Pharaoh then told the midwives that when a little boy was born they were to cast him into the river. The midwives saw that this was a very wicked thing to do, and because they feared God they saved the boys alive. Long before this, back in the Garden of Eden, God had promised that the Seed of the woman, the Lord Jesus Christ, would crush the serpent’s head. He had also told Abraham that “in thy Seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed” (Genesis 22:1818And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice. (Genesis 22:18)). Satan was busy here trying to destroy the boys so that the promise could not be fulfilled. Later on, in the days of Esther, a decree was passed to kill all the Jews, but God intervened and delivered His people. Shortly after the Lord Jesus was born, Herod issued a proclamation that all the children two years old and under were to be slain, but God saw to it that His beloved Son, that Holy Babe, was hidden from Herod’s malice. God always makes the wrath of man, and even Satan’s rage, to praise Him, and “we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth” (2 Cor. 13:88For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth. (2 Corinthians 13:8)). May the Lord give us all to count on Him more, and see His hand working behind the scenes at all times.
Guided in Great Decisions
“There went a man of the house of Levi, and took to wife a daughter of Levi” (ch. 2:1). The tribe of Levi, we find later on, was the tribe which was particularly devoted to Jehovah. In the spiritually weak nation, it is refreshing to see a young man who was faithful and who took a wife who also feared the Lord. Dear young reader, if you and I walk with God, He will guide us in these great decisions of life. He can lead you to the right partner who will be a true helper in the path of faith.
Godly Parents
Soon God gave them a little son, and what were they going to do with him? Were they going to allow him to be thrown into the river as Pharaoh had said they should? No, indeed not. They saw that their son was a goodly child and so they hid him. Perhaps the one who is reading these lines is the child of Christian parents, and they have tried to hide you from the power of the prince of this world, Satan. How thankful you can be for a Christian father and mother who are concerned about your present and eternal blessing. Perhaps you even feel resentful at times about the limits they set, and you would like to get out and see the world. Let us remind you that Satan is its prince. He has dressed up the world to deceive you; and your parents, who know something of its wickedness, have tried to hide you from it, and from the sorrows caused by walking in its ways.
Moses’s parents knew that they could only hide their boy for a little while. The time came when they could not hide him any longer. They then made an ark of bulrushes and covered it with black pitch inside and out so that it would be waterproof. There was nothing very attractive about its appearance, all so black, but it was an illustration of the death of Christ. Moses’ parents knew that their boy was safe in it. They put him there in faith, counting on God to care for him.
Further Meditation
1. Who is the “seed” that would crush Satan’s head?
2. Why does the ark make a good illustration of the death of Christ?
3. An excellent source of further thoughts on parenting can be found in the little booklet How Should a Child be Trained? by J. C. Ryle.