Exodus Chapter 2 Verses 16-22  

:16 “Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters: and they came and drew water, and filled the troughs to water their father's flock. 17 And the shepherds came and drove them away: but Moses stood up and helped them, and watered their flock. 18 And when they came to Reuel their father, he said, How is it that ye are come so soon to day? 19 And they said, An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and also drew water enough for us, and watered the flock. 20 And he said unto his daughters, And where is he? why is it that ye have left the man? call him, that he may eat bread. 21 And Moses was content to dwell with the man: and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter. 22 And she bare him a son, and he called his name Gershom: for he said, I have been a stranger in a strange land.”   

The Midianites were descendants of Abraham as Midian was a son of Abraham’s concubine, Keturah.  The priests were the religious leaders of their tribe of people.  I have no idea how Reuel became a priest.  Moreover, it appears that the priest were not paid for their service in Midian as Reuel was a shepherd with a flock of sheep.  It was the responsibility of Reuel’s seven daughters to draw water to water their father’s flock.  It appears that when the daughters had drawn the water from the well to water their father’s flocks that the shepherds would come and drive their sheep away and water their flocks with the water Reuel’s daughters had drawn.  Apparently this happened on a daily basis.   

The heart of a man of God is to help the weak and needy.  Moses seeing what was taking place stood up and helped the daughter’s of Reuel to water their father’s flock.   

“And when they came to Reuel their father, he said, How is it that ye are come so soon to day? 19 And they said, An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and also drew water enough for us, and watered the flock. 20 And he said unto his daughters, And where is he? why is it that ye have left the man? call him, that he may eat bread.”  Reuel recognized the gracious kindness of Moses in helping his daughters and wanted to reward him for his kindness.  When Moses was come he and Reuel apparently started up a friendship.  Reuel offered to lodge Moses and gave him to wife his daughter Zipporah.  Moses then went to care for Reuel’s flock.  Moses became a shepherd for the next 40 years.   

Moses and Zipporah had a son whom they names Gershom because Moses had said “I have been a stranger in a strange land.  In biblical times, it was common to name a child after the current circumstances of the father’s of mother’s life.  Gershom means refugee which is what a stranger in a strange land is.  Moses felt himself to be a strange in a strange land.  This should be the feeling of each child of God.  This earth is not our home.  Our home is in heaven to which we will go one day.  Until then we are strangers in a strange land.   

The name, “Reuel,” means friend of God.  Reuel had proven himself a friend of God by being a friend to the servant of God, Moses.   

Verses 23-25

:23 “And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage. 24 And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 And God looked upon the children of Israel, and God had respect unto them.” 

“And it came to pass in process of time, that the king of Egypt died: and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage, and they cried, and their cry came up unto God by reason of the bondage.”  When God promised Abraham that he would give his people the land of Canaan, but beforehand they would sojourn in Egypt for 400 years, it is apparent that God had a time schedule for things to happen.  Now, the time had come that God was preparing to deliver the children of Israel out of Egyptian bondage.  He knew all about them and had known for all that time.  Over the process of time, the children of Israel had come to dwell in Egypt in the land of Goshen during the days of Joseph.  Joseph had been a saviour to Egypt and to the children of Israel.  Later, however, there arose another Pharaoh that knew not Joseph and had enslaved the children of Israel and had wickedly tried to destroy them from being a separate people and to make their daughters sex slaves.  God had providential intervened and prevented those actions.  Now God has heard the groanings of the children of Israel and their cry by reason of the bondage.   

The basis on which God was come to deliver Israel was on the basis of his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob.  In this covenant God had made with Abraham and confirmed with Isaac and Jacob, God promised to deliver the children of Israel and give them an inheritance in the land of Canaan.  The scripture says that God remembered his covenant.  We know that God cannot forget anything, but it says he remembered his covenant for our benefit for us to know that God remembers us and the covenant he made before the world began and recorded for us in Romans chapter 8, verses 29 and 30.  God is a covenant making covenant keeping God.  The word, LORD, literally means Jehovah who is a covenant making; covenant keeping God.  This is the most common word for God in all the scriptures, being found in the scriptures over 6,000 times.   

Based on this covenant that God made with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob, God had respect to the children of Israel.  God’s respect for anyone is based on a covenant.  It is a covenant respect.  There are several different times where we read that God is no respecter of persons.  God does not respect persons based on any means whereby man respects or favors persons.  God, however, does respect persons based on his covenant.  For this reason, God had respect unto Israel, but had not respect unto the Egyptians.