A River Runs Through It

“A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold” [GENESIS 2:10-11].

“The angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations” [REVELATION 22:1-2]. [1]

Movie aficionados will recognise that I shamelessly appropriated the title of this message from the 1992 movie that received the same name. Those who watched that film may recall that the movie follows the life of two sons of a Presbyterian preacher in a Montana town during the early part of the twentieth century. As much as I have loved fishing the rivers of our beautiful province throughout my years, I have no intention of delivering a message about fishing. Neither will I be speaking of the lives of two brothers living disparate lives.

In this message, I will be focusing on the fact that Scripture provides the account of mankind beginning in a place with a river running through it, and Scripture ends in a place with a river running through it. It seems appropriate to conclude that rivers are important in the economy of God. I don’t believe that the inclusion of this information in the Word can be attributed to mere serendipity, for what is included in the Word is necessary, not superfluous. Surely, there is a message for us in a brief study of the rivers that are included in these accounts that detail God’s dealings with mankind.

Thus, I will be asking you to join me in a study of the earliest days of mankind, those halcyon days when the earth was new and sin had not yet contaminated creation. Then, having studied those earliest days, I will ask you to join me in considering what God has revealed concerning our destiny, well, at least the destiny of all who are saved from sin and now being prepared for eternity with God our Creator.

A RIVER IN PARADISE — “A river flowed out of Eden to water the garden, and there it divided and became four rivers. The name of the first is the Pishon. It is the one that flowed around the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold” [GENESIS 2:10-11]. God does not supply superfluous information in His recorded Word. That which is written is provided for our edification. Thus, when I read that a river flowed out of Eden, I can be assured that there is a purpose this information is provided.

The importance of this information, which seems so trivial, is elevated to a place of importance, if not a position that speaks of the essential, when I realise that the Bible begins with an account of a river in Eden and concludes with the detail that a river flows from the throne of God. These are not throwaway lines that are included in the Word; rather, there is something of significance for the one reading Scripture.

It is not as though the Bible is unaware of rivers and their importance after the expulsion of our first parents from Eden, commonly known as the Garden of Paradise. Obviously, the River Jordan is important in any discussion of the conquest of the Promised Land and the life of Israel in the land. The Nile figures prominently in any discussion involving Egypt during the time Israel was living in that land. The Euphrates River and the Tigris in the land of the Chaldeans, as is true of the Pharpar and the Abana in Syria are important in relating incidents revolving around Babylon or Syria and the interactions of those two nations with the people of God.

Of course most of us would know that rivers have played a significant role in the settlement of North America. Rivers provided the means for explorers to penetrate the forests and the plains of this new world. Similarly, the rivers of North America would become the means for transporting goods from the interior of the continent so that these goods could be loaded onto ships and carried to the cities of the world. Likewise, these rivers allowed transportation of goods to the new settlements of this new world. When water wheels were activated by the currents of these rivers, the flowage of the rivers provided power for early industrial advancements. The waters of the streams served to feed peoples as fish and other nutritious foods were harvested from the rivers. The annual floods enriched the soil of the surrounding regions. Rivers and streams were, and are, vital to the advancement of the nations of the world. And that is especially true for us living in North America in these days.