Look First, Strike Later

"When Moses was grown," the Bible tells us (Exodus II:11), he witnessed an Egyptian beating a Hebrew, and took action. But at what age is one "grown?" The Prince of Egypt presents this scene when Moses appears to be in his late teens or early twenties [0:08; eight minutes into the film], and this reflects Midrash Rabbah (Exodus 127) which tells us that Moses was, in fact, 20. (Evidently, not that all rabbis were in agreement, for that same reference adds, "some say 40"!)

Now the action that Moses took seems, at first reading, to be nothing more or less than premeditated murder, for the Bible says that "he looked this way and that and, seeing no man about, struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand." (Exodus) The words "looked this way and that" and "seeing no man about..." seem to be apt witnesses for the prosecution. But The Prince of Egypt shows something quite different: Moses looks to see if anyone else is around who will stop the taskmaster. When that does not happen, Moses orders him to stop, but to no avail. After that, the scene escalates to a physical confrontation which results in the taskmaster's death [0:30; thirty minutes into the film].

Rabbi Judah, as quoted in Midrash Rabbah, tells us that Moses saw there was no other man who would be "zealous for God" and take action. And, therefore, Moses took action. Thus, as the commentary in the Soncino edition states, "he acted on the Rabbinic advice: 'Where there is no man, be thou the man.'"