Shiphrah and Puah

  How important is being mentioned by name?  Often at the end of an event you hear thanks being given to those people who helped to organize it and who gave their time to make sure all in attendance were well taken care of.  Rarely does the speaker have the opportunity to thank everyone by name.
  In Exodus 1, two women are mentioned by name.  Because the Hebrew slaves were increasing in numbers and strength, Pharaoh became fearful of an uprising.  He told the slave masters to work them ruthlessly.  And then he ordered the Hebrew midwives to kill the baby boys that were born.  But the midwives, Shiphrah and Puah, refused to do that.  When Pharaoh discovered this, he summoned them for questioning.   No doubt two slave women brought before the king were afraid, but they stood up to him and were spared their lives. 
  Only two midwives were named in Exodus though it is more than likely that many midwives served the Hebrew women.  Shiphrah and Puah were probably the leaders among the midwives and that's why they were brought to Pharaoh.  And so they are mentioned in the account, like the organizers of an event, as a way of thanking them and their coworkers for their service.  These women, who were not afraid to stand up for what they knew to be right, saved lives and entered the pages of history.


  For Reflection:  We are all descended from a long line of ancestors.  What courageous people do we have to thank for the gift of life?  Who crossed a sea or fought a war or stood up to a king that I might someday be born?


  Let us pray.  God, I thank you for Shiphrah and Puah and their bravery.  I thank you for all of my ancestors - my ancestors in life and my ancestors in faith.  I thank you for the few I know by name and the many whose names I don't know.  I thank you for all those who struggled and persevered for my sake.

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