This is an
 important subject,  and we ought to have  just conceptions re-
 specting it.

                Of the dignity of human nature.

   The Scriptures, declare That man was " created in the image
 " of God }" that is, he resembled God in those moral and intel-
 lectual qualities which a created being could possess.  But man
 fell from this high estate, like « the angels which sinned," and he
 thus lost the divine image.  And  after his fall,  the state  of his
 heart is thus described by God himself ; « Every imagination of
 " the thoughts  of man's heart is  only evil  continually."— Gen.
 vi. 5.  But though man's moral qualities were depraved, and he
 no longer resembled God in purity  of heart, certain noble faculties      >
 remained with him ; even as we may suppose that  high intellec-
 tual  powers remained with the angels  that sinned.   His reason
 approves those things that are excellent,  though he follows the
 worse.  He has  a longing after  immortality.  And we  know
 that his soul is immortal, and that a happy immortality has been
 offered to him.
   Thus far then, and no farther, can we  speak  of the dignity
 of human nature.  Some noble faculties remain with man, and
 some noble privileges ;  the chief  of which  is, that though he
 sin against God,  he is an object of mercy ;  « While God spared
 « not the angels that  sinned,  but cast  them down to hell and
 " delivered them into chains of darkness  to be reserved unto
 " judgment."—2 Pet. ii. 4.   High  intellectual  powers  remain
 with man ; but his heart is depraved ; and, in his will and affec-
 tions, he is alienated from God.  Now our Saviour hath declar-
 ed that man being  thus  depraved by nature must  be renewed,
 and, as it were, « born again" before he can see  the kingdom of
 God.   And this change of heart, and the grace which produces
it, are the subjects of the glad tidings of the Gospel.
  Man's  chief dignity then is, that he is a subject of mercy : a
candidate for a new nature ;  an heir of immortality.  Man lost 
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.           li-
the image  of God by the fall ;  and the Son  of God hath de-
scended from heaven to restore that image : that is, to restore it
to such a degree of  righteousness in this life, that  God  shall
look upon it  with complacency and receive it  to himself to be
perfected in glory.   That the image of God is  restored to man
in this sense, is manifest from almost every  page of the New
Testament.  The  apostle  Paul  addresses  believers in these
words ; " Ye have put off the old man  with his deeds and have
" put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge,  after
" the image of Him that created him."—Colos. iii. 10.  And again
it is written  (in Eph. iv. 24.) that « the new man is created, after
« God, in righteousness and  true holiness."  Further, the  chil-
 dren of God are said "to be conformed to the image of his Son."
 ,__Rom.  viii. 29.   And the apostle Peter shews us that  they
 » become  partakers of the divine nature."—2 Pet.  i. 4
   And this is the true dignity of human nature-

                   Of the fallen state of man,

   There are in this age some who will not « receive this  say-
  « ing."  They do not believe that man becomes, by the Gospel,
  « a partaker of the divine nature."  They do not believe in the
  restoration by Christ, because they do not acknowledge the cor-
  ruption of the heart by Adam.   But are there, indeed, persons
  receiving the scriptures, who deny  this original  corruption ?
  There are many who deny it at least in words.  Let us consider
  their argument  for a  moment.  They allege that there  is in-
  justice in their deriving a corruption of nature from their Fath-
  ers  • and  therefore  they deny  that there  is  such corruption.
  But thev  do not think it unjust, that God should impute to them
  their own sins. Here, then, let them take their stand.  On this
  ground let  them defend themselves.-Let  them be judged from
  what they  are, and from what  they  have made themselves.-.
  « Had  we been in Adam's  stead,"  say they, " we should not
  « have fallen."-Presumptuous thought 1  The very conceit is
  begottenby/m^,  and  proves that they have  begun to fall  al-
  ready   The  Son of God hath descended from heaven and hath
  appeared to men  as evidently  as ever  God  appeared in  Para,
   dise '  and  hath delivered to  them,  as formerly to our first  pa= 
12
f HE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.
  rents, his precept for eternal life, accompanied by the sanctions
  of heaven and hell.   Adam disobeyed God once.  They disobey
  him repeatedly,"daily, presumptuously;  in  thought, word, and
  deed ;  against light, knowledge, and experience : against heav-
  enly admonition, god-like example, and the love of a Mediator,
  stronger  than death !   After witnessing Adam's  punishment
  they repeat Adam's  sin !  and, with  this accumulation of guilt
  upon their heads, which sinks their souls in deep condemnation,
  and fills  their  consciences with fearful forebodings of " the
  " wrath to come,"—they affect to say that their hearts  are not
  corrupt by nature !   Their proud and contemptuous disbelief, or
  affected disbelief, of their being the subjects of such corruption,
  is another evidence of the  fact.  And this  disbelief "rs infidelity
  under a Christian name.  Men having the revelation of  God in
  their hands merely believe  what natural religion taught  before,
  and little  more.  I arraign not, I  despise not the intellectual
  powers  of such persons ; but I lament the  state of their hearts.
 There is no humility of  mind, no submission of the will to the
 declarations of God  their creator.  The opinions of these men,
 however excellent  they may  be on  subjects  which terminate
 with this life, are not to be  regarded, on thiq subject, with great-
 er respect than those of a heathen philosopher.  But we  believe
 the record of  Christ.  « The Son of man is come to seek and
 to  save  that  which was lost."—Luke xix.  10.  All  men were
 lost ; But " God so loved  the world," saith  Christ,  « that he
 « gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever  believeth in Him
 " should not perish, but have everlasting life."___Tohn iii.  16
  But let us expand this proof of the  natural  corruption  of the
 heart, and  endeavour to implant conviction in the bosoms of men.

          Proof from fact that man is in a fallen state.

  We have heard the testimony of Scripture ;  let us now  notice
 the evidence from fact.
  God hath sent a revelation of his will to man and  given him
 some view of the heavenly  state.  But so adverse is the heart
 of man to the will of God, and so regardless of the glorious sub-
ject  to which  it refers, that oftentimes he  puts it  from  him •
never reads the volume that contains it, and is perhaps ashamed' 
THE HEALING WATERS OP BETHESDA.'
13
to have it in his possession.   What further proof can we require
of man's fallen state, than his unconcern about his own eternal
happiness !   Nor is this unconcern confined to poor and ignorant
men, but it is found among persons the most illustrious for rank
and learning  in this age of refinement and civilization.  But fur-
ther,
  God the Son hath descended from heaven and hath described
to us some particulars of the last Judgment.  He hath admonish-
ed us  solemnly to prepare for it, saying, " Strive to enter  in at the
« strait gate, for narrow is the way that leadeth unto life." But
many  who profess to believe the Gospel, so far  from obeying
this admonition, prefer to walk in the broad way of the world,
" that leadeth to  destruction."  Their ambition is  to  conform
to the maxims and manners of the  world in all things  ; and, in
almost every  case of competition, they  resolve to obey  the law
 of honour and  of  the world, rather than the law of God.
   Our Lord hath also taught  us  the duty of prayer to  God ;
 saying,  " Enter into thy closet, and when thou  hast  shut  the
 « door,  pray to thy Father  which is in secret; and thy Father
 " which seeth in secret, will reward thee openly."—Matt. vi. 6.
  But, this rational  duty many never perform.  The voiceof prayer
  or praise is  never heard in their dwelling.  They do not even
  acknowledge  the Deity in the degree which is practised by the
  inhabitants of the heathen world.
   We shall illustrate this subject by one instance more.  Our
  Lord hath revealed to us the glorious privilege  of " asking for
  « and receiving the  Holy  Spirit."  « Ask," saith he, « and it
  « shall  be given  you : for if you, being evil, know how to give
  « good  gifts unto your children, how much  more shall your
  « heavenly  Father give the Holy Spirit to them  that ask him."
  —Luke ix.  13.   But so far are  some  men from « asking  for"
  this divine influence, that they do  not know,  or even wish tc
  know, whether it exists.

  The  light which  is from abovp sheweth  the fallen  state of the
                              soul.
    The  cause  of  all this unconcern  and insensibility in regard to
  the walfare of the soul, is this, men see not the state of tl^r 
14
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.
 ewn hearts ;  and they believe not the record of God concerning
 them.  His record is this ; (and the sentence would never have
 been penned in his holy word, if it were not true) : " The heart
 " is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked : who can
 " know  it ?  I,  the Lord  search  the heart."   Jer.  xvii.  9'
 « Out of the  heart," saith our Saviour, « proceed  evil thoughts,
 « adulteries, fornications, murders,  thefts,  covetousness, wick-
 « edness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride."
 —Mark vii. 22.  Men see not their own hearts  as  God sees
 them ; for the prince of darkness, who is called " the  god  of
 " this world, hath blinded the minds of them which believe  not,
 * lest the light  of the  glorious Gospel of Christ should shine
 " unto them "—2 Cor. iv. 4.   Suppose a man to be  placed in a
 dark dungeon, and to be surrounded by serpents and other nox-
 ious animals.   While he is in darkness, he sees not his  danger.
 He may have some fears, but still he is quiet.  But when light is
 let in from above, he exclaims with horror, What is here ! So it
 was with the moral  and  self-righteous Saul, whose name was
 ehanged after his conversion  to Paul.   Saul  was  blind  to  his
 state, and at peace with himself.   But when the light  from above
 visited him, and he could contrast the purity of God's holy law,
 with the  interior of his heart, he exclaimed, O wretched man
 that I am !  When further  he beheld  the  guilt he had incur-
 red  he was filled with admiration at the mercy which is  offered
 to fallen man ; and he said, " This is  a faithful saying and wor-
 « thy of all acceptation, That Jesus Christ  came into the world
" to save sinners,  of whom  i am chief."—1  Tim. i. 15.
  Many persons  who hold a respectable place in society  for
 morals and learning, are in the state of Saul  before his conver-
 sion.  « We are  moral," say they, « we are  decent."   And so
 they are.  They  are moral  and decent in  the sight of men.
 But, in the sight of God, their hearts may  be filled with unhal-
lowed passions which  only need  the occasion and some incite-
 ment to burst  into violence and  a flame.  And if  there  be any
 man who thinks that in respect to himself such  a  thing  is  not
 possible ; that man » knows not  what spirit he is of," and is ac-
 tually in  that  very  state  of darkness which the scriptures  de-
 s<pbe.  Further,  he  will  be viewed  by  the  well-instructed* 
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.            15
christian, who has some knowledge of his own heart, with the
same sentiment of pity and forbearance which a father exercises
towards an ignorant and froward child.
   Of those persons who continue long in this state of spiritual
ignorance, some may, as we have said, have made attainments in
literature, or perhaps, like Saul, in  theology ; and have written
volumes on the subject.  They may be  men  who say to them-
selves, and believe  what  they say ;  " We are moral, we are
« learned ;  we approximate to a practicable  perfection."  But
when the light shines from above, and they behold the dark re-
 cesses of the heart and can contrast them with the purity of the
 Gospel precept which enjoins  the  control of thought, they will
 confess with penitence and  shame, in the words which our Sav-
 iour applied to the ignorant but self-sufficient church of Laodi-
 cea ; " We are wretched and miserable, and poor and blind, and
 « naked."   And  further,  they will  behold  the guilt of their
 souls ; and confessing that man has fallen  like  the  angels  that
 sinned, will " flee from the wrath to come."

                     Morality is not religion.

    Every degree  of morality which exists, is a  benefit to the
  world ; and the individual is entitled to respect and  esteem in
  the degree in which he possesses it.  Besides, we know not the
  hearts of men, and must therefore  judge them by their actions.
  But what I would inculcate on your minds is this, All morality is
  not religion.  True  religion,  indeed, produces the  highest de-
  gree of morality ;  but a certain degree of rectitude of conduct
,  may exist  without  any religion at  all. The  Deist or Atheist
  may  be  a moral  man in  this  sense.  Many persons m  the
  heathen world are moral in this sense, highly moral.  They are
  also tenacious of the law of honour, that  is,  the law of their
  society : and will lose their life, rather than  lose  their Cast ;
  just as a man of the world amongst us, would rather lose his life
  than the good opinion of the world.
     There  are two sentences spoken by our Saviour in regard to
  the morality  of the world, contrasted with the righteousness oi
  the Gospel, which  every man ought to meditate on, till he un.
  derstand them : for no word was spoken by the Son of God » 
16
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.
vain.   The first sentence ;—" I say unto you, except your righ
" teousness  shall exceed the righteousness of the Scribes and
k< Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into  the kingdom of heav-
« en."—Mat. v. 20.   By this saying it appears that the Pharisees
had some righteousness, which yet availed them not.
  The second :—«  Jesus saith unto  them,"  (the  chief priests
and elders of the  people) " Verily I say unto you, That the pub-
" licans and the  harlots  go into  the  kingdom  of God before       *
« you."—Mat. xxi.  31.
  These sentences are very plain to the man who  hath  humbly
prayed for " the  wisdom that is from above," but the mere phi-
losopher will never understand them.

The cause of the  difference  that  exists in different persons, as to
        understanding and  receiving the word of God.

  Our Saviour, in a certain place,  shews the cause of  the dif-
ference that exists in different persons in regard to underbtand-       '
ing and receiving the words  of revelation.   Speaking  of the un-
belief of proud  Capernaum, which had rejected  his word, al-
though it had beheld his  works, " Jesus answered and  said, I
" thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth,  because thou
" hast hid these things from the wise and prudent,  and hast  re-
" vealed them unto babes."—Mat. xi- 25.  We learn  from these
words, that those persons who are  " wise and prudent"  in their
own eyes, that is, self-sufficient and self-righteous,  shall  not  be
blessed with the light which is from above, and which they seek
not.   And with this  corresponds another solemn declaration  of
our Lord ;  " Verily  I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and       (
•'• become as little children, ye shall not enter into  the kingdom
" of heaven."—Mat. xviii.  3.  We here see the nature   of that
humility of mind  and submission of understanding  to  the divine
word, to which all must attain, who would  enter into the king-
dom of heaven.  When  God reveals  his  truth  to  man, and
speaks of the conversion of the heart, of a heavenly influence
of a divine  atonement, or of the wrath  to come, " Man replies
against God ;" (Rom. ix. 20.) and marshals arguments against
his Maker ; although God hath forewarned him of his  inability
to utter a single sentence with just understanding,  concerning 
                THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.            17
  things  which are  spiritual, invisible,  and eternal.  « For  my
  >' thoughts are not your thoughts ; neither are your  ways my
  " ways, saith the Lord.  For as the heavens are higher than the
  " earth, so are my  ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts
  " than  your thoughts."—Isaiah  lv.  8.   But when this proud
  spirit of fallen humanity is subdued,  and man  becomes « as a
  " little child" who listens  with docility to the instructions of the
  parent, then will he understand the  words of the  heavenly Teach-
  er, and will  begin  to contemplate,  with wonder and delight, the
  harmony and excellency of the  whole revelation of God,  as it
  respects the creation, probation, or  redemption of man.  As  man
  fell originally by pride, so he must rise by humility ; " God re-
  " sisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble ;"—James iv.
  6. and  the conversion of the heart, taught by the Gospel, is but
  another name for this humility.  Almost every  page of the New
  Testament illustrates in some  manner  the  truth  contained  in
  that sentence of our Lord, which forms the subject of the present
  discussion ; " Except a man be  born  again of the spirit, he  can-
  " not see the kingdom of God."  The important inquiry then is,
  how we may obtain this inestimable blessing.

  How the change of heart promised  by the Gospel is to be attained.

    The great and primary  doctrine which Christ preached  to
  mankind was the META-NOIA, or change, of mind.   His  first
'  word  was « Repent," which signifies in the language in which
  he spake, « Turn ye," or  « be ye converted."  agreeing literally
  with the expression in the Old Testament. « Turn ye,  turn ye,
  « why  will ye die, O house of Israel."—Ezek. xxxiii. 11.*   The
  word  « Repent," in our translation,  is  sometimes ambiguous.
  « Judas repented himself,  and went and hanged himself ;" that
  is  he  was sorry for his crime, for he dreaded the punishment.
  This repentance is very common ; but it  is not the Meta-Noia
  or repentance of the Gospel.   That repentance is elsewhere de-

    . The first word of our ^'^^^^%^^n^^
  in the Syriac language, was thuhu,.Tun ^ ' ^J ^ we trans.
  Hebrew word .Hu»W,jntteOU Te.^nt.
  late "Repentance,"  is in the Sjnw thib    ' ;   haye ri htl  refer.

  " the mind."
       C 
18
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.
 scribed as being " a repentance unto life," and as « a Repentance
 " not to be repented of."  It is a change of heart from sin to righ-
 teousness ; a revolution rather than a reformation ;  a " putting
 " off the old man and putting on the new man," so as, in a man-
 ner, to be " born again."  This change nevertheless is progres-
 sive  ; and proceeds sometimes from very imperfect and almost
 insensible beginnings ; even  like " the dawning light," to which
 scripture compares it, " which shineth more and more unto the       <
 " perfect day."                                  '
  But we  are to inquire  how this new state  of heart is to be
 obtained ?   It is to be obtained by the use of the means which
 God hath appointed ; and by observing those ordinances which
 he hath prescribed for the  restoration and  nourishment  of the
 soul.   The ordinances of  religion  will  be to us as the  Pool of
 Bethesda.   Though we wait long for the  angel's arrival, yet
 hope  will be imparted to sustain us, and relief will come at last.
 In the mean time the progressive change in our hearts is advan-      i
 cing,  even  while we only seem to wait, by mortifying particular
 sins, maturing various virtues,  and  increasing  our faith, which
 acquires strength by exercise.  But  let it always be remem-
 bered, that the first step of the journey  heaven-ward  is submis-
 sion of the  understanding to the word of God.  A man must be-
 come « as a little child" in the presence of his heavenly Father ;
 believing implicitly  his declaration, that a heavenly influence is
 necessary to change the heart, and praying earnestly for that in-
 fluence.  And if he be earnest in his supplication, his prayer
 will be heard.  The Holy Spirit of God will co-operate with his
 prayers; it will influence the mind, in a manner indeed unaccoun-
 table  to us, and insensible as to the mode of operation, but per-      I
 fectly evident in the effects.   The bent of his affections and pur-
 suits  will be gradually changed ;  and the  holy  scriptures, of
 which he was once ashamed, will become his meditation day and
 night.  He will acquire new and more  distinct  perceptions of
 divine truth, and his former  difficulties and doubts,  in regard to
 the state of mankind and the moral government of divine provi-
 dence, will recede from his view.  He will begin  to understand
 and to obey the  indispensable precept, Be not conformed to this
 world.—Rom.  xii. 2. the opinion and example of the world will
cease to sway him ; and he will be brought to a peace of mind
and enjoyment of life which he  never knew before. 
                THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.          19
  This, my brethren, is the doctrine which Christ delivered to his
apostles, and which was professed by the confessors and martyrs of
the primitive age.   And this is  the doctrine of our own church, as
testified by her service  on  this day ; for on this day* we commem-
orate the descent of the Holy Spirit on the sons of men.   On this
day those heavenly influences begi»n  to  be  poured  forth, which
were to continue with the  church for ever.
   Some would contend that the  effects of  this inspiration  were
confined to the first age of the church.  It is  true, the  extraordi-
nary powers of the spirit  in working  miracles,  and in  the gift  of
tongues, were confined to the first ages ; but the ordinary  influen-
ces of the same spirit  producing love to God and  faith in Christ,
purifying  the  heart from evil passions, and renewing the mind,
" will  abide for ever."  And this is the just distinction, which v/c
are ever  to remember on this  subject-  Our Saviour promised
that the influence of his spirit should " be with us alway, even un-
" to the end of  the world."—Mat.  xxviii. 20.   And this  promise
hath been hitherto fulfilled.  In every age  of the church, there
 have been witnesses of the  true  faith, who have supplicated and
 obtained  this influence.   At this day, there are as many examples
 of enlightened  piety and  exalted christian character, as at any for-
 mer period ;  and those who  exhibit  such examples, acknowledge
 the divine influence of which  we speak, and daily invoke  its aid at
 the throne of grace.   But there  are  many  persons  who  are en-
 tirely ignorant of these facts.  As in the time of the apostles, the
 learned of Greece and Rome knew but little of what  was passing
 in the church of Christ, and, though they heard  Paul  preach, un-
 derstood him not ;  so many persons at this day, men too of liberal
 education, are  entirely ignorant of  what is  passing in their own
 land, in regard to Christ's spiritual kingdom.
    I feel  it always rny duty to bear my testimony to the important
 truths which I have declared to you  this day.  They  are the eter-
 nal truths  of God.   They are the solemn  declarations of Christ,
 even of him who hath said ; "Heaven and earth shall pass away,
 « but my words shall not pass away."  The  example or unbelief
 of a multitude no way affects  the certainty of these things.   The
 opposition of some men  to these doctrines, is but a confirmation of

                  ♦ Whitsunday, or day of Pentecost. 
 ^u           THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.
 their truth ;  a necessary confirmation ; for our  Saviour foretold
 that his doctrines should be thus resisted.  When we view this un-
 belitf and resistance of men, we  are  ready to think that  the  elo-
 quence and argument of  angels are required  to do justice to the
 glorious subject.  " For  who is sufficient for  these things ?"—2
 Cor. ii. 16. • For myself, I have  a constant fear, lest I should not
 express myself with that affection and  earnestness  which are due
 from one man speaking to  his fellow-creatures on such awful sub-       t
 jects.  For there is danger, while we assail the understanding with
 arguments, lest we should speak  too much in the spirit  of  assail-
 ants, and not  with that meekness and temperate suasion which win
 the hearts  of our hearers ; especially as man, in  his present  fallen
 state, feels  a natural repugnance to yield to the argument  of his
 fellow creature, in subjects relating to a change of conduct ;  or
 even to that of God himself.   On the other hand, I fear the clanger
 of not being faithful, and of " shunning to declare  the counsel  of
 " God  ;" particularly  on the present  occasion,  when  I consider       ^
 that some,  who  now  hear me, are in  declining health,  and may
 never hear the words  of salvation  again.  But  I depend not cer-
 tainly on my own arguments  to  make  an impression  upon your
 minds, but  on  " the spirit of truth," which, if the words of Christ
be true, will lead the mind of the humble inquirer "into all truth."
 The preachers of the  Gospel are indeed called the " ambassadors
 " of Christ, to whom God hath committed the  word of reconcilia-
 " tion, as though God did beseech you by us."—2 Cor. v. 20. We
 indeed hold in our hands the treasure of the  Gospel, offering it to
 your acceptance.  But it is also true, that  " We have this treasure
 " in  earthen vessels, that the excellency of the  power  may  be of
 « God, and not of us."—2 Cor. iv. 7.   That is to  say, the  word       '
 of the glorious Gospel is committed, not to  angels, but to men  of
 like  passions  with  yourselves, to  « earthen vessels,  compassed
 " with infirmity," who are  often  far  inferior in eloquence and
 learning, to those to whom they preach ; that the glory of conver-
 sion may manifestly "  be of God, and not of us."*
* See note at the end. 
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.
21
                      APPLICATION.

  TO  those of us who have come to this place for the benefit of
the medicinal waters, there are some interesting topics of applica-
tion suggested by the subject before us.
  I. Let us pray that God would be  pleased to accompany  the
means we use for the restoration of bodily health, with his blessing,
without  which the best means are in vain : and further, that  the
efficacy of those means may not be defeated by our sins.  We learn
from scripture and  from experience, that  our sins are frequently
the cause of  our diseases, and that our  continuance in sin is  the
cause of the prolongation of disease.  The infirm man  whom  our  ,
Lord healed at the well of Bethesda, had been thirty-eight years  in
a state of suffering ;  and yet it appears, that during that long peri-
od, he lived in sin ;  the state of his body being all the  time a just
 emblem of the state of his soul.  For when Jesus  afterwards  met
 him in the temple, he said unto him, « Behold, thou  art made
 « whole, Go and sin no  more,  lest  a worst  thing  come  unto
 « thee."
    There are many, whose condition  may be justly compared to
 that of this man, before he was cured of his infirmity.  They  have
 contracted disease, the fruit (too often) of  the sins of their youth :
 their bodies droop with weakness, and  their minds with despon-
 dency ; and they go from place to place to drink the waters,  seek-
 ing health, and finding none.   And the reason may be, that during
 all this protracted suffering, they retain their sin.   They fail  not
 to apply to the physicians of the body  :  but they have  not once
 had recourse  to the  heavenly Physician.   They  conduct them-
  selves like Asa, king of Israel, of whom is left  this memorial ;
  «c Asa, in the thirty and ninth of his reign, was diseased in his feet,
  « until his disease was exceeding great:  Yet, in  his disease, he
  « sought not to the Lord, but to the physicians"-2 Chron. xvl 2.
  They seek a renovation of health on the same principles, and with
  Tesame kind  of reliance  for success, as the ignorant: £ *«,
  who knows no other God but the Idol before him,  and belies
  Uiat  after death his  soul  will animate the body of some inferior
  al 1   They have no  faith in the communications  from heaven
    nTe ning th  soul andbody of man.  They « Uve  without God 
22
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.
 " in the world," and are as destitute of the consolations of religion,
 and as inattentive to a dhine providence, as the beasts  of the field
 " to which God hath not given  understanding."  There is a sen-
 tence of the Psalms, which ought  ever to be remembered by the
 man, who  is " in  honour"  with the world, but  " seeketh not the
 " honour which cometh from God."   Man that is in honour, and
 understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.—Ps.  xlix. 20.
 How awful a spectacle to an enlightened  and  reflecting  mind,  to       '
 behold a man of fortune, family, and education, carrying about his
 diseases in luxurious pomp from place to place, pained in body and
 restless in mind, incapable of any intellectual occupation or enjoy-
 ment, further than what is afforded by the intelligence  of the day ;
 and at last descending to the grave, without fulfilling  the purpose
 for which  he was sent into the world ; unpitied too, and soon for-
 gotten by the world  to which he was  a slave ;  and carried reluc-
 tantly before the tribunal of a God, whom he never  served.   If
 there be any one here, to whom the former of these  observations      >
 apply, let him summon up attention to the remaining part of this
 subject.
  II. When we bathe the body in the medicinal flood, let us call
 to mind the baptismal flood, or " laver of regeneration," in  which
 the  soul is washed from the stains of sin.   In our infancy we pas-
 sed  through the waters of baptism,  a sacrament of most important
 significancy ; by which we are admitted members of Christ's visi-
ble church.  But this baptism by water is only " an outward and
 " visible sign  of an inward  and spiritual grace ;" and when we
 come to age, we are supposed  to  understand its spiritual import,
 and to examine ourselves whether the soul hath indeed  acquired
 " the grace" thereby signified, or  whether it  yet remains  in   its
 original, and unrenewed state.  " The inward and spiritual g^ace"
 here  spoken of, is declared by our church to be " A  death unto
 " sin and a new birth unto righteousness."*  The baptism by wa-
 ter is a  type of the  spiritual baptism, which is  " by  fire and the
 " Holy Ghost."  This was plainly  indicated  by the forerunner  of
 Christ, who first began to baptize with water :  " I indeed baptize
 " you with water unto repentance," said  John  the  Baptist,  " but

             *  See  Catechism of the Church of England.
•« 
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.             23
" he that cometh after me is mightier than I, he shall baptize you
" with the  Holy Ghost and with fire."—Mat. iii. 11.  This is the
true and spiritual baptism  to which the heavenly  Gospel invites
the sons of men ;  and many there are who have come to this bap-
tism in their old age, even " at the eleventh hour."
   III.  When  we  contemplate  the  salubrious  fountain in  this
place, which has been beneficial to men in successive generations,
we may behold in it a fit emblem of"  the fountain  opened for sin,
« by the blood of Jthe Lamb ;" which has healed the souls of mul-
titudes in every age, and which will continue to flow and to wash
away sin, as long as the pardon of sin shall be asked by man.
             "  There is a fountain op'd for sin,
             "  Fill'd with Immanuel's blood,
             «  More healing than Bethesda's pool,
             "Or famed Siloam's flood."*
    It hath  pleased God, in  adopting human words to express spirit-
 ual things, in  his revelation to  man, to represent the atoning virtue
 of the sacrifice of his son  by the figure of" a fountain," and also of
 « living or  flowing waters ;"  and we ought not to hesitate to use
 these words to express the sense which scripture intends ;  for we
 may be sure that there is no other expression  more fit and  signifi-
  cant.   " In that day," saith the  prophet,  « there shall be a foun-
  « tain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Je-
  « rusalem, for sin and uncleanness."   And  again, « It shall  be  in
  « that  dav that living waters shall go out from  Jerusalem"-
  Zech  xiv' 8   They are called "  living waters" because they give
  life to the souls of men, which are by nature dead in sin.  And  in
  the vision of Ezekiel, these waters are represented as flowing from
  the sanctuary, like * river ; of which  it is said, " and it shall come
  « to pass, that every thing shall live whither the  river cometh -

  ^etttyle then inquire for  himself whether he hath  come to
  thithealing " fountain,"  and known the virtue of the  " living wa-
  1   rs " or,  to lay aside the figure of scripture, whether he hath
    olt'o-LbloJdofChrist, which^^^^£
  « being justified by faith, hath obtained peace with God.

                  *  See Kempthorne's Hymns, page 89. 
24
THE HEALING WATERS  OF BETHESDA.
 v. 1.  If we would enjoy happiness in heaven, a time must come te
 every one  of us when the soul shall thus approach God in faith and
 penitence, and seek to be cleansed of its guilt in the atoning blood.
 If such a time  hath  not  come to a man, he  is  yet  in his  sins.
 There are, indeed, many who do not  thus approach  God ; and it
 will be proper here to describe their state and character.
   There are in the first place some  who refuse to come to this
 fountain, from pride of intellect ;  despising as too simple the way of
 salvation which the divine  wisdom hath ordained.   They allege
 (in spirit at least, if not in words) that they have opened  a fountain
 for themselves, in which they  may wash and be clean.   And this
 fountain is their own works and merits.  Their unbelief resists the
 idea that their sins are to be washed out by  means so simple as
 faith in the atonement of another.  Self is to be the  Saviour,  even
 when the name of a Mediator is  admitted.  And this  is  the foun-
 tain of atonement which corrupt nature opens to  itself, and which
 is equally relied on at  this day, though under a different name, by      I
 the heathen idolater, and the  unbelieving philosopher.   This state
 of heart is illustrated to us in scripture by the  history of Naaman
 the Syrian.
   Naaman was a heathen, and " captain of the host of the king of
" Syria, a great man with his master, and honourable ;  he was  also
" a mighty man in valour ; but he was a leper."   The leprosy  was
a disease which could not be cured by human medicaments.    Un-
der the Mosaic law it represented the malady  of sin, which only
can be cured by the power  of God.  Naaman  came, therefore, to
the land of Israel (the land of  miracle) to the prophet  Elisha,  that
he " might be miraculously cured of  his leprosy."  " So Naaman
» came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door
« of  the  house of Elisha" in great pomp ;  expecting that the
prophet would come out and do honour to his greatness.   He  had
moreover brought with him " ten talents of silver, and six  thousand
" pieces of gold."   But Elisha sent a  message to him by  a servant
(even as Christ sends  the message  of salvation by his ministers)
saying, " Go and wash in Jordan  seven times"   But Naaman  had
no faith in so simple a remedy  ; and he  absolutely refused to try it.
Besides,  his pride was offended, that his human acquisitions were
estimated as nothing in the sight of the prophet of God ;  and he 
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.
25
said, " Behold, I thought that the prophet  would surely  come
" out to me,*' and perform certain ceremonies, " and recover the
" leper.  Are not Abana and  Pharpar, rivers of Damascus (in
" mine own country) better than all the waters of Israel ?  May  t
" not wash in them and be clean ?  And he went away in a rage."
But his servants  entreated him to be obedient  to  the word of the
prophet, and to try the appointed mode of cure, however simple it
might be.   After a struggle with himself, his pride and reluctance
were in some degree subdued, and " then went he down and dipped
 " himself  seven times  in Jordan, according to the saying of the
 " man of God, and his flesh came again, like unto the flesh  of a lit-
 " tie child, and he was  clean."—2  Kings  v.  12.   Our  Saviour
 hath,  in the Gospel, referred to the history of « Naaman the Syri-
 " an," when  he would  illustrate the conduct of men who despise
 the way of salvation revealed from heaven, because the means are
 simple, and the instrument may be humble : for « they had said,
 « Is not this Joseph's son ?"—-Luke iv. 27.
    The history of Naaman affords a lively illustration of the causes
  which prevent men at this day from coming to the  " waters of
  « life," whether considered as the laver of regeneration, or  the
  fountain of atonement.  In regard  to the first, they contemn the
  simple ordinance of baptism, and say, « What virtue can  there be
  « in  the waters  of baptism ?  Are not the waters of Abana  and
  "Pharpar as good?"  It is true, the element is the same.  But the
  answer is, " These rites of  ablution are  God's appointed mear^
  They are ordained to be a test of man's humility and faith ;  that
  the proud man may stand self-condemned before men and angeU,
  like  Naaman in a rage at the door of Elisha.  " U«jU- . F*
  be subdued, he cannot be saved by the Gospel of Chr s.    Again
   in reeard to  "  the fountain which hath been opened for sin,  they
    av  "  s there not a better fountain than  this in our own country
   <f which  we  may  wash  and  be  clean?  And  they turn away
   I  om^   inlrage,"  and condemn  others for going to  «, saying
   " irom it in a r«*gc,   «                             come soeech
   « Faith m.hou, *-ork3 leads to licet—as = -the same^e c
   JL certain »nSod,y «.add-ed <£££™ -Z
   wisd„ma„dPhil.fophy C£ *-»-dP£-  o
   fttrnish  nwe rauonalnteth d,  f   » ^ cJave, ,0  thtm
   they try these methods ;  but the  leprosy
         D 
26
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.
 still.  Happy  the man,  who, renouncing his pride  and unbelief,
 submits before he die, to wash in that fountain which is opened for
 sin and uncleanness 1
    There are others who consider this fountain as far  remote and
 inaccessible, and view it with a  hopeless  eye.   They do not  so
 much argue against  its existence or efficacy, as  despair of its be-
 ing beneficial to  them.   They perceive  that  they are deep in sin,
 and apprehend that their stains can  never  be washed out.   But
 amidst these doubts they seek not  the  Spirit of God to reside
 within them, according to the admonition of our Saviour ;  so that
 their hearts (like habitations " swept and garnished,") are ready  to
 receive the spirit of " the wicked  one,"  who  leads them  onward
 from one degree of despondency to  another, till at last  they begin
 to entertain thoughts of terminating their existence.   They turn
 away from the fountain of life, and  plunge into the  gulph of despair.
   Others there are who contemplate the fountain  of salvation with
 hope, and ardently desire to find it beneficial to their  souls ;  but
 their habits of sin have been so inveterate that  they feel that noth-
 ing but a divine power can change  their  hearts.   And  this is in-
 deed true ; the whole man must  be changed, and it requires a di-
 vine power.  But God hath graciously promised  that it shall be
 given.  " A new heart also will I give you, and a  new spirit will I
 " put within you ; and I will take away the stony heart out of your
 « flesh, and I will give you a  heart of flesh ;  and I will put my
 « Spirit within you."— Ezek. xxxvi. 26.   And in regard to the guilt
 which they may have already contracted, the evangelic promise
 runs in these terms  ;—« Though your sins be as scarlet, they  shall
 « be as wool; though they be  red as crimson, they  shall be as white
 "as snow."— Is. i. 18.   There is no impediment from God in the
 way of the  most guilty, to come to the waters of life.   « Ho !  eve-
 " ry one that thirsteth, come  ye  to the waters."—Is. iv. 1. ;  and
 this the prophet spake, in anticipation of the  « living waters which
 " were to go forth from Jerusalem."  And when Jesus himself ap-
 peared in the flesh, he stood and cried, saying," If any man thirst,
" let him come to me and drink."—Him that cometh to me, I will
in  no  wise " cast out."—John vi.  37.   There  is no obstacle to
coming to the waters of life, arising from the greatness of our sin. 
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA
27
                     CONCLUSION.

   The blessedness of the Man who cometh to the living waters.
  THE invitation to the living waters is expressed in the Gospel
in the strongest terms of persuasion  and encouragement that lan-
guage can supply ; and there is sometimes an ardor of entreaty in
the words, to which even the heart of him who but imperfectly un-
derstands them, must desire to  respond ;  as in the following pas-
sage in the last chapter of  the  Bible.  « And the Spirit and the
« Bride say, come.  And let him that heareth  say, come.  And
« let him that is athirst, come.  And whosoever will, let him take
« of the water of life freely."— Rev. xxii. 17.   When once the
heart becomes obedient  to this invitation, and  the sinner laying
aside his pride, approaches in humility of spirit, and saith, « Lo, I
« come to do thy will, O God," then the purpose of the grand dis-
 pensation which brought  the Son of God from heaven, is answer-
 ed, in regard to that soul.   The soul's acceptance of eternal life is
 a great event  in heaven and earth.  It is a  greater  event in the
 view « of angels and of just men made perfect," than the conflicts
 of armies, or the revolutions of empire ; for « there is joy in the
 ic presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth."-
 Luke xiii  10.  It is a transaction,  I say, more illustrious in  the
 contemplation of the heavenly host, than the grandest scenes pro-
 duced by human power, wisdom, or greatness ;  for  these are, m
  their nature, temporal, but that  is eternal.  It is  of yet greater
  consequence to the individual himself.  It is an «»P»™ ™ »
  the life of man, when, after a  long struggle  between God and the
  ^between duty and pleasure, between the vmce of consaen ,
   nd the calls  of ambition, between the fear  of reproach, and  the
  and the calls  o            deliberately solves to lay aside  the
  Td ptns     aTfled for this world, and setting his face Zion-
  gr.„d plans he                      ^  ^ he was §ent  inl0
     vd, hegmst  fu   the  g   p J^ ^ ^ ^ ^.^ ^

  ""a Tf he so      r"  hath « come to Christ, who giveth rest,'
  tudes ot the soui , '«' '                      . ...  (th t pracu-

  irri;:::-trrr.heiUdbydayandthefiteh, 
28
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA;
 " night" to the children of Israel travelling through the wilder-
 ness.   There is thankfulness  of  heart for continued benefits,
 which is to the soul as a continued feast.  And, above all, there is
 the frequent  exercise of prayer and praise  ; an  exercise  more
 grateful than any which was ever before enjoyed, and now more to
 be desired than the most splendid and  interesting scenes  which
 human power or wealth can exhibit,  honoured even with the pres-
 ence of kings and princes ;  and the soul  looks forward with delight
 to the enjoyment of the same spiritual  exercise  with  the  great
 company of the redeemed before the throne of  God.  Hencefor-
 ward also there is a love for the house of God, and  for the assem-
 bly of his saints, which can only be described in the  words of  the
 King of Israel ; « How amiable are  thy  tabernacles, O Lord of
 " Hosts !  My soul longeth, yea, even fainteth for the courts of the
 " Lord."  He even envied  the swallow  and  sparrow which had
 found an  habitation there.  " Yea,  the sparrow  hath  found an
 " house, and the swallow a  nest for herself, even thine  altars,  O
 " Lord of Hosts, my King and my God."—Ps. Ixxxiv. 1.  This is
 a state of mind " which passes all understanding"  of  the men of
 the world.   Even to those who have cultivated science to the ut-
 most boundary of human attainment, or who have ruled kingdoms
 and swayed the world by their powers of mind, such fervent love
 of an unseen Deity is something  beyond the power of conception.
 It implies an union or communion, like that mentioned by our Sav-
 iour in the New Testament, " I am the Vine :  ye are the  braneh-
 " es."—John xv. 5.  It seems to them, as  if  they must  enter on
 some new state of being, to understand it.   Except, indeed, at the
 close of life, « when flesh and heart melt," and the soul ready to
 take its flight, and feeling itself in the hand of God, looks out with
 anxiety and terror for some foundation of hope ;—then they begin
to think that such a state of mind is attainable in this world.
  Our Saviour has, in  a certain place, a beautiful  allusion to  the
blessedness, even in this life, of the man  who has drank of the liv-
 ing waters.  « He shall thirst no more."  He refers to the tran-
quil and satisfied state of mind, and  exemption from  all worldly
solicitude,  which  accompany the  heavenly  draught.   When  our
Lord sat  at the well of Samaria, he said unto the woman  who was
drawing water, « If thou knewest the gift of God, and  who it is 
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.
29
" that saith tinto thee, Give me to drink, thou wouldest have asked
" of him, and he would have given thee living water."   And then
he added, " Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again ;
" but whosoever  drinketh of the water that  I  shall  give him,
" shall never thirst ;  but the water that I shall give him shall
" be  in him a  well of water springing up into  everlasting life."—
John iv. 14.
   These are solemn words, and of eternal import.   May  they
sink deep into the heart of every one who  hears them !  " Who-
« soever drinketh of this  water shall thirst again."   Whosoever
thirsts  for the enjoyments of this life alone, shall never be satisfied.
 He who drinks of our medicinal well shall thirst again.  He  who
 only seeks the health of the body, will not be satisfied with the res-
 toration  of  bodily health ; but  he who seeketh the health of the
 soul, and  "  hungereth and thirsteth  after  righteousness, shall be
 " filled."  He  shall thirst no more ;  for he will drink of the living
 fountain, which " will be in him a well of  water  springing up into
 « everlasting life."
    May all who drink  of  the  fountain in this  place,  be taught to
 drink of the living fountain !   I pray that the heavenly benediction
 may descend on  every poor sufferer who bows  the head to  taste
 of these waters ; and that God would  give to them their healing
 virtue to repair his bodily strength and relieve' his pains.  But es-
 pecially, I  pray  that his visit to this place may be accompanied by
 a spiritual blessing, and that it  may appear hereafter that Provi-
  dence hath  led him to this well, as  formerly a sinful  woman was
  led to the well of Samaria, that  he might  obtain  eternal  life.
  Amen.
                      NOTE TO PAGE 20.

  IT is not to be wondered at, that some persons of liberal education should
havlsuch imperfect notions of Christian doctrine;  for they derive their
Sf(iV7may be cjjledjj^^ ^^o  men, «£ *££



^ShS^ 
30
THE HEALING WATERS OF BETHESDA.
 subject:  " Search the Scriptures, for in them ye have eternal  life."  He
 who being qualified by Providence to read, does not search the Scriptures,
 is not worthy of the Scriptures, and will not be likely to find  out the reli-
 gion which they teach.  The opinions of authors of this description (whose
 very language shews that they have  not  "searched  the  Scriptures") are
 not worthy of notice.  Our Saviour has, again, cautioned us against follow-
 ing implicitly the opinions of men of any attainments,  or  calling any man
 master ; saying, " One is your master, even  Christ.  Call no man your fath-
 " er, upon the earth."—Mat. xxiii. 9.   To this reverence for " names  upon
 " the earth," are to be ascribed chiefly those contests  about doctrines  and
 modes of worship, in which men  sometimes wear away their  lives, quoting
 each other, and  " calling many men  masters."  Hence also proceeds the
 hatred to names of an opposite opinion.   One man writes a book to prove that
 he is not a Calvinist, or that his church or sect is not  Calvinistic ; another,
 that he is not Arminian, or that his church is not Arminian ; and neither of
 them, it may  be, proves that he is a Christian.   But he thinks that he  has
 done somewhat, if he has taken  his rank in the human  scale ;—and  having
 assumed this, he too  often slumbers quietly in his place to the end of life.
 Whereas he ought to have known,  that one week's labour in  " preaching
 the word of life" to his flock, is more characteristic  of a  shepherd of the
 sheep, than a whole vear dedicated to such volumes ;  in composing which,
 moreover, conscience too often  bears  witness  that we are anxious  and la-
 borious architects  of our own fame, and are building up ourselves, instead
 of the church.
   To the same source also is to  be ascribed an opinion very common among
 superficial theologians, namely,—that every man, as well as themselves, must
 necessarily rank himself under some standard, and "call some man master;"
 —than which there cannot be a sentiment more unfounded.   The intelligent
 Christian (like Paul the Apostle) acknowledges no name but that of Christ.
 Those ministers  of  Christ who are chiefly instrumental in promoting his
 spiritual kingdom at this day, would be ashamed of the imputation,  that
 they had taken their theology from any  man.   No :  They have it "  not of
 " men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ."— Gal. i. 1. ;   and to this high
 extraction of their doctrine they owe their success in  preaching it  to the
 people ; a success which is  wondered  at  by some, and unaccountable by
 them on any principles which compose their system.
   But this propensity to render the religion of Christ a human  system is so
 general, that almost every man at this day, whose labours are useful in the
 church, is supposed to adhere to the tenets of some " master," and  most
 generally, of Calvin or Arminius.  Nothing can so fully prove our assertion
 " that in this age, as in that of the Apostle, many persons of liberal educa-
 " tion know little of what is passing in the church of Christ," (which is con-
 fined to no particular communion) than such a supposition.  Calvin  and
 Arminius !   Is it not an insult to men of intelligence and learning, humbly
 receiving the  revelation of God, to  suppose, that  instead of drawing, pure
 water from the fountain-head, they should drink from such shallow and tur-
 bidstreams !   Calvix and Arminius !  These might possibly have been
 very respectable men  in their day (the former, indeed, has shewn in his
 works more classical learning, profound knowledge of the Scriptures, splen-
 did eloquence, and exalted powers of mind, than are to be found in the uni-
 ted works of the  principal polemical  divines of the present day); but to
 compare the creed  of Calvin or Arminius  with the life-giving doctrine of
Christ, as illustrated by his "chosen vessel" Paul the Apostle, would  be to
 compare (if things so dissimilar may be brought together) a hedge-stake t.<>
 •  Aaron's rod that budded."- 
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