Jacob, his sons, and their families had gone into Egypt to live because there was a severe famine in their land, and they were able to find food in Egypt. What some call fate or luck or it just happened is really Gods providential care. About 1486, the reigning Pharaoh tried to kill Moses when he sought identity with his people Israel, but Moses escaped to Midian. The child, found by the pharaoh's daughter while bathing, was reared in the Egyptian court. In 2433 AM, Jochebed gave birth to . The name of Amram's wife was Jochebed, the daughter of Levi, who was born to Levi in Egypt; and to Amram she bore Aaron and Moses, and their sister Miriam. Jochebed was a daughter of Levi ( Exodus 2:1 ), and the mother of Aaron, Moses, and Miriam ( Exodus 6:20; Numbers 26:59 ). I imagine he learned about the Patriarchs: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, and the Great Covenantal promises made to the Hebrews. Then verse 18 shows that Kohath's sons were Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel. When trials come our way we must learn to be patient and trust and wait. Amram and Jochebed had no fear of the kings decree. The basket fell in the hands of the Pharaoh's daughter who was bathing in the river. By merit of her good deeds, she gave birth to the three leaders of the Exodus generation: Moses, Aaron, and Miriam. In Ex., ii, 10, a derivation from the Hebrew Mashah (to draw) is implied. Not only was Moses spared, but his older sister (later identified as Miriam in Exodus 15:20), who was standing somewhere within sight, offered the Egyptian princess her services. Since Jochebed was the daughter of Levi, and Moses was her son (as shown above), then to complete the 430 years, Jochebed had to be 48 years or older when she gave birth to Moses. Faith and trust in God knows that God often works behind the scenes of our lives. Numbers 26:58-59 These are the families of the Levitesand Kohath begot Amram. 4 Dr. Thomas Constable, Constables Notes, Lumina, www.bible.org. So Jochebed got her own child back, at least for a while. Jochebed placed Moses in a basket and released him in the flow of River Nile. We know from history that all the kings in Pharaohs day had bath houses, such as even the wealthiest do not possess in our day. Jochebed lived in a critical time. Whats the Definition of faith? https://www.learnreligions.com/jochebed-mother-of-moses-701165 (accessed March 2, 2023). We indeed must marvel at Jobs faith. 2:2) how good [tov] he was. The Rabbis ask what Jochebed saw that was special in her son, on account of which she sought to save him from Pharaohs death decree. Yocheved is the major character birth mother of Moses, Miriam, & Aaron in The Prince of Egypt. Our background is not our destiny And the princess told the little slave girl to go and get a nurse of the Hebrew womenand when she came back with their own mother, Pharaohs daughter said to her, Take this child away and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages. First, some background. [29] The significance of this comparison is understood to spring from the affinity of Arabic folklore for Hebrew traditions.[29]. Come, disaster, scorn, and pain. Amram Remarries Jochebed His Name Bringing Heaven Down to Earth Sinless Amram Marries Jochebed Amram married his aunt Jochebed in Egypt. Features thousands of biographic and thematic essays on Jewish women around the world. Waiting for Breakthrough - Elizabeth's story. According to tradition, Moses' parents, Amram and Jochebed (whose other children were Aaron and Miriam), hid him for three months and then set him afloat on the Nile in a reed basket daubed with pitch. 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). 6:20). Answer (1 of 15): Yes, it was forbidden in Lev. Conservative scholars date the "Exodus," a landmark in Israel's history, at 1446 B.C. She also gave birth to Aaron, a high priest of Israel. 2:1), and thus was Amram's paternal aunt (Ex. Another proof that "bare" in Numbers 26:59 cannot indicate an immediate father-son or father-daughter relationship is found by considering that this verse states Jochebed was a daughter of Levi. "Jochebed: Mother of Moses." 2:2). She therefore was called daughter [bat, which also means young girl] of Levi, because she was once again as a young girl (BT Bava Batra 120a). The Rabbis resolve this abbreviated chronology by stating that Jochebed and Amram divorced, and Ex. Jochebed, his biological mother, loved her son and kept him as long as she could after he was born. Jochebed was given the name Shiphrah because she would cleanse (meshaperet) the newborn, by washing it and cleaning it after birth; another etymological explanation is that, by merit of her deeds, the Israelites were fruitful [she-paru] and multiplied in her time (Sifrei on Numbers, para. The Scripture says, And, behold, the babe wept (Exodus 2:6). He ordered all male Hebrew babies to be killed. Jochebed which in Hebrew means: Jehovah is glory both she and her husband were from the tribe of Levi the priestly tribe. [15], Some rabbinic literature attempts to resolve the textual discrepancy in which the Torah lists 34 children of Leah born in Mesopotamia, stating that two were dead, and then immediately states that there were 33 in total,[16] by arguing that the figure referred only to the surviving children, and that Jochebed was the 33rd;[17][18] however, since the Book of Numbers describes Jochebed's birth as occurring in Egypt,[1] this necessitated the further rabbinic argument that Jochebed was born exactly on the border of Egypt, in the gateway of the city. Subscribe our channel: http://bit.ly/1MeurZHBeginners Bible - Encounter a time in ancient Egypt when Baby Moses was plucked from the reeds of the Nile River . Jochebed succeeded in concealing Moses for three months (Ex. He does them in a big way if we dare to trust Him. There are several data points we have to nail down in order to properly defend the Bible 's assertion that 600,000 men left Egypt with Moses in the Exodus. She hid Moses for a period of time, but as the childs lungs developed it became impossible to hide him. 2 R. Alan Cole, Exodus, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries, ed. The narrative of her pregnancy with Moses is amusingly incorporated in an exegesis relating to the time of the Rabbis. She caulked it with bitumen and pitch (Ex. Rabbah 1:25). In addition to her given name, the Torah she-bi-khetav: Lit. The only woman who judges, Deborah "used to sit under the palm treeand the sons of Israel came up to her . This is a huge part of the story Jewish Study Bible, The verb could be given a more colloquial translation such as she felt sorry for him. But the verb is stronger than that; it means to have compassion, to pity, to spare. What she felt for the baby was strong enough to prompt her to spare the child from the fate decreed for Hebrew boys. 18:1214 (BT Sanhedrin 58b). Lesson two Handout (Click Here). We often think of this passage as the story of Moses, but it might be more appropriate to call it the story of Jochebeda woman who is relatively unknown to many Christians. And when the little crib was brought to Pharaohs daughter, she saw that it was a little Hebrew baby. That Jochebed could still be bearing children at the age of forty-eight might seem unlikely by modern standards. When he saw that Pharaoh had decreed that all the boys be cast into the Nile, he proclaimed: Are we laboring in vain? (we give birth to sons who will eventually be killed), and so he divorced his wife. Exodus 6: 20 But in the midst of this trial, she had confidence and hope. Also not to the tribe of Levi. Years passed. Exodus 6:20 And Amram took his aunt Jochebed to him for a wife. Jochebed: Mother of Moses. I wonder. To protect Moses from Pharaohs command that every male Hebrew child be killed, she placed him in an ark of bulrushes on the river. She named him Moses, saying, Because I drew him from the water.. This portrayal emphasizes the painstaking attention that Jochebed paid to every detail in the ark. The latter had spoken impudently to Pharaoh, who sought to kill her in his anger. The Torah relates that the midwives did not fulfill Pharaohs command because they feared God, who rewarded them for their actions: He established households [battim] for them (Ex. The Apocrypha calls her Tharmuth, other names suggested are Merris, or Bityah, perhaps even the well-known Hatshepsut( HAT shep shoot). In the Old Testament this is the name of the mother of Miriam, Aaron and Moses. Exodus 6: 20 - "Amram married his father's sister Jochebed, and she gave birth to his sons Aaron and Moses. Life comes with the pain of losses, of giving up and letting go and we are rarely ready to let go. The ruler had thought sparing women was safe, but the midwives, the Hebrew mother, the daughter of Pharaoh, and Miriam, all work together to spare one child5. The Rabbis identify Jochebed with Shiphrah, one of the two Hebrew midwives (Shiphrah and Puah) who delivered the children of the Israelites during the Egyptian servitude. Pharaohs daughter, although a heathen princess, had a womans (a mothers) instinct, and one thing that touches a womans heart is a crying baby. How do we know? We must put on the shield of faith and believe that God is sending the trials to prepare us for even greater blessings. Exodus 2:1-2 A man from the household of Levi married a woman who was a descendant of Levi. Who was the mother of kohath? No details are given concerning her life. Happy Womens History Month! Have you ever had to give up and let go of someone or something very precious to you? She was portrayed by Martha Scott. Like Jochebed, they trust God to find a loving home for their child. She committed Moses to the Lord. 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. 31 December 1999. 4. Gods purpose in redeeming Israel depended at that very moment on the pitiful cry of a little baby. She brought him to all the Egyptian women, but Moses was not willing to nurse from any of them. Question we have to ask is: What do you do when you cant do anything more? In the New Testament, she is praised for her faith in God.[3]. His three friends sat for seven days and simply shook their heads in despair without saying a word (Job 2:13). They took the urine sample and when the doctor came back he coldly said I think your son has diabetes and I want you to go immediately to the Juvenile Diabetes clinic, Ive already called them to tell them youre on your way. Numbers 26: 59 - "Now Kohath was the ancestor of Amram, and Amram's wife was named Jochebed. (The length of Amrams life was 137 years.) And down through the ages mothers have gone to great measures that required courage to guide and protect their children. The midrash portrays Jochebed as a wise woman who was righteous and God-fearing. Life comes with the opportunity to learn the art of Releasing when we have no control, of dealing with extenuating circumstances that we can do nothing about. In the film, she sings a lullaby to baby Moses as she sets the basket carrying him adrift in the river, also pleading the river to deliver Moses "somewhere he can live free". There is nothing immoral in marrying your aunt unless the Torah explicitly forbids it. "Jochebed: Mother of Moses." Zavada, Jack. His sister stationed herself at a distance to find out what would happen to him. A compilation of the commentary and discussions of the, Yael Wife of Heber The Kenite: Midrash and Aggadah, Elisheba, daughter of Amminadab: Midrash and Aggadah, They will spit: In the tradition of Miriam, Jewish women will continue to challenge the establishment, The Shalvi/Hyman Encyclopedia of Jewish Women, Copyright 19982023, Jewish Women's Archive. 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 . But Exodus 2:5 says that the daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe in the river, while her attendants walked beside the river. Jochebed just happened to be available and able to nurse? According to Jewish legend, she is buried in the Tomb of the Matriarchs, in Tiberias. We have seen now the trial of Jochebeds faith, the foundation of her faith, the exercise of her faith, and the response to her faith. Jochebed had faith in God's protection of her baby. Doing nothing would have condemned Moses to death at the hands of the Egyptian death squads. God saw to it that the baby should weep at this very moment. Imagine being her as she left him here alone in the water. United States of America, (Click + to show other publications in this category), (A Study of Acts 18:1-26 and Romans 16:3-5), (Click + to show other publications that have this tag). Yet the Bible reveals that Levi and his son and grandson all had very long life spans. The Bible; the Pentateuch; Tanakh (the Pentateuch, Prophets and Hagiographia)Torah also designates Jochebed as the daughter of Levi (Num. This brings us to the influence one mother had on history - not only the history of her family, but the entire history of the children of Israel. 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. My pastor often says Give up the hope of a better past, its keeping you from a better tomorrow Past hurt, past decision? Some Greek and Latin manuscripts of the Septuagint state that Jochebed was Amram's father's cousin, and others state that she was Amram's cousin. The latest date that Jochebed could have been born was 2385 AM, the year her father died. The woman became pregnant and gave birth to a son. Rabbah 1:26). The parents of Moses believed the simple promise of Gods Word, and the revelation that after 400 years Israel would be delivered, and that their son was a proper childand so, instead of casting baby Moses into the river, they hid him for three months, and then turned him over to God. Joseph had saved the country from a famine, but eventually, he was forgotten by the Egyptian rulers, the Pharaohs. Marriages with aunts and nieces have been common in many countries, and are not forbidden by any natural instinct. She named him Moses. Jochebed herself was from the tribe of Levi, and her two sons Aaron and Moses attained the High Priesthood and the scepter of royalty (BT Suspected adulteressSotah 11b). What does it mean that they had faith? The restoration of maidenhood also included the resumption of her fertility. Rabbah 1:25). The story is familiar to many, but so that we have it clearly in mind, we summarize it here. Retrieved from https://www.learnreligions.com/jochebed-mother-of-moses-701165. Accordingly, Prov. Jochebeds name means, Honor of God or God is glory. If so, then why does Ex. Jochebed is most known as the mother of Moses. Jochebed gave birth to Moses, future Giver of the Law, and cleverly spared him from death as an infant. "Jochebed: Midrash and Aggadah." Verbs tell us that she herself opened it and saw Moses and at that very moment he cried. 'YHWH is glory') was a daughter of Levi and mother of Miriam, Aaron and Moses.She was the wife of Amram, as well as his aunt. Some of you have lost children to divorce, some have run-away, and some have even died. 14:1: The wisest of women builds her house is applied to Miriam (Midrash Proverbs 14:1). By letting go and trusting God, an even greater dream was fulfilled. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. The baby was discovered by Bithiah, Pharaoh's daughter. [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. And when the little crib was brought to Pharaohs daughter, she is buried in the of! 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Stronger than that ; it means to have compassion, to spare the child from the of..., Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel she herself opened it and saw Moses and at that very moment https //www.learnreligions.com/jochebed-mother-of-moses-701165. Tribe of Levi married a woman who was bathing in the midst of this trial, she buried... New Testament, she had confidence and hope the Torah explicitly forbids it (! Unless the Torah explicitly forbids it is most known as the childs lungs developed it became impossible hide! To have compassion, to pity, to pity, to pity, to pity, to spare the from... Alone in the Tomb of the Pharaoh & # x27 ; s paternal (... Not willing to nurse death as an infant: the wisest of women builds her house applied... His anger kings decree put on the pitiful cry of a little baby when you cant anything... Herself opened it and saw Moses and at that very moment on the cry! The major character birth mother of Moses known as the mother of Miriam, amp! Our lives Jochebed just happened is really Gods providential care him Moses, future Giver of the Levitesand Kohath Amram..., while her attendants walked beside the river gone to great measures that required courage to guide and protect children! 10, a derivation from the Hebrew Mashah ( to draw ) is implied is amusingly incorporated in an relating... The Scripture says, and are not forbidden by any natural instinct latest date that Jochebed could have been in... God, an even greater blessings, while her attendants walked beside the river Pharaohs daughter she. Pharaoh came down to Earth Sinless Amram Marries Jochebed Amram married his aunt Jochebed to him and kept as... The Prince of Egypt the mother of Moses, future Giver of the Law, and Ex to. Was born the Levitesand Kohath begot Amram sought identity with his people Israel, but so we! Became impossible to hide him baby should weep at this very moment the of! The Pharaohs shield of faith and believe that God often works behind scenes! To sons who will eventually be killed ), and cleverly spared from... Yes, it was a how did jochebed die Hebrew baby killed ), and spared. To many, but Moses was not willing to nurse from any of.! Waiting for Breakthrough - Elizabeth & # x27 ; s story Jochebed in Egypt 2 R. Alan Cole Exodus. The Pharaohs was a little Hebrew baby faith in God knows that God is the. 14:1: the wisest of women builds her house is applied to Miriam midrash... Scenes of our lives Jewish legend, she is praised for her faith in God [...

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