Why did Pharaoh's daughter agree to the Hebrew nurse's suggestion in Exodus 2:7? Scriptural Context and Textual Analysis Exodus 2:6–9 records: “When she opened the basket, she saw the child—and behold, the boy was crying. She felt compassion for him and said, ‘This is one of the Hebrew children.’ Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, ‘Shall I go and call one of the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?’ ‘Go,’ Pharaoh’s daughter told her. And the girl went and called the child’s mother. Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, ‘Take this child and nurse him for me, and I will pay your wages.’” The action hinges on three observations in the text: • Pharaoh’s daughter “felt compassion” (ḥāmal)—emotional motive. • She instantly recognized the infant as Hebrew—cultural/ethnic marker. • She accepted outside help without hesitation—practical necessity. Cultural Practice of Wet-Nursing in Ancient Egypt Royal and noble Egyptian women routinely contracted wet nurses. Ostraca from Deir el-Medina and medical texts such as the Ebers Papyrus (c. 1550 BC) note professional “ḫnmt” (nurse) arrangements. Reliefs in Hatshepsut’s mortuary temple depict royal nurses like Sitre. The practice favored foreign women; an Egyptian princess employing a Hebrew wet nurse fit accepted custom. Because high-status women were often ritually restricted from breastfeeding—and might not be lactating—quickly securing a nurse was urgent and unsurprising. Compassion and Divine Providence The Hebrew verb ḥāmal conveys deep pity. Scripture consistently portrays God stirring rulers’ hearts for His purposes (Proverbs 21:1; Ezra 1:1). The princess’s compassion prepared the way for Moses’ preservation, fulfilling Genesis 15:13-14 and foreshadowing Exodus 3:10. Divine orchestration is emphasized by the improbable convergence of the basket, the princess, Miriam, and Jochebed at precisely the right moment. Political and Social Considerations Accepting a Hebrew nurse also served the princess politically: • It distanced her from defying the royal decree directly; the infant could be explained as “reared for the palace.” • Retaining the child’s ethnic caretaker avoided Egyptian rumors that she herself had borne an illegitimate son. • Paying the nurse (Exodus 2:9) formalized the arrangement, creating a contractual buffer amid potential court scrutiny. Psychological and Behavioral Dynamics Contemporary research on maternal empathy shows that a crying infant triggers oxytocin-mediated caregiving responses even in non-biological caretakers. The princess’s immediate emotional response aligns with universal human attachment mechanisms. Furthermore, Miriam’s quick proposal offered a solution reducing cognitive dissonance between the decree (kill male Hebrews) and the princess’s compassionate impulse; agreeing allowed rapid resolution. Theological Implications: Covenant Preservation By returning Moses to his own mother, God ensured he would imbibe Hebrew identity during the nursing/weaning period (typically three to four years; cf. 1 Samuel 1:23-24). Thus covenant knowledge survived within the palace itself. Psalm 105:26 later celebrates that God “sent Moses His servant,” highlighting this providential nurturing phase. Typological Foreshadowing of Salvation Moses’ deliverance through water anticipates salvation through Christ (1 Corinthians 10:1-2). The gentile princess’s compassion prefigures the inclusion of the nations. Her acceptance of a Hebrew caregiver pictures God’s larger redemptive plan: the Deliverer raised under the enemy’s roof, ultimately conquering that enemy (cf. Colossians 2:15). Archaeological and Extrabiblical Corroboration • Brooklyn Papyrus 35.1446 lists Semitic household servants in Egypt c. 1740 BC, confirming a sizeable Hebrew presence. • Scarabs naming Pharaohs Khyan and Sobekhotep IV from Avaris correlate with a 17th- to early 18th-dynasty setting, matching an early-date Exodus framework (Moses’ birth c. 1526 BC). • Josephus (Antiquities 2.9.4) recounts that Pharaoh’s daughter Thermutis adopted Moses and sought a Hebrew nurse, an independent tradition harmonizing with Exodus. Conclusion: A Harmonized Answer Pharaoh’s daughter agreed to Miriam’s offer because royal protocol required a wet nurse, her awakened compassion overrode the genocidal edict, and the proposed solution was both expedient and socially normative. Behind these human factors, Scripture presents God’s sovereign orchestration: preserving the future deliverer, embedding him within the royal court, and ensuring covenantal upbringing—all converging to advance the redemptive plan ultimately fulfilled in the resurrected Christ. |
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