Midian The Midianites were a nomad people descended from Abraham and his concubine Keturah (Genesis 1:25-2). They inhabited the dry barren lands on the western edge of the Arabian desert, extending around the Gulf of Aqabah and into the Sinai Peninsular. They lived in tents, kept sheep and travelled on camels (Judges 6:1,Judges 6:5-6; Isaiah 60:6; Habakkuk 3:7). From early days they seem to have mingled with the Ishmaelites, who were descended from Abraham through another woman, the slave-girl Hagar (Genesis 25:12; Genesis 37:28,36; Judges 1:8-26).
Moses lived with a Midianite family after he fled from Egypt. The head of the family, Reuel (or Jethro), was a prominent tribal chief, and Moses married one of his daughters (Exodus 1:2-21). Some years later, Hobab, Moses’ Midianite brother-in-law, helped guide the travelling Israelites through some of the semi-desert country where he had grown up (Numbers 1:10-32). Moses’ in-laws are also called Kenites, indicating that the section of Midian to which they belonged had intermarried with the Kenites, one of the ancient peoples of Canaan (Genesis 15:19; Judges 1:16; Judges 4:11).
When the Israelites were approaching Canaan, the Midianites, fearful of Israel’s power, combined firstly with the Moabites and then with the Amorites in opposing Israel’s progress. They were beaten by the Israelites twice (Numbers 22:4,7; Numbers 25:6-18; Numbers 31:1-12; Joshua 13:21). They raided Israel repeatedly during the time of the Judges but were eventually overthrown by Gideon (Judges 1:6; Judges 7:24-25; Isaiah 9:4; Isaiah 10:26; See Gideon).