This Sunday, July 9th, we begin a
five-week exploration of “Woman of Faith in the Bible.” During this study, we will explore the life
and faith of five women from the Bible, beginning this week with Miriam, who
was the sister of Moses and Aaron. Our full schedule of women is as follows:
Sunday,
July 9th – “Miriam”
Sunday,
July 16th – “Naomi”
Sunday,
July 23rd – “Ruth”
Sunday,
July 30th – “Rachel”
Sunday,
August 6th –“Mary Magdalene”
Miriam is one of my favorite persons in the Bible because I feel that
I can really relate to her faith and who she is. We first meet Miriam in Exodus 2, as a young
girl. At that time, the Hebrew people
were living as slaves in Egypt. The
Egyptians forced the Hebrews to work in their fields and to build new cities,
making their own bricks for construction.
The labor conditions were harsh, yet the Hebrew endured and their
numbers actually increased. The Hebrew
population increased so dramatically that their Egyptian masters began to fear
them. So, the Egyptian Pharaoh decreed that
all male infants should be thrown in the Nile River and drowned.
When Moses was born, his mother tried to hide him from the
Egyptians because of the Pharaoh's decree. Initially, she hid Moses in
her home, but, as he grew bigger, it was no longer possible to effectively hide
Moses in the home. So, his mother placed
him in a basket and hid him among the reeds growing on the banks of the Nile
River. Miriam, the young sister, was
instructed to hide among the reeds and watch over the basket with her baby
brother. After some time passed, Pharaoh’s
daughter went down to bathe near the spot along Nile where Moses and Miriam
were hiding. Pharaoh’s daughter saw the
basked and found the baby, Moses. Moved
by pity, she showed the baby to her attendants and decided to adopt Moses.
When Miriam overheard their conversation, she emerged from her hiding
place among the reeds and astutely volunteered to find a wet nurse for the baby
until he would be weaned. Then, she
brought her own mother to Pharaoh’s daughter to care for and nurse the baby
Moses. Through this shrew subterfuge,
Miriam was able to preserve her little brother’s life and set him up as an
adopted member of Pharaoh’s family.
We next encounter Miriam as an adult woman. Moses becomes the leader of the Hebrew
people, negotiating their release from slavery with the Pharaoh. Miriam emerges, along with her other brother,
Aaron, Moses’ trusted lieutenants and advisers.
Miriam becomes the first woman in the Bible to be given the title of “prophet.”
Moses and the Hebrew people finally escape
from Egypt, when God parts the Sea of Reeds, so that they can cross to the other
side. However, the waters quickly close
up and the pursuing Egyptian Army is drowned (see Exodus 14).
When
Miriam and the other Hebrew women realize that they are finally free and safe
from their Egyptian bondage, they are overjoyed and filled to overflowing with
divine inspiration. They realize that
God has a deep and profound love for them and their families. Filled with joy, gratitude towards God, and a huge sense of relief, Miriam leads the Hebrew women with singing and dancing as
they celebrate God’s love and their escape from slavery:
“When the horses of Pharaoh
with his chariots and his chariot drivers went into the sea, the Lord brought
back the waters of the sea upon them; but the Israelites walked through the sea
on dry ground.
Then the prophet Miriam, Aaron’s sister,
took a tambourine in her hand; and all the women went out after her with
tambourines and with dancing. And Miriam
sang to them:
‘Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;
horse and rider he has thrown into the sea.’” ~ Exodus 15: 19-21
Ultimately, the Hebrews wander in the desert for 40 years
before entering the Promised Land.
During most of this time, Miriam serves as a prophet, advising and
helping Moses lead the Hebrew people.
In the
Jewish Talmud, there is a legend about “Miriam’s Well.” During the Hebrews' years of wandering in the
desert, they needed a ready source of food and water. God provides manna, which falls each day like
dew, for food (see Exodus 16: 1-36 or Numbers 11: 1-9). For water, according to the legend, God
provides a well of gushing water. The
well is in the form of a rock, which rolls along, following the Hebrews during
their wanderings. God provides this
ready source of water because Miriam is such a good and faithful person. Miriam’s optimism and faith spiritually
sustained the Hebrews during their long journey. So, the Hebrews called the well, “Miriam’s
Well.” When Miriam dies (Exodus 20:
1-2), the well dries up.
More
recently, since the 1980s, some Jewish families have added a cup of water to
their celebration of the Seder meal each year.
In the liturgy, “Miriam’s Cup” follows the second
cup of wine, with this explanation:
“Like
Miriam, Jewish women in all generations have been essential for the
continuity of our people. As keepers of
traditions in the home, women passed down songs and stories, rituals and
recipes, from mother to daughter, from generation to generation. Let us each fill the cup of Miriam with water
from our own glasses, so that our daughters may continue to draw from the
strength and wisdom of our heritage.”[1]
The inclusion of “Miriam’s Cup” in the Jewish Seder
Meal provides a means for remembering and celebrating the strength and
faithfulness of Jewish women down through the centuries.
While the scriptures present
Miriam as a strong, faithful Jewish woman for the most part, there is one
negative story concerning Miriam. In
Numbers 12, Miriam and Aaron are very critical of Moses, when he takes and
marries a foreign wife. In fact, Miriam
and Aaron are so angry at Moses that they begin questioning his leadership of
the Hebrew people. Miriam and Aaron ask,
“Has the Lord spoken only through Moses?
Has he not spoken through us also?” (Numbers 12:2)
God becomes very angry with Miriam
and Aaron. So, God calls for a special meeting
with the three siblings—Aaron, Miriam, and Moses. At the meeting, God makes clear that Moses is
the chosen leader of the Hebrew people: “…my
servant Moses…is entrusted with all my house.
With him I speak face to face…and he beholds the form of the Lord” (vv.
7-8). Then, God strikes Miriam with
leprosy, as punishment for her challenge of Moses.
When Moses sees that his sister
has been stricken with leprosy, he cries to God: “O God, please heal her” (v. 13). God agrees to heal Miriam of her leprosy—but,
only after a seven day probationary period.
Since leprosy was considered highly contagious, Miriam must live away
from her people, in quarantine. All of
the Hebrew people, wait for seven days on Miriam, until she is healed and can
rejoin them. (v. 15)
This is a rather odd episode in
Miriam’s life. Their critique of Moses’
decision to marry outside the faith seems justified. Intermarriage between Hebrews and foreigners
was prohibited, as Deuteronomy 7:3 makes very clear. Further, there is a story later in Numbers,
which illustrates how intermarriage can lead to corrupting influences in which
the Hebrew people begin to worship false gods, instead of the one, true
God. (See Numbers 25: 1-5) So, Moses is clearly in the wrong when he
marries a Cushite woman. Yet, God seems
to view Miriam and Aaron’s challenge of Moses as a far more serious
transgression. One aspect of this story,
which I find especially striking is that all of the Hebrew people were willing
to sit and wait for seven days in the desert for Miriam to be healed and rejoin
them.
I began this discussion of Miriam
by saying that Miriam is one of my favorite persons in the Bible because I feel
that I can really relate to her faith and who she is. Just as Miriam, when she served as Moses’
adviser and lieutenant, there have been many periods in my life, when I feel that
I have faithfully served God. Just as
Miriam, when she sang and danced on the banks of the Sea of Reeds, there have
been many times in my life, when I have been inspired and filled with a strong
conviction of God’s Presence in my life.
And, just as Miriam, when she wrongfully challenged Moses’ leadership,
there have been many times in my life, when I have sinned; times when I let
myself and God down by not living a life of faithfulness. So, I feel a special kinship with Miriam;
someone whom I can relate to.
If you live in the Lincoln, Nebraska area and do
not have a place of worship, then I invite you to come and join us this Sunday,
July 9th, as we begin our exploration of “Woman of Faith in the Bible”
with Miriam. Christ United Methodist Church
is located at 4530 A Street. Our classic worship services are at
8:30 and 11:00 on Sunday mornings.
Come
and join us. Everyone is welcome and accepted because God loves us
all.
[1]
“Miriam’s Cup:
Miriam’s Cup Ritual for the Family Seder,” http://www.miriamscup.com/RitualFirst.htm,
accessed 5 July 2017.
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