  THE CALL OF MOSES. FIRST READING.
YOU heard how Joseph brought his father and brothers and their children to live in Egypt. Their children's children went on living there for many years, till they had come to be a great people, and were called the children of Israel; but then the King of Egypt grew cruel to them. He made them work very hard to make bricks and build towns for him; and what was still worse, he ordered that whenever a little boy was born to the children of Israel, he should be thrown into the river and drowned. One mother hid her little baby for three months, and when she could not hide him any longer, she put him into a little cradle of bulrushes covered over with pitch, to keep the water out, and let the cradle float on the river, leaving the little boy's sister to watch him. Presently a lady, no other than the daughter of the cruel king, came down to bathe in the river. She saw the little cradle, and had it brought to her. The little baby was crying, and the lady pitied him and took him home, to bring up for her own child. She wanted a nurse for him, and his sister fetched his own mother, and she became his nurse. His name was Moses, and we hear about him in the Lesson to-day. He was not living with the king's daughter now. The king had grown angry with him because he cared for his own people, and he had had to flee away and keep sheep in the wilderness. MOSES AND THE TABLES OF THE LAW. And there he saw a great wonder. He saw a flame of fire in a bush, and yet the bush was not burnt. And God's voice spoke to him out of the fire that did not burn, and told him that the troubles of His people, the children of Israel, were to come to an end. God would save them from the cruel Egyptians; and Moses himself was to go and lead them out, and bring them to the good land that God had promised that Abraham's children should have for their own. Moses was to go and tell the King of Egypt that it was God's will that they should go. Moses was afraid at first, but God promised to help him. PHARAOH'S DAUGHTER FINDING MOSES.—Ex. 2:5, 6. QUESTIONS.
SECOND READING.
MOSES and his brother Aaron went and told Pharaoh God's message, that the people of Israel were to go away and worship Him. But Pharaoh said, "Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go." And he was more cruel to the children of Israel; he made them work harder and harder, and had them beaten if they did not do all the work that was set them. They had to make bricks of clay mixed with straw; and, to punish them, Pharaoh said that they should have no straw given to them for their work, but that they must find it for themselves; and yet he required of them just as many bricks as they had had to make before. Then they cried out and were angry, and fancied Moses had brought all this trouble on them, by asking for them to go. They were very miserable, and said they wished they had never listened to Moses, for he had only made them worse off instead of better. Aaron was a better speaker than Moses, and God had said he should help him, and that, when God told Moses anything, Aaron should speak it to the people. So the two brothers stood telling the Israelites to bear it a little longer, and then it would be all well and over, and they would get away from making the bricks in Egypt to the beautiful country. They could not remember it themselves, but some of their fathers' grandfathers had been little boys when they came, and could tell them that it was a country not all flat, with only one river in it, like Egypt, but full of steep hills and green valleys, with bright streams running along in them, and thick woods on some of the slopes, and others laid out in gardens and vineyards. There were so many cows in the pastures, and in the wild rocks THE ISRAELITES MADE TO WORK HARD IN EGYPT.—Ex. 1:13, 14. Should not the Israelites have liked to hear of such a place as this? But no, they were too dull to care. They thought more of whether they should get a leek or a melon to eat at supper, than of all the lovely land far away. Do you know, people are very like that when they care for now more than by-and-by. If we want just what pleases us to-day, instead of caring for what will be good for us as we grow older, we are just like the Israelites, who would not attend to Moses or to God. QUESTIONS.
THIRD READING.
THE Israelites were very unhappy, for Pharaoh was very cruel to them, and they thought it all Moses' fault. But Moses told them that they would be saved, and that God was going to show them His power, so that they might always remember what He had done for them, and how He punished Pharaoh, who would not obey Him. Then God made His power to be known; so that Pharaoh and the children of Israel might both learn who is the great Lord of heaven and earth, who must be obeyed. First, Moses stretched out his rod, and all the water in the river turned into blood. For seven days it was all one red dreadful stream of blood; and when Moses held out his rod again it turned back into pure water. But Pharaoh hardened his heart again, and would not let the people go. AARON'S ROD CHANGED TO A SERPENT.—Ex. 7:10. Then God sent a multitude of frogs, that came into all the houses and bed-rooms, and on the tables and everywhere. Pharaoh could not bear to have these creatures everywhere, and said if the frogs would but go away he would let the children of Israel go. Moses prayed to God, and all the frogs died; but Pharaoh only hardened his heart again, and would not let the people go. Next, God sent lice, disgusting unclean creatures, most horrible to the Egyptians, who could not bear anything dirty; but Pharaoh did not care. Then came swarms of flies, buzzing, stinging, and tormenting; and Pharaoh said he would allow the Israelites to go, so the flies were taken away; but no sooner were they gone than he went back again to his obstinacy, and would not let the people go. He was trying to fight against God, and so came these terrible miseries on him. If people will not do better after being punished, worse and worse is sure to come on them. QUESTIONS.
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