Exodus

Moses’ Infancy

A man from the Levite tribe married a woman from his own group.

She gave birth to a boy and, noticing he was a beautiful child, kept him hidden for three months.

When she could no longer hide him, she made a basket out of papyrus leaves and coated it with tar and pitch. She placed the baby inside the basket and set it among the reeds near the Nile’s bank,

while his sister watched from a distance to see what would happen to him.

The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe in the Nile, with her attendants walking along the bank. When she saw the basket among the reeds, she sent her maidservant to fetch it.

She opened the basket and saw a crying baby boy! Feeling sorry for him, she thought:

“This is one of the Hebrew children.”

Then the child’s sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter:
“Should I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?”

Pharaoh’s daughter agreed, and the girl went to call the child’s mother.

Pharaoh’s daughter said to her:

“Take the child and nurse him for me, and I will pay you.”

The woman took the child and cared for him.

When the child grew older, she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, who adopted him as her son. She named him Moses, meaning she drew him out of the water.

The Young Moses

After a long time, Moses, now grown, wanted to connect with his fellow Hebrews. He noticed their heavy burdens and saw an Egyptian beating one of his own people, a Hebrew.

He looked around and, seeing no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.

When he went out the next day, he saw two Hebrews quarreling. Moses said to the man in the wrong:

“Why are you striking a fellow countryman?”

But he answered:

“Who has appointed you ruler and judge over us? Do you intend to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?”

Moses was afraid and thought, “What I did must be known.”

When Pharaoh heard about it, he attempted to kill Moses, but Moses escaped from Pharaoh and went to live in Midian. There, he sat down by a well.

A Midian priest had seven daughters. They went to draw water and fill the troughs to water their father’s sheep.

Some shepherds arrived and drove them away, but Moses helped them and watered the sheep.

When the girls returned to their father, Reuel, he asked them:

“Why have you come back so early today?”

They said:

“An Egyptian protected us from the shepherds and even drew water for us and watered the sheep.”

The man said:

“Where is he? Why did you leave him there? Call him and offer him a meal.”

Moses agreed to stay with the man, who gave his daughter Zipporah in marriage to him.

She had a child, and Moses named him Gershom, to remind himself that he had been a guest in a foreign land.

During that long period, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites suffered under their slavery; they cried out to God for help, and their cries rose to Him from their bondage.

God heard their sighs and remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

God looked on the Israelites and revealed himself to them.