Bible Figure
Gershom
firstborn son of Moses and Zipporah
Gershom was the firstborn son of Moses and Zipporah. Moses gave him a name reflecting his own experience of living as a foreigner away from Egypt.
Biography
Exodus 2 records that after Moses fled Egypt and settled in Midian, he married Zipporah, daughter of the priest of Midian. Their son Gershom was born there, and Moses explained the name by saying that he had become a sojourner in a foreign land. Gershom later appears with Zipporah and his brother Eliezer when Jethro brought Moses' family to him after the Exodus. Chronicles traces a Levitical line through Gershom and names descendants connected with the care of dedicated treasures.
Biblical Significance
Gershom's name preserves the theme of Moses as an exile and sojourner before becoming Israel's deliverer. His family also continued within the Levitical community after Moses.