Preface: Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro, hears that Moses is nearby. Jethro brings Moses’ wife and two sons to him, but also stays long enough to hear of the exploits of Y^ehowah. He also recommends to Moses some changes in the judicial system that Moses established.

The Bible Summary of Exodus 18 (in 140 characters or less): Moses' father-in-law Jethro came and offered sacrifices to God. He suggested that Moses appoint leaders to help him judge the people.

There are many chapter commentaries on the book of Exodus. This will be the most extensive examination of Exodus 18, where you will be able to examine in depth every word of the original text. Every attempt has been made to make this both a complete and self-contained study. Therefore, all references, vocabulary, and related concepts should be found within this extensive study. Easy access links to more in-depth studies of some vocabulary words, concepts and doctrines are also provided.

Outline of Chapter 18:

Introduction

         vv.     1–6           Moses' father-in-law and estranged wife travel to visit Moses

         vv.     7–12         Fellowship between Moses and his father-in-law

         vv.    13–16         Jethro observes Moses daily grind

         vv.    17–23         Jethro advises Moses

         vv.    24–27         Moses follows the advice of his father-in-law

Chapter Summary

Addendum

Charts, Graphics and Short Doctrines:

         Preface               Quotations

         Introduction         Preparatory Points for Exodus 18 (Moses and his Wife)

         Introduction 

         Introduction         Titles and/or Brief Descriptions of Exodus 18 (by various commentators)

         Introduction         Brief, but insightful observations of Exodus 18 (various commentators)

         Introduction         Fundamental Questions About Exodus 18

         Introduction         The Prequel of Exodus 18

         Introduction 

         Introduction 

         Introduction         The Principals of Exodus 18

         Introduction         The Places of Exodus 18

         Introduction         By the Numbers

         Introduction         Timeline for Exodus 18

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Exodus 18

         Introduction         Outlines of Exodus 18 (Various Commentators)

         Introduction         A Synopsis of Exodus 18 from the Summarized Bible

         Introduction         The Big Picture (Exodus 17–20)

         Introduction 

         Introduction 

         Introduction         Changes—additions and subtractions (for Exodus 18)

         Introduction 

         v.       1              Moses Goes Out to Meet His Father-in-Law (a graphic)

         v.       3              Exodus 18:3 (KJV) (a graphic)

         v.       4              Exodus 18:4 (KJV) (a graphic)

         v.       5              The Sinai Peninsula, Rephidim, Mount Sinai (a map)

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         v.       9              Exodus 18:9 (KJV) (a graphic)

         v.      10              Exodus 18:10 (KJV) (a graphic)

         v.      11              Exodus 18:11a (a graphic)

         v.      12              Comparing Jethro to Melchizedek (Gerber and Sailhamer)

         v.      13              Jethro with Moses as Moses Judges the People (a graphic)

         v. 

         v. 

         v.      18              Jethro in Exodus 18:17–18 (a graphic)

         v.      19              Exodus 18:19 (a graphic)

         v.      21              Exodus 18:21 (a graphic)

         v. 

         v.      22              A brief review of Exodus 18:16–22

         v.      23              Exodus 18:22–23 (NIV—a summation) (a graphic)

         v.      24              What three documents?

         v.      24              What Three Translations?

         v.      24              Exodus 18:24 (WEB) (a graphic)

         v. 

         v. 

         v. 

         Summary            A Set of Summary Doctrines and Commentary

         Summary            Why Exodus 18 is in the Word of God

         Summary            What We Learn from Exodus 18

         Summary            Jesus Christ in Exodus 18

         Summary            A Brief Review of Exodus 18

         Summary            Moses and Jethro Talk in the Tent (by James Jacques Joseph Tissot)

         Summary            Jethro Advises Moses (AI-generated parsha illustration, by B. Spitz)

         Summary            Shmoop Summary of Exodus 18

         Summary            Edersheim Summarizes Exodus 18

         Addendum          Josephus’ History of this Time Period

         Addendum          A Complete Translation of Exodus 18

         Addendum          Doctrinal Teachers Who Have Taught Exodus 18

         Addendum          Word Cloud from a Reasonably Literal Paraphrase of Exodus 18

         Addendum          Word Cloud from Exegesis of Exodus 18

——————————

An Introduction to Exodus 18

I ntroduction: Exodus 18 is a marvelous chapter which brings Moses' father-in-law back into the picture and allows us to see from where Moses received a great deal of his spiritual training. Moses left Egypt originally around age 40, having murdered an Egyptian slavedriver. He lived in Midian for about 40 years, attaching himself to this Midianite family, having married one of the daughters. The head of the family is a priest, and we should assume spiritual growth taking place in Moses over the next 40 years. Moses left Egypt because he killed a man; but he will return 40 years later as God’s man.

Given that Moses’ father-in-law is a priest, let me suggest that there was spiritual growth experienced by Moses over those 40 years in Midian due to his personal contact with his father-in-law. Moses was extensively trained in Egypt for 40 years and because he is God’s man for the exodus, it is reasonable to assume that he experienced spiritual growth in Midian over the next 40 years.

At the time of the book of Exodus, Moses would be a little over 80 years old. However, we do not really know the age of his father-in-law. He may even be younger than Moses.

Because Moses’ father-in-law has come on the scene, we find out what happened to Moses' wife and children. Apparently when Moses had his wife circumcise one of his young adult sons, that she got pissed off and made a scene (Exodus 4:25–26). We do not hear from her until now because either Moses sent her back to her father or she grabbed up her children and deserted Moses in Exodus 4 or soon thereafter. Her reaction in any case reveals that she did not support Moses or the plan of God for his life. She was certainly not on board with what God had for Moses to do, given that she was against circumcision.

This right here is another pertinent lesson from the books of Moses written 3500 years ago—do not marry someone who is spiritually immature or who is not saved. Moses grew spiritually when he stayed with his new family. It is likely that this spiritual growth took place at the hand of his father-in-law, who was a priest. It would be logical that his wife would have also experienced some spiritual growth at the hand of her father, but she apparently had not. Because she did not, she either deserted Moses or Moses had to send her away when things began to get intense in Egypt. In any case, Moses did not have the support of a wife during the most important crossroads of his life. Why? Because he had not chosen a wife carefully (this is conjecture based upon the few times we encounter her in Scripture). She was probably very beautiful with a great personality, but she was lacking in spiritual depth.

God has a plan for all of our lives—males and females both. If we choose to spend our lives with a spiritual moron, we have immediately compromised our service to God. We lose out on innumerable blessings in time and in eternity based upon this one poor choice. We may go through our entire life feeling that we have missed something or we are missing something. A tremendous feeling of a lack of fulfillment, of ennui. Even if we want to choose activities which are honoring to God, and even if we choose a course of action which is in God's plan for our lives, there will always be this anvil attached to our leg impeding our spiritual progress (I am not advocating divorce by saying these things).

If you have already made this choice and realize what a horrible mistake you have made, then you must do as Peter suggests: In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives (1Peter 3:1). Although there is no corresponding verse for the husbands, the counterpart is obvious: In the same way, you husbands, love your wives even as Christ loved the church, that they might be won without a word by the behavior of their husbands. This is choice #1. Choice #2 is what happened to Moses, the details of which we are not privy to. In any case, by v. 2, we will have a fairly good idea as to what happened.

What we will find out in this chapter is, despite Moses’ excellent leadership of the Hebrew people, acting as a go-between God and the people, his administration was not perfect. He needed to actually work less and oversee more. Moses did not realize this, but his father-in-law saw it immediately. In this chapter, Moses’ father-in-law will help him set up a more effective and efficient administrative system. Moses was judging all of the disputes and problems of two million people; and Jethro (his father-in-law) said, “You can’t be doing all of this. You need to delegate, son.”

Moses is humble enough to listen to Jethro and the system of justice in Israel improved because Moses worked less and delegated more. Although this seems like a pretty simple concept, it took a third party, whom Moses respected, to make these necessary changes. Because Moses is humble, he will listen to his father-in-law.

We, as believers, ought to be open to reasonable suggestions from others, no matter who they might be. When I first began writing commentary, a good friend of mine made negative remarks about the way I was doing the Greek and Hebrew. For every single verse, I would talk about the original language words and their morphology (much the way that R. B. Thieme, Jr. would teach in the 1970s and 1980s). As a result of Alex’s criticism, I began to place all of the Greek and Hebrew into tables—tables which could be easily skipped over by those who did not want to hear anything about the Greek or Hebrew. Now, I will mention a few Greek and Hebrew words, but not constantly; and I do not name all of them in the explanatory text. That information is left in tables (in the chapter studies), and a person can refer to them or skip them over entirely. This change would have never happened if it wasn’t for this person’s suggestion. Oh, and as an interesting additional fact about this person, he was a holy roller. So it would have been easy for me to completely and totally ignore anything that he had to say; but I heard him, he was right, and I made the changes necessary to reflect the fact that not every person wants to read about the Greek and Hebrew in every paragraph.

Anyway, here, in the middle of the book of Exodus, Moses is taught by his father-in-law how to organize and how to delegate. This suggestion is going to keep Moses from working himself to death.

Exodus 18 is about Moses and his father-in-law (Moses’ wife will barely be mentioned). Very importantly, Moses will hear and take the advice of his father-in-law. This reveals that Moses is truly an humble person. Often, we learn from the Word of God; but there are also times when very practical lessons come to us from individuals whom God places before us. Moses took direction directly from God. Moses could have arrogantly responded to his father-in-law, saying, “Listen, if God wants me to change things up, then let Him tell me that.”

There are at least two other things that will come out of this chapter:

1.      Jethro will very much parallel Melchizedek (making Jethro a type of Christ).

2.      Disputes among the Israelites will be handled in an organized and civilized manner. In the previous chapter, Amalek did not like Israel coming through that particular region. Well, there were no plans for Israel to remain in that region. Even though it may not have been clear to Moses exactly why God was leading them where He was leading them, he was also aware that the eventual destination was Canaan, as this had been promised to Israel. Therefore, if Amalek was guarding its own territory, they really had nothing to worry about. This could have been handled without a battle (and this battle set the stage for the relationship between Israel and Amalek until the time that Amalek was finally wiped out).

In vv. 1–4, we get some background information. Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, hears about what has gone on in Egypt and that his son-in-law, Moses, is not too far from Midian. With Jethro are Moses’ wife and two children (who could be young adults at this time).

In vv. 5–7 Jethro comes toward Moses with his wife and two children, sending messengers to Moses first. Having gotten this message, Moses comes out to meet his father-in-law.

In vv. 8–12, Moses shares all of the things which God has done for Israel, which Jethro appreciates and then offers up a burnt sacrifice.

For the rest of the chapter, vv. 13–27, Jethro observes his son-in-law at work, and makes a very valuable and practical suggestion to him.

Timeline for Exodus 18

——————————

Moses' father-in-law and estranged wife travel to visit Moses

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:                       Note: I compare the Hebrew text to English translations of the Latin, Syriac (= Aramaic) and Greek texts, using the Douay-Rheims translation; George Lamsa’s translation, and Sir Lancelot Charles Lee Brenton’s translation as revised and edited by Paul W. Esposito, respectively. I often update these texts with non-substantive changes (e.g., you for thou, etc.). I often use the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible instead of Brenton’s translation, because it updates the English text.

The Septuagint was the earliest known translation of a book (circa 200 b.c.). Since this translation was made before the textual criticism had been developed into a science and because different books appear to be translated by different men, the Greek translation can sometimes be very uneven.

When there are serious disparities between my translation and Brenton’s (or the text of the Complete Apostles’ Bible), I look at the Greek text of the Septuagint (the LXX) to see if a substantive difference actually exists (and I reflect these changes in the English rendering of the Greek text). I use the Greek LXX with Strong’s numbers and morphology available for e-sword. The only problem with this resource (which is a problem for similar resources) is, there is no way to further explore Greek verbs which are not found in the New Testament. Although I usually quote the Complete Apostles’ Bible here, I have begun to make changes in the translation when their translation conflicts with the Greek and note what those changes are.

The Masoretic text is the Hebrew text with all of the vowels (vowel points) inserted (the original Hebrew text lacked vowels). We take the Masoretic text to be the text closest to the original. However, differences between the Masoretic text and the Greek, Latin and Syriac are worth noting and, once in a great while, represent a more accurate text possessed by those other ancient translators.

In general, the Latin text is an outstanding translation from the Hebrew text into Latin and very trustworthy (I say this as a non-Catholic). Unfortunately, I do not read Latin—apart from some very obvious words—so I am dependent upon the English translation of the Latin (principally, the Douay-Rheims translation).

The comparisons which I do are primarily between the English translations which are taken from the ancient tongues. For the most part, the variances are so minor that I rarely investigate them any further than that.

Underlined words indicate differences in the text.

Bracketed portions of the Dead Sea Scrolls are words, letters and phrases lost in the scroll due to various types of damage. Underlined words or phrases are those in the Dead Sea Scrolls but not in the Masoretic text.

I will only list the translation from the Dead Sea Scrolls if it exists and if it is different from the Masoretic text.

The Targum of Onkelos is actually the Pentateuchal Targumim, which are The Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan Ben Uzziel. On the Pentateuch With The Fragments of the Jerusalem Targum From the Chaldee by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. From http://www.becomingjewish.org/texts/targum/onkelos_Exodus.html and first published in 1862.

Occasionally, there is an obvious error in the English translation, and I correct those without additional mention or footnoting. For instance, the online version of the Targum of Onkelos which I use has gorund in Ex. 4:9; I simply corrected the text. This may occur once or twice in a chapter.

I attempt to include translations which are different in their vocabulary and phrasing. On many occasions, I may include a translation which is not substantially different than another listed translation.

Most of the translations can be found here.

Ancient texts:

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And so hears Jethro, a priest of Midian, a father-in-law of Moses, of all that had done Elohim for Moses and for Israel His people, for brought out Y^ehowah Israel from Egypt.

Dead Sea Scrolls                   .

Targum (Onkelos)                  AND Jethro, the rabba of Midian, the father in law of Mosheh, had heard of all that the Lord had done for Mosheh and for Israel His people, and that the Lord had brought Israel out of Mizraim. Translation for Onkelos and Pseudo-Jonathan by J. W. Etheridge, M.A. (1862).

Targum (Pseudo-Jonathan)   And Jethro, prince of Midian, the father in law of Mosheh, heard all that the Lord had done for Mosheh and for Israel His people, and that the Lord had brought forth Israel from Mizraim.

Revised Douay-Rheims         And when Jethro the priest of Madian, the kinsman of Moses, had heard all the things that God had done to Moses, and to Israel his people, and that the Lord had brought forth Israel out of Egypt,...

Aramaic ESV of Peshitta        Now Yethro, the priest of Midian, Mosha's father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Mosha, and for Yisrael his people, how that Mar-Yah had brought Yisrael out of Egypt.

Peshitta (Syriac)                    AND Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel his people, and that the LORD had brought the children of Israel out of Egypt;...

Updated Brenton (Greek)       And Jothor the priest of Madiam, the father-in-law of Moses, heard of all that the Lord did to his people Israel; for the Lord brought Israel out of Egypt.

Significant differences: 

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             Now news came to Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses' father-in-law, of all God had done for Moses and for Israel his people, and how the Lord had taken Israel out of Egypt.

Easy-to-Read Version–2006  Advice From Moses’ Father-in-Law

Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, was a priest in Midian. He heard about the many ways that God helped Moses and the Israelites. He heard about the Lord leading the Israelites out of Egypt

Good News Bible (TEV)         Jethro Visits Moses

Moses' father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian, heard about everything that God had done for Moses and the people of Israel when he led them out of Egypt.

The Message                         Jethro, priest of Midian and father-in-law to Moses, heard the report of all that God had done for Moses and Israel his people, the news that God had delivered Israel from Egypt.

Names of God Bible               Moses’ Father-in-law Visits Israel’s Camp

Moses’ father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian, heard about everything Elohim had done for Moses and his people Israel and how Yahweh had brought Israel out of Egypt.

NIRV                                      Jethro Visits Moses

Moses’ father-in-law Jethro was the priest of Midian. He heard about everything God had done for Moses and for his people Israel. Jethro heard how the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.

Thought-for-thought translations; dynamic translations; paraphrases:

Contemporary English V.       Jethro was the priest of Midian and the father-in-law of Moses. And he heard what the LORD God had done for Moses and his people, after rescuing them from Egypt.

The Living Bible                     Word soon reached Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, the priest of Midian, about all the wonderful things God had done for his people and for Moses, and how the Lord had brought them out of Egypt.

New Berkeley Version           .

New Life Version                    Jethro Helps Moses

Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro, the religious leader of Midian, heard about all that God had done for Moses and for Israel His people.

New Living Translation           Jethro’s Visit to Moses

Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, heard about everything God had done for Moses and his people, the Israelites.

Unlocked Dynamic Bible        Jethro, who was the priest for the people of Midian, and who was also Moses’ father-in-law, heard about all that God had done for the Israelite people. He heard about how Yahweh had brought them out of Egypt.

Partially literal and partially paraphrased translations:

American English Bible          Meanwhile, His Excellence (the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law) heard of all that Jehovah had done for his people IsraEl by bringing them out of Egypt.

Beck’s American Translation .

Common English Bible           Sharing the burden of leadership

Jethro, Midian’s priest and Moses’ father-in-law, heard about everything that God had done for Moses and for God’s people Israel, how the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.

New Advent (Knox) Bible       And now news reached Jethro, priest of Madian, Moses’ father-in-law, of all that God had done for Moses and for his people Israel, and how the Lord had rescued Israel from Egypt.

Translation for Translators                        Moses' father-in-law, Jethro, came to visit him

Jethro, who was the priest for the Midian people-group, and who was also Moses'/my father-in-law, heard about all that God had done for the Israeli people. He heard about how Yahweh had brought them out of Egypt.

Mostly literal renderings (with some occasional paraphrasing):

Conservapedia                       Jethro, the priest of Midian and father-in-law of Moses, heard all about what God had done for Moses, and for Israel, his people, and that the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt.

Ferrar-Fenton Bible                Jethro Meets Moses.

When Jethro, the priest of Midian, the father·in·law of Moses, heard all that GOD had done for Moses, and for Israel, His People ;—how the Ever-living had led Israel out of Mitzer,...

God’s Truth (Tyndale)           Jethro the priest of Madian Moses father in law heard of all that God had done unto Moses and to Israel his people, how that the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.

HCSB                                     Jethro’s Visit

Moses’ father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian, heard about everything that God had done for Moses and His people Israel, and how the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.

Lexham English Bible            Jethro’s Visit to Moses at the Mountain of God

And Jethro, the priest of Midian, the father-in-law of Moses, heard all that God had done for Moses and for Israel, his people, that Yahweh had brought Israel out from Egypt.

Wikipedia Bible Project          And Jethro, the priest of Midyan, Moses's father in law, heard all that God had done for Moses and for Israel, his people, that Yahweh had brought out Israel from Egypt.

Catholic Bibles (those having the imprimatur):

The Heritage Bible                 And Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father in law, attentively heard all that God had done for Moses, and for Israel his people, that Jehovah had brought Israel out of Egypt,...

New American Bible (2011)   Meeting with Jethro.

Now Moses’ father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for his people Israel: how the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt.

New English Bible–1970        Jethro, priest of Midian.

JETHRO PRIEST OF MIDIAN, father-in-law of Moses, heard all that God had done for Moses and Israel his people, and how the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt.

Jewish/Hebrew Names Bibles:

Complete Jewish Bible           Parashah 17: Yitro (Jethro) 18:1–20:23 (26)

Now Yitro the priest of Midyan, Moshe’s father-in-law, heard about all that God had done for Moshe and for Isra’el his people, how Adonai had brought Isra’el out of Egypt.

Israeli Authorized Version      When Yitro, the kohen of Midian, Moshe' father in law, heard of all that Elohim had done for Moshe, and for Yisrael his people, and that YY had brought Yisrael out of Egypt;...

The Scriptures 1998              And Yithro, the priest of Mid?yan, Mosheh’s father-in-law, heard of all that Elohim had done for Mosheh and for Yisra’ĕl His people, that יהוה had brought Yisra’ĕl out of Mitsrayim.

Tree of Life Version                Parashat Vitro

Jethro’s Advice

Now Jethro, the priest of Midian and Moses’ father-in-law, heard about everything God had done for Moses and for His people Israel, and how Adonai had brought Israel out of Egypt.

Weird English, Olde English, Anachronistic English Translations:

Alpha & Omega Bible            AND JOTHOR (Jethro) THE PRIEST OF MIDIAN, THE FATHER-IN-LAW OF MOSES, HEARD OF ALL THAT JESUS DID TO HIS PEOPLE ISRAEL; FOR JESUS BROUGHT ISRAEL OUT OF EGYPT.

Awful Scroll Bible                   Jethro, the priest of Midian, whom Moses is being the son-in-law of, was to hear what he of mighty ones, is to have prepared for Moses and Isra-el, his people, surely that Jehovah is to have led Isra-el out from Egypt.

exeGeses companion Bible   PRIEST YITHRO ADVISES MOSHEH

ul0 And Yithro,

priest of Midyan, in law of Mosheh

hears of all Elohim worked for Mosheh

and for Yisra El his people

- that Yah Veh brought Yisra El from Misrayim:...

Orthodox Jewish Bible           [VITRO]

When Yitro, the kohen of Midyan, Moshe’s khoten (father-in-law), heard of all that Elohim had done for Moshe, and for Yisroel His people, and that Hashem had brought Yisroel out of Mitzrayim;...

Expanded/Embellished Bibles:

The Expanded Bible              Jethro Visits Moses

Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, was the priest of Midian [2:15]. He heard about everything that God had done for Moses and his people, the Israelites, and how the Lord had led the Israelites out of Egypt.

Kretzmann’s Commentary    Verses 1-12

Jethro Arrives with Zipporah

When Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses' father-in-law, his given name being Reuel and his official title Jethro, heard all that God had done for Moses and for Israel, His people, and that the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.

Syndein/Thieme                     When Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses' father in law, heard of all who 'Elohiym/Godhead had done for Moses, and for Israel his people, and that Jehovah/God had brought Israel out of Egypt.

{Note: Jethro means "his abundance". Jethro is also called 'Jether' elsewhere.}.

The Voice                               Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, the priest of Midian, heard about all that God had done for Moses and His people Israel, and how the Eternal had rescued Israel out of Egypt.

Bible Translations with an Excess of Footnotes:

The Complete Tanach           Now Moses' father in law, Jethro, the chieftain of Midian, heard all that God had done for Moses and for Israel, His people that the Lord had taken Israel out of Egypt.

Kaplan Translation                 Jethro's Advice

Moses' father-in-law, Jethro, sheik of Midian, heard about all that God had done for Moses and His people Israel when He brought Israel out of Egypt. The Kaplan Translation, particularly in Exodus through Deuteronomy, takes note of historic rabbinic opinions.

Jethro

See notes on Exodus 2:18, 3:1. According to some authorities, Jethro was Moses' brother-in-law (Ibn Ezra on Numbers 10:29).

There is a question as to whether or not the Torah is in chronological order here. According to some, Jethro came before the giving of the Ten Commandments, while according to others, he came afterward (Zevachim 116a; Ramman).

Jethro

Actually, 'Jethro, father-in-law of Moses.' The same is true in Exodus 18:5 and 18:12, but for the sake of simplicity, it is abbreviated.

Reuel (from Exodus 2:18)

Some say that he was their grandfather (cf. Numbers 10:29; Targum Yonathan; Rashbam; Ibn Ezra; Radak, Sherashim, s.v. Chathan). Others identify Reuel with Jethro (see Exodus 3:1; Mekhilta, Rashi, on Exodus 18:1; Josephus 2:12:1; see Sifri on Numbers 10:29). The name Reuel is also found in Genesis 36:4.

Jethro (from Exodus 3:1)

Yithro in Hebrew.

NET Bible®                             The Advice of Jethro

¹ Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard about all that God had done for Moses and for his people Israel, that² the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.³

^1sn This chapter forms the transition to the Law. There has been the deliverance, the testing passages, the provision in the wilderness, and the warfare. Any God who can do all this for his people deserves their allegiance. In chap. 18 the Lawgiver is giving advice, using laws and rulings, but then he is given advice to organize the elders to assist. Thus, when the Law is fully revealed, a system will be in place to administer it. The point of the passage is that a great leader humbly accepts advice from other godly believers to delegate responsibility. He does not try to do it all himself; God does not want one individual to do it all. The chapter has three parts: vv. 1-12 tell how Jethro heard and came and worshiped and blessed; vv. 13-23 have the advice of Jethro, and then vv. 24-27 tell how Moses implemented the plan and Jethro went home. See further E. J. Runions, “Exodus Motifs in 1 Samuel 7 and 8,” EvQ 52 (1980): 130-31; and also see for another idea T. C. Butler, “An Anti-Moses Tradition,” JSOT 12 (1979): 9-15.

^2tn This clause beginning with כִּי (ki) answers the question of what Jethro had heard; it provides a second, explanatory noun clause that is the object of the verb – “he heard (1) all that God had done… (2) that he had brought….” See R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 81, §490.

^3sn This is an important report that Jethro has heard, for the claim of God that he brought Israel out of bondage in Egypt will be the foundation of the covenant stipulations (Exod 20).

Literal, almost word-for-word, renderings:

Brenner’s Mechanical Trans....and "Yitro ^{His remainder}", administrator of "Mid'yan ^Quarrel", in-law of "Mosheh ^{Plucked out}", heard all which "Elohiym ^Powers" did (for) "Mosheh ^{Plucked out}" and (for) "Yisra'el ^{He turns El aside}" his people, given that "YHWH ^{He Is}" made "Yisra'el ^{He turns El aside}" go out from "Mits'rayim ^{Two straits}",...

Concordant Literal Version    Jethro, the priest of Midian, father-in-law of Moses, heard of all that Elohim had done for Moses and for Israel, His people, when Yahweh had brought Israel forth from Egypt.

Modern English Version         Jethro Counsels Moses

Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses, and for Israel His people, and that the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.

NASB                                     Jethro, Moses’ Father-in-law

Now Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel His people, how the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.

New European Version          Jethro Visits Moses

Now Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses, and for Israel his people, how that Yahweh had brought Israel out of Egypt.

New King James Version       Jethro’s Advice

And Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel His people—that the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt.

Webster’s Bible Translation  When Jethro the priest of Midian, Moses's father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses, and for Israel his people, and that the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt:...

The gist of this passage:     Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, hears about what God had done through Moses.

Translation: Jethro, Moses’s father-in-law and a priest of Midian, heard all that Elohim had done for Moses and for His people Israel,...

Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, hears about what has been taking place. At the same time, Moses is out in the desert-wilderness leading the people of Israel.

We have already seen that Moses first knew Jethro as Reuel (Exodus 2:18) and later as Jethro (Exodus 3:1). The former name was possibly the more formal, as we men would originally address our (future) father-in-law's as Mr. So-and-so and then later as plain So-and-so. That is, we first address them by their last names and, after we have become comfortable with them and they have given us permission, we address them by their first names. Something along these lines is all that occurred here.

Jethro had been in Midian, but he hears about what has happened in Egypt. This suggests that people all over that part of the world heard about what God did to Egypt in order to deliver Israel. It was no doubt an amazing story.

What happened in Egypt has been broadcast throughout all of the ancient world, mostly by transient traders, the original on-the-spot coverage news team; and when 2,000,000 people are moving from point A to point B, this also makes news. So Jethro knew that Moses was moving in his direction. Midian is on the other side of the Gulf of Aqaba from where Israel is camped. There are some mountains in between, but there had been certainly a trade route which had been established that Jethro took. Jethro had a great fondness for Moses and Moses learned a great deal of spiritual information from Jethro (although he did not apply it and put it altogether until he had been in Egypt for a month). There is no hint of bitterness about his daughter having returned with two children who could now be in their late teens or young adults (remember that not a lot of time has actually passed since Moses originally returned to Egypt). Given that Moses lives in Midian for 40 years, the sons could even be 35 years old or so.

Moses is leading his people through the desert-wilderness, and not too far away in Midian, Moses’ father-in law hears what is taking place.

Exodus 18:1a And Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel His people.... (NKJV)

Only a few months earlier, Moses left with his wife and two children in tow. However, at this point in time (a few months later), his wife went back to Midian. Did she choose to leave Moses over the circumcision (which she did not like having to perform)? Or did Moses send her back for her safety?

Moses’ marriage is somewhat a mystery to us. There are only two sons produced (they may be as old as 38 or 39 years). And, at this point in time, Zipporah, Moses’ wife, is with her father, even though she originally left with Moses to go to Egypt.

Jethro, the father-in-law, knew Moses and he knew his own daughter. He does not appear to offer Moses relationship advice.

Translation: ...for [he heard that] Y^ehowah brought Israel out of Egypt.

Somehow, Jethro heard what happened in Egypt. It would be my assumption that trading caravans conveyed much of the news of that era. They traveled from one city to the next, trading spices and wares, and bringing news from whatever places they have been to.

Moses Goes Out to Meet His Father-in-Law (a graphic); from Blog Spot; accessed July 19, 2023.

Although I saw this picture in many places, I did not come across its actual name or the original artist. Moses is portrayed as much older than Jethro, which may have been the case. Zipporah, Moses’ wife, stands to the side with two young sons. However, I suspect that these were no longer boys but older men, possibly in their mid-30s, at this time.

Exodus 18:1 Jethro, Moses’s father-in-law and a priest of Midian, heard all that Elohim had done for Moses and for His people Israel, for [he heard that] Y^ehowah brought Israel out of Egypt. (Kukis mostly literal translation)

Probably by means of trading caravans, Jethro hears about what has taken place in Egypt and what his son-in-law was doing; and he wanted to make contact with Moses. He also had another reason for coming there.

Exodus 18:1 Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law who was also a priest in Midian, heard all about what God had done through Moses and for His people Israel. He heard that Jehovah brought the people of Israel out of Egypt. (Kukis paraphrase)

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Translations divide up the next few verses differently. Some continue into v. 5; and some continue v. 5 into v. 6.

Here is how others have translated this verse:

Ancient texts:

Masoretic Text (Hebrew)        And so takes Jethro, a father-in-law of Moses, Zipporah, wife of Moses, after her sending away and two of her sons, where a name of the first [is] Gershom, for he said, “A stranger I was in a land foreign;” and a name of the [other] one Eliezer, for “Elohim of my father [is] in my help, for He rescued me from a sword of Pharaoh.”

Dead Sea Scrolls                   .

Targum (Onkelos)                  And Jethro, Mosheh's father in law, took Zipporah the wife of Mosheh, after he had let her go, and his two sons, the name of the one Gershom; For, he said, I have been a sojourner in a strange land; and the name of the other Eliezer; For (said he) the God of my fathers hath been my helper, and hath delivered me from the sword of Pharoh.

Targum (Pseudo-Jonathan)   And Jethro the father in law of Mosheh took Zipporah his wife, whom Mosheh had sent back from him after going into Mizraim, and his two sons, the name of the one of whom was Gershom, Because He had said, I am a dweller in a strange land which is not mine; and the name of the other Eliezer, For (he had said) the God of my fathers was my helper, and saved me from the sword of Pharoh.

Revised Douay-Rheims         He took Sephora the wife of Moses whom he had sent back: And her two sons, of whom one was called Gersam, his father saying: I have been a stranger in a foreign country. And the other Eliezer: For the God of my father, said he, is my helper, and has delivered me from the sword of Pharao.

Aramaic ESV of Peshitta        Yethro, Mosha's father-in-law, received Zipporah, Mosha's wife, after he had sent her away, and her two sons. The name of one son was Gershom, for Mosha said, "I have lived as a foreigner in a foreign land". The name of the other was Eliezer, for he said, "My father's God was my help and delivered me from Pharaoh's sword."

Peshitta (Syriac)                    Then Jethro, Moses father-in-law, took his daughter Zipporah, Moses wife, after he had sent her back, And her two sons; of whom the name of the one was Gershon; for he said, I have been an alien in a foreign land; And the name of the other was Eliezer; For the God of my fathers, said he, was my help, and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh;...

Updated Brenton (Greek)       And Jothor the father-in-law of Moses, took Sepphora the wife of Moses after she had been sent away, and her two sons: the name of the one was Gersam, his father saying, I was a sojourner in a strange land; — and the name of the second Eliezer, saying, For the God of my father is my helper, and he has rescued me out of the hand of Pharao.

Significant differences: 

Limited Vocabulary Translations:

Bible in Basic English             And Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, took Zipporah, Moses' wife, after he had sent her away, And her two sons, one of whom was named Gershom, for he said, I have been living in a strange land: And the name of the other was Eliezer, for he said, The God of my father was my help, and kept me safe from the sword of Pharaoh:...

Easy English                          Moses had sent Zipporah, who was his wife, back to her home. Then her father, Jethro, brought her and her two sons into his house. One son was called Gershom. Moses said about him, ‘I have become a stranger in a foreign country.’ The other son was called Eliezer. Moses said about him, ‘My father's God gave me help. He saved me from Pharaoh, when Pharaoh wanted to kill me.’

Easy-to-Read Version–2006  So Jethro went to Moses while Moses was camped near the mountain of God.^[a] Jethro brought Moses’ wife, Zipporah, with him. (Zipporah was not with Moses, because Moses had sent her home.) Jethro also brought Moses’ two sons with him. The first son was named Gershom,^[b] because when he was born, Moses said, “I am a stranger in a foreign country.” The other son was named Eliezer,^[c] because when he was born, Moses said, “The God of my father helped me and saved me from the king of Egypt.”

^[a] Exodus 18:2 mountain of God That is, Mount Horeb (Sinai).

^[b] Exodus 18:3 Gershom This name is like the Hebrew words meaning “a stranger there.”

^[c] Exodus 18:4 Eliezer This name means “My God helps.”

Good News Bible (TEV)         So he came to Moses, bringing with him Moses' wife Zipporah, who had been left behind, and Gershom and Eliezer, her two sons. (Moses had said, “I have been a foreigner in a strange land”; so he had named one son Gershom.^[a] He had also said, “The God of my father helped me and saved me from being killed by the king of Egypt”; so he had named the other son Eliezer.^[b])

^[a] Exodus 18:3 This name sounds like the Hebrew for “foreigner.”

^[b] Exodus 18:4 This name sounds like the Hebrew for “God helps me.”

The Message                         Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, had taken in Zipporah, Moses’ wife who had been sent back home, and her two sons. The name of the one was Gershom (Sojourner) for he had said, “I’m a sojourner in a foreign land”; the name of the other was Eliezer (God’s-Help) because “The God of my father is my help and saved me from death by Pharaoh.”

Names of God Bible               When Moses had sent away his wife Zipporah, his father-in-law Jethro had taken her in, along with her two sons. The one son was named Gershom [Foreigner], because Moses said, “I was a foreigner living in another country.” The name of the other was Eliezer [My God Is a Helper], because he said, “My father’s Elohim was my helper. He saved me from Pharaoh’s death sentence.”