EXPOSITION. DEATH OF THE PHARAOH FROM WHOM MOSES FLED — CONTINUANCE OF THE OPPRESSION OF ISRAEL - ISRAEL 'S PRAYERS — GOD 'S ACCEPTANCE OF THEM . — After a space of forty years from the time of Moses' flight from Egypt, according to the estimate of St. Stephen ( Acts 7:30 ), which is not, however, to be strictly pressed, the king whose anger he had provoked — Rameses II ., as we believe — died. He had reigned sixty-seven years — about... read more
As in streams the water is attracted to and swirls round various centres, so here the interest of the narrative circles about three facts. We have — I . THE KING 'S DEATH . Who the king was may be uncertain. [Some say Aahmes I . . — see Canon Cook, in 'Speaker's Commentary;' others, Rameses II . — see R . S . Poole, In Contemporary Review,' March, 1879.] What he had done is sufficiently evident. Confronted with an alien people, of whose history he knew little and with whom... read more
God heard their groaning. God is said to "hear" the prayers which he accepts and grants; to "be deaf" to those which he does not grant, but rejects. He now "heard" (i.e. accepted) the supplications of oppressed Israel; and on account of the covenant which he had made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob — a covenant always remembered by him — he looked upon his people, made them the objects of his special regard, and entered on a course, which was abnormal, irregular, miraculous, in order to carry... read more
In process of time - Nearly forty years Acts 7:30. This verse marks the beginning of another section. We now enter at once upon the history of the Exodus.Their cry came up unto God - This statement, taken in connection with the two following verses, proves that the Israelites retained their faith in the God of their Fathers. The divine name, “God,” אלהים 'ĕlohı̂ym, is chosen because it was that which the Israelites must have used in their cry for help, that under which the covenant had been... read more
Remembered - This means that God was moved by their prayers to give effect to the covenant, of which an essential condition was the faith and contrition involved in the act of supplication. The whole history of Israel is foreshadowed in these words: God heard, remembered, looked upon, and knew them. It evidently indicates the beginning of a crisis marked by a personal intervention of God. read more
Exodus 2:23. The king of Egypt died And, after him, one or two more of his sons or successors. And the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage Probably the murdering of their infants did not continue; that part of their affliction only attended the birth of Moses, to signalize that. And now they were content with their increase, finding that Egypt was enriched by their labour; so they might have them for their slaves, they cared not how many they were. On this therefore they... read more
Exodus 2:24-25. And God heard their groaning That is, he made it to appear that he took notice of their complaints. The groans of the oppressed cry loud in the ears of the righteous God, to whom vengeance belongs; especially the groans of God’s children, the burdens they groan under, and the blessings they groan after. And God remembered his covenant Which he seemed to have forgotten, but really is ever mindful of. This God had an eye to, and not to any merit of theirs, in what he did... read more
Preparation of Moses (2:1-25)Moses was the person God chose to save his people and lead them out of Egypt. He was born of godly Hebrew parents, who no doubt taught him that the true and living God was the only legitimate object of human worship, and this God had chosen Israel to be his people. At the same time Moses grew up in the Egyptian palace, where he was trained in the best learning and culture available at that time (2:1-10; see Acts 7:22; Hebrews 11:23).By the time he was forty years of... read more
the king of Egypt . See App-37 . children = sons. sighed. Hebrew. 'a nach, under pressure of evil. cried. Hebrew. zeak: with a loud voice, from sorrow or fear. cry. Hebrew. shav`a, for help in distress. Note the Figure of speech Synonymia ( App-6 ), to emphasise the greatness of the distress; see also Exodus 2:24 and Exodus 2:25 . Can it be that (according to Lightfoot II, 22, Pitman) Psalms 88:0 and Psalms 89:0 come in here? If so, the latter is a wondrous prophecy, containing... read more
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The Pulpit Commentary - Exodus 2:23
Death comes at last, even to the proudest monarch.Rameses II . left behind him the reputation of being the greatest of the Egyptian kings. He was confounded with the mythical Sesostris, and regarded as the conqueror of all Western Asia, of Ethiopia, and of a large tract in Europe. His buildings and other great works did, in fact, probably excel those of any other Pharaoh. His reign was the longest, if we except one, of any upon record. He was victorious, by land or sea, over all who resisted... read more