ing were passed, Joseph spake unto the house of Pharaoh, saying, If now I have found grace in your eyes, speak, I pray you, in the ears of Pharaoh, saying, My father made me swear, saying, Lo, I die: in my grave which I have digged for me in the land of Canaan, there shalt thou bury me. Now therefore let me go up, I pray thee, and bury my father, and I will come again.

And Pharaoh said, Go up, and bury thy father, according as he made thee

swear.

And Joseph went up to bury his father: and with him went up all the servants of Pharaoh, the elders of his house, and all the elders of the land of Egypt. And all the house of Joseph, and his brethren, and his father's house: only their little ones, and their flocks, and their herds, they left in the land of Goshen. And there went up with him both chariots and horsemen: and it was a very great company.

And they came to the threshingfloor of Atad, which is beyond Jordan, and there they mourned with a great and very sore lamentation: and he made a mourning for his father seven days.

And when the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, saw the mourning in the floor of Atad, they said, This is a grievous mourning to the Egyptians: wherefore the name of it was called Abel-Mizraim, which is beyond Jordan.

And his sons did unto him according as he commanded them: for his sons carried him into the land of Canaan, and buried him in the cave of the field of Machpelah, which Abraham bought with the field for a possession of a buryingplace of Ephron the Hittite, before Mamre.

And Joseph returned into Egypt, he, and his brethren, and all that went up with him to bury his father, after he had buried his father.

And when Joseph's brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him.

And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying, So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father.

And Joseph wept when they spake unto him.

And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants.

And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God? But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto

them.

And Joseph dwelt in

And

Egypt, he, and his father's house: and Joseph lived an hundred and ten years. Joseph saw Ephraim's children of the third generation: the children also of Machir the son of Manasseh were brought up upon Joseph's knees.

And Joseph said unto his brethren, I die: and God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.

And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence.

So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old: and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.

Question.-Was the Lord pleased with the journey of Jacob into Egypt ?

Answer.-Yes. He repeated the promise that the children of Israel should be a great nation, the promise "I will surely bring thee up again," referred to Jacob himself, as well as to the people. Jacob would naturally desire to be buried with Abraham and Isaac, and the Lord promised him that he should come back; and he was told not to fear taking all that belonged to him into Egypt, for that the Israelites would return. We shall see that both these promises were fulfilled. The Lord was continually giving encouragement to Jacob. We should never fear when acting according to God's will. Q.-It is said that "all the souls that came with

Jacob into Egypt were three score and six," or sixty-six; and then that "all the souls of the house of Jacob which came into Egypt were threescore and ten." What is the reason of this difference?

A.-The second number includes Jacob himself, Joseph and his two sons, making four more.

Q.-Why was every shepherd an abomination unto the Egyptians?

A.-The wandering tribes of shepherds in the waste lands near Egypt frequently attacked the Egyptians, and once conquered the country and held it for some years, and were therefore looked upon with dislike. It is stated that the Egyptians would not eat the flesh of sheep or goats, and that even woollen garments were very rarely worn, but the heat of the climate and the abundance of flax from which linen was made may account for that. Q.-Where was the land of Rameses. "the best of the land?"

A.-It was the same as Goshen; the city of Rameses was a part of Egypt.

Q.-On his deathbed, Jacob blessed Joseph, and told him that his descendants should grow into a multitude, was that fulfilled?

A. The descendants of Joseph were, in the time of Moses, more numerous than any of the other tribes of Israel. We read of only two sons of Joseph, but at the close of the three hundred years that the Israelites were in Egypt his descendants numbered over 80,000. Q-How was the prophecy of Jacob respecting Ephraim and Manasseh fulfilled?

A.-The tribe of Ephraim became, next to Judah, the most powerful of all the tribes of Israel. Joshua, who succeeded Moses and led the people into the Promised Land, was an Ephraimite. They had for their portion

the finest part of the land, and the sacred city Shiloh was within their boundaries. The ten tribes, after their separation from the kingdom of Judea, chiefly brought about by the Ephraimites, are spoken of by the prophets Isaiah and Hosea as Ephraim, showing how numerous and powerful were the people of that tribe.

Q.-Did Jacob live long in Egypt?

4.-Seventeen years. He had not in that time forgotten his own land, or lost faith in the promise of God that he should return to it. He did not desire to leave his dear son Joseph, but he charged him to have him buried in the cave which Abraham had bought. Q-What was embalming?

A.-It was the Egyptian practice to preserve from decay the bodies of eminent persons. The corpse was first placed in nitre and then wrapped in bandages covered with gems and spices, the whole process occupying about seventy days, during which time the relatives and friends mourned. Many Egyptian corpses so embalmed, and some of them three and even four thousand years old, have been brought to this country, and may be seen in the British Museum. They are called mummies. Joseph appears to have adopted several Egyptian customs, for this mode of preserving the bodies of the dead was not practised by the Israelites.

Q.-Was not the respect shewn by the Egyptians to Jacob at his funeral a proof of the esteem in which they held Joseph ?

A.-Joseph had shewn himself to be worthy of the high office he held, having saved the kingdom from the effects of the famine and governed it wisely, and Pharaoh and the people desired to do honour to him by giving his father a grand funeral. It was very unusual for the Egyptians to go into another land, but they followed the body of Jacob into the land of Canaan, and shewed so much grief, that the inhabitants of the place where they stopped named it Abel-Mizraim, "the mourning of the Egyptians." It was about three miles from the place where Jericho was built.

Q.-What lesson is taught at the end of this story of Joseph and his brethren ?

A.-A lesson of forgiveness. Joseph's brothers feared that after their father's death he might remember and punish them for their unkindness, but he freely forgave them, "comforted and spoke kindly to them." He said, "Fear not : for am I in the place of God?" He would not judge them, but left them to their own consciences and the wise judgment of God. He reminded them that God often makes events, which to man at first appear to be evil, produce good.

When Israel, of the Lord beloved,

Out from the land of bondage came, Her father's God before her moved, An awful guide in smoke and flame.

By day, along th' astonished lands
The cloudy pillar glided slow;
By night, Arabia's crimsoned sands
Returned the fiery column's glow.

ND Joseph died, and all his brethren, and all that generation.

And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them.

Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph. And he said unto his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we:

come

on, let us deal wisely with them; lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there falleth out any war, they join also unto our enemies, and fight against us, and so get them up out of the land.

Therefore they did set over them taskmasters, to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses. But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were grieved because of the children of Israel.

And the Egyptians made the children of Israel to serve with rigour and they made their lives bitter with hard bondage, in morter, and in brick, and

in all manner of service in the field: all their service, wherein they made them serve, was with rigour. And Pharaoh charged all his people, saying, Every son that is born ye shall cast into the river, and every daughter ye shall save alive.

And there went a man of the house of Levi, and took to wife a daughter of Levi. And the woman bare a son: and when she saw him that he was a goodly child, she hid him three months. And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid it in the flags by the river's brink. And his sister stood afar off, to wit what would be done to him.

And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river; and her maidens walked along by the river's side; and when she saw the ark among the flags, she sent her maid to fetch it. And when she had opened it, she saw the child: and, behold, the babe wept. And she had compassion on him, and said, This is one of the Hebrews' children.

Then said his sister to Pharaoh's

daughter, Shall I go and call to thee a nurse of the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for thee? And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, Go.

And the maid went and called the child's mother. And Pharaoh's daughter said unto her, Take this child away, and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages. And the woman took the child, and nursed it.

And the child grew, and she brought him unto Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her son. And she called his name Moses: and she said, Because I drew him out of the water.

And it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out unto his brethren, and looked on their burdens: and he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren. And he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man, he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand.

And when he went out the second day, behold, two men of the Hebrews strove together: and he said to him. that did the wrong, Wherefore smitest thou thy fellow? And he said, Who made thee a prince and a judge over us? intendest thou to kill me, as thou killedst the Egyptian? And Moses feared, and said, Surely this thing is known.

Now when Pharaoh heard this thing, he sought to slay Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh, and dwelt

in the land of Midian: and he sat down by a well.

Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters: and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father's flock. And the shepherds came and drove them away: but Moses stood up and helped them, and watered their flock.

And when they came to Reuel their father, he said, How is it that ye are come so soon to day? And they said, An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and also drew water enough for us, and watered the flock. And he said unto his daughters, And where is he? why is it that ye have left the man? call him, that he may eat bread.

And Moses was content to dwell with the man and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter. And she bare him a son, and he called his name Gershom: for he said, I have been a stranger in a strange land.

And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage.

And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God had respect unto them.

Question.-How was it that the new king knew nothing about Joseph, who had been such a great man in Egypt?

Answer.-About this time Egypt appears to have been

conquered by another race, perhaps the Shepherd Kings who are mentioned in history, and the new king, who took the title of Pharaoh, would be ignorant of what had occurred in the country he reigned over.

The

records were probably preserved by the priests in the temples; but it is worthy of notice that priests are not mentioned in this part of the book of Exodus, although they are alluded to in the history of Joseph in the book of Genesis. The new Pharaoh believed in magicians, who pretended to work wonders, and perhaps the priests were not in favour, and therefore Pharaoh knew little or nothing of the history of the country.

Q.-Why did Pharaoh ill treat the Israelites?

4. He was afraid of a people so numerous, prosperous, and intelligent. The Israelites were at that time, perhaps, the happiest people in the land. They had increased greatly, probably numbering a million and a half, and, as they dwelt in the most fertile part of Egypt, their flocks and herds gave them great wealth. Pharaoh was cowardly and cruel, and the Israelites were peaceful and perhaps timid. The king appears to have driven them from their happy homes, made slaves of them, and then was so wicked as to desire to destroy them by ordering that all the male children should be killed. He was foolish as well as wicked, for such good subjects as the children of Israel might have made Egypt a very great kingdom.

Q-What was the nature of the work the Israelites were compelled to perform?

A. We are told that they built treasure cities, that is, strong places in which the royal treasures were stored; they worked, too, in brick, making them and building with them. There are still existing in Egypt numerous brick pyramids of great size, which were probably built by the Israelites. The three famous Pyramids, of which we all have heard, are built of stone, and it is not certain whether the Israelites were employed on

them. But these pyramids were erected about the time when they were in Egypt; the large blocks of stone were brought from quarries a great distance off, and were dragged by hundreds of men harnessed with ropes. Egyptian paintings still preserved shew the manner in which this was done, and the taskmasters with whips driving the men. It is very likely that this was one of the modes in which Pharaoh made the lives of the Israelites "bitter with hard bondage."

Q-Were all the Egyptians as hard-hearted as Pharaoh ?

A.-No; his daughter was kind, and when the infant cried in his ark, or cradle, of bulrushes, she took pity on it and saved it. The name she gave it, Moses, comes from an Egyptian word, meaning "drawn out." Pharaoh seems to have allowed his daughter to keep the child, thinking, perhaps, that, if brought up in his house, he would forget his people. He little thought that Moses would live to lead his nation out of captivity. If Pharaoh had not ordered all the male children to be destroyed, Moses would not have been found in the river by Pharaoh's daughter, and taught all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and so made fit for the work he was chosen by the Lord to do. This is another instance of the Lord making even the wickedness of men serve His own wise purposes.

Now the,

Moses kept the flock of Jethro

his father in law, the priest of Midian and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.

And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.

And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I. And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.

Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.

And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.

And the LORD said, I have surely

seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; and I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.

And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?

And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: when