small
difficulties to those whom he favors, but in such cases where no one can
see how any hope in man can better their condition. Depend, therefore,
upon such a Protector as is able to make small things great, and to show
that this mighty force against you is nothing but weakness, and be not
affrighted at the Egyptian army, nor do you despair of being preserved,
because the sea before, and the mountains behind, afford you no
opportunity for flying, for even these mountains, if God so please, may
be made plain ground for you, and the sea become dry land."

CHAPTER 16. How The Sea Was Divided Asunder For The Hebrews, When
They Were Pursued By The Egyptians, And So Gave Them An Opportunity Of
Escaping From Them.

1. When Moses had said this, he led them to the sea, while the Egyptians
looked on; for they were within sight. Now these were so distressed by
the toil of their pursuit, that they thought proper to put off fighting
till the next day. But when Moses was come to the sea-shore, he took
his rod, and made supplication to God, and called upon him to be their
helper and assistant; and said "Thou art not ignorant, O Lord, that it
is beyond human strength and human contrivance to avoid the difficulties
we are now under; but it must be thy work altogether to procure
deliverance to this army, which has left Egypt at thy appointment. We
despair of any other assistance or contrivance, and have recourse
only to that hope we have in thee; and if there be any method that can
promise us an escape by thy providence, we look up to thee for it. And
let it come quickly, and manifest thy power to us; and do thou raise up
this people unto good courage and hope of deliverance, who are deeply
sunk into a disconsolate state of mind. We are in a helpless place, but
still it is a place that thou possessest; still the sea is thine, the
mountains also that enclose us are thine; so that these mountains will
open themselves if thou commandest them, and the sea also, if thou
commandest it, will become dry land. Nay, we might escape by a flight
through the air, if thou shouldst determine we should have that way of
salvation."

2. When Moses had thus addressed himself to God, he smote the sea with
his rod, which parted asunder at the stroke, and receiving those waters
into itself, left the ground dry, as a road and a place of flight for
the Hebrews. Now when Moses saw this appearance of God, and that the sea
went out of its own place,