Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron, was born in Egypt, where the Jewish people were cruelly enslaved. Miriam was one of the seven great prophetesses in Jewish history. She foresaw that the Jewish people would be redeemed from Egypt, even before Moses was born.

From a very young age, Miriam helped her mother, Jochebed, to deliver Jewish babies in secret. She was known as Puah because she cooed “pua, pua, pua” to soothe crying babies to sleep. When her brother Moses was born, she played a pivotal role in protecting him from harm.

Although she felt her people’s pain deeply, Miriam did not succumb to fear or despair. In fact, she encouraged the Jewish women to have faith that G‑d would rescue them from Egypt, even if it required great miracles. So strong was her conviction that she and the women prepared tambourines and other instruments so that they could sing a song of praise to G‑d in the desert. Sure enough, after the sea split and the Jewish people were saved, the women used these instruments to sing the Song at the Sea.

From Miriam we learn courage and faith. Miriam’s faith (and that of all the women in her generation) was so powerful that it may have actually changed the course of history. The Torah tells us that the Jewish people were redeemed from Egypt “in the merit of the righteous women.”


Resources

Read a complete biography of Miriam


In-Depth Study

Miriam’s Courage
The undaunted courage of a six-year-old girl, to “tell it like it is” even to the leader of the generation, effected the annulment of the evil decree . . . Read


Comfort Zone—lessons from Miriam
There must be people out there who, like me, are simply tired of having their insides all tied up in knots at the thought of yet another challenge. Read


Miriam: Tambourines of Rebellion
You feel the pain and bitterness even more deeply than the others, yet you carry in your heart an inextinguishable flame of faith, hope and optimism. You are Miriam, the quintessential Jewish woman. Read


Miriam’s Drum
From the fact that the women used musical instruments and danced in accompaniment to their song, we understand that their song sprang from a well of deeper joy, and was of a higher caliber, than that of the men . . . Read


Video Series: Miriam, Mother of Rebellion
A series of text-based classes on the life of Miriam as illuminated by the Torah, Talmud, Midrash, Kabbalah and other primary sources. Watch