February Sixteenth.
PUT OFF THY SHOES.
"Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground."—Exodus iii. 5
WHEN the Lord appeared to Moses, in the burning bush, to appoint him the liberator of the Israelites from Egyptian bondage, a voice was heard out of the fire commanding him to put off his shoes, because the ground upon which he stood was holy. A similar command was given by the angel of Jehovah to Joshua at Jericho. (Joshua v. 15.) Joshua, like Moses, was a leader or conductor of the Israelites on their way to the land of promise, and therefore a like command was given to both. It must be apparent to every man of reflecting mind, that this command, so singular in its nature, must be grounded in some divine law of representation; for, literally speaking, if sincerity fill the mind of him appointed to the performance of any religious duty, it could avail nothing whether shoes or sandals were removed from the feet or not; and yet is safe and reasonable to believe, that nothing trifling or unworthy of notice is recorded in the Word of God.
In ancient times, when outward acts were the faithful representatives of inward states or feelings of mind, to put off the shoes from the feet, in performing peculiar religious duties, was an act or token of reverence to God, expressing deep humiliation of soul. And here a lesson of much value seems to flash across the mind; we see that profound reverence and humiliation are essential requisites to the performance of any work
