The real meaning of “Moses”

A failure to notice the obvious

Every reader of the Bible is familiar with Moses – Moshe in Hebrew. His stories are among the most beloved in all of Scripture: the splitting of the Red Sea, the giving of the Ten Commandments, the manna in the wilderness. No prophet was able to get as close to God as Moses. We have read his name so many times that we feel that we know him personally. But have you ever stopped to think about his name? What does Moses mean?

Drawing out from the deep

After saving a Jewish infant boy from death, the daughter of Pharaoh “named him Moses, saying I drew him out of the water” (Ex. 2:10). When we read this verse in translation, it leaves us scratching our heads. This is because it only makes sense in the original Hebrew, where “she named him Moshe (משה), saying: out of the water Meshi him (משיתיהו)”. The similarity in sound between the name “Moshe” and the word “meshi” (drew) is what makes this verse shine. 

Uncover scripture’s hidden treasures

Pharaoh’s daughter named Moses after her own action, but the verb “Moshe” in Hebrew is in active form, “He draws out”. It is a suitable name for God’s chosen leader that drew the Israelites out of Egypt, out of the Red Sea. The Bible is full of gems that are waiting to be drawn out of the water. Don’t you owe it to yourself to get beneath the surface? Enroll today in our online Biblical Hebrew course and learn to uncover the Bible’s most sparkling treasures.