Evening, May 16
Go To Morning Reading
“And he said, Thus saith the Lord, Make this valley full of ditches.
For thus saith the Lord, Ye shall not see wind, neither shall ye see
rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, that ye may drink,
both ye and your cattle, and your beasts.”
2 Kings 3:16,17
The armies of the three kings were famishing for want of water: God
was about to send it, and in these words the prophet announced the
coming blessing. Here was a case of human helplessness : not a drop of water could all the valiant men procure from the skies
or find in the wells of earth. Thus often the people of the Lord are
at their wits’ end; they see the vanity of the creature, and learn experimentally
where their help is to be found. Still the people were to make a believing preparation for the divine blessing ; they were to dig the trenches in which the precious liquid would
be held. The church must by her varied agencies, efforts, and prayers,
make herself ready to be blessed; she must make the pools, and the
Lord will fill them. This must be done in faith, in the full assurance
that the blessing is about to descend. By-and-by there was a singular bestowal of the needed boon . Not as in Elijah’s case did the shower pour from the clouds, but in a silent and mysterious
manner the pools were filled. The Lord has his own sovereign modes
of action: he is not tied to manner and time as we are, but doeth
as he pleases among the sons of men. It is ours thankfully to receive
from him, and not to dictate to him. We must also notice the remarkable abundance of the supply —there was enough for the need of all. And so it is in the gospel blessing;
all the wants of the congregation and of the entire church shall be
met by the divine power in answer to prayer; and above all this, victory
shall be speedily given to the armies of the Lord.
What am I doing for Jesus? What trenches am I digging? O Lord, make
me ready to receive the blessing which thou art so willing to bestow.