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hō´bab (חבב, hÌ£oÌ„bhaÌ„bh, “belovedâ€; Septuagint ὈβαÌβ, ObaÌb): This name occurs only twice (; ). It is not certain whether it denotes the father-in-law or the brother-in-law of Moses. The direct statement of is that Hobab was “the son of Reuel†(the King James Version “Raguelâ€). This is probably the correct view and finds support in , which tells us that some time before the departure of the Israelites from Sinai, Jethro had departed and returned to his own land. The statement of is ambiguous, and therefore does not help us out of the difficulty, but is rather itself to be interpreted in the light of the earlier statement in .
Mohammedan traditions favor the view that Hobab was only another name for Jethro. But this has little weight against the statements of Scripture. However, whether father-in-law or brother-in-law to Moses, the service he rendered to the leader of the hosts of Israel was most valuable and beautiful. Hobab was an experienced sheikh of the desert whose counsel and companionship Moses desired in the unfamiliar regions through which he was to journey. His knowledge of the wilderness and of its possible dangers would enable him to be to the Israelites “instead of eyes.â€
The facts recorded of this man are too meager to enable us to answer all the questions that arise concerning him. A difficulty that remains unsolved is the fact that in and he is described as a Kenite, while in and , the father-in-law of Moses is spoken of as “the priest of Midian.â€