Unpacking Exodus 1:15-16: Defying the King's Order

The Plot Against the Hebrews

This moment in Exodus 1:15-16 comes right after Pharaoh has already begun oppressing the Israelites out of fear that they’re becoming too numerous and powerful.

Back in Exodus 1:8-14, we read that a new king arose who didn’t know Joseph and became alarmed at how quickly the Hebrew people were growing. He forced them into hard labor, hoping to weaken them, but the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied.

Now, in verses 15 - 16, Pharaoh takes a darker step: he commands two Hebrew midwives, Shiphrah and Puah, to kill every newborn Hebrew boy at birth, while letting the girls live. This was a direct, cruel attempt to control the population by eliminating future generations of men who might rise up in rebellion.

Courage in the Face of Fear

Pharaoh’s command to kill Hebrew baby boys reveals how fear drives oppressive power - and how God raises up quiet heroes to resist it.

In the ancient world, having sons brought honor and security, while daughters were often seen as less valuable - so Pharaoh’s order to spare girls but kill boys twisted cultural values to serve his fear of rebellion. Naming the midwives Shiphrah and Puah is significant because, in a story of faceless empires, God remembers the faithful by name and values individual courage. These women stood in the gap, not as warriors or prophets, but as ordinary people doing their jobs with extraordinary faithfulness.

The text says they ‘feared God’ - a phrase that means they respected and obeyed Him more than they feared Pharaoh’s threats.

Their fear of God led them to disobey the king and preserve life, and because of it, God blessed them. This act of quiet resistance sets the stage for the larger story of deliverance that will unfold in Exodus, showing that God often begins great rescues through small, faithful choices.

Faith That Defies Unjust Orders

The midwives’ decision to disobey Pharaoh was an act of faith rooted in loyalty to God’s covenant with His people.

They refused to kill the baby boys because they feared God more than the king, showing that true faith often stands against powerful systems of injustice. This kind of courage isn’t based on strength or status, but on trusting that God sees what others ignore.

Their quiet defiance echoes throughout Scripture as a model of moral faithfulness when human laws contradict God’s will.

The Bible later affirms this principle clearly: in Acts 5:29, the apostles say, 'We must obey God rather than human beings.' Shiphrah and Puah protected life out of reverence for God; we are likewise called to honor Him even when it involves risk. Their story reminds us that God values faithfulness over compliance, and that He blesses those who choose His ways - even quietly - because He is a God who remembers and delivers.

How This Story Points to Jesus

This moment with the midwives is not just a story of courage - it’s the first step in God’s plan to rescue His people, a plan that ultimately leads to Jesus.

By sparing the Hebrew boys, Shiphrah and Puah helped preserve the line of Israel’s future deliverer, Moses, who would lead God’s people out of slavery. This act of protection sets the stage for the birth of Moses in Exodus 2:1-10, where we see God’s hand shielding a baby boy who would become the one to confront Pharaoh and bring freedom. In the same way, centuries later, Jesus as a child was saved from King Herod’s order to kill all baby boys in Bethlehem, as recorded in Matthew 2:16-18, where Herod, like Pharaoh, tried to destroy the promised deliverer.

These two moments - one in Exodus, one in Matthew - mirror each other, showing that God’s rescue plan cannot be stopped by human evil.

Just as Pharaoh’s attempt to destroy the Hebrew boys failed because God raised up courageous women to defy him, so too Herod’s massacre failed because Joseph obeyed God in a dream and fled to Egypt with Jesus. The weeping in Rachel’s voice in Matthew 2:18 echoes the pain of Israel under Pharaoh, yet both stories point beyond sorrow to hope: God preserves the deliverer. Moses was saved to lead Israel out of Egypt, and Jesus was saved to deliver all who trust in Him from sin and death.

This small, quiet act by two midwives was part of God’s long story of redemption, where He protects the vulnerable to bring forth the One who would save the world. And that story continues to invite us: God still raises up faithful people to stand for life, because His plan of salvation moves forward - one brave 'yes' at a time.

Application