taken to convince him; showing clearly that it was God, and not man, with whom he had to contend, and preintimating the plagues which befell the land. But he rushed on to his own destruction. Another message is sent and another threatening given, of the plague of flies; from which Goshen was to be exempted. The plague came and increased. The stubborn man at length yielded so far as to direct Moses "to sacrifice in Egypt." Compliance was avoided, by reminding him that oxen were held sacred by the Egyptians; that these animals must be sacrificed by the Israelites; and that to do this in Egypt would be equally impolitic and dangerous. The king dreaded to lose them, and they were resolved to go. At length he promised assent; and entreated Moses to intercede for him, that the plague might be removed. This was done, and his rebellion recurred again. The facility with which he agreed to let the people go was presumptive proof of insincerity. How gracious and long-suffering was God, both to him and his people, if haply they might repent!

Five more plagues, the murrain, the biles and blains, the hail, the locusts, and the darkness followed, in awful succession. Under each, Pharaoh was submissive; but when the terror was removed, his obstinacy returned. After the last of them, the darkness, Moses and he parted, never more to meet on friendly terms. It was now that God resolved to put into execution the awful threat which hung over Pharaoh and his people. He had declared that if Pharaoh would not let the Lord's first-born go free, his own first-born should be slain. It was now evident that no milder summons would avail; and, therefore, he must suffer. The intimation of this determination, on the part of God, was

communicated to Moses, along with a command that every Israelite should borrow his neighbour's jewels. And when this was announced to Pharaoh, his wrath was kindled, but his heart was hardened and unmoved. The preceding circumstances had, as may be supposed, aroused the awe and attention of all Egypt; every eye was turned upon Moses; and he and all his people found favour in the sight of the Egyptians.

The feast of the paschal lamb was ordained, for the perpetual remembrance of the exodus and passover; and this is not forgotten by Israel to this day. The Jews still eat the unleavened bread, on the appointed day, yearly. The lamb was to be eaten by one or more families, with haste, their staves in their hand, and ready prepared for journeying. No part was to remain till the morning. And, finally, as a singular type of that blood which brings exemption from eternal death, their door posts were to be sprinkled with its blood, that the destroying angel might pass over their habitations. The awful moment drew near, and, at midnight, a cry was heard throughout all the land of Egypt, for every man's first-born was slain; and "there was not a house where there was not one dead." The suddenness, the awfulness, and the extent of the calamity, awakened the greatest terror in the minds of the Egyptians and their king. By the command of the latter, the Israelites were ordered out of Egypt instantly; and so eager were the people for their departure, that they would not allow them time to bake their bread; and readily gave them whatever they asked. The night was still dark, when six hundred thousand men, besides women and children, set forth from Goshen, Such a multitude, travelling in one body, day by day, and under a vertical sun, must have been seriously

inconvenienced. But to their astonishment, the inconvenience was no sooner felt than removed; for a mighty canopy of cloud stretched itself over the whole camp; and what must have been their surprise on perceiving that it extended no farther than to the extremities of their camp, and that it moved as they moved, and they soon learned to stop when it stayed. It were vain to say this was a common cloud; for clouds and rain are equally rare in Egypt; and the circumstance of its circumscribed extent and its removal prove it supernatural. It was the chariot of God. Add to this another circumstance. The twilight, in those climes, is much shorter than with us, and the approach of night more sudden. With what wonder, then, would they perceive, that when the sun went down, the pillar of cloud brightened into a steady flame, which, while it shed abundant light over all the camp, was not, by any means, oppressive. This phenomenon continued during the whole period that Israel was in the wilderness, and guided them in all their journeyings.

On the first occurrence of any alarming event, it has long been the custom of men to conceive it to be wholly providential; to acknowledge "this is the finger of God;" and then, as soon as the first emotions subside, to see nothing extraordinary in the matter; nothing that may not be traced to second causes; nothing for which we cannot account, at the same time that God is left wholly out of the question. Accordingly, as soon as the terror of the Egyptian court had been somewhat calmed, their ingenuity discovered a reason for the late awful mortality, without any reference to a divine intervention. Their avarice revived, when they thought of the national loss they had sustained in the escape of the Israelites. Their revenge

was awakened when they reflected on all the calamities they had so lately suffered; and they did not lack a plausible excuse for pursuing the Israelites. They had now been gone three days, and showed no symptoms of returning. The Egyptians, therefore, followed them in such force and numbers, and overtook them in such circumstances, that the destruction or aggravated subjection of the Israelites seemed inevitable. The mountains rose on either hand; the sea was before them; and by the only avenue, behind them, the Egyptians were approaching. Alarm and despair filled the hosts of Israel, when they perceived the extremity to which they were reduced; and, for the moment, they thought of nothing but death or submission to their old oppressors. The Egyptian host of chariots, with Pharaoh at their head, drew near; but the night suddenly closed in before their arrival. The angel of the Lord then moved the pillar of fire from the front to the rear of the camp; and, while on the side next the Israelites, it shed a welcome light, on the opposite side it was thick darkness; insomuch that the two parties came not near each other the whole night.

Moses now received a divine communication, and was directed to stretch forth his rod over the sea. He did so; and, wonderful to relate, the sea was divided in the sight of the many thousands of Israel; for the pillar of fire made the miracle to be plainly seen by every one on the front of the cloud. A path appeared in the channels of the great deep. The waves, forgetting their native fluidity, were raised on either hand, like walls of solid crystal; "the depths were congealed in the heart of the sea:" the camp of Israel moved forward, fearless of danger. The enemy followed, and would, probably, have overtaken, but the

wheels of their chariots became fastened in the sand, or were broken by the rocks; or, more truly, the Lord looked forth upon them, and "troubled" them. Israel had now safely passed over. The morning arose. The Egyptians perceived their danger, but were unable either to return or to proceed. Moses, divinely directed, again stretched forth his hand: in an instant, the wind ceased to blow; the waters returned with violence to their bed; and the Egyptian hosts, and their king, were buried, in a moment, beneath the mighty waves. This moment they were beheld covering the bed of the ocean; the next they were whelmed in the deep. The ensuing notices we have of the proceedings of the Israelites are not very numerous. They had escaped the pursuit of their enemies; but had every reason to fear they should perish from the want of water and of food. After suffering much distress for three days, they at length discovered a well; of which they drank, and were satisfied. A multitude of fowls visited the camp every evening; and were secured with ease. It is to this day no unusual thing to see large flocks of these fowls passing over the sea to the wilderness. That which was remarkable in this case was, their coming in such amazing quantities, and at the predicted times. Every morning, when the dew was gone, something like "the hoar-frost lay upon the ground," which proved an excellent substitute for bread; of which every man gathered according to his family; and so it was, "he that gathereth much had nothing over; and he that gathered little had no lack." On the sixth day a double quantity fell, and was gathered. On the seventh day there fell none. one was to keep any of it from one day to another, except from the sixth to the seventh, at which time

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