1 Then there went a man of the house of Leui, and tooke to wife a daughter of Leui, 2 And the woman coceiued and bare a sonne: and when she saw that he was faire, she hid him three moneths. 3 But when she could no longer hide him, she tooke for him an arke made of reede, and daubed it with slime and with pitch, and laide the childe therein, and put it among the bulrushes by the riuers brinke. 4 Now his sister stood a farre off, to wit what would come of him. 5 Then ye daughter of Pharaoh came downe to wash her in the riuer, and her maidens walked by the riuers side: and when shee sawe the arke among the bulrushes, she sent her maide to fet it. 6 Then she opened it, and sawe it was a childe: and beholde, the babe wept: so she had compassion on it, and sayde, This is one of the Ebrewes children. 7 Then said his sister vnto Pharaohs daughter, Shall I go and cal vnto thee a nurce of the Ebrew women to nurce thee the childe? 8 And Pharaohs daughter sayde to her, Goe. So the maide went and called the childes mother, 9 To whome Pharaohs daughter sayde, Take this childe away, and nurce it for me, and I wil reward thee. Then the woman tooke the childe and nurced him. 10 Nowe the childe grewe, and she brought him vnto Pharaohs daughter, and he was as her sonne, and she called his name Moses, because, said she, I drewe him out of the water. 11 And in those dayes, when Moses was growen, he went forth vnto his brethren, and looked on their burdens: also he sawe an Egyptian smiting an Ebrewe one of his brethren. 12 And he looked rounde about, and when he sawe no man, hee slewe the Egyptian, and hid him in the sande. 13 Againe he came forth the second day, and behold, two Ebrewes stroue: and he said vnto him that did the wrong, Wherefore smitest thou thy fellowe? 14 And hee answered, Who made thee a man of authoritie, and a iudge ouer vs? Thinkest thou to kill mee, as thou killedst the Egyptian? Then Moses feared and sayde, Certainly this thing is knowen. 15 Now Pharaoh heard this matter, and sought to slay Moses: therefore Moses fled from Pharaoh, and dwelt in the lande of Midian, and hee sate downe by a well. 16 And the Priest of Midian had seue daughters, which came and drewe water, and filled the troghes, for to water their fathers sheepe. 17 Then the shepherds came and droue them away: but Moses rose vp and defended them, and watered their sheepe. 18 And whe they came to Reuel their father, he said, Howe are ye come so soone to day? 19 And they saide, A man of Egypt deliuered vs from the hand of the shepherdes, and also drew vs water ynough, and watered the sheepe. 20 Then he saide vnto his daughters, And where is he? why haue ye so left the man? call him that he may eate bread. 21 And Moses agreed to dwell with the man: who gaue vnto Moses Zipporah his daughter: 22 And she bare a sonne, whose name he called Gershom: for he said, I haue bene a stranger in a strange lande. 23 Then in processe of time, the King of Egypt dyed, and the children of Israel sighed for the bondage and cryed: and their crie for the bondage came vp vnto God. 24 Then God heard their mone, and God remembred his couenant with Abraham, Izhak, and Iaakob. 25 So God looked vpon the children of Israel, and God had respect vnto them.
Exodus 2 Geneva Bible (1599)
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
Notes on this text (1)
- Original 16th-century spelling.
People & places in this chapter
From this site's family tree and Bible maps, only where those guides cite this chapter.
People
Gershom
Moses' firstborn son, born during his years of exile in the land of Midian.
Cited in the guide: Exodus 2:22; Exodus 18:3
Moses
Drawn from the Nile, he led Israel out of Egypt and received God's Law.
Cited in the guide: Exodus 2–Deuteronomy 34
Zipporah
The Midianite daughter of Jethro who became Moses' wife in the wilderness.
Cited in the guide: Exodus 2:16-22; Exodus 4:24-26; Exodus 18
Cross references (24)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 Numbers 26:59; Exodus 6:16–20; 1 Chronicles 23:12–14; 1 Chronicles 6:1–3
- 2 Hebrews 11:23; Acts 7:20
- 3 Exodus 1:22; Acts 7:19; Genesis 6:14; Isaiah 18:2; Matthew 2:16
- 4 Numbers 26:59; Exodus 15:20; Micah 6:4; Numbers 20:1; Numbers 12:1–15
- 5 Acts 7:21; Psalm 12:5; Psalm 9:9; Exodus 8:20; Psalm 46:1
- 6 1 Kings 8:50; 1 Peter 3:8; Acts 7:21; Nehemiah 1:11; Psalm 106:46
- 7 Exodus 2:4; Numbers 26:59; Numbers 12:1; Exodus 15:20
- 8 Isaiah 46:3–4; Psalm 27:10; Exodus 6:20; Ezekiel 16:8
- 10 Hebrews 11:24; Acts 7:21–22; Genesis 16:11; 1 Samuel 1:20; Matthew 1:21
- 11 Hebrews 11:24–26; Acts 7:22–24; Exodus 1:11; Matthew 11:28; Luke 4:18
- 12 Acts 7:24–26
- 13 Acts 7:26–28; 1 Corinthians 6:7–8
- 14 Luke 12:14; Matthew 21:23; Genesis 37:19–20; Psalm 2:2–6; Genesis 19:9
- 15 Hebrews 11:27; Acts 7:29; Genesis 24:11; Genesis 29:2; 1 Kings 19:1–3
- 16 Genesis 24:11; Exodus 3:1; 1 Samuel 9:11; Genesis 24:14–20; Genesis 29:6–10
- 17 Genesis 29:10; Genesis 21:25; Exodus 2:12; Genesis 26:15–22
- 18 Exodus 3:1; Numbers 10:29; Exodus 4:18; Exodus 18:1–12; Numbers 19:20
- 19 Genesis 29:10; Genesis 50:11
- 20 Genesis 31:54; Genesis 43:25; Genesis 18:5; Hebrews 13:2; Job 31:32
- 21 Genesis 31:38–40; Hebrews 13:5; 1 Timothy 6:6; Exodus 2:10; Exodus 18:2–6
- 22 Hebrews 11:13–14; Acts 7:29; Exodus 22:21; Psalm 119:19; Psalm 39:12
- 23 Genesis 18:20–21; James 5:4; Exodus 3:7–9; Acts 7:30; Exodus 22:22–27
- 24 Genesis 26:3; Psalm 105:42; Exodus 6:5; Genesis 15:14–18; Luke 1:72–73
- 25 Exodus 4:31; Psalm 55:22; Exodus 3:7–8; Luke 1:25; Psalm 1:6
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences
What the Fathers said
Passages from the Church Fathers that expound or quote this chapter, verbatim from the public-domain Schaff edition (19th-century English translations).
How these were chosen
“Commentary” is the opening of a homily or exposition on this chapter (John Chrysostom’s homilies, Augustine’s tractates, sermons and expositions of the Psalms). “Quotes” are sentences where the edition’s own footnotes identify a quotation of a verse here, kept only when the wording matches the verse. Only works whose authorship is not in doubt are used. Psalms follow the Hebrew/English numbering (Augustine numbers them as the Septuagint does: his Psalm 50 is Psalm 51 here).
… saith: "The wife hath not power of her own body, but the husband; and likewise also the husband hath not power of his own body, but the wife." Moses too, who was born of a Hebrew mother and was exposed, was adopted by Pharaoh's daughter. There were not then indeed the same forms of law as now, but the choice …
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 6 (1888)
For with respect to the patriarch it is said, "I remembered my covenant with Abraham;" but here He saith not "the covenant," but how?
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 10 (1888)
That perhaps the early life of Moses was sinful; for he fled from Egypt, after slaying a man. The early life of Aaron also was such as would displease God; for he allowed a maddened and infatuated people to make an idol to worship; and an idol was made for God's people to worship.
Read in context · Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 1, vol. 8 (1888)