The Pulpit Commentary — Exodus — Volume 1 — Section 66

EXPOSITION. Ven:. 16--22.-LIFE OF MOSES IN MrnIAN. conclude from his boldness that he hnd attend- Fugitives from Egypt generally took the ants within call. northern route from Pelnsium or Migdol to Ver. 18.-Reuel their father. Rcucl is Ga:za, a.nd oo to Syria., or the regions beyond. called " Raguel" in Num. x. 29, but the But in this quarter they were liable to be Hebrew spelling is the same in both ple.ces, The word means " friend of God,'' and implies arrested and sent be.ck to the Egyptian mon- monotheism. Compare eh. xviii. 9-12. arch. Ra.meses II. put a special clause to this Ver. 19.-An Egyptian, Reuel's daughtem effect into his treaty with the contemporary judged by the outward appearance. Moses Hittite king (Brngsch, ' History of Egypt,' wore the ga.rb &nd probably spoke the lan- vol. ii. p. 73). It was, perhaps, the fear of extra- guage of Egypt. He had had no occasion to rc~e&l to them his real nationality, Drew dition which made Moses tum his steps sonth- water enough for us. The shepherds had eastward, and proceed along the route, or at consumed some of the water drawn by the any rate in the direction, which he afterwards maidens, before Moses could drive them off. took with his nation. Though Egypt had He supplied the deficiency by drawing more possessions in the Sinaitic peninsnle., it was not for them-s.n act of polite attention. Ver. 20.-Where 11 he1 Reuel reproe.ches difficult to avoid them; &nd before Sinai was his daughters with a want of politeness-even rew:hed the fugitive would be in complete of gratitude. Why have they "left the man"? safety, for the Egyptians seem never to have Why have they not invited him in? They penetrated to the southern or eastern parts of must themselves remedy the omission-they the great triangle. " The well,'' by which must go and " call him "-that he " may eat bread," or take his evening meal with them. Moses took up his abode, is ple.ced with some Ver. 21.-Moees was content to dwell with probability in the neighbourhood of Sherm, the me.n. Moses had fled from Egypt with- about ten miles north-east of Ras Ma.hammed, out any definite plan, simply to save his life, the southern cape of the peninsul&. and had now to determine how he would ob- tain a subsistence. Received into Reuel's Ver. 16.-i'he priest of l'lti.dian. Cohen is house, or tent, pleased with the man and with eart&mly "priest " here, and not "prince,'' since his family, he consented to stay with him, pro- the father-in-law of Moses exercises priestly bably entered into his service, as Jacob into functions in eh. xviii. 12. H"is seven da.ugh- Laban's (Gen. xxix. 15-20), kept his sheep, or ters drew water for his flock, in e.ccord&nce otherwise made himself useful ( see eh. iii. I); with Eastern custom. So Ba.chel " kept the and in course of time Reuel gave :Dloses his sheep " of her father Laban, and watered them daughter, e.ccepted him for his son-in-law, so (Gen. xx.ix. 9). Such a practice agrees well that he became not merely a member of his with the simplicity of primitive times and household, but of his family, was adopted pro- peoples; nor would it even at the present day bably into the tribe, so that he could not quit be regarded as strange in Arabia. it without permission (eh. iv. 18), and, so far Ver. 17.-The shepherds ea.me a.nd drove as his own intention went, cast in his lot with them away. There is not much " natural the Mid.ia.nites, with whom he meant hence- politeness" among primitive peoples. The forth to live and die. Such vague ideas as he right of the stronger prevails, and women go me.y previously have entertained of his "mis- to the well Even the daughters of their sion ' had passed away; he had been "dis- priest were not respected by these rude sons illusioned" by his ill-success, and now looked of the desert, who would not wait their tum, • forward to nothing bnt e. life of peaceful but nsed the water which Benel's daughters obscurity. • had drawn. The context shows that this was Ver. 22.-Gershom. An Egyptian etymo- not an aecidental or occasional circmnsta.nce, logy has been assigned to this name(' Speaker's bnt the regular practice of the shepherds, who Commentary,' vol. i., p. 488); but Moses in thus aay after day saved themselves the trouble the text clearly indicates that his own inten- of drawing. (See the next verse.) :Dloaes tion was to give his child a name significant in stood up a.nd helped them. Ever ready to Hebrew. "He called his name Gershom, for assist the weak against the strong (8Upra, he said, e. stranger (ger) have I been," etc. ..-ers. 12, 13), Moses " stood up "--sprang to The only question is, what tlul second element his feet-and, though only one man against a of the name, sham, me&IIB. This appears to bo dozen or e. score, by his determined air intimi- correctly explained by Kalisch and others .as dated tbe crowd of wrong-doers, and forced equivalent to sham" there "---Bo that the entire them to let lhe, maidens' sheep drink at the word would mean" (I was) a stranger there" troughs. His dress was probably that of an --i.e. in the country where this son wos bom Egyptian of rank; e.nd they might reasonably tome  HOMILETICS. Vore. 16-19, - § 1. Moses a second time the chcvm,pion of the oppressed. IliR chn.mpionship of an oppressed Hebrew, indiscreetly and wrongfully asserted, had driven Moses from the country of his birth. No sooner does he set foot in the land whore he seeks a refuge, than his championship is again called forth. On the first occasion it was a weaker race oppressed by one more powerful that made appeal to his feelings ; now it is the weaker sex, oppressed by the stronger, that rouses him. His Egyptian civilisation may have helped to intensify his aversion to this form of oppres- sion, since among the Egyptians of his time women held a high place, and were treated with consideration. He springs forward therefore to maintain the rights of Reuel's daughters; but he has learnt wisdom so far that he restrains himself-kills no one, strikes no one-merely "helps" the victims, and has their wrong redressed. The circum- stances of life give continual occasion for such interference as this ; and each man is bound, so far as he can, to check oppression, and "see that they who are in need and necessity have right." If Moses is a warning to us in respect of his mode of action on the former occasion, he is an example here. The protection of women, whensoever and wheresoever they are wronged and ill-used, is a high Christian duty. Vers. 21,'22.-§ 2. Moses as husband and father. The Midianites wr:re descendants of Abraham (Gen. xxv. 2-4); and marriage with them was permitted, even under the Law (Num. xx.xi. 18). Moses, in wedding Zipporah, obeyed the primeval com- mand, "Be fruitful and multiply" (Gen. i. 28), while at the same time he gave himself the solace so much needed by an exile, of tender and loving life-long com- panionship. That Reuel was willing to give him one of his daughters indicates that he had approved himself as a faithful servant in the good priest's household, and was felt to deserve a reward. That Zipporah accepted him was perhaps mere filial obedience, for which she was rewarded when the fugitive and exile became the first man in a considerable nation. God blessed the marriage with male issue, a blessing fondly desired by each true Israelite, and certainly not least by Moses, who knew so well that in some descendant of Abraham "all the families of the earth should be blessed." A shade of sadness shows itself, however, in the name which he gave his firstbom-Gershom, " e. stranger there." He himself had been for years, and, for aught that he could tell, his son might always be, "a stranger in a strange land"- far from his true home, far from his own people, a refugee among foreigners, who could not be expected to love him as one of themselves, or treat him otherwise than with coldness. Depression. like this often assails us at moments of great joy, the good obtained making us feel all the more sensibly that other goods have been lost. Such .depression, however, after a. time, passes away, and the desponding cry of "Gershom" is followed (eh. xviii, 3, 4) by that of" Eliezer," or" my God helps."