the upper door-post, so the cross must be seen on the forehead, the heart, and the hands—that is, on the intellect, the affections, and the actions of those who would escape the second death. The blood of sprinkling must cleanse the conscience from guilt, or the destroying angel will smite the Israelite who depends on any other refuge, as well as the more sinful and scornful Egyptian. It was to be eaten that night, in the night of danger (ver. 8), as Christ is to be eaten spiritually, in the hour of the terrors of conscience, and the dread of death; roast with fire, prepared in the prescribed mode, not as the caprice of the people might dictate, with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth (1 Cor. v. 8); and with the bitter herbs of the consciousness of deep, but deserved affliction, in which the eating of the Lamb alone gave present comfort, and future hope. It was the custom among the heathens, and therefore probably among the Egyptians, to eat the flesh of their sacrifices, raw or boiled, and to use the bowels for the purposes of superstitious divination; the Israelites, therefore, were commanded to eat the lamb in such manner, as to condemn the idolaters around them (ver. 9); and the Christian must so partake of Christ, the true Passover, as to condemn, both in his own heart, and among a sinful neighbourhood, the follies and superstitions which are not sanctioned by the revealed will of God. As nothing was to be left till the morning (ver. 10), lest corruption should be bred, and the sacrifice be dishonoured; Christ was not to remain on the cross, lest His body should be dishonoured; and even in the grave He saw no corruption. (Acts ii. 31.) As the lamb was to be eaten (ver. 11), so is the Christian Passover to be eaten, with our loins girded for our journey onwards toward Heaven, with our feet defended as it were with well-spiked sandals, against the slipperiness and temptations of the road to Heaven; with the staff of hope, strength, and firmness, in our hands; in haste to escape from the world, mindful that this Passover is not of man's, but of the Lord's ordaining (ver. 11).-As on that night of the fourteenth day, the Lord smote the first-born, and overthrew the gods and princes of Egypt, while He spared the blood-marked houses of Israel (ver. 12 and 13), so in the day of death and judgment, will He make an eternal difference between Egypt and Israel. The Section then concludes with an injunction to the people to observe this ordinance for ever (ver. 14—20), with the assurance that whoever neglected to do so should not be reckoned among the spiritual people of Israel. And this, therefore, must be our conclusion—that we, with the whole Church of God, are commanded to observe the ordinance of the Passover, in the Holy Sacrament, which Christ, who alone had authority to substitute the bread and the wine for the lamb of the fold, ordained and instituted as the true Passover. We shall not be numbered among His people, unless we spiritually eat His flesh, and drink His blood, as of the lamb that was slain; and by offering up ourselves, our souls and bodies, a reasonable, holy, and living sacrifice, as at the altar of God, seek for grace with the chief means of grace, and commune with Christ, as at the table of a condescending and generous Prince, and Friend, and Saviour, and Redeemer. BE FOR E CHRIST 1491. * eh. 13. 4. Deut. 16. 1. | Or, kid. Lev. 22. 19, 20, 21. EXODUS XII. 1-20. Institution of the Passover. ; BEFORE CHRIST 1491. 1 And the LORD spake bread and with bitter unto Moses and Aaron in herbs they shall eat it. the land of Egypt, saying, 9 Eat not of it raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast with fire; his Deut. 16. 7. head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof. e 34. 25. 2 a This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you. 3 Speak ye unto all 10 And ye shall let no- ch. 23. 18. & the congregation of Israel, thing of it remain until the saying, In the tenth day of morning; and that which this month they shall take remaineth of it until the to them every man a || lamb, morning ye shall burn with according to the house of fire. their fathers, a lamb for an house : pass ch. 11. 4, 5. 11 ¶ And thus shall ye eat it; with yourloins girded, 4 And if the household your shoes on your feet, and be too little for the lamb, your staff in your hand; and let him and his neighbour ye shall eat it in haste: Bit Deut. 16. 5. next unto his house take it is the LORD'S passover. according to the number of 12 For I h will the souls; every man ac- through the land of Egypt Amos 5. 17. cording to his eating shall this night, and will smite make your count for the all the firstborn in the land lamb. of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: * I am the LORD. 5 Your lamb shall be Mal. 1. 8. 14. without blemish, a male + of 11:19 the first year: ye shall take Heb. son of it out from the sheep, or Lev. 23. 12. from the goats: Pet. 1. a year. 'Numb. 33.4. Or, princes ch. 21.6. & 22. 28. Ps. 82. 1, 6. John 10. 34, 35. 13 And the blood shall ch. 8. 2. 6 And ye shall keep it be to you for a token upon Lev. 23. 5. up until the fourteenth the houses where ye are: day of the same month: and when I see the blood, Dent. 16.1.6. and the whole assembly of I will pass over you, and the congregation of Israel the plague shall not be upon Numb. 9.3. & 28.16. destruction. Heb between shall kill it in the evening. you to destroy you, when + Heb. for a 7 And they shall take of I smite the land of Egypt. the two even ings. ch. 16. 12. the blood, and strike it on 14 And this day shall 4 ch. 34. 25. the two side posts and on be unto you for a memo-1 ch. 13. 9. 8 And they shall eat the Deut. 16. 3. flesh in that night, roast 1 Cor. 5. 8. with fire, and unleavened Numb. 9. 11. CHRIST BEFORE eat unleavened bread; even of Egypt: therefore shall 1491. the first day ye shall put ye observe this day in your ch. 13. 6, 7. away leaven out of your generations by an ordinance & 23. 15. & houses: for whosoever eat- for ever. 34. 18. 25. Numb. 28. 18, 25. ༔ BEFORE CHRIST 1491. Numb. 28. 16. 18 In the first month, Lev. 23. 5. on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even. Exod. 23.15. & 34. 18. 1 Cor. 5. 7, 8. 16 And in the first day Lev. 23.7,8. there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh 19 'Seven days shall there day there shall be an holy be no leaven found in your convocation to you; no man- houses: for whosoever eatner of work shall be done eth that which is leavened, in them, save that which "even that soul shall be cut Numb. 9.13. + Heb. soul. every † man must eat, off from the congregation that only may be done of of Israel, whether he be a you. stranger, or born in the 17 And ye shall observe land. the feast of unleavened 20 Ye shall eat nothing bread; for in this self- leavened; in all your habisame day have I brought tations shall ye eat unleayour armies out of the land vened bread. ch. 13. 3. PRAYER. LET US PRAY, 1. that we learn from the ordinance of the Passover in Egypt, the right mode of commemorating the death of the true Passover, Jesus, the Lamb of God; 2. that we never separate the grace of God from the means of grace; 3. nor be cut off from the communion of those, who are saved from the destroying angel, by the blood of the Lamb of God. ALMIGHTY GOD, who hast given Thine only Son to be unto us both a sacrifice for sin, and also an example of godly life, give us grace that we may always most thankfully receive that His inestimable benefit; and also daily endeavour ourselves to follow the blessed steps of His most holy life'. We praise and bless Thy holy name for our creation, preservation, and for all the blessings of this life; but above all, for the redemption of the world by our Lord Jesus Christ, for He is the very Paschal Lamb which was offered for us'. Keep us, we beseech Thee, stedfast in this faith; and as we are now compelled by Thy will to live for a time in the Egypt of a sinful world, enable us in spirit and in truth to provide ourselves a lamb for our houses and for ourselves; that every member of our families may be united, not only by brotherly love and affection, but by one common bond of faith and hope in Thee. According to Thy blessed Word and ordinance, may Christ the true Passover be eaten by us all. Both at the holy season, when we come to Thy table and altar to eat the bread and drink the wine which the Lord commanded to be received, and at all other times and seasons also, may our hearts and souls, our consciences and affections, be sprinkled with the blood of the true Passover. Enable us by faith in Thy Son 1 Collect for the Second Sunday after Easter. 2 Communion Service. Proper Preface for Easter-day, and seven days after. spiritually to eat His flesh now, and through our whole lives; but especially on the eve of that night of death when the voice shall go forth, 'Thy soul is required to depart from the Egypt of this sinful world.'-Give us Thy grace that this true paschal Lamb be eaten with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth-with the bitter herbs of submission to the sufferings and calamities which we most justly endure, and with deep contrition and true repentance for the sins we have committed (Exod. xii. 8). In every act of our religion may Thy commands be followed, so that neither our imaginations, nor caprice, nor fancy, destroy the blessing which is promised to those alone who obey Thee, when they profess to honour and serve Thee. When we, therefore, either in our own houses, or in our own hearts privately, by faith, and by prayer, and holy communion with Thee, eat of the Passover, may the loins of our mind be girded (1 Peter i. 13), that we be like travellers, ready to depart-unencumbered with the heavy weight of the cares, and anxieties, and the love of the world-laying aside the sin that doth so easily beset us, and entangle us, and hinder us in our progress to the promised land. May our feet be shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace, that we be always ready to walk in the ways of truth and godliness. Keep, O keep our hearts from sin, our eyes from tears, our feet from falling. May Thy rod and Thy staff comfort Ever may we hold fast the staff of Thy faithful promise, that we may preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace, and rejoice in the beauty of truth, and in the bands of love (Zech. xi. 10). So may we keep the Passover to the Lord in our hearts and souls with true repentance, and in love and charity with all men, stedfastly purposing to lead a new life, following Thy commandments, and walking in Thy holy ways. When the day of death is at hand, when the hour of judgment shall come, when the destroying angel shall again pass over the land of Egypt, then, O then, may the blood of Christ be seen upon us. Spare Thy people, O Lord, whom Thou hast redeemed with Thine own precious blood. Be not angry with us for ever. Look upon the blood of the atonement when Thou shalt pass over the sinful world to destroy it. Let not the plague of Thy wrath be upon us when Thou shalt again send forth Thine angel to smite the land of Egypt. us. 2. And as we pray for the spiritual blessings which Thy mercy has promised to Thy people, keep us, we beseech Thee, from the presumption which hopes for Thy grace, yet forsakes the means of grace which Thy mercy has ordained in pity to the souls of men. Let us not forsake the assembling of ourselves together. As Thou didst command Thy people Israel to keep the day of their deliverance from Egypt a feast unto the Lord by an ordinance for ever, so may we remember that Thou hast instituted and ordained the holy mysteries, which are the pledges of Thy love, and for a continual remembrance of the sacrifice of the true paschal Lamb. Give us such grace, we pray Thee, that we put away from our houses and our hearts, from our affections and from our actions, the leaven of evil and wickedness, that all our thoughts, words, and works may be Thine; and that we rejoice in the opportunities of going up to the house of the Lord, of worshipping with His people, and partaking of the bread and wine at the holy supper of the Lord. Secretly among the faithful, in the general assembly, in the congregation of Thy worshippers, may we praise Thee. Meet us at Thy table, O Lord. There may we hold communion with Thee, as Thy humble, yet welcome guests. Meet us at Thine altar, O Lord, that we may there be accepted by Thee, that our souls and bodies may be the reasonable and holy sacrifice which Thou wilt not cast away. 3. So may we never be cut off from Thy people; so may we ever continue, so long as Thy mercy shall grant us here to live, the members of Thy visible Church upon earth. So may we never be cut off from the Israel of Israel, the spiritual society of Thy worshippers, who shall be saved in the world to come. With them, may we ever be united in grateful praise and worship to Christ, the Lamb of God, who hath loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood. In His name, and not in our own name, nor for our own deservings, we offer all our petitions. In His own words we offer all our prayers and praises, saying:— Our Father, &c. The grace of our Lord, &c. NOTES. NOTE 1. The position in the arranged text of Exod. xii. 1-20, considered as a key to various minute coincidences in the account of the miracles in Egypt, hitherto unobserved.-The theory of the Egyptian miracles, and the probable observance of the Sabbath by the Israelites in Egypt, before their Exodus. That the passage contained in Exod. xii. 1-20, must be placed before the account of the plague of darkness, is evident from the command to set apart the lamb of the Passover during the three days in which the darkness continued. It was to be selected on the tenth day, and killed and eaten on the fourteenth. (Exod xii. 3-5.) The account of the plague of darkness, on the last day of which the lamb was slain, is given in chapter x. 21-23. It is evident, therefore, that the arrangement requires the insertion of Exod. xii. 1-20, in this place 1. The account of the ten plagues is placed together by Moses, that the order of the narration of the appeals to Pharaoh may not be interrupted. He then relates the institution of the Passover, and the Exodus, leaving the reader of the history to assign to each portion of his details, its respective position. But the command to observe the Passover was not given immediately preceding the plague of darkness, but some time before. Lightfoot? believes that it might have been given before the plague of hail or locusts. This is possible, and this possibility reminds me of some seeming difficulties in the narrative, which have not been noticed, I believe, by any of the commentators, and which can only be solved by considering the period of time probably occupied by their performance, and the theory also of the miracles themselves. The theory of the miracles in Egypt may be considered first. The object of these miracles was to induce the king to obey the commands of the God of Moses, by demonstrating to him, to his courtiers, and to the Egyptians, that the God of Israel was the God of nature; that the Lord Jehovah, whom the more reli gious Israelites worshipped, or professed to worship-for the great mass of the people had become deeply infected with the Egyptian idolatry-was not only superior to all the idol-gods of Egypt, but He was the Creator and Ruler, who ordered and directed all the common phenomena of the atmosphere, the heavens, the climate, the earth, and the water. Frogs, lice, flies, murrain, diseases, hail, locusts, and death, may be called the common events which happen alike to all people, in certain regions; and all these were to be ordered in such manner, that the Egyptians should be compelled to infer, by the predicted, unusual, and therefore miraculous manner in which Egypt was visited by them, not only that the God of Israel was superior to the gods of Egypt; but, that the same God was the Lord also of these, and therefore of all the other phenomena of nature, in their more uniform, and therefore non-miraculous occurrence. I may illustrate my meaning by analogy. If it had pleased God to enable a Christian to have told Napoleon, that if he went to Moscow, his army should be visited, on such a precise day, by a fall of snow such as had never been known, even in the winters of Russia; that, on another precise day, the ice on a certain river should be thawed, so that his army could not escape; and if he had done more than this, if he had gone into the presence of Napoleon, and said, This day on which I speak to you, is fine and clear; there is no snow, and no appearance of snow; but unless you resign your destructive ambition, I, tomorrow, about this time, will bring down a fall of snow, such as Russia itself has never known, and which will destroy your whole cavalry; and if Napoleon had dismissed the speaker with contempt, and the snow had so fallen; and if this same thing had been done in other instances, so that in one case the French army had been visited by a predicted and more than usual plague of rats, or of flies, or of cold, or snow, or storms, the mere existence of the rats, the flies, the cold, the snow, or the storms, would not have been miraculous; the miracle would have consisted in the prediction before they came, the exact fulfilment of the prediction, the abundance |