SEPHORA. - 1. (Heb. Siphrâh, Septuagint Σεπφωρά). One of the Hebrew midwives, to whom Pharaoh ordered the killing of the male Israelite newborns (Ex. 1:15).

2. (Heb. Sippôrah, Septuagint Σεπφωρά). Daughter of the Midianite chief Jethro (v.), wife of Moses. On Moses' return journey from Sinai to Egypt she circumcised her son Gershom (cf. Ex. 4:25 with 2:21-22), perhaps following an illness of Moses himself, interpreted as punishment for the omission of the rite (ibid. 4:24-26).

From what the text says further on, it is understood that S., after this episode, or after the arrival in Egypt, had returned with Gershom and another son, Eliezer (ibid. 18, 3 ff.), at her father's house, who took them with him (and "reconciled" them?) when he went to meet Moses on his coming with the Israelites.

There is no reason to regard S. as different from the "Cushite wife" of Moses, as she is called elsewhere (Num. 12, 1), with a disparaging intent (hence one should not insist on the Cushite-Midianite opposition), [a source of contention] for Mary and Aaron, on account of some personal friction. Giovanni Rinaldi

@incollection{ec11_sephora, author = {Rinaldi, Giovanni}, title = {Sephora}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {XI}, pages = {357--358}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1953}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/sephora} }

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