Pharaoh’s Daughter and a Daughter of Jehovah
Among the detailed genealogies of the tribe of Judah, a name suddenly appears that connects the oppressive kingdom of Egypt with the covenant people of Israel: Bithiah. Her story, brief yet profound in its meaning, stands as a testament to the power of repentance and adoption into the family of God.
The Single Scripture Reference
Bithiah is mentioned only once in the King James Bible, within the highly important lineage of the tribe of Judah, the very line from which King David and, ultimately, the Messiah would descend:
“And his wife Jehudijah bare Jered the father of Gedor, and Heber the father of Socho, and Jekuthiel the father of Zanoah. And these are the sons of Bithiah the daughter of Pharaoh, which Mered took.” (1 Chronicles 41:18, KJV)
This verse reveals a remarkable and counter-intuitive union: Mered, a man from the covenant line of Judah, took as his wife Bithiah, the daughter of Pharaoh.
The Meaning of the Name: A New Identity
The most compelling aspect of her identity lies in the meaning of her Hebrew name. Bithiah ($\text{בִּתְיָ֣ה}$, Bithyâh) is a compound name meaning “Daughter of Jehovah” or “Daughter of Yah.”
This meaning is highly significant because it contrasts sharply with her title, “daughter of Pharaoh.” Pharaoh, as the king of Egypt, represented the ultimate worldly power that opposed the true God and enslaved His people. For his own daughter to bear a name meaning “Daughter of Jehovah” strongly suggests a spiritual conversion—she turned from the gods of Egypt to worship the one true God of Israel.
Scholars often note the Rabbinic tradition that identifies Bithiah with the unnamed daughter of Pharaoh who discovered and adopted the infant Moses in the ark of bulrushes (Exodus 2:5-10). While the Biblical text does not confirm this identification, the spiritual message is the same: the woman who saved the redeemer of Israel was herself saved and brought into the covenant.
Bithiah and the Defence of the Truth
The story of Bithiah, though contained in a single verse, powerfully illuminates key themes central to your work, “Defence of the Truth,” and the message of TheLordsReturn.com.
- The Sovereignty of Conversion: Bithiah’s life is proof that God’s grace transcends national, political, and even racial barriers. Salvation is not reserved for those born into the covenant, but for those who are adopted into it by faith. She was a Daughter of Pharaoh by birth, but became a Daughter of Jehovah by choice. This illustrates the New Covenant truth that those who were once “aliens from the commonwealth of Israel” can be “made nigh by the blood of Christ” (Ephesians 2:12-13, KJV).
- A Foreshadowing of the Lord’s Return: The presence of a converted Egyptian in the lineage of Judah foreshadows the universal scope of the Gospel and the ultimate inclusion of all nations in the Kingdom of the returning King. Just as Bithiah left her palace and her former life to join the humble line of Judah, so will peoples from every nation turn to Christ at His glorious appearing.
Bithiah stands as a shining example of a believer who, at great personal cost, forsook the corrupt system of the world (Pharaoh’s house) for the eternal security of the covenant people, demonstrating true faith in action.