the Week of Proper 26 / Ordinary 31
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Bible Encyclopedias
Hobab
The 1901 Jewish Encyclopedia
or Name occurring twice in the Bible, and borne either by Moses' father-in-law or by his brother-in-law. In the first passage (Numbers 10:29),Hobab is said to have been the son of Raguel (R. V. "Reuel"), the Midianite, Moses' father-in-law (comp. Exodus 2:18), while in Judges 4:11 Hobab himself is called Moses' father-in-law. The Jewish commentators, as Rashi and Naḥmanides, are inclined to agree with the latter passage. They explain (Exodus 2:18) that Raguel, who was Zipporah's grandfather, was called "father" by his grand-daughters. Ibn Ezra, however, favored the interpretation of "ḥoten Mosheh" (Judges 4:11) as "Moses' brother-in-law." Hobab, whoever he was, seems to have been well acquainted with the desert, for Moses requested him to stay with the Israelites and serve them as their "eyes" (Num. c.).
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Singer, Isidore, Ph.D, Projector and Managing Editor. Entry for 'Hobab'. 1901 The Jewish Encyclopedia. https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/tje/h/hobab.html. 1901.
