Moses
“Drawn out”
Summary
Moses was the great Hebrew prophet, lawgiver, and leader who delivered Israel from Egyptian bondage, mediated God's covenant at Sinai, and guided the nation through forty years in the wilderness.
☩Birth and Preservation
Moses was born to Amram and Jochebed of the tribe of Levi during Israel's deepest oppression in Egypt, when Pharaoh had commanded all Hebrew male infants to be killed. His parents, seeing he was a 'goodly child,' hid him for three months by faith, not fearing the king's commandment. When concealment became impossible, his mother placed him in an ark of papyrus among the reeds of the Nile, where Pharaoh's daughter discovered him and adopted him as her own son. The name Moses, meaning 'drawn out,' commemorated his rescue from the water.
☩Egyptian Education and Flight
Moses was educated in all the wisdom of the Egyptians and became mighty in words and deeds. At age forty, he visited his brethren and witnessed their oppression. When he saw an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, he killed the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. The next day, when he tried to reconcile two quarreling Hebrews, the wrongdoer revealed that his deed was known. Pharaoh sought to kill Moses, who fled to Midian, where he married Zipporah, daughter of Jethro the priest, and spent forty years as a shepherd.
☩The Burning Bush and Commission
At age eighty, God appeared to Moses in a burning bush on Mount Horeb, commissioning him to deliver Israel from Egypt. Moses protested his inadequacy, but God promised to be with him and revealed His name as 'I AM WHO I AM.' Aaron was appointed as Moses' spokesman, and together they returned to Egypt. After confronting Pharaoh and bringing ten plagues upon Egypt, Moses led Israel out through the parted Red Sea, composing a song of victory when Pharaoh's army was destroyed.
☩Mediator at Sinai
At Mount Sinai, Moses ascended into the divine presence to receive the Law, including the Ten Commandments written by God's finger on stone tablets. He served as mediator between God and the people, who were terrified by the thunder and lightning attending the theophany. When Israel made the golden calf during his forty-day absence, Moses interceded for them and secured God's forgiveness, even offering himself as a substitute for the people. His face shone with reflected glory after speaking with God, requiring him to wear a veil before the people.
☩Leadership in the Wilderness
For forty years Moses led Israel through the wilderness, enduring their constant murmuring and rebellion. He established a system of government through appointed judges, supervised construction of the tabernacle, organized the priesthood under Aaron, and faithfully transmitted God's instructions. When Korah, Dathan, and Abiram rebelled against his authority, God vindicated Moses through dramatic judgment. Moses is repeatedly called the meekest man on earth, yet he once failed by striking the rock in anger rather than speaking to it as commanded, forfeiting his entry into Canaan.
☩Death and Legacy
Moses died at 120 years old on Mount Nebo, his eye undimmed and his vigor unabated, after viewing the Promised Land he could not enter. God Himself buried him in an unknown location—tradition suggests to prevent his tomb becoming an object of idolatry. Israel mourned him thirty days. Michael the archangel disputed with Satan over his body. Moses later appeared with Elijah at Christ's transfiguration, representing the Law alongside the Prophets. He was unique among prophets: God spoke to him 'face to face,' and no prophet arose in Israel like him until the coming of Christ, of whom he was a type.
Related Verses821 mentions
See Also
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Moses," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. VI (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Moses," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. III (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
- 3.James Hastings (ed.), "Moses," in Dictionary of the Apostolic Church, vol. II (T. & T. Clark, 1915–1918).
- 4.James Hastings (ed.), "Moses," in Dictionary of Christ and the Gospels, vol. II (T. & T. Clark, 1906–1908).
- 5.George Morrish, "Moses," in Morrish's Concise Bible Dictionary (George Morrish, 1898).
- 6.F. N. Peloubet & M. A. Peloubet (ed.), "Moses," in Smith's Bible Dictionary (Porter & Coates, 1884).