Last week, we looked at the lives of Shiphrah & Puah, two Hebrew midwives, who saved many Israelites by disobeying the King of Egypt’s command to kill any baby boys born to Hebrew women. After that Pharaoh issued this order to all of his people:
“Throw every newborn Hebrew boy into the Nile River. But you may let the girls live.” Exodus 1:22 (NLT)
This brings us to the introduction of Jochebed, the mother of Moses, and Miriam, Moses’s older sister, in Exodus 2:1-10:
“About this time, a man and woman from the tribe of Levi got married. 2 The woman became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She saw that he was a special baby and kept him hidden for three months. 3 But when she could no longer hide him, she got a basket made of papyrus reeds and waterproofed it with tar and pitch. She put the baby in the basket and laid it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile River. 4 The baby’s sister then stood at a distance, watching to see what would happen to him.
5 Soon Pharaoh’s daughter came down to bathe in the river, and her attendants walked along the riverbank. When the princess saw the basket among the reeds, she sent her maid to get it for her. 6 When the princess opened it, she saw the baby. The little boy was crying, and she felt sorry for him. “This must be one of the Hebrew children,” she said.
7 Then the baby’s sister approached the princess. “Should I go and find one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?” she asked.
8 “Yes, do!” the princess replied. So the girl went and called the baby’s mother.
9 “Take this baby and nurse him for me,” the princess told the baby’s mother. “I will pay you for your help.” So the woman took her baby home and nursed him.
10 Later, when the boy was older, his mother brought him back to Pharaoh’s daughter, who adopted him as her own son. The princess named him Moses, for she explained, “I lifted him out of the water.”
Most of us know this scripture since Moses is such an important man in the Old Testament. Moses led the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, he wrote the first five books of the Old Testament, he had direct communication with God, gave the people the 10 Commandments, and more. But the life of Moses would not have existed without the faith and courage of his mother and his older sister.
I can’t begin to imagine what Jochebed must have felt when she gave birth to Moses. She must have been engulfed with fear as she cradled her baby boy, knowing that he already had a death sentence. With the help of her daughter Miriam, she managed to hide him for 3 months from the prying eyes of the Egyptians. I’m sure she was overwhelmed with worry during that time, knowing every little noise or every cry from him could attract the unwanted attention of the slave drivers and consequently result in the death of her baby.
Jochebed protected her son for as long as she could, but when it was no longer possible she turned to her faith and put her baby boy in God’s hands. She was very clever in her actions, putting him safely in a basket on the river bank, where she knew he would be found. Then she had her daughter keep watch and quickly approach Pharaoh’s daughter, who found him, and offered her mother’s services to nurse the baby.
Jochebed put her beloved child in the same river where other baby boys were being drowned, and surrendered him to God’s will. Her strength and faith is inspiring. A mother’s natural instinct is to hold her child close and do everything she can to protect him, but Jochebed knew the best way to keep him safe was to give him up to God. I think about the tears that must have been streaming down her face as she placed him in the basket, and the fear that must have gripped her heart as she walked away. What courage she had.
Then there is Miriam, the protective older sister. She kept a watchful eye on her baby brother as she hid nearby. And when Pharaoh’s daughter found him and took pity on him, Miriam bravely came forward and offered to find a Hebrew woman to nurse him, which of course was her mother. As a result, Moses was able to be with his family until he was older.
We don’t know much more about Jochebed, but the Bible tells us that Miriam was with her brother as he led the Israelites out of Egypt. She is also the first female prophet mentioned in the Bible, just after the parting of the Red Sea in Exodus 15:20-21:
“20 Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine and led all the women as they played their tambourines and danced. 21 And Miriam sang this song:
“Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously; he has hurled both horse and rider
into the sea.” (NLT)
Both of these women showed incredible faith and courage, first protecting Moses as a baby, and then putting him in God’s hands, leading to the fulfilment of God’s purpose for his life.
Our song for today is Stand in Faith by Danny Gokey