Notes on the Family Of Moses

[Stewart (SDA)]

Notes on The family of Moses.

Now Amram (Moses’ father) married Jochebed, “his father’s sister”; and she bore Amram two sons --Aaron and Moses. (Ex 6:16-20)

This marriage between Amram and his aunt, Jochabed, appears to contravene the Levitical precept that a man was not to “uncover the nakedness of [his] father’s sister.” (Lev 18:12)

Nevertheless it is written of them, that Amram and Jochebed were “devout Israelites of the tribe of Levi. [And]… faith in God strengthened their hearts, "and they were not afraid of the king's commandment." Hebrews 11:23. (PP 242.2)

Jochabed was “the daughter of Levi, whom her mother bore to Levi in Egypt” (Num 26:59).

Moses therefore was the son of Amram, who was the son of Kohath, who was the son of Levi.

Moses’ father lived to be 137 years old. (Ex 16:20)

Moses himself lived to be 120 and then he died. (Deut 34:7)

When Moses was born he was hidden by his parents 3 months before being put into the river Nile in a basket. (Heb 11:23) It is clear that Miriam was the eldest of the three children, since it was Miriam that had approached Pharoah’s daughter and arranged that Jochebed (Moses’ natural mother) be his “wet-nurse”. (Ex 2) Aaron, at that point, was only about 3 years old. (For this age difference see Ex 7:7) Yet at that time Miriam is an intelligent youth, capable of significant initiative. Moses is the youngest of the three.

Moses’ wife, Zipporah bore him two sons. Gershom, his first-born, and Eliezer his second son. (Ex 2:22, 18:3-4; 1Chron 23:12-15)

Now Moses’ two sons set out among that first generation which left Egypt. It is therefore clear that both his sons died before him, and that neither one entered Canaan. (When the second numbering was conducted Moses himself was still present, but of course in the end the only ones that remained, of all the generation that had crossed through the Red sea, were Caleb and Joshua.)

We read little of Moses’ sons, and the only note of any significance relates to Moses’ grandson, Shebuel, who became “ruler of the treasures” of the house of God. (1Chron 26:24, 23:14-16)

Moses left Egypt when he was 80 years old, and it is more than possible that his father accompanied him during the first few years of the exodus. (If Amram were [for example] 50 years old when Moses was born to him, and the Hebrews left Egypt in Moses’ 80th year, then Amram would have been 130 years old at that point, and he would have journeyed with Israel 7 years.)

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Stewart

[Gail]

Interesting note!