Is the old testament good for women?

Exodus hidden layers part 1

 
Turns out... the Exodus story keeps moving forward through women. 

And once you start seeing that pattern, you cannot unsee it.

I remember looking at Old Testament laws and thought they're about oppression, but many of those laws were actually placed within a broken society to bring protection where there was none, especially for women. Exodus became that turning point for me.

Because in this passage, you see Miriam, likely a young girl, watching her brother placed in the river. No one tells her what to do. God doesn't give her explicit instructions. But somehow she stays. She watches. And when the moment comes, she steps forward and speaks. She helps create the very situation that allows her brother to be raised by his own mother.

Then you see the midwives. They are told by Pharaoh to kill the newborn boys, and they refuse. Their fear of God outweighs their fear of Pharaoh. In that moment, they quietly defy the plan of an entire empire. 

And then there is Pharaoh’s daughter. Her role is like a rug being pulled out from under Pharaoh when he least expects it. Because of her, Moses is raised inside the very house that ordered his death. She sees a child and refuses to participate in the system she was born into. She chooses compassion and raises him as her own.

When you step back, the pattern becomes clear. The Old testament honors women. Through the midwives, through Miriam, and through Pharaoh’s daughter, Pharaoh’s plan begins to unravel.

And I want to be careful here, because this is not to say that the work of Moses and Aaron was not important. It was. God used Moses as a deliverer. He called him into leadership. There was weight in his obedience and responsibility.

But Moses would never have been alive, and would never have stepped into that calling, if it were not for these women.

Because you begin to see that both genders are not in competition. One is not elevated at the expense of the other. Instead, there is a pattern. God uses both. He weaves both into the story in ways that are distinct, but very much needed.

There is strength on both sides. There are limitations on both sides. And somehow, in his way, he brings it all together to carry out His plan.

The women are not always given explicit instructions. Yet they move with awareness. They act with courage. They step in at the exact moments that changes everything.

And maybe that is what we miss. Because to say that the Old Testament is not for women is to overlook so much beauty that is already there.

In a culture that was broken, God was present. 
He was working within it, shaping it, and using women to quietly subvert it.  Through moments of courage. Through small, choices behind the scenes.

And maybe that is the beauty we miss when we only read through a modern lens.

Because when we step back, we can see that the Old Testament is just as much for women as the New Testament reveals through women like Lydia, Mary, and Martha.

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Heart Call:

We have been studying Exodus for a while now. And it still surprises me how much is there, my friend.

So what I will be sharing are some of those hidden details, but that reveal so much beauty in the Old Testament… to get you excited to read.

Because there is mooooooore!

And I really hope this encourages you to go back and read it soon. There is more to come, maybe a part two, maybe even a part three. Honestly, your girl don’t know yet… we will just go with the flow.

But for now, we are on this journey together.

1. The Hebrew midwives
   Exodus 1:15–21
   Pharaoh commands the midwives to kill the Hebrew boys, but they fear God and refuse.

2. Moses placed in the river and Miriam watching
   Exodus 2:1–4
   Moses is placed in a basket in the Nile, and his sister watches from a distance.

3. Miriam speaks and brings their mother
   Exodus 2:5–9
   Miriam steps forward and arranges for their mother to nurse Moses.

4. Pharaoh’s daughter rescues Moses
   Exodus 2:5–10
   She finds Moses, has compassion, and raises him in Pharaoh’s household.

• Are you seeing the wonder how God works through both genders?

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Photo Credits: Leighann Blackwood.