The Maccabaean

3. The Kind Shepherd.

It came to pass on a day, that Moses was feeding the sheep of Jethro, his father-in-law, and he saw a little kid drift from the flock and run away. And Moses hastened and ran after the kid, for he said, "I will chase after her and overtake her and bring her to the flock, that she may not wander alone in the desert and die of hunger and thirst." And it happened, that, as Moses was chasing after her, he saw, and behold, the kid came to a well and stopped to drink. Then Moses knew that the little kid had been thirsty, and had run away from the flock on that account. And Moses approached and said, "Fond little kid! If I knew thou wert thirsty I would not have pursued thee." And the kid ended drinking, and Moses took it with great tenderness and put it on his shoulders and carried it all the way, until he reached the flock, for he said, "The little kid is tender and weak, therefore will I take it in my arms." And God was pleased thereby and he said to Moses, "Because thou art full of compassion thou shalt had my people Israel and be their true shepherd."

(Midrash Exodus.)

If thou desire to know Him, whose word brought the world intobeing, study Haggadab.—[Sifri, Deut. 49.

4. The Burning Bush.

And Moses did not lead the sheep anywhere but back of the wilderness, so as to keep them at a distance from the pasture land of strangers. And it happened one day that Moses came to the mountain of God, unto Horeb, and he saw a bush growing there. And the appearance of the bush was very bad. It had no flowers and no buds, nothing but pricks and thorns. And Moses looked at the bush and its stunted height and said, "Like unto this bush in the wilderness art thou my people, Israel, for like this bush thou art very lowly and all who see thee stand away from thee." And while he was thus contemplating and sorrowing over his people, a flame burst forth from the bush. And Moses was stirred deeply and he said, "To this bush have I likened my brethren, the children of Israel, and a flame suddenly burst forth to consume it. . . . Shall my people really go to ruin?" But when Moses saw that the bush was burning with fire and was not consumed he regained courage and became cheerful. And Moses heard a voice saying, "Just as the flame did not consume the bush,