Names are important. They aren’t just labels, stuck on us
willy-nilly. No, our names tell us who we are and remind us of the meanings
that our lives have! Your own name probably has a meaning attached to it. Is your
name the same as a beloved ancestor? (My name is one like that.) Or your name
might be the name of someone else who was important to your parents – a close
friend, or a mentor. Or it might even point to a bigger truth that was
important to your family. Names like Grace, Faith, and Hope connect us not just
to each other, but to our God, as well.
Baby Moses had a name that had a special meaning to his
mother. The biblical text even tells us what that meaning was. “Moses” (“Moshe”
in Hebrew) means “drawn out,” because Moses was “drawn out” of the waters of
the Nile River when he was rescued by the Princess of Egypt. That was one of
the most important memories that Moses’ mother cherished. Being “drawn out” of
the Nile was what saved Moses’ life when he was only three months old and in
danger of being killed by one of Pharaoh’s men.
I imagine that Moses’ mother smiled to herself whenever she
remembered that day (Exodus 2:1-10). Pharaoh had given orders that all Hebrew
baby boys were to be thrown into the Nile River as soon as they were born. When
baby Moses was born, his mother could only hide him for three months. And then,
she put her baby boy exactly where Pharaoh had told her to put him – into the
Nile River! Pharaoh, of course, had meant for the Nile to be the death of that
baby; but being put into the Nile was what saved his life in the end. Little
Moses was soon floating safely in the river with his sister watching over him,
waiting to be rescued by a sympathetic Egyptian woman. That woman turned out to
be none other than Pharaoh’s daughter herself. Isn’t the irony wonderful? Moses
was “drawn out” of the river by the daughter of the man who had commanded that
he be killed.
But the meaning of Moses’ name goes a lot deeper than just
the sympathetic rescue of one baby boy. If we read the Hebrew words that are
used to tell the story, we catch a glimpse of a larger symbolism to the name
“Moses.” What kind of a container did Moses’ mother use to keep him safe while
he was floating among the reeds of the river? Why, a basket, of course. We all
know that. But the Hebrew word for the container that held little Moses is
actually “tevah.” That means “ark,” and the word “tevah” is used in only one
other story in the whole Hebrew Bible – the story of Noah! God tells Noah to
build a “tevah” – an ark – to save him, his whole family, and all the world’s
animals from the flood that was about to come. By building a “tevah,” Noah saved
the whole human race from annihilation.
Is the author of this story in Exodus trying to say
something like that about Moses? Does the “tevah” that holds baby Moses also
preserve someone who will save a whole race? Of course, it does! That baby
floating among the reeds of the Nile River in his ark was destined to save the
entire Hebrew nation, although they didn’t know it at the time. When that
Egyptian princess drew Moses out of the water, she drew out the person God
planned to use to rescue all of God’s people! What better name than “Moses” to
remember his escape from death by being “drawn out” of the Nile?
But the symbolism of the name “Drawn Out” is even deeper
than remembering the rescue of a baby who will save his people. The name
“Moses” speaks to the entire human condition of difficulties, despair, and
hope. To understand why that is, we first need to investigate how the writers
of the Old Testament felt about water.
Water is necessary for life – and no one knew that better
than the Old Testament writers who lived in the arid climate of the Middle
East. If the winter rains didn’t fall, the crops didn’t grow, and starvation
was a real possibility. But too much water… that wasn’t good, either. Too much
water brought flooding and disease. In Israelite legend, water was always a
little bit dangerous. The Mediterranean Sea was a place of dragons and demons
where the chaos monster lived, the monster that only God could control. No, it
was never a good idea to go too close to the water, because it was a dangerous
place! And so, “water” – the water of rivers and lakes, and especially the
water of the sea – became associated with danger. Land was a safe place. It was
solid and structured. You can stand on land and feel secure. But not water.
Water was the place of chaos.
Let’s apply those insights to the story of Baby Moses who
was “drawn out” of the Nile River. If water is a place of danger and chaos,
then the picture of Baby Moses floating on the Nile River in his little ark is
frightening. Dangers lurked all around him in the river – unexpected waves, big
fish, crocodiles. And just like baby Moses, we all live surrounded by threats.
Unexpected violence seems to be the norm in our world today, whether it comes
from a tornado, an earthquake, or a terrorist group. The little arks in which
we travel are sturdy and have been built with hands of love, but they carry us
through treacherous waters. There is
always the possibility that our boats will tip over and we will drown in the
water on which we float.
But we don’t have to stay there, floating forever at the mercy
of the Nile River and threatened by its dangers. We, like Moses, have been
“drawn out” – drawn out of the waters of chaos by One who is all too ready to
rescue us. Moses may have been drawn out of the Nile River by a Princess of
Egypt; but we have been rescued from the waters by the Prince of the Universe
itself – Jesus Christ. He is the one who draws us out as we are tossed about on
the waters of chaos and are about to sink. Why, we could all claim the name “Moses,” because we have all been “drawn out” of the water by the love of God and the grace
of Jesus Christ!
And we have something else in common with Moses, the one who
was “drawn out” of the river. Moses may have been rescued by a princess, but he
wasn’t destined for ease and comfort. No, Moses was destined to save his people
– to lead them to the Promised Land through forty years of dust and sweat and
work. Just like Moses, God draws us out of the water not for privilege, but for
service. God draws us out of the water with the intention of molding us into
people who will go bravely to Pharaoh and demand with God’s authority, “Let my
people go!” When the chaos of life threatens to overcome us – to tip our little
boats and plop us right in the middle of the dangerous river – that’s when we
should remember that God will draw us out of the water. And when the chaos of
the world around us seems too big and too complicated to ever be able to solve,
that’s when we should remember that God is, right now, drawing someone out of
the water who will go about doing his work, fighting greed and violence and
oppression and evil.
“Moses”: “Drawn out.” My goodness, what a marvelous name!
And what a wonderful work that our God does for us, drawing us out of the
waters of danger and chaos to stand on solid ground; even while God is drawing
others out of the dangerous waters, as well. Yes, indeed, “Moses” is our name,
too. And thanks be to God that it is!
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