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Exodus 1 — When two midwives had more backbone than the king of Egypt
5 min read
nocap.bible editorialfamily came to as honored guests. — one of Jacob's sons — had literally saved the entire nation from starvation, and the family got VIP treatment. Seventy people total moved in. Life was good.
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But generations passed. Joseph died. His brothers died. That whole generation was gone. And the ? They didn't just survive — they thrived. They multiplied like crazy until Egypt was overflowing with them. What started as a family of seventy became an entire nation. And that's when everything changed.
Here's the rollcall. The sons of who came to with their households: , , , , , , , , , , and Asher. Seventy people total. was already there — he'd been running Egypt's entire food supply operation for years.
Then Joseph died. His brothers died. That whole generation passed away. But God had made a to way back — that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars. And fr fr, that promise was hitting. The people of were fruitful and increased like crazy. They multiplied, they grew strong, and the land was filled with them.
This is God's in action. He told Abraham his family would become a great nation, and here it is — happening in real time, even in a foreign land. No cap. ✨
Then a new king rose to power in — and this is where it gets dark. This didn't know . Didn't know the history. Didn't care about everything Joseph had done to save Egypt. All he saw was a massive population of foreigners getting stronger by the day, and it made him nervous.
"Look — the Israelites are too many and too mighty for us. We need to deal with them before they multiply even more. If a war breaks out, they might join our enemies, fight against us, and bounce."
So plan? Crush them. He set taskmasters over the to break them with forced labor. They built entire storage cities for Pharaoh — Pithom and Raamses — with their bare hands. Mortar and brick, fieldwork, brutal conditions. The text says it twice for emphasis: they ruthlessly made them work as slaves. Their lives were made bitter with hard service.
But here's the thing that had Pharaoh shook: the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied. The more Egypt tried to crush them, the stronger they grew. The Egyptians were straight up in dread of . Oppression wasn't working — and that drove Pharaoh to something way worse. ⛓️
escalated. He called in two midwives — Shiphrah and — and gave them an order that should make your stomach turn:
"When you deliver the Hebrew women's babies, if it's a boy — unalive him. If it's a girl, let her live."
(Quick context: Pharaoh saw the boys as future soldiers who could rise up against him. The girls weren't considered a military threat. This wasn't random cruelty — it was calculated genocide.)
But Shiphrah and Puah feared God more than they feared the king. They didn't do it. They let the boys live. Every single one. These two women looked at the most powerful man in the known world and chose to God over obedience to Pharaoh. That's not just brave — that's .
When Pharaoh found out, he called them back in:
"Why have you done this? Why are the male children still alive?"
And they hit him with:
"The Hebrew women aren't like the Egyptian women. They're so strong that they give birth before the midwife even gets there."
Whether that was the full truth or a strategic answer, one thing is clear — God honored them for it. He dealt well with the midwives. The people kept multiplying and growing stronger. And because Shiphrah and Puah feared God, He gave them families of their own.
Two women whose names we almost never hear did something that kings couldn't stop. They chose over fear, and God remembered them. 💯
When the midwives wouldn't cooperate, dropped all pretense and issued a command to his entire nation:
"Every son born to the Hebrews — throw him into the Nile. But let every daughter live."
This wasn't a secret order to two midwives anymore. This was a public decree to all of . Every Egyptian citizen was now recruited into the genocide. Pharaoh weaponized an entire nation against newborn babies.
This is the darkest moment so far in the story of . God's people, who He promised to make into a great nation, are now watching their sons be thrown into the river. But even here — even in the worst of it — God is not absent. He's already setting up the next chapter. Because one of those baby boys? He's about to survive. And he's going to change everything. 🔥