no kind of nice fruit, and now there is no water to drink." They forgot that it was because of their own wickedness that they were still in the wilderness; for if they had obeyed God, they would then have been sitting under their own trees, eating their own fruit in Canaan. Moses and Aaron were very much grieved to hear them murmur, and they went away from the people, and fell on their faces before the tabernacle; and soon God spoke to them. He said "Take the rod and call the people, and go to the rock and speak to it, and water shall come out of the rock, and then the people and the beasts shall drink." So Moses took the rod, (the rod was kept near the ark.) Then Moses and Aaron called the people together, and told them to look at what they were going to do. Moses and Aaron felt very angry with the people, and they said, "Hear now, ye rebels! (which means grumblers,) must we fetch water for you out of this rock?" Then Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and the water came flowing out in streams, and the people and the cattle began to drink. Do you think that Moses and Aaron had behaved right? Had God told them to strike the rock? God had said, "speak to the rock.” Was it right to speak so impatiently, and to say, "Must we fetch water for you, rebels ?" Moses and Aaron had been in a passion. God was displeased with them. Do you think that God will punish them? God loved Moses and Aaron; yet he would punish them when they did wrong. He would forgive them and take them to heaven, but he would give them some punishment.* You shall hear what the punishment should be. Soon afterwards, God said to Moses and Aaron, "Because you have done this, you shall not go into Canaan; you shall die in the wilderness." What a great punishment this was! Moses had often longed to see that sweet land of Canaan; he had often wished to see the Israelites happy in their own houses and gardens; he had longed to see the place where Abraham had built altars and worshipped God; but now he must die in the wilderness. He prayed to God to excuse him this punishment, but God would not. God said "Ask me no more to do this." Then Moses knew that he must bear this punishment.† Moses was the meekest man in all the world. The Israelites had often spoken ungratefully to him, and he had made no answer. Yet at last he himself fell into a passion. You see how much God hates passion. God Thou wast a God that forgavest them, though thou tookest vengeance of their inventions.-Psalm xcix. 8. † Deuteronomy iii. 23-26. wishes us to be very meek, like the Lord Jesus Christ, who never spoke an angry word. Are you meek, my dear child? Can you bear to be pushed, and slapped, and not push and slap again? If a child takes your place, can you ask him gently to let you have it; and if he will not, can you take another quietly? When children call you rude names, can you be gentle, and not call them rude names too? A meek child can do all these things. God can make you very meek, my dear child. Will you pray to God to make you meek, like Jesus? Moses, too, was very meek, though he fell into a passion once. Was it unkind in God to punish Moses and Aaron ? God cannot be unkind, but he will punish people for disobedience. God wished to show the Israelites that he would not allow any person to be disobedient, not even Moses. At last the time came for Aaron to die: for God chose Aaron to die first. God said to Moses, "Go up to the top of the hill with Aaron, and take Aaron's eldest son with you; and Aaron will die on the top, and you must put his clothes upon his son." God chose Aaron's son to be high priest instead of Aaron, so he was to wear Aaron's clothes. So Aaron put on his beautiful high priest's clothes; his blue robe with golden bells, and his shining ephod over it, his shining breastplate, and his white mitre, with the golden writing upon it. Then Aaron walked with Moses and his son to the top of the hill, and all the people looked at them as they were walking up. Aaron knew that he should never walk down that hill, but still he obeyed God, and bore his punishment meekly. When they were come to the top, Moses took the beautiful clothes off his brother Aaron, and put them upon Aaron's son. Moses parted from his brother Aaron on the top of that hill: for there Aaron died. Moses and the son left him dead upon the top, and came down the hill together. Then the people saw that Aaron was dead, and that there was another high priest. Aaron's soul went up to heaven, for God had forgiven him. If he had not spoken so angrily, he would have lived to see the land of Canaan. Moses knew that he should die very soon: but God did not choose him to die yet. The mountain steep see Aaron climb, How sweetly sounds each golden bell, The aged priest shall ne'er return, Upon the mountain's height he stands: Loosens the breastplate's golden bands, Then Aaron yields the breath he drew, It is for sin that Aaron dies; O had he still obeyed his God, Nor let his hasty passion rise, Sweet Canaan's fields he should have trod. But though a sinful priest must die, That none may on his prayers depend: Our sinless Priest still lives on high, His glorious robes he ever wears, CHAPTER XXXIV. MOSES, OR THE SERPENT OF BRASS. Numbers xxi. 4-9. THE children of Israel travelled in the wilderness a great many years. Sometimes when they were close to Canaan, the cloud moved the other way and the Israelites were obliged to go on travelling in the wilderness. This made them very unhappy, for they longed very much to get into |