H6855 H6855
Zipporah; personal name of Moses' Midianite wife, daughter of Jethro/Reuel
Zipporah was Moses' wife, the daughter of the Midianite priest Jethro (also called Reuel). Exodus 2:21 records their marriage when Moses fled to Midian. In Exodus 4:25, she circumcises their son during the mysterious encounter where the Lord sought to kill Moses. Exodus 18:2 mentions that Moses had sent her away, but Jethro brings her back to Moses in the wilderness. The name means 'bird' in Hebrew. Her brief but significant appearances highlight moments of crisis and covenant—circumcision, separation, and reunion.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Three narrative moments define Zipporah: her marriage to Moses (Exodus 2:21), her dramatic circumcision of their son (4:25), and her return from temporary separation (18:2). She acts decisively in chapter 4, performing the circumcision that apparently appeases God's wrath against Moses. The cross-linguistic renderings are consistent (Zipporah, Séphora, Zippora, Tsiporah), treating this as a straightforward proper name. Her Midianite origin makes her an outsider who nevertheless participates in covenant acts. 3×
AR["صَفُورَةَ", "صَفُّورَةَ", "صِفُّورَةُ"]·ben["সিপ্পোরা", "সিপ্পোরাকে"]·DE["Zippora"]·EN["Zipporah"]·FR["Séphora"]·heb["ציפורה"]·HI["सिप्पोरा", "Ṫइप्पोरा", "Ṫइप्पोरा-ने"]·ID["Zipora"]·IT["Sefora"]·jav["Sipora", "Siporah"]·KO["십보라가", "십보라를", "에게-모세에게"]·PT["Tsipporah", "Tsipporah,"]·RU["Циппора", "Циппору"]·ES["Tsiporah", "a-Tsiporah"]·SW["Sipora"]·TR["Sippora", "Sippora'yı"]·urd["صفورہ", "صفورہ-نے"]
Related Senses
G3588 1. definite article (18298×)H0853 1. definite direct object marker (10915×)G2532 1. (8312×)H3068 1. YHWH (the divine name) (6522×)H0834a 1. relative pronoun (who/which/that) (4839×)H3588a 1. causal: because, for (3498×)G1161 1. and (2806×)H3478 1. Israel (proper name and nation) (2507×)G4771 1. you (plural address) (1853×)H1931 1. personal pronoun he/she/it (1431×)G3739 1. relative pronoun who/which/that (1149×)H1732 1. David (proper name) (1075×)H2088 1. this, this one (demonstrative) (1059×)G1063 1. (1047×)G3778 1. this thing, these things (1003×)H???? 2. (1002×)G2424 1. (924×)G3754 1. that (content clause) (881×)H2009 1. presentative particle: behold, look (881×)H0589 1. I (first person singular pronoun) (874×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† צִפֹּרָה n.pr.f. wife of Moses (bird);—Ex 2:21; 4:25; 18:2; Σεπφωρα (cf. LagBN 90 Anm.*).