Having lunch with Blaire at school on her 7th Birthday!
Amram and Jochebed Trust God with their Precious Baby Moses (Exodus 2:1-10)
The lens of loss I am looking at with the story of Jochebed and Moses is not in the traditional sense of the death of a child.
Jochebed “lost” Moses to Pharaoh’s daughter and likely watched his upbringing from a distance.
The lessons learned from Jochebed can still be applied to parents whose child has died, but this may hit home to parents who have put their child up for adoption, as well as anyone who needs to be challenged to have a stronger faith.
Background
It’s helpful to know a bit about Moses’ family tree.
His three-times great-grandpa was Abraham (Genesis 21:1-4), which makes Isaac his great-great-grandpa (Genesis 35:27-29), Jacob his great-grandpa (Exodus 1:1), Levi his grandpa (Genesis 29:31-35; Exodus 1:2; 2:1), which is his mother Jochebed’s side of the family.
Joseph was sold into slavery at around 17 years old by his jealous brothers (Genesis 37:12-28).
At the time, I’m sure it was hard for Joseph to see how this could possibly be God’s plan for his life, but he ended up becoming second in command in ancient Egypt, which was a very powerful nation at the time (Genesis 41:37-49).
God used Joseph’s position to save many lives from starvation, even his own family, whom he later reunited with (Genesis 41:50-57).
Joseph’s parents thought he was dead that entire time (Genesis 37:29-36; 42:36-38). (The topic of Jacob grieving his lost son Joseph will likely be a future blog post!)
By the time Moses was born, there was immense pressure on the Hebrews who were enslaved (Exodus 1:8-14).
The Pharaoh (probably Amenemhet III) in power did not know who Joseph was and began to feel threatened by the large population of Hebrews (Exodus 1:8-14).
Consequently, he issued an order to have all the male children born of the Hebrews murdered by throwing them in the Nile (Exodus 1:22).
All female babies were allowed to live (Exodus 1:16).
It is against this backdrop that Moses was born.
It is interesting to note that despite the Pharaoh’s fear of little Hebrew boys growing up to join a foreign military against Egypt, women were highlighted in Exodus 1 & 2 as being instrumental in God eventually bringing His people out of slavery (the midwives—who are named (Exodus 1:15-21), Moses’ mother Jochebed (Exodus 6:20), and his sister Miriam (Exodus 2:7-8); ironically, even the Pharaoh’s own daughter who rescues Moses (Exodus 2:5-6, 8-10)!).
What were Moses’ parents, Amram (father) and Jochebed (mother), like?
We are not told much about Moses’ mother, Jochebed, and even less about his father, Amram, in Exodus 2.
Here’s what we are told about Amram and Jochebed:
- Jochebed was a daughter of Levi (who was a son of Jacob and brother of the Joseph, who eventually became second in command over Egypt), Genesis 30:22-24; Exodus 2:1.
- Amram and Jochebed had an older daughter named Miriam (approximately 15 years older than Moses, Exodus 15:20-21), their middle child was Aaron (3 years older than his brother Moses, Exodus 4:14-17; 7:7), and their youngest son was Moses (who eventually led the Hebrews out of bondage in Egypt, Exodus 12:31-42).
Here’s what we can infer about Amram and Jochebed:
- Jochebed was clever.
She made a baby carrier-like basket out of wicker (bulrushes and reeds) and waterproofed it with tar (bitumen) and pitch.
Making something sturdy and waterproof to carry her precious baby would’ve taken some length of time.
With a newborn in tow, she likely had to start and stop her project many times – working on it while Moses was sleeping, between house chores, and chasing after 3-year-old Aaron!
- Jochebed was observant.
She learned the time and location where the famous royal daughter bathed regularly.
She had to have done research for several days or weeks to count on this happening before she sent Moses down the Nile River.
- Jochebed was smart and planned ahead.
She had a “backup plan” in the form of her older daughter Miriam to keep an eye out for Moses.
They likely rehearsed several “what-if” scenarios:
- What if Pharaoh’s daughter isn’t out there?
- What should Miriam say when Pharaoh’s daughter finds Moses?
- What if the basket gets “off course”?
- Jochebed and Amram were unified in this plan to save their baby Moses.
Amram had to know about Jochebed’s plans to save their son.
If they were caught defying Pharaoh’s orders, there would’ve been severe consequences for their entire family.
As slaves, their lives wouldn’t have been worth much to Pharaoh and the authorities.
How might the “loss” of Moses have affected his parents?
- Amram and Jochebed likely felt jealous of parents who had baby boys before the Pharaoh’s decree to murder Hebrew baby boys.
I’m sure in the weak moments, they were envious of parents who got to enjoy raising their children to adulthood.
At times, Amram and Jochebed likely tried to understand God’s plan and wished it were not happening this way.
They may not have lived to see Moses come back to Egypt when he was around 80 years old to lead the Hebrews out.
Even knowing after knowing all the good he did, I imagine in an honest moment, they still mourned for the lost years with their son and still wished they could’ve been the ones to raise their son, possibly even forgoing all the great things Moses did for God’s people.
- Amram and Jochebed probably yearned for and felt an empty ache in their hearts for Moses.
When Pharaoh’s daughter paid Jochebed to care for Moses, this type of service was called “wet-nursing.”
The care for children who had hired nurses typically lasted until the child turned three.
Then, they would be turned back over to the parents.
Our youngest child is three right now.
I couldn’t imagine having to let her go live with anyone forever at her age!
Amram and Jochebed were spiritually and mentally tough enough to be able to follow through with this plan.
But what was the alternative?
Any other option was terrible for the whole family.
It still didn’t mean it was easy.
- Amram and Jochebed likely worried about the worldly influence on their innocent boy.
Ancient Egypt was a decadent place that did not worship the One True God.
As parents, they had to trust God and His plan for their sweet little boy.
Being raised in the palace of one of the most powerful leaders in the world at the time would come with all sorts of pleasures, intrigue, and temptation.
I imagine Amram and Jochebed were on their knees in prayer regularly, as we all should be for our children.
- Amram and Jochebed probably mourned for the loss of time with Moses.
They probably felt they needed to cram a lifetime's worth of lessons on their faith in traditions in three years!
What an impossible task! Life has probably felt impossible for all of us at some point, but the Bible says, “For nothing will be impossible with God” (Luke 1:37).
Beyond that, think of all the milestones they probably shed tears over that they missed out on with Moses.
There are tears, wondering, wishing, and a hopefulness when we think of Blaire at certain milestones.
Even though Blaire didn’t ever attend school as a third grader, she was alive at the beginning of this school year, and we just celebrated the last day of school this week with our son.
Blaire wasn’t a part of that because she passed away during what would’ve been her third-grade year.
But then, Moses’ parents probably beat themselves up over feeling those sad, ungrateful emotions, because they still had a daughter and a son at home, including another son who “wasn’t supposed to” live.
Amram and Jochebed probably had to pray a lot to talk themselves out of these deep feelings, with God’s help, of course, and change the way they viewed the situation.
The book of Exodus does not tell us how many Hebrew baby boys were murdered by the Egyptian government, so in their logical, grace-filled minds, they likely realized they had a lot to be thankful for!
Their son Moses lived!
Just not with them.
But, since they lived locally, at least within walking distance of the palace, Amram and Jochebed probably got to follow what Moses was up to from afar.
What a blessing that had to be!
I imagine some parents who have given their children up for adoption have had to watch them be raised from a distance, maybe even with regret and envy.
Or, a whole range of emotions that come with loss.
What can we learn about God through this situation with Moses and his parents?
- God rewarded Jochebed and Amram for their faithfulness.
Think about the faith it required for Jochebed and Amram to “abandon” their helpless baby boy in the mighty Nile with the hope of ultimately saving him.
They are mentioned a few places in the New Testament for their faithfulness.
The “Hall of Faith” in Hebrews 11:23 says, “By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden three months by his parents, because they saw he was a beautiful child; and they were not afraid of the king’s command.”
Beautiful is translated here to mean special, fine, good, healthy. Amram and Jochebed were faithful to do what was right despite the potential opposition from the authorities.
These Godly parents valued protecting the preborn and preserving an innocent life.
Jochebed clearly did not “abandon” Moses without a plan in place: Enter Moses’ teenage sister Miriam.
Miriam kept an eye on her brother, Moses, floating along the Nile River.
She was right there, ready to offer a nursing mother to Pharaoh’s daughter when newborn baby Moses was discovered.
Of course Miriam brought their mother back!
Pharaoh’s daughter directed Jochebed to take (her own child) Moses (back home) with her, and Jochebed would even get paid to take care of her own son, Moses!
So here was a mother and father who did whatever it took to save her precious son’s life—at the risk of their own—and now God was blessing them likely beyond her imagination!
Now, Amram and Jochebed could raise their baby boy without being secretive, and even live better financially than they did before.
Miriam could watch her baby brother, Moses, grow; Aaron had a little brother playmate for a few years. What a blessing to the family!
- God can use anyone from any family background to carry out his plans, big or small (Genesis 49:5-7).
Moses’ great-grandpa Jacob didn’t have much good to say about his son Levi (Moses' grandpa) at Jacob’s deathbed.
Even Moses’ sordid family background did not get in the way of God using future offspring for His glory.
In this case, Moses would go on to lead millions of Israelites out of slavery from one of the most powerful nations in the world at the time (Exodus 12:33-41).
To most people at the time, Moses was merely an adopted Hebrew son of Pharaoh’s daughter – a nobody who became somebody.
Bitter or Better?
In the face of great loss, we need to choose whether this loss will make us bitter or better.
A bitter view doubts God’s sovereignty over all events and allows jealousy and envy to take root, affecting our entire lens with which we view events.
Hebrews 12:14-15 states, “Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many.”
If we keep allowing bitter thoughts over our loss to grow in frequency, it will spread to those around us.
People will not want to be around us, we will not be promoting peace, and that will not point others to the Lord.
If we want the lost life of our loved one not to have been in vain, we should not allow bitterness in.
This will detract from whatever the Lord’s purpose was in the loss of our loved one.
Our job is to trust God’s purpose, even if we don’t understand it.
God is the only One who can take what we view as bad things that come into our lives and use them for good.
Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
If we choose to have the loss make us better, we look for lessons we can learn and find ways to be thankful daily despite the difficulty.
It is a mental battle that can be won with the help of the Holy Spirit.
Considering the situation from the biblical perspective that none of us deserves anything, it is all God’s grace, it shifts your perspective to appreciate the fact that your life was blessed by having that departed loved one in your life to begin with.
I encourage you to look for even the small moments that brought joy that you never would’ve had if God hadn’t blessed you with that special person.
A few moments that popped in my head this morning as I write: Blaire’s toddler hands on each of my cheeks turning my head to look at her as she told me something very important, the first time she successfully flipped a pancake, her making a basket in a 10’ hoop after only a few tries the last day we ever talked to her.
Despite whatever loss you are facing, remember with gratitude the blessings that God has bestowed on you, “For from Him and through Him are all things” (Romans 11:36).
If we keep God’s greatness, grace, and sovereign guidance at the forefront of our minds, it allows us to better trust Him and His plans when we don’t understand them.
It’s not our job to understand God’s plans: It’s our job to trust Him.
That’s true faith.
Amram and Jochebed didn’t understand or likely even live to see all that their “beautiful child” Moses accomplished for God and their people.
But their actions showed their deep faith.
At the end of the day, and at the end of our lives, this is what God wants from us.
He wants our actions to jive with our faith.
It should be all of our goals to hear our heavenly Father say to us someday: “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:23).