Parsha Mishpatim 5768 — Yithro: Prototype of Jewish Honesty, Principle and Unity

In our parsha Mishpatim, many basic laws of civilized existence are enunciated for B’nai Yisrael. The purpose of the Mishpatim, the civil laws, are to protect the moral fiber of society by regulating relationships between men, ecouraging truthfulness, sincerity and
kindness while condemning immorality and deceit.

Along about last Tuesday (of the week of Parsha Yithro), this author thought to question how it transpired, how it evolved that Yithro, Moshe Rabbeinu’s Father-in-Law, a former member of Pharoh’s ruling circle and one who had tried every avodah zora before finding Hashem; merited that the format for law enforcement and justice in the B’nai Yisrael would flow from him.

In questioning that very point, there are numerous pertinent citings regarding Yithro in Yishai Chasidah’s Encyclopedia of Biblical Jewish Personalities.

So why was it that Hashem made it that the outline for the Jewish
Judiciary would flow from the Ger Yithro?

Was it Yithro’s prior experience as a minister to Pharoh which provided him insights regarding the Judiciary and positioned him to express them to Moshe?

If Betzalel, a Jew-from-birth, was instiled with the ability and insight to build the Mishkan, why does the evolution of the Judiciary come by way of a Ger?

After all, we learn Hashem imparted to Betzalel ben Uri the insight and ability to build the Mishkan. We learn that Betzalel was the grandson of Hur who was the son of Calev and that the Malchut was promised to Miriam — Moshe’s sister and Calev’s wife. Just as we learn that later the Malchut, under Dovid and Shlomo, built the Beit HaMikdash, so too Betzalel’s building of the Mishkan seems the fulfillment of the Divine promise to Miriam.

It would seem that Yithro, like in the case of Betzalel, was also case of mida-keneged-mida as Chasidah cited in Yalkut Shemoni that Reuel (one of Yithro’s 7 names) was the only one of Pharoh’s ministers to speak out against Pharoh’s plans for the Jews and to act against the edict by running from Mitzrayim.

Chasidah also cites from Shemos Rabbah that Yithro saved Moshe’s life as a young child when Pharoh’s sorcerers were concerned when Moshe played with Pharoh’s crown placing it upon his own head. Yithro was the one who suggested the test of the gold and the burning coals set on a plate before Moshe. We know the story of how Moshe’s hand moved toward the gold, by the malach Gavriel moved Moshe’s hand toward the burning coal which Moshe picked up and put in his mouth causing his speech impediment.

Another citing of honesty and principle is the story told about Rabbi Shimon Ben Shetach which sets a standard for Jewish sincerity in his dealing with his fellow Jews and with Hashem.

It seems that one day Rabbi Shimon Ben Shetach needed to purchase a donkey for traveling. He purchased the donkey from an Arab. At that time, neither he nor the Arab noticed that the donkey bore a small package in it’s saddle.

Sometime later, a student of the Rabbi found the package and opened it. He was amazed by it’s contents. “It’s a diamond, Rebbe… A perfect diamond. It must be worth an enormous amount. Sell it and you’ll never want for money. Imagine all of the Mitzvot you will be able to do with the new-found money.”

Rabbi Ben Shetach shook his head and responded, “I may be able to perform many Mitzvot with the money … but they will never cancel the demerit that will be mine if I keep property which is not mine. No, I will return the diamond to its rightful owner, the Arab.”

But the student responded, “why not keep the diamond? The Arab will never know of his loss.” Rabbi Ben Shetach responded, “But Hashem will know what I have done. I did not earn the diamond and so it is not mine.”

Rabbi Ben Shetach was as good as his word and returned the diamond to the astonished Arab. “I don’t believe that anyone could be that honest” said the Arab. “The Jews must have wonderful laws. Blessed be the G’d of Rabbi Shimon Ben Shetach.”

Rabbi Ben Shetach’s strict adherence to Mishpatim, to common decency to his fellow man created a great Kiddush Hashem and should serve as an example for all to follow, to fulfill all of Hashem’s Mitzvot with equal zeal. (L’lmod U’Lamed, by Rabbi Mordechai Katz, p. 81-82, quoting Yerushalmi Bava Metzia, Perek 2, Choshen Mishpat 266.)

Imagine the merit to be earned collectively by a unity of B’nai Yisrael treating each other, at all levels from daily man-in-the-street dealings and upwards; be they between merchant and customer, bus driver and passenger, employer/employee, civil-servant and Yosef Q. Jewish Citizen as well as those governing toward those being governed, as Yithro the righteous Ger did, or as Rabbi Ben Shetach treated this itinerant Arab, not even his Jewish brother. And imagine building on that national kindness and unity with a rock-solid, unified, unequivocable principle — Kol Ha’aretz Shelanu (This is Our Land)!

Finally, there is a Torah Gems citing of Ibn Ezra on Parsha Yithro regarding the appointment of a judicial system, and the application of that lesson to all of us, “the Torah did not mention ‘G’d-fearing
men’ because only Hashem knows what is in man’s heart.” (Torah Gems, Aharon Yaakov Greenberg, Parsha Yithro, page 131)

May we be zocha in this coming year that our brethren — the refugee families from Gush Katif be permanently settled and be made totally whole, that our dear brother Jonathan Pollard and the 3 captive Chayalim and the other MIAs be liberated and returned to us and that we fulfill Hashem’s blueprint of B’nai Yisrael as a Unique people — an Am Segula, not to be reckoned with as with “the nations” and may we be zocha the Moshiach, the Ge’ula Shlaima, as Dov Shurin sings; “Yom Hashem V’Kol HaGoyim”, the Ultimate Redemption, bim hay v’yameinu — speedily, in our time”, — Achshav, Chik Chuk, Miyad, Etmol!!!