Exodus 18
18
Advice From Moses’ Father-in-Law
1Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, was a priest in Midian. He heard about the many ways that God helped Moses and the Israelites. He heard about the Lord leading the Israelites out of Egypt. 2So Jethro went to Moses while Moses was camped near the mountain of God.#18:2 mountain of God That is, Mount Horeb (Sinai). Jethro brought Moses’ wife, Zipporah, with him. (Zipporah was not with Moses, because Moses had sent her home.) 3Jethro also brought Moses’ two sons with him. The first son was named Gershom,#18:3 Gershom This name is like the Hebrew words meaning “a stranger there.” because when he was born, Moses said, “I am a stranger in a foreign country.” 4The other son was named Eliezer,#18:4 Eliezer This name means “My God helps.” because when he was born, Moses said, “The God of my father helped me and saved me from the king of Egypt.” 5So Jethro went to Moses while Moses was camped in the desert near the mountain of God. Moses’ wife and his two sons were with Jethro.
6Jethro sent a message to Moses that said, “This is your father-in-law Jethro. I am bringing your wife and her two sons to you.”
7So Moses went out to meet his father-in-law. Moses bowed down before him and kissed him. The two men asked about each other’s health. Then they went into Moses’ tent to talk more. 8Moses told Jethro everything the Lord had done for the Israelites. He told what the Lord did to Pharaoh and the people of Egypt. He told about all the problems they had along the way. And he told his father-in-law how the Lord saved the Israelites every time there was trouble.
9Jethro was happy when he heard all the good things the Lord had done for Israel. He was glad that the Lord had freed the Israelites from the Egyptians. 10He said, “Praise the Lord! He freed you from the power of Egypt. He saved you from Pharaoh. 11Now I know the Lord is greater than all the gods. They thought they were in control, but look what God did!”
12Jethro got some sacrifices and offerings to honor God. Then Aaron and all the elders of Israel came to eat with Moses’ father-in-law Jethro. They all ate together there with God.
13The next day, Moses had the special job of judging the people. There were so many people that they had to stand before him all day.
14Jethro saw Moses judging the people. He asked, “Why are you doing this? Why are you the only judge? And why do people come to you all day?”
15Then Moses said to his father-in-law, “The people come to me and ask me to ask for God’s decision for their problem. 16If people have an argument, they come to me, and I decide which person is right. In this way I teach the people God’s laws and teachings.”
17But Moses’ father-in-law said to him, “This isn’t the right way to do this. 18It is too much work for you to do alone. You cannot do this job by yourself. It wears you out. And it makes the people tired too. 19Now, listen to me. Let me give you some advice. And I pray God will be with you. You should continue listening to the problems of the people. And you should continue to speak to God about these things. 20You should explain God’s laws and teachings to the people. Warn them not to break the laws. Tell them the right way to live and what they should do. 21But you should also choose some of the people to be judges and leaders.
“Choose good men you can trust—men who respect God. Choose men who will not change their decisions for money. Make these men rulers over the people. There should be rulers over 1000 people, 100 people, 50 people, and even over ten people. 22Let these rulers judge the people. If there is a very important case, then they can come to you and let you decide what to do. But they can decide the other cases themselves. In this way these men will share your work with you, and it will be easier for you to lead the people. 23If you do this as God directs you, then you will be able to do your job without tiring yourself out. And the people can still have all their problems solved before they return home.”
24So Moses did what Jethro told him. 25Moses chose good men from among the Israelites. He made them leaders over the people. There were rulers over 1000 people, 100 people, 50 people, and ten people. 26These rulers were judges for the people. The people could always bring their arguments to these rulers, and Moses had to decide only the most important cases.
27After a short time Moses said goodbye to his father-in-law Jethro, and Jethro went back to his own home.
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Exodus 18
18
Jethro Visits Moses
1Moses’ father-in-law Jethro was the priest of Midian. He heard about everything God had done for Moses and for his people Israel. Jethro heard how the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.
2Moses had sent his wife Zipporah to his father-in-law. So Jethro welcomed her 3and her two sons. One son was named Gershom. That’s because Moses had said, “I’m an outsider in a strange land.” 4The other was named Eliezer. That’s because Moses had said, “My father’s God helped me. He saved me from Pharaoh’s sword.”
5Moses’ father-in-law Jethro came to Moses in the desert. Moses’ sons and wife came with Jethro. Moses was camped near the mountain of God. 6Jethro had sent a message to him. It said, “I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you. I’m bringing your wife and her two sons.”
7So Moses went out to meet his father-in-law. Moses bowed down and kissed him. They greeted each other. Then they went into the tent. 8Moses told Jethro everything the Lord had done to Pharaoh and the Egyptians. The Lord did all of this because of how much he loved Israel. Moses told Jethro about all their hard times along the way. He told him about how the Lord had saved them.
9Jethro was delighted to hear about all the good things the Lord had done for Israel. He heard about how God had saved them from the power of the Egyptians. 10He said, “I praise the Lord. He saved you and your people from the power of the Egyptians and of Pharaoh. 11Now I know that the Lord is greater than all other gods. See what he did to those who looked down on Israel.” 12Then Moses’ father-in-law Jethro brought a burnt offering and other sacrifices to God. Aaron came with all the elders of Israel. They ate a meal with Moses’ father-in-law in the sight of God.
13The next day Moses took his seat to serve the people as their judge. They stood around him from morning until evening. 14His father-in-law saw everything Moses was doing for the people. So he said, “Aren’t you trying to do too much for the people? You are the only judge. And all these people are standing around you from morning until evening.”
15Moses answered, “The people come to me to find out what God wants them to do. 16Anytime they don’t agree with one another, they come to me. I decide between them. I tell them about God’s rules and instructions.”
17Moses’ father-in-law replied, “What you are doing isn’t good. 18You will just get worn out. And so will these people who come to you. There’s too much work for you. You can’t possibly handle it by yourself. 19Listen to me. I’ll give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must speak to God for the people. Take their problems to him. 20Teach them his rules and instructions. Show them how to live and what to do. 21But choose men of ability from all the people. They must have respect for God. You must be able to trust them. They must not try to get money by cheating others. Appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 22Let them serve the people as judges. But have them bring every hard case to you. They can decide the easy ones themselves. That will make your load lighter. They will share it with you. 23If this is what God wants and if you do it, then you will be able to carry the load. And all these people will go home satisfied.”
24Moses listened to his father-in-law. He did everything Jethro said. 25He chose men of ability from the whole community of Israel. He made them leaders of the people. They became officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 26They judged the people at all times. They brought the hard cases to Moses. But they decided the easy ones themselves.
27Moses sent his father-in-law on his way. So Jethro returned to his own country.
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