Bravery

The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do;

 they let the boys live. Exodus 1:17 NIV

I hope I would be as brave as those women were, but I wonder if I would be.  The king had told them to kill any newborn Hebrew boy babies.  By disobeying his order, they were risking their lives. God really honoured their decision and when the king summoned them to ask why there were still Hebrew baby boys, the midwives came out with the excuse that the Hebrew women were giving birth so fast that they weren’t attending them. The king, surprisingly, accepted their story and didn’t look into it any further.

The Bible says that God was kind to the midwives and that the number of Hebrews increased.  In addition, the midwives themselves were given children of their own.

The final consequence of the midwives decision to save the babies was that Moses was born.  Ultimately the rescue of the Hebrews from the Egyptians goes back to the bravery of those midwives. A desire to do God’s will by a few people of limited social standing had a profound impact on the history of the Hebrew nation and the whole world.

I pray that God will give me courage if I ever have to risk my life for Him.