The story of Exodus focuses in on one family. A man from the tribe of Levi marries and his wife gives birth to a son.[1] We know from later that he is not the only child, he has a sister, Miriam, and brother, Aaron. Whether Miriam is from a previous/first wife or whether the narrator simply glosses over her existence at first, the intent is to focus our intention in on this child. He may not be the literal firstborn but Scripture treats him as such. He is the one who will take centre stage in the story, the one who will somehow inherit God’s promises (Exodus 2:1-2).
Moses mother observes that he is “good”. What exactly is meant by this? It may be that she sees that he is healthy and so likely to survive if cared for, not a sickling. However, as Enns notes, the language here links back to Genesis 1 where God observes that his creation is good.[2] We are reminded that whilst Moses is worth saving because of something good in him and God the Father is well pleased in his son, Jesus, there is nothing good in us that makes us worthy of salvation. That is solely God’s grace to us. They hide the baby for three months but it becomes impossible to hide him any longer, so the mother makes a basket from reeds and then paints it with a coat of bitumen to make it waterproof. The basket is actually called a “tevah”, an “ark” and the language here seems to intentionally echo the description of Noah’s ark in Genesis 6.[3] They place the baby in the ark and then place the ark into the Nile waters, hidden by bullrushes. This is an act of faith. They place him in the very place where the Egyptians were ordering the babies to be thrown to their deaths just as God placed Noah in the very waters of death brought in judgement on sinful mankind. This is an act of faith. They have no plan for what happens next, just a hope that the ark will keep him safe (v3-4).
His sister watches from a safe distance. Then one of Pharoah’s daughters comes down to the Nile to bathe. She discovers the basket and baby, recognising him as a Hebrew. His sister comes forward and offers to find a nurse for the baby. She gets his mother who agrees to look after him until he is old enough to live in the palace, adopted as the princess’s son. At this point he is named Moses (v5-10).
One day, Moses goes out to find his own people. He is distressed at what he sees as he witnesses their oppression. He intervenes to protect his fellow Hebrews and kills an Egyptian guard. On another occasion he attempts to break up a fight between two Hebrew slaves. Their response is “who do you think you are? Are you going to kill us too?” Realising that he has been seen, Moses flees into the wilderness of Midian as Pharoah seeks to kill him (v11-13).
In Midian he intervenes to protect again. This time some women attempting to use a well, harassed by male shepherds. Their father gives one of his daughters, Zipporah in marriage to him and together they have children. It is of course at a well that Abraham’s servant meets Rebekah and realises that she is the one for Isaac. Jacob had met Rachel at a well and helped her to get water. Jesus will meet a woman at a well who has failed to receive the protection and satisfaction she needed in 5 marriages and offers her, instead of dead waters, living water (v14-22).
Meanwhile, back in Egypt, the Pharoah has died and God has heard the cries of his people. We are told that he remembers his covenant. Though of course, God had never forgotten. Indeed, we have already seem him begin to act to deliver his people in choosing and delivering Moses. Indeed, the way in which Moses experiences deliverance through waters and then flees to spend 40 years in the Wilderness foreshadows the way in which God will later deliver his people through the waters of the Red Sea, the waters of death and lead them for 40 years through the same wilderness.
More importantly, these events foreshadow the way in which Jesus will be kept safe, in Egypt from another murderous king as a child, how later he will pass through the waters of the River Jordan in baptism and spend 40 days in prayer in the wilderness (v14-25).
[1] Alexander notes that the author delays naming Amran and Jochebed as Moses’ parents until 6:20. Indeed, there is a general tendency to delay naming. Moses’ name is not revealed until v10 (though this perhaps reflects the point of his legal adoption as son, when he is named officially by the princess). Miriam is not named at this stage either. Alexander suggests that the delay in offering names here puts the focus on Levi as the tribal head and links Moses and his family to the later Temple service. Alexander, Exodus, 61.
[2] Enns, Exodus, 61.
[3] I think that Alexander is over cautious here in his reservations about drawing such a link. He argues that Moses represents only one person out of God’s Israel so we should not emphasise this as a salvation act for God’s covenant people. However, God specifically chooses to work through Moses in order to deliver his people. C.f. Alexander, Exodus, 21.
Faithroots 