Jethro

Biblical Account

Jethro was a priest in the land of Midian and had seven daughters. When Moses, who had fled from Egypt, helped his daughters as shepherds were driving them away from a well, Jethro took Moses into his home. He later gave his daughter Zipporah to Moses as a wife, and Moses had a son there, Gershom (Exodus 2:16–22). In this passage he is called Reuel. While Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, he received God's call at the burning bush (Exodus 3:1). Before returning to Egypt, Moses asked his father-in-law's permission, and Jethro answered, "Go in peace" (Exodus 4:18).

After the Exodus, Jethro came to Moses in the wilderness, bringing Zipporah, who had been sent back to her father's household in the meantime, together with his two grandsons, Gershom and Eliezer (Exodus 18:1–6). On hearing from Moses what God had done, he confessed, "Now I know that the LORD is greater than all gods." He then offered a burnt offering and sacrifices and ate bread before God with Aaron and the elders (Exodus 18:11–12). The next day he saw Moses judging the people alone from morning until evening. He therefore advised Moses to choose men who feared God, men of truth who hated covetousness, to appoint them as rulers of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, and to entrust the smaller matters to them. Moses followed this counsel, and Jethro returned to his own land (Exodus 18:13–27).

Significance Within Scripture

Jethro is a man from outside Israel, a Gentile priest. Yet he is portrayed as one who confessed the greatness of the LORD and took part in sacrifice. In Exodus 18 he also provides the occasion for Israel's establishment of a judicial system. Deuteronomy 1:9–18 likewise recalls Moses' appointment of leaders to share the work of judging, but Jethro's name does not appear in that passage. Jethro is not mentioned directly in the New Testament.

Interpretation and Issues

• The question of names: The same figure is called Reuel (Exodus 2:18) and Jethro (Exodus 3:1; ch. 18). In addition, Numbers 10:29 refers to "Hobab, the son of Raguel the Midianite, Moses' father in law," where Raguel is another rendering of Reuel. Judges 4:11 uses the expression "Hobab the father in law of Moses," which further complicates the relationships. Various explanations have been offered. The principal views are that one man bore two names or titles, that Reuel was the grandfather and Jethro the father, and that the Hebrew word translated "father-in-law" may denote a broader relation by marriage, such as a brother-in-law. Some critical scholars regard the variation as the result of the merging of different traditions.
• The nature of his faith: Interpreters differ on whether he was originally a worshiper of the LORD or came to believe in the LORD after meeting Moses. Some strands of Jewish tradition regard him as a model proselyte and are said to hold that he bore seven names. This is later tradition, not the biblical text.
• Relationship to the Kenites: Judges 1:16 calls Moses' father-in-law a Kenite. On this basis some scholars have proposed the hypothesis that Israel's worship of the LORD originated among the Midianites or Kenites. Evangelical scholars generally do not accept this hypothesis.

In the Korean Church

In Korean church preaching, Exodus 18 is frequently cited in discussions of leadership and the delegation of ministry. It is read as a text exposing the limits of a leader who bears every burden alone, and it is sometimes cited as a biblical example for appointing lay leaders such as elders and cell group leaders and for organizing small groups. Other sermons point to the confession of this Gentile father-in-law and his counsel to his son-in-law to emphasize the importance of humbly receiving advice.