Pharaoh, the King of Egypt, had made a law that every boy baby of the
Hebrew race should be killed, and there was great sorrow because of it.
But when Moses was born, his mother managed to hide him for three
months; then she made a cradle, or little ark, and putting him into it,
carried him down to a river and hid the cradle among the reeds there.

Soon after this, Pharaoh's daughter came with her maidens to the
river-side, and when she saw the beautiful child, she sent one of her
maidens to bring it to her.

She took the little boy to the palace and named him Moses, and he became
a great man among the Egyptians; he knew, however, that he belonged to
the Hebrew race, and when he saw how badly his own people were treated,
he tried to help them; but at last he was obliged to leave Egypt, and
became a shepherd, taking care of the flocks of a priest called Jethro.
He also married Jethro's daughter.

[Illustration: THE GOOD SAMARITAN.]

After a time, God spoke to Moses out of a burning bush, and told him
that he must go and rescue his people from the cruel Egyptians. Moses
thought he could not do this; but God promised to help him, and to show
him what he would be able to do with that help, God turned the rod which
Moses carried into a serpent. Then God told Moses to pick the serpent
up by the tail, and as he did so, it became a rod again. He showed him
another sign, also; but Moses was still afraid, because he could not
talk well and thought that Pharaoh would not listen to him. So God told
him to take his brother Aaron for a spokesman.