The Egyptians fear the mushrooming population of the enslaved Israelites and command all the Israelite baby boys be thrown into the Nile River. However, one mother sees something special in her baby and hides him for several months.
When she can conceal him no longer, she does indeed put him in the Nile River but not before protecting him in a watertight basket. Then she strategically places the basket where a compassionate person might find him.
The woman’s daughter hides nearby to see what happens to her baby brother.
When the pharaoh’s daughter comes to the river to bathe, she discovers the baby and wants to keep him as her own. The baby’s sister steps out of hiding and offers to find a woman to nurse him. She gets her mother.
Although the boy should die, the pharaoh’s daughter saves him and even pays his biological mother to feed and care for him.
When the baby is weaned, his mother gives him back to the pharaoh’s daughter—who names him Moses.
This mother’s name is Jochebed and she has two other children, Aaron and Miriam.
Jochebed, like many moms, sees promise in her son and takes extraordinary measures to protect him so he can reach his potential.
Who has seen promise in us and made a difference in our lives? Who can we help reach their potential?
[Discover more about Jochebed in Exodus 2:1–10, Exodus 6:20, and Numbers 26:59.]
Learn about other biblical women in Women of the Bible, available in audiobook, e-book, paperback, and hardcover.
A lifelong student of the Bible, Peter DeHaan, PhD, wrote the 1,000-page website ABibleADay.com to encourage people to explore the Bible. His main blog and many books urge Christians to push past the status quo and reconsider how they practice their faith in every area of their lives.