In slaying the Egyptian, Moses had fallen into the same error so often committed by his fathers, of taking into their own hands the work that God had promised to do. It was not God's will to deliver His people by warfare, as Moses thought, but by His own mighty power, that the glory might be ascribed to Him alone. Yet even this rash act was overruled by God to accomplish His purposes. Moses was not prepared for his great work. He had yet to learn the same lesson of faith that Abraham and Jacob had been taught--not to rely upon human strength or wisdom, but upon the power of God for the fulfillment of His promises. And there were other lessons that, amid the solitude of the mountains, Moses was to receive. In the school of self-denial and hardship he was to learn patience, to temper his passions. Before he could govern wisely, he must be trained to obey. His own heart must be fully in harmony with God before he could teach the knowledge of His will to Israel. By his own experience he must be prepared to exercise a fatherly care over all who needed his help.

Da Moses slog ægypteren ihjel, begik han den samme fejl, som hans fædre så ofte havde gjort sig skyldige i, nemlig at tage den gerning, Gud havde lovet at gøre, i sine egne hænder. Det var ikke Guds vilje at befri sit folk ved krig, som Moses havde tænkt sig, men ved sin mægtige kraft, så at æren blev tilskrevet ham alene. Men selv denne overilede handling brugte Gud til at fuldbyrde sin hensigt. Moses var ikke rede til sin store gerning. Han måtte først lære den samme lektie i tro, som Abraham og Jakob: ikke at stole på menneskelig styrke og visdom, men på Guds magt med hensyn til løfternes opfyldelse. Der var også andre ting, Moses skulle lære i bjergenes ensomhed. I modgangens og selvfornægtelsens skole skulle han lære at være tålmodig og styre sine lidenskaber. Inden han kunne blive en klog leder, måtte han lære at adlyde. Hans eget hjerte måtte være i harmoni med Gud, før han kunne lære Israel Guds vilje at kende. Ad erfaringens vej måtte han forberedes til at vise faderlig omsorg for alle, der trængte til hans hjælp.