Rabbi Jon’s Reflection on This Week’s Torah Portion
2.2.2024
Yitro 2024: Some Good Advice
A short reflection on Yitro (Exodus 18:1-20:23)
We are in the desert, all 2.4 million of us. We just left Egypt. We’re trying to create a society but it’s not going very well. There are many conflicts but only one judge, Moses. Imagine trying to rule over disputes for an entire nation. Every little problem and disagreement is left for you to resolve. Moses spent his days judging. From morning to night, he does nothing else. Arguments over goats, marriages, ownership rights, he hears it all.
One hot desert day, his father-in-law, Jethro, comes to visit. Now Jethro isn’t Jewish. Far from Jewish. He is a Midianite priest. But he has respect for the Israelite people and their God Adonai, and Moses has great respect for him. Upon his arrival, they embrace and Moses tells him about the Israelites’ departure from Egypt. Jethro is impressed.
The next morning, Jethro finds Moses sitting in judgment over the people. He watches him judge from morning until late into the night. Jethro is perplexed. This seems like a lot of work for one man. So, he makes a simple suggestion. He makes it. Not God. Not Moses’ brother Aaron. Not Moses’ sister Miriam. Not a tribal leader. It comes from his father-in-law. He says, “You will surely wear yourself out…. The task is too great…. Find men among you who fear God, trustworthy men who spurn ill-gotten gain. Set these over them as chiefs of thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. Let them judge the people. Have them only bring the major disputes before you.”
Pretty good idea, huh?
Moses does not wait for God to approve this plan. He immediately implements it. He sees the wisdom in the words of his father-in-law. This week’s Torah portion describes the legal system which we have in place today. It was not a system created by God or an Israelite leader but by a father-in-law.
While there is great beauty in the story of the development of our legal system, there is even greater beauty in the story’s message about other cultures. Moses embraces his father-in-law. He takes advice from him. He understands that he is wise and has wisdom to share. It does not matter that he is a Midianite. What matters is that he has respect for the Israelite people and that they have respect for him. That’s the lesson we should draw from this story -- we can learn from anyone as long as they have respect for us and we have respect for them.
May we all learn from our religion and from our culture and be open minded about learning from another.
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YITRO SUMMARY FROM THE URJ
- Yitro brings his daughter Zipporah and her two sons, Gershom and Eliezer, to his son-in-law Moses. (18:1-12)
- Moses follows Yitro's advice and appoints judges to help him lead the people. (18:13-27)
- The Children of Israel camp in front of Mount Sinai. Upon hearing the covenant, the Israelites respond, "All that God has spoken we will do." (19:1-8)
- After three days of preparation, the Israelites encounter God at Mount Sinai. (19:9-25)
- God gives the Ten Commandments aloud directly to the people. (20:1-14)
- Frightened, the Children of Israel ask Moses to serve as an intermediary between God and them. Moses tells the people not to be afraid. (20:15-18)
For more on this Torah portion from the URJ go to:
https://reformjudaism.org/torah/portion/yitro
