cauſe for men that are ſoul-ſick and ſin-ſick, there is no phyſic but one, only a drink of the well of life, and becauſe they ken not the gait to into the fire of hell, thro' the madneſs of an awakened conſcience. For a thirſty-ſick-ſool finds two things in Chriſt, never to be found in all the world, nor any thing elſe. 1. Chriſt takes off the hardneſs of ſin: none has power to do this but he; all the pardons of ſin are in Chriſt's keeping, and of Chriſt's making; it is his office to forgive ſin. 2. Beſides, they find in him an influence, and abundance of happineſs in him; ſo as, what they ſought before in the creature, they find no where elſe but in him; then ſpeak to them of gold, it is nothing to Chriſt; ſpeak of lands and lordſhips they are nothing to a Saviour, and ſuch a Saviour has and is another name to a ſinner that is awakened.
Again, the text calls him, The water of life. We ſee here, there is ſome water that is rotten and ill-taſted; will a thirſty man drink of it? he ſhall not be the better, but the wholeſomeſt water is the running spring; ſo all that ſinners can get beſide Chriſt is ſtanding water. Let them drink in gold, and kingdom, and lands, they ſhall never be to ſatisfying to a ſick-ſoul as he ſhall be and they who have drunk in theſe, at death would be content to ſpue them out again, they ly ſo heavy upon their ſtomach; but Chriſt is the cooling wholeſome ſpring, the well of water, ſpringing to eternal life. Now, to make our uſe of this ſeeing Chriſt is ſuch a living well of water, how is it in the goſpel that there are ſo many withered dried ſouls? I anſwer, for God's part, indeed God has not put an iron-lock upon the well of life.⟨But⟩ ⟨Chriſt⟩
