Moses meets with Jethro, his father-in-law, in the desert of Midian and heard everything that God had been doing through Moses, including their exodus from Egypt, Exodus 18:1.
Moses is reunited with his wife Zipporah, Exodus 18:2 / Exodus 4:18-26, and his two sons Gershon and Eliezer, Exodus 18:2. Remember he had sent his family back to Midian, possible during the plagues of Egypt, Exodus 4:24-26.
Clarke, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Jethro, now finding that God had delivered them, and totally discomfited the Egyptians, their enemies, thought it proper to bring Zipporah and her sons to Moses, while he was in the vicinity of Horeb.’
His sons, Gershom, whose name means foreigner, and Eliezer, whose name means Mt God is helper, were born while he lived with Jethro during the forty years he was in Sinai before going to Egypt, Exodus 18:3-4 / Exodus 2:22 / Exodus 4:25.
Jethro, together with Moses’ sons and wife, came to him in the wilderness, where he was camped near the mountain of God, Exodus 18:5. Jethro had sent word to Moses informing him that he was coming to him with his wife and her two sons, Exodus 18:6.
Moses had a special relationship with Jethro, though he had been raised in all the wisdom and education of Egypt. Moses no doubt learned more about real leadership from the priest and shepherd Jethro, whose flocks Moses tended until his call at Sinai.
Moses goes out to meet Jethro, bows down and kisses him, then they greet each other and go into the tent, Exodus 18:7. There was obviously a great relationship between Moses and his father-in-law. Though Moses had just brought a great nation of people out of Egypt to the land of Jethro, he was humble enough to bow down and show respect to his father-in-law.
Fields, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Moses respected Jethro for his wisdom, as well as his age, and for being his father-in-law. Such humility and respect for age is not popular in our times, but it is highly commended in the Scriptures and needs to be restored.’
Moses then tells his father-in-law about everything the LORD had done to Pharaoh, the Egyptians, for Israel’s sake, about all the hardships they had met along the way and how the LORD had saved them, Exodus 18:8.
Jethro was delighted to hear about everything God had done in regards to the Egyptians, Exodus 18:9, and then he glorifies God when Moses reports what the Lord has done, Exodus 18:10-11. It’s possible Jethro knew this before; he was the priest of Midian, Exodus 18:1. But hearing of God’s great works over the gods of Egypt brings this truth more clearly than before.
Clarke, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Every part of Jethro’s conduct proves him to have been a religious man and a true believer. His thanksgiving to Jehovah, Exodus 18:10, is a striking proof of it; he first blesses God for the preservation of Moses, and next for the deliverance of the people from their bondage.’
Jethro then brings a burnt offering and other sacrifices to God, and then Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat a meal with him in the presence of God, Exodus 18:12.
Clarke, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Jethro, who was a priest, Exodus 2:16, had a right to offer these sacrifices, nor can there be a doubt of his being a worshipper of the true God, for those Kenites, from whom the Rechabites came, were descended from him, 1 Chronicles 2:55 / Jeremiah 35:1-19.’
Constable, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Eating together in the ancient Near East was a solemn occasion because it constituted the establishment of an alliance between the parties involved. That is undoubtedly what it involved here. The fact that Aaron and all the elders of Israel were also present demonstrated its importance.’
We don’t know how much Jethro understood about the one true God of heaven, but we do know that he gave all glory to God for all that had transpired during Israel’s deliverance from the bondage of Egypt. It is possible that Jethro was a descendant of one of Abraham’s other children through Keturah, named Midian, Genesis 25:1-2.
This is one possible reason he is aware of who God is, Exodus 2:16 / Exodus 3:1 / Exodus 18:1. Though the Midianites were later portrayed as the enemies of God, Numbers 31, Jethro, a priest of Midian, stood as a light of righteousness in an evil nation, Genesis 14:18-20 / Genesis 20:6 / Job 1:1 / Job 1:8.
It’s not surprising that there would be many disputes and questions about where they settled, especially since there were a lot of people. Moses here acted as a judge from morning until evening, obviously dealing with one case at a time, Exodus 18:13.
Jethro observes Moses as he settles disputes among the children of Israel, Exodus 18:14. Moses, because he knew the statutes of God and His laws, was fit to settle disputes among the children of Israel, Exodus 18:15-16.
Jethro observes that Moses taking all this responsibility to himself was a massive burden, Exodus 18:17-18. Jethro now gives Moses some advice as well as God’s guidance. He tells Moses that he must represent before God and bring their disputes to Him, Exodus 18:19.
For Moses to effectively delegate, he must first stand before God for the people; that is, he must pray for the people. Delegation will not work if the blessing of God is not upon it.
For Moses to effectively delegate, he must teach them the statutes and the laws, show them the way they are to live and how they are to behave, Exodus 18:20. This means he must educate not only those who will hear the disputes but also those who might dispute in God’s Word.
He tells Moses to teach them God’s decrees and instructions, and for Moses to effectively delegate, he must next select from all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, Exodus 18:21.
These men should be appointed as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens, Exodus 18:21. Delegation fails if the job is not put into the hands of able, godly men, Exodus 18:21. Paul gave the same counsel to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:2.
Josephus, in his writings, says the following.
‘Moses, by the advice of Jethro, appointed rulers over myriads, and then over thousands; these he divided into five hundreds, and again into hundreds, and into fifties; and appointed rulers over each of these, who divided them into thirties, and at last into twenties and tens; that each of these companies had a chief, who took his name from the number of persons who were under his direction and government.’
By having these men serve as judges for the people at all times and by bringing every difficult case to Moses, this will make Moses’ load lighter, because they will share it with him, Exodus 18:22. For Moses to effectively delegate, he must still have oversight and leadership over those under him, every great matter they shall bring to him, Exodus 18:22.
Delegation is the exercise of leadership, not the abandoning of it. If Moses effectively delegates, the result will be a blessing for all. You will be able to endure, Moses will be able to do his job better than ever, and all these people will also go to their place in peace; the people will be effectively ministered to.
This method also had the advantage of settling problems quickly; people didn’t need to wait in line for Moses. Jesus said we should agree with our adversary quickly, Matthew 5:25.
If Moses does this and if God commands, he will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied, Exodus 18:23. If the people knew God’s Word for themselves, many disputes could be settled immediately.
Also, if the people knew God’s Word for themselves, they would not be discouraged if they could not bring their case to Moses himself; they would know one of Moses’ delegates could give them counsel from God’s wisdom.
Much to Moses’ credit, he is teachable. When Jethro says the thing that you do is not good, he listens to Jethro. Moses knew how not only to bow to the complaints of the children of Israel, Exodus 17:3, but how to hear the godly counsel from a man like Jethro.
The problem was simply that the job was too big for Moses to do, his energies were being spent unwisely. Moses must delegate, even as in Acts 6:2-4, the apostles insisted they needed to delegate so they would not leave the Word of God and serve tables.
Meyer, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The longer a controversy lasts, the worse the tangle becomes, the more hot words are spoken, the more bystanders become involved.’
Moses wisely follows Jethro’s suggestions, and did everything Jethro told him to do, Exodus 18:24. He chose capable men made them leaders of the people, officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens, Exodus 18:25. They served as judges at all times and the difficult cases they brought to Moses, but the simple ones they decided themselves, Exodus 18:26.
Moody, in his commentary, says the following.
‘It is better to set a hundred men to work than to do the work of a hundred men. You do a service to a man when you evoke his latent faculty. It is no kindness to others or service to God to do more than your share in the sacred duties of Church life.’
We should note that the actual appointment of the judges came later in Deuteronomy 1:12-18, where it appears that Moses also added a refinement of his own. He charged the people with the responsibility of picking out their judges, much in the same way as the apostles instructed the people to choose the seven, Acts 6:1-6.
In Moses’ method of administration, some had a higher position than others, but only in the eyes of men; God honoured the faithful service of the man over tens as much as the service of the man over thousands.
After Jethro had given his advice, and the organisation of judgment was put into place, he returned to his own land. Exodus 18:27 / Numbers 10:29. Zipporah and their two sons, Gershom and Eliezer, remained with Moses as the nation moved on to Mount Sinai.
Coffman, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The last verse of the chapter tells of the departure of Jethro. A moment’s reflection will emphasise what an important and significant visit he had made.
1. He restored Moses’ family to him, after their having been separated for about one year.
2. As a legitimate priest of the Highest One, Jethro no doubt encouraged Moses, mentioning their peaceful entry into Canaan.
3. Through his timely suggestion of a system of judges, he made a significant contribution to all subsequent history of Israel.
4. By the same device, he also greatly alleviated the heavy burden of administration, which until then had rested upon Moses, and
5. He also offered burnt offerings and sacrifices to the true God and enjoyed a wonderful meal of religious fellowship with the leaders of God’s Chosen People.’