Many readers don’t study the details of the Old Testament, but in the book of Exodus – we find a story within a story that involves two brave women.Woman celebrating

During this time period, the Pharaoh of Egypt wanted to stamp out the growth of the Children of Israel. Although Egypt needed the Israelites as slave labor, Pharaoh was afraid of how quickly the Israelite population had increased in number.

So he decided to make a rule that all the boy babies should be killed. NOTE: Pharaoh wasn’t afraid of girls. He should have thought longer about that.

Two midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, believed in God and did not obey what Pharaoh had commanded.

Instead, when the Hebrew women delivered babies, Shiphrah and Puah helped them live, no matter what their gender.

When Pharaoh questioned the two midwives about this, they reminded him that the Israelite women were strong and vigorous. They protected the lives of the boy babies and one of those babies happened to be Moses – who would eventually lead the Israelites out of Egypt and away from captivity.

Here in the middle of the story of the Exodus, we find the courage of two midwives. And their names are mentioned.

Names are important to God, and when he places a name in his book, the Bible, there’s a good reason for it.

He pointed out that these women, Shiphrah and Puah, believed in him, obeyed him and helped to save the Israelites by refusing to kill baby boys.

And if you continue to read the story, God blessed these two women by giving them families of their own (Exodus 1: 15-21).

So here’s a few key points:

• God blesses those who believe in him and obey him.
• No matter what the local Pharaoh does, God is greater.
• When we obey God, he remembers our names.
• Life is important to God – no matter what the gender.
• Leaders should remember that females are just as valuable as males.

Any other nuggets of truth that you found in this story? We’d love to hear your viewpoint.

©2015 GateWay of Hope – The Helping Place for Hurting Women