rather be m·gcd in its favour. The Egyptia.n agreeable to the Egyptian monuments, by practice of wee.ring I\S amulets " forms of which the camel appears to have been rara words "Titten on folds of papyrns tightly in Egypt at this time, e.nd the horse e.s yet rolled up e.nd sewn in linen ' (Wilkirumn's me.inly used for we.r and by the nobles in their Ancient Egyptians, vol. iii. p. 364) is well chltriots. With a lamb. A le.mb or e. kid. The attested. "\\T ould it not be in he.rmony with word used is the generic one. (See the com- the general che.racter of his legislation, that ment on eh. xii. 3.) If thou wilt not redeem Moses should adopt and regulate the cnstom, it, then thou shalt break its neok. This employing it to do honour to the Law e.nd enactment was evidently made to prevent e. keep it in remembrance, without perhaps refuse.I to redeem. It would not require to purging it wholly from superstitious ideas? be put in force, since by refusing under such Moses allowed the Israelites in me.ny things a penalty a man would suffer pecunie.ry loss. "for the he.rdness of their hearts,~ content if All the first-born of men among thy ohild- he could introduce some improvement with- ren. Rather "among thy sons." Shalt thou out insisting at once on an impracticable redeem. Later on, the amount of the redemp- perfection. That the la.w of the Lord may tion money was fixed e.t five shekels of the be in thy mouth. The Israelites are in- se.nctue.ry for ea.eh. (Nnm. iii. 47.) structed from the first, that the tephillin are Ver.14.-When thysonasketh thee. Com- to be a mee.ns to an end ; e.nd that the end pare eh. xii. 26, and the comment ad loo. is to be the retention of God's law in their Ver. 15.-When Pharaoh would hardly recollection-" in their mouth," e.nd therefore let us go. Rather, "when Phe.raoh he.rdened in their bee.rt, since " out of the abundance himself age.inst letting us go." At his le.st of the heart the mouth speaketh." interview with Moses, Phe.raoh had abso- Ver. 1O.-This ordinance. The ordinance lutely refused to let them go with their cattle of unlea,·cned bread. See eh. xii. 14, 24. ( eh. x. 24--27), a.nd Moses had absolutely Ver. 12.-Set apart. The expression is refused to go without them. I sacrifice all especially appropriate to the case of fust-bom that openeth the womb, being males. And animals, which would have to be sepe.rated being clean animals. The com::non sense of off from the rest of the flock, or of the herd, the reader or hee.rer, is expected to supply the e.nd " put aside " for Jehovah, so as not to be restriction. Of my children. Rather, as in mixed up e.nd confounded with the other verse 13, " of my sons." lambs, kids, a.nd calves. The males Bhall be Ver. 16.-A sign . . . frontleta. See the the Lord's. This li.mita.tion, implied in verse comment on verse 9. It is the custom among 2, is here brought prominently into notice. the Jews to write this entire passage-Ex Ver. 13.-Every :l!rstling of an us. The xiii. 1-16-on two of the four strips of ass was the sole beast of bnrthen taken by pe.rchment contained in the tephillin. The the Israelites ont of Egypt. (See Ex. xx. 17.) others he."e inscribed on them Dent. vi. 4-9, Neither the horse nor the camel was among a.nd Dent. xi. 13-21 their possewons in the wildemess. This is
HUMILETICS. Vers. 1-16.-The Dedication and Berl,emption of the First-born. In commemoration of the !!Teat mercy whereby their first-born sons were spared. when all those of the Egypt;ns were slain, God required the Israeli~~ to do two things :-(1) To ~edicate all their first-born sons, not only of the e:nstmg but of all future generat10ns, to himself; and, (2) to redeem them, or buy them back for the purposes of secular life, by a money payment. It is analogous to this- I. THAT CliB.ISTIAN PARENTS ARE REQUIBED TO DEDICATE, NOT THEIR FIRST-DORN SONS o~-r.Y, BUT ALL THEm CHILDREN, TO Goo IN BAPTISM. All have deserved death. All have been in danger of it. All have been spa.red by the mercy of God, on account of the atonin" blood of Christ. All therefore are to be dedicated by their parents to God's service'.:'.._brought to the font, and presented to him to be his faithful soldiers and servants until their life's end. All are to receive a. species of consecration, whereby they become "priests to God" (Rev. i. 6), and may have boldness to approach him without the intervention of a human mediator. But all are not to be ministers. 'fhe ministry is for such as have a special call, which cannot be known in infancy, or indeed until persons are well advanced towards manhood. li. THAT CrutlBTIAN PARENTS HAVJ!:, .AFTER DEDICATING THEM, TO TAKE THEIR CRILDREN BACK, AS IT WEHE, TO si,:cULAR LIFE. Hannah gave her son up to God from the time that i;he weaned him, took him to the Temple, and left him with on. xm. 1-16.J THE BOOK OF EXODUS. 301