The Bible Story Part 138

And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses, and he said, "Is there not Aaron thy brother the Levite? I know that he can speak well.

And also, behold, he cometh forth to meet thee: and when he seeth thee, he will be glad in his heart. And thou shalt speak to him, and put the words in his mouth: and I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do. And he shall be thy spokesman unto the people: and it shall come to pa.s.s, that he shall be to thee a mouth, and thou shalt be to him as G.o.d. And thou shalt take in thine hand this rod, wherewith thou shalt do the signs."

And Moses went and returned to Jethro his father-inn law, and said unto him, "Let me go, I pray thee, and return to my brethren which are in Egypt, and see whether they be yet alive."

And Jethro said to Moses, "Go in peace."

And the Lord said to Moses in Midian, "Go, return into Egypt: for all the men are dead which sought thy life."

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[Ill.u.s.tration]

THE BANKS OF THE NILE NEAR CAIRO From a photograph owned by Mr. S. E. Bridgman and used by his kind permission.

The Nile was the life and glory of Egypt. It afforded a magnificent waterway for commerce, and the annual overflow gave the greatest fertility to the soil.

[End ill.u.s.tration]

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And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an a.s.s, and he returned to the land of Egypt: and Moses took the rod of G.o.d in his hand. And the Lord said to Moses, "When thou goest back into Egypt, see that thou do before Pharaoh all the wonders which I have put in thine hand: but I will harden his heart, and he will not let the people go. And thou shalt say to Pharaoh, 'Thus saith the Lord, Israel is my son, my firstborn: and I have said to thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me; and thou hast refused to let him go: behold I will slay thy son, thy firstborn.'"

And the Lord said to Aaron, "Go into the wilderness to meet Moses." And he went, and met him in the mountain of G.o.d, and kissed him. And Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord wherewith he had sent him, and all the signs wherewith he had charged him. And Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel: and Aaron spoke all the words which the Lord had spoken to Moses, and did the signs in the sight of the people. And the people believed.

"LET MY PEOPLE GO."

_Moses and Aaron Demand the Release of the Israelites_.

_Pharaoh Refuses_.

And afterward Moses and Aaron came, and said to Pharaoh, "Thus saith the Lord, the G.o.d of Israel, 'Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness.'"

And Pharaoh said, "Who is the Lord, that I should hearken to his voice to let Israel go? I know not the Lord, and moreover I will not let Israel go."

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And they said, "The G.o.d of the Hebrews hath met with us: let us go, we pray thee, three days' journey into the wilderness, and sacrifice to the Lord our G.o.d; lest he fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword."

And the king of Egypt said to them, "Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, loose the people from their works? get you to your burdens." And Pharaoh said, "Behold, the people of the land are now many, and ye make them rest from their burdens."

And the same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people, and their officers, saying, "Ye shall no more give the people straw to make brick, as heretofore: let them go and gather straw for themselves. And the number of the bricks, which they did make heretofore, ye shall lay upon them; ye shall not diminish aught thereof: for they are idle; therefore they cry, saying, 'Let us go and sacrifice to our G.o.d.' Let heavier work be laid upon the men, that they may labor therein; and let them not regard lying words."

And the taskmasters of the people went out, and their officers, and they spoke to the people, saying, "Thus saith Pharaoh, I will not give you straw. Go yourselves, get you straw where ye can find it: for naught of your work shall be diminished."

So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. And the taskmasters were urgent, saying, "Fulfill your works, your daily tasks, as when there was straw."

And the officers of the children of Israel, which {151} Pharaoh's taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, and demanded, "Wherefore have ye not fulfilled your task both yesterday and to-day, in making brick as heretofore?"

Then the officers of the children of Israel came and cried to Pharaoh, saying, "Wherefore dealest thou thus with thy servants? There is no straw given unto thy servants, and they say to us, 'Make brick': and, behold, thy servants are beaten; but the fault is in thine own people."

But he said, "Ye are idle, ye are idle: therefore ye say, 'Let us go and sacrifice to the Lord.' Go therefore now, and work; for there shall no straw be given you, yet shall ye deliver the number of bricks."

And the officers of the children of Israel saw that they were in deep trouble when it was said, "Ye shall not diminish aught from your bricks, your daily tasks."

And they met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, as they came forth from Pharaoh: and they said to them, "The Lord look upon you, and judge; because ye have made us to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to slay us."

And the Lord said unto Moses, "Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh: for by a strong hand shall he let them go, and by a strong hand shall he drive them out of his land."

And it came to pa.s.s on the day when the Lord spoke unto Moses in the land of Egypt, that the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "I am the Lord: speak thou to Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I speak to thee."

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And Moses said before the Lord, "Behold, I am slow of speech and of a slow tongue, and how shall Pharaoh hearken unto me?"

And the Lord said unto Moses, "See, I have made thee a G.o.d to Pharaoh: and Aaron thy brother shall be thy spokesman. Thou shalt speak all that I command thee: and Aaron thy brother shall speak unto Pharaoh, that he let the children of Israel go out of his land. And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and multiply my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt. But Pharaoh will not hearken unto you, and I will lay my hand upon Egypt, and bring forth my hosts, my people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt by great judgments. And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I stretch forth mine hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them."

And Moses and Aaron did so; as the Lord commanded them, so did they.

And the Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, "When Pharaoh shall speak to you, saying, 'Show a wonder for you:' then thou shalt say unto Aaron, 'Take thy rod, and cast it down before Pharaoh, that it become a serpent.'"

And Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh, and they did so, as the Lord had commanded: and Aaron cast down his rod before Pharaoh and before his servants, and it became a serpent. Then Pharaoh also called for the wise men and the magicians: and they also did in like manner with their enchantments.

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[Ill.u.s.tration]

THE RIVER NILE

From a photograph belonging to Miss Clara L. Bodman and used by her kind permission.

"And all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood."

This picture shows the broad Nile with one of the boats now in use called a "dahabiyeh." There has been built recently on the upper Nile an immense dam which will be used to regulate the flow of water and bring great agricultural prosperity to Egypt [End ill.u.s.tration]

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For they cast down every man his rod, and they became serpents: but Aaron's rod swallowed up their rods. And Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto them; as the Lord had spoken.

THE PLAGUES OF EGYPT.

1. THE PLAGUE OF BLOOD.

And the Lord said unto Moses, "Pharaoh's heart is stubborn, he refuseth to let the people go. Get thee to Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goeth out unto the water; and thou shalt stand by the river's brink to meet him; and the rod which was turned to a serpent shalt thou take in thine hand. And thou shalt say unto him, 'The Lord, the G.o.d of the Hebrews, hath sent me to thee, saying, Let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness: and, behold, hitherto thou hast not hearkened. Thus saith the Lord, In this thou shalt know that I am the Lord: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood. And the fish that are in the river shall die, and the river shall stink; and the Egyptians shall loathe to drink water from the river.'"

And the Lord said to Moses, "Say unto Aaron, 'Take thy rod, and stretch out thine hand over the waters of Egypt, over their rivers, over their streams, and over their pools, and over all their ponds of water, that they may become blood; and there shall be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood and in vessels of stone.'"

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