SAD, very sad, was the condition of the children of Israel when Moses was born. They were living in Egypt, a strange country, far away from the land which God had given to their fathers. Joseph was dead, and the Egyptians had begun to treat them very cruelly. They set cruel task-masters over them, who “made their lives bitter with hard bondage."
Why did the Lord allow the Egyptians to be so cruel? Alas, the Israelites too soon had followed the bad example set them by the Egyptians. These Egyptians worshipped many idols, and many of the Israelites did as the Egyptians did. They deified themselves with the idols of Egypt, and when the Lord said to them,” I am the Lord your God," they rebelled against Him, they would not hearken unto Him,” They did not every man cast away the abominations of their eyes, neither did they forsake the idols of Egypt " (See Ezek. 20:5-95And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; In the day when I chose Israel, and lifted up mine hand unto the seed of the house of Jacob, and made myself known unto them in the land of Egypt, when I lifted up mine hand unto them, saying, I am the Lord your God; 6In the day that I lifted up mine hand unto them, to bring them forth of the land of Egypt into a land that I had espied for them, flowing with milk and honey, which is the glory of all lands: 7Then said I unto them, Cast ye away every man the abominations of his eyes, and defile not yourselves with the idols of Egypt: I am the Lord your God. 8But they rebelled against me, and would not hearken unto me: they did not every man cast away the abominations of their eyes, neither did they forsake the idols of Egypt: then I said, I will pour out my fury upon them, to accomplish my anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt. 9But I wrought for my name's sake, that it should not be polluted before the heathen, among whom they were, in whose sight I made myself known unto them, in bringing them forth out of the land of Egypt. (Ezekiel 20:5‑9)). " Therefore he brought down their heart with labor; they fell down, and there was none to help. Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder" (Psa. 107:12-1412Therefore he brought down their heart with labor; they fell down, and there was none to help. 13Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he saved them out of their distresses. 14He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and brake their bands in sunder. (Psalm 107:12‑14)). The Lord raised up a deliverer, even Moses.
Dear reader, the Lord Jesus said, “No man can serve two masters;" we are now each one serving the living and true God, or else we are led captive by Satan at his will. May we each one “serve the Lord Christ."
Before Moses was born, the Egyptians had made a very cruel law. Every little Hebrew boy that was born, was to be cast into the river, to die. But the parents of Moses had faith in God. They saw that their little boy was a “proper child "; they were not afraid of the king's commandment, and they hid Moses for three months. Then they could no longer conceal him. What could they do? The word of God says, " Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths", (Prov. 3:5-65Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. (Proverbs 3:5‑6)). Did not He who has taught every little bird how to build its nest, "direct" the mother of Moses to make an ark of bulrushes, that her darling son might be saved from death? This little ark was so made that the water could not leak into it, and into the little ark his fond mother put her darling son.
Who can tell how his mother wept, and prayed, because she was obliged thus to “cast out” (see Acts 7:2121And when he was cast out, Pharaoh's daughter took him up, and nourished him for her own son. (Acts 7:21)) from her home her lovely boy? She had done all that she could: she could do no more, save, “trust in the Lord." And she did not "trust" in vain. And Moses' sister stood afar off, watching, to see what should be done to him.
" 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. And when she had opened it, she saw the child; and, behold, the babe wept." The child Moses “was exceeding fair;" and when the daughter of Pharaoh saw such a lovely child weeping, “she had compassion on him." Could she order him to be thrown into the river, to die, as the king had said? No. But what could she do with so young a child? And it may be that the babe wept all the more when he looked up and saw strange faces, and not his own mother's face Moses' sister now came near, and asked if she might fetch an Hebrew nurse. The princess told her so to do, and, who did she bring but the very mother of Moses.
We cannot describe the joy of his fond mother, as once again she clasped her precious son to her own bosom. To think that the Lord should have chosen in His mercy to save her son's life in such a wondrous way. Of course she thought more of her little boy than she did of the wages the princess had promised to give her.
But if Moses' life was spared, she could no longer claim him as her own son. She was to nurse him until he was old enough to be taken to the princess, who now called Moses her son. “And the child grew,"—soon his fond mother must give up her lovely boy, and he would be brought up as a young prince. He would be “learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians,"—would he be taught that he must worship idols as the Egyptians did? There was no Bible in those days for his mother to pack up with her little boy's things; for, as far as we know, there was at that time, no part of the Word of God written. But the same God that had saved Moses from natural death, it was He, and He alone, that could deliver her beloved son from all the evils to which he was soon to be exposed. It may be, that from his mother's own lips, he first learnt to trust in God.
In due time his mother brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her son. She it was that named the little boy, Moses. The word Moses means, "Drawn out." "And," she said, “Because I drew him out of the water."
My dear readers, many of you have godly parents, and these have taught you to lisp the name of Jesus; and you have often been told of His wondrous love, and you can read of all this in the Bible for yourselves. You also know full well, that if you gave your young hearts to the Lord, you would do that which is pleasing in His sight; and, at the same time, your having done this would cause your parents' hearts to be full of joy. How different was the lot of little Moses! Brought up amongst heathens, in a court where idols were worshipped, his real mother looked upon as hardly better than a slave; and the princess, who called him her son, may have tried to teach him to worship the gods of Egypt’s Yet this very Moses, after having been brought up in such a place, when he was come to years, by faith "refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he had respect unto the recompense of the reward " (Heb. 11:24-2624By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; 25Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; 26Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward. (Hebrews 11:24‑26)).
Yes, Moses did “Abhor that which is evil; “because he would " Cleave to that which is good." And will not you, beloved readers after all you have heard and have read of the love of Jesus? Will you not, even now, yield your heart to the Lord?
“Come, then, to Jesus now,
Jesus is here;
And low before Him bow,
Jesus is here.
Oh! ye that know your sin,
And coming long have been,
Now find your rest in Him,
Jesus is here."
When the poor Israelites were groaning beneath their heavy burdens, if they looked up and saw Moses, the fair young noble of Egypt, dressed like a prince, driving past them in a beautiful chariot, which of them then thought that God would by this very same Moses deliver Israel from Egypt? Yet it came into Moses' heart to visit his brethren, the children of Israel. “For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them; but they understood not." A wicked Israelite “thrust him away, saying, Who made thee a ruler and a judge over us?” Moses then fled, and the Israelites remained in bondage for another forty years.
Dear readers, “See that ye refuse not Him that speaketh." Will you remain any longer in bondage? “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved “from the bondage of sin and death.