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Bible Dictionaries
Hobab
Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible
or HOBAB . In E [Note: Elohist.] ( Exodus 3:1; Exodus 4:18; Exodus 18:1-2 ff.) the father-in-law of Moses is uniformly named Jethro . But Numbers 10:29 (J [Note: Jahwist.] ) speaks of ‘Hobab the son of Reuel the Midianite Moses’ father-in-law’ ( hôthçn ). It is uncertain how this should be punctuated, and whether Hobab or Reuel was Moses’ father-in-law. The former view is found in Judges 4:11 (cf. Judges 1:16 ), the latter in Exodus 2:18 . The RV [Note: Revised Version.] in Judges 1:16; Judges 4:11 attempts to harmonize the two by rendering hôthçn ‘brother-in-law.’ But this harmonization is doubtful, for (1) though it is true that in Aram. [Note: Aramaic.] and Arab. [Note: Arabic.] the cognate word can be used rather loosely to describe a wife’s relations, there is no evidence that it is ever so used in Heb.; and it would be strange to find the father and the brother of the same man’s wife described by the same term; (2) Exodus 2:16 appears to imply that the priest of Midian had no sons. It is probable that the name Renel was added in Exodus 2:18 by one who misunderstood Numbers 10:29 . The suggestion that ‘Hobab the son of’ has accidentally dropped out before Renel is very improbable. Thus Jethro (E [Note: Elohist.] ) and Hobab (J [Note: Jahwist.] ) are the names of Moses’ father-in-law, and Reuel is Hobab’s father. A Mohammedan tradition identifies Sho’ aib (perhaps a corruption of Hobab), a prophet sent to the Midianites, with Moses’ father-in-law. On his nationality, and the events connected with him, see Kenites, Midian, Jethro.
A. H. M’Neile.
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Hastings, James. Entry for 'Hobab'. Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/hdb/h/hobab.html. 1909.
