Jehovah is a man of war,
Jehovah is his name.
Pharaoh's chariots and his host
Hath he cast into the sea:

The choicest of his captains

Are sunk into the reedy sea.

The floods have covered them,

They sank into the depths

Like a stone.

Thy right hand, O Jehovah,

Hath shown itself glorious in majesty; Thy right hand, O Jehovah,

Hath dashed in pieces the enemy.

By thine exalted power

Thou dashest those that rise against thee.
Thou sentest forth thy wrath,
It consumed them like stubble.

At the blast of thy nostrils
The waters were gathered together,
The swelling flood stood up like heaps,
The waves were congealed
In the depths of the sea.

The enemy said, I will pursue,
Will seize, will divide the spoil;
My soul shall glut itself with them,
My sword will I draw out,
And utterly destroy them.

Then breathed thy wind;

The sea covered them,
They sank as lead
In the mighty waters.

Who is like to thee, O Lord!
Who among the gods!
Who is like thee, glorious in holiness,
Fearful in praises, doing wonders.

Thou stretchedst out thy hand,

The earth swallowed them up.
With gentle hand thou leddest forth
The people which thou hadst redeemed.
Thou guidest them with strength
Unto thy holy habitation.

The nations hear thereof and tremble,
Grief seizes on the dwellers in Philistia,
The princes of Edom are amazed,
The heroes of Moab are seized with dread,
The dwellers in Canaan are melting away.
Let fear and dread fall upon them,
The terrors of death from thy mighty arm.
Let them be motionless as a stone,

Till thy people, O Lord, pass over,
Till thy people pass, whom thou hast redeemed.

Bring them in, O Lord,

Plant thy people

Upon the mount of thine inheritance,
The place of thy habitation,

Which thou hast made ready for thyself,
The sanctuary which thy hands have made.
Jehovah reigns for ever and ever.

Forth marched the horse of Pharaoh and his
chariots,

He went with his horsemen down into the sea.
Then brought Jehovah upon them
The returning waves of the sea.
The tribes of Israel passed dry
Through the midst of the sea.*

Miriam, the sister of Moses, and the prophetess as she is termed, took a conspicuous part in this

* This translation of the Song of Moses at the Red Sea, is taken from "The Spirit of Hebrew Poetry, by J. G. Her der, translated from the German, by James Marsh."

sacred jubilee. She led a choir of female singers; and, uniting with them in a joyous yet solemn dance, appropriate to the occasion, with instruments of music in their hands, on which they played, they responded at intervals, (while a general pause on the part of the others took place,) in this chorus of triumphant praise :

Sing ye to the Lord,

For he hath triumphed gloriously,
The horse and the rider hath he thrown
Into the depths of the sea.

From her title of prophetess, we may conclude that Miriam, at times, received divine communications, and was probably directed to make known to the females among the Israelites some of their peculiar duties in the service of the Lord. She was their appropriate leader and instructress; and seems to have acted in that capacity on the occasion which has just been described.

After this solemn public act of thanksgiving to God for his merciful interposition in their behalf, the Israelites were commanded by Moses again to proceed on their journey. Being ready to move, with the pillar of the cloud before them, to lead the way, they went out from the borders of the Red Sea, into the wilderness of Shur. This extensive desert was probably the one which lay south of Canaan, and eastward from the northern part of the

Red Sea. Burckhardt, a modern traveller, describes it as, in part, a barren, sandy, gravelly plain, with some thorny trees growing in it, but no herbs for pasture; and, in part, sand-hills and mountains, the intermediate valleys being equally unfruitful.

In traversing such deserts, at the present day, even with all the arrangements which a vigilant precaution can make, it is well known how much suffering is often endured. No public roads, or places of convenient accommodation, are to be met with. A tree, or small spot of verdure, is a rare sight. Springs of water are scarce, and often four, six, or eight days' journey from each other; and not unfrequently they have such a salt or bitter taste, as to increase the thirst of those who attempt to allay it by using them.

Sometimes the camels become so exhausted that no means can be used to compel them to travel any farther. Many men and beasts, under such circumstances, can procure no relief, and perish. Sand-storms, too, at certain seasons of the year, prevail. A violent wind sweeping over the desert, raises thick clouds of dust and sand, which entering the eyes, nostrils, and mouth of travellers, almost suffocate them, if indeed individuals and whole caravans are not at times, as reported by some travellers, overwhelmed with instant destruction.

Through such a wilderness, one which the Scriptures call waste and howling, the Israelites travelled three days, without finding any water. This alone, considering their numbers, their flocks and herds, and how many young persons and children were among them, who could not endure this privation as the older persons could, must have caused a great deal of suffering. How unlike the country of Goshen and of Egypt, which they had left; where, among other comforts, they had had an • abundance of pure and delicious water. The entire failure of this, for themselves and cattle, with their other privations and fatigues, and the desolate aspect of the whole desert around them, were, indeed, well adapted to produce great discouragement, and to make them dread the still more appalling scenes through which they might yet have to pass.

But it was by passing through such scenes, that God meant to discipline and to try them. They needed the chastisement. They were an unbelieving and obstinate people, of which we shall have abundant proof, as we advance in their history. Judgments as well as mercies went to make up the course of God's dealings with them, that they thus might be led to be humbled before him for their sinfulness, and forsake it; to feel their dependance on his mercy; and to exercise a stronger confidence in the wisdom, righteousness, and goodness of his government over them.