Bible Strands
Exodus 3:1
Meanwhile, Moses was shepherding the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrative places Moses in the wilderness of Midian, tending the livestock of his father-in-law Jethro, as he guides the flock toward Horeb. This occurs just before the divine appearance in the burning bush.
The words — רֹעֶה (ro.'Eh) renders "pasturing" or "shepherding," describing Moses' active care of the flock. כּוֹהֵן (ko.Hen) identifies Jethro as "priest," establishing his religious authority in Midian.
The thread — The location Horeb recurs in Exodus 17:6 where God promises to stand before Moses at the rock, and 1 Kings 19:8 where Elijah journeys to the same mountain. The shepherd motif echoes Psalm 78:70, which notes God taking David from the sheepfolds.
Why it lands — The text records Moses' physical location and occupation before any divine intervention, establishing the human starting point for the encounter. It requires the reader to note that the sacred meeting occurs within ordinary labor and geography.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father in law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.
Cross-references
- 1 Kings 19:8 So he got up and ate and drank. And strengthened by that food, he walked forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God.
- Exodus 17:6 Behold, I will stand there before you by the rock at Horeb. And when you strike the rock, water will come out of it for the people to drink.” So Moses did this in the sight of the elders of Israel.
- Psalms 78:70 He chose David His servant and took him from the sheepfolds;
- Numbers 10:29 Then Moses said to Hobab, the son of Moses’ father-in-law Reuel the Midianite, “We are setting out for the place of which the LORD said: ‘I will give it to you.’ Come with us, and we will treat you well, for the LORD has promised good things to Israel.”
- Exodus 18:1 Now Moses’ father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian, heard about all that God had done for Moses and His people Israel, and how the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt.
- Judges 4:11 Now Heber the Kenite had moved away from the Kenites, the descendants of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, and had pitched his tent by the great tree of Zaanannim, which was near Kedesh.
- Malachi 4:4 “Remember the law of My servant Moses, the statutes and ordinances I commanded him for all Israel at Horeb.
- Exodus 2:16 Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters, and they came to draw water and fill the troughs to water their father’s flock.
- Exodus 3:5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”
- Exodus 19:3 Then Moses went up to God, and the LORD called to him from the mountain, “This is what you are to tell the house of Jacob and explain to the sons of Israel: