The daily gazette., 1875-04-27
From the Baltimore Sun.
Lecture on E0yfst's Plaques.

Rev. DR.. Meyer, rabbi of Har Sinai
Hebrew Temple, Lexington street, west
OF Pine street, Baltimore, lectured Sun
day morning to full congregation on
the "Ten Plaques of Egypt" He took
the ground that none of the ten plaques
were miracles, but that all Of them were
natural occurrences, and that this view
of the exodus of the Israelites from
Egypt and the attendant contributory
events do not in any degree diminish,
but rather increase reverence for the
Creator and Author of these move
melts of nature, nor do they conflict
with the scriptural history of the ex-
odus, He said the first plague, the
reddening of the waters of the Nile.
was caused by red clay of Upper Egypt
which was dissolved and carried down
the river, giving it bloody tinge, and
that this alarmed the Egyptians because
they thought their god, the Nile, was
dead and that this was his blood. The
frogs, vermin, &c, of the other plaques
were natural caused by the disturbed
waters, befouled by the red clay, and
overfowing its banks so as to carry
the frogs, dsc., into the country. The
locusts also came naturally, as they
now make their periodical visits in vari-
GUS parts of the world. The slaughter
of the first born Of the Egyptians was
| not by the angel of the Lord, for in
that case it would not have been neces-
sary for the Israelites to have marked
their doors with blood to indicate
which were their houses. A divine
agent would haYe had such knowledge
supernaturally. The destroyers were
the Arabs, the descendants of the 318
Abrahamites whom Abraham had en-
listed in his service and armed, and
who afterwards went forth to the cast
ward where they multiplied, and in a
sudden invasion, led by Moses, com
| mitted the slaughter in the households
of the Egyptians.
DIR. Meyer also contended that there
was no supernatural parting of the
waters of the Red sea. He said it was
not necessary for the Israelites to crols
| the Red sea, and they reached the
other side by passing around it. They
travelled from Raamses, when permit
ted by Pharoah to depart from bond
| age, to Succoth, now Suck, and from
there to Sinai, and to do this it was
necessary to cross the sea. The pillar
of flre by night and cloud by day were
the fire which they carried at the head
OF the host and the smoke from it. The
vanguard of the Israelites was moved
to the rear with the fire. The smoke
from this blinded the pursuing army
of Pharoah, strong east wind which
prevails in that section from April to
June carrying the smoke away from the
rear of the Israelites into the faces of
their enemies. The pursuers marched
into the Red sen and were drowned,
while the vanguard Of the Israelites,
following the main body, fastened
around the head of the sea and escaped.
DR.. Meyer argued that it would have
| been impossible for the Israelites,
SOC, 600 men, besides women and chill
| dren,to cross the sea between midnight,
when they must have rec ched it's banks.
and morning. He said the expressions
| used to describe the dividing of the
sea were poetical and not to be liter
ally construed. The Pentateuch, OR
five books of Moses, he said, was not
written by Moses alone, but partly by
him, by Hilkea, the father of Jere-
miah, by Ezra and others. He sup
ported his views by quotations from
the Pentateueh, and in the construc-
tion he contended should be given va
rious words IN the original Hebrew.