This is an interesting one, at least for me. Typically, when you hear the name, Moses, you think of a baby in a basket on River Nile or the parting of the Red Sea or water coming from a rock. You may not be aware that Moses was married or even if you were, you may not have thought much about his marriage. Well, that’s why you have me. If you’re still unclear, this post is about Moses and Zipporah!
Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses
Numbers 12:1 (NKJV)
because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married;
for he had married an Ethiopian woman
From the above text, you can see that Moses had an interracial or intercultural marriage. An Israelite had married an Ethiopian. You can also see that his siblings didn’t really like the idea of it. There is work involved when two people from different cultures decide to come together in a marriage relationship, but it is worth it.
There is a particular story about their marriage that I would like to review with you. This event took place after the famous burning bush encounter that Moses had.
“On the way to Egypt, at a place where Moses and his family had stopped for the night, the Lord confronted him and was about to kill him. But Moses’ wife, Zipporah, took a flint knife and circumcised her son. She touched his feet with the foreskin and said, “Now you are a bridegroom of blood to me.” (When she said “a bridegroom of blood,” she was referring to the circumcision.) After that, the Lord left him alone.” Exodus 4:24-26 (NLT) Like you, I have questions. (Why would God want to kill Moses when He just called him to Egypt? and other questions). I don’t want to dwell on them. One thing I can say is that God does not reduce His standards for anyone.
My Thoughts
After reading different comments on this story, I have come to admire Zipporah’s sensitivity and courage. She may have been the one who opposed the circumcision initially (may have been a culture clash incident), but she realized her error and the solution to it and acted quickly. Another angle is that Moses may not have brought it up with her and when God confronted him, she was sensitive to know the solution to the issue they were facing. She may or may not have understood the gravity of the call of God on her husband, but she loved him enough to want to spare his life.
On a side note, Zipporah’s father was a good man. He brought Zipporah and her children back when Moses had sent them back to Midian (Exodus 18:2, 5). He also advised Moses to delegate so he wouldn’t get burnt out (Exodus 18:13-27).
What are your thoughts?
Enamoured 
6 responses to “Couples of the Bible: Moses and Zipporah”
This is interesting. An angle I’d never looked at it from. Thank you
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for your comment King Daviid
LikeLike
Interesting, it’s just occurring to me that Moses (“white”) married a black woman. Interesting perspective on their marriage (never ever even thought about them). You should also do one on Moses and his father-in-law, seems the man played a big role in Moses’ life.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for your comment and the suggestion Mel. I will do a study on Jethro (Moses’ father-in-law) and will update you when I post about it.
LikeLike
Z-mama was aware…like, acutely aware😁. She correctly identified the problem, and went for the solution. Like you said, the original non-circumcision may or may not have been her fault but immediately she saw it was an issue she took action. We never read that she tried to corner any authority since her husband was boss or anything like that. We see wives like Lot’s wife, the salt lady😁, or Jezebel who pushed her husband into sin, but nothing like that about Zipporah. She really isn’t talked about enough as an example.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for your comment Tolu. I agree with your point that there are people in the Bible that aren’t discussed often enough even though we can learn valuable lessons from their lives.
LikeLike