Bible Strands
Exodus 1:21
And because the midwives feared God, He gave them families of their own.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The narrator records God’s response to the Hebrew midwives’ defiance of Pharaoh’s infanticide decree during the height of Israel’s oppression in Egypt.
The words — יָֽרְא֥וּ (ya.re.'U) means they feared, and בָּתִּֽים (ba.Tim) denotes households or families.
The thread — This pattern of divine reward for faithfulness appears in promises to establish households for those who walk in obedience (1 Kings 11:38; 1 Samuel 2:35) and in the call to trust the Lord through faithful conduct (Psalms 37:3).
Why it lands — The text states that God gave the midwives families because they feared Him, requiring readers to acknowledge that reverence for God, rather than compliance with unjust human commands, secures tangible provision.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And it came to pass, because the midwives feared God, that he made them houses.
Cross-references
- 1 Kings 11:38 If you listen to all that I command you, walk in My ways, and do what is right in My sight in order to keep My statutes and commandments as My servant David did, then I will be with you. I will build you a lasting dynasty just as I built for David, and I will give Israel to you.
- 1 Samuel 2:35 Then I will raise up for Myself a faithful priest. He will do whatever is in My heart and mind. And I will build for him an enduring house, and he will walk before My anointed one for all time.
- Psalms 37:3 Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
- 2 Samuel 7:27 For You, O LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, have revealed this to Your servant when You said, ‘I will build a house for you.’ Therefore Your servant has found the courage to offer this prayer to You.
- Ecclesiastes 8:12 Although a sinner does evil a hundred times and still lives long, yet I also know that it will go well with those who fear God, who are reverent in His presence.
- 1 Kings 2:24 And now, as surely as the LORD lives—the One who established me, who set me on the throne of my father David, and who founded for me a dynasty as He promised—surely Adonijah shall be put to death today!”
- 1 Samuel 25:28 Please forgive your servant’s offense, for the LORD will surely make a lasting dynasty for my lord, because he fights the LORD’s battles. May no evil be found in you as long as you live.
- 2 Samuel 7:11 and have done since the day I appointed judges over My people Israel. I will give you rest from all your enemies. The LORD declares to you that He Himself will establish a house for you.
- Psalms 127:1 A song of ascents. Of Solomon. Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain; unless the LORD protects the city, its watchmen stand guard in vain.
- Psalms 127:3 Children are indeed a heritage from the LORD, and the fruit of the womb is His reward.