"'I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt; and I have said, I will bring you out of the affliction of Egypt, unto the land of the Canaanites, unto a land flowing with milk and honey!' And the children of Israel shall hearken to thy voice; and thou shalt come, thou and the elders of Israel, unto the king of Egypt, and ye shall say unto him—
"'The Lord God of the Hebrews hath met with us; and now let us go, we beseech thee, three days' journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Lord our God.' And I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not by a mighty hand; and I will stretch out My hand and smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof; and after that he will let you go: and when ye go, ye shall not go empty, but ye shall spoil the Egyptians."
When the Voice had ceased, I heard Moses answer, and say with modest diffidence:
"But, behold, the elders and people of my brethren, the Hebrews, will not believe me nor hearken to my voice; for they will say, 'The Lord hath not appeared unto thee.'"
How extraordinary, O my father, this humility of the wisest of men! How impiously vain some sages and seers would have been, at such an infinite honor as the appearance of God to them, to talk with them, face to face, as He did now to Moses,—veiling the ineffable splendor of His glory under the form of an angel enveloped in a mantle of dazzling sunbeams,—His presence a flame of fire! But see this great and holy man modestly declining the service, considering himself mean and powerless when compared with the mighty Pharaoh, and utterly unable to do any thing for the Hebrew nation. Forty years ago, he had, indeed, felt a divine motion in himself to deliver them, which he then believed was an indication that God would use him as an instrument for that purpose: but forty years an exile, forgotten by the children of Israel, and being only a ruler of shepherds, and guardian of the flocks of a small province, he felt the humility and insignificance of his position, as well as his total want of means and power to do what God now commanded him to do. But, lo! God condescends to inspire him with the confidence and resolution, the magnanimity and fortitude, that his sublime errand demanded.
The voice of the Lord spake and said:
"What is that in thine hand?"
He answered, "A rod."
This was the staff with which he climbed the sides of Horeb, and guided his flock, and upon which he often leaned his head when he stood and worshipped.
And the Voice said, with authority: