As faithful and diligent Bible readers, we are not to engage in narcigesis (narcissistic exegesis) in which we place ourselves as the center of every Biblical narrative. We are not Daniel in the den of lions nor are we the one faithful Elijah in a land of pagans. In our current narrative of Exodus 2, we can firmly state that the early life of Moses – and his life in general – is a clear foreshadow of Christ, the one to come like Moses, but better. Yet, it does not mean that we are incapable of seeing within the narrative of Moses, an example of God’s character that gets fleshed out in our lives as well.
In Exodus 2, we read of the early life of Moses. He is the “fine” (2:2) infant rescued and adopted by none other than Pharaoh’s daughter. As an Egyptian adoptee, he is fully immersed in Egyptian culture and “was instructed in all wisdom of the Egyptians” (Acts 7:22). And yet Moses still clearly identified with the Hebrew people as he considered them his own (2:11). With such a background, one could ask the question: who else is better suited to deliver the Israelites from Egypt, than an Israelite raised in Egypt? As commentator John Currid puts it, “Here is the reason why God placed Moses in the Egyptian court. It was a period of preparation. God was equipping Moses to do battle with the Egyptians. At that time, Egypt was the greatest kingdom on earth and had the most advanced education of the time…Moses learnt these things so that he would not be caught unawares when the time of confrontation drew near.” (Currid, Exodus, 57).
This notion of dual citizenship is the reason that the Apostle Paul was delivered from receiving lashes at the Roman tribunal (Acts 22) for preaching the gospel. Moses is not only prepared to rescue his people because of his upbringing, but also due to his actions and practice in providing salvation to an Israelite through swift justice to an offending Egyptian (2:11ff). Crassly put, providing deliverance to the Israelites is not his first rodeo. This is reminiscent of David’s confidence in his ability to defeat Goliath because of his previous success over lions and bears (1 Samuel 17:36). God in His providence prepares His appointed deliverer.
To bring it back to the forementioned narcigesis, we can be content in our pedigree and past activities knowing that God can use them for His own glory. The Lord could bring the message of salvation to His people in a direct manner, yet He chooses to work through secondary means; namely, us. Therefore, we should not be ashamed of our heritage, family lineage, past failures, current struggles, or inevitable situations we live through in this fallen world. For God very much could use the culmination of our lives to bring His people to Himself. As living epistles (2 Corinthians 3:2-3), may God use our life to point to the true deliverer and to His gospel that brings a salvation that is more sure than deliverance from Egyptian slavery.
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