Zipporah
Wife of Moses
by Marek Halter

List Price: $23.00
Pages: 288
Format: Hardcover
ISBN: 1400052793
Publisher: Crown

In the time of the Pharaoh, a tiny infant is rescued from the banks of the Red Sea. She is named Zipporah, "the little bird." Although she is a Cushite by birth --- one of the black people of the lands to the south --- she is taken in by Jethro, high priest and sage of the Midianites. Jethro adores his adopted daughter, and she is an honored member of his family. But the blackness of Zipporah's skin sets her apart and will decide her future: she will be an outsider, and the men of her adopted tribe will not want her as a wife.

But when she becomes a young woman, Zipporah's destiny changes forever. While drawing water at a well one day, she meets a handsome young man, a stranger. Like her, he is an outsider, a foreigner. His name is Moses. A Hebrew raised in the house of the Pharaoh, Moses is a fugitive, forced to flee his homeland of Egypt after murdering one of the Pharaoh's cruel overseers. Zipporah knows almost immediately that this man will be the husband and partner she never thought she would have.

At first Moses wants nothing more than a peaceful life with the Midianites. He is content in his role as Zipporah's lover and the honorary son of Jethro the sage. But Zipporah refuses to let Moses forget his past or turn away from what she believes to be his true destiny. Although he is the love of her life and the father of her children, Zipporah won't marry Moses until he agrees to return to Egypt to confront Pharaoh and free his people. When God reveals himself to Moses in the burning bush, his words echo Zipporah's, and Moses returns to Egypt with Zipporah by his side. A passionate lover and a generous, thoughtful wife, Zipporah becomes the guiding force in Moses' struggle. With the help of her powerful father, she teaches the rebellious young man about the rule of law and the force of justice. Because of Zipporah --- the outsider, the black-skinned woman --- Moses becomes a defender of the oppressed and a liberator of the enslaved.

A woman ahead of her time, Zipporah leaps from the pages of this remarkable novel. Bold, independent, and a true survivor, she is a captivating heroine, and her world of deserts, temples, and ancient wonders is a fitting backdrop to an epic tale.

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1. Before reading this novel, how much-or how little-did you know of Zipporah's story? Read the portions of Exodus pertaining to Zipporah's story. How has the novel changed your understanding of her importance? Of Moses' actions?

2. If you haven't already, read the beautiful excerpt from Song of Solomon on page vii. What did this make you expect from the book? What about the other biblical quotations on page vii?

3. Discuss how the novel changes your perspective on race relations: How have they changed since biblical times, if at all? Would Zipporah's experience be any different today?

4. On page 1, Zipporah says, "I have had a dream." Considering that this is the story of Moses and the Jews' exodus from slavery, does this strike you as an intentional reference to the famous speech by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.? Do you see any other King allusions in the novel, for example to the Promised Land?

5. What is the significance of Zipporah's dream? In what ways did it come true, and in what ways did its accuracy fail? On page 73, Jethro says to Zipporah, "Live your dream in sleep, but do not let your life become a sleep." Lacking Zipporah's influence, do you believe Moses might have done just that?

6. On page 36, Zipporah watches Moses catching fish and sees "a vast shimmer on the sea, much more intense than any of the others, like a wind spreading light as far as the shore." Several pages later we read, "In the days, weeks, and years that followed, Zipporah was often to remember that moment, a moment she was sure was neither as brief nor as supernatural as it had seemed to her at the time." In the end, what did this moment mean?

7. When Moses confesses that he has killed a man on page 64, instead of turning him away or being afraid, Jethro invites Moses to tell his story. At this point, Jethro knows virtually nothing about him. What makes Jethro react this way? Is it Zipporah's influence?

8. Both Moses and Zipporah are adopted by powerful families. Do you believe this shaped their destinies, or were the adoptions themselves preordained?

9. Throughout the novel, various characters are portrayed as storytellers. Do you believe this is how the stories of the Bible were shared initially? Was this how Moses' story was passed down? If so, how might that explain Zipporah's minor role in the recorded bible?

10. It seems on pages 120-121 that Moses would be quite content to be a shepherd in Midian with Zipporah as his wife, but Zipporah sees something more in his destiny. She says, "I know you must put on your gold bracelets and go among those who are your people. You must hold back the whip that strikes them." How does she know this? What gives her the strength to refuse him, even after bearing his children?

11. Why did Jethro allow both Zipporah and Orma to refuse to marry suitable men? If he weren't a powerful man, would he have been so willing? Discuss the role of women in Midian society and contrast it to Hebrew and Egyptian life.

12. How did Marek Halter's depiction of the burning bush deepen your understanding of the story?

13. When Moses and Zipporah meet Moses' family, Miriam's response to Zipporah is immediately negative, while Yokeved's is the exact opposite. Why do you think there is such a difference between the sister and the mother?

14. On page 229, Zipporah says, "The Moses [the Hebrews] need must belong to them more than he belongs to his wife." Why does she feel this way? Does the same hold true for the wives of today's leaders?

15. When Miriam shows her scarred body to Zipporah, it changes radically the way Zipporah feels about her own place in the world. Was she right?

16. In his efforts to strengthen Zipporah's resolve, Jethro says, "The only reason some of [the Hebrews] are still standing, still holding their heads high as men and women should, is because they cling to their own wounds, like a climber clinging to the rocks on Horeb's mountain." Are there any groups that you believe are behaving this way today?

17. In Halter's depiction, Aaron and Miriam turn out to be somewhat treacherous. Is it purely jealousy, or something deeper? How does this jibe with your knowledge of the biblical characters?

18. After Zipporah's murder, Moses refuses the suggestion of retribution against the Midianites. "What good would that do? What she wanted was trust, respect, and love. Not war. She wanted caresses to beautify the blackness of her skin. How long is it since I last gave them to her? I, too, killed her." What does Moses mean by this? What has he learned?

19. Re-read the last lines of the novel: "Who, though, will remember Zipporah the black woman, the Cushite? Who will remember what she accomplished? Who will still speak her name?" How would you answer those questions? Discuss Zipporah's legacy.

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