Why is it that the story of Moses, Pharaoh’s Daughter, and Miriam in Exodus 2 often evokes images of cattails, a felt-board cutout of the Nile river, and a woven basket from the storage room of a VBS? Thanks to a recent study of Exodus 1-18 crafted by Jen Wilkin, I spent some time with this passage. Once I emerged from the feigned familiarity of the story, I encountered a beautiful detail in verse 10.
“When the child (Moses) grew older, she (Miriam) brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. She named him Moses, “Because,” she said, “I drew him out of the water” (Exodus 2:10).
This particular study prompted readers to consider how Moses’ name might connect to the larger theme of deliverance throughout the book of Exodus. The English Standard Version includes a footnote which states “Moses sounds like Hebrew for ‘drawn out.’” As I sat with this verse and the corresponding footnotes, I was struck with two thoughts: 1) Pharaoh’s daughter, an Egyptian woman, was chosen by God to name Moses. Second, his name sounds like the Hebrew word for “drawn out.” According to some brief research I conducted, the origin of the name “Moses” is unknown, yet it sounds like an Egyptian word for “birth.” Regardless of the historical/etymological origins, I’d like to focus on the fact that Pharaoh’s daughter chose his name. Not only that, but she also gave him a reason for that name which she spoke over him. I do not presume to know whether or not Pharaoh’s daughter trusted in Yahweh, but I love that God used the creative powers of a pagan girl to name the baby that would one day lead his people out of oppression and slavery.
Moses – the one who was drawn out of the water, was a ‘type’ pointing us to He who offers wells of living water: Jesus Christ. Earlier in Exodus 1, Pharaoh commanded his people “Every son that is born to the Hebrews you shall cast into the Nile, but you shall let every daughter live.” Little did Pharaoh know that the means of killing baby Moses – the Nile river – became the means through which he was rescued, or “drawn out” (Exodus 2: 4-10). A couple thousand years later, the same instrument of death used to kill Christ – the cross – would become our means for rescue and redemption. What creativity to represent Christ “drawing us out” of the domain of darkness and into the kingdom of his beloved Son (Colossians 1:13). How beautiful to reflect on God’s sovereignty and common grace in the creativity all around us both among Christians and non-Christians. He uses every creative muscle on this planet to point us back to his promises, his mercies, and his kingdom!
Guest Post by Valerie Medlin Wheeler
A friend of Alabaster’s Ink Well, lover of Jesus, and creative thinker, Valerie lives in Nashville with her husband Eli. She and Eli call Immanuel Nashville their church home and family. All glory be to Christ.