2:1-3-Now a man of the tribe of Levi married a Levite woman,2 and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him for three months. 3 But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basket[a] for him and coated it with tar and pitch. Then she placed the child in it and put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile..

A law decreeing that all baby boys must die presents a new mother with an impossible choice: to attempt to hide the helpless little one or to give him up to an awful fate.

This was the choice Moses’ mother, Jochebed, was forced to make. A woman whose very name means “Yahweh is glory,” Jochebed, put her precious child in the Lord’s hands—hiding him for three months until she could conceal him no longer and then entrusting his life to God as she sent him down the waters of the Nile.

Jochebed’s situation was one no mother would wish on her worst enemy. Instead of giving in to despair, she courageously chose to trust a God she believed would protect her son, even when she couldn’t do so herself. We see where Jochebed’s trust led: directly into the hands of Pharaoh’s daughter.

The boy who was once a fugitive would now grow up to become a king. We may not be forced to choose between breaking a royal decree and saving the life of our infant child, but we are faced with choices that carry eternal weight every day. In these instances, which of our instincts will win out? The base need to preserve ourselves and our comfort, autonomy, or good name at all costs, or the more risky play of trusting God with what we hold most dear and watching to see Him work?

Pharaoh’s daughter was not the only one who encountered that baby Moses floating in a basket; his older sister was there watching from the reeds as well. When royalty was unsure what to do with this helpless infant, Miriam stepped in to offer her mother’s services as nursemaid so that the princess could raise Moses as her own.

Jochebed’s trust in the impossible was met with an even more improbable resolution—her son was given back to her. And so, even if she couldn’t keep him, Jochebed was able to be with her son in those first few tender months of his life. Her Hebrew identity was passed down to him, and, even though it wasn’t until years later, Moses remembered the people he came from and stepped into his role as their eventual savior.

One mother’s small act of bravery set the stage for an entire people to break free from the bondage of their oppressors and walk into freedom, all because she had the courage to let go. May we be emboldened by that same bravery, doing everything for God’s eternal glory.

Jochebed’s account is a testament to the power of faith and the impact of a mother’s love and courage. Bible Hub