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Exodus 18

1 And Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses' father-in-law, heard all that God had done for Moses and for His people Israel; that Jehovah had brought Israel out of Egypt.
2 And Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, took Zipporah, Moses' wife (after Moses had sent her away),
3 with her two sons, of whom the name of one was Gershom (for he said, I have been a sojourner in a foreign land)
4 and the name of the other was Eliezer (for he said, The God of my father was my help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh);
5 and Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, came with his sons and his wife to Moses in the wilderness, where he was encamped at the mountain of God.
6 And he said to Moses, I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons with her.
7 And Moses went out to meet his father-in-law, bowed down, and kissed him. And they asked each other about their welfare, and they went into the tent.
8 And Moses told his father-in-law all that Jehovah had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians on account of Israel, all the distress that they had encountered along the way, and how Jehovah had delivered them.
9 And Jethro rejoiced for all the good which Jehovah had done for Israel, whom He had delivered out of the hand of the Egyptians.
10 And Jethro said, Blessed be Jehovah, who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of Pharaoh, and who has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians.
11 Now I know that Jehovah is greater than all the gods; for in the very things in which they behaved proudly, He was above them.
12 And Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, took a burnt offering and sacrifices unto God. And Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses' father-in-law before God.
13 And so it was, on the next day, that Moses sat to judge the people; and the people stood before Moses from morning until evening.
14 And when Moses' father-in-law saw all that he did for the people, he said, What is this thing that you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit, and all the people stand before you from morning until evening?
15 And Moses said to his father-in-law, Because the people come to me to inquire of God.
16 When they have a matter, they come to me, and I judge between a man and his neighbor; and I make known the statutes of God and His Laws.
17 And Moses' father-in-law said to him, The thing that you do is not good.
18 Both you and these people who are with you will droop to exhaustion. For this thing is too much of a burden for you; you are not able to do it by yourself.
19 Listen now to my voice; I will give you counsel, and God be with you: Be before God for the people, so that you may bring the matters to God.
20 And you shall teach them the statutes and the Laws, and show them the way in which they should walk and the work they should do.
21 Moreover you shall select from all the people able men, who fear God, men of truth, hating unjust gain; and place these over them as rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.
22 And let them judge the people at all times. Then it will be that every great matter they shall bring to you, but every small matter they themselves shall judge. So it will be easier for you, and they shall bear the burden with you.
23 If you do this thing, and God so commands you, then you will be able to endure, and all this people will also go to their place in peace.
24 So Moses heeded the voice of his father-in-law and did all that he had said.
25 And Moses 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.
26 And they judged the people at all times; the hard matters they brought to Moses, but they judged every small matter themselves.
27 And Moses sent his father-in-law away, and he departed to his own land.
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