Mothers play a beautiful role in the Bible, raising great heroes of the faith who serve God in powerful ways. We often think of famous biblical mothers like Mary, Ruth, Elizabeth, and others who shaped the next generation. We don’t think about Moses’ mother, Jochebed, in the same way, but we certainly should.
Jochebed trusted God during a terrible time for the Israelites. Not only had the Egyptians enslaved Israelites for 400 years. Under Pharoah’s orders, they started to try to kill all the male babies of the Israelites by drowning them in the Nile River.
Today, we will look at Jochebed, how her wisdom and discernment preserved an entire nation, and what we may learn from tradition about her. For example, we’ll consider what the Jewish commentary the Midrash says about Jochebed’s life and whether she played an even greater role in saving the lives of children.
Who Is Jochebed in the Bible?
First, we must look at the Bible to learn about Jochebed.
First, her name means “Jehovah is her glory.” The name proved appropriate since God showed his glory through Jochebed’s actions.
She’s married to a man named Amram, who also comes from the tribe of Levi (Exodus 6). We don’t learn much about him other than that he lived to be 137 years old (Exodus 6:20) and was related to Jochebed in a way forbidden later in the Bible. We may find that creepy, but it’s an example of how God uses even people from messy family situations to accomplish great things. Jewish rabbinical scholars report that Amran was a great speaker (if so, it’s interesting that the Bible mentions his son Moses spoke poorly while his son Aaron spoke very well).
So, how does Jochebed help her son Moses escape when the Egyptians command all Israelite babies to be killed?
How Does Jochebed Save Moses?
After Pharoah decrees that all Israelite male babies should be thrown into the Nile, Jochebed devises a clever way to keep Moses alive. She forms a reed basket, a mini ark, to carry him and places the basket on the river bank.
She put him in reeds by the river banks, which was safest (Exodus 1:4), but it was still a significant act of faith. The Nile was known to house dangerous creatures—hippopotamuses could break humans in half with a single bite.
But her plan ends up working. The princess of Egypt spots him in the Nile, and she decides to adopt him. Better yet, she pays Jochebed to help nurse and rear him for his first few years.
Unfortunately, we don’t hear much from Jochebed for the rest of the narrative. We can assume she didn’t make it out of Egypt. But her children go on to do great things.
What Did Jochebed’s Children Do?
Jochebed has three children named in the Bible: Miriam, Aaron, and Moses. You likely understand some of what these people did, but let’s talk about some of what her children went on to do.
- Miriam: Miriam played a role in Moses’ rescue in the Nile. She approaches the Pharaoh’s daughter and offers Jochebed up as a wetnurse. Furthermore, Miriam is a prophetess and songwriter when the Israelites escape Egypt. She’s one of the few mentioned female prophets in the Bible.
- Aaron: Aaron ends up doing several things. First, he serves as a speaker because Moses essentially chickens out when it comes to speaking to Pharaoh about the release of the Israelite people. Then, Aaron serves as the head of the Levite tribe. A tribe of priests would carry out the religious duties of the people. Aaron’s flowering staff—a miracle in the wilderness—ended up in the Ark of the Covenant. According to the Midrash, Aaron would’ve been a descendant of a man named Levi, hence the name Levites for his tribe.
- Moses: There’s a lot we could say about Moses. He penned five books in the Old Testament, after all. But in a very brief summary, he led the Israelites out of Egypt, served as a spokesperson for God, brought down the 10 Commandments, walked the Israelites through the Levitical laws and the ways of life, and the laundry list is endless.
Jochebed birthed some very famous children. But did she play perhaps an even greater role—greater than preserving Moses, arguably one of the most famous Israelites in their history? The Midrash seems to indicate so.
Is Jochebed One of the Hebrew Midwives?
The Midrash is a group of writings and commentaries about the Old Testament—compiled by ancient Jewish scholars. We must take some of this with a grain of salt, as the contents sometimes border into weird territories. With that said . . .
There’s a chapter at the beginning of Exodus about two Hebrew midwives who save male children from being slaughtered by the Egyptians. They go by the names of Shiprah and Purah.
According to the Midrash, these midwives are Miriam and Jochebed. Miriam would have to be older than seven—the age that some scholars speculate she was at when Moses was born. Some Jewish scholars believe she was in her teens or early twenties when Moses appeared on the scene. Whether this is accurate or speculation, it does seem in character for Jochebed to want to save children.
According to the same book, she was given such a long life that she entered the Promised Land. So perhaps she had made it out of Egypt, at least.
Other Midrash elements are harder to believe—for example, it reports that she gave birth to Moses at 130 years old and that God gave her beauty back and allowed her to live several more decades. This seems far less likely.
All to say, we don’t know what is and what isn’t true. We know that several scholars agree with the information presented above, but no matter what, Jochebed seems to be a woman of high character and wisdom.
What Can We Learn from Jochebed in the Bible?
Jochebed gave birth to three of the most prominent people in Israel’s history. She trusted the Lord, took several leaps of faith, and ended up rewarded.
Here are three lessons we can pull from Jochebed’s story.
- Jochebed knew hardship and was faithful. Every parent worries for their children, especially in troubling times. I’m sure Jochebed had a hard time giving birth to three kids during the slavery period. Still, she trusted God with her situation . . . and kept trusting God when Pharaoh called for the killing of Egyptian male babies. Perhaps the Egyptians were at her doorstep. Perhaps her house was the next for a child to be taken away. Whatever the case, she trusted God.
- Jochebed cared about children’s lives. Although she may not have been one of the Hebrew midwives, she saw the value in a child’s life. In a culture where many children died young, where she had little power and would die if her plan was found out, she refused to resign herself to the situation.
- Jochebed was faithful and clever. While the Bible values faith, it does tell us to love God with our minds, which can mean being clever. Whether we believe all the details the Midrash goes into about the ark she prepared for Moses, we do see her being careful. She didn’t chuck him into the water without careful planning. When her baby was discovered, she and Miriam worked together to provide for Moses.
Jochebed is a strong mother and a God-fearing woman. We can all draw encouragement and strength from her story. May we be bold like she was when God calls us to take great leaps of faith.
Photo Credit: Public domain (1897) illustration from Wikimedia Commons.
Hope Bolinger is an acquisitions editor at End Game Press, book editor for hire, and the author of almost 30 books. More than 1500 of her works have been featured in various publications. Check out her books at hopebolinger.com for clean books in most genres, great for adults and kids. Check out her editing profile at Reedsy.com to find out about hiring her for your next book project.
This article is part of our People of Christianity catalog that features the stories, meaning, and significance of well-known people from the Bible and history. Here are some of the most popular articles for knowing important figures in Christianity:
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