Puah
Yocheved
Miriam
Batya
Their hands
are the waters,
splitting open to make way
to receive
to pull freedom forth
deliver it
from the womb where brothers wrestle
Their names
form the contours
of contraction
In the sounds
and shapes
of the letters --
A story emerges
to answer God's question:
"Where is your brother?"
A new king rises
but the legacy
of family bloodshed
of not caring
of not keeping
is released
Even as, brick by brick
Pyramids rise and tears fall
to tell a tale of oppression --
mothers and midwives
softly step,
running the length of the Nile
to give birth
to a new way.
Shifra, the sound of shofar
blaring, waking us up to
Puah, the cry, the whine, the
primal scream bursting from burdened bodies
made heavy, Yocheved, by the 400 years,
and all that came after
Miriam rises up to watch over
the storied savior,
saving him from the waters made bitter
from the blood of her brothers.
Her rebellion one of righteousness,
to bring us home.
Batya, bring us home
bring us home
bring us home
to the face of God.
Once the pains of labor subside
Moshiach will kiss us sweetly
on the head,
she will care
she will keep
and she will ask:
have you had enough to eat?
By: Rabbi Maya Zinkow, 2021
דרש רב עוירא בשכר נשים צדקניות שהיו באותו הדור נגאלו ישראל ממצרים
§ Rav Avira taught: In the merit of the righteous women that were in that generation, the Jewish people were redeemed from Egypt.
(15) The king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, (16) saying, “When you deliver the Hebrew women, look at the birthstool: if it is a boy, kill him; if it is a girl, let her live.” (17) The midwives, fearing God, did not do as the king of Egypt had told them; they let the boys live. (18) So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and said to them, “Why have you done this thing, letting the boys live?” (19) The midwives said to Pharaoh, “Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women: they are vigorous. Before the midwife can come to them, they have given birth.”
(1) A certain man of the house of Levi went and married a Levite woman. (2) The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw how beautiful he was, she hid him for three months. (3) When she could hide him no longer, she got a wicker basket for him and caulked it with bitumen and pitch. She put the child into it and placed it among the reeds by the bank of the Nile. (4) And his sister stationed herself at a distance, to learn what would befall him. (5) The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe in the Nile, while her maidens walked along the Nile. She spied the basket among the reeds and sent her slave girl to fetch it. (6) When she opened it, she saw that it was a child, a boy crying. She took pity on it and said, “This must be a Hebrew child.” (7) Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and get you a Hebrew nurse to suckle the child for you?” (8) And Pharaoh’s daughter answered, “Yes.” So the girl went and called the child’s mother. (9) And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this child and nurse it for me, and I will pay your wages.” So the woman took the child and nursed it. (10) When the child grew up, she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, who made him her son. She named him Moses, explaining, “I drew him out of the water.”
Pharaoh rules over a cult of death but the Midwives are ruled by Life itself.
Chayot - can also mean animals. Maybe Pharaoh believed their exquisite lie because it played right into his prejudice-- the Hebrew women to him are not fully human. They are out of his control, like animals, representing his worst fears of chaos, a disordering of his carefully controlled universe. Birth out of control.
Pharaoh’s plan foiled, His resolve strengthens.
The all powerful all fragile Pharaoh gives up on the midwives and instead issues this edict to his people:.
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כב וַיְצַו פַּרְעֹה, לְכָל-עַמּוֹ לֵאמֹר: כָּל-הַבֵּן הַיִּלּוֹד, הַיְאֹרָה תַּשְׁלִיכֻהוּ, וְכָל-הַבַּת, תְּחַיּוּן. {פ} |
22 And Pharaoh charged all his people, saying: 'Every son that is born you shall cast into the river, and every daughter you shall save alive.' {P} |
And then in the midst of this story in which babies are being drowned, into the heart of this death cult-- walk more women---three daughters, the very daughters Pharaoh did not think enough to kill.
A man of Levi marries a daughter of Levi and she gives birth to a male child.
His mother see that the baby is good-- וַתֵּרֶא אֹתוֹ כִּי-טוֹב הוּא, just as God sees that the world God creates is good at the beginning of Genesis.
וַיַּרְא אֱלֹהִים, כִּי-טוֹב. God sees that it is good.
She has the courage to see her child as good even though the eyes of the ruling power see him as a rejected other, to be destroyed. In contrast, she sees with divine eyes. And so she hides him. Closets life away. Because it is life itself that is forbidden in the Pharaoh’s realm.
And then when she can no longer hide him (the midrash imagines his crying becoming too loud) she places him in an ark by the reeds on the river’s bank. The word “ark” “tevah” used only here and in the story of Noah, signifying salvation to come.
In only two verses the Torah signifies with two words that this is a tale of creation (of a people) and salvation.
One could only imagine a mother’s pain at that moment--
But in comes her older daughter who turns horror into hope:
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ד וַתֵּתַצַּב אֲחֹתוֹ, מֵרָחֹק, לְדֵעָה, מַה-יֵּעָשֶׂה לוֹ. |
4 And his sister stood afar off, to know what would be done to him. |
And what she sees is another daughter, a daughter from across enemy lines, the daughter of Pharaoh opening the ark, beholding a crying baby. And this daughter, although she is from the family of the Pharaoh, shows a deep compassion even though she understands that this is an enemy baby.
The baby’s big sister sees a softening, sees a compassion on the face of the daughter of the Pharaoh. She beholds a soft heart. It is at that moment that she steps in and provides a plan, a plan to sustain life:
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ז וַתֹּאמֶר אֲחֹתוֹ, אֶל-בַּת-פַּרְעֹה, הַאֵלֵךְ וְקָרָאתִי לָךְ אִשָּׁה מֵינֶקֶת, מִן הָעִבְרִיֹּת; וְתֵינִק לָךְ, אֶת-הַיָּלֶד. |
7 Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter: 'Shall I go and call you a nurse of the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for you?' |
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ט וַתֹּאמֶר לָהּ בַּת-פַּרְעֹה, הֵילִיכִי אֶת-הַיֶּלֶד הַזֶּה וְהֵינִקִהוּ לִי, וַאֲנִי, אֶתֵּן אֶת-שְׂכָרֵךְ; וַתִּקַּח הָאִשָּׁה הַיֶּלֶד, וַתְּנִיקֵהוּ. |
9 And Pharaoh's daughter said unto her: 'Take this child away, and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages.' And the woman took the child, and nursed it. |
Not only does Moses’ sister reunite her baby brother with her mother, she arranges things so that a Hebrew slave, a mother, is paid for nursing her own child. This level of redemption we have not yet reached to this day.
Rabbi Dianne Cohler-Esses, Dvar Torah 1/8/2020
(ה)"ותקם בעוד לילה" - זו בתיה בת פרעה, גויה היתה ונעשית יהודיה, והזכירו שמה בין הכשרות, בשביל שעסקה במשה, לפיכך זכתה ונכנסה בחייה לגן עדן. "זממה שדה ותיקחהו, [מפרי כפיה נטע כרם]" - זו היא יוכבד, שיצא ממנה משה, שהוא שקול כנגד כל ישראל, שנקראו כרם, שנאמר (ישעיהו ה ז): "כי כרם ה' צבאות בית ישראל". "חגרה בעוז מתניה" - זו מרים, שקודם שנולד משה אמרה 'עתידה אמי שתלד בן שמושיע את ישראל', כיוון שנולד וכבד עליהם עול מלכות, עמד אביה וטפחה על ראשה, אמר לה 'היכן נבואתיך?', ועמד וירק בפניה, ועם כל זאת היא מתאמצת בנבואתה, דכתיב (שמות ב ד): "ותתצב אחותו מרחוק".
(5) "She rises while it is still night" - this is Batya, the daughter of Pharaoh. She was a gentile and became a Jewess and they mentioned her name among the proper [women], since she took care of Moshe. Therefore she merited and entered the Garden of Eden in her lifetime. "She sets her mind on a field and acquires it; [she plants a vineyard from the produce of her hand]" - this is Yocheved, that from her came Moshe who is equivalent to all of Israel, which is called a vineyard, as it states (Isaiah 5:7), "For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the House of Israel." "She girds her loins with strength" - this is Miriam, as before Moshe was born, she said, "In the future, my mother will give birth to the savior of Israel." Once he was born and the yoke upon them became heavier, her father got up and bopped her on the head. He said to her, "Where is your prophecy?" And he got up and spit in front of her face. And nonetheless, she exerted herself about her prophecy, as it is written (Exodus 2:4), "And his sister stood from a distance."
(כו) וַיִּגְדַּל הַיֶּלֶד. עֶשְׂרִים וְאַרְבָּעָה חֹדֶשׁ הֱנִיקַתְהוּ, וְאַתָּה אוֹמֵר: וַיִּגְדַּל הַיֶּלֶד, אֶלָּא שֶׁהָיָה גָּדֵל שֶׁלֹא כְּדֶרֶךְ כָּל הָאָרֶץ. וַתְּבִאֵהוּ לְבַת פַּרְעֹה וגו'. הָיְתָה בַת פַּרְעֹה מְנַשֶּׁקֶת וּמְחַבֶּקֶת וּמְחַבֶּבֶת אוֹתוֹ כְּאִלּוּ הוּא בְּנָהּ, וְלֹא הָיְתָה מוֹצִיאַתּוּ מִפַּלְטֵרִין שֶׁל מֶלֶךְ, וּלְפִי שֶׁהָיָה יָפֶה הַכֹּל מִתְאַוִּים לִרְאוֹתוֹ, מִי שֶׁהָיָה רוֹאֵהוּ לֹא הָיָה מַעֲבִיר עַצְמוֹ מֵעָלָיו. : כְּבַד פֶּה וּכְבַד לָשׁוֹן. וַתִּקְרָא שְׁמוֹ משֶׁה, מִכָּאן אַתָּה לָמֵד שְׂכָרָן שֶׁל גּוֹמְלֵי חֲסָדִים, אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁהַרְבֵּה שֵׁמוֹת הָיוּ לוֹ לְמשֶׁה, לֹא נִִקְבַּע לוֹ שֵׁם בְּכָל הַתּוֹרָה אֶלָּא כְּמוֹ שֶׁקְּרָאַתּוּ בַּתְיָה בַּת פַּרְעֹה, וְאַף הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לֹא קְרָאָהוּ בְּשֵׁם אַחֵר:
(26) "And the child (Moses) grew" - Twenty four months she nursed him, and you say "and the child grew"?! Rather he grew, not in the way of the [rest] land. “And she brought him to the daughter of Pharaoh…” The daughter of Pharaoh would kiss and hug and adore him (Moses) as if he were her own son, and she would not take him out of the king’s palace. “And she called his name ‘Moshe’” – From here you can learn about the merit of those that perform acts of kindness. Even though Moses had many names, the only name that was set throughout the Torah, was the name that Bathyah daughter of Pharaoh called him. Even the Holy One Blessed is He did not call him by another name.
The thing is, when Bat Paraoh discovered Moshe in his basket, she was on her way to bathe in the Nile--the same Nile where baby boys were drowned every day.
That morning she woke up a callous princess so unmoved by the suffering around her that she was willing to bathe in a river used to murder newborns. That same morning she heard a crying baby and, in a moment, became the woman who would risk everything to save a child that would grow up to lead a nation of slaves to freedom and to God.
Tali Adler 2016
אמרה לו בתו אבא קשה גזירתך יותר משל פרעה שפרעה לא גזר אלא על הזכרים ואתה גזרת על הזכרים ועל הנקיבות פרעה לא גזר אלא בעוה"ז ואתה בעוה"ז ולעוה"ב פרעה הרשע ספק מתקיימת גזירתו ספק אינה מתקיימת אתה צדיק בודאי שגזירתך מתקיימת שנאמר (איוב כב, כח) ותגזר אומר ויקם לך עמד והחזיר את אשתו
His daughter, Miriam, said to him: Father, your decree is more harsh for the Jewish people than that of Pharaoh, as Pharaoh decreed only with regard to the males, but you decreed both on the males and on the females. And now no children will be born. Additionally, Pharaoh decreed to kill them only in this world, but you decreed in this world and in the World-to-Come, as those not born will not enter the World-to-Come. Miriam continued: Additionally, concerning Pharaoh the wicked, it is uncertain whether his decree will be fulfilled, and it is uncertain if his decree will not be fulfilled. You are a righteous person, and as such, your decrees will certainly be fulfilled, as it is stated with regard to the righteous: “You shall also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto you” (Job 22:28). Amram accepted his daughter’s words and arose and brought back, i.e., remarried, his wife, and all others who saw this followed his example and arose and brought back their wives.
The Woman Who Rises Early
The woman who rises early is not alone.The kettle sings, the finches peck, the morning is open with possibility.Barefoot, she angles her body in half moon,one palm flat on the floor, the other reaching up, unclenched, a root and a wing.She is the life saved, the birthing woman, the defiant voice.A midwife, she is the one with open hands.
I confess, and I don’t know if you all feel like this but sometimes horror is easier for me than hope, despair easier than inspiration.
Because the spectacle of horror-- certainly horror at a distance, or on a screen-- leaves us helpless spectators. Often an outsized outrage takes us over that goes absolutely nowhere. That has us constantly spinning our wheels, like an exercise bike that stays in place.
I am at my weakest when I am a spectator sunk in despair. Watching helplessly. When I feel trapped-- either about global events, or for that matter, about my own life. When I become a helpless spectator helplessly watching what sometimes feels like the horror of my own life as if it weren’t mine.
But hope -- hope (!!) implicates each one of us.
It reveals the secret that we sometimes harbor, refusing to reveal to one another, even to ourselves. That each of us has agency. And that agency multiplied, collective action, can mean raising up a new world. It can mean the opposite of the destruction of the Capitol on Wednesday. It can mean the senators returning to the site of desecration to count a vote.
It can mean Georgia.
It can mean civil rights and the freedom of slaves. Women and Black people voting.
It can mean health care and child care for all.
And just old plain care.
Caring.
For all of us.
For everyone.
Raising up those who have been stepped on, invisible and devalued.
The voice of hope issues an invitation:
Listen, it says.
You can stand up to this.. Yeah you--
there is possibility here, right here, right now, to remake this world. Your world. The world. Create new worlds.
There are times when hope is precisely what I want to hide from, because hope invites me right into the center of the party of life. And I am scared. And sometimes-- actually many times-- too many times. I just want to be an outraged spectator. Stand at the wall and watch everyone else as they dance and play and create or destroy and oppress. So much easier to stand and watch. And indulge in outrage.
But tonight together let’s raise up a cup of hope. Let’s celebrate in anticipation of redemption. Because if we do believe that we are on the road to redemption, we will act like it and help usher it in. Let our sacred stories help us find hope even in horror. Let’s support each other -- hold each other up, lift each other up -- so we can manifest hope in the world. So we can save each other’s lives. So we can save our own.
Rabbi Dianne Cohler-Esses, Dvar Torah 1/8/2020