When slain, the blood of the lamb, or kid, was to be sprinkled, by means of a bunch of hyssop dipped into it, upon the two side-posts of the door, and upon the lintel or that part of the door-frame which lies across the posts and over them. This was to be done as a mark of safety, that the destroying angel, when passing through the land to slay the first born of the Egyptians, might see it, and pass over the houses of the Israelites, and spare their first born. And, after doing this, none were to go out of the house until the morning.

It was thus, and by the various sacrifices which they offered up, that God was continually reminding his ancient people the Jews, that, by the shedding of blood alone, deliverance from the punishment due to sin was to be obtained; and that by other suf ferings than their own, the penitent and obedient were to be spared the sufferings which they themselves deserved.

The Israelites were sinners as well as the Egyptians, and God might justly have punished them for their sins by taking away the lives of their firstborn. He was pleased to show them mercy. The life of a lamb was accepted as a substitute. Its blood was the signal of this; and with faith in this token of their safety, all who obeyed the command of God, and relied on his protection, were secure from the arm of the destroyer.

What a significant and striking emblem, to point

the Jews then, and during all subsequent time pri or to the death of Christ, to Him as the great pro pitiatory sacrifice,-the Lamb of God,the substi tuted victim,—through whose blood alone, in the of fering up of himself upon the cross, pardon for sin could be obtained; deliverance from its curse ; and eternal security in the friendship and unchangeable favor of God.

Hence John says, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world ;" and Paul," Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us;" and Peter, "Ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a Lamb without blemish, and without spot."

What think you, my young friend, of Christ? Is he your Passover? Have you made him so, by faith in his atoning blood? Severer judgments than those which were inflicted upon the Egyptians, during the awful night that the destroying angel passed among them, are yet to overtake the finally impenitent! Where will you find safety if not in the precious blood of the Redeemer? Go to his cross. See him dying, that you may live. Trust in him and make your salvation sure.

CHAPTER XX.

The passover. The destruction of the first-born of the Egyptians. Pharaoh urges the Israelites to depart, which they do.

ner.

After killing the paschal lamb, and sprinkling its blood on the posts and lintel of their doors, the Israelites were commanded to eat the flesh of it the same night. It was to be " roast with fire," because it could be the sooner prepared in this manUnleavened bread, and bitter herbs, were to be eaten with it. The former, in the celebration of the passover, would be a perpetual memorial of the haste with which the chosen people of God were constrained to escape from their oppressors. Being less agreeable to the taste, it was also emblematical of the unpleasant and revolting servitude that they had endured; and, in addition to this, it seems to have had a spiritual meaning, derived, probably, from the fact, that leaven is a species of corruption, caused by fermentation, and tending to putrefaction. Thus our Saviour called upon his disciples, to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy; and Paul, in his first epistle to the Corinthians, says, "Purge out, there

fore, the old leaven; for Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

The bitter herbs were to remind the Israelites of their bitter and severe bondage, and various afflictions in the land of Egypt. It is said, as you recollect, in the early part of our history, that "the Egyptians made the children of Israel to serve with rigor and they made their lives bitter with hard bondage.

The lamb was to be roasted whole, and all parts of it eaten; and if any remained unconsumed until the morning, it was to be burned with fire. This would prevent its becoming subject to corruption, to which a sacred thing, offered to God in sacrifice, ought not to be exposed; and would also preclude the using it for any superstitious or common purpose.

While eating the passover, the Israelites were to stand, with their loins girded, their shoes on their feet, and their staff in their hand. This would show the despatch with which they were to make all their arrangements, and escape from Egypt. Their long, loose garments, when preparing for a speedy flight, needed to be tucked up around them, and secured by the girdle which they wore. Their shoes, which they usually throw off, in the Eastern coun

tries, when they enter their apartments, were to be on, and ready for use; and each one, with his staff in his hand, as is the custom still with travellers in those parts of the world, was to be on the alert to commence the expected journey into the wilder ness. At the same time, the destroying angel being near at hand, and all the circumstances of their situation demanding urgency and speed, they were to eat this new and mystical meal in haste.

To all these injunctions were added these solemn and memorable words:

It is the Lord's passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the first-born in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord. And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you, to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever."

No stranger was to be allowed to partake of the passover, that is, while he continued so,-nor any foreigner or hired servant, not becoming a proselyte. But strangers, and foreigners, and servants, might be admitted to this ordinance, and enjoy its