Ask God to reveal these places and/or things. One scholar believes that the surrounding verses highlight Moses as fearful or ill-equipped and Zipporah counteracts his timid behavior by stepping up to circumcise her son in order to save Moses and the Hebrews lives. Orange Is The New Black Season 8 Renewed Or Cancelled? Ask Anything. Scripture References Exodus 2:21, 22; 4:24, 25; 18:1-6. What is the significance of being left-handed as Ehud was inJudges. The immediate question is, Why is Moses not performing the circumcision? The answer is that Moses had to hold on to the son so that the son would stay still. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Zipporah's actions give us a clue. The Bible states that the Lord, while Moses was in Midian, told him to go back to Egypt (Exodus 4:19). "Kiss the Son" or "Do homage in purity" in Psalm 2:12? The term bloody husband is merely Zipporahs criticism of a husband who performs an apparently strange and bloody procedure. When Zipporah and her sisters spotted Moses the first time, they thought he was an Egyptian, and in many ways they were right. Zipporah is in blue. "Son of God" or "Son of the gods" in Daniel 3:25? Shulchan Aruch, par. (e) "tetigitque pedes ejus", V. L. (f) T. Hieros. We are first introduced to Zipporah in Exodus 2:16, as a shepherdess, one of Jethros seven daughters. These scholars are thinking too hard. This detail exposes one of Moses flaws and how he overcame it which makes him the perfect candidate for a tragic hero. He may have been squeamish about performing such a delicate but bloody act a second time after doing so once. The Text tells us he was 120 when he die. Crucifixion thoughts & How did they get the nails out? 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. To understand the appellation and the circumstance leading up to Zipporah's use of it, we will look back about 400 years: Genesis ends with Joseph as the prime minister of Egypt who, by God's providence, saved Egypt from the famine and welcomed all his . As Moses and his family arrive back in Egypt he meets up with the Lord who seeks to kill him. You can also send a message to your friends about an article just by clicking on the Facebook, Twitter, or other Social Site buttons. Zipporah's father was Jethro, also called Reuel. Thank you for the explanation in simple terms. You shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. And Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and threw it at his feet, and said, "Surely a bloody husband you are to me." These people he was going to save were his own people, Gods chosen people by blood. Approach the text as if you are reading it for the first time. Thus verse 24 belongs together in the same episode as that of verse 23. I enjoy all that I have read so far. Zipporah regarded the bloody rites of her husband's religion as cruel and barbarous, and cast the foreskin of her son at his feet, as though he were a Moloch requiring a bloody offering. These verses, concerning a circumcision,2 are odd and confusing, and some commentators believe they are out of place. 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. Thank you for sharing the words of god. Moses went to Jethro, his father in law, and asked him to let him go so he could go to his brothers in Egypt. So Moses had to keep the boy still. Article Why did Zipporah call Moses a bloody husband? There is no scriptural basis for taking the life of a father who does not circumcise a son. At first glance, the relationship between Zipporah and Moses looks like the familiar boy-rescues-girl tale. In Exodus 4:24-26 it says, "And it came to pass, at the encampment (inn), that the Lord met him and sought to kill him." Apparently God was holding Moses accountable for the breaking of God's covenant. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Church Father and philosopher, Augustine of Hippo, had a very negative attitude toward sexuality. Where once she was the beneficiary of male benevolence, she then stepped in to save the life of the patriarch. Are you a part of Gods chosen people? Exodus 4:24-26, 24. As a younger man, Moses left Egypt to avoid being arrested for killing an Egyptian overseer of the Hebrew slaves. So he let him go: So, God let Moses go; God did not take his life.] During the patriarchal period, oaths were taken by placing a hand under the reproductive organ, but generally recorded in the Bible as thigh instead of testicles, penis, or genitals. and said, surely a bloody husband art thou to me; those who think it was at the feet of the child the foreskin was cast, take these words to be spoken of that, and observe that it is usual for women, at the circumcision of a child, to call it a bridegroom or husband, because it is then espoused unto, and reckoned among the people of God; but this is not well supported; it is a custom of too late a date to give any countenance to such a sense of the words, which seem plain enough to be spoken to and of Moses; but not in an angry upbraiding way, as if he was a bloody cruel man to oblige her to do such an action, but rather in a congratulatory way, as being thankful and rejoicing, that by this means, through the blood of the circumcision, she had saved her husband's life; and as it were in that way had bought him, and afresh espoused him to herself as her husband; or otherwise it would have been all over with him, but now to her great joy he was delivered from the threatened destruction, and restored to her; and so the Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem paraphrase the next verse,"then Zipporah gave praise, and said, how amiable is the blood of circumcision, which hath delivered my husband from the hand of the destroying angel.''. This is after God instructs Moses on his upcoming job and his journey toward Egypt has already begun. A bloody husband - Literally, "a husband of blood," or "bloods." Zipporah, daughter of Jethro Reuel of Midian, was the wife of 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. 24 And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him. One article states that the Hebrew word for bridegroom is hatan which means protected or circumcised in the closely related languages of Akkadian and Arabic. Verses 22-26 are summarized as follows: In verses 22-23, God tells Moses that God would kill Pharaohs firstborn son. Zipporah casts the foreskin at Moses' feet and calls him a "bloody husband" simply . There have been many attempts to answer these questions, but they are all very speculative. Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers, Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. In this. Please be aware that, although the majority of posts found on this website are for general audiences, there may be certain controversial, mature, or adult content. Zipporah, being a woman, probably did not have enough strength to completely keep still a grown boy. Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. As far as application, I see two main points coming out of this story. We can also safely conclude that Zipporah opposed the circumcision of her son. Answer. Brother of Goliath or Goliath in 2 Samuel 21:19? Copyright The Sentinel | https://www.lewistownsentinel.com | 352 Sixth Street, Lewistown, PA 17044 | 717-248-6741, And it came to pass, at the encampment (inn), that the Lord met him and sought to kill him., And the uncircumcised male child, who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people; he has broken My covenant., Surely you are a husband of blood to me., And Jethro, Moses father-in-law came with his sons and his wife to Moses in the wilderness., I am coming to you with your wife and her two sons.. She also seems to be angry because of the circumcision requirement, pointing to the possibility that her and Moses may have had a conversation and possibly an argument about it, ending in her refusal to allow it. The long donkey ride on the way to Egypt left Zipporah, Moses, and their two children wanting for a good nights rest. Zipporah called Moses a bloody husband out of disgust. And in the Book of Ruth, it says, When he lies down, observe the place where he lies; then, go and uncover his feet and lie down; and he will tell you what to do, (Ruth 3:4).8. 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? sect. Zipporah and her six sisters were attending to their daily chores of drawing water and watering their fathers flock. There are things in the culture, in society, and in this world that naturally attach themselves to us and disguise our true identity. Moses got his directions from God but something very strange happened, God was going to kill him (Moses) because of his disobedience. So as soon as the child was circumcised, the LORD relented from killing Moses, "So he let him alone" (v 26). But . You can use them to display text, links, images, HTML, or a combination of these. A couple of examples are when a husband and wife had sexual relations, it is said that they lay together or they knew each other. This is a unique case in the entire Bible when a woman performed the circumcision. ((c) Maimon. 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. 26 So he let him go: then she said, A bloody husband thou art, because of the circumcision. (Exodus 4:21-26, KJV). Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com. It was a Monday morning Editors note: To submit a nonprofit announcement to The Sentinels Religion section, contact Tom Laub at (717) Each year Christians embark on spiritual journeys that culminate with Easter celebrations. How did circumcision avert God's wrath? She received Moses back from the dead, as it were, and remarried him again. This is symbolic of humankind being dead to God, but then he provides redemption through a blood sacrifice and brings humankind back to himself. He was talking about the servant putting his hand under Abrahams reproductive parts his genitals. 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. In Numbers 12:1, she also is called a Cushite ("black" or ancient "Ethiopian") woman. Circumcision was only one of the hundreds of laws that God demanded be obeyed. After the resurrection, Jesus invited Thomas to touch him in the bloody parts, his hand and his side. Moses said, "I have been a stranger in a strange land." On the way, at a place where they spent the night, the Lord met him and tried to kill him. Why? OutlawBibleStudent.org. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. The Egyptians made the lives of the children of Israel bitter with hard bondage in what three things? 27 And the LORD said to Aaron, Go into the wilderness to meet Moses. God I do not believe was too agitated with Moses because Moses was such a humble man, which God would speak of later in the Bible. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc. 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.) 4:25). In verses 25 and 26, Zipporah calls Moses a bloody husband because of his strange and bloody procedure of circumcision. The protagonist speaks to Moses and Zipporah feels that her family is being threatened and does what she can to save her husband and/or her children. Zipporah bore for him two sons, Gershom and Eliezer. Exodus 4:25 (WYC) Zipporah took anon a most sharp stone, and circumcised the rod of her son; and she touched Moses? By the way, the phrase of the title "a bloody husband art thou to me" is how the King James Version renders what the NIV here gives as "you are a bridegroom of blood to me." Some background to the story. 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