Exodus 1:21

And because the midwives feared God, he made ¹  households ²  for them.

1Sa 2:35; 1Sa 25:28; 2Sa 7:11-13,27-29; 1Ki 2:24; 1Ki 11:38; Ps 37:3; Ps 127:1,3; Pr 24:3; Ec 8:12; Jer 35:2

¹ tn The temporal indicator וַיְהִי (vayÿhi) focuses attention on the causal clause and lays the foundation for the main clause, namely, “God made households for them.” This is the second time the text affirms the reason for their defiance, their fear of God.

² tn Or “families”; Heb “houses.”