TESTIMONY OF MOSES.
The World:—Your name is Moses?
Moses:—It is.
The World:—Where were you born?
Moses:—I was born in Egypt, of Hebrew parents.
The World:—It is true that at the time of your birth Pharaoh made a decree that all the male children of the Hebrews were to be thrown into the river Nile?
Moses:—It is.
The World:—How did you escape the fate of the others?
Moses:—My mother made a little ark of bulrushes, daubed it with slime and pitch, and placing me in it she took it down and left it on the flags by the river's brink. In a short time Pharaoh's daughter came down to the river. Seeing the ark, she requested her maid to fetch it. On removing the cover, she beheld me in tears. Her heart was touched, and she decided to keep me as her own child. My sister Miriam, who was in hiding near by, came forward and proffered to get a nurse for the baby. The king's daughter gave her permission to do so, so she went and brought my mother. When my mother arrived, Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Take this child away and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages." (Exodus 2: 9.) So my mother had the pleasure of raising her own child, and was well paid for doing so. When I was grown I was taken to the court of Pharaoh, and adopted by his daughter. I was treated as though I were her own son and was taught in all the learning of the Egyptians.
The World:—You did not take very well to Egyptian court life?
Moses:—I did not; I would much rather have been with my own people. I finally ran away from Pharaoh and went to Midian, where I fell in love with and married Zipporah, a daughter of Jethro, a priest of Midian. (Exodus 2: 21.)
The World:—What occupation did you follow?
Moses:—I was a sheep-herder; I tended the flocks of my father-in-law.
The World:—We have been told that on one occasion while you were herding the sheep you had a heavenly manifestation; is the report true?
Moses:—It is. While I was tending the sheep one day I beheld a burning bush. I went over to see the strange sight, and as I approached the bush God called unto me out of the midst of the bush and said, "Moses, Moses." And I said, "Here am I." And He said, "Draw not nigh hither; put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." (Exodus 3: 4-6.) On hearing that, I hid my face; for I was afraid to look upon God. Then the Lord said unto me, "I have surely seen the afflictions of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows. * * * Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, and say unto them, The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, appeared unto me, saying, I have surely visited you, and seen that which is done to you in Egypt and I have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt. * * * unto a land flowing with milk and honey." (Exodus 3.)
The World:—Did you do as the Lord commanded you?
Moses:—I did, and the Lord, in His infinite mercy, and by many signs and wonders, brought the children of Israel up out of Egypt into their own land.
The World:—Have you ever seen God?
Moses:—I have. On one occasion I talked with Him face to face. I was in the tabernacle at the time. A cloudy pillar descended and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the Lord talked with me. And all the people saw the cloudy pillar stand at the tabernacle door: and all the people rose up and worshiped, every man in his tent door. And the Lord spake unto me face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. (Exodus 33: 9-12.) Later He hid me in the cleft of a rock, and as He passed by, in His glory, I beheld His back parts. (Exodus 33: 22-23.)
The World:—Did any of your associates ever see God?
Moses:—Yes, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu and seventy of the elders of Israel and myself saw Him on one occasion. (Exodus 24: 9, 10.)
The World:—Is it true that you spent forty days and forty nights with the Lord on Mount Sinai?
Moses:—It is. It was on that occasion that He gave me two tables of stone on which He had written with His own finger the ten commandments for the children of Israel.
The World:—Moses, we recognize you as one who is fully competent to speak on this important matter. You have seen the Lord a number of times; you have talked with Him face to face; you have been with Him for forty days and forty nights at one time; now, we would like you to describe to us, just as plainly as you can, the true and the living God.
Moses:—I tell you in plainness and in all truth, that God is just like a perfect man. If you could see God today you would see Him just as Abraham saw Him, just as I saw Him, in the form of man, for man was made in the image of God. (Genesis 1: 27.)
The World:—Thank you; that is all.
Latter-day Saints (to the World):—Surely the testimony of these two witnesses ought to be enough to convince you that the God whom we worship—a God with body, parts and passions—is, indeed, the true God, the God of the Bible. But these are not all our witnesses. We have others, whose testimony we desire you to hear.
The World:—Let them come forward.
Latter-day Saints:—Thomas, the World desires to hear your testimony.