torah

Moshe, a leader set apart

Posted

The first pasuk of our parasha, Yitro, states, “Now Moshe’ father-in-law, Yitro, the chieftain of Midian, heard all that G-d had done for Moshe and for Israel His people…”

Our Sages’ approach to this pasuk focuses primarily on the content of what Yitro heard, which is left unstated in the verse. Rashi is representative of this school of thought: “What news did he hear, that he came [to the Sinai Desert to meet with Moshe]? The splitting of the Red Sea and the war with Amalek” (Shemot 18:1).

This comment fills a major gap in our narrative — namely, what motivated Yitro, the leader of Midian, to uproot his family and bring them to join his son-in-law in the wasteland of the Sinai Desert? Little wonder, then, that Rashi’s interpretation was embraced by the vast majority of commentators.

The near-universal aacceptance of this explanation, however, tends to obscure a second challenge in our pasuk: Why does the Torah mention Moshe separately from the Jewish people? In other words, why does it state that Yitro “heard all that G-d had done for Moshe and for Israel His people,” and not that Yitro “heard all that G-d had done for Israel”? Is Moshe not by definition included in the expression “the Jewish people?”

One of the meforshim who directly addresses our question is Rabbi Kalonymus Kalman Halevi Epstein (1753-1823), known as the Meor VaShemesh after his commentary on the Torah. He posits the existence of two types of passionately observant Torah personalities: the tzaddik m’ikaro, one who is righteous from his youth; and the ba’al teshuvah, one who returns to the path of Torah and mitzvot after a variety of trials and tribulations: 

The tzaddik m’ikaro serves G-d from “the early days of their youth, and accept the yoke of the Torah upon themselves from that time onwards,” out of their love for G-d (Meor VaShemesh, Introduction to Parashat Yitro). The ba’al teshuvah, on the other hand, spends his formative years “follow[ing] the freewheeling desires of their heart — yet, when they encounter a variety of situations wherein they suffer, they bestir themselves, search and discover, and repent.”

According to the Meor VaShemesh, Moshe epitomizes the tzadik m’ikaro, whereas the Jews who were enslaved by Pharaoh exemplify ba’alei teshuvah. At a young age, Moshe “rejected physical desires and all yearnings for the temporary goods of this world, and acted as if he was ‘a stranger in a strange land.’” Instead, of following the prevailing immoral behaviors of his time, Moshe dedicated himself to the pursuit of holiness and developing his relationship with the Almighty.

In stark contrast, the Jewish people fell to the 49th level of tumah (spiritual impurity) as a result of their “assimilation into the non-Jewish culture and emulation of the [Egyptians’ behavior].” 

The Meor VaShemesh notes that these two paths resulted in two very different outcomes: “[Moshe] merited Hashem’s revelation unto to him, the Almighty’s direct communication with him, and [the ability to act as Hashem’s agent in order to perform] all of the wonders and miracles in Egypt and upon the Sea of Reeds.”

Our ancestors’ negative trajectory in Egypt, however, took them on a decidedly different course. As a result of the slavery experience, the Me’or Va’Shemesh explains, “[The Jews] became awakened spiritually and returned in complete teshuvah. As it is written: ‘Now it came to pass that the king of Egypt died, and the children of Israel sighed from the labor and cried out, and their cry [of prayer] ascended to G-d’ (Shemot 2:23). Then, [following their teshuvah,] G-d in His overwhelming mercy and kindness, took them out from the burdens of Egypt.”

We can now answer our question, “Why does the Torah state that Yitro ‘heard all that G-d had done for Moshe and for Israel His people,’ and not that Yitro ‘heard all that G-d had done for Israel’?”

Quite simply, while Moshe was a proud member of the Jewish people, he is mentioned separately from his beloved nation in recognition of the unique spiritual heights he achieved, and his unequaled relationship with Hashem.

This interpretation is reminiscent of the verse in Yigdal, sung in most Ashkenazi synagogues every Shabbat evening: “No one amongst the Jewish people has ever risen [to the ultimate spiritual heights] like Moshe — the sole prophet who had the ability to gaze upon the vision of the Almighty.”