Exodus 2:11-4:17

International Children’s Bible

Moses Helps His People

¹¹ Moses grew and became a man. One day he visited his people, the Hebrews. He saw that they were forced to work very hard. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew man, one of Moses’ own people. ¹² Moses looked all around and saw that no one was watching. So he killed the Egyptian and hid his body in the sand.

¹³ The next day Moses returned and saw two Hebrew men fighting each other. He saw that one man was in the wrong. Moses said to that man, “Why are you hitting one of your own people?”

¹⁴ The man answered, “Who made you our ruler and judge? Are you going to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?”

Then Moses was afraid. He thought, “Now everyone knows what I did.”

¹⁵ When the king heard about what Moses had done, he tried to kill Moses. 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

¹⁶ There was a priest in Midian who had seven daughters. His daughters went to that well to get water for their father’s sheep. They were trying to fill the water troughs for their father’s sheep. ¹⁷ But some shepherds came and chased the girls away. Then Moses defended the girls and watered their sheep.

¹⁸ Then they went back to their father, Reuel, also called Jethro. He asked them, “Why have you come home early today?”

¹⁹ The girls answered, “The shepherds chased us away. But an Egyptian defended us. He got water for us and watered our sheep.”

²⁰ He asked his daughters, “Where is this man? Why did you leave him? Invite him to eat with us.”

²¹ Moses agreed to stay with Jethro. And he gave his daughter Zipporah to Moses to be his wife. ²² Zipporah gave birth to a son, and Moses named him Gershom.^[a] Moses named him this because Moses was a stranger in a land that was not his own.

²³ After a long time, the king of Egypt died. The people of Israel groaned because they were forced to work very hard. They cried for help. And God heard them. ²⁴ God heard their cries, and he remembered the agreement he had made with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. ²⁵ God saw the troubles of the people of Israel, and he was concerned about them.

The Burning Bush

3 One day Moses was taking care of Jethro’s sheep. Jethro was the priest of Midian and also Moses’ father-in-law. Moses led the sheep to the west side of the desert. He came to Sinai, the mountain of God. ² There the angel of the Lord appeared to Moses in flames of fire coming out of a bush. Moses saw that the bush was on fire, but it was not burning up. ³ So Moses said, “I will go closer to this strange thing. How can a bush continue burning without burning up?”

⁴ The Lord saw Moses was coming to look at the bush. So God called to him from the bush, “Moses, Moses!”

And Moses said, “Here I am.”

⁵ Then God said, “Do not come any closer. Take off your sandals. You are standing on holy ground. ⁶ I am the God of your ancestors. I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” Moses covered his face because he was afraid to look at God.

⁷ The Lord said, “I have seen the troubles my people have suffered in Egypt. And I have heard their cries when the Egyptian slave masters hurt them. I am concerned about their pain. ⁸ I have come down to save them from the Egyptians. I will bring them out of that land. I will lead them to a good land with lots of room. This is a land where much food grows. This is the land of these people: the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. ⁹ I have heard the cries of the people of Israel. I have seen the way the Egyptians have made life hard for them. ¹⁰ So now I am sending you to the king of Egypt. Go! Bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt!”

¹¹ But Moses said to God, “I am not a great man! Why should I be the one to go to the king and lead the Israelites out of Egypt?”

¹² God said, “I will be with you. This will be the proof that I am sending you: You will lead the people out of Egypt. Then all of you will worship me on this mountain.”

¹³ Moses said to God, “When I go to the Israelites, I will say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors sent me to you.’ What if the people say, ‘What is his name?’ What should I tell them?”

¹⁴ Then God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.^[b] When you go to the people of Israel, tell them, ‘I AM sent me to you.’”

¹⁵ God also said to Moses, “This is what you should tell the people: ‘The Lord is the God of your ancestors. He is the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. And he sent me to you.’ This will always be my name. That is how people from now on will know me.

¹⁶ “Go and gather the elders and tell them this: ‘The Lord, the God of your ancestors, has appeared to me. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob spoke to me. He says: I care about you, and I have seen what has happened to you in Egypt. ¹⁷ I have decided that I will take you away from the troubles you are suffering in Egypt. I will lead you to the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. This land grows much food.’

¹⁸ “The elders will listen to you. And then you and the elders of Israel will go to the king of Egypt. You will tell him, ‘The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, appeared to us. Let us travel three days into the desert. There we must offer sacrifices to the Lord our God.’

¹⁹ “But I know that the king of Egypt will not let you go. Only a great power will force him to let you go. ²⁰ So I will use my great power against Egypt. I will make miracles happen in that land. After I do this, he will let you go. ²¹ And I will cause the Egyptian people to think well of the people of Israel. So when you leave, they will give gifts to your people. ²² Each Hebrew woman will ask her Egyptian neighbor and any Egyptian woman living in her house for gifts. Ask for silver, gold and clothing. You will put those gifts on your children when you leave Egypt. In this way you will take with you the riches of the Egyptians.”

Proof for Moses

4 Then Moses answered, “What if the people of Israel do not believe me or listen to me? What if they say, ‘The Lord did not appear to you’?”

² The Lord said to him, “What is that in your hand?”

Moses answered, “It is my walking stick.”

³ The Lord said, “Throw it on the ground.”

So Moses threw it on the ground. And it became a snake. Moses ran from the snake. ⁴ But the Lord said to him, “Reach out and grab the snake by its tail.” So Moses reached out and took hold of the snake. When he did this, it again became a stick in his hand. ⁵ The Lord said, “When this happens, the Israelites will believe that the Lord appeared to you. I am the God of their ancestors. I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.”

⁶ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Put your hand inside your coat.” So Moses put his hand inside his coat. When he took his hand out, it was white with a harmful skin disease.

⁷ Then the Lord said, “Now put your hand inside your coat again.” So Moses put his hand inside his coat again. When he took it out, his hand was healthy again. It was like the rest of his skin.

⁸ Then the Lord said, “The people may not believe you or be convinced by the first miracle. They may believe you when you show them this second miracle. ⁹ After these two miracles they still may not believe or listen to you. Then take some water from the Nile River. Pour it on the dry ground. The water will become blood when it touches the ground.”

¹⁰ But Moses said to the Lord, “But Lord, I am not a skilled speaker. I have never been able to speak well. And now, even after talking to you, I am not a good speaker. I speak slowly and can’t find the best words.”

¹¹ Then the Lord said to him, “Who made man’s mouth? And who makes him deaf or not able to speak? Or who gives a man sight or makes him blind? It is I, the Lord. ¹² Now go! I will help you speak. I will tell you what to say.”

¹³ But Moses said, “Please, Lord, send someone else.”

¹⁴ The Lord became angry with Moses. He said, “Your brother Aaron, from the family of Levi, is a skilled speaker. He is already coming to meet you. And he will be happy when he sees you. ¹⁵ I will tell you what to say. Then you will tell Aaron. I will help both of you know what to say and do. ¹⁶ And Aaron will speak to the people for you. You will tell him what God says. And he will speak for you. ¹⁷ Take your walking stick with you. Use it to do the miracles.”