Miriam and Asiya

A basket in the reeds

Moses (peace be upon him) is one of the most honoured people in all three faiths. His story begins with women. His mother hides him. His sister watches. A woman in the royal household of Egypt takes him in. Without them there is no Moses.

You can read his full story on our Moses page and in Moses and Pharaoh. This page follows the women.

Behind all of it, each faith sees God at work. The Qur'an says it directly, in God's words to Moses' mother: "We shall bring him back unto thee" (28:7).

Miriam, in the Torah

The Torah first meets Miriam without her name, as "his sister". She is the girl who "stood afar off, to know what would be done to him" (Exodus 2:4). She speaks to Pharaoh's daughter and fetches her own mother to nurse the baby (Exodus 2:7–8).

Years later, after the crossing of the sea, she leads the women:

And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances.

Exodus 15:20 · JPS 1917

The prophet Micah (peace be upon him) later lists her with her brothers Moses and Aaron (peace be upon them) as one of Israel's leaders: "I sent before thee Moses, Aaron, and Miriam" (Micah 6:4, JPS 1917). When she is shut out of the camp for seven days, the Torah says "the people journeyed not till Miriam was brought in again" (Numbers 12:15).

Rabbinic tradition adds to this. The Talmud says she prophesied before Moses was born (Sotah 12b; Megillah 14a). Later sources say the well that followed Israel in the wilderness was given by her merit (Taanit 9a). Jewish tradition also identifies her with Puah, one of the two midwives (Sotah 11b; Exodus Rabbah 1:13). In some Jewish homes today, a "Miriam's cup" of water stands on the Passover table in her honour.

Pharaoh's daughter, and Bithiah

In the Torah, Pharaoh's daughter comes to bathe in the river, sees the basket and "had compassion on him" (Exodus 2:6, JPS 1917). She takes him in as her son and names him Moses. The Torah does not give her name.

Jewish tradition does. It reads 1 Chronicles 4:18, "Bithiah the daughter of Pharaoh", as her. The name means "daughter of God". The midrash records God saying to her, in effect: you called Moses your son though he was not your son, and I call you My daughter though you are not My daughter (Leviticus Rabbah 1:3). The Talmud adds that she went down to the river to leave her father's idols behind (Megillah 13a).

In the New Testament, Stephen briefly recalls the story: "Pharaoh's daughter took him up and reared him as her own son" (Acts 7:21, WEB). Christians read the Exodus story as part of their own scripture too, and Miriam is in it.

Asiya, in the Qur'an

The Qur'an gives the moment a different cast. It says that "the family of Pharaoh took him up", and then:

And the wife of Pharaoh said: (He will be) a consolation for me and for thee. Kill him not. Peradventure he may be of use to us, or we may choose him for a son.

Qur'an 28:9 · Pickthall

The Qur'an does not name her. Muslim tradition calls her Asiya (may Allah be pleased with her). The Qur'an holds her up as an example for all believers, for what she asked of God:

And Allah citeth an example for those who believe: the wife of Pharaoh when she said: My Lord! Build for me a home with thee in the Garden, and deliver me from Pharaoh and his work, and deliver me from evil-doing folk;

Qur'an 66:11 · Pickthall

The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ (peace be upon him) spoke of her too, alongside Mary (peace be upon her): "Many amongst men reached (the level of) perfection but none amongst the women reached this level except Asia, Pharaoh's wife, and Mary, the daughter of ʿImran" (Sahih al-Bukhari 3411, Abu Musa).

The Qur'an also tells of Moses' mother and his sister. Moses' mother is "inspired" (28:7; 20:38). His sister follows the basket and says, "Shall I show you a household who will rear him for you and take care of him?" (28:11–12). At the end, "We restored him to his mother that she might be comforted and not grieve" (28:13). The Qur'an does not name the sister.

Honest differences

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