"But is it necessary to have a place of much water in order to water cattle?" asked Dorothy. "Would not a small stream be sufficient for many cattle?"
"Come, come, children," said the father, "why not take the words as you find them? By the way, did John do anything for the crowds except baptize them?"
"Oh, yes," said Sterling, "he was a great preacher for the crowds. That was his principal work. Baptism was a very small and almost insignificant part of it. They did not make the ado about it then that certain sects do now."
"Exactly; that is what I am getting at. You say preaching was the main thing John was doing. I should think, then, that if it was the cattle that made him select the place, it would have read 'John was preaching at Aenon because there was much water there'. But it says he was baptizing there, and that would indicate that the baptizing part of his work brought him to that place. He could have preached where there was not much water. You think, Sterling, that his baptizing had nothing to do with his selecting that place. Why, then, did it say he was baptizing there because of the much water? It looks mighty plain to me that the baptizing was mentioned because of the much water."
Dorothy was puzzled.
"I don't see how I am ever to get at the meaning of the Bible," she said, "if I am not to take what seems to be the natural meaning of the passages, but must rather suppose that something else was intended."
"Evidently we can't agree on that verse," said Sterling with a smile. "Let us have another, Miss Dorothy."
"Here is a passage, Acts 8:35-39: 'Then Philip opened his mouth and began at the same Scripture and preached unto him Jesus. And as they went on their way they came unto a certain water and the Eunuch said: "See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?" Philip said: "If thou believeth with all thy heart thou mayest." And he answered and said: "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God." And he commanded the chariot to stand still and they went down both into the water, Philip and the Eunuch, and he baptized him. And when they came up out of the water the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip that the Eunuch saw him no more, and he went on his way rejoicing.'"
"You see they stepped down to the water's edge," said Sterling, "and Philip sprinkled him."
"But it says they both went down into the water and both came up out of the water. Why did they go down into the water if the Eunuch was simply to be sprinkled?"