Exodus Chapter 2
Showing all 25 verses for Exodus Chapter 2.
The People's Bible is written by people, for the people. Each verse below shows:
"And there went a man of the house of Levi, and took to wife a daughter of Levi. "
"A man from the tribe of Levi married a woman who was also from Levi's family line."
Ordinary marriages within an ordinary tribe can quietly become the starting point of extraordinary deliverance. You never know which small, unremarkable moment in your life God might be using as the seed of something far bigger. Live faithfully in the ordinary; it is often exactly where God is working.
"And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he was a goodly child, she hid him three months. "
"The woman became pregnant and had a son. Seeing that he was a beautiful, healthy baby, she hid him for three months."
A mother's love, risking everything to protect her child, is one of the most powerful pictures of courage in all of Scripture. If you are protecting someone vulnerable right now, whatever the cost, know that such love is never wasted, even when the outcome feels uncertain. Faithful love often works quietly long before its results become visible.
"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. "
"When she could no longer keep him hidden, she made a basket out of reeds, waterproofed it with tar and pitch, put the baby inside, and set it among the reeds at the edge of the river."
When you can no longer hide a difficult situation, sometimes the most courageous next step is to place it gently into God's hands and let it go, trusting Him with the outcome. This mother could not control what happened to her son once the basket left her arms, yet she still acted in hope, not despair. Let your own hardest surrenders be acts of faith rather than resignation.
"And his sister stood afar off, to wit what would be done to him. "
"His sister stood at a distance, watching to see what would happen to him."
Watching over someone you love from a careful distance, ready to act at the right moment, is its own quiet form of faithfulness. Not every act of care needs to be dramatic or visible; sometimes loyalty looks like patient, watchful presence. Be the kind of person who stays close, even when you cannot do more than watch and wait.
"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. "
"Pharaoh's daughter came down to bathe in the river, with her attendants walking along the bank. She noticed the basket among the reeds and sent one of her maids to retrieve it."
Compassion can come from the most unexpected direction, even from someone raised in the very household issuing cruelty. Never assume a person is beyond having a kind, courageous heart simply because of where they come from. Be open to the possibility that goodness can surprise you, and be willing to be that surprising goodness for someone else.
"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. "
"When she opened it, she saw the baby, and he was crying. She felt compassion for him and said, 'This must be one of the Hebrew children.'"
A baby's cry moved a princess to defy her own father's decree; vulnerability, honestly expressed, has real power to soften even a hardened situation. Do not be ashamed of your own tears or your own honest need; they can be exactly what opens the door to unexpected mercy. Let compassion, wherever you find it in yourself, lead you to actual, costly kindness.
"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? "
"Then his sister approached Pharaoh's daughter and asked, 'Shall I go and find you a Hebrew woman to nurse the baby for you?'"
Quick thinking in a tense moment, offered gently and without presumption, can open doors that seemed impossible only seconds before. Miriam's simple question here reunites Moses with his own mother without anyone realising the full truth. Look for creative, humble ways to bring about good outcomes, even in situations that feel entirely out of your control.
"And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, Go. And the maid went and called the child’s mother. "
"Pharaoh's daughter said, 'Go ahead.' So the girl went and brought the baby's own mother."
Sometimes all it takes for a good plan to unfold is someone's simple willingness to say yes to a reasonable request. Pharaoh's daughter's brief permission here changes the entire course of Israel's history. Never underestimate how much good can flow from your own small, willing 'yes' to someone else's thoughtful request.
"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. "
"Pharaoh's daughter said to her, 'Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I'll pay you for it.' So the woman took her own child and nursed him."
God can arrange circumstances so that faithful people are even paid for the very work their hearts were already longing to do. Jochebed nurses her own son and is rewarded for it by the household that could have destroyed him. Trust that God is often working behind the scenes in ways more generous and surprising than you could have engineered yourself.
"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. "
"When the child grew older, his mother brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her adopted son. She named him Moses, saying, 'Because I drew him out of the water.'"
Being drawn out of danger into a place of safety and privilege does not erase your origins; it simply gives you a new platform from which to eventually serve the people you came from. Moses' Egyptian upbringing did not make him any less called to Israel's deliverance. Whatever unusual path has shaped you, trust that God can use every part of it later for good.
"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. "
"Years later, when Moses had grown up, he went out to see his own people and witnessed their hard labour firsthand. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew man — one of his own people."
Genuine compassion for the suffering of others, especially your own people, is a sign of a heart being shaped for something greater, even if your first response to that compassion is clumsy or premature. Let empathy for others' pain move you towards justice, but seek wisdom in how you act on it. Passion for justice needs patience and guidance to become truly effective.
"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. "
"He looked around to check no one was watching, and when he saw no one else was there, he killed the Egyptian and buried the body in the sand."
A right desire for justice can still lead to a wrong, hasty action; even good intentions need self-control and wisdom, not just passion. Moses' violent response here, though understandable, was not yet the way God intended to deliver His people. When you feel strongly about an injustice, pause and seek godly counsel before acting, so your zeal does not become another kind of harm.
"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? "
"The next day he went out again and saw two Hebrew men fighting. He said to the one in the wrong, 'Why are you hitting your fellow Hebrew?'"
Trying to mediate conflict between your own people can be thankless and even dangerous, especially if your own credibility has already been compromised. Do not be discouraged if your attempts at peacemaking are initially rejected or misunderstood. Keep pursuing peace and justice anyway, even when gratitude is not the response you receive.
"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. "
"The man replied, 'Who made you our ruler and judge? Are you going to kill me like you killed the Egyptian?' Moses was afraid and thought, 'So people do know what I did.'"
Being confronted about a past failure can feel humiliating, especially when it exposes exactly what you hoped had stayed hidden. Fear in such a moment is natural, but it need not be the final word on your life. Let past mistakes push you towards humility and growth rather than paralysing shame.
"Now when Pharaoh heard this thing, he sought to slay Moses. But Moses fled from the face of Pharaoh, and in the land of Midian: and he sat down by a well. "
💡 Highlighted words feature Jacobean 1611 tooltips to clarify shifted 17th-century English terms.
"When Pharaoh heard about it, he wanted Moses executed. So Moses fled from Pharaoh and went to live in the land of Midian, where he sat down by a well."
Sometimes God allows us to flee a situation we are not yet ready for, giving us years to grow into the calling we could not have carried well before. Moses' flight to Midian was not the end of his story but a necessary chapter of preparation. If your own plans have been interrupted or delayed, consider that this season, too, might be quietly forming you for what comes next.
"Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters: and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. "
"The priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came to draw water and fill the troughs to water their father's flock."
Kindness offered to strangers, especially to those being treated unfairly, is never wasted, even in a foreign land far from home. Moses did not know that helping these women would lead him into his own family and future. Keep being generous to those you meet, even when you cannot yet see where that generosity might lead.
"And the shepherds came and drove them away: but Moses stood up and helped them, and watered their flock. "
"Other shepherds came and chased the women away, but Moses stood up, helped them, and watered their flock."
Standing up for those being pushed aside, even when it is not your fight and costs you nothing but a little effort, is exactly the kind of quiet courage the Bible consistently honours. Moses' willingness to defend these shepherdesses reveals the same heart for justice that would later define his whole life's calling. Look for small opportunities to stand up for someone being treated unfairly today.
"And when they came to Reuel their father, he said, How is it that ye are come so soon to day? "
"When they came back to their father Reuel, he asked, 'Why are you back so early today?'"
A father's simple, curious question here opens the door to an entirely new chapter of Moses' life. Sometimes the smallest conversations, asked out of ordinary concern, lead to relationships that change everything. Stay open to where an unplanned conversation might lead.
"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. "
"They said, 'An Egyptian man rescued us from the shepherds and even drew enough water for us and watered the flock.'"
Being described simply as 'an Egyptian' by people who did not yet know his true identity shows how thoroughly Moses' upbringing had shaped his outward appearance, even while his heart remained tied to his own people. Your outward circumstances do not always reveal your true identity or calling. Trust that God knows exactly who you are, even when others misjudge you by appearances.
"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. "
"He said to his daughters, 'So where is he? Why did you leave him behind? Go and invite him to eat with us.'"
Hospitality extended to a stranger who has shown kindness reflects a generous, grateful heart. Reuel's simple insistence that Moses be invited to eat models the kind of welcome we are called to extend to those who do good, even when we barely know them. Practise this same quick generosity towards people who show you unexpected kindness.
"And Moses was content to dwell with the man: and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter. "
"Moses agreed to stay and live with the man, who then gave Moses his daughter Zipporah in marriage."
Contentment can grow even in a place you never expected to settle, among people you never expected to belong to. Moses' willingness to dwell here, rather than restlessly seeking to return to Egypt, shows a heart learning patience and trust in God's timing. Let yourself be at peace in the season you are actually in, rather than only the one you originally planned.
"And she bare him a son, and he called his name Gershom: for he said, I have been a stranger in a strange land. "
"She had a son for him, and he named the boy Gershom, saying, 'I have been a foreigner in a foreign land.'"
Naming your own experience honestly, even the painful parts like feeling like a stranger, can be a healthy way of processing your story rather than denying it. Moses does not pretend Midian is really home; he names his own sense of displacement plainly. There is wisdom in honestly acknowledging your own feelings of not-quite-belonging, rather than suppressing them.
"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. "
"As time passed, the king of Egypt died. Meanwhile, the Israelites groaned under their slavery and cried out for help, and their cry reached God."
Even when it feels like nothing has changed for a very long time, seasons do eventually turn, and oppressive powers do eventually pass. If you or someone you love has been sighing under a long, unresolved hardship, take heart that such groaning does not go unnoticed, even when deliverance has not yet visibly arrived. Endurance in genuine grief is not the same as being forgotten.
"And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. "
"God heard their groaning, and he remembered the covenant promise he'd made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob."
God remembering His covenant does not mean He had ever truly forgotten; it means the moment has finally come for that faithfulness to become visible in action. When you are waiting for God to act in your own life, trust that His apparent silence is never the same as absence or forgetfulness. He is not indifferent to your groaning, even in seasons that feel unbearably long.
"And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God had respect unto them. "
"God saw the Israelites, and he was concerned for them."
Being truly seen and known by God, with real, attentive respect for your situation, is one of the deepest comforts available to anyone suffering unjustly. This short verse closes the chapter not with action yet, but with the assurance that God's eyes are already fully upon His people. Let this same assurance steady you in your own waiting: you are seen, even before you can see any change.