The Firstborn Son of Moses as the ‘Relative of Blood’ in Exodus 4.24-26

Abstract

The enigmatic nature of Exod. 4.24-26 leaves many readers wondering both where the passage originated and also how the passage should be understood. Many of the difficulties of this passage revolve around the identification of the pronominal suffixes in the simple Hebrew grammar. This article argues that the reasonable antecedent of the vague pronominal suffixes is Gershom, Moses’ firstborn son. Gershom, being uncircumcised as he and his family return to Egypt, is considered a foreigner and will suffer the same fate as Egypt’s firstborn in the tenth plague. Therefore, Zipporah circumcises her son and exclaims that he is a ‭ם י מ ד ן ת ח‬, a relative to Yahweh by means of the blood of circumcision. Gershom is now identified as one of the Hebrew people because of the visible blood sign of his circumcision and enjoys Yahweh’s protection. In order to draw this conclusion, one must separate the translation of the word ‭ן ת ח‬ from the contextual meaning of the phrase ‭ם י מ ד ן ת ח‬. Only then does this bizarre passage make the most sense.