I believe this caused quite a division in the family relationship. 22 And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD, Israel is my son, even my firstborn: 23 And I say unto thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me: and if thou refuse to let him go, behold, I will slay thy son, even thy firstborn. After functioning as a social worker for many years, she went on to become the first African American female to graduate from Western Theological Seminary in Holland, Michigan, with both the master of divinity and doctorate of ministry degrees. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. (LogOut/ The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". This is a Different Kind of Christian Educational Website. Exodus 4:25-26 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me. 2. Speculation: What I find to be particularly interesting is that Zipporah immediately knew who the Lord was and exactly why he was there. From the material I have read, it looks like Zipporah put some pressure on her hubby not to circumcise the boy. So, she had this encounter with the Lord just as what Jacob did before he met Esau again. How might these things have been allowed to trump your identity in Christ? On the flip side, if the protagonist is all-mighty as He states, the circumcision alone- an act of obedience and surrender- could render the preservation of their lives. To dishonor that sign and seal of the covenant was criminal in any Hebrew, peculiarly so in one destined to be the leader and deliverer of the Hebrews; and he seems to have felt his sickness as a merited chastisement for his sinful omission. Answer (1 of 3): The verses in question are Exodus 4:24-26, the context is Moses, his wife Zipporah and their son Gershom reaching an inn on their way from Midian to Egypt to announce the plagues to the Pharaoh. Comments or questions, contact me at: thoughtsonword@gmail.com. Look for the lock in the address bar. As we reflect on Zipporahs witness, let us consider this: The Hebrew word for remember invites us to focus on a thing until it leads us to repentance. Till 24, Pharaoh's first born son was the subject. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Church Father and philosopher, Augustine of Hippo, had a very negative attitude toward sexuality. Most people read over it and dont understand what it all means. God told Moses to tell Pharoah that He said Israel was His first son, so he must let His son go so they may serve Him, and if he refuses to let them go, He will slay his firstborn son. Soon after meeting the One Who instructs him to return to Egypt in order to lead his Israelite brethren out of bondage in Egypt, "Moses took his wife and his sons, put them on a donkey, and went back to the land of Egypt." (Exodus 4:20.) The name Gershom means foreigner. Thank you for the explanation in simple terms. Zipporah casts the foreskin at Moses' feet and calls him a "bloody husband" simply because she is disgusted by the bloody procedure of circumcision. And he went, and met him in the . (m) This act was extraordinary: for Moses was very sick and God even then required it. Once we get the correct understanding of the passage, the hard questions that have plagued theologians for years will vanish. Zipporah immediately takes a sharp stone cuts the foreskin off of her son and throws it at the feet of Moses and declares he is a bloody husband. It would also appear that she had successfully persuaded Moses to go along with her in refusing to circumcise the child. He belonged to the household of his maternal grandfather, Jethro (Yetro) the priest of Midian. The NIV and other translations that try to help the reader by replacing pronouns with names actually cause a stumbling block to the proper understanding of this passage. Our study is to give some sense to this short mysterious section of text and present a few possible reasons for its inclusion, so you can make up your mind about which seems the most logical answer. Ask God to help you remember the places and things in your life that you have attached to your identity. Remind us in you who we truly are and remind your church of the same. Why his feet? Circumcision was not the same medical practice it is today, but circumcision was a sign of the covenant God had made with Abraham and his descendants. We are going to take a closer look at Zipporah, wife of Moses. 26 So the LORD let him alone. Exodus 4:24-26 (KJV) 24 And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him. God said to Abraham, As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. Answer: Zipporah, the name of Moses' wife, is only referenced three times in the Bible (Exodus 2:21, 4:25, 18:2). Rev. Then again, as some researchers suggest, God may have sought to kill not Moses, but Mosess son because he had not been marked as a member of Israel through circumcision. ((c) Maimon. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Name MeaningA Midian name, Zipporah means "a little bird," "a sparrow."Wilkinson observes that "the feminine termination ah added to the common word Zippor, which is also the father of Balak, king of Moab." Such a name like "dove" or "lamb" would originally be a . What did Zipporah do to Moses? Zipporahs story should always be told alongside Mosess, for without her, he would surely have died before returning to Egypt, still unclear about his true identity. 25 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me. 25 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me. It is evident that Zipporah regarded this rite as both barbarous and unnecessary. God was able to write Moses or LORD if he wanted to. Zipporah's father was Jethro, also called Reuel. That Monthly Period of Women Did God Curse Eve? He has also had articles published in The Coming Home Journal and local newspapers and has written a childrens book. In Exodus 2 Moses marries Zipporah, a Gentile, who gives birth to Gershom. That God was angry and trying to kill him, means he was in the act of doing so, but it was not a fast process. QUESTION: Why is Moses saved by Zipporah circumcising his son in Ex 4:24-26? Takedown request | View complete answer on en.wikipedia.org. Her story reminds us that flesh and blood have always been faithful reminders of God's covenant promises. Orange Is The New Black Season 8 Renewed Or Cancelled? A bloody husband - Literally, "a husband of blood," or "bloods." You are a bridegroom of blood, Zipporah declares as she tosses flesh at Mosess feet. "visited him with a sharp attack of illness, which threatened to he fatal." Zipporah casts the foreskin at Moses feet and calls him a bloody husband simply because she is disgusted by the bloody procedure of circumcision. The first son of Moses and Zipporah was called Gershom, which means stranger. Moses told God that he wasnt eloquent with his speech, which aggravated God. rigour. Why did God seek to kill Moses? Another example is when Abraham said to his servant, Put your hand under my thigh and I will make you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and earth, that you will not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I live. What is clear from the Bible is that Zipporah understood the threat to her husband. Because Moses had chosen to side with the oppressed (the Hebrew slaves) rather than the oppressors (the ruling Egyptians). The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". After the resurrection, Jesus invited Thomas to touch him in the bloody parts, his hand and his side. This could indicate why the protagonist threatened Moses life. James 1:17 says, every good and perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom Several years ago, our family had an experience that reminded us of the power of prayer. (Exodus 4:21-26). The standard explanation is that Moses had not circumcised his son, as Jehovah had ordered for all descendants of Abraham. If you are referring to Exodus 4:21-26 in King James Version then it is because his wife had to perform a circumcision of their son and she "cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his. It was then that she said, A bridegroom of blood, because of the circumcision. (http://www.esvbible.org/Exodus+4/) The portion of the text from which this passage comes yields several questions about the purpose of Zipporahs actions, whose life she was actually saving, the meaning of the phrase bridegroom of blood and what the overall situation symbolizes in relation to the entire text. As such, you should have circumcised your son soon after his birth. He also could have easily justified to himself not carrying it out knowing his wife, a non-Israelite, would have been displeased with him performing it a second time. Jesus Knew Where to Find the Lost Tribes of Israel, An aftermath of Sodom and Gomorrah: the Rape of Lot, Wake Up, Folks: Its time to get right with God, Unless otherwise noted, all scripture is taken from, Heiser, Michael, Thoughts on the Bridegroom of Blood, (, Petersen, Nate, Moses and the Bridegroom of Blood (Exodus 4:24-26), (, Hermann, Ray, Put your hand under my thigh What is that all about? (, Hermann, Ray Circumcision in the Bible: What was it really all about? His mannerisms and customs were shaped by his Egyptian upbringing. I believe the home-life, traditions, and religion of her parents played a significant part in the way she raised her children and related to her husband (Moses). After this event, Zipporah simply disappears from scripture and we never hear anything about her ever again. The scripture says Zipporah touched his feet, with the foreskin. 26 So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because . Approach the text as if you are reading it for the first time. But the problem is that these supplied names are incorrect. _______________________________________________. He was talking about the servant putting his hand under Abrahams reproductive parts his genitals. We keep your email address private we do not give, trade, share, or sell it to others. Her first reaction was to circumcise her son without being told to do so. Then Zipporah took a flint and cut off her sons foreskin and touched Moses feet with it and said, Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me! So he let him alone. PLEASE HELP us spread Bible truth by telling others about this website. It was then she said, A bridegroom of blood by circumcision, (Exodus 4:24-26, NRSV).1. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". (LogOut/ When the protagonist spoke to Moses and made his threat, Zipporah seems to be fed up with beating around the bush (pun intended) and just wants her family to be able to sleep peacefully for one night. Zipporah's father, Jethro, was a priest in the land of Midian where Moses fled after killing an Egyptian. God said that if the children of Israel would not believe the first sign, they will believe the second. This has to be the bloodiest scene in the book of Exodus since the massacre of Hebrew male children in chapter 1. (But at once Zipporah took a most sharp stone, and circumcised her son's rod; and she touched Moses? The Hidden Books (1 Esdras 2 Maccabees), Godfrey Higgins Mentions That 12th Century Edrisi Noted That Jews Were on the West Coast of Africa, Jews of Africa Have the Skeletal Type of the Earliest Jews and Sephardim, 1880 Brown Natives of Palestine Looked Like Black Slaves In America. And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me? 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