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Now the priest of Midian had seven daughters. They came to draw water and filled the troughs to water their father’s flock. Then some shepherds arrived and drove them away, but Moses came to their rescue and watered their flock. When they returned to their father Reuel he asked, “Why have you come back so quickly today?”
They answered, “An Egyptian rescued us from the shepherds. He even drew water for us and watered the flock.”
“So where is he?” he asked his daughters. “Why then did you leave the man behind? Invite him to eat dinner.” Moses agreed to stay with the man, and he gave his daughter Zipporah to Moses in marriage. [Exodus 2:21 HCSB]
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Reuel
Reu-el [Ray yoo el’] means “friend of God.” And he becomes a great mentor to Moses. His other name is Jethro, which means “excellence” or “profitable.” Isn’t that a grand name for a mentor? Time with him is always excellent and profitable.
Reuel/Jethro appears to be one of subset in Midian called the Kenites. The Kenites worshipped the one true covenant God, YHWH, carrying on the truth they learned from Father Abraham. Later, many of the Kenites will leave Midian and become part of Israel, seamlessly joining the Hebrew faith and culture.
Reuel/Jethro is likely part of what led to that seamless joining, since he is a priest of the covenant God of Abraham. Later in Exodus, we see a small slice of how this wise man guided Moses and instructed him, as a priest should. Reuel provides a better education than the best schools in the world back in Egypt.
Stephen Spielberg got really excited about how Jethro mentored Moses, and it led Spielberg to put together what I think is one of the great scenes in movie history. I suggest you take three minutes to enjoy his “Look at your life” scene from the film The Prince of Egypt. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oG0a9WFkgzU
The desert
Spielberg does an excellent job capturing the man who grabs hold of Moses and makes sure he is welcome in their compound. By the way, hospitality customs in that part of the world were very strong even then and they have not diminished since.
Not many years ago, I was chatting with a Bedouin Arab in a tent not too far from the Red Sea. Since a village nearby was named for Moses, he and I got to discussing Moses and Midian. We were both appreciating what Reuel/Jethro did for Moses, and my new Arab friend said something very interesting. He said, “The desert does that to people. It either makes you share with the one in need or take what he has.”
That made me think about us, friends. We who know Jesus as Savior are meant to live as friends of God. We are described in the New Testament as a priesthood of believers. We’re supposed to be sharing and caring – teaching people to look at life through heaven’s eyes. The desert of this life is meant to make us overcomers who are more compassionate, not less.
But when people try to describe me and you and our impact on their lives, will they call us “Jethro” – excellent and profitable? What might be preventing that from being your legacy? Think of one thing…just start with one thing…that needs to change in your life in order for that to become reality. What needs to change for people to see interaction with you as excellent and profitable engagement with a friend of God?
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