Exodus 2:1-22 (Amplified Bible)
1 NOW [Amram] a man of the house of Levi [the priestly tribe] went and took as his wife [Jochebed] a daughter of Levi. 2And the woman became pregnant and bore a son; and when she saw that he was [exceedingly] beautiful, she hid him three months.
3And when she could no longer hide him, she took for him an ark or basket made of bulrushes or papyrus [making it watertight by] daubing it with bitumen and pitch. Then she put the child in it and laid it among the rushes by the brink of the river [Nile].
4And his sister [Miriam] stood some distance away to learn what would be done to him.
5Now the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, and her maidens walked along the bank; she saw the ark among the rushes and sent her maid to fetch it.
6When she opened it, she saw the child; and behold, the baby cried. And she took pity on him and said, This is one of the Hebrews' children!
7Then his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call a nurse of the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?
8Pharaoh's daughter said to her, Go. And the girl went and called the child's mother.
9Then Pharaoh's daughter said to her, Take this child away and nurse it for me, and I will give you your wages. So the woman took the child and nursed it.
10And the child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter and he became her son. And she called him Moses, for she said, Because I drew him out of the water.
11One day, after Moses was grown, it happened that he went out to his brethren and looked at their burdens; and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of [Moses'] brethren.
12He looked this way and that way, and when he saw no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.
13He went out the second day and saw two Hebrew men quarreling and fighting; and he said to the unjust aggressor, Why are you striking your comrade?
14And the man said, Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you intend to kill me as you killed the Egyptian? Then Moses was afraid and thought, Surely this thing is known.
15When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to slay Moses. But Moses fled from Pharaoh's presence and took refuge in the land of Midian, where he sat down by a well.
16Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came and drew water and filled the troughs to water their father's flock.
17The shepherds came and drove them away; but Moses stood up and helped them and watered their flock.
18And when they came to Reuel [Jethro] their father, he said, How is it that you have come so soon today?
19They said, An Egyptian delivered us from the shepherds; also he drew water for us and watered the flock.
20He said to his daughters, Where is he? Why have you left the man? Call him, that he may eat bread.
21And Moses was content to dwell with the man; and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter.
22And she bore a son, and he called his name Gershom [expulsion, or a stranger there]; for he said, I have been a stranger and a sojourner in a foreign land.
How many of us struggle to be content? About 5 weeks ago, one of the major news networks did a poll and story on the American struggle for, not contentment, but happiness. The poll featured the person polled asked on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being perfect, how happy are you? Every participant answered at least a 9 and some answered a 10. The scientist controlling the experiment came on camera saying his in-depth studies portray the polled people as…. using strong exaggeration. The scientist said one of the reasons people today feel isolated is the need to portray their lives as a successful & happy. The scientist went on to say these results were not surprising to him, he expected people to face a national television cameo as portraying themselves as fulfilled.
At funerals, I have been asked how I can believe in a God so cruel as to separate people by death. The answer is God built us to be seekers in this life & to grow into seeking, wanting, needing relying upon His grace. The separation from God, the separation from our loved ones is an invitation for the separation to be temporary.
If Moses had grown up as an extension of Prime-Minister Joseph’s family, as just another honored part of the honored clan (even if it was slavery), and had faced his life feeling absolutely happy ever day, what would he have accomplished? Moses probably felt content most of his life, but he was still seeking. The journey isn’t a bad thing & roses have thorns. Norman Vincent Peale used to say, “You have problems, must mean that you are alive.”
One way in life to feel less isolated is to join a Christian small group in a Bible believing Church; there Christians share their burdens in supporting, prayerful confidence. The Bible asks us to share our burdens and to be constant in prayer.
Hebrews 12:
18 You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; 19 to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, 20 because they could not bear what was commanded: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned." 21The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, "I am trembling with fear."
22 But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, 23 to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, 24 to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
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1 NOW [Amram] a man of the house of Levi [the priestly tribe] went and took as his wife [Jochebed] a daughter of Levi. 2And the woman became pregnant and bore a son; and when she saw that he was [exceedingly] beautiful, she hid him three months.
3And when she could no longer hide him, she took for him an ark or basket made of bulrushes or papyrus [making it watertight by] daubing it with bitumen and pitch. Then she put the child in it and laid it among the rushes by the brink of the river [Nile].
4And his sister [Miriam] stood some distance away to learn what would be done to him.
5Now the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, and her maidens walked along the bank; she saw the ark among the rushes and sent her maid to fetch it.
6When she opened it, she saw the child; and behold, the baby cried. And she took pity on him and said, This is one of the Hebrews' children!
7Then his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call a nurse of the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?
8Pharaoh's daughter said to her, Go. And the girl went and called the child's mother.
9Then Pharaoh's daughter said to her, Take this child away and nurse it for me, and I will give you your wages. So the woman took the child and nursed it.
10And the child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter and he became her son. And she called him Moses, for she said, Because I drew him out of the water.
11One day, after Moses was grown, it happened that he went out to his brethren and looked at their burdens; and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of [Moses'] brethren.
12He looked this way and that way, and when he saw no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand.
13He went out the second day and saw two Hebrew men quarreling and fighting; and he said to the unjust aggressor, Why are you striking your comrade?
14And the man said, Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you intend to kill me as you killed the Egyptian? Then Moses was afraid and thought, Surely this thing is known.
15When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to slay Moses. But Moses fled from Pharaoh's presence and took refuge in the land of Midian, where he sat down by a well.
16Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came and drew water and filled the troughs to water their father's flock.
17The shepherds came and drove them away; but Moses stood up and helped them and watered their flock.
18And when they came to Reuel [Jethro] their father, he said, How is it that you have come so soon today?
19They said, An Egyptian delivered us from the shepherds; also he drew water for us and watered the flock.
20He said to his daughters, Where is he? Why have you left the man? Call him, that he may eat bread.
21And Moses was content to dwell with the man; and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter.
22And she bore a son, and he called his name Gershom [expulsion, or a stranger there]; for he said, I have been a stranger and a sojourner in a foreign land.
How many of us struggle to be content? About 5 weeks ago, one of the major news networks did a poll and story on the American struggle for, not contentment, but happiness. The poll featured the person polled asked on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being perfect, how happy are you? Every participant answered at least a 9 and some answered a 10. The scientist controlling the experiment came on camera saying his in-depth studies portray the polled people as…. using strong exaggeration. The scientist said one of the reasons people today feel isolated is the need to portray their lives as a successful & happy. The scientist went on to say these results were not surprising to him, he expected people to face a national television cameo as portraying themselves as fulfilled.
At funerals, I have been asked how I can believe in a God so cruel as to separate people by death. The answer is God built us to be seekers in this life & to grow into seeking, wanting, needing relying upon His grace. The separation from God, the separation from our loved ones is an invitation for the separation to be temporary.
If Moses had grown up as an extension of Prime-Minister Joseph’s family, as just another honored part of the honored clan (even if it was slavery), and had faced his life feeling absolutely happy ever day, what would he have accomplished? Moses probably felt content most of his life, but he was still seeking. The journey isn’t a bad thing & roses have thorns. Norman Vincent Peale used to say, “You have problems, must mean that you are alive.”
One way in life to feel less isolated is to join a Christian small group in a Bible believing Church; there Christians share their burdens in supporting, prayerful confidence. The Bible asks us to share our burdens and to be constant in prayer.
Hebrews 12:
18 You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; 19 to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, 20 because they could not bear what was commanded: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned." 21The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, "I am trembling with fear."
22 But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, 23 to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, 24 to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
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