Exodus 2:20 records Reuel, the priest of Midian, asking his daughters where the stranger is and telling them to bring him back to share a meal. The verse shows a father who notices a guest has been left outside and wants him brought in to eat. It is a small domestic moment, but it sets up the relationship between Moses and the family that will shape his years in the wilderness.
He said to his daughters, “Where is he? Why is it that you have left the man? Call him, that he may eat bread.”
Exodus 2:20 (WEB)
What Exodus 2:20 Means
Reuel’s first words, “Where is he?”, show that he has not seen the man who rescued his daughters. He is not asking for a report on Moses but expressing surprise that someone who acted so kindly was not brought home. His second question, “Why is it that you have left the man?”, carries a gentle rebuke. In that culture a guest was owed hospitality, and leaving him by the well looked like a failure of courtesy.
The final phrase, “that he may eat bread,” is the heart of the verse. Reuel’s concern is practical and warm: a man who has worked hard in the heat should be fed and cared for. The verse does not promise anything about the future or describe God’s plan directly. It simply shows an ordinary act of welcome, which is the way the Lord often works through the people around us.
The Context of Exodus 2:20
Exodus was traditionally attributed to Moses, and the book tells the story of Israel’s escape from Egypt and the covenant at Sinai. Its first audience was the Israelite community that had lived through slavery and was being shaped into a people with a law and a God who keeps promises. Chapter 2 begins Moses’ story before he returns to Egypt, so the reader is watching a man who has fled, been hidden, and is learning to live outside the palace.
Verses 17 to 19 describe Moses defending Reuel’s daughters from shepherds and then watering their flock, which is why the girls can say an Egyptian helped them. Verse 21 follows immediately with Moses agreeing to stay and Reuel giving him Zipporah, and verses 22 and 23 tell of his son and of the Israelites crying out under bondage to God. Read in that setting, verse 20 is the hinge where a stranger becomes a family member, and the story starts to move toward God hearing the cries of his people.
Key Phrases in Exodus 2:20
Leviticus 19:34
The stranger who lives as a foreigner with you shall be to you as the native-born among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you lived as foreigners in the land of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.
(WEB)
This verse instructs Israel to love the foreigner living among them as themselves, and it grounds that command in their own memory of being strangers in Egypt. It explains the deeper reason Reuel’s hospitality matters.
Hebrews 13:2
Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for in doing so, some have entertained angels without knowing it.
(WEB)
This New Testament passage encourages believers to show hospitality to strangers, noting that some have welcomed angels without knowing it. It carries Reuel’s kind question into the life of the early church and beyond.
A Short Prayer From Exodus 2:20
Lord, you see the people who work hard and then stand alone at the edge of things. Open my eyes to notice them, and give me the courage to ask where they are and bring them in. Teach me to welcome strangers the way Reuel welcomed Moses, with simple, honest kindness. Let my table, my time and my words be places where others find rest and belonging. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
