Hebrew word · H3503

יִתְרוֹ

yitro

Jethro

A personal name probably related to yeter / yitrôn, 'remainder, abundance, excellence, pre-eminence'. A shorter form, Yeter, appears in Exod 4:18.

Appears 9 times in 9 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

A man living at the time of Egypt and Wilderness, first mentioned at Exo.2.18;

father of: Zipporah (H6855) and Hobab (H2246); also called Reuel (KJV: Raguel) at Num.10.29;

§ Jethro = "his abundance"

father-in-law of Moses; also 'Jether'

Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of Exodus 18:1

Range of meaning

A personal name probably related to yeter / yitrôn, 'remainder, abundance, excellence, pre-eminence'. A shorter form, Yeter, appears in Exod 4:18.

Against the English

'Jethro' comes from the Latin Iethro. Readers are often unaware that the same figure seems to carry other names in the Bible.

Used elsewhere in the period

Moses' father-in-law is called Reuel ('friend/companion of God') in Exod 2:18, Jethro in 3:1; 4:18; 18, and is linked with Hobab in Num 10:29 ('Hobab son of Reuel the Midianite, Moses' father-in-law', which is ambiguous) and Judg 4:11 ('Hobab, Moses' father-in-law', a Kenite). Rabbinic tradition (Mekhilta, Yitro 1) lists seven names for him and explains 'Jethro' as 'he added' (yeter), saying a section was added to the Torah on his account.

Where it appears

Exodus · 9

  1. Exodus 3:1 יִתְר֥וֹ Jethro

    Meanwhile, Moses was shepherding the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.

    Here: Moses' father-in-law, named here for the first time as Jethro. In 2:18 he is called Reuel. The name probably comes from a root meaning 'abundance' or 'excellence'.

  2. Exodus 4:18 יִתְר֛וֹ Jethro

    Then Moses went back to his father-in-law Jethro and said to him, “Please let me return to my brothers in Egypt to see if they are still alive.” “Go in peace,” Jethro replied.

  3. Exodus 18:1 יִתְר֨וֹ Jethro

    Now Moses’ father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian, heard about all that God had done for Moses and His people Israel, and how the LORD had brought Israel out of Egypt.

    Here: The personal name of Moses' Midianite father-in-law. It probably comes from the root for 'abundance, excess, pre-eminence'. In Exodus 2:18 he is called Reuel, and in 4:18 he appears in the short form Yeter.

  4. Exodus 18:2 יִתְרוֹ֙ Jethro

    After Moses had sent back his wife Zipporah, his father-in-law Jethro had received her,

  5. Exodus 18:5 יִתְר֨וֹ Jethro

    Moses’ father-in-law Jethro, along with Moses’ wife and sons, came to him in the desert, where he was encamped at the mountain of God.

  6. Exodus 18:6 יִתְר֖וֹ Jethro

    He sent word to Moses, “I, your father-in-law Jethro, am coming to you with your wife and her two sons.”

  7. Exodus 18:9 יִתְר֔וֹ Jethro

    And Jethro rejoiced over all the good things the LORD had done for Israel, whom He had rescued from the hand of the Egyptians.

  8. Exodus 18:10 יִתְרוֹ֒ Jethro

    Jethro declared, “Blessed be the LORD, who has delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and of Pharaoh, and who has delivered the people from the hand of the Egyptians.

  9. Exodus 18:12 יִתְר֨וֹ Jethro

    Then Moses’ father-in-law Jethro brought a burnt offering and sacrifices to God, and Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses’ father-in-law in the presence of God.

    Here: The priest of Midian (18:1; 3:1), also called Reuel (2:18). He is a foreigner, and he is the subject of the sentence.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.