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18 ¶ Jetwo te pran nouvèl tou sa Bondye te fè pou Moyiz ak pèp Izrayèl la, jan li te fè yo soti kite peyi Lejip. Jetwo sa a te prèt nan peyi Madyan. Se bòpè Moyiz li te ye.

Anvan tout bagay sa yo te rive, Moyiz te voye Sefora, madanm li, al jwenn Jetwo, papa li. Koulye a, Jetwo mennen Sefora tounen bay Moyiz

ansanm ak Gèchon ak Elyezè, de pitit gason Moyiz yo. Lè timoun sa yo t'ap fèt Moyiz te di: Se moun vini mwen ye nan yon peyi etranje. Se konsa li te rele yonn Gèchon.

Moyiz te di tou: Se Bondye papa m' ki te pote m' sekou, ki te sove m' anba pèsekisyon farawon an. Se konsa li te rele lòt la Elyezè.

Jetwo, bòpè Moyiz la, pran madanm Moyiz ak de pitit gason l' yo, li vin wè Moyiz nan dezè kote l' te moute tant li a, sou mòn Bondye a.

Jetwo voye di Moyiz: -Se mwen menm, Jetwo, bòpè ou, k'ap vin wè ou ansanm ak madanm ou ak de pitit gason ou yo.

¶ Moyiz soti al kontre bòpè li, li bese tèt li jouk atè devan l' pou di li bonjou, epi li bo l'. Yonn mande lòt ki jan yo ye, epi yo antre anba tant Moyiz la.

Moyiz rakonte bòpè l' tou sa Seyè a te fè farawon an ak moun peyi Lejip yo pase poutèt pitit Izrayèl yo. Li di l' tout tray yo te pase nan vwayaj la ak ki jan Seyè a te delivre yo.

Jetwo te kontan anpil lè l' tande tout bèl bagay Seyè a te fè pou pèp Izrayèl la, jan l' te delivre yo anba men moun peyi Lejip yo.

10 Jetwo di: -Lwanj pou Seyè a ki delivre ou anba men moun peyi Lejip yo ak anba men farawon an! Lwanj pou Seyè a ki wete pèp li a anba esklavaj moun peyi Lejip yo!

11 Koulye a mwen konnen Seyè a gen plis pouvwa pase tout lòt bondye yo, paske gade jan Bondye delivre pèp Izrayèl la anba moun peyi Lejip yo ki pa t' vle wè yo!

12 Apre sa, Jetwo, bòpè Moyiz la, ofri bèt pou yo touye pou di Bondye mèsi. Li ofri bèt pou yo boule nèt pou Seyè a. Arawon ansanm ak tout chèf fanmi pèp Izrayèl la te vin manje ak bòpè Moyiz la nan manje yo t'ap manje devan Bondye a.

13 ¶ Nan denmen, Moyiz te chita pou rann jijman sou tout bagay ki pase nan mitan pèp la. Depi maten jouk aswè, moun t'ap pase devan Moyiz.

14 Lè Jetwo, bòpè Moyiz la, wè kalite travay di sa a Moyiz t'ap fè pou kò l' pou pèp la, li di l' konsa: -Kisa w'ap fè konsa ak pèp la? Poukisa pou pèp la kanpe devan ou depi maten jouk aswè, epi se ou menm ki chita la pou kont ou ap rann jijman?

15 Moyiz reponn bòpè l' konsa: -Se sa pou m' fè paske pèp la vin kote m' pou yo ka konnen sa Bondye vle yo fè nan tout sikonstans.

16 Lè yo gen kont, yo vin jwenn mwen, mwen regle sa pou yo, mwen fè yo konnen volonte Bondye ak sa Bondye mande yo pou yo fè.

17 Bòpè Moyiz la di l' konsa: -Jan w'ap fè l' la pa bon.

18 W'ap fin kraze kouraj ou ansanm ak kouraj pèp la ki la avè ou. Paske chay la twòp pou ou. Ou pa ka pote l' pou kont ou.

19 Bon. Koute sa m'ap di ou: se yon konsèy m'ap ba ou pou Bondye ka ede ou. Se ou menm ki va prezante pou pèp la devan Bondye. W'a mete tout pwoblèm yo devan Bondye.

20 W'a moutre yo lòd Bondye, Seyè a, bay ansanm ak sa li mande yo pou yo fè. W'a fè yo konnen jan pou yo viv ak sa yo dwe fè.

21 Men, w'a chwazi nan mitan pèp la kèk moun ki kapab, moun ki gen krentif pou Bondye. Fòk se moun ou ka konte sou yo, moun ki p'ap kite lajan pran nanm yo. W'a mete yo chèf pou dirije pèp la, chèf sou mil moun, chèf sou san moun, chèf sou senkant moun ak chèf sou dis moun.

22 Moun sa yo va toujou la pou sèvi jij pou pèp la. Lè y'a gen gwo zafè, y'a pote yo devan ou. Men lòt ti zafè, y'a regle sa yo menm. Konsa, chay la va pi lejè pou ou, paske y'a ede ou pote l'.

23 Si ou fè sa, Bondye va dirije ou. W'a kapab fè travay ou, epitou, tout pèp la va tounen lakay li ak kè poze.

24 Moyiz koute konsèy bòpè l' la vre. Li fè tou sa Jetwo te di l' fè yo.

25 Moyiz chwazi nan mitan pèp Izrayèl la kèk nèg ki kapab dirije pèp la, li mete yo chèf sou mil moun, chèf sou san moun, chèf sou senkant moun ak chèf sou dis moun.

26 Yo te toujou la pou rann jistis pou pèp la. Yo te pote gwo zafè yo devan Moyiz. Men ti ka piti yo, yo te regle sa yo menm.

27 Apre sa, Moyiz kite bòpè l' la pati. Epi Jetwo tounen tounen l' nan peyi l'.

Jethro Visits Moses

18 Now Jethro,(A) the priest of Midian(B) and father-in-law of Moses, heard of everything God had done for Moses and for his people Israel, and how the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.(C)

After Moses had sent away his wife Zipporah,(D) his father-in-law Jethro received her and her two sons.(E) One son was named Gershom,[a] for Moses said, “I have become a foreigner in a foreign land”;(F) and the other was named Eliezer,[b](G) for he said, “My father’s God was my helper;(H) he saved me from the sword of Pharaoh.”

Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, together with Moses’ sons and wife, came to him in the wilderness, where he was camped near the mountain(I) of God. Jethro had sent word to him, “I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons.”

So Moses went out to meet his father-in-law and bowed down(J) and kissed(K) him. They greeted each other and then went into the tent. Moses told his father-in-law about everything the Lord had done to Pharaoh and the Egyptians for Israel’s sake and about all the hardships(L) they had met along the way and how the Lord had saved(M) them.

Jethro was delighted to hear about all the good things(N) the Lord had done for Israel in rescuing them from the hand of the Egyptians. 10 He said, “Praise be to the Lord,(O) who rescued you from the hand of the Egyptians and of Pharaoh, and who rescued the people from the hand of the Egyptians. 11 Now I know that the Lord is greater than all other gods,(P) for he did this to those who had treated Israel arrogantly.”(Q) 12 Then Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law,(R) brought a burnt offering(S) and other sacrifices(T) to God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat a meal(U) with Moses’ father-in-law in the presence(V) of God.

13 The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening. 14 When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, “What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?”

15 Moses answered him, “Because the people come to me to seek God’s will.(W) 16 Whenever they have a dispute,(X) it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God’s decrees and instructions.”(Y)

17 Moses’ father-in-law replied, “What you are doing is not good. 18 You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone.(Z) 19 Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you.(AA) You must be the people’s representative before God and bring their disputes(AB) to him. 20 Teach them his decrees and instructions,(AC) and show them the way they are to live(AD) and how they are to behave.(AE) 21 But select capable men(AF) from all the people—men who fear(AG) God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain(AH)—and appoint them as officials(AI) over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. 22 Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case(AJ) to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share(AK) it with you. 23 If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied.”

24 Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said. 25 He chose capable men from all Israel and made them leaders(AL) of the people, officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens.(AM) 26 They served as judges(AN) for the people at all times. The difficult cases(AO) they brought to Moses, but the simple ones they decided themselves.(AP)

27 Then Moses sent his father-in-law on his way, and Jethro returned to his own country.(AQ)

Footnotes

  1. Exodus 18:3 Gershom sounds like the Hebrew for a foreigner there.
  2. Exodus 18:4 Eliezer means my God is helper.

18 When Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses' father in law, heard of all that God had done for Moses, and for Israel his people, and that the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt;

Then Jethro, Moses' father in law, took Zipporah, Moses' wife, after he had sent her back,

And her two sons; of which the name of the one was Gershom; for he said, I have been an alien in a strange land:

And the name of the other was Eliezer; for the God of my father, said he, was mine help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh:

And Jethro, Moses' father in law, came with his sons and his wife unto Moses into the wilderness, where he encamped at the mount of God:

And he said unto Moses, I thy father in law Jethro am come unto thee, and thy wife, and her two sons with her.

And Moses went out to meet his father in law, and did obeisance, and kissed him; and they asked each other of their welfare; and they came into the tent.

And Moses told his father in law all that the Lord had done unto Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel's sake, and all the travail that had come upon them by the way, and how the Lord delivered them.

And Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness which the Lord had done to Israel, whom he had delivered out of the hand of the Egyptians.

10 And Jethro said, Blessed be the Lord, who hath delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of Pharaoh, who hath delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians.

11 Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods: for in the thing wherein they dealt proudly he was above them.

12 And Jethro, Moses' father in law, took a burnt offering and sacrifices for God: and Aaron came, and all the elders of Israel, to eat bread with Moses' father in law before God.

13 And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses sat to judge the people: and the people stood by Moses from the morning unto the evening.

14 And when Moses' father in law saw all that he did to the people, he said, What is this thing that thou doest to the people? why sittest thou thyself alone, and all the people stand by thee from morning unto even?

15 And Moses said unto his father in law, Because the people come unto me to enquire of God:

16 When they have a matter, they come unto me; and I judge between one and another, and I do make them know the statutes of God, and his laws.

17 And Moses' father in law said unto him, The thing that thou doest is not good.

18 Thou wilt surely wear away, both thou, and this people that is with thee: for this thing is too heavy for thee; thou art not able to perform it thyself alone.

19 Hearken now unto my voice, I will give thee counsel, and God shall be with thee: Be thou for the people to God-ward, that thou mayest bring the causes unto God:

20 And thou shalt teach them ordinances and laws, and shalt shew them the way wherein they must walk, and the work that they must do.

21 Moreover thou shalt provide out of all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them, to be rulers of thousands, and rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens:

22 And let them judge the people at all seasons: and it shall be, that every great matter they shall bring unto thee, but every small matter they shall judge: so shall it be easier for thyself, and they shall bear the burden with thee.

23 If thou shalt do this thing, and God command thee so, then thou shalt be able to endure, and all this people shall also go to their place in peace.

24 So Moses hearkened to the voice of his father in law, and did all that he had said.

25 And Moses chose able men out of all Israel, and made them heads over the people, rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.

26 And they judged the people at all seasons: the hard causes they brought unto Moses, but every small matter they judged themselves.

27 And Moses let his father in law depart; and he went his way into his own land.