Whenever I see a list of important women in the Bible these two women’s names are never listed. Their near anonymity is not surprising since their names are listed only once in the Bible, and their entire story takes up only six verses in Exodus (Exodus 1:15-20).
But the nation of Israel owes these courageous women a great debt.
Israelites in Egypt
Back when the Israelites were in Egypt they enjoyed relative prosperity while Joseph was alive. But after Joseph died, a new Pharaoh came along who didn’t know Joseph, and he was intimidated by the size of the Israelite community.
To solve the problem of the growing Israelite population, Pharaoh enslaved the Israelites committing them to hard labor. But their population continued to swell.
Frustrated by his failed attempt to control the Israelite population, Pharaoh called in the two head Israelite midwives, Shiphrah and Puah. He ordered them to kill the Hebrew baby boys as they were born (Exodus 1:16).
But Shiphrah and Puah feared God and did not do what Pharaoh had ordered them to do (Exodus 1:17).
Shiphrah and Puah were probably not the only two midwives serving the entire Israelite nation. I think they were the leaders of the midwives’ union and used their influence to convince the other midwives to go along with their plan to disobey Pharaoh and allow the Hebrew boys to live.
When Pharaoh called Shiphrah and Puah in to explain why the Hebrew boys were allowed to live they explained that the Hebrew women gave birth before the midwives could arrive (Exodus 1:19).
God approved of the action of Shiphrah and Puah. He caused the Israelite population to grow even more, and because Shiphrah and Puah feared God, He gave them families of their own (Exodus 1:20-21).
Courage and Conviction
Shiphrah and Puah feared God more than Pharaoh. As a result, they had the courage and conviction to do what was right no matter the cost.
They understood that in this specific case, God’s law superseded man’s law. They knew that killing innocent Hebrew babies was a sin against God. Pharaoh could have easily ordered their execution, but Shiphrah and Puah preferred to be right with God.
Peter encountered a similar situation when the apostles were brought before the Sanhedrin and accused of violating the order not to preach about Jesus. Peter and the other apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29).
Peter and the apostles also displayed courage and conviction in refusing to obey man’s law when it violated God’s law.
Must We Obey Man’s Law Regardless?
Paul, writing to the Romans, said: “Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established” (Romans 13:1).
So, as Christians, are we to submit to authority, as Paul directed, or are we to observe the example of Shiphrah, Puah, Peter, and the Apostles?
The answer, it seems, is to submit to man’s law as long as it does not conflict with God’s law.
Killing innocent babies is a sin against God. Regardless of what Pharaoh commanded, it was wrong. So, Shiphrah and Puah defied man’s law to be obedient to God’s law.
Christian leaders, we need to be guided in our actions by the Holy Spirit. We need to be filled with courage and conviction and follow the example of two obscure Hebrew midwives to obey God no matter the cost.
Discussion Questions:
These questions can serve as a valuable framework for a thoughtful and engaging discussion about the article and how its insights and perspectives apply to our lives today.
- Shiphrah and Puah, two relatively obscure women in the Bible, displayed great courage and conviction by defying Pharaoh’s command to kill Hebrew baby boys. Can you think of any other examples, either from the Bible or history, where individuals or groups exhibited similar courage in the face of unjust laws or orders?
- In what ways can we apply the lesson from Shiphrah and Puah’s story to our own lives and leadership roles? How can their example inspire us to prioritize obedience to God’s law over man-made laws or societal expectations?
- The article raises the question of whether we should always submit to man’s law or prioritize obedience to God’s law. What are your thoughts on this matter? Are there instances where obeying God’s law may require us to challenge or disobey man’s law?
- How can Christian leaders strike a balance between submitting to authority and upholding their convictions based on God’s law? What challenges or conflicts might they encounter when navigating this tension?
- Reflecting on the story of Shiphrah and Puah, how can leaders cultivate the courage and conviction to stand up for what is right, even when it goes against societal norms or expectations? What role does faith play in strengthening leaders’ resolve to obey God’s law above all else?
Join the Conversation
As always, questions and comments are welcome. Have you encountered situations when you had to decide between following man’s law or God’s law? Do you think Christians should follow man’s law even if it conflicts with God’s law?
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Category: Personal Development | Courage/Risk-Taking
Personally, I have had no experience with choosing to follow man’s law or to follow God’s law. After reading this article, I was inspired by Shiphrah and Puah in staying obedient to God and fearing God over Pharaoh. It’s a difficult thing to do when there are other fears such as whether these actions will bring execution in Shiphrah and Puah’s scenario, or if it will cause someone in the business world to get fired which will leave you jobless. I think that Christians can follow man’s law as long as they aren’t going against God’s laws.
Emily – Romans 13:1 tells us that as Christians we are to obey man’s laws because their authority was established by God. In the same sense, when men violate God’s law their authority is lost.
The thing that I got out of this really was that I love how God wrote the Bible through people intentional with every aspect. We humans pick out the grandiose stories that are heroic or exciting or graphic. Just as in life we see the big moments not the big picture. We see the BIG sins or the BIG laws as the most important to follow. God is saying we all fall short, follow me and I will make you fishers of men.
Kelsey, How very true – we often live life for the big moments and don’t pay attention the big picture. And that’s when we fall short of God’s purpose in our lives!
This blog post was insightful in that I never realized that Shiphrah and Puah essentially saved the Israelite people from possible extinction. This blog post shows that by simply fearing God more than the anything including the authorities or government, we will be blessed by God.
Christy, This is why I love studying those characters of the Bible we might refer to as the “lesser known.” I’ve found God always has something important to teach us in their stories. That is certainly true of Shiprah and Puah.
I think it was great that you used an oft cited example of showing Godly people going against what was institutionally “right” but not in the eyes of God. I wholeheartedly agree that as leaders we are to be led by the Spirit not laws, to help us in deciding what is wrong against what is right. I feel that as Christian leaders we have an additional weight in order to assure that we can accomplish this.
Sebastian – so very true, as leaders we bear the responsibility of accurately and faithfully being a light to the world!
Before reading this blog, I knew the importance of being obedient to God’s law especially if it conflicted with man’s law. However, life can present many situations in which your peers follow a specific law of man that contradicts God’s law and many times it is easy to follow man’s law too. But this blog reiterated the importance of following God’s law and the story of the two women’s courage is a perfect example of the importance.
Allison, I agree God’s law must have first position in our hearts. The tension for most of us is when society pushes against God’s law (as it does in many areas these days).