It seemed like it was the end of the road of the Israelite people. Here they are in Egypt. They’re enslaved. Forced into hard labor. Then Pharaoh declares this all across the land: “Every Hebrew boy that is born you must throw into the Nile, but let every girl live.”
Could it get any worse for the people of God? The initial command given to kill their baby boys was only given to the midwives but now it has become a nation-wide mandate. It is amidst this context that a Levite couple have a baby. More specifically, a baby boy. Even more specifically, a fine baby boy.
They do their best to hide this baby and keep him safe from the Purge-like event humming throughout the land, but eventually they are no longer able to. In between a rock and hard place, this baby boy’s parents are forced into a decision out of desperation. They take their baby boy, place him into a basket, and usher him off into the Nile, hoping that somehow, some way, he will find life and safety.
Perhaps to the surprise of all, this baby boy is discovered by the daughter of Pharaoh and, in a moment of compassion, she draws him out of the water, arranges for the boy’s mother to nurse him, and adopts him into the household of Pharaoh. By the providence of God, this baby boy will grow into the vessel that God uses to deliver His people into freedom. In the face of apparent defeat, God brings victory, even from the most unlikeliest of places.
Dinner Table Conversations:
Adult & Teen Table Talk:
- The Hebrew people were facing defeat and a dead end. What dead ends or chasms of despair do you face in your own life?
- How can we grow from being a lazy cynic into having a hope-shaped imagination?
Little Learners’ Table Talk:
- How is God able to help us do hard things?
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