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that there would be danger that they should join with the enemy. He began, therefore, to consult and contrive how he might check this rapidly increasing population. The plan which he devised was indeed cruel, but if carried into effect, would have answered the purpose. It was to put the male children to death, as fast as they were born. But God disappointed his first attempt to accomplish this end. Another method of attaining the object was then devised. A decree was made, that without exception, every male of the Israelites should be cast into the river Nile. This law, it seems, was executed with rigour, but for how long a time is not known. During this time, Moses was born; and being a child of uncommon beauty, his parents, who were pious, determined that they would conceal him as long as they could. In pursuance of this resolution, they succeeded in evading the king's officers for three months, but such was the vigilance of those charged with the execution of the cruel mandate, that they were unable to conceal the child any longer. Still, however, entertaining, as it would seem, a hope of providential interposition, they prepared an ark of bulrushes, and rendered it water-tight; and placing the little boy in this small vessel, they launched it upon the river, and retired, but left the sister of the child in a covert place, to watch what would become of him. It is probable, that the parents of Moses resided in or near the royal city; for we find the daughter of the king, with her female attendants, coming to the river, near the place where the ark was left, to bathe. And she, having spied the ark among the flags where it had been left, directed her maidens to bring it to her. And when she opened it, she beheld a lovely infant; and the babe wept. The female breast, in every country, is susceptible of the feelings of humanity. The princess conjectured that it must be one of the Hebrew's children; for she was aware of the cruel edict which had gone forth against the male infants of this afflicted nation, and knew also, the severity with which the law was enforced. But yielding to the emotions of her own compassionate heart, she resolved at every risk to save the child. While she was revolving this purpose in her mind, providentially the little girl left to watch, presented herself, and observing that her little brother was viewed with compassion by the princess, she had the presence of mind and consideration, to ask her if she should call a nurse. This was the very thing needed to carry her design into execution; she therefore instantly expressed her consent; not suspecting, probably, that this officious little girl was sister to the babe in her possession; or that the nurse who was promptly at hand to obey her commands, was the mother of the child. There is, indeed, no evidence that she was ever informed of this fact; or that she ever suspected that the nurse of Moses

was his own affectionate mother. The address of Miriam, Moses' sister, was in the following simple words, "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 unto her, Go; and the maid went and called the child's mother. And Pharaoh's daughter said, Take this child away and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages." This believing mother cast her lovely child, when she could preserve him no longer at home, upon Providence; and now that careful Providence casts him back into her own bosom, in circumstances in which she could cherish the infant without fear; yea, God so ordered the affair, that the mother received rich compensation from royal hands, for cherishing the beloved fruit of her own womb. Never did nurse more promptly or joyfully engage in the duties of her vocation. "And she took the child and nursed it; and the child grew; and she brought him unto Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her son." For humanity's sake, we may hope, that the cruel edict under which Moses was born and exposed, was of short continuance; as we hear no more about it; and it is a fact, that cruel laws soon become odious among any people, whoever may be the victims of them. Human feelings revolt against the murdering of young children by wholesale; and the continued increase of the Israelites proves that this cruel edict could not have been long executed; for then the increase of population must have ceased, and Moses would have had no male contemporaries. It is probable, therefore, that hard and oppressive servitude was substituted for this murderous edict against the infants.

The Israelites were now reduced to a state of oppressive bondage. They still inhabited Goshen, and lived separately from the Egyptians, but they were required to labour in brick and mortar for the king; erecting buildings for his pleasure or caprice. As the object was to keep them at hard service, that they might have no time to meditate any schemes of deliverance, it is not an improbable supposition, that the pyramids were erected by their labours. For unless some such work was undertaken, it is hard to conceive how five or six hundred thousand men could, for many years, be kept employed in making brick.

The first we hear of these oppressive burdens imposed on the Israelites, was, when Moses was grown to be a man, for then "he went out unto his brethren and looked on their burdens." The mother of Moses had been his instructer, as well as his nurse. She did not fail to communicate to him the secret of his descent, and to inspire him with a desire to deliver his brethren from the cruel bondage under which they were labouring. Moses, however, was educated in the court of

Pharaoh, and was instructed in all the learning of the Egyptians. He was brought up exactly as if he had been a prince of the royal blood; for the daughter of the king had adopted him as her own son, and educated him as such. It is related by Josephus, that he was received by the king, in default of male offspring, as the heir apparent to the crown. But while such splendid objects were presented, and within the reach of Moses, his mind was occupied with other thoughts and designs. He sympathized deeply with his oppressed brethren, in their grievous afflictions, and was resolved to exert himself for their relief. Indeed, it seems, that he had early received a divine revelation, that he was destined to be the deliverer of Israel from their iron bondage. And he expected that they would be ready to recognize him as such. When he beheld the oppression which his brethren endured, his heart was warmed with indignation; and observing an Egyptian smiting an Israelite, and being a man of great bodily strength, he slew the Egyptian, first looking around to see that there were no persons present who might inform against him; little suspecting that the man whom he rescued from death would bring him into danger, by publishing the fact. But going out the second day, he observed two of the Hebrews striving 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?" Upon hearing this, Moses perceived that the transaction of the former day, in which to save the life of a brother he had slain an Egyptian, was known, and would, consequently, soon reach the ears of the king. And in this he was not erroneous in his judgment, for Pharaoh had not only heard the report, but was so much enraged on account of the act, that he resolved to put Moses to death. Probably, he had been growing jealous of him for some time; or he would not have been disposed to proceed at once to extremities, before he knew the exact circumstances of the case. But Moses, having received timely warning, fled from the land of Egypt, and went into Arabia, into the land of Midian. Having come an entire stranger, and a fugitive, into this country, he sat down by a well. It was so ordered in Providence, that he should come into the neighbourhood of a very wise, pious, and distinguished man, namely, Jethro, the priest, or prince, of Midian. Probably, he united in himself, as was customary in many nations, the highest civil and sacred offices. The daughters of this eminent man, seven in number, in accordance with oriental customs, kept the flocks of their father; and on this occasion, they had driven them to the well where Moses was resting himself; "and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father's flock. And the shepherds

came and drove them away." Probably there existed some dispute respecting the property of this well, as we find was often the case in the time of the patriarchs; for to those who led the life of shepherds, no other permanent possessions were of much importance: or, this part of the country may have been infested with a set of selfish, unaccommodating shepherds, who "felt power and forgot right;" or, they may have been, for reasons unknown to us, hostile to Jethro and his family. Often the very excellence and wisdom, as well as the wealth and power of an individual, makes him an object of envy with the people. around him. Moses, observing the rough and uncourteous treatment of these interesting shepherdesses, by these ill-natured shepherds, immediately interposed; and being a man of courage and prowess, and in the prime of life, he found no difficulty in delivering them from their oppressors; and assisted them in watering their flocks. It seems that this was no singular case, but one of common occurrence; for when they returned home, Reuel, their father, said, "How is it that you are come so soon to day?" Commonly, it is probable, they had to wait until all the other shepherds had watered their flocks and had departed. Their modesty prevented these young women from inviting Moses to accompany them home: and he was not disposed to intrude into the family of a stranger, on whom he had no claims. Reuel, who is here called the father of these young women, was their grandfather; for in Numbers x. 29, Hobab, another name for Jethro, is called the son of Raguel, (doubtless, the same name as Reuel;) when he heard that an Egyptian delivered them out of the hand of the shepherds, and drew water for them to water their flocks, reproved them for being so uncivil as not to bring the stranger to the house; and immediately sent them back to invite the man, that he might receive some refreshment. Hospitality to strangers has been a characteristic of the humblest of the Arabs for four thousand years: no obligation is by them viewed to be more sacred than the duty of hospitality to any fellow-creature whom Providence brings under their protection. Moses was, therefore, kindly received as a respected guest by this amiable family. And the occurrence which brought them to an acquaintance with each other, was attended with very interesting consequences to both parties. One of these young shepherdesses had charms to attract the attention and fix the affections of a man who had been educated in all the learning of Egypt, and had been accustomed to live in all the luxuries and splendours of Pharaoh's palace. Moses, however, had received that wisdom from above which teaches a man the emptiness of all earthly greatness, and which led him to see that more true pleasure is found in retirement, in pious solitude in the wilderness, than in all the pomp and wealth of a royal

court. Finding himself an exile from Egypt, and not foreseeing when he should be able to return thither with safety, he was content to take up his abode in the hospitable mansion, and with the agreeable family on which he had alighted; and his affection for Zipporah, the daughter of Jethro, being reciprocated, he was united to her in marriage; and she bare him a son, whom he called Gershom, which means, A STRANGER HERE: for he said, I have been a stranger in a strange land. She also bore him another son, whom he named Eliezer, THE LORD IS MY

HELP.

SECTION II.

MOSES SOJOURNS IM MIDIAN FORTY YEARS-RECEIVES HIS COMMISSION FROM GOD TO GO AND DELIVER THE PEOPLE OF ISRAEL FROM THEIR CRUEL BONDAGE-THE STRONG RELUCTANCE OF MOSES OVERCOME-HE IS EMPOWERED TO WORK MIRACLES-AARON IS ASSOCIATED WITH HIM IN THE COMMISSION.

HERE, in a country much retired, and to this day very little known, Moses spent forty years of his life; not in idleness, for he kept the flocks of Jethro, his father-in-law; and doubtless, acquired stores of wisdom from a contemplation of the works and ways of God; and from more direct intercourse with the Father of his spirit by prayer and holy communion. While, in this retirement, it has been supposed by some, that he wrote the book of Genesis, and perhaps the book of Job. But this is mere conjecture, and possesses no strong degree of probability; for it is by no means certain that alphabetical writing was at this time discovered; and as to leisure, he had enough of it in the forty years which he spent in the wilderness; and there he had access to all the traditions which had been handed down through the patriarchs; from which sources of information he was cut off, while resident in Arabia. Indeed, Moses seems to have relinquished all idea of returning to Egypt; and probably had abandoned the expectation, that he was destined to be the deliverer of Israel from oppression and bondage; until the Lord appeared unto him in the burning bush, at Mount Horeb. These appear to be at least probable inferences, from the reluctance which he manifested to be commisioned to go to Pharaoh, and to his brethren, with a message from Jehovah.

The account of this remarkable transaction is as follows: "And the angel of the Lord (Jehovah) 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 burned. And when the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses, and he said, Here

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