Note 163 — Chapter III · THE EXODUS OUT OF EGYPT
Reading edition
Reuel, ‘Shepherd of God,’ was a son of Esau, according to Gen. xxxvi. 4. It may have been a title of the high-priest, since rêu, ‘shepherd,’ is one of the titles given to the kings and high-priests of early Babylonia. The high-priest Gudea, for instance, calls himself ‘the shepherd of the god Nin-girsu.’ On the other hand, Hommel (The Ancient Hebrew Tradition, p. 278) compares the name Reuel-Jethro with the Minæan Ridsvu-il Vitrân.