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Zipporah, who became the wife of Moses, was the daughter of daughter of Jethro, who was a priest in the land of Midian, an ancient region that was near Israel, but was on the east side of the Jordan River.
Zipporah's name can be represented in English in a variety of ways, including Tzipporah, Tzippora, Tzipora, Zippora and Ziporah, etc. She is mentioned by name four times in the Bible, in Exodus 2:11-23; Exodus 4:18-31; Exodus 18; and Numbers 12:1.
Moses, a Hebrew who was born and raised in the Pharoah's household in Egypt, had to leave Egypt after killing a man there. He settled in the land of Midian where he met Jethro and married his daughter, Zipporah. She gave birth to two sons, named Gershom, and Eliezer.
The name Gershom is similar to the Hebrew word for "foreigner" or "stranger." The name Eliezer is often translated as "God is helper." The reasons for the names are explained in Exodus 18:3-4 (NIV translation):
One son was named Gershom, for Moses said, "I have become an alien in a foreign land"; and the other was named Eliezer, for he said, "My father's God was my helper; he saved me from the sword of Pharaoh."
Click here for an online Bible showing the verses that mention Zipporah: BibleGateway.com - Zipporah
Next person in the Bible: Zophar
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