One of the great hymns of the church says: God moves in a mysterious way Hugs and kisses and then she turned away and went home. His sister stationed herself at a distance to find out what would happen to him. Faith and trust in God knows that God often works behind the scenes of our lives. At just this moment, Miriam steps forward and approaches the daughter and volunteers her service to find a Hebrew woman to nurse the child, and whom did she bring back? However, when Amram married his aunt, this was before the Torah had been goven on Mount Sinai, soits laws didn't apply yet. Exodus 1:14 concludes by saying, All their service, wherein they made them serve, was with rigour. But even this severe treatment did not serve to decrease the number of the Children of Israel, and so in desperation, the Egyptian king decreed that every male child born to the Hebrews should be cast into the river. Thats a significant fact. One wonders why Pharaohs daughter wanted to bathe herself in the dirty waters of the Nile River. Her appearance is short and we are not told much about her, but one trait stands out: trust in God. Clearly Jochebed and Amram married before the prohibition was given, but it is a bit of a shocker that for all those Israelites who knew the law looking back on it with hindsight. Born shortly after the decree to throw Hebrew newborn boys in the Nile, Moses escaped death through adoption by pharaoh's daughter. Then verse 18 shows that Kohath's sons were Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel. The woman became pregnant and gave birth to a son. The life of Jochebed is an amazing demonstration of the walk by faith. In the Rabbinic retelling, when Amram returned his wife, Jochebed was a hundred and thirty years of age, but signs of youth appeared on her: her body became smoother, her wrinkles were straightened out, and her former beauty was restored. They may have desired a happy marriage, a successful career, developing their talent, or some other worthwhile goal, yet circumstances prevented it. From that marriage, Moses was born. The life of Jochebed as a woman of influence teaches us that there are times in our lives when we have done all we can do, weve said all we can say, there is no more and we have to . Jochebed, more commonly referred to as the mom of Moses, is an important biblical character when studying mothers in the Bible. Exodus 2:2b She hid him for 3 months. How will you be encouraged by Jochebed to boldly face your fears today? (NIV). (NET), Exodus 6:20 Amram married his fathers sister Jochebed, and she bore him Aaron and Moses. According to one midrashic view, Shiphrah and Puah were mother and daughter Jochebed and Miriam, while another states that they were daughter-in-law and mother-in-lawJochebed and Elisheba daughter of Amminadab. The next day the Egyptian women would say that I nursed the one who speaks with the Shekhinah [the Divine Presence] (Ex. [29] The significance of this comparison is understood to spring from the affinity of Arabic folklore for Hebrew traditions.[29]. Jochebed and her husband served God and all though we know not a lot about them, their son Moses saved the Israelis from the Egyptians. The Nile was home to alligators, snakes and all other manner of dangerous animals. In fact, the goodness and mercy of God were so great that the mother was even paid for nursing her own son! Lit. The midrash apparently understands builds her house in a broad sense, because Jochebeds wisdom in the raising of her own children led to the building and firm establishment of the entire people of Israel. As Moses grew up Jochebed educated Moses in the religion and history of Israel, ensuring that Moses did not lose his Hebrew identity. ), and which, consequently, knew not the God of Joseph. Just so, when we get beyond our depths, and when we get in deep water, we cry out to God for help. When the child was born, the baby was a boy, and we learn in Exodus 2:10 that he was later named Moses.. (Her name is first mentioned in Exodus 6:20.) This couple had great faith. Amram and Jochebed had no fear of the kings decree. In the midrashic exegesis, the Egyptians counted the months of her pregnancy only from her return to Amram; they did not know that she was already in the third month (see above), and so Moses could be hidden in his parents home until he had had time to grow and develop. There arc three arks mentioned in Scripture. First of all, God began to move upon the heart of the pagan daughter of a pagan king, so that at the exact time the baby Moses lay by the rivers edge, Pharaohs daughter came to this very place to take a swim. God, who is the great Architect of our destinies, allows nothing to come into our lives except that which is for our ultimate good and blessing (Romans 8:28). she took pity on the baby. Probably about 3 years. Marriages with aunts and nieces have been common in many countries, and are not forbidden by any natural instinct. I wonder. And when she could no longer hide him, she made a little basket, sealed it with pitch, and put the child in the basket, and laid it among the reeds by the rivers brink (Exodus 2:3). Here there would be less danger from crocodiles than if she just put him down on the beach. Another midrash has Jochebed building a little canopy for Moses inside the ark, for she said to herself: Perhaps I will not see him under his wedding canopy (BT Sotah 12ab). Jochebed did not say, Im going to throw the child into the river; if hes Gods man, God will somehow save him. That is not faith; that is fanaticism. According to another interpretation, Jochebed named her son "Tov" or "Tobiah," which was what his parents called him until Pharaoh's daughter renamed him "Moses" (BT Sotah 12a). Some of you have lost children to divorce, some have run-away, and some have even died. She appears briefly in The Prince of Egypt under the name 'Yocheved', voiced by (and resembling) Israeli vocalist Ofra Haza. By faith, Jochebed and her husband Amram hid their son Moses even against the king of Egypt's edict that all Hebrew boys should be put to death at birth. Cain the first human murderer recorded in the Bible, Jephthah the Gileadite the tenth Judge of Israel, Samuel 15th Judge of Israel and also a Prophet, Background Information: For Hebrews Chapter 11. His possessions were all gone; his body was racked with pain; his wife added to the pain of his soul by urging him to curse God and cry out for death. The parents of Moses knew that the Children of Israel could never perish, for that would be denying the very promise that God had given to their father Abraham (Genesis 12:3). In 2014 film Exodus: Gods and Kings, she was portrayed by British Actress Anna Savva. That same day God swore that the Ark and the Torah would be entrusted to the arms of his descendants (the Kohathites are the only ones who bore the Ark during the journeying in the wilderness, as is attested in Num. We are thinking of faith in this lesson, not as saving faith, but as sustaining faith. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. Lesson two study group Questions (Click Here). The new Pharaoh reduced the Hebrews to slavery, he robbed them of their liberties, and he put them to work in the brick yards under cruel taskmasters. [17][18] Biblical scholars have instead simply proposed that the discrepancy in the enumeration of Leah's children is due to the list not originally having included Dinah, who was added by a later editor to introduce consistency with the story of the Rape of Dinah. D. J. Wiseman (Downers Grove, Illinois: Intervarsity Press, 1973) 57. = Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. I have called Thee Abba Father; Rabbah 7:3; Ex. All Israel saw this, and they, too, remarried their wives (Mekhilta de-Rabbi Simeon bar Yohai [ed. If you want to read the first two Bible studies check out: Zarephath Widow Bible Study - A lesson in courage and surrender. After all she did have a husband and two other children to consider and take care of. The basket fell in the hands of the Pharaoh's daughter who was bathing in the river. But Exodus 2:5 says that the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe in the river, while her attendants walked beside the river. Although the Torah asserts that Jacobs household who came to Egypt numbered seventy souls, the Rabbis noted that only sixty-nine individuals are listed in Gen. 46. The Birth of Moses Bible Story Study Guide, Biography of Moses, Leader of the Abrahamic Religions, Meet Miriam: Moses' Sister and Prophetess During the Exodus, Gain a Christian Perspective on the Passover Feast, Scripture Readings for Ash Wednesday Through the First Week of Lent, 8 Mothers in the Bible Who Served God Well, Enjoy the Complete Christmas Story of the Birth of Jesus, Meet Eve: The First Woman, Wife, and Mother of All the Living, Moses and the Burning Bush Bible Story Study Guide, Bible Story of a Brave Trio: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, Parting the Red Sea Bible Story Study Guide, M.A., English Composition, Illinois State University, B.S., English Literature, Illinois State University. Why to Trust? Can you fill in the blank _____ Lord I hear You saying Let it go and trust Me with it, Women of Influence, women who are affecting their world, their family, their workplace, their friends for good for God have open hands. This exegesis teaches of Jochebeds longevity, and that she was still alive when Moses died. He had a string tied to the boat and was holding the string in his handbut the string slipped from his fingers, and a breeze carried the boat beyond his reach. 6:20: Amram took to wife his fathers sister Jochebed. Amram was the son of Kohath and the grandson of Levi, while Jochebed was the daughter of Levi, and therefore his aunt. Job had some low points in his experience, but repeatedly he expressed his confidence in Gods faithfulness. Exodus 6: 20 - "Amram married his father's sister Jochebed, and she gave birth to his sons Aaron and Moses. She was the only surviving child of Thutmose I . [23] According to biblical scholars, the Torah's genealogy for Levi's descendants, is actually an aetiological myth reflecting the fact that there were four different groups among the Levites the Gershonites, Kohathites, Merarites, and Aaronids;[24] Aaron the eponymous ancestor of the Aaronids couldn't be portrayed as a brother to Gershon, Kohath, and Merari, as the narrative about the birth of Moses (brother of Aaron), which textual scholars attribute to the earlier Elohist source, mentions only that both his parents were Levites (without identifying their names). 2:3), lining the inside with bitumen, and coating it on the outside with pitch, so that Moses would not smell the bad odor given off by the latter. F. Hebrew 11:23 By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child; and they were not afraid of the king's commandment. She put the child in it and set it among the reeds along the edge of the Nile. Beginning at verse 4 in Exodus 2, we see how God, in response to the faith of this mother who dared to trust in His Wordsets in motion a whole chain of wonderful events to accomplish His purposes and to honor her faith. We will notice several aspects of Jochebeds faith-walk. For some, poverty comes, friends disappoint, children bring heartaches, and feelings of inferiority torment. Her appearance is short and we are not told much about her, but one trait stands out: trust in God. He lived 137 years. He went from her arms to the arms of Pharaohs daughter. Again, the second time, was this time even harder for her? She had to walk away. When Jacob went to stay with his uncle Laban, he met one of his daughters, Rachel, and loved her. So we know some of the Jews had compromised. Can you imagine trying to hide a newborn baby? Happy Womens History Month! The latest date that Jochebed could have been born was 2385 AM (1620 BC), the year her father died. Answering:, "Jochebed couldn't have gone to the Holy land because God killed off the entire generation that left Egypt except for Caleb and Joshua as punishment. Where it didnt matter which decision you made, they all seemed risky? Can you imagine what it would be like to give away your 3-month-old baby, not knowing what would happen to him? It is interesting to consider that, in Leviticus 18:12, such marriages were forbidden, but this was before that injunction. The only woman who judges, Deborah "used to sit under the palm treeand the sons of Israel came up to her . When she no longer could keep him, she gave him away to save his life. Whats the Definition of faith? [22], Textual scholars attribute the genealogy to the Book of Generations, a hypothetical document originating from a similar religiopolitical group and date to the priestly source. Last edited on 22 February 2023, at 02:24, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jochebed&oldid=1140850169, This page was last edited on 22 February 2023, at 02:24.