Chapter 14: The Morning of the Canaanite Shepherd
Moses, a friend of Ramesses II, had recently been very careful with his ears.
Previously, he kept hearing a voice whispering near him, attempting to seduce him into doing something terrible.
He tried to resist, but it seemed largely ineffective. Over time, he felt the voice slowly taking control of his reason.
Because of this voice, he had already had several unpleasant encounters with Ramesses. Even when Ramesses gathered his army to march north, it was this voice that stopped him from helping Ramesses convince the Hebrews to join the Egyptian forces.
Ultimately, he killed Jethro.
This former court tutor was already unpopular with Ramesses due to political reasons; in fact, Ramesses nearly executed him.
But Jethro was still an Egyptian, and Moses was a Hebrew, a respected leader among his people. This status meant that killing Jethro had consequences far beyond the act itself.
So Moses chose to flee.
He did not know what attitude Ramesses would take toward him, but with the Egyptian kingdom facing invasion from the Hittites, there was no time to deal with a Hebrew. Perhaps that was why he wasn't pursued.
Aside from Ramesses and his wife, most Egyptian nobles wanted Moses dead.
As close relatives of the former shepherd dynasty rulers, Egyptian nobles were naturally distrustful of the Hebrews.
They firmly resisted any Hebrew entering Egypt's ruling class, as it would undermine the great achievements of the Eighteenth Dynasty's ancestors. Most of Egypt's current rulers were descendants of the Eighteenth Dynasty military aristocracy.
Even in exile, Moses did not wish to become Ramesses' enemy or bring harm to Egypt. His intuition told him that the owner of that voice possessed such power.
Moses did not believe it was the one God his people worshipped, for when he asked the voice its name, he sensed its anger and pride.
So he fled to Midian, partly because he did not dare face Ramesses, and partly to escape the voice.
There, posing as a shepherd, he met Sephora, the daughter of Midianite priest Jethro, and fell in love with her. He never revealed his true identity, even though this was the land God had promised to his ancestors.
Cautious as he was, Moses did not take risks lightly. Who knew whether the people now occupying Canaan would kill him as a foreign spy? Being Hebrew in Canaan was dangerous.
Even in Canaan, he could hear news of Ramesses.
The war had begun, and the Egyptian army had already marched north. Anyone not blind could see the Egyptian transport fleet advancing along the Canaanite coast.
The Egyptians appeared unstoppable.
But Moses worried. The Hittite king, Muwattal, was an excellent military commander, and his preparations for war were thorough. All nations north of Egypt had become Hittite allies. On this land, everyone was either an enemy of Egypt or a potential enemy.
Ramesses was brave, but his battlefield experience was lacking. Judging by the number of initial transport ships, subtracting those carrying supplies, the remaining troop ships could probably only hold one legion.
Yet Egypt faced the Hittites, who had ruled the region for twenty years. Moses knew that small city-states like Naharin, Ashwa, Cilicia, Lydia, Kizzuwatna, Carchemish, Ugari, Kode, and Qadesh were bound to the Hittites through military alliances.
This would be a force the Egyptians had never encountered.
It might seem contradictory, but as a Hebrew, Moses' heart loved his people first, Egypt second. After all, it was where he grew up, his homeland.
Moses was passionate, but that passion extended only to the Hebrews and Egypt. He had no love for anyone else. Even Canaanite relatives, if it weren't for courting a girl there, he wouldn't care at all.
Even with the girl, he only cared about Jethro's family; the rest could do as they pleased.
One morning, Moses emerged from his tent and saw another Egyptian fleet on the distant coast.
"This must be the last batch…" he thought.
"Moses?" a woman's voice came from behind.
He turned and saw Sephora stepping out of the tent.
"My dear, you can sleep a bit longer." Moses tenderly pulled Sephora into his arms.
Lately, he had grown fond of the nomadic lifestyle.
Don't assume Egyptians' lack of clothes meant freedom—nobles had strict rules. For example, anyone caught sneaking into a noble household to sleep with a daughter might be diced into pieces, unless they were also nobility.
And nobles generally shrugged: "A lifetime of war, a few accidental deaths? Nothing unusual."
Witnessing such scenes firsthand in Egypt multiple times, Moses resolved that if he ever had children, they would be sons.
Holding his beloved, feeling the solid weight against his chest, Moses quietly made a decision.
It was still early—one more round!
"My dear, it's cold outside. Let's go back inside and rest."
Kissing his beloved mercilessly, he carried her back into the tent.
He didn't notice, behind him in the sky, something streaking across the morning clouds at incredible speed.
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