Exodus 2
1 (There was a man who/My father) was descended from [Jacob’s son] Levi. He married a woman who was [also] descended from Levi.
Now a man of the house of Levi married a daughter of Levi,
2 She became pregnant and gave birth to (a baby boy/me). When she saw that he/I was a good-looking baby, she hid him/me for three months, [because she was not willing to do what the king commanded].
and she conceived and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a beautiful child, she hid him for three months.
3 When she was unable to (hide him/me/keep it a secret) any longer, she got a basket made from tall reeds. She covered the basket with tar ([to make it waterproof/so water could not get in]). Then she put him/me in the basket and put the basket in [the water] in the middle of the tall grass at the edge of the Nile [River].
But when she could no longer hide him, she got him a papyrus basket and coated it with tar and pitch. Then she placed the child in the basket and set it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile.
4 His/My older sister was standing not far away, [watching to see] what would happen to him/me.
And his sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to him.
5 [Soon] the king’s daughter went down to the river to bathe. Her female servants were walking along the riverbank. She saw the basket amid the tall grass [in the river]. So she sent [one of] her servants to get it.
Soon the daughter of Pharaoh went down to bathe in the Nile, and her attendants were walking along the riverbank. And when she saw the basket among the reeds, she sent her maidservant to retrieve it.
6 When [the servant brought the basket to her], she opened it, and was surprised to see (a baby that was/me), crying. She felt sorry for him/me, and said, “This [must] be one of the Hebrews’ babies.”
When she opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the little boy was crying. So she had compassion on him and said, “This is one of the Hebrew children.”
7 Then (the baby’s/my) [older] sister [approached] the king’s daughter and said, “Do you want me to go and find someone from among the Hebrew women who will [be able to] nurse the baby for you?”
Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and call one of the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?”
8 The king’s daughter said to her, “[Yes], go [and find one].” So the girl went and summoned (the baby’s/my) mother.
“Go ahead,” Pharaoh’s daughter told her. And the girl went and called the boy’s mother.
9 The king’s daughter said to her, “[Please] take this baby and nurse him for me. I will pay you [for doing that].” So (the woman/my mother) took him/me and nursed him/me.
Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this child and nurse him for me, and I will pay your wages.” So the woman took the boy and nursed him.
10 ([A few years later]/when (the child/I) grew [older]), she brought him/me to the king’s daughter. She adopted him/me [as though I was] her own son. She named him/me Moses, [which sounds like the Hebrew words ‘pull out’], because she said “I pulled him out of the water.”
When the child had grown older, she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. She named him Moses and explained, “I drew him out of the water.”
11 One day, after Moses/I had grown up, he/I went out [of the palace area] to see his/my people, [the Hebrews]. He/I saw how they were being [forced to work] very hard. He/I [also] saw an Egyptian [man] beating one of his/my Hebrew people.
One day, after Moses had grown up, he went out to his own people and observed their hard labor. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, one of his own people.
12 He/I looked around [to see if anyone was watching]. Seeing no one, he/I killed the Egyptian man and buried his [body] in the sand.
After looking this way and that and seeing no one, he struck down the Egyptian and hid his body in the sand.
13 The next day he/I returned [to the same place]. He/I was surprised to see two Hebrew men who were fighting [each other]. He/I said to the man who started the fight, “Why are you (you should not be) striking your fellow [Hebrew].”
The next day Moses went out and saw two Hebrews fighting. He asked the one in the wrong, “Why are you attacking your companion?”
14 The man replied, “(Who made you our ruler and judge?/No one made you our ruler and judge!) [RHQ] [You have no right to interfere with us] Are you going to kill me just like you killed that Egyptian man [yesterday]?” Then Moses/I was afraid, [because] he/I thought, “[Since that man knows what I did], surely [other people] know, [too].”
But the man replied, “Who made you ruler and judge over us? Are you planning to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?” Then Moses was afraid and thought, “This thing I have done has surely become known.”
15 [And that was correct]. The king heard about what he/I had done [to that Egyptian. So he ordered his soldiers to] execute/kill Moses/me. But he/I fled from the king [and left Egypt. He/I traveled east to] the Midian [region] and started to live there.
When Pharaoh heard about this matter, he sought to kill Moses. But Moses fled from Pharaoh and settled in the land of Midian, where he sat down beside a well.
16 The man who was the (priest/one who offered the people’s gifts to God) for the Midian people, [whose name was Jethro], had seven daughters. [One day] as Moses/I sat down beside a well, those girls came [to the well] and got water, and filled the troughs in order to give water to their father’s flock [of sheep].
Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came to draw water and fill the troughs to water their father’s flock.
17 Some (shepherds/men who took care of other sheep) came and started to chase away the girls. But Moses/I helped/rescued the girls, and got water for their sheep.
And when some shepherds came along and drove them away, Moses rose up to help them and watered their flock.
18 When the girls returned to their father [Jethro], [whose other name is] Reuel, he asked them, “How is it that you were able to [give water to the sheep and] come home so quickly today?”
When the daughters returned to their father Reuel, he asked them, “Why have you returned so early today?”
19 They replied, “A man from Egypt kept [MTY] other shepherds from sending us away. He also got water for us [from the well] and gave water to the flock [of sheep].”
“An Egyptian rescued us from the shepherds,” they replied. “He even drew water for us and watered the flock.”
20 He said to his daughters, “Where is he? (Why did you leave him [out there]?/You should not leave him [out there]!) [RHQ] Invite him [in], so he can have something to eat [MTY]!”
“So where is he?” their father asked. “Why did you leave the man behind? Invite him to have something to eat.”
21 [So they did], and Moses/I [accepted and ate with them]. And Moses/I decided to live there. Later Jethro gave him/me his daughter Zipporah [to be his/my wife].
Moses agreed to stay with the man, and he gave his daughter Zipporah to Moses in marriage.
22 Later she gave birth to a son, and Moses/I named him Gershom, [which sounds like the Hebrew words that mean ‘foreigner’], because he/I said, “I am living as a foreigner in [this] land.”
And she gave birth to a son, and Moses named him Gershom, saying, “I have become a foreigner in a foreign land.”
23 Many years later the king of Egypt died. The Israeli people [in Egypt] were still groaning because of the [hard work they had to do as] slaves. They called out for [someone to] help them, and God heard them call out [PRS].
After a long time, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned and cried out under their burden of slavery, and their cry for deliverance from bondage ascended to God.
24 He heard them groaning. And he (thought about/did not forget) that he had solemnly promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob [to bless their descendants].
So God heard their groaning, and He remembered His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
25 God saw how the Israeli people were [being badly treated], and he was concerned about them.
God saw the Israelites and took notice.
