darkened; and they did eat every herb of the land, and all the fruit of the trees which the hail had left: and there remained not any green thing in the trees, or in the herbs of the field, through all the land of Egypt." Now, although locusts are very common in Arabia, they very rarely appear in Egypt; the Red Sea forming a barrier against them, as they are not formed for crossing seas, or for long flights. On the present occasion, however, they were enabled, by a strong east wind, to cross that sea from Arabia, which is another remarkable circumstance, as the prevailing winds in Egypt, blow six months from the north, and six months from the south. The plague must, therefore, have appeared to the Egyptians altogether preternatural. As such they looked upon it, and such was its powerful operation, that Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and avowed his fault, and begged for one reprieve more. "And the Lord turned a mighty strong west wind," (which blew from the Mediterranean Sea, in a north-westerly direction,)" which took away the locusts, and cast them into the Red Sea," so completely, that "there remained not one locust in all the coasts of Egypt." But when relief had been given, Pharaoh would not allow the Hebrews to take their families and flocks, though he was still willing that the men should do as they desired, Exod. x. 1-20. THE NINTH PLAGUE This obduracy on the part of the Egyptian monarch brought a new and most extraordinary plague upon Egypt. In that land, where a dark cloud seldom throws an obscuration on the clear blue face of the skies, for three days there was utter darkness-a darkness which, to use the sacred writer's own emphatic words, "might be felt," and which prevented the people from seeing one another. This phenomenon must have been not only astounding, but humiliating to the Egyptians, since their great deity, the sun, and darkness, another of their deities, were made the instruments of their punishment. Their consternation thereat is strongly represented by their total inaction. Petrified with horror, no one rose from "his place for three days," and Pharaoh, compelled to relax, offered to let the men and their families go, but he wished to keep the flocks and herds, as security for their return. Moses represented that, as they were going for the express purpose of offering sacrifices to Jehovah, it was necessary that the cattle should go with them; and he peremptorily declared, that "not a hoof" should be left behind, Exod. x. 21-27. But the proud monarch determined not to relinquish this last security which would remain to him, and Moses, perceiving his obstinacy, proceeded to predict another visitation. THE TENTH PLAGUE. The account of the last and most severe plague is best given in the emphatic words of Scripture:-" Thus saith the Lord, About midnight will I go out into the midst of Egypt: and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts. And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it, nor shall be like it any more. But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast that ye may know how that the Lord doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel. And all these thy servants shall come down unto me, and bow down themselves unto me, saying, Get thee out, and all the people that follow thee and after that I will go out." Such a threat, delivered in so high a tone, both in the name of the God of Israel and of Moses, exasperated the haughty monarch, and he answered, in sentences rendered abrupt by passion: "Get thee from me, take heed to thyself, see my face no more; for in that day thou seest my face thou shalt die." Moses withdrew from the monarch's presence, and finally from the court, to join the Hebrews in the land of Goshen, Exod. x. On that night, while the Jews were celebrating a newly instituted feast, the passover, which had reference to the coming event, the destroying angel went forth in a pestilence, and smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, as predicted. Throughout the whole country, there were lamentations and bitter weeping, for there was not a house into which death did not enter. The monarch himself rose up in the night, with his nobles, and the Egyptian people, in great sorrow; and he sent to Moses and Aaron a message to this effect: "Rise up, and get you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Israel; and go, serve the Lord, as ye have said. Also take your flocks and your herds, as ye have said, and be gone; and bless me also." The Egyptian people also, "were urgent upon the people, that they might send them out of the land in haste; for they said, We be all dead men,” Exod. xi., xii. 66 The Israelites obeyed the mandate, but the haughty monarch soon repented of what he had done; and, by a strange infatuation, he made ready his chariot, and took his people with him," and pursued after them. He overtook them, encamping by the sea, beside Pihahiroth, (the mouth of the ridge,) over against Baal-zephon. When the children of Israel beheld him marching after them, they were alarmed, and were disposed to submit without resistance to their oppressors. "Let us alone," said they, "that we may serve the Egyptians. For it had been better for us to serve the Egyptians, than that we should die in the wilderness." Moses did not deign to remonstrate with them, but meekly replied, "Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will show to you to-day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to-day, ye shall see them again no more for ever. The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace." The Lord did interfere, and fight for Israel. At the lifting up of the rod of Moses, he opened a passage for them across the Red Sea; and the host of Pharaoh, presuming to follow after them, when the Hebrews were safely landed on the opposite shore, were involved in one common destruction. Again the prophet stretched his dreadful wand: The pride of Egypt was overwhelmed; "there remained not so much as one of them," Exod. xii., xiii., xiv. Manetho, and the Egyptian writers, says Dr. Hales, have passed over in silence this tremendous visitation of their nation. An ancient writer, however, Artapanus, who wrote a history of the Jews about B.c. 130, has preserved the following curious Egyptian traditions: "The Memphites relate, that Moses, being well acquainted with the country, watched the influx of the tide, and made the multitude pass over the dry [bed of the] sea. But the Heliopolitans relate, that the king with a great army, accompanied by the sacred animals, pursued after the Jews, who had carried off with them the substance of the Egyptians. And that Moses, having been directed by a Divine voice to strike the sea with his rod, when he heard it, touched the water with his rod; and so the fluid divided, and the host passed over through a dry way. But when the Egyptians entered along with them, and pursued them, it is said, that fire flashed against them in front, and the sea, returning back, overwhelmed the passage. Thus the Egyptians perished, both by the fire, and by the reflux of the tide." The latter account is extremely curious: it not only confirms Scripture, but it notices three additional circumstances. 1. That for their protection against THE GOD OF ISRAEL, the Egyptians brought with them the sacred animals; and by this means, God executed judgment upon all the [bestial] gods of Egypt, as foretold, Exod. xii. 12, who perished with their infatuated votaries; completing the destruction of both, which began with smiting the first born both of man and beast. 2. That the recovery of the "jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment," which they asked and obtained of the Egyptians, according to the Divine command, Exod. xii. 35, 36, was a leading motive with the Egyptians, to pursue them; as the bringing back the Israelites to slavery had been with "Pharoah and his servants," or officers. And, 3. That the destruction of the Egyptians was partly occasioned by lightning and thunderbolts, from the presence of the Lord: exactly corresponding to the psalmist's sublime description: "The waters saw thee, O God, the waters saw thee; they were afraid: the depths also were troubled. clouds poured out water: the skies sent out a sound: thine arrows also went abroad.-Yea, he sent out his arrows, and scattered them; and he shot out lightnings, and discomfited them. Then the channels of waters were seen, and the foundations of the world were discovered at thy rebuke, O Lord, at the blast of the breath of thy nostrils," Psa. lxxvii. 16, 17; xviii. 14, 15. The The exode of the Israelites, and the destruction of Pharoah and his host, is dated by Dr. Hales, 1648 years B. C. This learned author, also, as well as other chronologers, enumerates many monarchs who ruled over Egypt after this period; but as Scripture, which is the most ancient piece of history extant is silent from the time of the exodus till the days of Solomon concerning Egypt, (a fact which proves that the storm of war had passed off either to the westward of Palestine, or that the Egyptian conquerors followed the maritime roads by Gaza and the Phenician coasts, leaving Judea to the right,) our knowledge of these monarchs is very limited. What is known, is derived partly from profane authors, and partly from the hieroglyphics and tradition, neither of which speak of some of the monarchs enumerated by chronologers.* The first monarch of whom there is any historical information after the exode is MOERIS, OR MYRIS.† The name of Moeris is not found on the Phonetic inscriptions; nevertheless his reign is a well authenticated fact; and he seems to have been one of the wisest and best of the Egyptian kings. To him is ascribed the formation of the lake Moeris, now called Kairoun, which was designed to receive the redundant waters of the Nile, and to discharge them by sluices, for the irrigation of the lands when the river failed. According to Herodotus, this lake was about 450 miles in circumference, and, from the varied statements of modern travellers, from thirty to fifty miles long, and from six to ten miles wide, and its deepest part 200 cubits, or 100 yards; which is too great a work to have been excavated by human labours. Nothing, indeed, says Browne, can present an appearance so unlike the works of men. On the north-east and south is a rocky ridge, in every appearance, primeval. It would be safer, therefore, to understand, that Moeris only opened a communication between the river and this vast natural basin, which runs parallel thereto from north to south, about ten miles distant, and made a canal, eighty stadia, or about four leagues in length, and three plethra, or 100 yards, in breadth, as described by Diodorus.. would have been a stupendous work, and far more glorious than either the pyramids or the labyrinth, if we consider it with reference to its utility; for it was used for the three-fold purposes of agriculture, commerce, and a fishery. This canal is now called Bahr Jusuf, or " Joseph's river," and it is This * For the names of these monarchs we refer the reader to the lists of dynasties given at the conclusion of the book. + Between the exode of the Israelites, and the reign of Moeris, there were several monarchs of Egypt, but, as we have no authentic information concerning them, it must be considered as a blank in the history. Their names will be found in the lists at the end of the book. |