i Exod. xii. 30. ^ 2 Pet. ii. 2—5.
2328.1 MOSEs' FAITH IN THE PASSOVER. 421
[Realize to yourselves one moment the different states of the Israelites and the Egyptians on that night, when the angel was spreading death and destruction all around him. Behold the consternation that pervaded all the families of Egypt ; and then look within the houses of the Hebrews, and behold their serenity and joy. O what a contrast ! And all through the influence of faith ! So it is at this hour with those who truly believe. They know what judgments are coming on the whole world of the ungodly : they know, that they themselves deserve them, as much as any other persons whatsoever : they know, that nothing which they can do can avert the stroke of Divine justice : but they know that God has appointed means of safety : they know that, however inadequate according to our vain conceits the means may be to the end, they are, and shall be, effectual to all who use them in faith : they are conscious that they have used them ; and that they renounce every other ground of hope, and place their dependence solely on the blood of the Paschal Lamb. They are feasting too from day to day on the flesh of that Paschal Lamb ; and they have no wish but to cast off the yoke of Egypt, and to prosecute their journey to the pi'omised land. The peace which others have, if it may be called peace, is owing to their disbelief of their danger : but the peace of the godly arises from their view of the sufficiency of Christ to save them, and of the faithfulness of God to all who hope in his promised mercy. Take ye then, my beloved brethren, the Israelites for your example. Take them at that precise moment, with " their loins girt, and shoes on their feet, and staves in their hands, and eating their sacrifice in haste," ready at any instant to obey the Divine mandate, and to go forth to Canaan under the Divine guidance and protection. Then shall ye be Christ's disciples indeed : and then " shall ye eat, whilst others are hungry ; and drink, whilst others are thirsty : then shall ye rejoice, whilst others are ashamed ; and sing for joy of heart, whilst others cry for sorrow of heart, and howl for vexation of spirit^"]
3. With what dehght we should all welcome the return of this day"" !
[To the people of Israel this day was enjoined to be observed even to the latest generations as the most memorable day in the whole year. And well might that night be termed, " a night to be much observed unto the Lord"." Methinks, ' the annual return of it, to those who bore in remembrance the mercies then vouchsafed to them, could not fail of filling their
1 Isai. Ixv. 13, 14.
>" This conclusion is adapted only to Easter Day, on which the twelfth chapter of Exodus is read as the First Lesson for the day. " Exod. xii. 42.