Ah, wahenga walisema, "Usimtukane Mkunga uzazi ungalipo." Hao wahenga wiliweza sana.
Imagine life without a midwife! Mine was an out-of-hospital birth, back then access to antenatal and institutional deliveries attended by trained health workers were a distant reality; mama didn't have the luxury of hospital delivery. Banana leaves were my first bed, thanks to the loyal community midwife. By the way, who remembers to thank their midwife! Some women don't even remember the face of their midwife leave alone their name.
In Exodus 1:15, Moses introduces us to two God-fearing midwives: Shiphrah and Puah. They are probably the ones who delivered him and saved his life! The Pharaoh and Egyptians were threatened by the growing Hebrew population. In fact they planned to deal shrewdly with them by oppressing them but even that didn't stop the Hebrew from multiplying and growing. So, the pharaoh called for the Hebrew midwives and instructed them to kill the baby boys while their mothers were on the birth-stools, v. 16. But these women were God-fearing, they saved the boys and because of that, God dealt well with them and blessed them with posterity, v.21. When Israelites left Egypt, there were about 600,000 men, besides children, Ex. 12:37. I imagine that most of those men were probably delivered and saved by the midwives.
The midwives were righteous women who understood the value of life and it's importance in God's eternal plan. They recognized that male or female, life is sacred. Without their courage and sacrifice certainly there wouldn't be present and future hope. Before the the sung heroes such as Moses and David could deliver Israel, these two women were the first deliverers.
Midwives deserve some recognition, they're truly heroines.
Yours faithful scribbler,
NzakuNashipae
NzakuNashipae
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