Komentarz do Wyjścia 1:19

כי חיות הנה signifies they are just as skilful as midwives. The Aramaic for מילדות, midwives, is חיתא (hence the term חיות in this verse). Our Rabbis, however, (taking this word in the sense of animals) gave the following explanation (Sotah 11b): they have been compared to the beasts of the field which do not require the help of midwives. And where are they compared to animals? (Genesis 49:9) “Judah is a young lion”; (Genesis 27) “Benjamin is a wolf that leareth”; (Deuteronomy 33:17) “Joseph is the firstling of his ox”; (Genesis 49:21) “Naphtali is a hind sent forth”. As for the ancestors of those tribes about whom such a comparison is not expressly written Scripture implicitly includes them in the several blessings bestowed upon their brothers, (and thus they also are compared, as their brothers, to animals), for Scripture states, (Genesis 49:28) “And he blessed them etc.” (cf. Rashi on these words). Then, again, it is written, (Ezekiel 19:2) “How was thy mother a lioness!” (The prophet is addressing the princes of Israel as the representatives of the people, and by the term “thy mother” means the progenitors of the nation; the chapter proceeds to speak of the mother’s offspring as “whelps”).

כי חיות הנה, “healthy, alert and the birthing process proceeds smoothly and quickly.”

כי חיות הנה, they themselves are expert in the art of midwifery. If we were to attempt to do anything contrary to accepted practice or even to speak to them in a suspicious manner they would notice this immediately and would not ask any of us again to assist when they were due to give birth. They argued that it is not worth the king’s while to have only a few babies killed.