CHAPTER XLIV.

How God multiplied drink for His friends.

ONCE upon a time the Servitor, having travelled to a distance, became very tired, and on arriving in the evening at a hermitage, where it was proposed to spend the night, no wine was to be found either in the village or the hermitage; until at length, a certain good woman came and said that she had a small bottle of wine left, about half a quart, adding, “But what is this among so many?” For they were in number about twenty persons, good children, together with those who had come thither desiring to hear the word of God from his mouth. The Servitor told her to bring the bottle and place it on the table, and they prayed him to pronounce a blessing from God upon it. He did this in the mighty power of the loving Name of Jesus, and then began to drink of it, for he was very thirsty from the journey; after which he offered it to the others, and they all drank together. The bottle was placed upon the table openly, in the sight of every one, and no more wine or water was poured into it, for there was no other wine there. They continued drinking again and again out of the same bottle; and they were so eager to hear from him 234the word of God, that no one took note of the Divine miracle. At last, when they came to themselves, and saw God’s almighty power so manifestly displayed in the multiplication of the drink, they began to praise God, and wished to attribute the miracle which had taken place to the Servitor’s holiness. But he would not on any account suffer this, saying:—Children, this is not my doing. God has permitted this pure company to reap the benefit of their good faith, and has given them drink both bodily and spiritually.