And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he was a goodly child, she hid him three months. Bare a son - This certainly was not her first child, for Aaron was fourscore and three years old when Moses was but fourscore, see Exodus 7:7 : and there was a sister, probably Miriam, who was older than either; see below, Exodus 2:4, and see Numbers 26:59. Miriam and Aaron had no doubt been both born before the decree was passed for the destruction of the Hebrew male children, mentioned in the preceding chapter.
Goodly child - The text simply says כי טיב הוא ki tob hu, that he was good, which signifies that he was not only a perfect, well-formed child, but that he was very beautiful; hence the Septuagint translate the place, Ιδοντες δε αυτο αστειον, Seeing him to be beautiful, which St. Stephen interprets, Ην αστειος τῳ Θεῳ, He was comely to God, or divinely beautiful. This very circumstance was wisely ordained by the kind providence of God to be one means of his preservation. Scarcely any thing interests the heart more than the sight of a lovely babe in distress. His beauty would induce even his parents to double their exertions to save him, and was probably the sole motive which led the Egyptian princess to take such particular care of him, and to educate him as her own, which in all likelihood she would not have done had he been only an ordinary child.