The Pulpit Commentary — Jeremiah — Volume 1 — Section 180

tho pathless ocean; not so with any man as concerns his relation to the heavenly powers and tho eternal realities. Ho has always light cnou;:;h to '' discr!rn between tho righteons and the wicked, between him that scrveth God and him that serveth hi,n not" (Mai. iii. 18). 'l'ho truo way of life is clearly revealed to those who are williw, to "see." "The wayfaring man, though a fool, shall not err therein" (faa. xxxv. 8)'. III. TnE PRACTICAL RESULT TO WJIICH SUCH OBSERVATION MUST LEAD. "Ask for the old paths, where is the gt,od way, and walk therein." Asking and acting, inquiry after the right way, and a resolute determination to follow it; when these conditions are supplied there can be little doubt as to the issue. A life of practical godliness, based on faith in revealed truth, springing from the inspiration of the spirit of truth and purity in the secret soul,-this is the way. It is the" old way." New as regards the light Christianity has shed upon it, new as regards the revelation of him in whose redeeming work its deep foundations have been laid, it is "old" as re"ards its essential principles of faith and righteousness. The martyrs, prophets, and h~ly men of every age have left their glowing footprints upon it. Elijah ascended from it in his chariot of fire. David made the statutes of the Lord his delight a.~ he pursued his pilgrimage along it. Abraham trod the same path, led on by the star of promise. Upon it Enoch walked in lowly fellowship with God. It is stained with the blood of rrghteous Abel. "Our glorious Leader claims our praise For his own pattern given ; While tbe long cloud of witnesses Show the so.me po.th to heaven." The way is as plain as Divine teaching and human experience can make it; let us gird up the loins of our minds to "walk in it." IV. THE REWARD OF PBACTIOAL OBEDIENCE. "Ye shall find rest unto your souls." " Rest," for beings such as we are, is the repose of the mind in discovered truth, the pacification of the conscience in the assurance of Divine forgiveness, the satisfaction uf the heart in the embrace of real good, the balance of all our powers in a holy service. In tho life of faith and godliness, the life Christ gives to all who come to him, can such rest alone be found. "Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, ... and ye shall find rest unto your souls" (lllatt. xi. 29).-W. Ver. 7.-Jerusalem like a fountain casting forth evil. A fountain, as mentioned in Scripture, is generally suggestive of a most gracious and abundant supply of the highest good; even as in eh. ii. 13 and John iv. 14. How very noteworthy, then, to find that the fountain, which naturally suggests all that is bright, beautiful, and refreshing, should be so turned away from its common place in poetic use as to become the most impressive illustration of Jerusalem's polluted heart I Indeed, an imaginative writer would probably get severely criticized if he used the figure of a fountain for such a purpose; nnd yet, when one thinks it over, this very unexpectedness makes the figure more instructive. The poetry of a prophet must, above all things, have arresting power in it. Think, then, of the fountain. Think of it, first of all, in its usual aspect, pouring forth a bright, pleasant-sounding stream, as inspiring to the mind as it is refreshing to the thirsty mouth. But all this view must be instantly and decidedly 1mt away. Instead of the clear, sparkling water there must come into the mind tho thought of a feculent, poisonous flood, and of the force that lies behind it, some deep inward energy hidden in the secret places of the earth. A continuity of most pestiferous evil comes from these secret places, and even by such an image as this is the actual wickedness of Jerusalem set forth. The hearts of its people are gathering-places for 11 destructive stream, always flowing forth and always replenished. '£hey never get tired of their wickedness and never repent of it. Then one remembers that the hearts of men were destined for o. very different purpose, Just as the devout heart perceives that God meant these crevices nnd great caverns in the earth to gather and pour forth the refreshina streams of water, so ho meant the hearts of the chilrlren of men to gather and pour forth all manner of loving, hopeful, patiently pursued projects for the good of others and for the glory of God. 'l'he woman of Samaria evidently came to Jesus with 11 heart that was indeed a fountain casting out wickedness, but she heard the delight- ful news that Jesus could give her water which should bo in her "a well of water JEREMUfl. N 178 THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET JEREMIAH. [oH, v1, 1-30.