The kings of the land (pharaohs) are blessed at first by the Hebrews. We found out in the later part of Genesis that the Egyptians would not associate with shepherds. They saw this as a lesser job, and were likely happy that someone wanted to do it for them. However, as the "non-native" Hebrews (which is derived from the word "across" or "over" for over the river or sea) grow and become more powerful, they are dealt with in a very harsh way. They are eventually enslaved and then the pharaoh desires to destroy the men by killing little boys. The midwives do not obey and the people continue to grow.
One mother, from the tribe of Levi (which will become the tribe of priests) decides to hide her child from the evil Egyptians and when he is three months old she puts him by the rushes on the Nile. The pharoah's daughter finds him and likely at risk of punishment decides to keep him. His mother nurses him in the palace and there is no indication here that Moses does not know where he is from or what people to call his own. This is proved by his defense of another Hebrew when he was out checking on everyone. When he murders a man and is found out, he flees to the land of Midian (Saudi Arabia) to avoid judgment. Here he meets some women and saves them in a battle (showing his military strength) with other shepherds. He then marries one of the women (Zipporah) and becomes the son-in-law of Jethro.
It is after 40 years in the desert that the burning bush happens. I find it interesting that Moses claims not to be the man for the job. He knows intimate details of Egypt and how to speak their language – he was made for this – he was saved by God for this. Now it is his time to shine. In the midst of this, God tells Moses that God has a plan to make the Israelites get freedom and become wealthy by the Egyptians. That is awesome!
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