Moses did so; then God sent a

66

mighty strong west wind," which blew all the locusts into the sea, and drowned them, so that there remained not one.

L. Did Pharaoh keep his word then?

P. No. I told you that repentance through fear would not last. As soon as his fears were gone, his repentance went also, and he would only agree for the men to go.

ment.

Then God sent the ninth plague,—a new and extraordinary punishMoses stretched forth his hand towards heaven, and there came a thick darkness. So thick was the darkness, that the people could not see one another. We read that no man moved from his house for three days. For three days, if a man held up his hand he could not see it, neither could the people see one another. The only place where there was light was in Goshen, the dwelling-place of the Israelites.

All the nation was now terrified. They, no doubt, cried to their king, and the terrified king, as before, began to give way. He now told Moses that he would agree for the men and their wives and children to go, but that their cattle must remain; "for," he thought, they must come back, if they go into the wilderness without food to eat!" But Moses foresaw this, and said that, as they were going to offer sacrifices, a great many oxen and sheep would be wanted. So he insisted that the cattle should go also; and he declared, in a most determined manner, "There shall not a hoof be left behind."

This answer irritated the proud king. He was again disobedient, and he answered Moses-"Get thee from me, take heed to thyself, see my face no more; for in that day thou seest my face thou shalt die. And Moses said, Thou hast spoken well, I will see thy face again no more."

THERE is an hour when I must die,

Nor do I know how soon 'twill come;

A thousand children, young as I,

Are called by death to hear their doom.
Let me improve the hours I have,

Before the day of grace is fled;
There's no repentance in the grave,
Nor pardon offered to the dead.

THE PLAGUES OF EGYPT.

P. To-day, I will tell you of the last and most awful punishment of the Egyptians.

Moses was now less afraid of Pharaoh than ever. He was no longer a "timid, nervous man. He was strong in God, and we read that he was very great in the sight of Pharaoh's servants, and in the sight of the people. It is very likely that all would treat him with respect; he was the greatest man of the day. Thus will all true servants of God be treated as long as the world endures.

So, although Pharaoh had said, "Take care and see my face no more," the great Moses stood before him again. He would speak slowly and with solemn tones the dreadful words which God had put into his mouth:-"Thus saith the Lord, About midnight will I go out into the midst of Egypt: and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts. And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it, nor shall be like it any more. But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast: that ye may know how that the Lord doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel." He also said, "The Egyptians will be so distressed that they will come and bow down themselves unto me; they will say, Get thee out, and all the people that follow thee: and AFTER THAT I WILL GO OUT." "Will you?" thought Pharaoh, as the anger rose within him at so haughty a message; and, being much exasperated, he fell into a great passion; and then Moses left him.

Hitherto the plagues which Moses announced had come on the following day; but in this case four days were allowed for Pharaoh to repent. Those days must have been an anxious time! I dare say each Egyptian would look at his firstborn son!-he would watch him, and think, "Can it be true that God will kill you?" and he would dread when the night came. But when the night of the first day passed away the second night also, and the third night-and no punishment came, their fears would fade away. By the afternoon of the

fourth day, many would say, "Ah! there is would think, "Moses will fail this time; he threatened."

nothing to fear!" Some cannot do what he has

He had left the Egyp

But that afternoon Moses was very busy. tians, and was with his own people in Goshen. If you had been there, you might have heard him giving them instructions about a sacred feast. "Every family," he said, "is to take a lamb, and kill it before sunset; your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year; and ye shall kill it for the passover. And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the bason, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that is in the bason; and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning. For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the Lord will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you. And ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee and to thy sons for ever. And it shall come to pass, when your children shall say unto you, What mean ye by this service? that ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the Lord's passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses. And the people bowed the head and worshipped."

Moses also told them that the flesh of the lamb was to be eaten. They were to roast it entire, not breaking a bone of it, and to eat it in haste, with bitter herbs, and unleavened bread. They were not to sit down to the meal, but to eat it standing, with their loins girded, and their sandals on their feet. They were also to have their staves in their hands, just like pilgrims ready dressed for a long journey. The children of Israel listened patiently to all these instructions; then they went away, and did as the Lord had commanded. Thus they waited in their houses for the dreadful night to come.

The lambs were killed-the door-posts were sprinkled—the sun had gone down-the feast was eaten-the darkness had come on-the Egyptians were sleeping-the Israelites were eating their feast-it was midnight, when-there came the Angel of Death.

Then the angel did his dreadful work. Perhaps he brought with him a pestilence, which passed through the quiet city. He visited every house except those of the children of Israel. He smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, "from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on

his throne, unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle."

Can you not imagine the scenes that followed? Think of the thousands that died in that night. How many ten-thousands of living people rose hastily from their beds to see what had happened!—and when they discovered the truth, how dreadful must have been the cry that they made! In every house there was lamentation and bitter weeping; the living moaned and shrieked; the dying groaned, and only the dead were still.

And the king and all the nobles awoke. They wondered at the fearful noises which broke the stillness of the night. And when Pharaoh discovered the truth he was filled with grief, and horror, and alarm He therefore sent for Moses instantly, saying, "Rise up, and get you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Israel; and go, serve the Lord, as ye have said. Also take your flocks and your herds, as ye have said, and be gone; and bless me also."

The Egyptian people were more urgent than the king. Each man seemed to think that as long as they stopped he was in danger, and that the next moment might be his last. All cried to them to make haste, for they said, "We are all dead men." They did not know that God would do exactly as he had said, neither more nor less-they thought that God's angel would continue to destroy until they were all dead, and that they were still dying by hundreds. "Every minute," "costs us a thousand lives-begone! begone!" Thus, in the darkness of the night, in all confusion and haste, the children of Israel, with all their possessions, departed. So great was their haste, that we read "the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading troughs being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders."

they would say,

Forty-eighth Sunday.

THE JOURNEY TO THE RED SEA.

It must have been a bustling scene when the children of Israel left Egypt. Before the morning light had risen, they were all moving-six

hundred thousand men, besides women and children. There were all kinds of people, not only Israelites but Egyptians, and perhaps slaves, who were natives of other countries; for the Bible says there was a "mixed multitude."

"The flocks, and herds, even very much cattle," must have added to the confusion and noise-there would be quite a "steamy" appearance in the air from their breath, and that of all the people. The asses and camels, too, on which many of the women and children rode, must have much increased the crowd.

In the midst of the confusion, the bones of Joseph were not forgotten. These also were carried off—and the mighty crowd moved away with gladness, leaving the Egyptians to their sorrows.

They were gladdened more as they went on; for they found that GOD was with them-God was their guide. He placed a wonderful pillar of cloud in the heaven, for them to follow; in the night, it appeared like a pillar of fire, shedding a pleasant light throughout their camp.

Who would not follow when God was leading? Moses carefully led them on, and they went wherever the cloud moved. The first day, they stopped at a place called SUCCOTH. The second and third day they travelled on through the wilderness, over gravelly and stony soil, until they arrived at a place called ETHAM, which is at the head of the Red Sea.

If you look at the map, you will perhaps wonder why God should lead them to Canaan by such a round-about way; but if you look again at your Bible, you will see that the only other way was through the land of the Philistines; and they feared to go there, knowing that those people were their enemies, and might kill them.

Having reached Etham, they were at the end of their three days' journey. The Egyptians who had come with them would say, "Now, you only asked to come away for three days; it is time to go back." Some, perhaps, said, "If you do not, Pharaoh will come after you; you must either go back or run away.” But the children of Israel would tell them, "We will do as Moses says; we will follow the pillar of cloud." And they did so. But how were they surprised when they noticed the place into which they were led. Moses, by the will of God, brought them into a strange and awkward place between Migdol and the Red Sea. Here they were shut in by the mountains, so that they could not go further from Egypt unless they could cross the water. They began