Exodus 1- The Family That Became a Nation
1 Now these are the names of the children of Israel, which came into Egypt; every man and his household came with Jacob.
2 Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah,
3 Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin,
4 Dan, and Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.
5 And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls: for Joseph was in Egypt already.
Exodus opens with a reminder of who came into Egypt with Jacob. Moses lists the sons of Israel and then gives us a number.
Seventy souls.
That's where the story begins.
When Jacob's family entered Egypt, they weren't a nation. They weren't an army, a kingdom, or a world power. They were simply a family living in a foreign land.
Yet God saw something more.
Those seventy people carried a promise that stretched back to Abraham. What looked small at the time would eventually become a nation.
People saw a family. God saw a future.
What looks small today isn't always small tomorrow. We live in a culture that loves instant results, but God often starts with simple things and grows them over time. Don't despise small beginnings or ordinary seasons. You may only see a small step. God may be building something much bigger.
Quiet Growth, Powerful Results
6 And Joseph died, and all his brethren, and all that generation.
7 And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abundantly, and multiplied, and waxed exceeding mighty; and the land was filled with them.
As the years passed, Joseph died, his brothers died, and that entire generation passed from the scene.
But the family continued to grow.
Children were born. Families expanded. One generation followed another.
The Bible describes Israel as fruitful, multiplying, and growing exceedingly strong. What began with seventy people was becoming a large and thriving people.
There are no dramatic miracles recorded here. No burning bushes. No plagues.
Just the quiet unfolding of God's promise through ordinary years and ordinary families.
Sometimes God's biggest work happens in seasons that seem completely ordinary.
It's easy to think nothing is happening when life feels routine. Israel grew through ordinary years before anyone saw the bigger picture. Stay faithful in the everyday moments. Growth is often happening before you can see it.
A New King Sees a Problem
8 Now there arose up a new king over Egypt, which knew not Joseph.
9 And he said unto his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we:
10 Come on, let us deal wisely with them; lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there falleth out any war, they join also unto our enemies, and fight against us, and so get them up out of the land.
Then everything changes.
A new king arose in Egypt who did not know Joseph.
The man who had once helped save Egypt from famine was now forgotten.
When Pharaoh looked at Israel, he didn't see neighbors. He didn't see families.
He saw numbers.
"Behold, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we."
Fear hit the panic button.
Pharaoh worried that if war came, Israel might join Egypt's enemies and leave the land.
The text doesn't tell us that Israel was planning a rebellion. It tells us what Pharaoh feared.
And those fears are about to shape every decision he makes.
Fear can distort how we see people and situations. Pharaoh stopped seeing people and started seeing problems. Before fear drives your decisions, make sure it's telling you the truth.
The Pressure Gets Cranked Up
11 Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses.
12 But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew. And they were grieved because of the children of Israel.
13 And the Egyptians made the children of Israel to serve with rigour:
14 And they made their lives bitter with hard bondage, in morter, and in brick, and in all manner of service in the field: all their service, wherein they made them serve, was with rigour.
Pharaoh responded with force.
Taskmasters were placed over the Israelites. Hard labor became their daily reality.
They built the treasure cities of Pithom and Raamses for Pharaoh.
The strategy seemed simple. Make life hard enough, and the people will stop growing.
But it backfired.
"The more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and grew."
The pressure increased. The people kept growing.
The Egyptians became even more alarmed and made Israel serve with ruthless intensity. Life became bitter through hard labor in the fields and on construction projects.
The suffering was real. But so was God's blessing.
Pressure has a way of making us think everything is falling apart. Sometimes God is still at work even when life feels heavy. Don't assume a difficult season means God has stopped moving.
A Darker Plan
15 And the king of Egypt spake to the Hebrew midwives, of which the name of the one was Shiphrah, and the name of the other Puah:
16 And he said, When ye do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women, and see them upon the stools; if it be a son, then ye shall kill him: but if it be a daughter, then she shall live.
17 But the midwives feared God, and did not as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the men children alive.
Pharaoh's pressure campaign wasn't working. The Israelites were still growing.
So, Pharaoh took things up a level.
Pharaoh called for two Hebrew midwives, Shiphrah and Puah, and gave them a chilling command. When a Hebrew baby boy is born, kill him. Let the girls live. Kill the boys.
The pressure that began in the workplace had now reached the nursery.
At this point, Pharaoh wasn't just trying to manage a population, he was trying to control Israel's future.
But the plan hit a problem.
Shiphrah and Puah feared God more than they feared Pharaoh.
So, they refused. The boys lived.
And Pharaoh's plan stalled before it ever got off the ground.
Sometimes the most important people in a story aren't kings or rulers. Sometimes they're ordinary people who choose to do what's right even when it's costly.
The King's Question
18 And the king of Egypt called for the midwives, and said unto them, Why have ye done this thing, and have saved the men children alive?
19 And the midwives said unto Pharaoh, Because the Hebrew women are not as the Egyptian women; for they are lively, and are delivered ere the midwives come in unto them.
20 Therefore God dealt well with the midwives: and the people multiplied, and waxed very mighty.
21 And it came to pass, because the midwives feared God, that he made them houses.
Eventually, Pharaoh noticed. The Hebrew boys were still alive.
Pharaoh called the midwives in and demanded answers.
Why hadn't they obeyed?
The midwives explained that Hebrew women were giving birth before they could arrive.
Whether Pharaoh believed the explanation or not, one thing is clear. His plan still wasn't working.
The chapter then shifts focus away from Pharaoh and back to the midwives.
While Pharaoh was trying to shrink Israel, the people continued to multiply.
The more he fought the growth, the more it continued.
And God blessed the midwives because they feared Him.
It's a surprising contrast.
Pharaoh had a throne. The midwives had conviction.
By the end of the section, it's the midwives who are remembered by name.
Everyone answers to something. Approval. Pressure. Expectations. Fear. The midwives remind us that real courage begins when God's voice matters more than the pressure around us. When you have to choose between what's easy and what's right, choose what's right.
You won't always be able to control what others do. The midwives couldn't control Pharaoh. But they could control their obedience. Focus on being faithful where you are and leave the bigger results in God's hands.
Pharaoh Declares War on the Future
22 And Pharaoh charged all his people, saying, Every son that is born ye shall cast into the river, and every daughter ye shall save alive.
Pharaoh's forced labor hadn't worked.
His order to the midwives hadn't worked.
So, he made one final move.
This time, the command wasn't private. It went out to all his people.
Every Hebrew baby boy was to be cast into the Nile.
The chapter ends in a dark place.
A fearful king is tightening his grip. Hebrew families are living under a terrible threat. And it looks like Pharaoh is in control.
But appearances can be deceiving.
The story began with seventy people entering Egypt.
Now they have become a people large enough to worry a king. And the same God who turned seventy souls into a nation has not lost control of the story.
Despite everything Pharaoh has tried, the Israelites are still growing.
The chapter closes with Pharaoh making plans.
But the story is only getting started.
Pharaoh tried to stop God's people through oppression, fear, and violence, but every attempt only highlighted a greater reality. God's promises were still moving forward.