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Moses, you have wealth, wisdom, and power. Will you squander it on slaves?
This Week’s Story relives American history and the Bible through brief inspiring stories presented on mp3 audio recordings and text for reading.
Can I be prince and slave?
part two
“Mother, you’re a loyal Egyptian, yet you rescued me, and betrayed the Pharaoh. How did you live with that? I don’t know how to settle the battle in my mind. Am I to live as a Hebrew and an Egyptian?”
“Moses, you are my adopted son and a royal prince of Egypt. One day you will be Pharaoh and a god. You will rule the Hebrews.”
“Mother, I love you, but Hebrew slaves are my blood family. I owe loyalty to Pharaoh and I owe loyalty to Hebrew slaves. My Hebrew family protected me when I was to be killed by Pharaoh’s soldiers. You, the pharaoh’s daughter, saved me from death. By your order, my Hebrew mother nursed me. Her songs are in my heart. They teach me that there is one true God, and He is not a god of Egypt. You provided teachers who taught me the wisdom of Egypt. Mother, what road do I follow?”
“You will have no opportunities for power as a Hebrew, Moses. You are trained for leadership.”
“What kind of leader will I be? Will I set slaves free?”
“Foolish talk, Moses! You have received the best education available in today’s world. You have had superb private teachers, and a university education at Heliopolis. You have a tremendous command of language and speak well upon many subjects.”
“Mother, I am slow of speech. I stammer at times.”
“That is true, Moses; you are deliberate. Your military achievements are remarkable.
“Moses, agree with me on this matter. I am now queen and you are my only child. There is one other contender for the throne. You know that he is Thutmose III, son of Pharaoh’s second wife. You and I must win this contest for you to become Pharaoh.”
“Mother, today I was in Goshen. My people were treated brutally by Egyptian guards. I watched one Hebrew as he was whipped. He had no one to defend him, and he had done no wrong. I defended him and killed the Egyptian attacker. I buried him in the sand. Tomorrow I am returning to Goshen.”
“For nearly forty years, my son, you have lived with wealth, wisdom, and the promise of power. Will you squander it on slaves?”
“I do not know what I will do, but I know I have people in Goshen.”
The next day as Moses was in Goshen, two Hebrew men were angrily fighting. One was obviously at fault. Moses stepped to him and asked, “Do you realize what you are doing?
The man fired back, “Who are you? No one appointed you to be our prince and judge. Will you kill me, as you killed an Egyptian here yesterday?”
“Your fight is fooIish,” Moses replied, instantly thinking, I was seen yesterday and will be reported to the Pharaoh. I know he won’t excuse me. If I wish to live, I must flee Egypt today, or I’ll be charged with murder. My punishment will be drowning, decapitation, or impaling on a stake. I’ll travel by night and the stars. I know desert survival. I’ll cross the Sinai Peninsula and head to Midian.
Soon with no opportunity to see his mother or Hebrew family, he travelled with essentials and a horse from the royal stables. I must move swiftly. May God of my Hebrew parents guide me.
This is Barbara Steiner. Scholars continue to research the timeline of Moses. I accepted placing Moses’ trip to Midian as occurring in 1486 B.C. Please check out thisweeksstory.com.
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