the pitcher of thy conscience'--the water of devotion, pity, tears,
and mutual love--and who shall let down to Me her pitcher, and shall
say, 'Drink, my Lord; and for Thy camels also--that is, Thy
servants, who carry Thee about daily on their bodies, and who by
night and day are held bound fast by Thy yoke, I will draw the water
of brotherly love'--that is the maiden whom the Lord hath prepared
for the Son of My Lord, even the bride of the Word of God, united to
My humanity. And she shall be counted worthy to enter, like a bride
with her bridegroom, into the chamber of eternal rest, when the
Bridegroom invites her, saying, 'Come, My blessed bride, inherit the
Kingdom of My Father. For I was thirsty, and thou gavest Me drink.'"
Thirdly, we may apply this word to the Father, as if Christ said to
His Father: "Father, I have declared Thy name to mankind; I have
finished the work which Thou gavest Me to do; and in Thy service I
have spent My whole body as Thine instrument. Behold, I am all worn
out and exhausted; and yet I still thirst to do and suffer more for
Thine honour. This is why I hang here, extended to the furthest
breadth of love, for I long to be an everlasting sacrifice, a sweet
savour to Thee, and at the same time an eternal atonement and
salvation to mankind." Thus, too, might this strong Samson have
said: "O Lord, Thou hast put into the hand of Thy servant this very
great salvation and victory, and yet behold, I die of thirst." As if
He would say: "Father, I have accomplished Thy gracious will; I have
finished the work of man's salvation, as Thou didst demand; and yet
I still thirst; for the sins by which Thou art offended are
infinite. And so I desire that the love and merits of My Passion, by
which Thou wilt be appeased, may be infinite too. And as I now offer
myself as a peace-offering and a living sacrifice for the salvation
of all men, so through Me may all men appease Thee, by offering Me
to Thee as a peace-offering to Thine eternal glory, in memory of My
Passion, and to make good all their shortcomings." O how acceptable
to the Father must this desire of love have been! For what was this
thirst but a sweet and pleasant refreshment to the Father, and at
the same time the blessed renovation of mankind? Or what other
language does this burning throat speak to us, save that of Christ's
burning love, without measure and without limit, out of which He did
all His works? This truly is the most noble sacrifice of our
redemption, this is that peace-offering which will be offered even
to the last day, by all good men, to the Holy Ghost, to the highest
Father, in memory of the Son, to the eternal glory of the adorable
Trinity, and to the fruit of salvation for mankind. Here, certainly,
is the inexhaustible storehouse of our reconciliation, which never
fails, for it is greater than all the debts of the world. This is
that immeasurable love, which is higher than the heavens, for it has
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