30 Jan PARSHAS YISRO: YISRO’S IMPRESSED

Yisro Was Impressed
By G-d’s Harsh
Treatment of Moshe
“Yisro… heard all
that G-d did for
Moshe and for the
Jewish people.” As a result, Yisro was
very impressed and became a Ger
Tzedek [Righteous Convert]. Rashi
(1040-1105) takes note of the fact that
the pasuk [verse] distinguishes between
what happened to Moshe and what
happened to the Jewish people, and
explains that this teaches us that “Moshe
was equal to all of Israel put together.”
The Baal HaTurim (1275-1340) is also
bothered by the separate expressions.
However, the Baal HaTurim is
particularly troubled by the fact that the
pasuk says that Yisro heard what
“ELOKIM did for Moshe”. The Divine
Name of Elokim usually refers to
Judgment or punishment. The Baal
HaTurim says that Yisro was in fact

impressed by the punishment that Moshe
almost received (death) for delaying the
circumcision of his son. This
phenomenon was part of what made
such a major impression on Yisro that it
ultimately led to his decision to convert.
Rav Nissan Alpert (died c. 1987)
explains why Yisro was impressed with
Moshe’s harsh treatment at the Hand of
G-d. Why was Moshe Rabbeinu treated
so severely? The answer is that he was
different from every other person. We
see, therefore, that G-d “customizes” the
way He treats people. G-d does not treat
everyone the same. More is expected of
a person of higher stature than of a
person of lower stature. The average
person would not be punished with death
for delaying the circumcision of their
child while traveling in the wilderness.
But Moshe was treated differently.
That individuality made a profound
impression on Yisro. If Moshe is dealt
with differently, then we see that our

relationship with G-d is not
static. Hopefully, as we
grow older, we grow wiser
and become better people.
We become more
experienced; we’ve seen
more of life. One cannot
remain on the same
spiritual level for ten,
twenty, or thirty years. This
impressed Yisro.
“I am not the same person
anymore. I cannot be
content to merely be the same person
who I used to be. After having seen the
Splitting of the Reed Sea and after
having seen the War with Amalek, I
cannot remain static. I have to grow. I
have to become better.”
To Yisro, that meant that he had to
convert. Now, as a different person, he
knew he had a different relationship with
G-d. He could no longer be the Priest to
Idolatry. He had seen too much. He had

learned too much from his observations.
That is why “that which Elokim did to
Moshe” had such a profound effect on
Yisro.

This is an important lesson. The 30-year-
old person is not the same person that he

was at 20. The 50-year-old person is not
the same as he was at 30. There must be
growth. There is not a universal standard
with which G-d relates to man. The
relationship is constantly changing based
on changing expectations, ones that are
based on constant change in man himself.