Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1886-04-22
&eadiug far the Sabbath.
CONDUCTED by
REV. ROBERT LATHAM.

CONDUCTED by
lev ROBERT LATHAM.
[original.l
WATER MADE WINE.
"a miracle is an effect or event contrary
to the established constitution or course of
things, or a sensible suspension or control
of, or deviation from, the known laws Of
nature ."-HoRNE.
Both in the Old Testament and in the
New Testament there is a record of a great
many events or effects, which, by Christians
of every name, are regarded as miracles.
In the New Testament alone there is a rec
ord of between forty and fifty. These were
all performed by Christ, or his disciples.
We have no reliable testimony ofany mira
cles having been performed after the close
of the first century. The first miracle per-
formed by our Saviour was the turning of
water into wine. About this there are
many things which are interesting. The
place, we are told, was in Cana, of Galilee.
Previous to the time of our Saviour, the
land of Palestine was divided into three
parts-Judea, on the South Samaria, in the
centre, and Galilee, in the North. After
the captivity, Galilee was settled by Jews,
Arabs, Greeks, Ph9nicians and Syrians.
Such being the character of the population
their language became Galilean and "be-
wayed' Peter. Galilee was less than thirty
miles square, but it was very fertile and IA
vorably situated for commerce, and soon
became very populous. 1t is said to have
contained two hundred towns, each with a
population of fifteen thousand inhabitants.
In the southern part of Galilee about seven
ty miles, nearly north from Jerusalem and
about fifteen miles southwest from Caper-
miles from Cana, a little west of south, was
Nazareth, where our Saviour spent the
greater part of his life.
The time of the miracle of turning water
into wine is introduced by John, by whom
it is recorded, thus: "And the third day
there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee."
This probably means the third day after
Philip brought Nathaniel to the Saviour.
1t was in the first year of our Saviour's pub
lie ministration.
We are further told that the miracle was
performed at a marriage feast. The mar
rage feasts of the Jews generally, if not al
ways, lasted seven days. To this feast we
are told both Jesus and his disciples were
invited. 1t is very probable that between
the family of Mary, the mother of Jesus,
and either the bride or the bridegroom there
was some connection. Such being the case,
Jesus was invited because he was the son of
Mary, and his disciples were invited be-
cause of the relationship which they sus-
tanned to him. So far as we know, Jesus, at
this tune, had butsi disciples, Andrew and
his brother Peter, James and his brother
John, Philip and Nathaniel, who, we are
told elsewhere John 2l:2) was of Cana. 1t
was, Mark tells US, on the Sea of Galilee
that Andrew, Peter, John and James were
found by our Lord. Cana was distant, due
west of the Sea of Galilee, about ten miles.
Some place in the country between the Sea
of Galilee and Cana, Philip was found by
Jesus. 1t was probably at Cana that Philip
found Nathaniel, and brought him to Jesus,
and that Jesus and his disciples were taken
by Nathaniel to his house and entertained.
Such being the case Jesus and his disciples
were invited, about the beginning, or only
a short time before the beginning of the
feast. 1t is possible that the persons enter
ing into the relationship of husband and
wife had been betrothed before Jesus went
down from Nazareth to Bethabara, to be
publicly indicted into Office by John, his
%forerunner, and that he returned, that he
might attend the marriage feast.
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have been very familiar with every thing
about the house in which the feast was cele-
brated, came to Jesus and said to him 'they
have no wine." She had, by some means,
learned the fact that the wine was all con-
sumed, and on account of some connection
which she had with the family, she came
to her son, in a state of anxiety, and made
known this fact.
1t is very probable that the family was
poor, and that the supply of wine at the
beginning was very small and that it was
wine of an inferior quality. This last fact,
we may safely infer, from what the master
of the feast said to the bridegroom.
Our Saviour replied to his mother, "What
have 1 to do with thee, woman" or rather,
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you, woman" which simply means if the
wine is out, or if they have no wine, that is
nothing to US. It is not our business to fur
nish wine for the feast. 1t seems, however,
that Mary, mother-like, was anxious for her
son to make some display of his divine
power, and whatever may have been her
desires they were not wise, for our Saviour
declared that his hour was not yet come,
which appears to mean that the hour for
doing what she desired had not yet arrived.
Mary certainly knew that Jesus, her son,
was the Messiah. This was declared to her
by the angel Gabriel, and she kept the say
ings of Jesus, when twelve years old, in her
heart, but it is very likely that she, like the
mass of the Jews, had very vague and car
nal notions of the official work Of the Mes
siah.
For some reason Mary was persuaded that
Jesus would, in some way or other, mani
fest his glory at this feast. 1t may be that
as a loving and dutiful son, Jesus had init.
mated as much to his mother in private,
but she had given a wrong Interpretation to
the words of her son, and was perhaps only
carnally affected by them. 1t seems clear
that Mary expected Jesus to do something
extraordinary, but what, she did not know.
Hence she said to the servants "Whatsoever
he saith unto you, do it," That the indi-
viduals furnishing the feast might be saved
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