Welcome back to Time in the Word! Today, we continue our bible adventure in Exodus 1:11-22. If you are reading this digitally, you can catch the link I embedded in the scripture listed above. Otherwise, grab your bible and turn to Exodus 1:11-22.
Last week we discussed Pharaoh’s forgetfulness of the Jewish Joseph, who saved the Egyptian kingdom, and its people during the seven years of famine. I also pointed out that Joseph’s family relocating to Goshen, was the beginning of the Israelites flourishing.
As the Israelites grew into larger numbers, Pharaoh was convinced that if they continued to grow they could overthrow the Egyptian kingdom. Therefore, Pharaoh enslaved the Israelites by force. Putting cruel taskmasters over them.
What happened?
That is a very good question. As Josephs’s family arrived, Pharaoh mentioned if any family member was skilled in herding and caring for animals, they should come and ask for a job herding Pharaoh’s livestock.
Maybe many of Joseph’s family were hired throughout the Egyptian kingdom. See that they all worshiped the One True God of Joseph, it would stand to reason why Pharaoh was impressed. It wouldn’t be hard to imagine Joseph’s brother’s families rising to high government positions and places of authority. I bet that ruffled a few of the Egyptian local’s feathers.
I did find an article on the site Chabad.org, by Jacob Isaacs, called “Israel’s Enslavement” which gives a few reasons for their enslavement. In this article, Jacob shared that ” Pharaoh limited the personal freedom of the Hebrews, put heavy taxes on them, and recruited their men into forced labor battalions under the supervision of harsh taskmaster.” He went on to say, “But the more the Egyptians oppressed them, and the harder the restrictions imposed upon them became, the more the children of Israel increased and multiplied. Finally, when King Pharaoh saw that forcing the Hebrews to do hard work did not succeed in suppressing their rapidly growing numbers, he decreed that all newly born male children of the Hebrews be thrown into the Nile River. Only daughters should be permitted to live.”
Take note
If you would, hop back to the paragraph above and note how Pharaoh “LIMITED” the Israelites:
- Limited personal freedom
- Put heavy taxes on them
- Recruited men into forced labor, supervised by harsh taskmasters
Are you finding any similarities to what is going on here in America? Makes one raise an eyebrow just a bit, doesn’t it?
Before I closed for today, I just wanted to share with you an interesting fact I found. The only tribe that did not get enslaved by the Egyptians was the Tribe of Levi. There is speculation from Jewish scholars why the Tribe of Levi was not enslaved. The bible doesn’t go into detail why the tribe of Levi was spared either. Check out this interesting article here.
Next time we will fast-forward to Exodus 8. Here, we will head back with Moses to Egypt as he and Aaron prepare Israel for their promised freedom. And Egypt’s Pharaoh meets the One True God.
Thanks for joining me here today in Time in the Word.
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Michele Bruxvoort is sure to draw you in with her delightful sense of humor and love for living life. She enjoys reading, repurposing, as well as remodeling the family home with her husband. Drawing from her life experience as wife, mom, and follower of Jesus, Michele brings you a very honest and real perspective on life. When you don’t find her writing, you can find her mowing lawns, stocking shelves, taking care of her grandbaby and tackling her latest life adventure.
Wisconsin native and empty-nester, she now makes her home with her husband of 27 years in the South West Prairie plains of Minnesota.