¹Now Jethro , the priest of Midian , Moses ’ father-in-law , heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel his people , how the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt .

²Jethro , Moses ’ father-in-law , received Zipporah , Moses ’ wife, after he had sent her away ,

³and her two sons . The name of one son was Gershom , for Moses said, “I have lived as a foreigner in a foreign land”.[#18:3 “Gershom” sounds like the Hebrew for “an alien there”.]

⁴The name of the other was Eliezer, for he said, “My father’s God was my help and delivered me from Pharaoh ’s sword .”[#18:4 Eliezer means “God is my helper”.]

⁵Jethro , Moses ’ father-in-law , came with Moses ’ sons and his wife to Moses into the wilderness where he was encamped , at the Mountain of God.

⁶He said to Moses , “I , your father-in-law Jethro , have come to you with your wife, and her two sons with her .”

⁷Moses went out to meet his father-in-law , and bowed and kissed him . They asked each other of their welfare , and they came into the tent.

⁸Moses told his father-in-law all that the LORD had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel ’s sake , all the hardships that had come on them on the way , and how the LORD delivered them .

⁹Jethro rejoiced for all the goodness which the LORD had done to Israel , in that he had delivered them out of the hand of the Egyptians .

¹⁰Jethro said, “Blessed be the LORD , who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians , and out of the hand of Pharaoh ; who has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians .

¹¹Now I know that the LORD is greater than all gods because of the way that they treated people arrogantly .”

¹²Jethro , Moses ’ father-in-law , took a burnt offering and sacrifices for God. Aaron came with all the elders of Israel , to eat bread with Moses ’ father-in-law before God.

¹³On the next day , Moses sat to judge the people , and the people stood around Moses from the morning to the evening .

¹⁴When Moses ’ father-in-law saw all that he did to the people , he said , “What is this thing that you do for the people ? Why do you sit alone , and all the people stand around you from morning to evening ?”

¹⁵Moses said to his father-in-law , “Because the people come to me to enquire of God.

¹⁶When they have a matter , they come to me , and I judge between a man and his neighbour , and I make them know the statutes of God, and his laws .”

¹⁷Moses ’ father-in-law said to him , “The thing that you do is not good .

¹⁸You will surely wear away , both you , and this people that is with you ; for the thing is too heavy for you . You are not able to perform it yourself alone .

¹⁹Listen now to my voice . I will give you counsel , and God be with you . You represent the people before God, and bring the causes to God.

²⁰You shall teach them the statutes and the laws , and shall show them the way in which they must walk , and the work that they must do .

²¹Moreover you shall provide out of all the people able men which fear God: men of truth, hating unjust gain ; and place such over them , to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds , rulers of fifties , and rulers of tens .

²²Let them judge the people at all times . It shall be that every great matter they shall bring to you , but every small matter they shall judge themselves . So shall it be easier for you , and they shall share the load with you .

²³If you will do this thing , and God commands you so , then you will be able to endure , and all these people also will go to their place in peace .”

²⁴So Moses listened to the voice of his father-in-law , and did all that he had said .

²⁵Moses chose able men out of all Israel , and made them heads over the people , rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds , rulers of fifties , and rulers of tens .

²⁶They judged the people at all times . They brought the hard cases to Moses , but every small matter they judged themselves .

²⁷Moses let his father-in-law depart , and he went his way into his own land.