Zipporah – Without Whom, None of This Happens!

Yes, I name the website in honor of Eve, the eternal 1st Lady, but one of my favorite biblical women is Zipporah, Moses’ wife.

The first 5 books of the old testament were most likely written by Moses, except the last part that describes Moses’ death.  These books focus on God’s law for His people and how Israel became God’s special people.

In case you’re unfamiliar with the story of Abraham, God promises, the childless Abraham, that he will be made into a great nation.  Genesis 12.  His wife Sarah doubts the Lord and encourages Abraham to sleep with her servant, Hagar,  who bears him a son, Ishmael.   Hagar and Ishmael are forced away as a result of Sarah’s jealousy then Sarah too, bears Abraham a son, Issac.  It is through the line of Abraham, Issac, and Issac’s son Jacob, that we find God’s chosen people.

Back to Moses.  Found in a basket floating in the river by Pharaoh’s daughter, raised in the Pharaoh’s home, he see the mistreatment of the Hebrews in Egypt and murders an Egyptian that is beating on a Hebrew slave.  The next day when he sees two Hebrews fighting he doesn’t understand why.  One of them taunts him with the knowledge of the murderous act.  Moses knows he’s not safe and he leaves Egypt.  He flees to Midian and comes to the aid of some women, including Zipporah.  These women are the daughters of a Midian priest, who welcomes Moses.  Exodus 2:21-22.

So what happens in the rest of chapter 2 until Zipporah is referenced again? MOSES and the BURNING BUSH!!!  Maybe you’ve heard of it.  God appears to Moses and explains his plan to save the Hebrews from Egyptian slavery, He Tells Moses what his part in the plan will be and Moses tries to back out not once but several times.  Who am I to do this?  What would I say? What if they don’t listen? What if they don’t believe me?  

I imagine if God could roll his eyes, because sometimes as parents even though we love our children, we do, He would.  “What is that in your hand?”… “Throw it on the ground!”  And Moses’ staff becomes a snake.   More miraculous signs are given to Moses yet he still resists God’s plan, “I am slow of speech and tongue.”

The Lord’s anger burns but He allows Moses’ brother Aaron to accompany him on this mission to return to Egypt.  Exodus 4:20, So Moses took his wife and sons, put them on a donkey and started back to Egypt.  And he took the staff of God in his hand.

In Exodus 4:24-26: At a lodging place on the way, the Lord met Moses and was about to kill him.  But Zipporah took a flint knife, cut off her son’s foreskin and touched Moses’ feet with it. “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me,” she said. So the Lord let him alone. (At that time she said “bridegroom of blood,” referring to circumcision.)

WHAT?  The Lord was about to kill him????  After these few lines, the story continues with Moses meeting up with his brother Aaron.


I’m fascinated by this one paragraph.  How many times do we cry out to God for him to reveal His plan for us?  To tell us what our purpose is.  But the story of Moses shows what happens when God does tell a human being exactly what the plan is.  I can just picture Moses shaking by the burning bush until God ends the conversation.  Then he returns home with the staff of God… Hey, Zip, look what I can do!

You know Zipporah, just froze with that , ‘Oh, crap’ look on her face.  Her husband just met with The LORD – GOD of their fathers – the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Joseph.   She’s NOT even part of that blood line and now her husband is changing sticks into snakes… oh, crap!

Oh yeah, everyone knows about Abraham, Hagar, and Ishmael… Abraham, Sarah, and Isaac… but in Genesis 25:1-2, there’s the mention of Abraham’s third wife Keturah who bore him six children, including Midian.

So Zipporah, most likely a descendant of this lesser known third wife, without being told directly what the right thing is to do… just does it… and the Lord leaves Moses alone… and the story goes on.

I like that.

 

 

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