Amplified Bible
Exodus 2:21
21Moses was willing to remain with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah [to be his wife].
Exodus 2:21 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And Moses was content to dwell with the man: and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter.
- New International Version (NIV)Moses agreed to stay with the man, who gave his daughter Zipporah to Moses in marriage.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And Moses was content to dwell with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then Moses was content to live with the man, and he gave Zipporah his daughter to Moses.
Context of Exodus 2:21
19They said, “An Egyptian saved us from the shepherds. He even drew water [from the well] for us and watered the flock.” 20Then he said to his daughters, “Where is he? Why have you left the man behind? Invite him to have something to eat.” Moses was willing to remain with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah [to be his wife]. 22She gave birth to a son, and he named him Gershom (stranger); for he said, “I have been a stranger in a foreign land.” 23Now it happened after a long time [about forty years] that the king of Egypt died. And the children of Israel (Jacob) groaned and sighed because of the bondage, and they cried out. And their cry for help because of their bondage ascended to God.
Read all of Exodus 2Exodus 2:21 word by word
וַיּ֥וֹאֶל מֹשֶׁ֖ה לָשֶׁ֣בֶת אֶת־הָאִ֑ישׁ וַיִּתֵּ֛ן אֶת־צִפֹּרָ֥ה בִתּ֖וֹ לְמֹשֶֽׁה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Exodus 2:21
- Exodus 2:10And the child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter and he became her son. And she named him Moses, and said, “Because I drew him out of the water.”
- Genesis 31:38These twenty years I have been with you; your ewes and your female goats have not lost their young, nor have I eaten the rams of your flocks.
- Philippians 4:11Not that I speak from [any personal] need, for I have learned to be content [and self-sufficient through Christ, satisfied to the point where I am not disturbed or uneasy] regardless of my circumstances.
- 1 Timothy 6:6But godliness actually is a source of great gain when accompanied by contentment [that contentment which comes from a sense of inner confidence based on the sufficiency of God].
- Hebrews 11:25because he preferred to endure the hardship of the people of God rather than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin.
- Hebrews 13:5Let your character [your moral essence, your inner nature] be free from the love of money [shun greed—be financially ethical], being content with what you have; for He has said, “I will never [under any circumstances] desert you [nor give you up nor leave you without support, nor will I in any degree leave you helpless], nor will I forsake or let you down or relax My hold on you [assuredly not]!”
- James 1:10and the rich man is to glory in being humbled [by trials revealing human frailty, knowing true riches are found in the grace of God], for like the flower of the grass he will pass away.
- Exodus 4:20So Moses took his wife [Zipporah] and his sons [Gershom and Eliezer] and seated them on donkeys, and returned to the land of Egypt. Moses also took the staff of God in his hand.
- Exodus 18:2Then Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took Moses’ wife Zipporah, after he had sent her away [from Egypt],
- Numbers 12:1Now Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married (for he had married a Cushite woman);
Commentaries on Exodus 2:21
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21Zipporah his daughter - Abul Farajius calls her "Saphura the black, daughter of Rewel the Midianite, the son of Dedan, the son of Abraham by his wife Keturah." The Targum calls her the granddaughter of Reuel. It appears that Moses obtained Zipporah something in the same way that Jacob obtained Rachel; namely, for the performance of certain Services, probably keeping of sheep: see Exodus 3:1.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 21Moses tells us nothing of what he may have learned from his father-in-law, but he must have found in him a man conversant with the traditions of the family of Abraham; nor is there any improbability in the supposition that, as hereditary priest, Reuel may have possessed written documents concerning their common ancestors.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 16-22Verses 16-22 Moses found shelter in Midian. He was ready to help Reuel's daughters to water their flocks, although bred in learning and at court. Moses loved to be doing justice, and to act in defence of such as he saw injured, which every man ought to do, as far as it is in his power. He loved to be doing good; wherever the providence of God casts us, we should desire and try to be useful; and when we cannot do the good we would, we must be ready to do…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16-25This passage shows the concern Moses felt for the oppressed. It describes his move to a new land (2:18–22). He married, had a child, and lived there for 40 years (Acts 7:30). From a human perspective, rescuing the Israelites through Moses seemed impossible. But what God's perspective is what matters. The end of this section tells us that God had not forgotten his people (Exodus 2:23–25). He was only waiting for the right time to act (2:25).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 16-2216-22. the priest of Midian--or, "prince of Midian." As the officers were usually conjoined, he was the ruler also of the people called Cushites or Ethiopians, and like many other chiefs of pastoral people in that early age, he still retained the faith and worship of the true God. seven daughters--were shepherdesses to whom Moses was favorably introduced by an act of courtesy and courage in protecting them from the rude shepherds of some neighboring tribe…Read the comment
Topics related to Exodus 2:21
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Exodus 2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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