Forgotten Heroines of the Exodus

The beginning of the Book of Exodus introduces us to a world of men’s affairs. Jacob and his descendants, numbering 70 men and their families, come down to Egypt. The men are named and counted; their wives and daughters remain anonymous. The tale then unfolds: A new king arises who, unaware of Joseph, is frightened by the ever-multiplying alien group in his land. He enslaves the Israelites and then orders their male children killed at birth—a strange injunction, for to eliminate a population surely its future birth-givers should be killed. But Pharaoh is only worried about the men, who, […]