Zipporah

Zipporah is a figure in the Hebrew Bible, identified as the wife of Moses and the daughter of Jethro (Reuel), the priest of Midian. The name Zipporah is commonly understood to derive from the Hebrew tzippōr, meaning “bird.”

She first appears in the Book of Exodus, where Moses meets Zipporah at a well, marries her, and they have two sons, Gershom and Eliezer. Zipporah accompanies Moses when he returns to Egypt to confront Pharaoh, and she remains part of his household during the early stages of the Exodus narrative. In Exodus 18, she is depicted together with Moses and their two sons during Jethro’s visit to witness the Israelites’ journey.

A notable and debated episode concerns an event on the way to Egypt, when God seeks to kill Moses. Zipporah circumcises their son and touches Moses with the foreskin, saying, “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me.” The passage is brief and highly debated among scholars regarding which son was circumcised (Gershom or Eliezer) and what the action signifies. Most often, the act is understood as Zipporah performing the covenantal rite to avert divine anger and protect Moses.

After this, the biblical text provides limited information about Zipporah. She is not mentioned in the later canonical narratives beyond her role in Exodus, and her ultimate fate is not stated. In biblical scholarship and later tradition, Zipporah is sometimes discussed as a Midianite wife who plays a decisive yet enigmatic role in the early Exodus story, and she appears in rabbinic and Christian interpretations as a figure reflecting family ties and issues surrounding circumcision and faith.