Miriam

Miriam is mentioned 3 times in the Bible as a main character. We first see her in Exodus 2 then later in Exodus 15 and lastly in Numbers 12.

Miriam is mainly recognized as the woman who saves the life of her brother Moses but as we find out, she is much more than that. First off,  She was one of seven prophetesses in the Bible. Her name means “bitter” which was a reflection of the time she was born and the bitterness of the conditions.

The first time she is mentioned is in Exodus 2.

This was a turbulent time for the Israelites.  They were living in exile in Egypt and a new Pharaoh was in power.  He was so scared that the Isrelites would grow in population and potentially outgrow Egypt that he instructed the Egyptians to throw any Hebrew boy that was born into the Nile River.

When Pharaoh made this decree to kill every Hebrew boy, a Levite man, Amram and his wife Jochebed had a son.  They desperately tried to hide him.  He started to grow as all babies do and came up with a plan.  This is where we see Miriam mentioned in the Bible for the first time, but not by name.

In Exodus 2:1-8 is reads,

Now a man of the tribe of Levi married a Levite woman, 2 and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him for three months. 3 But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basket[a] for him and coated it with tar and pitch. Then she placed the child in it and put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile. 4 His sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to him.

5 Then Pharaoh’s daughter went down to the Nile to bathe, and her attendants were walking along the riverbank. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her female slave to get it. 6 She opened it and saw the baby. He was crying, and she felt sorry for him. “This is one of the Hebrew babies,” she said.

7 Then his sister asked Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?”

8 “Yes, go,” she answered. So the girl went and got the baby’s mother. 9 Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you.” So the woman took the baby and nursed him. 10 When the child grew older, she took him to Pharaoh’s daughter and he became her son. She named him Moses,[b] saying, “I drew him out of the water.”

It is interesting that mom, dad and sis are not mentioned by name in this passage only that they are from the tribe of Levi.  

Let’s take a tangent for a moment.  The Levites are one of the 12 tribes of Israel. Levi was third of the six sons of Jacob and Leah.  Levi had a daughter Jochebed (Miriam’s mother).  The Levites were one of the most important tribes of Israel because they were the tribe responsible for the religious leadership of the Jews.

Since the tribe is mentioned here and not names, this must be significant to the story that Moses is born from the priestly tribe.

Let’s get back to our star of the story, Miriam.  

His sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to him.

She cared for her brother. At a young age, she was protective of him.  Why do you think that God placed Miriam in this position over her mother?  As a mother, would you have watched over your son?  Was his mother there also?  This passage clearly focuses on Miriam for a reason.

“Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?”

Wow, talking about being quick on her feet?  She immediately came up with an idea to save Moses.  We all know God is behind all of this but for a young girl to show this level of bravery and quick wits should give you a whole new respect for her.

The next time Miriam is mentioned in the Bible several years have passed.  Moses has successfully lead the Israelites out of Egypt and through the Red Sea.

In Exodus 15:20-21 it reads,

20 Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron’s sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed her, with timbrels and dancing.

21 Miriam sang to them: “Sing to the LORD, for he is highly exalted. Both horse and driver he has hurled into the sea.”

So now Miriam’s role has really escalated!  She is now considered a prophet.  Some translations call her a prophetess.  What is a prophet?  It is someone inspired by God to deliver a message or lead.

Miriam not only saved Moses but now she is leading the women.  People lead in many ways and it seems that Miriam found a way to lead by song.  

God used Miriam in a strong role in the Israelites journey.  Not only is she courageous to stand by the river to guard her brother but she also approached Pharaoh's daughter.  Now she is embracing her role as leader.  She is part of God’s plan and she might not have all the answers but she is trusting him.

There is a lot we can learn from Miriam.  Trusting God’s plan and timing.  They roamed around for 40 years and her approach is to lead by Singing.  It’s hard to be in a bad mood when you are singing!  Maybe when you don’t understand what is going on in our life, turn on Christian radio or just start singing a song you know from church.  

So now we are going to see a different side of Miriam in Numbers 12.  Let’s not judge her!  Keep in mind she is human like us.  

In Numbers 12, it reads

1 Miriam and Aaron began to talk against Moses because of his Cushite wife, for he had married a Cushite.

2 “Has the LORD spoken only through Moses?” they asked. “Hasn’t he also spoken through us?” And the LORD heard this.

3 (Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.)

4 At once the LORD said to Moses, Aaron and Miriam, “Come out to the tent of meeting, all three of you.” So the three of them went out.

5 Then the LORD came down in a pillar of cloud; he stood at the entrance to the tent and summoned Aaron and Miriam. When the two of them stepped forward,

6 he said, “Listen to my words: “When there is a prophet among you, I, the LORD, reveal myself to them in visions, I speak to them in dreams.

7 But this is not true of my servant Moses; he is faithful in all my house.

8 With him I speak face to face, clearly and not in riddles; he sees the form of the LORD. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?”

9 The anger of the LORD burned against them, and he left them.

10 When the cloud lifted from above the tent, Miriam’s skin was leprous —it became as white as snow. Aaron turned toward her and saw that she had a defiling skin disease,

11 and he said to Moses, “Please, my lord, I ask you not to hold against us the sin we have so foolishly committed.

12 Do not let her be like a stillborn infant coming from its mother’s womb with its flesh half eaten away.”

13 So Moses cried out to the LORD, “Please, God, heal her!”

14 The LORD replied to Moses, “If her father had spit in her face, would she not have been in disgrace for seven days? Confine her outside the camp for seven days; after that she can be brought back.”

15 So Miriam was confined outside the camp for seven days, and the people did not move on till she was brought back.

16 After that, the people left Hazeroth and encamped in the Desert of Paran.

OK wow, that’s deep.  Aren’t you glad Christ came to die for our sins and God gives us grace over and over.  Trust me, I have been jealous and I have spoken out against people.  I have done it in the past and I will sadly do it in the future.  God is merciful to us as sinners!  There are a multitude of verses in the Bible on God’s mercy.

What I love about this passage is that she and Aaron both realized they had screwed up.  Aaron immediately came to her aid begging Moses to have God forgive her.  I imagine that God purposely gave her those 7 days to think and reflect.  I personally think she came out a stronger woman and continued to help lead as a prophet.  Everyone waited on her, clearly her work was not done.

In Numbers 20:1, we see where Miriam has died near the end of the wandering in Kadesh.  Some scholars put her age at 126 years old.

Numbers 20:1 - Then came the children of Israel, even the whole congregation, into the desert of Zin in the first month: and the people abode in Kadesh; and Miriam died there, and was buried there.

What can we learn from this amazing woman?  Have courage, take a stand, trust God and understand he has his own timing.  Admit mistakes, learn from them and move on.  Lead by singing!  Miriam played a pivotal role for God!  It may not have seemed like it to her at the time but when you look at the whole story that surrounds her, you see how God used her.  That is what God is doing for you today.  You may not see or be aware of the small things you are doing but you are part of God’s plan and He sees it and one day He will tell you about your part!