Ex. 1:1 Now these are the names of the children of Israel, which came into Egypt; every man and his household came with Jacob.
Ex. 1:2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah,
Ex. 1:3 Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin,
Ex. 1:4 Dan, and Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.
Ex. 1:5 And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls: for Joseph was in Egypt already.
Ex. 1:6 And Joseph died, and all his brethren, and all that generation.
Exodus opens with the names of the twelve sons of Israel (Jacob) who went to Egypt; there were 70 of Jacob’s descendants in all (each son and his household). Then we are told that Joseph and his brothers “and all that generation” died.
This, of course, jumps out to me in trying to define a “generation” re the coming of the LORD. The use of the term in this verse is more general. Genesis 15:13-16 implies that a generation is 100 years.
“And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance. And thou shalt go to thy fathers in peace; thou shalt be buried in a good old age. But in the fourth generation they shall come hither again: for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full.”
We often think of a generation as associated with a person’s lifespan. Psalms defines that expectation as 70-80 years.
Psalm 90:10 “The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years….”
The term is also used to refer to a nation or to a person’s descendants.
1 Peter 2:9 “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people….”
Genesis 10:1 “Now these are the generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth: and unto them were sons born after the flood.”
Ex. 1:7 And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them.
This verse tells us that the Israelites “were fruitful, and increased abundantly.” This was the first major growth spurt for the nation of Israel—the beginning of the fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham.
Genesis 15:3–6 “And Abram said, Behold, to me thou hast given no seed: and, lo, one born in my house is mine heir. And, behold, the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, This shall not be thine heir; but he that shall come forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness.”
Emphasis is made on their growth through the use of many phrases that seem a bit redundant. The point seems to be that the people flourished, increased in great numbers and were mighty in strength. They filled the land. I assume this means the land of Goshen that they were given by the Pharaoh.
Ex. 1:8 Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.
Ex. 1:9 And he said unto his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we:
Ex. 1:10 Come on, let us deal wisely with them; lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there falleth out any war, they join also unto our enemies, and fight against us, and so get them up out of the land.
A new king comes to power in Egypt that did not know about Joseph. He immediately realizes that the Israelites have become too numerous and strong and pose a possible danger to the security of the Egyptians. They were afraid the Israelites might choose to join their enemies in war against them and try to take over more than the land of Goshen.
The interesting thought is that if the Israelites were more and mightier than the Egyptians, how did they keep them enslaved them so easily? Sadly, I believe we are seeing another example of this phenomena in America today (2021).
My daughter-in-law made a good observation: “The need to oppress others comes from a lack of character (be it courage, strength, wisdom, leadership…) in the oppressor.
Ex. 1:11 Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses.
Ex. 1:12 But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were grieved because of the children of Israel.
Ex. 1:13 And the Egyptians made the children of Israel to serve with rigour:
Ex. 1:14 And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage, in morter, and in brick, and in all manner of service in the field: all their service, wherein they made them serve, was with rigour.
So the Egyptians decided to make the Israelites their slaves and put them to work building cities to store their treasures. They intimidated the Israelis by using taskmasters to debase them and make their work harder. It became a vicious cycle—the harder they were worked, the more they multiplied, the harder they were worked and oppressed. This caused the Egyptians to loathe and detest the Israelites and feel a “sickening dread” toward them. So, the taskmasters worked the Israelites that much harder and treated them more cruelly. They were made to make bricks and mortar and perform any other type of service in the field that was needed. The Israelites became bitter with the hard labor and ruthless treatment. The amazing thing is that the more they were afflicted, the more they multiplied and grew.
Principle: Suffering and affliction produce growth. This was also evidenced by the early church. In spite of persecution, the number of believers continued to multiply.
Application from Courson: “The foundational premise of weight training is that hard exercise allows a muscle to break down, eventually repairing itself stronger than it was before. The same thing holds true spiritually. Because faith is a muscle that needs to be worked, if I am to grow in depth, in strength, in maturity, there’s no other way than to go through testing, trial and affliction.”
Ex. 1:15 And the king of Egypt spake to the Hebrew midwives, of which the name of the one was Shiphrah, and the name of the other Puah:
Ex. 1:16 And he said, When ye do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women, and see them upon the stools; if it be a son, then ye shall kill him: but if it be a daughter, then she shall live.
Ex. 1:17 But the midwives feared God, and did not as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the men children alive.
There were two Hebrew midwives at this time, Shiphrah and Puah. The king of Egypt gave them orders to kill any male babies that were born but to let the female babies live. Because the midwives feared God, they disobeyed the king. Scripture supports the actions of the midwives, “We ought to obey God rather than men.” (Acts 5:29)
Ex. 1:18 And the king of Egypt called for the midwives, and said unto them, Why have ye done this thing, and have saved the men children alive?
Ex. 1:19 And the midwives said unto Pharaoh, Because the Hebrew women are not as the Egyptian women; for they are lively, and are delivered ere the midwives come in unto them.
Ex. 1:20 Therefore God dealt well with the midwives: and the people multiplied, and waxed very mighty.
Ex. 1:21 And it came to pass, because the midwives feared God, that he made them houses.
The midwives were eventually summoned to the king; he asked them why they were letting the baby boys live. Then the midwives tell a lie (some commentators dispute this)—they tell the king that the Hebrew women are strong (not like the Egyptian women) and give birth before they get there. Evidently, this was justified in the eyes of God because verse 20 says God “dealt well with” the midwives; He also blessed them with families of their own. So, the people increased and became even more numerous.
Some commentators note that those that served as midwives were usually those who were barren.
This is interesting to me since the emphasis is definitely on the obedience to and fear of God by the midwives. No consequence at all is in evidence due to the fact that they lied. The emphasis seems to be that what is in our heart, our intent, is what is most important. I realize that this is before the time of the “ten commandments,” but the stories in scripture to this point indicate that the people knew that certain things were pleasing to God and certain things were not. The midwives knew it would not please God for them to kill the babies. It is always our priority to follow God’s commands and desires for us as opposed to human leaders or governments.
If only those that are in the abortion industry and the leaders of our government were as wise as those midwives! They operate and govern showing absolutely no fear of God in the process.
Ex. 1:22 And Pharaoh charged all his people, saying, Every son that is born ye shall cast into the river, and every daughter ye shall save alive.
In this verse the king gives a command to all the people—not just the midwives—to throw every baby boy that is born into the Nile River, but to let the girls live. (He surely couldn’t think that the parents and relatives would obey such an edict.)
Ex. 2:1 And there went a man of the house of Levi, and took to wife a daughter of Levi.
Ex. 2:2 And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he was a goodly child, she hid him three months.
Ex. 2:3 And when she could not longer hide him, she took for him an ark of bulrushes, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and put the child therein; and she laid it in the flags by the river’s brink.
Ex. 2:4 And his sister stood afar off, to wit what would be done to him.
This chapter begins with an unnamed couple of the tribe of Levi who have a son born during this time. The mother was able to hide the baby for three months. It got to the point that she could no longer hide him, so she got a papyrus basket and coated it with tar and pitch to make it watertight. She put the baby in the basket and put it in the reeds along the bank of the Nile. Then she left her daughter to watch from a distance and see what happened.
After listening to Jon Courson make a comparison between this ark for baby Moses and the ark of Noah, it would seem that the Mom came up with the idea of the ark from the stories that had been handed down through history. Noah’s ark represented salvation for him and his family, and she was showing faith in Noah’s God, the God of Israel, to save her baby in some miraculous way. Verse 2 and Acts 7:20 confirm that he was a beautiful child; and as a mother would, she was just sure that God must have a special purpose for him. She must have had that “faith the grain of a mustard seed.”
Matthew 17:20 “And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.”
Ex. 2:5 And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river; and her maidens walked along by the river’s side; and when she saw the ark among the flags, she sent her maid to fetch it.
Ex. 2:6 And when she had opened it, she saw the child: and, behold, the babe wept. And she had compassion on him, and said, This is one of the Hebrews’ children.
Ex. 2:7 Then said his sister to Pharaoh’s daughter, Shall I go and call to thee a nurse of the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for thee?
Ex. 2:8 And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, Go. And the maid went and called the child’s mother.
Ex. 2:9 And Pharaoh’s daughter said unto her, Take this child away, and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages. And the woman took the child, and nursed it.
Ex. 2:10 And the child grew, and she brought him unto Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. And she called his name Moses: and she said, Because I drew him out of the water.
Pharaoh’s daughter came with some of her attendants to the Nile to bathe. She saw the basket in the reeds and sent one of her slave girls to get it for her. When she opened it, she saw a crying baby boy, and she felt sorry (the Hebrew for compassion means “to spare”) for him; she wanted to spare his life. She knew it was one of the Hebrew babies and said so out loud. Evidently, the baby’s sister had mixed in with her attendants and offered to go get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for her. The princess told her to do just that, so the girl went and got her mother. The princess hired the mother to care for the baby for her. So the mother got to nurse her own son for the appropriate time period. When he was older (I assume when he was weaned), she took him to Pharaoh’s daughter; and he became her son. She named him Moses (sounds like the Hebrew for “draw out”) because she drew him out of the water.
Ex. 2:11 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.
Ex. 2:12 And he looked this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man, he slew the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand.
Ex. 2:13 And when he went out the second day, behold, two men of the Hebrews strove together: and he said to him that did the wrong, Wherefore smitest thou thy fellow?
Ex. 2:14 And he said, Who made thee a prince and a judge over us? intendest thou to kill me, as thou killedst the Egyptian? And Moses feared, and said, Surely this thing is known.
Ex. 2:15 Now when Pharaoh heard this thing, he sought to slay Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh, and dwelt in the land of Midian: and he sat down by a well.
We are told nothing of the intervening years from Moses’ childhood to young man. (Same as with Jesus; we are definitely only told what the LORD deems important for us to know in our own “Pilgrim’s Progress” through life.) Moses was obviously aware of his Hebrew heritage. One day, he went to one of the labor sites to watch his people at work, and he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew. He looked around and didn’t see any witnesses, so he killed the Egyptian and hid his body in the sand.
In the book of Acts, when Stephen was giving his testimony, he tells us that Moses was 40 years old when this event took place.
Acts 7:23-24 “And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel. And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian….”
The next day he went out again and saw two Hebrews fighting. He evidently saw who started the fight, since we are told that he directed his question to “him that did the wrong.” He asked him why he was hitting a fellow Hebrew. This man simply ignored the import of the question and attacked Moses with his answer. He asked Moses who had given him authority to judge them. Then he threw the bombshell—do you intend to kill me like you killed the Egyptian? Even though he had been raised as the son of the king’s daughter, he was afraid. He figured his action of murder was now known by many. Then we are told that Pharaoh did find out and intended to kill Moses, but Moses ran away. He ended up in the land of Midian, sitting by a well. (It seems like a lot of stories in the Bible involve wells. It was an obvious place of gathering.)
Midian was located in the desert north of the Arabian peninsula.
I was listening to David Guzik and he made an interesting comparison to the response of the people to Moses and the response of people today to God. “Who made you a prince and judge over us?” Moses’s heart was to help his people…
Acts 7:23–25 “And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel. And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian: For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them: but they understood not.”
…just as God’s heart toward us, but the people weren’t ready to receive him as such. He thought they would understand that God had sent him to deliver them, but they didn’t. So too with Jesus, God’s Son.
Courson: “Though Moses wanted to be involved in service, and although he ‘looked this way and that way,’ he didn’t look up to hear what God had to say…. It’s not a matter of looking this way and that way. It’s a matter of looking up. On any given day, in any given situation, it’s a matter of saying, ‘Lord what would You have me do?’"
Ex. 2:16 Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters: and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock.
Ex. 2:17 And the shepherds came and drove them away: but Moses stood up and helped them, and watered their flock.
Ex. 2:18 And when they came to Reuel their father, he said, How is it that ye are come so soon to day?
Ex. 2:19 And they said, An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and also drew water enough for us, and watered the flock.
Ex. 2:20 And he said unto his daughters, And where is he? why is it that ye have left the man? call him, that he may eat bread.
There was a priest in Midian who had seven daughters, and they came to this well to draw water and fill the trough for their father’s flocks. Some shepherds came along and drove them away. (I just don’t usually associate shepherds in my mind with bullies or murderers or just evil like Joseph’s brothers.) Moses came to the rescue of the girls and watered their flock.
When the girls went back home, their father, Reuel, asked them why they were so early. The girls told him that an Egyptian had rescued them from the shepherds and even drew water for the flocks for them. (This makes it sound like the run in with the shepherds was not uncommon.) So he asked his daughters where the Egyptian was and why they didn’t invite him to dinner. He sent them back to issue the invitation.
Evidently, the Egyptians had a distinctive appearance or type of dress or something since they immediately classified Moses.
Ex. 2:21 And Moses was content to dwell with the man: and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter.
Ex. 2:22 And she bare him a son, and he called his name Gershom: for he said, I have been a stranger in a strange land.
Next thing we are told is that Moses has agreed to stay with Reuel and was given Zipporah, one of his daughters, as a wife. Zipporah gives Moses a son, and Moses names him Gershom (sounds like Hebrew for “an alien there”) since he had become “a stranger in a strange land.”
It was interesting to look up the Hebrew for the word content. It indicates a willingness, based on the idea of a mental weakness. It’s like he was yielding to the circumstances, and there appeared to be no better options open to him.
Ex. 2:23 And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage.
Ex. 2:24 And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob.
Ex. 2:25 And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God had respect unto them.
Verse 23 starts with “in the process of time”— When we are reading the scripture, we have to remember that time is very different in our perspective compared to God’s perspective. He is telling us a story, giving us all the facts needed to give us a full picture of who He is, His authority and His will for our lives and the lives of nations. When it is critical for us to know exact timing, He tells us the timing. When time is not essential, we are given general info. All we need to know here is that a long enough period has passed for Moses to start a family and for the King of Egypt to die. (We will learn a bit more in the next chapter.)
The Israelites groaned because of their slavery and were crying out for help—and God has heard them. In verse 24, we are told that God “remembered” His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. This wasn’t just a covenant passed down from Abraham to his son and grandson; God affirmed this covenant with each one of them individually. I don’t think for a minute that God ever forgot His covenant. I think He is just saying that now is the time for the next major piece of the puzzle to go into place as His plan for the nation of Israel unfolds. As God looks down on His people and sees their misery, He decides that it is time to show them His concern for them.
Back in Genesis 15:13, we learned that God had told Abraham that his people would be in servitude to another nation for 400 years. This time was coming to an end, and prophecy would be fulfilled according to God’s Word.
Genesis 15:13 “And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years.”
It just dawned on me that the harshest time of slavery experienced by the Israelites basically began with the birth of Moses.