Exodus 18:1–12

Jethro’s Counsel

¹Now ^aJethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard of all that God had done for Moses and for Israel His people, how Yahweh had brought Israel out of Egypt.

²And Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took Moses’ wife ^aZipporah, after he had sent her away,

³and her ^atwo sons, of whom ¹one was named Gershom, for Moses said, “I have been ^ba ²sojourner in a foreign land.”

⁴¹And the other was named ^2aEliezer, for he said, “^bThe God of my father was my help and delivered me from the sword of Pharaoh.”

⁵Then Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, came with his sons and his wife to Moses ¹in the wilderness where he was camped, at ^athe mount of God.

⁶And he ¹sent word to Moses, “I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons with her.”

⁷Then Moses went out to meet his father-in-law, and ^ahe bowed down and ^bkissed him; and they ^casked each other of their welfare and went into the tent.

⁸And Moses recounted to his father-in-law all that Yahweh had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians ^afor Israel’s sake, all the ^bhardship that had befallen them on the journey, and how ^cYahweh had delivered them.

⁹And Jethro rejoiced over all ^athe goodness which Yahweh had done to Israel, that He had delivered ¹them from the hand of the Egyptians.

¹⁰So Jethro said, “^aBlessed be Yahweh who delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of Pharaoh, and who delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians.

¹¹“Now I know that ^aYahweh is greater than all the gods; ¹for ^bin this matter they acted presumptuously against ²the people.”

^12aThen Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took a burnt offering and sacrifices for God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat ¹a meal with Moses’ father-in-law before God.