Tonight at Bible class, Simon took us through the ‘Unsung Heroes’ of the Bible. It is interesting to look at these people and find out why they are mentioned by name and why we don’t know much about them.
Has anyone heard of Puah and Shiphrah? In Exodus 1:15-21, they were the midwives for the Israelites at the time of Pharaoh. Pharaoh is not mentioned by name, even though they are. You may be the wealthiest person alive, with the most power and influence but it doesn’t matter if you don’t fear God. V17 says that these midwives feared God.
For those who fear him, God says:
Isa 49:16 Behold, I have engraved you upon the palms of my hands.
Unsung hero #3 is Gedaliah. Jer 40:11-12 mentions that he is appointed governor and Johanan asks him if he wants him to kill Ishmael (who he doesn’t seem to trust). Maybe Gedaliah decides to give Ishmael the benefit of the doubt, which ultimately leads to his death. This is sad, but in the end, maybe he will be rewarded for his faith or ability to give second chances?
Isa 11:2-4 talks about when Jesus will return and he will “not judge by what his eyes see or decide disputes by what his eyes hear. But with righteousness he shall judge the poor.”
Onto the next unsung heroes in 2 Sam 17:27-29… Shobi, Barzillai and Machir. They are the men who bring beds, basins, food and crockery for David and his people. This is such a thoughtful gesture when David is running for his life.
Why did God decide in these cases that they only get a brief mention in the Bible? For another example, in Judges 3:31 Shamgar slew 600 Philistines with an ox goad but he only gets one verse! It’s interesting to think that there are so many inspiring people, maybe there are so many that the Bible would be twice as big if it was all recorded in detail. Maybe it’s like what John 21:25 mentions, “Jesus did many other things as well. If everyone of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.”
It definitely gives us more people to add to our people-to-meet in the kingdom and more stories to look forward to hearing.