Exodus 2:16 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came and drew water and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock.

NIV: Now a priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came to draw water and fill the troughs to water their father's flock.

NASB: Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters; and they came to draw water and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock.

CSB: Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters. They came to draw water and filled the troughs to water their father's flock.

NLT: Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters who came as usual to draw water and fill the water troughs for their father’s flocks.

KJV: Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters: and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father's flock.

NKJV: Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters. And they came and drew water, and they filled the troughs to water their father’s flock.

The text transitions from Moses fleeing Egypt for Midian (Exodus 2:11–15) to the priest of Midian and his seven daughters. These daughters came to get water for their livestock at the same well where Moses sat. The account presents this as part of God's providence in the story of Moses and his leadership in saving the Jews from Egyptian slavery. Moses could have fled to any point outside of Egypt. However, he ends up at one particular well where he will be introduced to the daughters of an influential family.

This important connection would offer Moses a new family and profession for the next forty years of his life. This would include both a wife and children. The account will end with the naming of Moses' son and its meaning, similar to the name given to Moses and its significance in Exodus 2:10. The life of Moses included special orchestrating of events in his childhood and adult life to prepare him for his unique role in leading the Jewish people out of Egypt.

Exodus 2:11–22 describes how Moses went from the adopted son of an Egyptian princess to an exiled shepherd living in Midian. As an adult, Moses defends a fellow Jew by killing an Egyptian aggressor. Moses is shocked to find that his attempt to hide the act failed, 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 winds up paying 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 an abandoned Hebrew boy—Moses. She provides him 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.

Accessed 5/3/2024 2:37:09 PM