Exodus 9:13-35; 10-12.
ONE morning Moses and Aaron rose up very early and came to Pharaoh, and said to him, “To-morrow God is going to rain great hailstones from the sky—such hailstones as were never seen in Egypt before. They will kill all men and beasts that are out of doors. Therefore you must keep your cows, and horses, and asses in the stables, or they will be killed.”
A great many of the men of Egypt heard Moses and Aaron say this. Some of them believed their words. They kept their beasts in their stables, and told their servants to keep indoors. But some of the men who heard did not believe, and let their beasts remain in the fields, and their servants with them.
The next day Moses stretched out his rod towards the sky, and God sent thunder and hail, and fire which ran along the ground. It was a most dreadful storm. Such a storm was never seen before. The noise of the hailstones and of the thunder must have made every one tremble who heard it. But how glad those must have been who were in their houses! Many beasts and men were killed, the grass and corn were burned up by the fire, and the trees were broken. Yet there was no hail where the children of Israel were.
This storm frightened Pharaoh, and he sent for Moses and Aaron, and said, "I have sinned: only pray the Lord to send no more, thunder and hail, and I will let the children of Israel go." Moses said, "I will go out of the city, and I will stretch out my hands to God, and He will not send any more thunder and hail; but still I know you will not obey God yet.”
So Moses went out of the city, for he did not fear the storm. Then he stretched out his hands, and God made the hail and thunder stop, and He made the rain leave off.
Did Pharaoh let Israel go? No; when he saw that the storm was over, he would not. All Pharaoh's servants were wicked, too; for they did not wish him to let the Israelites go.
Then Moses and Aaron went to King Pharaoh again, and said, "God will now send locusts into your country.”
What are locusts? They are insects, about the size of a child's thumb. Thousands of them fly close together in the air, and they perch upon the trees, and eat up all the leaves and fruit.
Pharaoh and his servants were very angry when they heard that the locusts were coming, and they spoke roughly to Moses and Aaron, and drove them out of the house.
Moses stretched out the rod and God made the wind blow very hard, and next day the wind blew a great number of locusts into Egypt. The locusts made the sky look black as the wind blew them along; but they did not stay in the air; they perched on the trees, and ate up the fruit that the hail had left-they covered the grass and ate it up, and they even came into the houses.
Pharaoh and his servants thought that they would soon have nothing to eat. Pharaoh sent quickly for Moses and Aaron. "I have sinned," he said, "against the Lord, and against you. Only forgive me this once, and pray to God to take away the locusts, and I will let Israel go.”
So Moses prayed to the Lord. God sent another wind, and it blew the locusts away, and they fell into the sea, and there was not one locust left in Egypt.
But Pharaoh still said, "I will not let Israel go.”
How sad it must have been to have walked m the fields after the locusts had been there! It was the pleasant spring, but it looked like winter. There were no leaves on the trees, there was no tender grass; all was bare as in winter. What misery had Pharaoh's wickedness brought upon the land!
The next time Moses did not tell Pharaoh what God was going to do. Moses stretched out his rod towards heaven, and in one moment God made it dark. It was darker than ever it is at night. There was not the least light, except where the children of Israel lived; there it was quite light.
The people of Egypt were very 'much, frightened. They were doing their work, or eating, or walking, when all at once this darkness came on. They stopped, and sat down in the place where they were, and never moved, night or day. Now they had time to think of all their wickedness.
It was dark for three days and three nights, and then it grew light.
But was Pharaoh sorry for his wickedness? No, his heart was harder than ever. He said to Moses, "Get away, you shall never see my face again. If you come in to me anymore, you shall die.”
Then Moses said, You shall see my face no more.”
God spake to Moses again, and said, "I am going to send another plague. At night I will come into every house in Egypt, and kill the eldest son of every person. But this is what I desire the children of Israel to do: Let each man take a lamb, a lamb without spot, and kill it, and eat it that night with his family; and let him take the blood of the lamb, and put some blood outside the door, and when I pass I shall see the blood, and I will not kill the eldest son in that house. Let the people in the house stand round the table while they eat the lamb. Let them all be dressed ready for a journey.”
So all the children of Israel killed young lambs, roasted them, and ate them at night. They stood round their tables with their sticks in their hands. They ate some bread with the lamb, and some bitter herbs. They did not forget to put some blood on the posts of the door, for then they knew they were safe.
The men of Egypt went to bed that night as usual, but in the middle of the night the eldest son in each house died. No one saw God's angel enter in, but yet he did come. No bars or bolts could keep him out; but when he saw blood on the door, then he passed over the house.
What a dreadful cry the fathers and mothers made in Egypt when they found their eldest sons were dead! They rushed out of their houses weeping. "Our darling son is dead," said one. "And so is mine," said another. "And mine." "And mine." There never was such dreadful crying heard in Egypt before.
Even Pharaoh's eldest son was killed, as well as the sons of the poor people. Pharaoh rose up at night, and called for Moses and Aaron, but it was dark, so that they did not see his face.
“Go," said Pharaoh, "and take the children of Israel with you; they may take their sheep and cows with them, and all that they have.”
And all the men of Egypt begged the children of Israel to go away as fast as possible, for they were afraid that God would kill them all.
Then the Israelites said to the women of Egypt, "Do give us some gold and silver before we go."
And they said, We will give you what you want; only go.”
The Israelites had done a great deal of work in Egypt, and it was right they should have some money given to them.
So they gave them a great many beautiful things to take with them.
The Israelites went away in a great hurry. They took their things just as they were. They put bread in their bags—they drove their sheep, cows, camels, and asses, before them, and so they set out in the night.
There was a great crowd of people: more people than live in any great town; except London. No little child could have counted them.
So at last they came out of Egypt, where they had been slaves so long. God had remembered His promise to Abraham, and Abraham's children were on their way to the land of Canaan.
God said to Moses, “They must never forget my kindness in bringing them out of Egypt. They must eat a lamb every year, as they have done to-night. Eating the lamb shall be called eating the Feast of the Passover." Why was this supper called the Passover? Because God passed over the doors where the blood was seen.
Of whom does the lamb that each family killed make you think? Of Jesus.
That lamb's blood saved the eldest son in the family from being killed; and Jesus' blood saves all people who love Him from being punished in hell. How kind it was of Jesus to shed His blood for us! We ought never to forget His kindness.
Now count how many plagues God had sent to Pharaoh and the people of Egypt.
1. Water turned into blood.
Frogs.
Small insects.
Flies.
Death of the beasts.
Boils.
7. Hail and thunder.
8. Locusts.
9. Darkness.
10. Death of the eldest sons.
What dreadful plagues these were! But there will be much worse plagues in hell.
I hope, dear children, that you will obey God, and not make Him angry with you. You know why God does not send us such dreadful plagues now. Jesus is praying for us, and God is waiting, that we may repent.
Hymn 21
Plague 1.
How crimson now that mighty flood,
That late like silver shone;
How dreadful too those drafts of blood.
In troughs of wood and stone!
Plague 2.
What troops of frogs the rooms infest,
And mount the royal bed,
Defile the food for Pharaoh dressed,
The baked meats, and the bread!
Plague 3.
The dust that lay so thick around
Now stirs and seems alive;
On men and beasts vile insects bound,
And constant torment give.
Plague 4.
What swarms of odious flies appear,
And settle on the walls;
Their hateful buzz the king can hear
Within his palace halls.
Plague 5.
The flocks and herds now droop and die
Beneath the murrain's power:
Upon the open fields they lie,
While vultures fierce devour.
Plague 6.
See pain is marked on every brow
Hear moans from every breast;
And painful boil has laid each low,
And robbed his flesh of rest.
Plague 7.
How loud the mighty thunderings sound:
Torrents of hailstones fall;
While streams of fire along the ground
The stoutest hearts appall.
Plague 8.
Driven before the eastern breeze,
A cloud obscures the air:
The locusts cover o'er the trees,
And leave the branches bare.
Plague 9.
Lo! sudden darkness spreads around,
And every face conceals
None leaves the spot where he is found,
O'er all such horror steals.
Plague 10.
Ten thousand doors wide open fly,
Though daylight long has fled;
Ten thousand frenzied parents cry,
“My firstborn son is dead.”
At length our God the victory gains
O'er Pharaoh's stubborn heart:
At length poor Israel leave obtains
From Egypt to depart.
Child
'Tis vain against that God to strive
Who heaven and earth commands.
How can a feeble sinner live,
Who falls into His hands?
O Lord! this stubborn pride remove,
That would resist Thy will,
And make me, With a childlike love,
Obey Thy precepts still.