Exodus 2:11 - Printer Friendly

ESV: One day, when Moses had grown up, he went out to his people and looked on their burdens, and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his people.

NIV: One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to where his own people were and watched them at their hard labor. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his own people.

NASB: Now it came about in those days, when Moses had grown up, that he went out to his fellow Hebrews and looked at their hard labors; and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his fellow Hebrews.

CSB: Years later, after Moses had grown up, he went out to his own people and observed their forced labor. He saw an Egyptian striking a Hebrew, one of his people.

NLT: Many years later, when Moses had grown up, he went out to visit his own people, the Hebrews, and he saw how hard they were forced to work. During his visit, he saw an Egyptian beating one of his fellow Hebrews.

KJV: And it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out unto his brethren, and looked on their burdens: and he spied an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew, one of his brethren.

NKJV: Now it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out to his brethren and looked at their burdens. And he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his brethren.

This begins a new section explaining how Moses moved away from Egypt to Midian. The shift is abrupt, leaping from Moses as a young boy to a grown man of about forty (Acts 7:23).

Despite popular myth, as well as many movies, Moses clearly knew he was Jewish. This verse indicates Moses was aware of who he was. He was an adoptive son of the Egyptian princess, but Scripture never claims his Israeli heritage was a secret. Nor does it suggest Moses was legitimately in line for the throne. However, the Bible does say Moses benefitted greatly from his Egyptian education (Acts 7:21–22). The book of Exodus describes Moses leading his people out of their slavery, laying waste to Egypt in the process (Exodus 6:6; 12:36). There is no small irony in the fact that Moses' adoption was caused by the Pharaoh's own command for infanticide (Exodus 1:22). An order meant to further oppress Israel contributed to their rescue!

The story also notes a situation which caused Moses much anger. He saw an Egyptian "beating a Hebrew." For it to be so noticeable, it was probably something like extreme violence or torture. Moses identified with the man who was being beaten as "one of his people." Moses saw that this could have been his own life if he had not been raised among Pharaoh's family. The Hebrew text literally speaks of the man as "one of his brothers." The man was unlikely a literal brother, but rather a fellow Jewish man.

Exodus 2:11–22 describes how Moses went from his position as the adopted son of an Egyptian princess to being an exiled shepherd living in Midian. As an adult, Moses defends a fellow Jew by killing an Egyptian aggressor. Moses' attempt to hide the act fails and he is forced to flee Egypt. In Midian, Moses heroically defends a group of shepherd girls and is welcomed into their family. This establishes the backdrop of Moses' life for one of God's most dramatic encounters with man: the burning bush.

Amid an order from Pharaoh to murder newborn Hebrew boys, Moses' mother places him in a basket along the side of the river, staging her daughter there to observe. The Egyptian king's daughter sees the baby and has pity. Thanks to the presence of Moses' sister, the princess pays Moses' own mother to wean him. After this, he is raised in the home of Egypt's royal family. As an adult, Moses unsuccessfully attempts to hide his murder of an abusive Egyptian and flees to Midian as an exile. As Moses builds a family abroad, Israel cries out to God for rescue from the brutality of Egyptian slavery.

Exodus chapter 2 introduces the character of Moses, after describing the plight of Israel under Egyptian slavery. This passage provides a few interesting ironies. Primarily, the Egyptian king attempts to oppress Israel through infanticide; this very command leads to his own daughter adopting a Hebrew boy—Moses. Because of the intervention of the boy's sister, his own mother is paid to nurse and wean him. Then the Egyptian woman provides the Hebrew boy with support and education, essentially raising the future liberator of the very people her father seeks to control. After chapter 2 establishes Moses' exile from Egypt, chapter 3 will begin narrating his call to lead the nation of Israel out of captivity under the Pharaoh.

The book of Exodus establishes God's covenant relationship with the full-fledged nation of Israel. The descendants of Abraham prosper after settling in Egypt, only to be enslaved by a fearful, hateful Egyptian Pharaoh. God appoints Moses to lead the people out of this bondage. Moses serves as God's spokesman, as the Lord brings plagues and judgments on Egypt, leading to the release of Israel.