And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river; and her maidens walked along by the river’s side; and when she saw the ark among the flags, she sent her maid to fetch it.
Parallel translations
- WEB Pharaoh’s daughter came down to bathe at the river. Her maidens walked along by the riverside. She saw the basket among the reeds, and sent her servant to get it.
- BSB Soon the daughter of Pharaoh went down to bathe in the Nile, and her attendants were walking along the riverbank. And when she saw the basket among the reeds, she sent her maidservant to retrieve it.
- NKJV Then the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river. And her maidens walked along the riverside; and when she saw the ark among the reeds, she sent her maid to get it.
- NASB Now the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the Nile, with her female attendants walking alongside the Nile; and she saw the basket among the reeds and sent her slave woman, and she brought it to her.
- NLT Soon Pharaoh’s daughter came down to bathe in the river, and her attendants walked along the riverbank. When the princess saw the basket among the reeds, she sent her maid to get it for her.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Pharaoh's daughter comes to bathe and discovers the basket among the reeds. God's providence brings the rescuer to the very child Pharaoh wanted dead.
Overview
In a striking reversal, the deliverer is saved by the daughter of the man seeking his death, and raised in Pharaoh's own house. What looks like chance is the careful working of God's providence. The scene displays God's irony and sovereignty, frustrating the tyrant's plan through his own household.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Acts 7:21And when he was cast out, Pharaoh’s daughter took him up, and nourished him for her own son.
- Ps 9:9The LORD also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble.
- Ps 12:5For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the LORD; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.
- Exod 8:20And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh; lo, he cometh forth to the water; and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Let my people go, that they may serve me.
- Ps 46:1God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.
- Exod 7:15Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goeth out unto the water; and thou shalt stand by the river’s brink against he come; and the rod which was turned to a serpent shalt thou take in thine hand.
- Prov 21:1The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.
- Ps 76:10Surely the wrath of man shall praise thee: the remainder of wrath shalt thou restrain.
- 1 Kgs 17:6And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.
- Jonah 1:17Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
- Jonah 2:10And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.
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Christ at the center
The Passover lamb whose blood turns away death, the exodus through the sea, the manna, the rock, and the tabernacle where God dwells with his people all foreshadow Jesus — our Passover, our redemption, the bread from heaven, and God-with-us in the flesh.
How Exodus 2:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.