Exodus 2:11–25

Moses Flees to Midian

¹¹One day, ^zwhen Moses had grown up, he went out to his people and looked on their ^aburdens, and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people.^{3 12}He looked this way and that, and seeing no one, he ^bstruck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. ¹³When ^che went out the next day, behold, two Hebrews were struggling together. And he said to the man in the wrong, “Why do you strike your companion?” ¹⁴He answered, ^d“Who made you a prince and a judge over us? Do you mean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid, and thought, “Surely the thing is known.” ¹⁵When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to kill Moses. But ^eMoses fled from Pharaoh and stayed in the land of Midian. And he sat down by ^fa well.

¹⁶Now the ^gpriest of Midian had seven daughters, and ^hthey 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 saved them, and ⁱwatered their flock. ¹⁸When they came home to their father ^jReuel, he said, “How is it that you have come home so soon today?” ¹⁹They said, “An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds and even drew water for us and ⁱwatered the flock.” ²⁰He said to his daughters, “Then where is he? Why have you left the man? Call him, that he may ^keat bread.” ²¹And Moses was content to dwell with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter ^lZipporah. ²²She gave birth to a son, and he called his name ^mGershom, for he said, “I have been a ⁿsojourner⁴ in a foreign land.”

God Hears Israel’s Groaning

^23oDuring those many days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel ^pgroaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. ^qTheir cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. ²⁴And ^rGod heard their groaning, and God ^sremembered his covenant with ^tAbraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. ²⁵God ^usaw the people of Israel—and God ^vknew.