After a succession of miracles, wrought by Jehovah through Moses, Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, agreed to let them go.  But they had to pass through a desert and uninhabited country, which lay between Egypt and the land of Canaan.  Pharaoh knew this, and to get revenge for the way the Lord had compelled him to let them go he gathered a very large army and pursued after them.  Just at the time Pharaoh thought he had them in his power, and when the whole camp of Israel trembled with fear of being suddenly destroyed by the hosts of the Egyptians, the Lord opened a passage for the children of Israel through the

RED SEA.

The Red Sea, at this place, had a very smooth bottom of sand, as has been discovered since, although it is very deep, and perhaps twenty miles across.  The water stood like a wall on both sides of this passage.  Some of you may think this could not be.  I will here relate the substance of a conversation, which is said to have really taken place between the first English minister to Siam, and the king of that country.  Siam is a very hot country in the south part of Asia.  There is never any winter, or even cool weather, in that country.  So the people there know nothing of ice, and even the king himself had never heard of any such thing.  The English minister told him many things about England and other countries, and among other things referred to the effect of cold upon water, that it makes it hard.

“You do not say,” said the king, “that water gets hard in your country!” “Indeed I do,” said the minister.  “It sometimes gets so hard all over the surface of broad rivers and lakes that men, and even heavy beasts, may walk upon it with dry feet; and if your heavy elephants were there, even they could walk upon the hard water too.”  “I have, thus far,” replied the king, “been willing to listen to you, and believe what you say; but now I know you lie.”

So it may be with some who read or hear the story of the children of Israel.  They may think it all reasonable and fair enough, until they come to the passage through the Red Sea:  there faith stumbles and falls.  But we must never forget that all things, not self-contradictory, are possible with God.  It is just as possible and easy for him to crystallize the billows of an ocean as to freeze a drop of dew on a blade of grass.  At the command of Moses they enter this avenue through the deep, walled by the waves, and roofed by the sky.  Surely no eyes but theirs ever witnessed so sublime a sight.

  “Water to right of them;
  Water to left of them;
  Water in front of them;”

while over their heads passed the cloud of Jehovah’s presence and glory to follow in their rear; at once to hide them from the sight, and to shield them from the attack of the enemy that was pursuing them.  I can hardly ever read this simple statement without a tear.  The kindness, the love of the Lord in thus placing himself between his children and their enemies, like as a tender father would shield his offsprings from danger, always melts my heart.  But this is just the way the Lord always does.  If his own dear people will but shelter under his wings, the devil will never be able to get one of them.