MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.— Exodus 5:10-14
THE TRUE PICTURE OF A GREAT TYRANT
In the Word of God we have many patterns of human life and moral conduct. We have depicted the proud man in his gaiety, the covetous man with his wealth, the foolish man in his folly, and the tyrant in his cruelty. These pictures of life are eminently calculated to answer a useful and practical purpose. When the picture is of moral goodness and virtue, it is calculated to inspire with its beauty, and to lead men to an imitation of it. When, however, it is of tyranny, as in the case before us, it is likely to awaken supreme contempt, and deep abhorrence for it. There is in man a certain intuition which always utters a response to these representations of conduct, especially when they are presented in a pictorial form, as then they appeal to the imagination, and make a far deeper impression upon the mind than any mere precept could. In these pictorial representations of character there is real life; we feel that we are in contact with men who exhibit feeling, who speak, who act, whose bearing is in harmony with our own inner experiences: hence they take deep hold of your souls. We hope that the picture sketched in the verses of this paragruph will give us such a vivid realization of the cruelty and horror of tyranny that we shall flee from it ourselves, and endeavour to repress it in others. We observe—
I. That tyrants generally take offence at and make the slightest interference with their conduct the occasion of additional hardship to their slaves. The narrative informs us that Moses and Aaron had been divinely commissioned to go to Pharaoh, and rebuke his treatment of the Israelites, and to demand their freedom.
1. Thus we see that it is the duty of good men to rebuke tyrants. God calls men, and especially qualifies them, to rebuke tyrants who are oppressing humanity. It would appear as if Pharaoh had almost had his own way in the oppression of Israel. Egypt had not intercepted him, nor had the Israelites risen in rebellion against him, nor had any heroic champion undertaken their cause; they were the slaves of a monarch who acted towards them according to the arbitrary and cruel impulse of his iron will. And this had been the case for years. He has, therefore, grown impatient of rebuke, and especially when administered by comparative strangers. It does sometimes happen that tyrants are allowed long to pursue their course of cruel oppression without interruption; hence they are imperious. But God will one day arrest them by a stern message. He will send an heroic servant, qualified by heavenly vision and a clear insight into the purposes of the future, who shall meet the tyrant in his own palace, and reveal a power supreme and unconquerable, before which he will have to yield. Some good people think it best to let tyrants alone, to let them work their own cruel purpose until they come to their sad end, when they will die unpitied.16 They imagine it foolish to arouse their rage by interference, to awaken them to further cruelties to those already under their charge. We say that this is a wrong and cowardly method of viewing the matter. We are unwarranted in allowing tyrants to reign for a day; in standing near while multitudes are suffering the agonies of a bondage they have not power to resist. In such an emergency we must be men; above all, we must be Christian men. It is our duty to demand the freedom of the oppressed, and, if necessary, to use stringent measures to obtain it. We must be tired with a holy courage, and go as angels to snap the letters of the bondmen, and bring them into sweet liberty.
2. That good men who rebuke tyrants are likely to involve themselves in anxiety and conflict. Moses and Aaron who have just rebuked Pharaoh for his cruelly to, and demanded the freedom of, Israel, have by so doing, commenced a struggle that will involve them in lifelong trouble and anxiety. And so it is now. To rebuke a tyrant is a difficult matter, and especially if he occupies a high social position. There are always men of policy, place-hunters, who will defend such a man as Pharaoh, animated by the hope of future gain: hence such hollow-hearted hypocrites are the first to insult, and, if possible, to defeat, the earnest endeavours of the good to relieve the slave of his chains. A few such sycophants as these can contrive plots, circulate slander, and awaken animosities very difficult to be overcome. Many a man has rendered sad his life by interfering with a tyrant in the interest of humanity at large. Such a sacrifice of personal comfort is hard to make, but is often required at the hands of those who would be the heroic emancipators of the enslaved. Such will get their reward. They will win a calm peacefulness of soul which outward clamour will not be able to disturb, and the gratitude of the world. Instance Wilberforce.
3. That good men by their rebuke often awaken tyrants to further animosity. We are painfully conscious that the attempts at freedom are not at first successful; they require long-continued operations, which are likely to augment the rage of the despot they seek to dethrone: hence during the process of emancipation all slavery is rendered more cruel and despicable.17 But this is only the prophecy of ultimate freedom, and will soon obtain its fulfilment in the songs of ransomed Israel. The heroic good are not responsible for this additional cruelty, but it is a tribute to the energy of their effort; and instead of discouraging those who are called to endure it, it should inspire them with hope, as the darkest part of night is that just preceded by the dawn. All tyrants are impatient of the interference of others.
II. That tyrants generally employ others to carry their messages and to execute their purposes of cruelty. Probably Pharaoh seldom saw the enslaved Israelites, or the burdens they were made to bear, and the cruelty to which they were subjected. He only knew the treasure-cities they were building, and the way in which they enriched his royal coffers. He simply gave his orders to the taskmasters and they executed them. He had little or no personal oversight over his slaves.
1. Tyrants are generally too indolent and indifferent to take a personal oversight of their slaves. Pharaoh would prefer lounging about in his royal palace to the trouble of a personal inspection of his slaves. The walk to them would be too much for him. Besides, he would not risk the consequences of such a visit. The condition of Israel was so sad, their work so hard, their scourging so brutal, and their bondage so severe, that even his heart, stone-like as it was, might feel regret at their woe. The human heart in the worst of wretches, and in the greatest tyrants, will assert its natural feeling of pity, even though it be unwelcome to those within whom it is awakened. The remembrance of Israel’s wrongs might haunt him in the day time, and disturb his slumbers by horrid dreams at night. He would, therefore, keep at a distance from his slaves, that he might not hear their cries, and that he might live on almost unconscious of their woes. There are few men who can visit the wrongs and woe they occasion; they prefer to live at a distance from it. True, there are some hardy sinners who can stand unmoved surrounded by the victims of their tyranny.
2. Tyrants generally prefer the excitement of pleasing amusement. Pharaoh in the Egyptian Palace, and, as the centre of an Oriental court, would not be wanting in amusements and occupations congenial to his passionate desires. He would much more prefer the pleasantry and magnificent entertainment of his royal surroundings than visiting his slaves. Hence he employed others who should exercise a direct supervision over them. Tyrants like to make others responsible for the injuries they inflict.
III. That tyrants generally demand work under conditions that render it almost impossible. Pharaoh commanded that henceforth the Israelites should make bricks without the regular provision of straw. The officials were forbidden to find it for them: hence they were scattered about the country to obtain it for themselves. This occupied much of their time, and yet the same amount of work was required from them. So tyrants are unjust and inconsiderate in their demands. They are unreasonable. There are many of this kind in the world to-day. There are some in the commercial world; they expect their servants to make bricks without straw, to make money without capital. There are some in the Church: they expect Ministers to make bricks without straw, to fill the chapel when no one will help him, to save souls when no one prays for him. There are lots of people in the world who expect those under them to do the impossible, and this is the essential spirit and demand of tyranny. Only a despot will require of a man more than he can happily and reasonably render.
IV. That Tyrants bring grief upon the lives of others without the slightest regret, and are utterly destitute of human feeling. Who can imagine the condition of Israel at this time? Their slavery throughout has been one of calamity and woe, but never has it been more severe than now. This is the supreme moment of the tyrant’s rage. The burden of Israel’s work is unbearable. Their lives are full of grief. All public spirit is crushed out of them. And this is always the result of despotic rule; it brings misery upon a nation; it crushes the energy out of a people; it makes them incapable of noble impulse, or of heroic action. The saddest pictures of past history are those connected with the records of tyranny.18 The tear and voice of sorrow cannot move the heart of a despot, he is accustomed to their wail.
SUGGESTIVE COMMENTS ON THE VERSES
THE TASKMASTERS OF THE PEOPLE
I. As coming out from the presence of a cruel monarch The taskmasters and officers were, no doubt, some of them chosen from the Israelites, as they would be more likely to find out any plot that might be contrived for their freedom, and they would have more influence with their brethren in the event of a rebellion. They had been in companionship with Pharaoh. They would be no better for this. Men are always morally the worse for spending an hour with a tyrant. They almost unconsciously imbibe his spirit. They become familiar with his vocabulary.
II. As uttering from Pharaoh a cruel message. When you see a man coming out from companionship with a tyrant, you may expect that he will soon speak a message of cruelty. When tyrants are together, their counsel generally has reference to the oppression of the weak.
III. As imposing from Pharaoh a cruel task. Israel was to make bricks without straw. Tyranny is very inventive. It is never at a loss for a method whereby to augment the woe of those whose slavery it has achieved.
“I will not give you straw.” Cold comfort! Things commonly go backward with the saints before they go forward, as the corn groweth downward ere it grow upward. Hold out, faith and patience; deliverance is at next door. When things are worst, they will mend. (Trapp.)
The cruel commands of despotic monarchs are quickly obeyed by their instruments.
Instruments must do and say what persecuting powers command.
Some messengers may deliver glad tidings to God’s people with gladness, others with regret.
A sad message:—
1. Sent by a tyrant.
2. Sent through his servants.
3. Sent to the people of God.
4. Sent under permission of Providence.
MEANS NECESSARY TO WORK
I. That man cannot accomplish work without means. Israel not make bricks without straw. Neither can men undertake any work without the means necessary to its accomplishment. A man cannot write a book without intellect. He cannot build a church without money. He cannot save souls without intimate communion with God. He cannot gather riches without industry. He cannot influence social without moral purity. Men cannot make bricks without straw. The great folly is that they try. They are men trying the impossible. They are of weak intellect, yet they want literary fame; they are of feeble sympathies, yet they long for the honours of emancipation; they are animated by a dream, they pursue a phantom.
II. That one man has often the power to intercept the means by which another man works. Pharaoh had the power to take away the straw from the Israelites, which afore-time had been given to them to make their bricks. So, one man has the power to intercept the methods by which the intellect, the genius, the activities, of another are accustomed to work. We can take away the straw by which our brother has been accustomed to make his bricks. And many, animated by envy, covetousness, and despotism, render those around them almost incapable of toil. Hence many bright visions are dispelled, many long-indulged expectations are disappointed, and many hours are beclouded with sorrow, through the interference of such overt tyranny.
III. That when men are robbed of their means of work they are thrown into great straits. The Israelites were scattered all through the land of Egypt, to seek stubble instead of straw, whereby to fulfil their toil. Men must work. They are not to be entirely stopped by hindrances, but they are greatly impeded by them. They are rendered unhappy. They know not where to supply the place of that they have lost. Their amount of work is greatly diminished. One man has the ability to render the task of another difficult.
IV. Any man who intercepts the work of another takes a fearful responsibility upon himself. The man who takes away the straw whereby another man works is involving himself in terrible responsibility. The poorest workman can make a brick if he cannot build a house. Do not impede his labour; if you do, God will measure out to you a just retribution. Many men who are now dead would have left the world a far richer legacy of thought and labour, if the straw had not been taken from them in the day of their effort. Woe to the Pharaoh who gave orders for its removal, and who sent these great minds to gather stubble in the broad universe, anywhere where they could meet with more kindly shelter and aid.
THE CHURCH CAST UPON HER OWN RESOURCES
I. That the Church is often cast upon her own resources. There are times when men withdraw the aid they have long given to the Church. They issue orders that no more straw is to be placed at her disposal. Men of the world do not give the Church her due. She is thrown back upon her own resources, upon her own originality, suggestiveness, and, supremely, upon her God. She has to go into the wide world to seek aid in the performance of her holy toil. She has to make use of the meanest agencies, even of stubble, now that her straw is withheld. These are times of dark depression.
II. That when human aid is thus withdrawn, men expect from the church the same amount of work that she accomplished before. Pharaoh expected from the Israelites the same amount of work daily after the straw was withheld, as before. So, notwithstanding that the Church has to go in search of new agencies, and awaken new instrumentalities, yet in the time of her depression men unreasonably expect that she will achieve the same amount of toil. Let our business men give the Church the straw, the wealth, the consecrated talent she needs, and ought to have from them, and she will soon double her diligence and duty.
III. That when the Church does not accomplish her work as fully and speedily under these difficult circumstances, she is persecuted and slandered by the world. Exodus 5:14. Thus the Church, in the most trying moments of her history, is misunderstood, misrepresented, slandered, and persecuted by those to whom she has rendered unnumbered and incalculable service.19
Cruel commands of persecuting powers are obeyed by afflicted souls.
Dispersion from fellow workers is a hard burden on them, from whom work is exacted.
It is a contradictory thing to drive men from work, and yet expect daily labours.
Such hard undertakings are the servants of God sometimes called to bear.
Exodus 5:13-14. Reasons why men do not perform their work.
Wherefore have ye not fulfilled your task in making brick both yesterday and to-day, as heretofore?
I. Some men say that they do not work because they cannot see any to do. They say that no one will employ them to make bricks. When men make this excuse we seldom believe them. In a country like this, where every kind of industry is carried on, no honest, intelligent, and diligent worker need be without employment. This excuse is generally the plea of the idle vagrant, rather than the statement of real fact. It may occasionally and for a time be made with truth.
II. Some men do not work because they are physically incapacitated. They are unable to make bricks. They may have been born with the defective use of their bodily limbs, hence they are not able to enter upon the industrious pursuits of a busy life. Such cases are numerous. They are deserving of special asylums for their benefit. They should always excite our sympathy, and the best aid we can render.
III. Some men do not work because they are indolent. They will not make bricks. They say there are no bricks to be made. They are idle. Such men are a curse to themselves, to their families, and to the nation at large. The law ought to have power to make them work, and earn honestly their daily bread. They are the cause of half the woe that comes upon our country.
IV. Some men do not work as they would because they are prevented from doing so by the injustice of others. These Israelites did not make as many bricks as they otherwise would have done had Pharaoh supplied them with straw, as was his duty. There are multitudes of good workmen kept from the full and complete performance of their daily work by the injustice and tyranny of their superiors or even by their comrades. Not even kings ought to have the power to prevent the easy and happy workmanship of their subjects. What a vast amount of profitable labour would be lost to Egypt through this conduct on the part of Pharaoh. That nation, as a rule, will be the strongest and happiest in which there is the greatest facility for good and joyous work.
In the absence of help, cruel taskmasters are hasty to call for work.
Full work is called for by wicked exactors, where means of doing it are withheld.
Daily work is commanded by oppressors when they deny daily bread.
Hard blows as well as harsh words cruel powers inflict upon God’s harmless ones.
Tender officers are made to smart by superiors, because they dare not oppress others under them.
Unreasonable demands are the best reasons which oppressors give for their cruelty.
ILLUSTRATIONS
BY THE
REV. WM. ADAMSON
(16)—Tyrants!—Such is the policy of statesmen in these days. The King of Dahomey has been allowed year after year to indulge in the most horrid and repulsive acts of tyrannic cruelty on the plea that if you give a man rope he is sure to hang himself. Similarly the Emoeior of Abyssinia was permitted to practise the most perfidious persecutions, until the honour of England was touched. The lion remained quiet whilst the hyena destroyed other animals, and only aroused himself when the wild beast’s foot touched his mane. A similar policy of non-intervention led to increased despotism on the part of King Bomba, and to the aggravated tyranny on the part of Spain over the inhabitants of Cuba. So odious have been the cruelties perpetrated by the Spaniards, that heaven is rejected by the natives as a place likely to contain Spaniards.
“The natural bond
Of brotherhood is severed as the flax
That falls asunder at the touch of fire.”
—Cowper.
(17)—National Liberty!—Numerons and bright are the laurel wreaths with which poetry has decked the names of such patriots as Wallace, Tell, Kossuth, Cavour, and Garibaldi. Yet, after all, men may be patriots, men may achieve their country’s freedom, and yet themselves be slaves. Some have been still themselves bonds, men to their own passions, bondsmen to sin—
“Who then is free? the wise who well maintains
An empire o’er himself.”
—Horace.
No word has been more prostituted. The theme of every factious demagogue, the watchword of every traitor, liberty becomes a name which the honest and well disposed almost tremble to hear. As though lawlessness Were freedom, and submission to good government slavery. The slave of his every passion will proclaim himself the worshipper of liberty. The man who would sweep away religion from a State makes a boast of seeking its freedom. So that, in a sense in which it was not designed, we may use the lines of Edwards—
“Like Sicily’s mountain, whose fires never die,
Thy presence on earth is contest;
A beacon of wrath when it flames on high,
And a mighty fear when at rest.
Like thee it awakes from its terrible sleep,
And o’er the dark rock and green valley sweep.”
(18)—Records of Tyranny Many are familiar with those recorded in the Bible from Pharaoh and Adonibezek to Herod and Nero. The records of secular history are even darker still The emperor Trajan was stalled in his day the best, so that the prayer was: “May you have the virtue and goodness of a Trajan.” Yet his chief pastime was in the arena of the gladiators. In his tortures of the Christians he called into requisition fire and poison, daggers and dungeons, wild beasts and serpents. Clemens Romanus he cast into the sea with an anchor round his neck, while Ignatius was cast to the famished lions in the amphitheatre. The Emperor Commodus took pleasure in cutting off the feet and putting out the eyes of such as be met in his rambles through the city. Dr. Leland writes that nothing could exceed the cruelty of the Spartans to their slaves. It was part of their policy to massacre them on stated occasions, in cold blood, by forming ambuscades in thickets and clefts of locks. They received a certain number of lashes annually to remind them of their condition—
“Man’s inhumanity to man
Makes countless thousands mourn.”
—Burns.
As witness the bloody pictures of Russian tyranny in regard to the Poles and Circassians with the cruel knout; or the more extended and aggravated cruelties of the Roman despotism upon the Vaudois of the Valleys of the Piedmont, as well as of Germany, Bohemia, France, Spain, and England. And that tyrants come at last to be indifferent to the sorrows and sufferings of their slaves appears from the account given by Arvine Of feminine cruelty in the West Indies. Educated in this country, she returned to her home at the age of fifteen to be married. After some years, she again paid a visit to her old friends in Ireland, who were appalled to listen to her sentiments upon slavery, and to her statements as to the way in which West India ladies treated their slaves. She confessed that she bad often snatched their baby from their bosom, run with it to a well, tied her shawl round its shoulders, and pretended to be drowning it As she told this she was convulsed with laughter. Domitian could not have practised more refined cruelty. Not that these are the only aspects of tyranny. As Byron asks—
“Thinkest thou there is no tyranny but that
Of blood and chains? The despotism of vice—
The weakness and the wickedness of luxury,
The negligence, the apathy, the evils
Of sensual sloth—produce ten thousand tyrants.”
(19)—Church Work!—This is specially true of missionary enterprise. We sometimes hear complaints of the slow progress of missions, as though nothing had been done. These charges invariably come from men who have wilfully withheld the straw. And yet the wonder is that the tale of bricks has been so good. Judson began his Burmese mission in 1814, but the Americans who supported him then were by no means liberal in their supplies. Yet in 1870, a hundred thou, sand converts could be counted. If the progress was slow we see that it was also sure. It was none the worse for being progressive. Peter’s lengthened shadow did not fall on all the gathered sick at once in Jerusalem; even so is Christianity going through the earth—lengthening as she advances.
“Over the winter glaciers
I see the summer glow,
And through the wide-piled snowdrift,
The warm rosebuds glow.”
—Emerson.