How is Moses' life divided into 40-year segments?
Moses’ life is divided into three 40-year segments, aside from five years in his mother’s house. The first 40 years he lived in Pharaoh’s palace as Pharaoh’s daughter’s son. The second 40 years he was on the backside of the desert herding sheep. The third 40 years he returned to deliver Israel.
Les teaches that Moses’ whole life is broken down into three 40-year segments, not counting the five years in his mother’s house. The first 40 years, he was in Pharaoh’s palace as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. The second 40 years, he was on the backside of the desert herding sheep. The third 40 years, he comes back and delivers the children of Israel. Acts chapter 7 shows this: verse 23 says when he was a full 40 years old, it came into his heart to visit the children of Israel; verse 30 says when 40 years were expired, an angel of the Lord appeared in the wilderness of Sinai in a flame of fire at the bush, beginning his third 40 years when he will lead Israel out and then in the wilderness. Then Exodus verse 23 says in the process of time the king of Egypt died, and the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage and cried, and their cry came up to God.
More Questions
Why does the lesson conclude that Exodus 2:23's process of time was forty years?
The reason the process of time in Exodus 2:23 is understood as forty years is because Acts 7 says that after forty years were expired the angel appeared to Moses.
What event marked the beginning of Moses' third 40-year period?
The appearance of the angel of the Lord at the burning bush marked the beginning of Moses' third 40-year period.
What are the three 40-year stages of Moses' life according to Acts 7?
Acts 7 divides Moses' life into three 40-year periods: 40 years in Pharaoh's palace, 40 years in the desert herding sheep, and 40 years leading Israel—a breakdown not found in the Old Testament.