A Puzzling Passage in Exodus

Our reading through Exodus takes us through chapter 4 this week where we read one of the most puzzling passages in Scripture. Moses has just informed his father-in-law Jethro that he is going to leave Midian and head with his family back to Egypt. Then, we read:

At a lodging place on the way the Lord met him and sought to put him to death. Then Zipporah took a flint and cut off her son’s foreskin and touched Moses’ feet with it and said, “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me!” So he let him alone. It was then that she said, “A bridegroom of blood,” because of the circumcision” (Ex 4:24–26).

There are a number of interpretative issues here, but the fundamental question that comes to mind is: Why does the Lord want to kill Moses after he has just commissioned him?

This is a notoriously difficult passage to understand, but the centrality of circumcision in the account is clear. Most likely, the Lord has come to kill Moses because Moses failed to circumcise his son. The Lord has remembered his covenant promises to Abraham and his family, and so Moses must remember the sign of the covenant set forth in Genesis 17:9-14.

Want to go deeper with Exodus? Click above for more resources.

The importance of circumcision comes up again in Exodus 12:43-49. Circumcision, which is the sign of God’s covenant promise with his people in the OT, must be observed together with the Passover. God’s gracious covenant promises require covenant obedience. Here in Exodus 4, the Lord demands Moses’s obedience to the covenant conditions. His sons must be circumcised.

On a broader scale, this passage demonstrates how seriously the Lord takes obedience. As J. A. Motyer explains, “The Lord treats obedience with a seriousness that is in marked contrast to our casual and self-excusing way.” Disobedience leads to death, even of God’s chosen servant. To serve the Lord, we must obey him.

While the importance of circumcision in particular and obedience in general are clear, Zipporah’s words, “a bridegroom of blood,” add another layer of difficulty to interpreting this passage. One commentator, Brevard Childs, remarks, “The significance of Zipporah’s words remains one of the most enigmatic parts of the story, and the attempts to unravel its mystery are almost legion.” Interpreters offer few compelling options, but it is evident from 4:26 is that she says these words in relationship to circumcision. What is clear from this passage is that Zipporah intervened and saved her husbands life. While we do not know how she knew what to do, she clearly knew that circumcision was the answer, and it was because of her action that the Lord spared Moses.

For all the questions that arise with this passage, the action centers on the issue of circumcision. Circumcision is the sign of God’s covenant with his Israel, and Moses’s failure to obey at this point underscores a key motif in these early chapters: will Moses trust God? God’s anger has already been aroused against Moses for his failure to trust God’s responses to his objections (4:14). Now, Moses’s lack of faith is leading him to disobey God’s command. The Lord’s redeeming his people out of slavery in Egypt is part of his keeping his promise to Abraham. Moses must receive these promises by faith and obey accordingly.

Additionally, I would suggest that this question of circumcision ties into the theme of sonship. This theme is introduced in this chapter and will be developed as Exodus unfolds. Just before this incident with Zipporah, the Lord declares to Moses:

Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord, Israel is my firstborn son, and I say to you, “Let my son go that he may serve me.” If you refuse to let him go, behold, I will kill your firstborn son.’ ” (Ex 4:22–23).

God announces that his people Israel are his firstborn son, and all sons descended from Abraham are to be circumcised. Moses is to mark this sign of God’s promise on his sons because God has set apart Abraham and his descendants to be his people.

A number of questions remain about this passage, but the centrality of circumcision in this incident points to the (1) call for the obedience of faith in response to God’s promises and (2) that Israel is God’s firstborn son.