יִתְרוֹ
Yitro / Jethro
Exodus 18:1-20:26
HafTorah portion Isaiah 6:1-7:6
Brit Chadasha Hebrews 12:18-24

     This parsha opens with Moshe’s father-in-law, Yitro speaking with Moshe.  In Exodus 18:8 the two have a conversation regarding God’s goodness: ‘And Moses told his father-in-law all that the Lord had done to Pharaoh and to the Egyptians for Israel’s sake, all the hardship that had come upon them on the way, and how the Lord had delivered them. 9 Then Jethro rejoiced for all the good which the Lord had done for Israel, whom He had delivered out of the hand of the Egyptians. 10 And Jethro said, “Blessed be the Lord, who has delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians and out of the hand of Pharaoh, and who has delivered the people from under the hand of the Egyptians. Now I know that the Lord is greater than all the gods; for in the very thing in which they behaved proudly, He was above them.” 12 Then Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, took a burnt offering and other sacrifices to offer to God. And Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat bread with Moses’ father-in-law before God.’
     This parsha is described as the hinges of the Torah because of the events at Har Sinai. Israel is changing from a delivered slave to a set apart people in covenant to Elohim. 
     Exodus 18:20 states: ‘And you shall teach them the statutes and the laws, and show them the way in which they must walk and the work they must do.’ The Hebrew word is v’hitzharta   וְהִזְהַרְתָּ֣ה which is actually read as ‘to warn, to instruct’. We see in the middle is zahar ‘to be light, bright shining, to warn, to take warning and receive instruction.’ This chapter continues with Yitro giving Moshe advice regarding the task of judging the people, Exodus 18:24-26. 
      Exodus 19 is the precursor to the events of Israel receiving the Ten Words.  In Exodus 19:3-6 God shares with Moshe His conditions for His people. ‘And Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel: 4 ‘You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings (Deuteronomy 32:11) and brought you to Myself. 5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep (Deuteronomy 28:1-2) My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure (Deuteronomy 7:6, Deuteronomy 14:2, Psalm 135:4, 1 Peter 2:9) to Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine. 6 And you shall be to Me a kingdom (Deuteronomy 33:2-4, Revelation 1:6, 5:10) of priests and a holy nation. (Deuteronomy 14:21, Isaiah 62:12). These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.”
     Chapter 20 gives not only the children of Israel but also to the world, the Ten Words, The Ten Commands. These Words hold the covenant of which He stands on. 
      This is the Covenant, the Brit that God made with His people. Over time, the word Covenant in Western civilization became diluted to more of a contractual meaning. This play on words changed the original purpose of the Ten Words, as it was easy to change and transform some of the exact meanings. It’s all semantics, change the title – change the depth and the original purpose. The Fourth Commandment in particular. This covenant has now been made into a contract: any day will do – whatever fits your lifestyle.
     The Ten Words became the Ten Commandments, but they were always the Ten Words,  eseret ha-devarim.  The Hebrew tells that this is much more than a list of ten individual words. Rather they are ten unique divine utterances; unique in several ways.  The Ten Words: Exodus 34:28 ‘Moshe was there with Adonai forty days and forty nights, during which time he neither ate food nor drank water. [Adonai] wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant, the Ten Words.’ (Complete Jewish Bible).
     In a contract, two or more people come together, each pursuing their self-interest, to make a mutually advantageous exchange. In a covenant, each party comes together in a bond of loyalty and trust to do together to achieve the purpose of the covenant. It isn’t an exchange; it’s a moral commitment. It is more like a marriage than a commercial transaction. Contracts are about interests; covenants are about truth and strength. Contracts benefit; covenants transform. Contracts are about “Me” and “You”; covenants are about “Us.”  At Sinai, God remained God and the Israelites remained human, yet each entity abiding by the covenant to reach the final goal. A nation of His special treasure. An example or a symbol of a covenant is the havdalah candle: multiple wicks that stay separate but produce a single flame.
Nehemiah 1:5 ‘I said, “I beseech You, O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who preserves the covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments…’
Nehemiah 9:32 “Now therefore, our God, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who keeps covenant and lovingkindness.’
Deuteronomy 8:17-18 ‘But you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.’
1 Kings 8:23 ‘He said, “O Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like You in heaven above or on earth beneath, keeping covenant and showing lovingkindness to Your servants who walk before You with all their heart.’
     The Ten Words were the only part of God’s revelation to Moses that was given in the direct hearing of the people, although it isn’t clear if they heard the actual words, but whatever they heard, they were so terrified, they never wanted to experience it again, Exodus 20:18-19. 
    All that Moses received from God, only these Ten Words were written by God’s own finger, and perhaps most importantly the Ten Words are unique in that they are called “the covenant” Shemot/Exodus 34:28. This is why they were among the items that were placed inside the “aron ha-berit,” the Ark of the Covenant.
     The Ten Words establish the basis of God’s relationship with Israel. That is why the Ten Words begin with “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery”. Israel was to obey God’s commands on the basis of having been rescued from Egypt, something which no other nation can claim. Israel’s salvation and relationship to God were established by God first before He gave them directions to live by.
     Many teach that ‘Jesus’ replaced God’s commands with only two (love God and love your neighbor). But that is misleading, for Jesus’/Yeshua’s answer to the question concerning the greatest commandment in Matthew 22:36-40 provides perspective and priority in relating to God. These two commands therefore serve as a summary of everything God calls us to, and now is written or is supposed to be written on our hearts: Jeremiah 31:31-34; 2 Corinthians 3:3.
     Breaking the Ten Words into sections, the first three – No other gods besides Me, no graven images, and no taking God’s name in vain – are about God, the author and authority of the Torah, Ten Words and the entire world. The first one states that Divine sovereignty transcends all others -No other gods besides Me. The second one tells us that God is a living God and not to be copied in anything -No graven images. The third states that sovereignty is absolute -Do not take My name in vain.
     The second three – the Sabbath, honoring parents, and the forbidding of murder – are all about the principle of life. Shabbat is the day dedicated to being with God as creator, and resting in His moment of time. Honoring parents acknowledges our lifeline of flesh. “Thou shall not murder” restates the central principle that murder is not just a crime against man but a sin against God in whose image we are created. These commands form the basic principles of life. 
     The third three – forbidding adultery, theft and bearing false witness – establish the basic laws on which society depends. Marriage is sacred because it is the human bond closest to the covenant between us and God. The prohibition against theft establishes the right of property. The prohibition of false testimony is the truth of justice. 
     The last ‘word’ or command is the prohibition against envying your neighbor’s house, wife, slave, maid, ox, donkey, or anything else belonging to him or her. This seems odd if we think of the “ten words” as commands, but not if we think of them as the basic principles of life. Envy will lead to breaking the other commands: it can cause people to commit adultery, to steal, to lie and even murder. It led Cain to murder Abel, made Abraham and Isaac fear for their life because they were married to beautiful women, led Joseph’s brothers to hate him and sell him into slavery and it was envy of neighbors that led the Israelites to imitate other religious practices and worship other gods. The Ten Words ends with the prohibition against envy, thus keeping His people from exploiting the other nine words or commands. 
     The Ten Words are the first real direct communication between a people and God. God’s moral laws are still binging, they are the blueprint of God’s expectations upon the world and His plan for a meaningful, just, loving and hoy life. 

יִתְרוֹ
Yitro / Jethro
Exodus 18:1-20:26
HafTorah portion Isaiah 6:1-7:6
Brit Chadasha Hebrews 12:18-24

      In chapter 18, Yitro observes Moshe rightly judging the people. However, he witnesses something that causes him to suggest to Moshe that he change the way he completes the complaints or disputes.   
    In Exodus 18:9-12 Yitro praises the Lord and then makes a remarkable statement about arrogance; (Exodus 18:11)‘Now I know that the Lord is greater than all other gods, for he did this to those who had treated Israel arrogantly.’  (Tzado /  to boil up, seethe, act proudly, presumptuously, rebelliously).  He then breaks bread with Moshe.     
     In Exodus 18:13-27 Yitro observes Moshe rightly judging and listening to the people.  Yitro asks Moshe to explain why he is required to spend the entire day working, surrounded by a milling crowd. Upon hearing Moses’s reply that the situation persists because the people keep bringing their issues to Moses to decide, Yitro responds sharply in Exodus 18:17 ‘…What you are doing Is not right…’ Continuing, he tells Moshe that the process will ‘…only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone.’ He tells Moshe to be the people's representative before God and to teach them His Ways and how they are to live. ‘But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain…’
     The qualifications were men who fear God, are trustworthy and who hate dishonest gain. 
     Exodus 18:26-27 ‘The difficult cases they brought to Moses, but the simple ones they decided themselves.  Then Moses sent his father-in-law on his way, and Jethro returned to his own country.’
     Exodus 19 is the precursor to the Ten Words, often called the Ten Commandments. 
     The Ten Commandments are the foundation of the obligations that we express our love through God and the observance of His Words. 
     #1  Exodus 20 begins with the first commandment and a declaration:  ‘I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.’ This is a statement, not a thou shall or shall not.  In Deuteronomy 4:13 the interpretation of aseret ha’devarim is saying or declarations. Moshe reiterates that God has commanded obedience to ten particular statements or The Ten Words.  
     The first commandment establishes the authority of the one God, more than commanding belief in one God. Without establishing the authority of God, the following commandments would be mere suggestions. 
     ‘I am the Lord your God.’ Isaiah 41:13, Isaiah 48:17, Deuteronomy 5:6

     #2   The second commandment begins with ‘You shall have no other gods besides Me’ and ends with ‘to those that love Me and keep My commandments.’  Exodus 20:3-6.
     The God of the Israelites was different in many ways to the gods of the ancient worlds.  For instance, He didn’t dwell in things but rather communicated through them. God did not live in the Burning Bursh but communicated through it. In Exodus 25:8 God tells Moshe ‘They shall make a sanctuary for Me so that I may dwell among them…’
     Idolatry today is anything that replaces the God of our forefathers or when one holds any value, idea, or activity higher than God. Superstition, astrology, celebrities or sports figures, rules of other denominations, and even our feelings or ego, which denies us the ability to see the role that God plays in our lives.  We have also turned the pursuit of happiness into a form of idolatry. It is how we feel. Even ideas can be idolatrous. 
     Numbers 33:52, Deuteronomy 5:8-9, Jeremiah 25:5-7 Ezekiel 20:15-16, Amos 5:25-27

    #3   Exodus 20:7 is the third commandment; ‘Thou shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.’   It is clear that God takes the issue of names and naming very seriously. This commandment is the only one in which there is an immediate threat of punishment.
     In Genesis 17:1 we can get an idea of the greatness of God’s names.  He used El Shaddai when He appeared to Abraham. Usually translated it would mean Almighty God, but the word Shaddai is derived from an ancient language and refers to mountains or openness. This could implicate greatness and vastness, and power. His Name also represents a walk and a destiny. 
     We see in both the Torah and the Brit Chadasha the importance of the many facets of the third commandment. Leviticus 24:16 ‘And whoever blasphemes the name of the Lord shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall certainly stone him, the stranger as well as him who is born in the land. When he blasphemes the name of the Lord, he shall be put to death.’ And Mark 3:28-30 ‘Assuredly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they may utter; 29 but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation”— 30 because they said, “He has an unclean spirit.’
   Leviticus 19:2  Deuteronomy 5:11   Psalm 139:20 Proverbs 30:9

    #4  Exodus 20:8-11 are the instructions for the fourth commandment, The Sabbath. This is about the holiness of time.  It is a time, a day, a moment in life.  From the very moment it was blessed by God; it is endowed with sanctity. It is the pinnacle of God’s creation; it is part of creation. To negate the Sabbath is to defile the Divinity of creation.  God does not give us the option to cancel the Sabbath, but rather it is a very poor choice of man.  No religion forbids the observance of a day set apart from all the rest of the days but the Sabbath is the only day blessed and hallowed by God. The Sabbath, as so many would conclude, is not about time off; but rather it is about sacred time. 
     In Deuteronomy 5:15 God says, ‘Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt and the Lord your God freed you from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm; therefore the Lord your God has commanded you to observe Shabbat.’  This explanation gives two motivations for observing Shabbat. The first is to remember where we came from and the second is that we were freed with The Mighty Hand and The Outstretched Arm. Genesis 2:3 Mark 2:27 Leviticus 23:3 Isaiah 58:13 Hebrews 4:9 Matthew 5:17-19 Ezekiel 20:12 Acts 18:4  Mark 2:28

#5  Exodus 20:12 ‘Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you.’ The fifth commandment is just one sentence long in the book of Exodus, but it is the only one with a promise of a long live, also stated in the Brit Chadaha (Ephesians 6:2). Children are to honor parents, not parents to honor children, but not to frustrate their children, (Ephesians 6:4).
    How do you honor your parent if they are not honorable?  It begins with forgiveness, understanding, not spreading lashon ha’ra and maybe even setting healthy boundaries. A good example of dishonoring a parent is the account of Noah and his sons, Ham and Canaan. 

Deuteronomy 5:26,  Proverbs 23:22, Matthew 15:4, Ephesians 6:1, Ephesians 6:2, Luke 18:20,  Proverbs 30:17, Proverbs 20:20, 1 Timothy 5:4, Colossians 3:20-21, Exodus 21:17, Matthew 19:19, Ephesians 21:13, Proverbs 19:26, Proverbs 17:6, Proverbs 17:25 

     These first five commands are taught that they relate to The Father, and the second five relate to our relationships with people. The obligation to worship God alone precedes that of treating His name with reverence, and both precede the importance of the Sabbath.  Respect for parents naturally follows respect for God. The second half seems to be arranged in a hierarchal form: protection of life, protection of family, protection of possessions, and protection of a reputation. The last commandment bans those desires arising from jealousy, which often is the cause of the 6th ,7th ,8th , and 9th commandments to be breached. 

13 “You shall not murder. 
14 “You shall not commit adultery. 
15 “You shall not steal.
16 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. 
17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.”

     Yitro ends with the law of the Altar. ‘And if you make Me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stone; for if you use your tool on it, you have profaned it.  Nor shall you go up by steps to My altar, that your nakedness may not be exposed on it.’ Exodus 20:25-26.