Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1901-11-30
International gesso1l.
THE SUNDAY SCHOOL.
LESSON X, FOURTH QUARTER, INTER.
NATIONAL SERIES, DEC. 8.

kill, documentary Prepared by
the Rev. d. n. Stearns.
copyright, 1901. by American Press Association
/. "And the Lord said unto Moses. Yet
will l bring one plague more upon ina
raoh and upon Egypt. Afterwards hc will
let YOU 20 hence" The time had come
to deliver Israel from Egypt according to
His promise to Abraham Gen. xv, l4).
Moses and Aaron are sent first to the
elders of Israel to show by the signs God
had commanded that they are His nc
credited agents in lsrael's deliverance.
The people believed and worshiped when
they heard that God was about to deliver
them Gy, 29-31J. Moses and Aaron are
then sent to Pharaoh with the message
from the Lord, 'lsrael is My son. My
firstborn, and I say unto thee. let My son
70 that he may serve Me, and il thou re-
fuse to let him 60 behold. l will slay thy
son, thy 6rstborn." Pharach's reply
was, 81 know not the Loid, neither will
I let Israel go" tiv. %. %: V. q. He Or
dered Moses and Aaron to go to work.
and he greatly increased the tasks Of Is
rael, so that they cried against Moses and
Aaron, and Moses cried to the Lord,
who then said. "Now shalt thou gee what
I will do to Pharaoh" And He repeated
with great emphasis His assurance that
He would now deliver Israel tvi, l-S).
Note especially the seven IL wills" OF
verses 6-S, beginning and ending with Il
am the Lord" This ''yet one plague OF
our lesson was the only one Of which God
spake to Pharaoh tiv, 23). but He Is Sd
long suffering that He sends first nine
others, il perchance Pharaoh will repent
and prevent the necessity Of this last ter
rible one. He sent blood. frogs. lice,
flies, murrain. boils. hail, locusts and
darkness tvii to x), but Pharaoh only
hardened his heart iv. 81: vii. 3. 13. II.
%: viii. Is. 10. 80: tx. I. IL. "a. 80: <. l.
20, p: II. 1W until this last one had to
come before he would let Israel 60. He
offered to let them 20 If they would not
20 far, but stay in the land. Then he
offered to let the men so. but nM the
children. Then he offered to let old AMI
young 20. but not focks and herds. But
not till after this last plague was he will
ing to let all go. as the Lord demanded
(viii, 25; <, II. 24: xii. 81. 32I. The whole
record is suggestive of the way satan
holds on to those whom the Lord would
redeem. and also those whom He has re-
deemed. hindering them from full conse-
Grafton to God. But If we would glorify
God mot an hoof must he left behind"
*, 2G). We must be wholly set apart
for Himself FPS. iv. 8; Titus ii. IA. R. W.
2, 3. God had said to Abram that when
his seed should leave their house Of
bondage they would come out with great
substance tGen. XIV. 14). The word
"borrow" in this passage, and also in
Iii, u, %; xii. 35. 81. should be task" OF
demand" (see r. w.. for the Israelites
had long served the Egyptians and had u
right to some recompcnse. To borrow
with no intention to return the thing Dor.
rowed is simply to steal. and God could
not authorize that which He had forbid
den or was about to forbid Xxx, l5). God
never tempts any one to sin tJas. !. 13.
14), much less commands it.
Al. ''That ye may know how that the
Lord doth put a difference between the
Egyptians and Israel" The awful night
drew nigh when. because Of Pharaoh's
sin. there was to be- one dead. the first
born. in all Egyptian homes from the pal
ace Of the king to the home Of the hum
blest peasant. Cattle also were to suffer
In like manner. hut no obedent lsraelite
would suffer. and the difference would be
manifest to all. 1t came to pass just as
God said txii. 20. 30,. and Pharaoh
and the Egyptians thrust Israel out xii,
81 1-33). When the plaques preceding this
one came upon the Egyptians. Israel suf-
fered not tviii. %: ix. 4. 26,. and God
said to Pharaoh. 81 will put a redemp-
tion between my people and thy people"
viii. %. margin). The great difference
between people ON earth in the sight Of
God is not wealth or poverty, education
or ignorance. culture or the lack Of It,
but redemption.
8. After the plague Of darkness and
Pharaoh's heart was still further hard
ened he said to Moses: "Get thee from
me. Take heed to thyself. See my face
no more" And Moses replied: Thou hast
spoken we'll. | will see thy face again
no more" *. 2S. 29). There comes last
time when mercy ceases to be gracious.
The heart has become increasingly hard
ened, and it wants only its own way Of
death, and God gives it up. saying: "Be-
cause have called and ye refused I will
also laugh at your calamity. will mock
when your fear cometh" prov. /, PAID.
He had to say as Israel increased in sin
that though Moses and Samuel or Noah.
Daniel and Job stood before Him yet
He could not hear them on behalf Of Is
rael tJer. XIV. l; Eek. xiv. 14). Yet this
does not conflict with the truth that
"God is love-" and He Is not willing that
any should perish II John iv, 8. 16: II
Pet. iii. 81.
8. The Lord knew that Pharaoh would
not listen to Moses. though he was free
to do so if he had chosen. and the Lord
took occasion thus to multiply His won
ders in Egypt. for He maketh the wrath
Of man to praise Him and restrains the
remainder FPS. lxxvi. lO). He would
make Pharaoh to know that He was Je-
hovah in the midst Of the earth and that
there was none like Him in all the earth,
his people He would make His name to
be declared throughout all the earth tviii,
%: ix, 14-18,. by the obedience Of His
people and by HiS power on their behalf,
also by His judgments upon His enemies,
He makes His name known. His name
was never so fully declared as in Christ
John xvii. I. 26).
10. "And Moses and Aaron did all
these wonders before Pharaoh is,
God did them through Moses and Aaron
upon Pharaoh and his people. 1t is ever
God who worketh. both in mercy to His
own and in judgment upon His enemies,
whatever instruments He may use. As
His redeemed we must not see second
causes. hut only and always the one
great first cause. even God Himself. As
to the hardening of Pharaoh's heart, note
carefully the passages quoted under verse
l in this connection and observe that it is