Moses Leaves Egypt

A Stranger in a Foreign Land

Exodus 2:11-22

Some time later, when Moses was grown up, he went out among his people and saw how hard they worked. He saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew slave. He looked around, and seeing that no one was close by, he struck the Egyptian dead and buried his body in the sand.

The next day when Moses went out among the Hebrew slaves, he came upon two of them fighting.

Moses said to the one who was in the wrong, “Why are you beating your fellow Hebrew?”

The man answered, “Who made you lord and master over us? Do you plan to kill me like you killed the Egyptian?”

Then Moses was afraid. He thought, “Surely everyone must know!”

When Pharaoh learned what Moses has done, he tried to have Moses killed. So Moses ran away to the land of Midian. He came to a well and rested there.

No Yitro, the priest of Midian, had seven daughters. They came to the well and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock of sheep. But other shepherds came and drove them away. Mose came to their defense, and he watered their flock.

When the seven sisters returned home, their father asked them, “Why are you home so early?”

They answered, “An Egyptian saved us from the other shepherds, and even watered our flock.”

“Where is this man?” he asked his daughters. “Why did you leave him there? Bring him home so her can share bread with us.”

Moses agreed to stay with Yitro and his family. Yitro gave Moses his daughter Tzipporah as his wife. She gave birth to a son, whom Moses named Gershom, saying, “I have been a stranger - ger - in a foreign land.”

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On a sheet of paper or with a partner, respond to the following questions:

1. Based on the story, is Moses an Egyptian or a Hebrew?
2. Moses kills a man in this story. You be the judge - did Moses do right or wrong? Explain your answer.
3. Why does Moses run away from Egypt?
4. Based on all of Moses’ actions in this story, what kind of man is he? How would you describe his personality?

Respond to the following question on our blog:

Why do you think Moses calls himself a “stranger in a foreign land?” Which land is he talking about? How is he a stranger?