Moses Flees to Midian

¹¹ One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to where his own people^(A) were and watched them at their hard labor.^(B) He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his own people. ¹² Looking this way and that and seeing no one, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. ¹³ The next day he went out and saw two Hebrews fighting. He asked the one in the wrong, “Why are you hitting your fellow Hebrew?”^(C)

¹⁴ The man said, “Who made you ruler and judge over us?^(D) Are you thinking of killing me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid and thought, “What I did must have become known.”

¹⁵ When Pharaoh heard of this, he tried to kill^(E) Moses, but Moses fled^(F) from Pharaoh and went to live in Midian,^(G) where he sat down by a well. ¹⁶ Now a priest of Midian^(H) had seven daughters, and they came to draw water^(I) and fill the troughs^(J) to water their father’s flock. ¹⁷ Some shepherds came along and drove them away, but Moses got up and came to their rescue^(K) and watered their flock.^(L)

¹⁸ When the girls returned to Reuel^(M) their father, he asked them, “Why have you returned so early today?”

¹⁹ They answered, “An Egyptian rescued us from the shepherds. He even drew water for us and watered the flock.”

²⁰ “And where is he?” Reuel asked his daughters. “Why did you leave him? Invite him to have something to eat.”^(N)

²¹ Moses agreed to stay with the man, who gave his daughter Zipporah^(O) to Moses in marriage. ²² Zipporah gave birth to a son, and Moses named him Gershom,^[a](P) saying, “I have become a foreigner^(Q) in a foreign land.”

²³ During that long period,^(R) the king of Egypt died.^(S) The Israelites groaned in their slavery^(T) and cried out, and their cry^(U) for help because of their slavery went up to God. ²⁴ God heard their groaning and he remembered^(V) his covenant^(W) with Abraham, with Isaac and with Jacob. ²⁵ So God looked on the Israelites and was concerned^(X) about them.