Zipporah (ZIP-er-uh) was the Midianite wife of Moses and the mother of Gershom and Eliezer. Her story appears in Exodus 2, 4, and 18.
Birth year: Unknown.
Death year: Unknown.
Active during: The Exodus story. Proposed dates for the Exodus differ, so no secure calendar years can be assigned to her life.
Home region: Midian, usually placed east of the Gulf of Aqaba in northwestern Arabia, with uncertain boundaries.
Main passages: Exodus 2:15–22; 4:18–26; 18:1–6.
Family and home
Zipporah was one of seven daughters of a priest of Midian. Exodus 2 calls her father Reuel, while Exodus 3 and 18 use the name Jethro. The relationship between these names has been explained in different ways; the text presents both within Moses’ Midianite family. After Moses helped the daughters at a well, he stayed with the family and married Zipporah.
Children
Zipporah gave birth to Gershom while Moses lived in Midian (Exodus 2:21–22). Exodus 18 also names a second son, Eliezer. The Bible does not provide their birth years.
The journey toward Egypt
When Moses returned toward Egypt, Zipporah and their sons traveled with him. At a lodging place, the Lord confronted Moses. Zipporah circumcised her son with a flint knife, touched Moses’ feet, and used the difficult phrase “bridegroom of blood.” Her action ended the immediate danger (Exodus 4:24–26).
An intentionally difficult passage
The short Hebrew account uses pronouns and ritual language that leave several details disputed. Readers disagree about why the circumcision had been delayed, exactly who was threatened, whose feet were touched, and how Zipporah’s words should be understood. The profile does not turn any one proposal into certainty.
Reunion
Exodus 18 says Moses had sent Zipporah away but does not explain when or why. Jethro later brought her, Gershom, and Eliezer to Moses after Israel had left Egypt. The text records their reunion without describing Zipporah’s later life.
Names and limits
Some readers identify Zipporah with the Cushite woman mentioned in Numbers 12; others understand that passage to refer to another wife. The text does not settle the question. The portrait offers a plausible Midianite setting, not a known likeness.
Explore the wider region of Midian on a modern map.
Read further
Exodus 2, 4, and 18, NIV; BiblicalTraining: Circumcision of Moses; Oxford Bibliographies: Midian.