Exodus 4:24-26
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The crucial detail here isn't just that God met Moses, but that He sought to kill him—an intense divine confrontation that wasn't about Moses's delay, but a direct consequence of neglecting a foundational covenant sign: the circumcision of his son. This shows that even those chosen for monumental tasks are held accountable for deeply personal obedience to God's commands.
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.
English Standard Version (ESV)
As Moses journeys towards Egypt with his wife and sons, God confronts him with a deadly threat, revealing a serious lapse in obedience. This encounter happens unexpectedly during a stop for the night, and it is Zipporah who takes immediate action to appease God's anger by circumcising their son. Following this act, God withdraws his judgment, and Moses, along with his brother Aaron, proceeds to carry out God's command to confront Pharaoh.
The journey to Egypt was fraught with divine peril. Moses, on the cusp of leading a nation, faced God's deadly anger. What could possibly cause such a fiery confrontation?
This terrifying encounter reveals that even God's chosen servants are not exempt from His judgment when they neglect sacred duties.
The Uncircumcised Son
Most scholars agree the cause of God's anger was Moses's failure to circumcise his newborn son, Gershom (or Eliezer). While the Midianites may have had different customs regarding circumcision, Moses, as the future lawgiver of Israel, was bound by the Abrahamic covenant and its sign.
A Matter of Covenant
Circumcision wasn't just a ritual; it was the seal of God's covenant with Abraham and his descendants. To neglect it was to disregard God's promises and the identity of His chosen people. Moses, by delaying this rite, risked his son's place within the covenant community and set a dangerous example of disobedience.
God's Urgent Correction
God's action wasn't arbitrary punishment but a severe, corrective measure. He met Moses not just to threaten, but to impress upon him the gravity of his neglect. This divine intervention, though frightening, ultimately led to the correction of the error and the continuation of Moses's mission.
In the face of imminent death, Moses's wife, Zipporah, steps in with a swift, decisive action. But her act is as dramatic as it is controversial.
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Zipporah's intervention, though perhaps not perfectly executed, demonstrates a crucial understanding of how to appease divine anger and secure life.
A Wife's Quick Thinking
Whether out of fear for her husband, her son, or understanding the gravity of the situation, Zipporah took a sharp stone and circumcised her son. This act, performed in haste and possibly with emotional intensity (as suggested by her words, 'a bloody husband'), was a drastic measure.
A Propitiating Sacrifice
The key is that by performing the circumcision, Zipporah enacted the required covenant sign. This act, however imperfectly done or motivated, turned aside God's wrath. The narrative implies that God, seeing the covenant sign performed, 'ceased' His attack on Moses.
Imperfect Obedience's Role
While God values sincere obedience, this event shows that sometimes, even imperfect or fear-driven actions that fulfill a divine requirement can avert judgment. It doesn't endorse sloppy obedience, but reveals God's grace in accepting a vital rite performed under duress, thereby guiding Moses and Zipporah toward a fuller commitment.
Understand the original words
ʿorlâ · Hebrew Noun
The sign of the covenant between God and the descendants of Abraham, representing the separation of the people unto God and the removal of the corruption of the flesh.
millah · Hebrew Noun
In the context of the covenantal sign of the Abrahamic covenant, circumcision represents the cutting off of the flesh, signifying separation from the world and dedication to God. It is a physical mark of one's participation in the covenant relationship with Yahweh.
This incident highlights the immense gravity of covenant signs like circumcision in ancient Israel. Moses, the future lawgiver, is confronted by God for neglecting this vital sign, showing that even leaders are held to strict account for obedience to God's commands.
c. 1500 BC
Abrahamic Covenant Established
God makes a covenant with Abraham, promising descendants and land, and establishing circumcision as the sign of this covenant for all males.
c. 1446 BC— this verse
Exodus from Egypt
Moses, having lived in Midian for 40 years, is called by God to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt. His family is with him on this journey back.
c. 1446 BC
Moses' Son Gershom Not Circumcised
Moses' second son, Gershom, has reached the eighth day of his life but has not been circumcised, a sign of the Abrahamic covenant, likely due to Zipporah's reluctance or Moses's hesitation.
c. 1446 BC
Divine Judgment and Zipporah's Action
God confronts Moses at a lodging place, seeking to put him to death, indicating divine judgment for the uncircumcised son. Zipporah circumcises their son, appeasing God's wrath.
c. 1446 BC
Reconciliation and Journey Resumes
God relents, and Moses continues his journey towards Egypt with Aaron, who has been called to meet him. They then gather the elders of Israel.
This passage establishes circumcision as the sign of the covenant, directly linking its neglect to a violation of God's agreement, which illuminates why God would be displeased with Moses.
Numbers 22:22Here, God's angel meets Balaam with opposition, similar to the 'meeting' described in Exodus, highlighting a divine confrontation with a prophet due to disobedience or a dangerous path.
1 Samuel 15:22This verse emphasizes that obedience is more valuable to God than sacrifice, underscoring the principle that Moses's failure in a commanded obedience (circumcision) would be gravely serious.
1 Corinthians 11:30Paul speaks of sickness and death as consequences of profaning sacred things, mirroring the idea that mishandling or neglecting a covenant sign could bring divine judgment, as seen in Exodus 4:24.
Romans 2:28-29This passage argues that true circumcision is of the heart, not just the flesh, providing a theological backdrop to understand how outward covenant signs are tied to inner obedience and relationship with God.
calvinExodus 4:24-31: "And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him."
And the Lord said to Aaron, Go into the wilderness to meet Moses. And he went, and met him in the mount of God, and kissed him.
Dixit autem Jehova ad Aharon, Vade in occursum Mosi in desertum. Profectus est igitur, et occurrit ei in monte Dei, et osculatus est eum.
And Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord who had sent him, and all the signs which he had commanded him.…
clarkeExodus 4:24: "And it came to pass by the way in the inn, that the LORD met him, and sought to kill him."
By the way in the inn - See Clarke's note on Genesis 42:27 . The account in this and the following verse is very obscure. Some suppose that the Exodus 4:23 is not a part of the message to Pharaoh, but was spoken by the Lord to Moses; and that the whole may be thus paraphrased: "And I have said unto thee, (Moses), Send forth שלח shallach, my son, (Gershom, by circumcising him), that he may s…
The crucial detail here isn't just that God met Moses, but that He sought to kill him—an intense divine confrontation that wasn't about Moses's delay, but a direct consequence of neglecting a foundational covenant sign: the circumcision of his son. This shows that even those chosen for monumental tasks are held accountable for deeply personal obedience to God's commands.
As Moses journeys towards Egypt with his wife and sons, God confronts him with a deadly threat, revealing a serious lapse in obedience. This encounter happens unexpectedly during a stop for the night, and it is Zipporah who takes immediate action to appease God's anger by circumcising their son. Following this act, God withdraws his judgment, and Moses, along with his brother Aaron, proceeds to carry out God's command to confront Pharaoh.
As Moses journeys towards Egypt with his wife and sons, God confronts him with a deadly threat, revealing a serious lapse in obedience. This encounter happens unexpectedly during a stop for the night, and it is Zipporah who takes immediate action to appease God's anger by circumcising their son. Following this act, God withdraws his judgment, and Moses, along with his brother Aaron, proceeds to carry out God's command to confront Pharaoh.
"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…" — The crucial detail here isn't just that God met Moses, but that He sought to kill him—an intense divine confrontation that wasn't about Moses's delay, but a direct consequence of neglecting a fou…
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Last reviewed October 2026
