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The Women who Protected Moses

Moses was one of Israel’s greatest and most revered leaders.  However, he would have perished on several occasions if it were not for the courage, wisdom and enterprise of certain women.  Here is a brief look at these brave, Bible women who God used to achieve his purposes.

Shiphrah and Puah – Exodus 1:15-21

The Hebrew midwives, Shiphrah and Puah, courageously defied the authority of Pharaoh, and disobeyed his wicked edict to kill the newborn Hebrew boys.  The Bible says that they feared God more than they feared Pharaoh.  By disobeying Pharaoh, these midwives protected and saved the life of Moses and other baby boys.  God blessed Shiphrah and Puah because of their righteous actions – actions which were motivated by their reverence for God.

Jochabed – Exodus 2:1-3

Moses’ mother, Jochabed,[1] discerned that there was something special about her infant son, and she protected and hid him from the Egyptian authorities for three months.  When she could no longer hide him at home, Jochabed made a waterproof basket and placed her baby in it.  She placed the basket in the Nile among the reeds, and entrusted her son into God’s care.  Jochabed was fearless in her efforts to keep her baby boy safe (Hebrews 11:23).

Pharoah’s Daughter – Exodus 2:5-10

Pharaoh’s daughter found the baby Moses in the Nile and felt sorry for him.  Even though she realised that he was a Hebrew, she rescued him and later adopted him.  We can assume that Pharaoh’s daughter may have encountered considerable difficulties in persuading other members of the Egyptian royal family to accept the Hebrew child as her adopted son.  She was successful, however, and so  Moses was raised in the Egyptian royal palace and received an excellent education as a student prince.  His palace education, training and experience would be very useful when Moses had the difficult task of leading the Israelites (Acts 7:21-22).

Miriam – Exodus 1:4-8

Moses’ older sister, Miriam,[2] had been standing on the banks of the Nile, watching over her baby brother in the basket.  When she saw that he was being rescued, young Miriam bravely approached Pharaoh’s daughter, and persuaded her to have the baby nursed by his own mother, Jochabed.  This arrangement meant that the baby Moses received optimal love and care for a few years within his own family, before being surrendered to Pharoah’s daughter  when he was a young boy.  Later, Miriam would become a prophetess and be recognised as a leader alongside her brothers Moses and Aaron (Micah 6:4).

Zipporah – Exodus 4:24-26

In this mystifying passage of Scripture, we read that God was about to kill Moses. Moses’ wife, Zipporah, astutely recognised the cause of God’s wrath.  Zipporah took the initiative and appeased God’s anger, even though she found it all very distasteful.  Zipporah, like the others mentioned above, protected Moses; and even saved him from death.

Brave Bible Women

The Bible has many of examples of women who were willing to risk their lives to help others.  Brave Bible women include: Jael (Judges 4:21; 5:24-27); the woman who killed Abimelech (Judges 9:53); Rahab (Joshua 2:1-6); Abigail (1 Samuel ch 25)[3]; the servant girl who was given a dangerous task (2 Samuel 17:17-18); the woman of Bashurin (2 Samuel 17:19-20); Esther (Esther 4:11, 16); and Priscilla, who risked her life for Paul’s sake, as did her husband Aquila (Romans 16:3-4).[4]

The Hebrew word for “helper” (ezer) – used in Genesis 2 to describe the first woman – can actually mean “rescuer”.[5]  (More on the meaning of ezer can be found in my article, A Suitable Helper.)

Christian Women Today

Christians who narrowly define femininity, and rigidly prescribe certain attributes and roles for women,[6] are doing women – and the church – a great disservice.  Men and women are different, and, generally speaking, they have different strengths and abilities; however we need to look beyond gender, and discern the spiritual gifts, abilites and calling of the individual person.  We need to be cautious that we do not underestimate the abilities, or curtail the activities, of the brave and courageous women that God wishes to use today.

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Endnotes

[1] Moses’ mother Jochabed is named in Exodus 6:20 and Numbers 26:59.

[2] While Miriam may have been too young to be called a “woman” at the time Moses was a baby, I have included her because she still played a valuable role in ensuring the well-being of her younger brother.

[3] It would have been no mean feat to confront David, and four hundred of his men, who had been insulted and were intent on revenge with their swords at the ready.  Yet Abigail approached David and she humbly and graciously offered him a “peace offering”.  Her quick actions saved her household from disaster and she kept David and his men from unecessary bloodshed.  See 1 Samuel chapter 25.

[4] Other Bible women also showed commendable initiative, shrewdness and courage; women such as: Tamar (Genesis 38, esp v26), Naaman’s wife’s servant (2 Kings 5:3); Ruth (Ruth, esp 1:15-18; 2:2); The Wise Woman of Abel Beth Maacah (2 Samuel 20:15-22), etc.  The “virtuous” or “noble” woman in Proverbs 31:10, could be accurately called the “courageous” (Greek: andreia) woman.

[5] The Hebrew word ezer is a combination of two roots: `-z-r, meaning “to rescue, to save,” and g-z-r, meaning “to be strong.”  R. David Freedman, “Woman, a Power Equal to a Man”, in Biblical Archaeology Review 9, 1983, pp56-58.  Quoted in Hard Sayings of the Bible by Walter Kaiser, et al.  Downer’s Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1996, p93.  I recommend reading the relevant passage here.  (The link to my article A Suitable Helper is below.)

[6] Complementarians are Christians who have very narrow ideas about the roles of women.  Complementarians believe that it is the man’s role to protect women, and not vice versa.  Yet there are very few Biblical examples of men protecting women.  One clear Bible account of a man rescuing and protecting women also involves Moses.  In Exodus 2:16-19 Moses rescued and helped shepherdesses that were being harassed.  One of these shepherdesses was his future wife, Zipporah.

© 29th of August, 2010; Margaret Mowczko

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Related articles

Bible Women with Spiritual Authority
A Suitable Helper
Protecting the Weaker Sex
Masculine and Feminine Leadership
Leading Together in the Home
Old Testament Priests and New Testament Ministers
The Complementarian Concept of “The Created Order”
Paul’s (gender-inclusive) Qualifications for Church leaders

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Tags: Bible women, Biblical equality, brave Bible women, Complementarians, Courageous women, ezer, gender roles, Jochabed, Miriam, Moses, Shiphrah and Puah, women in ministry debate

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 24th, 2011 at 3:45 pm and is filed under Equality and Gender Issues, Equality in Marriage, Equality in Ministry. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.