Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

¹⁷ When the time of the promise drew near (which God had sworn to Abraham), the people grew and multiplied in Egypt, ¹⁸ till another king arose who did not know of Joseph. ¹⁹ This king dealt treacherously with our kindred, and ill-treated our fathers, and compelled them to cast out their young children so that they would not remain alive. ²⁰ At this time Moses was born, and was loved by God. He was nursed in his father’s house for three months. ²¹ When he was cast out, Pharaoh’s daughter took him up and reared him as her own son. ²² And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was strong in deeds and in words.

²³ And when he was fully forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel. ²⁴ And when he saw one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged the quarrel of him who had the harm done to him, and killed the Egyptian. ²⁵ For he supposed his brethren would understand that God by his hands would save them. But they did not understand.

²⁶ And the next day, he appeared to them as they were fighting, and would have set them at one again, saying, Sirs, you are brethren; why do you hurt one another? ²⁷ But the man who was doing his neighbour wrong thrust him away, saying, Who made you a ruler and a judge among us? ²⁸ What, will you kill me like you did the Egyptian yesterday?

²⁹ Then at those words, Moses fled, and was a sojourner in the land of Midian, where he begat two sons.