Exodus 2
2
Moses’ birth
1Now a man from Levi’s household married a Levite woman. 2The woman became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She saw that the baby was healthy and beautiful, so she hid him for three months. 3When she couldn’t hide him any longer, she took a reed basket and sealed it up with black tar. She put the child in the basket and set the basket among the reeds at the riverbank. 4The baby’s older sister stood watch nearby to see what would happen to him.
5Pharaoh’s daughter came down to bathe in the river, while her women servants walked along beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds, and she sent one of her servants to bring it to her. 6When she opened it, she saw the child. The boy was crying, and she felt sorry for him. She said, “This must be one of the Hebrews’ children.”
7Then the baby’s sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Would you like me to go and find one of the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?”
8Pharaoh’s daughter agreed, “Yes, do that.” So the girl went and called the child’s mother. 9Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this child and nurse it for me, and I’ll pay you for your work.” So the woman took the child and nursed it. 10After the child had grown up, she brought him back to Pharaoh’s daughter, who adopted him as her son. She named him Moses, “because,” she said, “I pulled him out#2.10 Heb mashah sounds like Moses (moshe). of the water.”
Moses runs away to Midian
11One day after Moses had become an adult, he went out among his people and he saw their forced labor. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his own people. 12He looked around to make sure no one else was there. Then he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.
13When Moses went out the next day, he saw two Hebrew men fighting with each other. Moses said to the one who had started the fight, “Why are you abusing your fellow Hebrew?”
14He replied, “Who made you a boss or judge over us? Are you planning to kill me like you killed the Egyptian?”
Then Moses was afraid when he realized: They obviously know what I did. 15When Pharaoh heard about it, he tried to kill Moses.
But Moses ran away from Pharaoh and settled down in the land of Midian. One day Moses was sitting by a well. 16Now there was a Midianite priest who had seven daughters. The daughters came to draw water and fill the troughs so that their father’s flock could drink. 17But some shepherds came along and rudely chased them away. Moses got up, rescued the women, and gave their flock water to drink.
18When they went back home to their father Reuel,#2.18 Also called Jethro he asked, “How were you able to come back home so soon today?”
19They replied, “An Egyptian man rescued us from a bunch of shepherds. Afterward, he even helped us draw water to let the flock drink.”
20Reuel said to his daughters, “So where is he? Why did you leave this man? Invite him to eat a meal with us.”
21Moses agreed to come and live with the man, who gave his daughter Zipporah to Moses as his wife. 22She gave birth to a son, and Moses named him Gershom, “because,” he said, “I’ve been an immigrant#2.22 Heb ger sounds like Gershom. living in a foreign land.”
23A long time passed, and the Egyptian king died. The Israelites were still groaning because of their hard work. They cried out, and their cry to be rescued from the hard work rose up to God. 24God heard their cry of grief, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 25God looked at the Israelites, and God understood.
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2011 Common English Bible. All rights reserved.
Exodus 2
2
Baby Moses
1Now a man from the family of Levi married a woman who was also from the family of Levi. 2She became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw how wonderful the baby was, she hid him for three months. 3But after three months she was not able to hide the baby any longer, so she got a basket made of reeds and covered it with tar so that it would float. She put the baby in the basket. Then she put the basket among the tall stalks of grass at the edge of the Nile River. 4The baby’s sister stood a short distance away to see what would happen to him.
5Then the daughter of the king of Egypt came to the river to take a bath, and her servant girls were walking beside the river. When she saw the basket in the tall grass, she sent her slave girl to get it. 6The king’s daughter opened the basket and saw the baby boy. He was crying, so she felt sorry for him and said, “This is one of the Hebrew babies.”
7Then the baby’s sister asked the king’s daughter, “Would you like me to go and find a Hebrew woman to nurse the baby for you?”
8The king’s daughter said, “Go!” So the girl went and got the baby’s own mother.
9The king’s daughter said to the woman, “Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you.” So the woman took her baby and nursed him. 10When the child grew older, the woman took him to the king’s daughter, and she adopted the baby as her own son. The king’s daughter named him Moses, because she had pulled him out of the water.
Moses Tries to Help
11Moses grew and became a man. One day he visited his people and saw that they were forced to work very hard. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew man, one of Moses’ own people. 12Moses looked all around and saw that no one was watching, so he killed the Egyptian and hid his body in the sand.
13The next day Moses returned and saw two Hebrew men fighting each other. He said to the one that was in the wrong, “Why are you hitting one of your own people?”
14The man answered, “Who made you our ruler and judge? Are you going to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?”
Moses was afraid and thought, “Now everyone knows what I did.”
15When the king heard what Moses had done, he tried to kill him. But Moses ran away from the king and went to live in the land of Midian. There he sat down near a well.
Moses in Midian
16There was a priest in Midian who had seven daughters. His daughters went to that well to get water to fill the water troughs for their father’s flock. 17Some shepherds came and chased the girls away, but Moses defended the girls and watered their flock.
18When they went back to their father Reuel, he asked them, “Why have you come home early today?”
19The girls answered, “The shepherds chased us away, but an Egyptian defended us. He got water for us and watered our flock.”
20He asked his daughters, “Where is this man? Why did you leave him? Invite him to eat with us.”
21Moses agreed to stay with Jethro, and he gave his daughter Zipporah to Moses to be his wife. 22Zipporah gave birth to a son. Moses named him Gershom, because Moses was a stranger in a land that was not his own.
23After a long time, the king of Egypt died. The people of Israel groaned, because they were forced to work very hard. When they cried for help, God heard them. 24God heard their cries, and he remembered the agreement he had made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 25He saw the troubles of the people of Israel, and he was concerned about them.
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The Holy Bible, New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.