The Bible Story Part 142

And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. And the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the hors.e.m.e.n, even all the host of Pharaoh that went in after them into the sea; there remained not so much as one of them.

But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea; and the waters were a wall to them on their right hand, and on their left.

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LOOKING ACROSS THE RED SEA FROM SINAI TOWARD EGYPT Copyright by Underwood & Underwood and used by special permission.

"The Israelites were encamped on the western sh.o.r.e of the Red Sea, when suddenly a cry of alarm ran through the vast mult.i.tude. Over the ridges of the desert hills were seen the well-known horses, the terrible chariots of the Egyptian host: Pharaoh pursued after the children of Israel, and they were sore afraid

"They were sore afraid; and in that terror and perplexity the sun went down behind the huge mountain range which rose on their rear, and cut off their return to Egypt; and the dark night fell over the waters of the sea which rolled before them, and cut off their advance into the desert. So closed in upon them that evening; where were they when the morning broke over the hills of Arabia? Where were they, and where were their enemies?

"They stood in safety on the further sh.o.r.e; and the chariots, and the hors.e.m.e.n, and the host of Pharaoh had vanished in the waters"

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Thus the Lord saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the sea sh.o.r.e. And Israel saw the great work which the Lord did upon the Egyptians, and the people feared the Lord: and they believed in the Lord, and in his servant Moses.

For the horses of Pharaoh went in with his chariots and with his hors.e.m.e.n into the sea, and the Lord brought again the waters of the sea upon them; but the children of Israel walked on dry land in the midst of the sea. And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances.

And Miriam sang:--

THE SONG OF VICTORY.

Sing ye to the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously; The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.

Thy right hand, O Lord, dasheth in pieces the enemy.

And in the greatness of thine excellency thou overthrowest them that rise up against thee: Thou sendest forth thy wrath, it consumeth them as stubble.

And with the blast of thy nostrils the waters were piled up, The floods stood upright as an heap; The deeps were congealed in the heart of the sea.

The enemy said, "I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil: {188} My desire shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them."

Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them: They sank as lead in the mighty waters.

Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the G.o.ds?

Who is like thee, glorious in holiness, Fearful in praises, doing wonders?

Thou stretchedst out thy right hand, The earth swallowed them.

Thou in thy mercy hast led the people which thou hast redeemed: Thou hast guided them in thy strength to thy holy habitation.

The peoples have heard, they tremble: Pangs have taken hold on the inhabitants of Philistia.

Then were the dukes of Edom amazed; The mighty men of Moab, trembling taketh hold upon them: All the inhabitants of Canaan are melted away.

Terror and dread falleth upon them; By the greatness of thine arm they are as still as a stone; Till thy people pa.s.s over, O Lord, Till the people pa.s.s over which thou hast purchased.

Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of thine inheritance, The place, O Lord, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in, The sanctuary, O Lord, which thy hands have established.

The Lord shall reign for ever and ever.

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SHEPHERD WITH HIS FLOCK NEAR TEKOA Copyright by Underwood & Underwood and used by special permission.

Two of the great prophets of Israel lived in this region, Amos at Tekoa and Jeremiah at Anathoth. It is a wild and desolate region

"The wilderness of Judea played a great part in her history as the refuge of political fugitives and religious solitaries--a part which it still continues. The story of Saul's hunt after David and of David's narrow escapes becomes very vivid among those tossed and broken hills, where the valleys are all alike and large bodies of men may camp near each other without knowing it. Ambushes are everywhere possible and alarms pa.s.s rapidly across the bare and silent hills. You may travel for hours and feel as solitary as at sea without a sail in sight; but if you are in search of anyone, your guide's signal will make men leap from slopes that did not seem to shelter a rabbit, and if you are suspected, your pa.s.sage may be stopped by a dozen men as though they had sprung from the earth."

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THE WANDERINGS IN THE WILDERNESS

THE RED SEA IS LEFT BEHIND AND THE MARCH TO CANAAN IS BEGUN.

_The Bitter Water of Marah_.

And Moses led Israel onward from the Red Sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water. And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called "Marah," that is, bitter.

And the people murmured against Moses, saying, "What shall we drink?"

And he cried to the Lord; and the Lord showed him a tree, and he cast it into the waters, and the waters were made sweet. There he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them; and he said, "If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy G.o.d, and wilt do that which is right in his eyes, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases upon thee, which I have put upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee."

And they came to Elim, where were twelve springs of water, and threescore and ten palm trees: and they encamped there by the waters.

And they took their journey from Elim, and all the {192} congregation of the children of Israel came unto the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departing out of the land of Egypt. And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron in the wilderness: and the children of Israel said unto them, "Would that we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole mult.i.tude with hunger."

_The Quails and the Manna_.

Then said the Lord unto Moses, "Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a day's portion every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or not.

And it shall come to pa.s.s on the sixth day, that they shall prepare that which they bring in, and it shall be twice as much as they gather daily."

And Moses and Aaron said to all the children of Israel, "At even, then ye shall know that the Lord hath brought you out from the land of Egypt: and in the morning, then ye shall see the glory of the Lord; for that he heareth your murmurings against the Lord: and what are we, that ye murmur against us?"

And Moses said unto Aaron, "Say to all the congregation of the children of Israel, 'Come near before the Lord: for he hath heard your murmurings.'"

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RESTING PLACE UNDER THE PALMS AT THE "SPRING OF MOSES"

IN THE WILDERNESS OF SINAI

Copyright by Underwood & Underwood and used by special permission.

This brackish pool of water with palms growing about it is supposed to be the place of the "bitter waters of Marah" which Moses sweetened for the weary Israelites in their flight, the first stopping place after escaping from Egypt. This place is not far from Suez.

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And it came to pa.s.s, as Aaron spoke unto the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and, behold, the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak unto them, saying, 'At even ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be filled with bread; and ye shall know that I am the Lord your G.o.d.'"

And it came to pa.s.s at even, that the quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay round about the camp. And when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, upon the face of the wilderness a small round thing, small as the h.o.a.r frost on the ground. And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, "What is it?"

for they knew not what it was.