Christian character is elsewhere spoken of under a similar figure. "The
_root_ of the righteous _shall not be moved_." "He shall cause them that
come of Jacob to _take root_." "Being _rooted_ and grounded in love."
Hence the prophet adds, that the heat and the drought shall not affect
it; but its _leaf shall be green_, always growing; and it _shall not
cease to bring forth_ fruit. And throughout the Scriptures, the
righteous are represented as bringing forth fruit. "And the remnant
that is escaped out of the house of Judah shall again take root
downward, and bear fruit upward." Here is first a taking deep root
downward, or the sanctification of the faculties of the soul, by which
new principles of action are adopted; and a bearing fruit upward, or the
exercise of those principles, in holy affections and corresponding
outward conduct. Again, "Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the face
of the world with fruit." The bud and blossom represent, in a very
striking manner, the first exercises of Christian experience. However,
this may be easily counterfeited. Every tree bears a multitude of false
blossoms, which, by the superficial observer, may not be distinguished
from the true. They may for a time appear even more gay and beautiful.
As it appears in full bloom, it would be impossible for the keenest eye
to discover them. But as soon as the season arrives for the fruit to
begin to grow, these fair blossoms are withered and gone, and nothing
remains but a dry and wilted stem. But the real children of God shall
not only bud and blossom, but they shall "_fill the face of the world
with fruit_." In the Song of Solomon, the church is compared to "an
orchard of pomegranates, with _pleasant fruits_." This is a beautiful
figure. The pomegranate is a kind of apple. The tree is low, but spreads
its branches, so that its breadth is greater than its height. So the
true Christian is humble and lowly; while his good works spread all
around him. The blossoms of this tree are large and beautiful, forming a
cup like a bell. But when the flowers are double, no fruit follows. So