But Moses’ wife, Zipporah, took a flint knife and circumcised her son. She touched his feet with the foreskin and said; “Now you are a bridegroom of blood to me.” (Exodus 4:25)
MOSES, a sojourner in the land of Midian, was directed by God to go back to Egypt to be an instrument of liberation to God’s people. Ordinarily, Moses had wanted to hesitate, but God assured him that those that wanted to take his life had all died in Egypt. Of course, we noticed Moses earlier as a murderer (Exodus 2:12)

However, with God’s assurance, Moses took his wife and sons on a journey that took him to Egypt. But Moses, as a young man might not have thought deeply about his marriage with Zipporah, the Midianite. Partly, he may have thought that he would never relocate from Midian to Egypt to reunite his people, having left there as a result of the sacrilege he committed unwittingly. As an Israelite, Moses should not have indulged in a mixed marriage. God warned his people to marry from their tribe possibly in order not to corrupt themselves and their faith in Him, (Deut. 7: 1-4, Neh. 13:23-27). The implication of his marriage with Zipporah was brought to the fore, when he could have died by sickness, could have also lost his son as a result of non-circumcision, which was a covenant God had with all Israelites through Abraham (Gen. 17:9ff).

Bible commentators agree that the mixed cultural marriage Moses had nearly destroyed him and could have also wasted God’s will for his life and his race. To avert this tragedy, therefore, Moses’ wife Zipporah took a flint knife and circumcised her son. She touched his feet with the foreskin and said; “Now you are a bridegroom of blood to me”.

We are not saying that intertribal marriage is not good, but we must emphasise according to the Bible that marriage should better be consummated within a household of faith.

Remember, Abraham directed his head servant, Eliezer of Damascus, to go to their tribe to help find a wife for his son Isaac (Gen. 24:4). St. Paul also encouraged believers not to be unequally yoked with unbelievers (2 Corinth. 6:14). This is a serious matter, as people marry today for different reasons. Sometimes they may be motivated to marry based on some of these considerations-political, economic, social and even cultural whether it negates their faith or not. We must beware lest we make a mess of our faith in the Lord.

It is just like a story told us some years back by a preacher of how a new ambitious convert felt that his faith could help him carry soul winning business to prostitutes in a brothel. It was a tragic ending, as the converter became the converted by those he sought to convert. What a shame!

It is to be noted that marriages are better contracted within the household of faith, but if any feels strongly that he can go outside it, he must be sure that his faith in the Lord is intact and has the witness that the spirit of God is leading. Nothing more, nothing less!

It was God’s grace that saved Moses and his son. That mixed marriage could have landed him in early grave. A word is enough for the wise. Therefore, Beware!

Ven. Ernest Onuoha
Rector, Ibru International Ecumenical Centre, Agbarha-Otor, Delta State.
www.ibrucentre.org