Jochebed's name is given various allegorical interpretations the Leviticus Rabbah identifies her as the person named in the Book of Chronicles as Jehudijah, by arguing that the name should be interpreted as meaning the Jewess, in reference to her founding the Jewish nation by disobeying the Pharaoh's order to dispose of the firstborn males. The Targum Pseudo-Jonathan identifies Jochebed as also having been wife of Elitzaphon Ben Parnach, and the mother of Eldad and Medad the text is ambiguous as to when this marriage occurred in relation to the marriage(s) to Amram. The Exodus Rabbah argues that when the Pharaoh instructed midwives to throw male children into the Nile, Amram divorced Jochebed, who was three months pregnant with Moses at the time, but Miriam soon persuaded him to marry Jochebed again it goes on to argue that the Egyptians estimated the date that Moses would be due to be born by counting nine months from the start of this marriage, hence allowing Jochebed to hide him for the three months that were overestimated. In making this identification, the rabbis interpret the houses, with which the Book of Exodus describes God as having compensated the midwives, as having been those of priesthood and of royalty these houses are interpreted by the Talmudic rabbis as allegorical references to Jochebed's sons – Moses and Aaron respectively. Jochebed is identified by some rabbis in the Talmud with Shiphrah, one of the midwives described by the book of Exodus as being ordered by Pharaoh to kill the new-born male children. In the Apocryphal Testament of Levi, it is stated that Jochebed was born, as a daughter of Levi, when Levi was 64 years old. Some Greek and Latin manuscripts of the Septuagint state that Jochebed was Amram's father's cousin, and others state that she was Amram's cousin. Jochebed is also called Amram's father's sister in the Masoretic text of Exodus 6:20, but ancient translations differ in this. This kind of marriage between relatives was later forbidden by the law of Moses. This would make Jochebed the aunt of Amram, her husband. Amram was the son of Kohath, who was a son of Levi. The story continues with Moses, who grew up to become the leader of the Exodus, leading his people out of the land of Egypt.Īccording to the Book of Numbers, Jochebed was born to Levi when he lived in Egypt. Thus Jochebed nursed her son until he was old enough and brought him to the Pharaoh's daughter, who adopted him as her son. The Pharaoh's daughter agreed and so Miriam called her mother, who was appointed to take care of him. The "sister" of the child (presumed to be Miriam), who had come forward, suggested to find her a Hebrew woman to nurse the child. Moved with compassion when she discovered the child, she decided to adopt him. The basket fell in the hands of the Pharaoh's daughter who was bathing in the river. Jochebed placed Moses in a basket and released him in the flow of River Nile. To save her son's life, she waterproofed a basket and put the child in it. When Moses, her youngest child, was born, Jochebed hid him for three months until she could hide him no longer. The Pharaoh had decreed that all their baby boys were to be thrown into the Nile, because he feared that they might become too powerful. (Her name is first mentioned in Exodus 6:20.) She lived in Egypt, where the descendants of Israel were being oppressed. The story of Jochebed is thought to be described in the Book of Exodus (2:1–10) – although she is not explicitly named here. In the New Testament, she is praised for her faith in God. According to Jewish legend, she is buried in the Tomb of the Matriarchs, in Tiberias. No details are given concerning her life. She was the wife of Amram, as well as his aunt. Moses and Jochebed by Pedro Américo, 1884Īccording to the Bible, Jochebed ( / ˈ j ɒ k ɪ b ɛ d/ Biblical Hebrew: יוֹכֶבֶד, romanized: Yōḵeḇeḏ, lit.' YHWH is glory') was a daughter of Levi and mother of Miriam, Aaron and Moses.
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