Chapter II: Part 2

But the true mother of Moses had taught him the religion of his fathers, and had told him the story of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and Joseph. She had told him, too, of the promise of God, that sometime the Israelites should again possess the land of Canaan.

To Moses this was a wonderful story; and he wished often that he might be the prophet that was to deliver his people.

One day Moses saw an Egyptian cruelly beating an Israelite. His heart burned with indignation, and he fell upon the Egyptian and slew him.

Then Moses fled out into the wilderness; for he knew he had offended against the law.

On through the wilderness he pressed, till he came into the field where a priest named Jethro lived. Jethro gave him food and shelter; and it came about that Moses became one of Jethro's family. For a long time he dwelt among these people, tending their flocks, and thinking about his poor people, suffering in their bondage to the Egyptians.

MOSES' VISION.

Far out across the sandy wild,
Where, like a solitary child
He thoughtless roamed and free,
One towering thorn was wrapped in flame--
Bright without blaze it went and came,
Who would not turn and see?

--_Keble._

One day, as Moses tended the sheep on Mt. Horeb, there appeared beside him a bright light. And in another instant a bush near by leaped with red flames.

The branches crackled; the tongues of flame streamed up against the sky; but still the bush was not consumed, nor did it wither.

"This is strange," Moses thought; and he went up to the bush.

"Moses! Moses!" called a voice from out the flames.

Then Moses knew it was the voice of the Lord; and he fell upon his knees before the bush. He was afraid.

"The place where thou standest it is holy-ground!" said the voice again. "I am God, the God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob."

"I have seen my people's sorrow. I have heard their cry. I am come to send thee to Pharaoh. And thou shalt bring my people out of Egypt."

"Who am I, O Lord," Moses cried, "that I should be chosen to go to Pharaoh?"

"Fear not," said the voice of God again. "I will be with thee. Go, and tell thy people that I sent thee. If Pharaoh disobey my command, then will I send punishment upon him. Plagues will I send upon Egypt, and I will bring out my people safely." Still Moses was afraid. It was a great duty that had been laid upon him. He dared not believe he could do all that the Lord bade him to do. What if the people refused to believe him?

"Throw thy rod upon the ground," God said to Moses. For he knew the fear that was in the heart of the man, and he meant to give him courage.

Moses threw the rod upon the ground, and behold, it was changed into a serpent.

"Take the serpent in thy hand," commanded the voice from the burning bush.

For a moment Moses hesitated; for it was a terrible serpent, with fangs having deadly poison; and even the heart of the bravest man might well quail at such a command.

But Moses knew the Lord would not allow it to harm him. So he seized it by the tail--when lo! it changed again to a rod.

"Now," said the voice from the bush, "go to the people of Israel. Tell them these signs I have given to you that they may believe that I have sent you."

Still Moses feared. "O Lord," he cried, "I cannot speak well. My tongue is slow; I have no words."

But the Lord said, "Who hath made thy tongue dumb? Have not I, the Lord? Go; obey my command and I will instruct thee what thou shalt say. Take, too, thy brother Aaron with thee; and I will teach both Aaron and thee what to say."

Then Moses obeyed. Timid was he still; but the Lord gave him strength, and he set out from the house of Jethro to deliver the people of Israel. And as he journeyed towards the city, the Lord spoke, too, to Aaron, and bade him to go out to meet Moses.

Then Aaron and Moses met; and when they met, they fell upon each other's necks and wept.

Then they told each other what the Lord had said to them, and together they went into the presence of Pharaoh and said, "Behold the Lord hath told us to come to thee, and bid thee set free the people of Israel."

But Pharaoh sneered and said, "I know not the Lord of the Israelites, nor shall I set the people free."

Instead, Pharaoh called together his governors and bade them oppress the Israelites more heavily still; to give them more work and less pay; to punish them; and in every way to do those things to them that would make their yoke still harder to bear.

The governor obeyed. Then the poor Israelites blamed Moses and Aaron.

Moses went to God with the great burden of care now upon him. He was now eighty years of age, and the care weighed upon him most heavily.

"All this I do know," the Lord said. "But have trust in me. I have heard the groanings of my people. I remember the covenant that I made with Abraham, and I will bring the people out from Egypt into the land of Canaan."

THE PLAGUES OF EGYPT.

Yet think not thou, amidst thy warlike bands,
They lie beyond redemption in thine hands.
The God in whom they trust may help them still,
They know He _can_ deliver, and He _will_:
Whether by life or death afflicts them not;
On His decree, not thine, they rest their lot.

--_Montgomery._

God gave to Moses and Aaron power to do wonderful things, miraculous things, that through them Pharaoh might know that the power of God was with them.

Aaron went before Pharaoh, and, throwing down his rod before him, it turned to a serpent.

But Pharaoh only laughed. "My wise men can do as much," he said. So he called them. They also did in like manner, but the rod of Aaron swallowed up the rods of Pharaoh's wise men.

Now, it is the river Nile that makes Egypt the fertile, fruitful country that it is. Without it Egypt would be a burning desert. The Egyptians well knew this. One day Moses went down to the waters, and, stretching his rod out over them, turned them to blood. The people were frightened.

The fish died; and no man could drink of the water.

Then Moses stretched out his rod again across the water; and behold thousands upon thousands of frogs came up out of the water. They infested the land. The houses were full of them. They sprang upon the banquet table of the king; and when he went to bed they were there also.

Then Pharaoh sent for Moses and said, "Take away these horrible frogs, and I will set thy people free."

Moses raised his rod again, and the frogs disappeared. There was rest in the land again.

But when they were gone, Pharaoh hardened his heart again. He would not let the Israelites go.

"Stretch forth thy rod again," came the word of God to Moses. He stretched forth his rod, and another plague fell upon the country. The ground was covered with lice, and the lice swarmed upon the animals and upon the people.

Then Moses went to Pharaoh and said, "Let my people go; but if thou wilt not, I will send flies upon thee and upon thy people; but I will send no flies upon the Israelites."

But Pharaoh would not listen. And the flies came--wasps and biting insects. But none of these came near the Israelites, though about the homes of the Egyptians they swarmed until Pharaoh, beside himself with torment, called upon Moses to deliver him from the plague, promising again to free the people of Israel.

Again this plague was lifted; and again Pharaoh perjured his soul. For no sooner was he free, than again he refused to let the people go.

Then the Lord sent Moses again into the presence of the king. "If thou wilt not let the people go," said Moses to Pharaoh, "then a plague shall fall upon the cattle; and not one shall be left alive to all the Egyptians; but those of the Israelites shall be free from harm."

Pharaoh made no answer; and on the morrow the plague fell, and not only the cattle but the magicians were covered with boils. Besides this, a terrible storm came. The trees were broken down, and the crops in the fields were destroyed.

Pharaoh was terrified. Famine he knew now would follow; for they had neither meat nor corn for food. And again he promised freedom to the Israelites.

But when the storm had ceased, and the crops were again growing, he forgot his terror, and freed not the people.

Then the locusts came, millions upon millions of them. They swarmed upon every bit of green in all the land and devoured it,--the leaves, the grass, and the newly-growing crops. Not a leaf nor a blade was left. And again famine sent terror into the soul of Pharaoh. And again he promised freedom to the Israelites; and again he refused, when the plague was lifted, to keep his promise.

Then came a terrible darkness upon the country,--a darkness that no light could penetrate.

"Go, Moses," said Pharaoh again. "Go out from the land to the land thou lovest. Go; but leave behind thee thy cattle and thy possessions. Those belong to Egypt."

Now, to have set out with the great company of the Israelites without cattle and corn for food would have been worse than useless for starvation would have come upon them.

Therefore Moses answered, "No, Pharaoh, the Israelites go not forth from Egypt without their cattle and corn and all that belongs to them."

Then Pharaoh was angry, and he drove Moses forth from him, saying, "Never more let me look upon thy face!"

Moses went out from the palace and told all that had happened to the Lord.

The darkness ended in three days. Then God said, "Now will I send another and a greater plague upon Pharaoh; and after this, he will let the people go."

So God sent an angel to smite the first-born of all the Egyptians. This Moses told to his people, and bade them put a mark upon their own doorsteps, that the angel might pass by the homes of the Israelites, and leave their children unharmed.

This the Israelites did; and in the night-time the angel came. Not one house of the Israelites did he enter; but in every house of the Egyptians, when the sun rose, there lay the dead body of the oldest child.

Then a groan went up from the people. There was wailing in the streets. Pharaoh himself could bear no more. He sent for Moses and Aaron in the night time and said to them, "Rise up, you and the Israelites and all their children. Take all that you have and be gone."

Then Moses and Aaron told the people, and bade them make haste lest again Pharaoh repent. But Pharaoh's heart was too heavy. At last his proud spirit was subdued, and Moses and Aaron, with 600,000 Israelites, set out for the land of Canaan.

THE DESTROYING ANGEL.

He stopped at last,
And a mild look of sacred pity cast
Down on the sinful land where he was sent
To inflict the tardy punishment.

"Ah! yet," said he, "yet, stubborn king, repent,
Whilst thus unarm'd I stand,
Ere the keen sword of God fill my commanded hand;
Suffer but yet thyself and thine to live:
Who would, alas! believe
That it for man," said he,
"So hard to be forgiven should be,
And yet for God so easy to forgive!"

Through Egypt's wicked land his march he took,
And as he march'd the sacred first born strook
Of every womb: none did he spare,
None, from the meanest beast to Pharaoh's purple heir.

Whilst health and strength and gladness doth possess
The festal Hebrew cottages;
The blest destroyer comes not there
To interrupt the sacred cheer:
Upon their doors he read, and understood
God's protection writ in blood;
Well was he skill'd i' the character divine;
And though he passed by it in haste,
He bow'd and worshipp'd, as he pass'd,
The mighty mystery through its humble sign.

--_A. Cowley_

THE RED SEA.

When the Israelites were gone, peace settled down upon Egypt and all things prospered. This was because Pharaoh had given freedom to the people of Israel, and so had caused the displeasure of God to be removed from the land.

But Pharaoh did not think of it in that way. He began, rather, to think that he had done a most foolish thing in allowing 600,000 faithful workmen and slaves to go out from the land. The Egyptians needed their help in brick making, and in the planting and reaping of the heavy crops.

The more he thought of it, the stronger grew his determination to bring the Israelites back. He had forgotten the suffering that had come to his people; and perhaps he began to think this suffering might more easily have been kept away.

So what do you suppose the foolish, hard-willed, stubborn-hearted Pharaoh did? He gathered together a great army and started out in pursuit of the Israelites.

"If only we can overtake them before they reach the Red Sea," he thought, "we shall easily drive them back into Egypt."

Now, the Lord heard the wicked plotting of Pharaoh, and although he allowed him to set forth, he allowed no harm to come to his chosen people.

A great cloud he had placed behind them and all around them as they traveled by day, so that by it they were shielded from the view of any enemy that might be lurking in the neighborhood of their march.

And by night this cloud became a pillar of fire, that by its light they might be guided through the strange wilderness.

When Israel, of the Lord beloved,
Out from the land of bondage came,
Her fathers' God before her moved,
An awful guide in smoke and flame.
By day, along the astonished lands
The cloudy pillar glided slow;
By night Arabia's crimson sands
Returned the fiery column's glow.
There rose the choral hymn of praise,
And trump and timbrel answered keen;
And Zion's daughters poured their lays,
With priest's and warrior's voice between.

But when Pharaoh came upon the Israelites, with his great army of horse and men and war chariots, they were resting beside the waters of the Red Sea.

When the Israelites saw the army, they were stricken with fear. They forgot that God had led them thus far, and that he had promised to guide them and bring them at last, safe, into the promised land of Canaan.

They rose in terror; and many of them began to cry out against Moses, who had allowed this danger to come upon them.

"Be not afraid!" said Moses. And just then the pillar of cloud moved around so that it blinded the Egyptians. They could not see the Israelites. They could hardly see each other; for it was like a dense fog fallen upon them.

"Stretch out thy rod across the sea," said the voice of God to Moses. Moses obeyed. The waters parted, and the Israelites passed over to the other side unharmed.

But when they were half across the cloud lifted, and the Egyptians saw the Israelites.

Down into the water-parting they plunged,--men, horses, chariots, all; and on they dashed in quick pursuit.

Foolish Pharaoh! Did he not know that the parting of the water was not for him? Had not he yet learned that God was with the Israelites?

The Israelites were now across the sea. They were climbing the opposite bank. The last man had reached the top. Then Moses raised his rod again, and the waters of the sea came together with a great rushing sound. They foamed and seethed, and the great army of the Egyptians sank beneath the great pillars of water that closed over them on either side. All were drowned; and the Israelites were at last freed from Pharaoh, king of Egypt.

"Fly, Misraim, fly!"--From Edom's coral strand
Again the prophet stretched his dreadful wand:--
With one wild crash the thundering waters sweep,
And all is waves--a dark and lonely deep;
And strange and sad the whispering breezes bore
The groans of Egypt to Arabia's shore.

Then the Israelites halted in their march and held a festival of thanksgiving; for they were now free from their old enemy.

Then they went on into the wilderness. And Miriam, the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women event out after her with timbrels. And Miriam said, "Let us sing to the Lord, for He hath triumphed gloriously."

They offered sacrifices, they prayed and sang, and danced.

MIRIAM'S SONG.

Sound the loud timbrel o'er Egypt's dark sea!
Jehovah has triumphed--His people are free!
Sing!--for the pride of the tyrant is broken:
His chariots, his horsemen, all splendid and brave,--
How vain was their boasting!--the Lord hath but spoken,
And chariots and horsemen are sunk in the wave.
Sound the loud timbrel o'er Egypt's dark sea!
Jehovah has triumphed--His people are free!

Praise to the Conqueror, praise to the Lord!
His word was our arrow, His breath was our sword!
Who shall return to tell Egypt the story
Of those she sent forth in the hour of her pride?
For the Lord hath looked out from his pillar of glory,
And all her brave thousands are dashed in the tide.
Sound the loud timbrel o'er Egypt's dark sea:
Jehovah has triumphed--His people are free!

--_Moore._

IN THE WILDERNESS.

So led He them, in desert marches grand,
By toils sublime, with test of long delay,
On, to the borders of that Promised Land,
Wherein their heritage of glory lay.

Wonderfully they were being led. Surely one would suppose they could never doubt God again, nor Moses, the leader God had chosen for them. But alas! there were many among them who seemed little better than the Egyptians, their oppressors.

They had gone only a few miles when they came to the waters of Marah, which were bitter. They were tired, and longed to encamp for the night. Then they began to groan and to cry aloud, "O, why have you brought us into a land where there is no water?"

But Moses, never failing in trust and patience, cast a tree, which the Lord had shown him, into the waters, and lo! they became sweet. The people drank and were satisfied; and there they encamped and rested.

When God gave them the sweet water to drink, he said to Moses, "If thou wilt obey me I will be with thee always. I will keep, and bless, and strengthen thee, thee and all thy people. And there shall come to thee neither disease nor plague."

When the people heard these words, they were comforted and meant never to doubt again. But a few days after this, when they had come into the heart of the wilderness, and there seemed no way of finding food, again they complained to Moses that he had led them into the wilderness to starve.

But God heard their murmurings and sent great flocks of quails on which to feed them. Thousands and thousands were there of them, and they covered the ground, the trees, and the tents, so great were their numbers. The Israelites caught them and ate them, and their hunger was appeased.

"But what shall we do in the morning?" the fretful, faithless ones said.

And in the morning the ground was covered with tiny round loaves of sweet bread, the manna that had been sent from heaven; for so were the children of Israel fed in the wilderness. And when, by and by, again there was no water to drink, Moses struck a great rock with his rod, and the water poured forth.

The children of Israel had now come into the wilderness of Sinai, and had pitched their tents at the foot of the mountain. Moses was commanded by the Lord to go into the mountain, while the people rested in the valley below. And when Moses had reached the top, God spoke to him.

"Go and tell the Israelites how great a thing God has done for them, in bringing them through the Red Sea and freeing them from the cruel king, Pharaoh.

"Tell them to remember that they are my chosen people, and that I will be their God always.

"Bid them prepare themselves for the third day; for on the third day will I come down upon this mountain and speak with them. They shall not come up into the mountain. Whosoever touches the mountain top shall be put to death. But when the trumpet sounds, then will I speak, and they shall all come up into the mountain." Moses went down into the valley and gave these words to the people. So they all made ready for the third day.

When the morning of the third day came, the Israelites looked up towards the mountain top. Behold, a heavy black cloud hung over it, and fire and smoke poured out from it, and the whole mountain shook!

The people were frightened, and ran and hid themselves. But the trumpet sounded, and God descended upon the mountain.

And a voice called to Moses: "Again say to the people that they shall not come up into the mountain. But thou, and Aaron with thee, come thou up into the mountain."

And Moses and Aaron obeyed. And there, upon the mountain top, they beheld the glory of God, like a great cloud of glory.

Then Moses and Aaron went down into the valley to tell the people what they had seen. And when they had told the people, Moses went back into the mountain; for God had told him to come there alone, that he might tell him how to guide the great multitude that had been given to his charge.

It was from Mt. Sinai that God gave to Moses the tablets upon which were written the Ten Commandments; for Moses was in the mountain forty days and forty nights, listening to the words that God spoke to him.

And when so many days had gone by and Moses did not return, then the people began to be frightened.

"Moses has gone away and left us," they wailed, "and we have no gods to guide us. Let us make a golden calf and set it up before us that we may worship it." And so they built an altar, and placed the golden calf upon it, and held a great feast.

They were in the midst of their feast when Moses came down from the mountain, the tablets in his hands.

"What is this?" he thundered, as he drew near and heard the music and saw the dancing and the feasting.

The people were frightened. Some of them ran to hide; and so angry was Moses that he hurled the tablets of stone from him and broke them in pieces.

"Why didst thou allow this thing to be done?" asked Moses of Aaron.

"The people gave me their gold to melt, and it came out from the fire a golden calf," answered Aaron weakly.

Then Moses took the calf and ground it to powder; and the 3,000 idolatrous men among them he commanded to be slain.

Then Moses went again up into the mountain, and again wrote the ten commandments upon tablets of stone, and again carried them to the people.

And now that the children of Israel might have a place for worship, the Lord commanded that the people should make a tabernacle, and that in it should be kept the sacred tablets.

So the people went to work, and every man woman and child had a part in the building of the tabernacle.

THE TABERNACLE.

The tabernacle was made of boards, with bars put across; and these bars and boards were made of shittim wood and covered with gold. Within the tabernacle, under the upper end, were four more pillars; a beautiful covering, called the vail, was hung over them; and this hid the inside, which was the most holy place, "the Holy of Holies," it was called. None could go in there but the High Priest; and he went only once a year. In the Holy of Holies was placed the ark. The ark was a chest, or box, made of shittim wood, covered with gold; and there were rings in the sides for poles to be put in when the ark was moved. The top of the ark was called the mercy-seat; two golden angels, called cherubim, were placed one on each side of the mercy-seat; they looked over it, and their wings covered the top. In the ark were afterwards kept the tables of the commandments, Aaron's rod, and afterwards a golden pot full of manna, which God commanded to be put there. Outside the vail was the altar, on which the holy bread, called shew-bread, was placed, and the great gold candlestick. The tabernacle stood in a large open court; pillars of brass surrounded it, and curtains were hung upon them. The brazen altar for burnt offerings, and the great laver where the priests washed, stood in this court. There were coverings and curtains to the tabernacle and court.

Over the boards of the tabernacle was thrown a covering of fine linen, beautifully worked in scarlet, and purple, and blue; over the linen was a covering of goat's hair; over this, a covering of ram's skins dyed red; and another covering of thick skins was over all. The people were not allowed to go into the tabernacle; but the priests went in every morning to offer incense, and every evening to light the lamps; and on the Sabbath, to take away the old shew-bread from the table, and to put on new. The sacrifices were offered in the court, where the people stood.

Now, when the tabernacle was set up, Moses made Aaron the High Priest and clothed him in the sacred garments of his office,--the coat, the girdle, the robe, the ephod, the breastplate, and the mitre. The coat was a long linen robe, with sleeves, and having a girdle worked in blue and purple and scarlet. The robe was a long, blue linen garment, without sleeves.

Around the skirts were golden bells, which sounded whenever the High Priest went into the Holy Place.

The ephod was a short robe, worked also in blue, purple and scarlet; and around the waist was worn a girdle of gold.

The breastplate was made of cloth, and was very thick. It had four rings to join it to the ephod, and twelve beautiful stones were set in it; and on these stones were cut the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, that is, the twelve sons of Jacob.

The mitre was a linen turban; and on the front of it were the words, _Holy of Holies_!

When all was ready, the children held a sacred feast, and Moses anointed Aaron with oil.

The tabernacle established, the Israelites were now ready to move on towards Canaan.

THE PROMISED LAND.

Twelve men were chosen, one from each tribe, and sent ahead to see what manner of place Canaan was, if there was land enough, and if the people dwelling there were friendly.

The twelve men set out, and after forty days came back again to the camp, bringing rich fruits which they had gathered there. "The land of Canaan is a beautiful country," they said, "and it is filled with fruits and corn; but we fear the people there, for they are fierce and warlike."

At this many of the Israelites were frightened. Again they forgot God's promises and began to upbraid Moses for having taken them from their comfortable home in the wilderness.

Then God was angry with them; and he spoke to them in tones of thunder, telling them that for their wickedness they should never be permitted to see the promised land of Canaan; that they should die in the wilderness; and that only the children and the few faithful elders should live to reach the Promised Land.

This was a most grievous punishment to the people; but in a few days they had forgotten it, and again rebellion arose among them.

Three men, Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, grew jealous of the power of Moses and Aaron, and asked why all glory should be theirs.

Moses, worn with the faithlessness of his people, fell upon his face and wept when these jealous men spoke thus to him. His heart ached with the injustice of it, and he despaired ever of teaching his people.

The next day Korah and all his people came and stood before the tabernacle, as Moses had bid them. Then the voice of the Lord spoke, bidding the people move away from the tabernacle, leaving the three doubting men and their families standing alone.

Then there came a burst of thunder; the earth rocked and groaned; then a great gulf opened beneath the feet of Korah and Dathan and Abiram, and they, with all their children, were swallowed up.

Then God commanded Moses to take twelve rods; and upon the rods to write the names of the twelve tribes. On the rod of the tribe of Levi he was to write the name of Aaron, because Aaron was of that tribe.

"Place now the rods in the tabernacle; and the rod bearing the name of him I appoint High Priest shall bud and blossom."

And when the morning came, behold the rod of Aaron had budded and blossomed. Then the people were content; and the rod was kept ever after in the tabernacle.

For a time peace was in the camp, and more than once the Israelites came near unto the Promised Land. But it had been said they should never reach it; and so many, many times they fell back and turned away.

Over and over again they rebelled at Moses and Aaron, until the patience of those two was exhausted. They forgot themselves to ask for guidance, and once, unable to endure greater trial, they cried out, "O ye rebels! ye rebels!" and there was anger in their hearts as they spoke.

By and by the time came for Aaron to die. So Moses took the priestly garments from him and gave them to Eleazer. Then Aaron died, and the Israelites mourned for him thirty days.

Then the people wandered on and on. Once they were bitten by serpents; and that they might be healed, Moses lifted a brazen serpent in the wilderness and bade the suffering ones to look upon it and live.

But now the forty years were nearly at an end; Canaan, too, was very close; and, although the elders knew that it was not for them to see the Promised Land, yet their children would; and so there was joy in the camp.

But now the death of Moses was at hand. He was one hundred and twenty years old, and had wandered forty years, leading the rebellious Israelites in the wilderness. So God said to Moses, "Come thou up into Mt. Pisgah. From there thou shalt see the fair land of Canaan spread out before thee, although thou mayst never go thither."

So Moses called his people together and told them that his end was at hand. He told them of all God had done for his people, and how wonderfully they had been led forth from bondage. He then bade them take Joshua for their leader; for he it was who should lead them into the Promised Land.

The people wept most bitterly, and many prostrated themselves before the good man who had borne so much for them.

Then Moses turned and went up into Mt. Pisgah. There lay the fair land of Canaan at his feet, with its fertile valleys and rich fruits and abundant harvests of corn.

Upon this fair scene Moses gazed; then, raising his face towards God, thanked Him that the wanderings of the children of Israel were now at an end.

Then he laid himself down and died. The Lord buried him, but no man knew how or where.

And when the children of Israel knew he would come no more to them, they wept too for him thirty days upon the plains of Moab.

THE BURIAL OF MOSES.

By Nebo's lonely mountain, on this side Jordan's wave,
In a vale in the Land of Moab there lies a lonely grave.
And no man knows that sepulchre, and no man saw it e'er,
For the angels of God upturned the sod, and laid the dead man there.

That was the grandest funeral that ever passed on earth;
But no man heard the trampling, or saw the train go forth--
Noiselessly as the daylight comes back when night is done,
And the crimson streak on ocean's cheek grows into the great sun.

Noiselessly as the spring-time her crown of verdure weaves,
And all the trees on all the hills open their thousand leaves;
So without sound of music, or voice of them that wept,
Silently down from the mountain's crown the great procession swept.

Perchance the bald old eagle, on gray Beth-Peor's height,
Out of his lonely eyrie looked on the wondrous sight;
Perchance the lion stalking, still shuns that hallowed spot,
For, beast and bird have seen and heard that which man knoweth not.

But when the warrior dieth, his comrades in the war,
With arms reversed and muffled drum, follow his funeral car;
They show the banners taken, they tell his battles won,
And after him lead his masterless steed, while peals the minute gun.

Amidst the noblest of the land we lay the sage to rest.
And give the bard an honored place, with costly marble drest,
In the great minster transept where lights like glories fall,
And the organ rings, and the sweet choir sings along the
emblazoned wall.

This was the truest warrior that ever buckled sword,
This the most gifted poet that ever breathed a word;
And never earth's philosopher traced, with his golden pen,
On the deathless page, truths half so sage as he wrote down for men.

And hath he not high honor,--the hillside for a pall,
To lie in state while angels wait with stars for tapers tall,
And the dark rock-pines like tossing plumes, over his bier to wave,
And God's own hand, in that lonely land, to lay him in the grave?

--_Alexander._

THE STORY OF JOSHUA.

Then Joshua led the Israelites forth; but when they came to the River Jordan, again their courage failed them.

Although they had been led through the Red Sea in the times of their fathers, and though all their lives they had been told of that wonderful deliverance, still, when now they came to the River Jordan, their hearts grew heavy, and fear took possession of them. But there lay the country, fair and beautiful. They could see it; and, with Joshua so brave and true to lead them on, they gathered up their courage, and the great company marched down to the river banks.

Again the miracle of the parting of the waters was repeated; for the waters roared and rushed, and heaped themselves, like great walls, on either side while the Israelites passed through.

Meantime Joshua had sent forward two men into the city of Jericho to learn what manner of people were there; for Jericho was one of the cities upon which the Israelites must make war. These people of Canaan were not likely to give the country into the hands of a new people without a struggle. That the Israelites well knew. Then, too, these were in the days when all nations were at war with each other, and the possession of a country was always a matter of force and strength,--one people overcoming the other.

When the two Israelites came into Jericho, they sought the house of a woman named Rahab; and from her learned all those things about the city that they needed to know.

But the king of Jericho heard that two Israelites were in the city, and at once he suspected them of being spies. Accordingly he sent messengers to seize them and put them in prison. The messengers came, bearing with them the authority of the king; but the two men were hid away by Rahab, and the messenger went away.

"I know," Rahab said, "that this land belongs to you; that God hath promised it to you; for I have heard of the wonderful things that God hath done for you and your people. Because of this I have hidden you beneath the flax on the housetop; and now, when your people come to take the city, forget not me. Tell your people the protection given you in this house; then shall your soldiers spare me in the downfall of the city."

Then the Israelites promised that, in the ransacking of the city, this woman Rahab should be spared.

"When we are gone," they said, "fasten a red cord upon the window of the house. Then, when we enter the city, the house in whose window the red cord is, shall be spared."

At night the woman let the Israelites down from the roof of the house by a rope, and they hurried away to join the Israelites.

In a few days the army of the Israelites appeared before the walls of Jericho. The gates were closed, and the king's armies within were ready to resist the attack.

What were the Israelites to do? Should they attack the city with battering rams and meet the people with spears and swords?

This was the way of besieging cities in those days; and it was for this kind of an attack that the people within were prepared. But this was not the way the Israelites were to do their work; for God had told them, even while in the wilderness, that the walls of Jericho were to be beaten down in a way most strange. They were to take their Ark up to the walls of the city. They were to draw up their soldiers in line. The priests were to bear the Ark, and together all were to march around the city, the priests blowing their trumpets as they passed before the Ark.

Not a spear was to be thrown; not a sword was to be drawn. For seven days they were to do this; but on the seventh day they were to march seven times around the city. Then, amid the shouting of the people and the blowing of the trumpets, the walls would fall; and so the city would lie open before them. All this the Israelites did; and on the seventh day it came about even as Joshua said it should,--the walls fell with a terrible crash. Then the Israelites marched in and took the city. The house of Rahab they did not forget. They brought her and all her family out from the burning city and placed her in safety among their own women and children.

Great loads of gold and silver and brass and iron they took from the city. All of this they saved for the building of a temple; for they had been warned to save no part of the city's wealth for their own use.

In all this the Israelites obeyed, save one man. He, Achan, thinking no one saw him, took some of the riches and carried them away and hid them. Now, Joshua knew nothing of all this; but the next day, when the army went against the little city of Ai, behold the Israelites were driven back defeated. Even Joshua's heart was heavy. He could not see why it should have been; but when he knelt before God, God said to him, "Never can I fight for my people while there is sin among them. Go find Achan; he hath hidden gold in the tent. Accuse him before the people and put him to death. Then again shall success be with the Israelites."

Joshua went before his people and told them what God had said to him. Then Achan was called before the Israelites and put to death.

"Now," said Joshua, "let us go against the city of Ai again." They went; and this time the city was taken, and the people bowed before the power of the Israelites, acknowledging them as their masters. THE GIBEONITES.

The sun stood still, the moon it stayed
Till Israel's vengeance was allayed
Upon his enemy,
Pausing all that awful day
And glowing brilliantly.

While these cities were being taken, the Gibeonites had heard of the coming of the Israelites and of their great conquests. Now, these Gibeonites were a strong people; and so, when they heard these things, they made preparations for the attack which they feared. First, they sent messengers to Joshua.

"We wish to make peace with you," the messenger said.

"If you are Canaanites," said Joshua, "we can make no peace with you."

"But we are not Canaanites," the messengers said. "Behold we come from a great distance. Do you not see how dry our bread is, and how broken our bottles are? Our shoes, too, see how they are worn! All these were new when we began our journey; but we have been so long on the road, they are worn. We have heard of your coming, as have all the kings round about our country. We know how great is your power; and that is why we have come to beg you to be at peace with our people."

Now, this story was in no wise true; but Joshua believed it, and the Gibeonites went away pleased indeed that they had succeeded so well.

But a few days after, Joshua learned that these Gibeonites had been untrue to him, and that they dwelt in the very midst of the country of Canaan.

"Why have you deceived us?" he asked of their leaders.

The leaders could make no reply. They could only say, "But you promised not to slay us."

"That is true," Joshua replied. "And we will not break our promise. We will not slay you; but we will take all prisoners, and you shall serve us as slaves all the days of your life."

The Gibeonites were heavy hearted indeed. They had fallen into their own pit; for they would rather have died than become slaves. But now there was no hope for them, and they could only bow their proud heads beneath the yoke.

Hardly had the Israelites and the Gibeonites made peace with each other in this way, when down came the Amorites upon the Gibeonites to fight them.

The Gibeonites, frightened at the appearance of the great army, fled to Joshua for help.

"We shall protect you as our servants and slaves," was the answer. And so, when the Amorites came, it was the Israelites that marched out against them.

A terrible battle followed. For a time no one could have told which army was to be victorious. Many were falling among the Amorites; still their army was pressing forward.

If only the day would not come to an end! If only the darkness would not fall! If only they might keep on with the battle till the Amorites, exhausted, should fall back! To give up the battle and begin again in the morning would be to give the Amorites opportunity to regain strength and courage.

Then the thought came to Joshua, "Why _should_ night come? Why should not the sun and the moon stand still in the heavens until this battle is finished and the Amorites are driven back?"

And as he thought, lo! the prayer was answered, and the sun and the moon did stand still.

Hour after hour passed; the two armies fought on; the Amorites grew weaker and weaker. Why did not the sun go down? Why did the darkness not come to give them rest?

At last the Amorites could hold out no longer. The army turned and fled. The Israelites pursued. The kings hid themselves in a great cave. But Joshua pursued these still. He rolled great stones up before the cave and held them there prisoners. Then, when the Amorites had been scattered, Joshua came back to the cave, brought out the offending kings and slew them all.

So the contention for the possession of the land of Canaan went on. One by one the tribes were overcome; and at last Canaan was in the control of the Israelites.

But now Joshua had grown to be an old man. He knew that the end of his life was near at hand. So he called the people together and told them, even as Moses had told them, of all the wonderful things that had happened to God's chosen people in all the four hundred years since they had come out of Egypt.

Then he appealed to them in the name of God, who had led them safely into the land of Canaan; he begged them never to forget that they were the Children of Israel, and that the religion of the people into whose land they had come, an idolatrous religion, was not for them. Then the people all promised to be true to the religion of their fathers; and Joshua, taking the great book of the law, wrote their promise in it. More than that, he rolled a great stone up beneath an oak tree and said, "Look at the great stone. It has heard your promise that you will serve always the one God. Guard that stone; and let it be a remembrance to you of the promise you have made."

The people went away sad at heart; for they knew they should never look again upon their patient leader and teacher, who had been so faithful and true to them in all the years he had been with them.

EHUD AND DEBORAH.

For a few years the Israelites remembered their promise; but alas! they were very prone to sink back into the idolatry which surrounded them. And it was not very long before they were worshipping idols, even as were the heathen tribes round about them.

And again God sent cruel enemies to fight against them; again they cried to Him, and He heard them. For eighteen years they served Eglon, the cruel, wicked king of Moab. But at last God sent the Israelites a man to help them, whose name was Ehud.

Ehud told them to send a present to Eglon, and he would be its bearer. The Israelites did this, and Ehud, making a dagger, and hiding it under his clothes, went to Moab. When he came to the king he said, "I have a secret to tell and must see the king alone." So Eglon sent away his servants. When they were alone, Ehud took out his dagger and thrust it into the king's body. Then Ehud ran out from the room, locked the doors after him, and so escaped.

No one saw Ehud go; and when the servants found the doors locked, they thought their master had fallen asleep, and so they made no attempt to go in. Many hours passed. At last the servants began to wonder why the king did not send for them. Night came on. Still the king did not awake; and so, at last, they took a key and opened the door.

What did they see? There lay the king upon the ground,--dead!

Ehud, meantime, had come back again, bringing many soldiers with him; and the Israelites fought against the Moabites and conquered them.

For some time after this the people held firmly to their faith, and Ehud led them. But Ehud died; and then the Israelites again rebelled against God. Again God, to punish them, sent Jabin, king of Canaan, to fight against Israel; and he conquered them. This king was very cruel, and they suffered much under his power for twenty long, terrible years. Now, there was a very good woman living at that time, named Deborah. She dwelt under a palm tree, between Ramah and Bethel. There she prayed and sang, and talked to, and taught all the people who came to see her. Deborah was a very wise woman and had the gift of prophecy. And so it came about that, when the Israelites began to cry to God, Deborah, at His command, sent for a brave man named Barak, and said to him, "Go now and call men out of the tribes of Zebulon and Naphtali, and take them to fight against Sisera, the captain of Jabin's army. God promises to give us the victory." Barak said, "If thou wilt go with me, I will go." So Deborah, with Barak and 10,000 men, went to fight against Sisera. "Do not kill Sisera," Deborah said; "for God will give the wicked captain into the hands of a woman."

So Barak and his army went and fought against Sisera. Very soon the Israelites won the victory, for it was as Deborah had prophesied. Then Sisera came down from his chariot and fled from Barak.

There was a man named Heber, who was at peace with Jabin; and Sisera ran to Heber's tent for safety. When the man's wife, Jael, saw Sisera coming, she went out to meet him and said, "Come in, come in, and fear not." So Sisera came in and lay down; and Jael covered him with a mantle. He asked for water; and she gave him milk, which he drank; and then he lay down again.

"Stand by the door," he said, "and if any one ask if I am here, say 'No.'" Then Sisera fell asleep, for he was weary with fighting and running so far; and when he was asleep, then Jael went very softly, took a large nail and a hammer, and hammered the nail into Sisera's head and down into the ground.

After this war forty years passed most happily and safely. The Israelites lived in the fear of God, and he kept them in peace and gave them rest from their enemies.

But when the forty years were passed, the Israelites again loved evil; and again, too, sorrows and punishments came upon them.

First, the Midianites came to be their enemies. They came in great numbers; they brought their camels and their cattle with them, and pitched their tents in the land of the Israelites. The Israelites left their pleasant houses and fields, and ran to hide in dens and caves, for fear of the cruel Midianites.

The pleasant land became barren and desolate. Then the Israelites cried again to the Lord, for they knew that He could deliver them, and He alone.

God sent an answer to them by a prophet: "Thus saith the Lord, 'I brought you safely out of Egypt and delivered you from the cruel Egyptians, and drove away your enemies, and gave you the land of Canaan for a possession; and I commanded you to obey and serve Me, and not to worship the idols of the people who live near you; but you have not obeyed My command.'" Then the prophet went away. THE STORY OF GIDEON.

Now, there was a man (living at Ophrah,) whose son was named Gideon. Gideon was a true servant of the Lord; but his father was an idolater and a worshipper of Baal. One day Gideon was threshing wheat in a hidden place, lest the idolaters should see him and come and take his corn from him. Gideon's heart was full of sorrowful thoughts as he threshed the wheat; but, as he looked up, he saw an angel near him, sitting beneath an oak. And Gideon heard him say, "The Lord is with thee."

When Gideon heard the angel speak, he looked up with wonder. "Is the Lord with us?" he cried. "Then why does He let the Midianites come and destroy us? Why does He not work miracles for us, as He did for our fathers, and deliver us from our enemies?" But the angel said again, "Go now, I send thee to save Israel from the Midianites."

Gideon was frightened; he had faith, but his faith was weak and small. He could not believe that he could save Israel.

"How can I save my brethren?" he said. "I am poor; all my family are poor, and I am least in my father's house." But the angel said again, "I will be with thee; I will give thee power to smite the Midianites."

Gideon wondered. Could it be an angel that was talking to him? An angel could give him power to conquer his enemies!

"Wilt thou give me a sign that I may know who thou art?" he asked. "Stay till I come again, and bring my offering with me."

Then Gideon hurried away and made ready a kid and cakes of flour. He put the flesh into a basket and the broth into a pot, and brought all out to the oak tree where the angel waited.