God Prepares Israel for Deliverance (Exodus 1:1–2:25)

After many years (after Joseph who was 2nd in power in Egypt died), there was a new Pharaoh.  This Pharaoh did not know about the past – about Joseph.  All he knew was that there were so many Israelites in Egypt.  And he was afraid that they would join their enemies and fight and defeat the Egyptians.  So, Pharaoh decided to do something very wrong.  He made all of God’s people into slaves.  He forced them to work very hard without any choice.  But still, Pharaoh was afraid of all of the Israelites.  So, he did something very evil.  He had a plan – he told the nurses when the Israelite moms gave birth, to kill the baby if it’s a boy.  Despite all of Pharaoh’s evil ways, God was with the Israelites.  The nurses obeyed God (not Pharaoh) and they did not kill the baby boy Israelites.  In fact, one of them was Moses.  After months of hiding Moses, Moses’ mom had to send Moses away or else the Egyptians would get him.  So, she put Moses in a basket and floated him down the Nile river.  But God was with Moses!  And out of all people, Pharaoh’s daughter found him and took him up in the family of Pharaoh (king of Egypt).  But Moses was not an Egyptian, he was an Israelite.  And he knew this.  When he was grown up, he did something wrong and killed an Egyptian because the Egyptian was treating an Israelite (one of his kind) very badly.  From this, Moses ran away from Egypt and started a new life in Midian – got married and started a family there.  But that was not the end of Moses.  God had a plan for Moses and it has to do with His people in Egypt.