Jochebed: The Mother of Moses

In the closing chapters of the book of Genesis God sent a young man by the name of Joseph down into Egypt. Now his brothers mistreated him and sold him as a slave to some Ismaelites who in turn sold him to Potiphar in Egypt, but it was really and truly God who sent him there so that Joseph would be in position to spare the nation of Israel.

Now, look at Exodus 1:7-9; 15-16; 21-22. I want to go on record as stating that it was Satan who put this wicked thought into the heart of Pharaoh to kill the men children of Israel – in hopes of stamping out the Messiah, after all he tried to get Herod to do the same thing!

It was in this environment that under this command that Amram and Jochebed brought their baby boy into the world. Imagine the fear that Jochebed must have felt being pregnant and not knowing whether or not her child would have to be thrown in the river at birth. Imagine the courage to even want to bring a child into this type of a world in the first place! Imagine the trust in the power of God to protect her family this lady expressed. Look with me at Exodus 2...

Proposition: Never underestimate, never take for granted the impact, the significance the decisions you make as a mother will have on your children. For this very reason a mother must strive to have an unshakable trust in God.

Interrogative: Is your trust in God unshakable today?

TS: Jochebed is a wonderful example of a mother who's trust in God literally made all the difference in the world. Let's look at the results of her trust in God. Her trust in God led her to...

Have Her Baby vv 1-2a

How complete is your trust in God today I wonder? Let me tell you, no matter your circumstance I promise you were situation is nowhere near as serious as the one Jochebed faced, yet she trusted God fully. Look at her circumstances:

It was an awful situation

To be married and to be expecting a child in this day must have been an awful struggle with self

If the baby was a girl – it could live, only to one day be taken as the wife of a godless Egyptian, and to have to raise her future children as a pagan!

It the child was a boy, by law, they were to throw him into the Nile to be eaten by the crocodiles or to simply drown

Yet Jochebed trusted God

It was a difficult decision

Jochebed and her husband Amram had already had 2 children – Aaron and Miriam

They knew the joy of parenthood, Jochebed knew what it was to suffer through the pains of labor only to forget the awfulness of the pain the moment she heard the baby cry and saw its face

Jochebed understood the dangers, she knew the challenges, she knew the difficulty and she understood the sacrifice of what would happen if she gave birth to a boy – and she accepted all of them!

That is what motherhood is – Knowing there are risks, knowing there are challenges, knowing that in order to raise that child for the glory of God will take sacrifices, but a mother is willing to put herself on the line in order to see her child live! I do not understand how a mother can do all this without a strong trust in God. Jochebed's trust in God led her to have the baby, and it also led her to...

Hide Her Baby vv. 2b-6

The moment that Jochebed laid eyes on her son the Bible says “...she saw that he was a goodly child” and that “she hid him three months.” The word “goodly” means, hansom or beautiful. This was God's indication that there was something different about this child and the Bible tells us it encouraged her to trust in God. Hebrews 11:23 says of Moses' parents “...they were not afraid of the king's commandment”.

When the day came, as it does for all mothers, that Jochebed realized she could no longer keep her child safe in her own home, she demonstrated her ultimate trust in God by placing her baby boy in an ark and on the Nile river. There are a few truths I want to point out here. She left nothing to chance. v. 3...

She didn't merely throw him in the river and proclaim “If God wills it he'll survive!”

She took for him an ark of bulrushes

That is she crafted a vessel for him to float on

She had his sister follow and observe v. 4

Now picture this, Jochebed is a Hebrew, slave to the Egyptians, but aware of their customs, one of which was for the nobility to bathe in the Nile river.

Its no coincidence that she placed her boy in the ark, somewhere upstream from this favored spot and released him to float to the desired destination.

It was no coincidence that his sister just so happened to be right there to observe what would take place.

But bear in mind the courage it took poor Jochebed to do this!

She had no idea how the Egyptian princess would react. The moment she realized he was a Hebrew she could have drowned him then and there. But God had other plans. Mom, you are going to have to make difficult decisions for your children, but as long as those decisions are bathed in prayer, as long as you know you are following the will of God, you will never have to second guess those decisions, no matter the odds.

Jochebed's trust in God led her to have the baby, to hide the baby and finally her trust in God allowed her to...

Hold her Baby vv.7-10

Look at verse 6... Once Miriam knew that the princess had fallen in love with this beautiful baby she rushed from the reeds and offered her service in finding a proper Hebrew nurse for the baby v. 7. I wonder if Jochebed ever saw coming what God had in mind for her? Look at verses 8-9... Not only did she get to hold her child, to instruct him in the ways of God, but she got paid too!

When you commit your trust to God, when you commit your children to Him, He will never cease to amaze you in how He operates!

Conclusion: As we close out our thoughts on Jochebed I want to make some application to mothers in our day:

She trusted God and disobeyed the king

Trust in God means that you do what is right for your child, not what is socially accepted or even politically expected

In this case it meant to disobey an unholy order from a godless king

She trusted God and hid her child from the influence of the wicked world

This is as much needed today as any other day.

Mothers, keep your children safe from the world (Fathers, you too.)

She trusted in God and was allowed to nurse Moses

This meant she had him in the earliest most important years of his life

Mothers, the same is true for you today.

Jochebed didn't waste these years, she spent them teaching her son the truth and ways of God.

What about you?

How is your trust in God today?

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