Birth And Infancy: Exodus 2.1-10
There are two things to be noted here: First, When Moses was found by Pharaoh’s daughter, she immediately recognized the baby as being Hebrew. The sister of Moses was on hand and suggested that she go for the baby’s mother. Pharaoh’s daughter gave her permission to take the baby and let the mother nurse him and even be paid for it. There is certainly some irony in the way God demonstrates his authority in the lives of his people.
Second, The mother had charge of the child as he grew. There certainly was some embedding into Moses’s life as to who his people were. Even though he was finally given to Pharaoh’s daughter to become her son—the die was cast; God had seen to it. God appears to have a way of caring and protecting his own. Even when things appear to be the darkest—God is there to protect.
The First Try At Deliverance: Exodus 2.11-15
There were nearly forty years between grew in verse 10 and grown in verse 11. Stephen in the NT told about this period of Moses’s life. Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and was powerful in speech and action (Acts 7.22).
Exodus 2.11 tells us about how he understood his roots. The text says that he went out to where his own people were and watched them labor. When he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew—one of his own people—he lashed out and killed the Egyptian. This is the first expression of what became a life response of Moses’ life—his love for his brothers. The phrase his own people also indicates how powerful his parental teaching had influenced his life.
When he attempted to become a peacemaker between two of his Hebrew brothers, he was greeted with chants of “killer” and “you are not our judge.” This must have been disheartening to Moses in that he was trying to be their helper. Early he had a taste of how his people would respond to his leadership. God often prepares us in advance for what will follow in our lives. There is certainly some irony in the way God demonstrates his authority in the lives of his people.
His Flight To Midian: Exodus 2.16-17
Stephen’s account gives us further insight into the thought life of Moses. He tells us that: Moses thought that his own people would realize that God was using him to rescue them, but they did not (Acts 7.25). The rejection of his brothers led him to fear what Pharaoh would do if he was caught. His fears were nearly realized, but he found himself on a journey to Midian.
His Second Attempt At Being A Deliverer
When Moses arrived in Midian, he sat down by a well only to find that there were seven sisters tending sheep, who came to the well to get water for their sheep. Some other shepherds came along and drove them away and Moses came to their rescue and watered their flock. As earlier, Moses attempted to do what he thought was right in the situation—he worked as a deliverer. These stories are not incidental to the overall picture of Moses. What God was doing was preparing him in some little ways for a major deliverance of people in his later life.
