Morning & Evening Devotional Reading–

June 17– Evening

by C. H. Spurgeon, revised and edited by W. C. Neff

“Israel sang this song, ‘Spring up, O well!.” 

—Numbers 21:17

As the people of Israel traveled in the wilderness, they came to a well which was a well of promise. The Lord said to Moses, “Gather the people together, and I will give them water.” The people needed water, and it was promised to them by their gracious God. We, too, need fresh supplies of heavenly grace, and, in the covenant, the Lord has pledged himself to give us all we require.

Before the water gushed forth, however, cheerful faith prompted the people to sing. And then, as they saw the crystal fount bubbling up, the music grew even more joyous. In the same way, we should rejoice in God’s promise to bring divine revivals to our souls. Are we thirsty today? Let us not complain but sing. Spiritual thirst is difficult to bear, but we have his promise that there is a well; so, let us be of good cheer and look for it.

The well was also the center of prayer. “Spring up, O well” is as much a prayer as a song. What God has engaged to give we must ask for in prayer. If we don’t pray, then we show by our actions that we have neither desire nor faith to receive from God. Let us not read the Scriptures as an empty formality but as a channel of grace to our souls. O that God would use his word to fill us with himself.

Lastly, the well was the object of effort. “The nobles of the people dug it with their staves.” We should not be idle; the Lord wants us to be active in obtaining grace. Staves are not well adapted for digging in the sand, but we must use what we have to the best of our ability. Prayer, the assembling of ourselves together, partaking of the ordinances: all of these must be engaged in active faith. Let us, then, stir ourselves up to seek him in whom we find all our fresh springs. [M&E]