February 7 - Amram & Jochobed

February 7 - Amram & Jochobed

When we first meet this couple, we have no idea what their names are. The scripture reads: "Now a man of the house of Levi married a Levite woman, and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son." (Exodus 2:1-2)

The next thing we know we are in the middle of the story of Moses. Pharoah had ordered that all of the Hebrew boys were to be thrown into the river.

Moses' story goes on in Exodus 2:2. "When she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him for three months."

Even though I don't know much about having children around, I do know that it is going to be fairly easy to hide a boy child for the first few months of his life. After that, though things are going to be difficult. So, she put him in a basket and floated him down the Nile river where he was gathered up by the Pharoah's daughter. His sister had watched the entire episode and offered to find a wetnurse for the infant, who just happened to be his mother.

The story tells us that his mother nursed him until he grew old enough to live in the Pharoah's household when she gave him up to the Pharoah's daughter who raised him as a son. Moses was the name she gave to him, which means "draw out" because she drew him from the water.

We discover the names of Moses' parents in Exodus 6:20 in the middle of the family records of Aaron. We also discover that Amram was the son of Kohath and the grandson of Levi. This probably means that he was a descendant - remember, 400 years had passed between the time of Joseph and the time of Moses. We're not sure, though. Remember, also that these people had very long liftimes. Amram lived for 137 years. In later passages (1 Chronicles 6:23), the tribe is actually named after him (the Amramites) telling us that he was the head of one of the priestly branches. His name means 'kindred of the Most High.'

These two people took an awful chance by hiding their son and then turning him over to the household of the Pharaoh. What was it that possessed them and gave them confidence that their son would live? What kind of conversations occurred in their home as Jochobed made preparations to put her infant into the river? Aaron and Miriam, their other two children, who were obviously much older also managed to stay close to Moses as he grew up, close enough to be able to stand with him as he brought God's people out of Egypt.

I think that this family's faith in the God who guided them had to have been incredible. What a time to be a parent of a son who would be called by the Lord Most High! Was Amram still alive to see it happen? Was Jochobed? There's no way of knowing, but I see them standing together as Moses called for the people to sacrifice a lamb and mark the door sill. She smiled a knowing smile at her husband, as if to say, "I always knew he would be important to our people. God has blessed our family this day."