more and more upon their enemies. For a moment, his exhausted strength leads him to let down his arms, and remit his entreaty. Can it be that his countrymen seeing this are disheartened, and the Amalekites take courage, and in their turn prevail? Or, does the Almighty, by some sudden and mysterious influence, thus design to teach, in a way never to be forgotten, the necessity and efficacy of prayer, as the only condition of his coming to the relief of his people in their time of need?

Be the cause what it may; when Moses holds up his hand, Israel prevails, and, when he lets down his hand, Amalek prevails.

Perceiving this to be the case, Aaron and Hur place a stone behind Moses, on which he sits down. Then, on each side of him, these two faithful servants of the Lord sustain his uplifted hands; and they remain steadily in that position till the setting of the sun.

The struggle is a long and severe one; but as the day closes, it witnesses the complete triumph of Joshua and the Israelites over their enemies. God was on their side, in answer to the effectual and fervent prayers of his faithful servant; and this secures to them the victory.

The return of Moses and his company from the hill-top, and of the successful band, with their leader, from the field of battle; their mutual congratulations; the reception which both must have

inet from their grateful and rejoicing countrymen and the thanksgivings that doubtless ascended to heaven from not a few pious hearts; formed a scene in the history of their journeyings which, one would think, a people thus highly favored of God would never forget, nor cease to appreciate. This remark has been made before. It is repeated, that the attention of the reader may be particularly directed to it, in aiding him to form a just estimate of the character of the Israelites, and of the reasons of God's peculiar dealings with them.

A prophetic and terrible curse was denounced, at this time, against the whole nation of the Amalekites. "Write this for a memorial in a book,"

said the Lord to Moses,

and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua: for I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven."

About four hundred years afterwards, this threatening was fully accomplished, during the reign of Saul, king of Israel.

While at Rephidim, Moses built an altar to the Lord, and not improbably offered sacrifices upon it, as an expression of devout gratitude to God for the late victory. He called the altar JEHovahNISSI, which means Jehovah my banner; for under this the Israelites had fought and conquered, and would again fight and conquer these their enemies. For, said Moses, because the hand of Amalek is against the throne of heaven, therefore the

Lord will have war with Amalek from generation

to generation.

Rephidim is a place in the history of the journeyings of the Israelites, to be deeply engraven on our memories. The rock of Horeb has already furnished us with one invaluable lesson of instruction. The hill-top, on which Moses stood, and the battleground before it, afford another.

"The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous. man availeth much." Such was the prayer of Moses, while the issue of the conflict between his countrymen and their enemies was in suspense. We have seen how it prevailed with God.

You have, my young friend, a severer conflict to carry on, with enemies more insidious and formidable than were the Amàlékites. Like them, they will attack you on your weakest side; where you do not expect it; and where you are the least capable of making resistance. The spoil which they aim to plunder, is your richest treasure. They would rob you of your soul, and carry it with them to everlasting ruin!

They will

The world, the flesh, and the devil are those enemies. Their weapons are manifold; even temptations to sin in all varieties of forms. find, too, traitors within the camp, to act in concert with their attacks-your own evil propensities, de sires, and passions. And the victory will be theirs, unless, like Joshua, you fight manfully against them,

with the sword of the Spirit; and like Moses, raise your earnest and incessant supplications to God for his aid. In all such struggles, let JEHOVAH-NISSI, Jehovah is my banner, be your watch-word. With it, and faith in Christ, the great Captain of our salvation, you will be ready for the conflict, and sure of a final triumph.

CHAPTER XXX.

Jethro comes to the camp of the Israelites with the wife and sons of Moses. By his advice Moses appoints rulers over the people.

Immediately following the transactions at Rephidim which have just been described, we find in the Scriptures an account of an event, of a domestic nature, full of the deepest interest to Moses— the arrival of his wife and two sons, at the Israelitish camp, under the care of his father-in-law Jethro. Some, however, are of the opinion that the event thus recorded, did not happen till about a year afterwards. They would place it just before the removal of the Israelites from the neighborhood of Mount Sinai, and their entering the wilderness of Paran, as described in the tenth chapter

of Numbers. For the reasons of this opinion, in which the author coincides, he refers his readers to some of the valuable commentaries on the Bible to which, doubtless, they have access.

As Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses, resided in the country of the Amalekites, the prophetic curse against whom had just been denounced, it is thought that the transactions in which he took a part, are here naturally introduced, by anticipation, for an important purpose. This was, to show that his character and conduct were such, as to exempt him and his family from being involved in the denunciation against that wicked people.

In some way, Jethro had been informed of all that God had done for Moses and the Israelites; how they had escaped from their oppressors, and were in the neighborhood of Horeb. The occasion he regarded as a favorable one for re-uniting his daughter and grand-children to their beloved husband and father. The reasons for their temporary separation had ceased to exist; and he felt sure that both they and himself would receive a cordial welcome from his son-in-law.

And such, indeed, it was. On hearing of their approach, Moses went out to meet them; and, besides the joyful congratulations which passed between him, and his wife, and children, he bowed himself down before Jethro, according to the eastern custom, and kissed him.