Jethro, the priest of Midian, is Moses’s father-in-law. (In his first appearance in Exodus, he is called Reuel.) After Moses sets out for Canaan, he sends his wife Zipporah and his sons Gershom and Eliezer to live with Jethro. When Jethro visits Moses in the wilderness, he encourages Moses to set up a system of judges to oversee disputes among the people.
Get the entire Exodus LitChart as a printable PDF.
Jethro (Reuel) Character Timeline in Exodus
The timeline below shows where the character Jethro (Reuel) appears in Exodus. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 2
...the daughters’ defense and waters their flocks for them. Later, the daughters tell their father, Reuel, about the kindly “Egyptian” whom they met by the well. Reuel invites Moses to his...
(full context)
Chapter 3
While keeping the flocks of his father-in-law, Jethro, Moses comes to the mountain of Horeb in the wilderness. Suddenly, the angel of the...
(full context)
Chapter 18
Moses’s father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian, hears what God has done for the Israelites. Moses has sent...
(full context)
The next day, Moses judges cases for the people from morning until evening. Jethro asks why Moses does this, and Moses explains that when the people have any dispute...
(full context)
