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rible: the Lord declared, that if Pharoah did not let the people go, he would cause the firstborn of every family to die at midnight; accordingly, in one night was heard in all the houses of the Egyptians, a noise of mourning and weeping; in every house there was one dead.

Then Pharoah rose up in haste and sent the children of Israel away, lest the Egyptians should all become dead men. The Israelites arose, took with them their flocks and herds, not forgetting the ashes of Joseph, and all their possessions, and left that land where their ancestors had been so joyfully welcomed, and they themselves so cruelly treated.

It is worthy of remark, that the land of Goshen, the dwelling-place of the Israelites, was not visited with any of the evils which were at this time brought upon the Egyptians for their hardness of heart. You may, perhaps, have heard of the Jews' Passover: if you read the Testament you will there find it often spoken of; and to this very day they observe this ceremony, which they were commanded to perform, for the first time, the day before they were driven from Egypt, in such haste and fear, by Pharoah.

The Almighty made known to his peo

ple, by means of his servant, Moses, that they were each to take a lamb without blemish,() and keep it until the evening before this last terrible plague was to fall upon the Egyptians, when they were to kill and eat it in haste, with bitter herbs and unleavened() bread, with their loins girded, their shoes on their feet, and each inan with his staff in his hand; for on that night would the destroying angel pass through the land of Egypt. The Israelites were told, each man, to take a bunch of hyssop,() dip it in the blood of the lamb which he had killed, and strike with it their doorposts, and every door which bore this mark was passed over by the angel of death; hence this ceremony takes its name, and is called the feast of the Passover.

In many parts of the Old Testament we meet with what are called types (') or signs of that Saviour who had been promised to the world; thus, on this eventful() night, God made the blood of the lambs of the passover a means of safety to his people: and Christ, our Saviour, has been often called the "Lamb of God," whose blood cleanseth from all sin; and if our hearts are thus made clean, nothing can have power to hurt us; if our hearts

become sprinkled with the blood of Christ, as the doors of the Israelites were with the blood of the lambs, we shall become meek, gentle, peacemakers, full of love to our companions,-we shall bear with them when they are cross to us, and it will be seen that we are children of that God who has promised to protect all who come unto Him, and followers of that Saviour who said, "Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not, for of such is the kingdom of Heaven." Yours affectionately.

LETTER IX.

DEAR CHILDREN,

AFTER the Israelites left Egypt, they had a long, dangerous, and weary journey before them; they were a great multitude; the little food which they took with them could not be expected to last long, and they had the prospect of passing through a dreary desert, where neither meat nor drink was easily found. But that God who had caused Pharoah

to let them go, would not permit the people to want: He led them over the pathless(") sands, by means of a cloudy pillar, which moved before them all day,—and a pillar of fire, which shone on their path by night; when they were to rest, these guides stood still; when they were to proceed, they again moved on.

Now when they were gone, the king of Egypt was sorry that he had suffered them to depart, and took all his chariots and horsemen, and went after them. When the Israelites saw them coming, they had arrived on the shores of the Red Sea, which they had no means of crossing; behind them were their enemies, before them the water; they feared to go on, but Moses commanded them to stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. Then God caused the waters of the sea to divide, and the people passed through on dry ground; but when the Egyptians attempted to pursue them, the waters returned to their place, and the whole of Pharoah's host was drowned.

If I were to attempt to relate to you all that befell this wonderful people, this would be a very long letter; but as you have heard how they first came into Egypt, perhaps you may like to hear

what they met with on their return to that land where Jacob lived the peaceful life of a shepherd.

God worked many miracles for them on their way, besides that of causing them to pass through the Red Sea without even wetting their feet. After they had thanked the Almighty for thus wonderfully preserving them, He told them that He would cause food to fall every morning around the camp,(") which they gathered, each man for himself, and called it manna. They were commanded not to gather more than enough for one. day at a time; most likely in order that they might learn to place their daily dependence("") upon Him who can alone preserve us: the day before the sabbath they were to collect twice as much as common, that they might not have to work on that day which was set apart to the Lord. Although they had these mercies daily in view, they often complained when any new difficulty arose; they sometimes wanted water, and when they came to the rock in Horeb, where, you may remember, the Lord appeared to Moses, and commanded him to go into Egypt, the people were very angry with him, because they could get nothing to drink,

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