MOSES. 
mother Jochebed, who with unfpeakable joy received the 
infant from the princefs, with orders to take the fame care 
of him as if he were her own fon, and a promife of being 
well rewarded for her fervice. Afterwards the princefs 
gave him the name of Moses, fignifying extracted, “ be- 
caufe,” laid Ihe, “ I have drawn him out of the water.” 
In due time the child was brought to his patronefs, who 
declared him her adopted fon, and gave directions for his 
being educated in all the branches of learning for which 
Egypt was then celebrated. It is reafonable to fuppofe, 
that, while he was under the care of his parents, they had 
inftru&ed him in their religion, and informed him of the 
lecret of his birth. 
How Mofes was afterwards occupied till he was about 
forty' years of age, the Scriptures do not inform us; but 
many things are related by Jofephus and other liiftorians 
concerning the early periods of his.life; and, though fome 
perfons confider them as entirely fabulous, yet we think 
it right to mention one or two, and the more fo, as we 
are difpofed to pay a confiderable deference to the hiftory 
of Jofephus, and are not willing to fuppofe him capable 
of introducing faSts that were not authenticated by the 
beft proofs that he was capable of obtaining. Unlefs we 
go thus far, we mull lofe much that Chriftians value as 
important, which he has tranfmitted in his Hiftory and 
Antiquities. In the ACls of the Apoftles, chap. vii. 20 , 
we are told that Mofes was “ exceedingly fair.” And 
Jofephus relates, that when Mofes was only three years 
old, that is, when he was fpecially introduced to Pha- 
roah’s daughter as her adopted fon, no one who faw him 
could avoid being ftruck with the lingular beauty of his 
countenance; and he adds, people about their common 
bufinefs would leave it to gaze at him. Philo fays, that 
at his birth he had a more elegant and beautiful appear¬ 
ance than denoted an ordinary perfon. According to 
Jofephus and Eufebius, Mofes afted as a leader in the 
wars, diftinguilhed himfelf, and obtained many fignal 
victories. 
When he was about forty years of age, he left the 
court of Pharoah, and went to vifit his countrymen the 
Hebrews, who groaned under the ill-ufage and oppreftion 
of their unfeeling mailers. He is faid “ to have looked 
on their burthens;” that is, under the direction of that 
Providence which deligned him to be the deliverer of his 
nation, he made himfelf perfonally acquainted with their 
condition and treatment, endeavouring to relieve them 
from their intolerable oppreftion, and, probably, prepar¬ 
ing the minds of the leading people among them for the 
great enterprife in which he afterwards embarked. While 
he was thus employed, obferving one day an Egyptian 
ailing an Hebrew with great cruelty, he was 16 exafpe- 
rated at his conduCt, that, feeing no.perfon near, he ran 
to the defence of the latter, and, having killed the Egyp¬ 
tian during the ftruggle, buried him in the fand. Soon 
afterwards, while endeavouring to put an end to a quarrel 
between two Hebrews, one of them, provoked at his in¬ 
terference, upbraided him with the death of the Egyptian, 
and tauntingly alked him, whether he alfo meant to take 
away his life ? Finding, therefore, that the faCt was be¬ 
coming publicly known, and being fenfible that he had 
reafon to fear the efteCts of Pharaoh’s refentment, he 
confulted his lafety by withdrawing immediately into the 
land of Midian, in Arabia Petraea. 
Mofes met with a hofpitable reception from Reuel, or 
Jethro, the prieft or prince of the country, into whole 
fervice he entered. In this lituation he fpent forty years, 
during which his behaviour had been fo fatisfaClory to 
Jethro, that he bellowed upon him his daughter Zipporah 
in marriage, by whom he had two fons. His employment 
was that of keeping the flock of his father-in-law ; and, 
as he was following it upon Mount Horeb, he had an ex¬ 
traordinary vifion, which occafioned his return into the 
land of Egypt. In this vifion he faw a bulh in flames, 
not one leaf of which was confumed ; and from the midlt 
the bulh a voice iflued, announcing the fpecial pre« 
63 
fence of the Deity. (Exodus, ch. iii.) While Mofes 
liftened with profound reverence and humility, the voice 
inlormed him that the time was now come when God 
would deliver the Hebrews from their bondage to the 
Egyptians, and that he was the inllrument fele&ed to 
conduct them out of the land of their oppreftion towards 
the rich inheritance promiled to their forefathers. He 
was, therefore, commanded to proceed to Egypt; and, 
after fatisfying the Ifraelites Concerning his commiflion, 
to requeft of the king that they might be permitted to 
go three days’ journey into the defert, for the purpofe of 
celebrating a fellival in honour of the God whom they 
worlhipped. From a modeft fenfe of diffidence in himfelf, 
as well as his fears refpeCting the difficulties in executing 
fuch a commiflion, Moles was very delirous of being 
excufed from that fervice, and offered repeated prayers 
that God would be pleafed to make choice of a fitter 
inllrument. 
Encouraged at length by affurances of miraculous 
afliftance, (ch. iv.) he obtained his difmiflion from Jethro, 
and with his wife and two fons let out on his journey to 
Egypt. He had not proceeded far, before he was attacked 
with a dangerous difeafe, which Zipporah conceived to be 
a punilhment for having neglected the circumcilion of his 
youngeft fon ; llie, therefore, immediately performed that 
operation herlelf; and her hulband was foon afterwards 
able to purfue his journey, while Hie returned with the 
two children to her father’s. When Mofes arrived at 
Mount Horeb, he met his brother Aaron, who had been 
divinely directed to come thither, and was there acquainted 
by Moles with the important commiflion which was en- 
trulled to him. This intelligence gave Aaron the highell 
fatisfaClion; and he accompanied his brother to the let- 
tlements of the Ifraelites in Egypt, where the elders or 
heads of the people were aflembled, to receive the news of 
their fpeedy deliverance. Here Aaron, whom God had 
appointed to be fpokefman for his brother, who had an 
impediment in his fpeech, informed the aflembly of the 
glorious errand on which Mofes was lent to them ; and 
the latter, in evidence of the truth of his miflion, wrought 
the miracles in their prefence by which God had com¬ 
manded him to eftabliih his credit and authority among 
them. One was, by turning his rod into a ferpent, and 
then into a rod again; and another, by covering one of 
his hands with leprofy upon pulling it out of his bolom, 
and by healing it afterwards in the fame way. Thefe 
proofs of fupernatural power were fo convincing to the 
aflembly, that they profefied the utmoft joy and gratitude 
towards the divine goodnefs, which had at length taken 
compaffion on their wretched condition; but they foon. 
afforded their deliverer a fpecimen of the difficulties 
which he would have to llruggle with from their intract¬ 
able and defponding temper. 
Mofes and Aaron now proceeded to open their cora- 
miffion before the king of Egypt, (ch. v.) and, having 
obtained an audience, in the name of the Lord God of 
the Hebrews requefted permiffion for that people to go 
three days’ journey into the defert, for the purpofe of 
celebrating a fellival in his honour, without giving 
offence to the Egyptians by their peculiar rites and cere¬ 
monies; to which they added, that this God had com¬ 
manded them fo to do, and that, were they to refufe 
obedience to him, they would be in danger of fevere 
punilhment, either by the peftilence or the fword. To 
this requeft the haughty monarch replied, that he ac¬ 
knowledged no fuch deity as the God in wdiofe name 
they pretended to addrefs him, and that he would not 
grant the Ifraelites. fuch relaxation from their fervitude 
as their bold requeft implied. He then feverely repri¬ 
manded Mofes and Aaron for feducing the people from 
their work by fuch idle projects, ordering them to return 
to their own labours. At the fame time, under the pre¬ 
tence that the Hebrews had not work enough to employ 
their thoughts, and that their idlenefs would make them, 
grow feditious, he directed their talk-mafters to deprive 
them 
