Parshas Yisro
וַיִּשְׁמַ֞ע יִתְר֨וֹ כֹהֵ֤ן מִדְיָן֙ חֹתֵ֣ן משֶׁ֔ה אֵת֩ כָּל־אֲשֶׁ֨ר עָשָׂ֤ה אֱלֹהִים֙ לְמשֶׁ֔ה וּלְיִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל עַמּ֑וֹ כִּֽי־הוֹצִ֧יא יְהוָֹ֛ה אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל מִמִּצְרָֽיִם:
Now Moshe’s father-in-law, Yisro, the chieftain of Midian, heard all that Elokim had done for Moshe and for Yisroel, His people that the Havayah had taken Yisroel out of Mitzrayim. (Shemos 18:1)
Rashi explains that Yisro was inspired to convert and join the yidden because heard the news of Kriyas Yam Suf and the war with the Amalek. The Seforim HaKedoshim wonder why Rashi specifically singles out these two miracles as Yisro’s motivation. Yisro had heard about all the other miracles that had taken place in Mitzrayim! What was so unique about these two events that led to Yisro joining the Jewish people? What is the significance of the two names of Hashem – Elokim and Havayah – being used in this pasuk?
In general, why was this story of Yisro told before Mattan Torah? Additionally, this is the Parsha where we discuss the pivotal moment of Mattan Torah, when the purpose of creation was entering a new phase. Why would the Parsha that contains such an important moment, a Parsha where we stand for the Ten Commandments be named of Yisro?!
While there are many explanations to these questions and more, there are two thoughts that are closely related and that are thematic throughout the Parsha.
Everyone Can Return
The Nachlas Yehoshuah offers an insight that is the foundation of an incredible concept that can be chizuk for every yid.
The entire world had heard about the miracles and bewildering wonders that had taken place in Mitzrayim, including Yisro. As a result, he wanted to be counted amongst Hashem’s chosen people. However, Yisro faced a crisis of character. Despite his inspiration, good intentions, and sincere desire to serve Hashem, he felt utterly and completely unworthy.
Yisro was not just someone who dabbled in Avodah Zorah. He was a guru; an expert and devout follower. A leader. Rashi explains (Shemos 18:11) that there was not a deity, a form of Avodah Zorah, in the entire world that he did not worship. He tried them all. It defined him: he was the chieftain of Midian. Therefore, he felt that the life he had led until this very moment made the future that he wanted for himself impossible to obtain. His past was too sinful. His behavior was too damaging. Therefore, despite hearing of the miracles in Mitzrayim, Yisro remained stuck in his life. Even though he was inspired to change everything about who he was, his own sense of unworthiness held him back. Until he heard of Kriyas Yam Suf and the war with the Amalek.
At Kriyas Yam Suf, as the yidden were standing on the shore, Chazal teach us that there was a kitrog in Heavens; an accusation brought before Hashem claiming that the yidden were not worthy of such a lofty miracle, such a blatant salvation. After all, both the Egyptians and Bnei Yisroel were idol worshippers! Nevertheless, not only did Hashem save them and annihilate their enemies, the yidden reached such an incredible madreiga in ruchniyos that even a maidservant saw what Yechezkiel did not. This demonstrated that a person can be on the lowest level and yet still be saved. They can find a way back. A yid can change everything about themselves in a single moment of clarity, of teshuva.
However, almost immediately the yidden slipped and, therefore, they were attacked by Amalek. Yet, the yidden persevered. They were victorious. This taught Yisro the other reality that defines Avodas Hashem. Of course, through teshuva, by deciding to change, a yid can be lifted from the lowest of lows to the highest of highs. However, it will not be permanent. Avodas Hashem is a constant battle. The Amalek, the Yetzer Harah will always try and find our weaknesses, continuously trying to pull us away from Torah, mitzvos and Avodas Hashem. But, a yid cannot wane in the face of these challenges; we cannot shy away from the battles. Yisro was encouraged when he saw that a yid is constantly in the ebb and flow of the struggle between the Yetzer Tov and the Yetzer Harah. We can make mistakes, but we cannot let our mistakes make us.
Therefore, the juxtaposition of these two miracles provided Yisro with the guidance he needed, with the chizuk to make the choice to join the yidden in the desert.
R’ Leibele Eiger in Toras Emes taught that every yid needs to lean into the story of Yisro, to learn from his evolution from hopeless to hopeful, from feeling unworthy to realizing his worth. After all, if the “high priest” of Avodah Zorah can be inspired to have a relationship with Hashem despite his history, then for sure every yid can too despite whatever they may have done in their past. This realization is essential to Torah. A yid must hold dear to the idea that we are always worthy of salvation, and, even when that personal redemption comes, there will always be a struggle. From time to time, we will make mistakes. But, in the end, just like with the Amalek, we can be victorious.
We can always find our way back; we can always forge a relationship with Hashem through teshuva. No one is ever a lost cause.
After Moshe retells the story of Yetzias Mitzrayim, Yisro says (Shemos 18:11):
עַתָּ֣ה יָדַ֔עְתִּי כִּֽי־גָד֥וֹל ה' מִכָּל־הָֽאֱלֹהִ֑ים כִּ֣י בַדָּבָ֔ר אֲשֶׁ֥ר זָד֖וּ עֲלֵיהֶֽם-Now I know that the Lord is greater than all the deities, for with the thing that they plotted, [He came] upon them. Obviously Yisro knew this! It was that realization that brought him to Moshe in the first place! Therefore, what is he adding with this phrase?
The Or Menachem from Kaalov explains that Chazal taught (Bamdibar Rabba 21:6) that the phrase עַתָּ֣ה -Now refers to teshuva. Teshuva and the ability to be forgiven is rooted in Hashem’s Chesed which is represented by the name Havayah. After hearing everything that happened, Yisro verbally acknowledged the power of teshuva. And he recognized that this stems from Havayah which is greater than Elokim, Hashem’s name that denotes judgement.
The Midrash Rabba (Shemos 27:8) teaches us that the letter “Vav” was added to Yisro’s name when he joined the Jewish people and converted. Why, of all the letters in the aleph beis, was the “Vav” chosen specifically for Yisro? The “Vav” is a conjunction, a connector. Yisro teaches us that no matter who we are, where we are spiritually or what kind of choices we have made in our lives until now, we are always connected to Hashem.
Therefore, Yisro happens before Mattan Torah. And, the Parsha that contains such a pivotal moment bears his name to remind each of us of this lesson. The idea of teshuva. The realization that every yid can return and that our struggles are normal.
The Expansion
With this insight in mind, we can find another incredible lesson for our Avodas Hashem from these questions asked above.
We know that the Seforim HaKedoshim explain that Avodas Hashem inevitably consists of aliyos and yeridos, ups and downs. There are moments of inspiration when we are in the flow, feeling the energy of our ruchniyos. We feel successful and motivated. Inspired. The Seforim HaKedoshim refer to these moments as the Mochin D’Gadlus, the state of your mind expanding. You are growing. However, that was not meant to last. There inevitably will be a pullback, a time of constriction when nothing seems to work, and darkness absorbs the light (see the Moreh Einayim in this week’s parsha). You feel numb in your Avodas Hashem, Chas V’Shalom. You feel distant from Hashem. This is referred to as the Mochin D’Katnus, the state of mind that is restrictive and limiting.
Yisro was inspired by all the events that took place in Mitzrayim. However, he was a realist. He didn’t know if he would be able to maintain that same level of commitment, of inspiration, of longing and yearning for Hashem. So, he hesitated. Then he heard about Kriyas Yam Suf and the war with the Amalek.
But what did he “hear” exactly? What was his “takeaway” from those events?
Imagine the disparity between these two moments. The yidden -with the utmost and purest emunah – cross the Yam Suf with Mesiras Nefesh. They reach a level of prophecy that was indescribable. Then, a few days later, they have a yeridah. They fall. They become spiritually weak to the point that an Amalek can come and attack them. And they wage the war, they fight the fight – spiritually and physically. Through that victory they arrive at Mattan Torah ready to say Naaseh V’Nishma.
These two events were living examples of the Mochin D’Gadlus and the Mochin D’Katnus.
When Yisro realized this, he knew that he could enter Avodas Hashem. Understanding that life and success in Avodas Hashem is not a linear path is the key to remaining steadfast and strong even in the moments of the darkest darkness and the most challenging times.
The Tolna Rebbe quotes the Gemara (Yerushalmi Sanhedrin 6:5) that teaches that a House of Stoning had to be two-man lengths high to be certain of a resulting death. However, there is an obvious question: we know from the laws of a pit dug in the public domain that even the lower height of 10 tefachim can be deadly. Why, then, does the House of Stoning need to be so high?
The Gemara explains that there is a difference between knowing and not knowing you are going to fall. When someone is aware of the danger, when they know that they are going to fall, they can brace themselves. They can prepare for the impact and limit the injuries. They can possibly survive. Therefore, the House of Stoning, where the guilty parties are aware of what is happening, needed to be higher than a pit which someone would accidentally fall into.
In Avodas Hashem, explained the Rebbe, when a yid knows that the yeridah is inevitable, if they are aware that a Mochin D’Katnus will come, they can limit the damage. They can thrive. They can grow in those moments of darkness to obtain even more light, greater understanding and a stronger relationship with Hashem. The failings lead to the successes. Their dynamic is intertwined with one another.
When Yisro makes the decision to convert and join Bnei Yisroel the pasuk tells us at the beginning of the parsha, that he heard all that Elokim had done for Moshe and for Yisroel, His people that the Havayah had taken Yisroel out of Mitzrayim. Through these two miracles of Kriyas Yam Suf and the war with the Amalek, Yisro understood that there would be ups and downs, moments of growth and seeming setbacks. However, he still viewed them as separate stages and not interdependent. The pasuk uses these two names of Hashem. He saw Elokim, judgement and din and he saw Havayah, the Chesed. Therefore, Moshe must reiterate the reality and tells him, [about] all that the Lord had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians on account of Israel, [and about] all the hardships that had befallen them on the way, and [that] the Havayah had saved them. (Shemos 18:8).
The Meor V’Shamesh explained that Moshe was stressing the “hardships” in the journey. That it wasn’t smooth sailing and endless spirituality. There were challenges and there will be more to come. That is the reality of the world, and it is baked in the very fabric of Avodas Hashem. There will always be darkness to find greater light, pain for a more profound salvation. But, through those hardships, Havayah had saved them. The Toldos Yaakov Yoseif explained that this was what Yisro meant when he said, (Shemos 18:11), Now I know that the Havayah is greater than all the Elokim, for with the thing that they plotted, [He came] upon them. Yisro was acknowledging that the Havayah, the Chesed, is greater because it comes from Elokim, the din and judgment.
This story of Yisro’s realization is the prelude to Mattan Torah. The Meor Einayim explains that when the yidden said Na’aseh V’Nishmah, it was an expression and acknowledgement of this reality. When someone is struggling, they need to keep doing, they need to push through that challenge. That is the Na’aseh. And, they must know that through that struggle, they will reach a new, greater level of V’nishmah, of understanding.
Hearing Your Voice
וְכָל־הָעָם֩ רֹאִ֨ים אֶת־הַקּוֹלֹ֜ת וְאֶת־הַלַּפִּידִ֗ם וְאֵת֙ ק֣וֹל הַשֹּׁפָ֔ר וְאֶת־הָהָ֖ר עָשֵׁ֑ן וַיַּ֤רְא הָעָם֙ וַיָּנֻ֔עוּ וַיַּֽעַמְד֖וּ מֵֽרָחֹֽק:
“And all the people saw the voices and the torches, the sound of the shofar, and the smoking mountain, and the people saw and trembled; so, they stood from afar.”(Shemos 20:15)
The Sefas Emes has an insight in this pasuk that redefines every yid’s role in this world.
The Mishna in Gittin (23a) list the different types of people who are disqualified from delivering a get, a bill of divorce. Among them is a blind person since they cannot see who they are dealing with or handing the get to. When the Gemara discusses the status of a blind person, Rav Yosef questions the reasoning as he explains that since a blind person can recognize the voice of the person, then they should be able to serve as a messenger to deliver a get. A blind person can “see” the person by recognizing a familiar voice. Familiarity empowers them to see through the voice. They can see through hearing.
Every yid has a unique and individual mission in this world, a shlichus that they alone can accomplish through their avodas Hashem.
This shlichus is the reason their neshama was sent into this world and it defines their very existence.
The Sefas Emes explains that at Har Sinai the neshamos, the souls of the yidden, heard their inner voice. They heard the piece of the Torah, of Avodas Hashem, that was unique to their existence, that was their shlichus. They saw what they heard because it was familiar to them. It was the purpose of their journey into this world.
Therefore, the Ten Commandments begins with “I am the Lord your God,” in the singular tense. Avodas Hashem is applicable to all equally and equally individualized.
This idea was echoed in Chazal when they taught (Sanhedrin 37a) that Adam was created alone to express the greatness of Hashem. How does that teach the greatness of Hashem? The Gemara contrasts the creation of mankind with a person who stamps several coins with the same stamp. Once stamped, each coin is identical to the other. Their individuality is lost. However, when Hashem stamps every individual in the world with the stamp of Adam, explains Chazal, they are all remain unique and different. They maintain their individuality. Therefore, since humanity descends from one person, each person is obligated to say: The world was created for me, as one person can be the source of all humanity and recognize the significance of his actions.
The pasuk says: And you shall know this day and consider it in your heart, that the Lord, He is God in heaven above, and upon the earth below; there is none else (Devarim 4:39). Reb Simcha Bunim explains that every yid has their own unique way to know Hashem, to express their avodas Hashem, to connect. The Rebbe Reb Bunim explains that this is the meaning of “there is none else.” No one else can find the actualization of that same expression. That is yours, your role in the world, your contribution, your avodah, your purpose for being.
