“He said to them: Is he well [hashalom lo]?” – is there peace [hashalom] between you and him? “They said: He is well,” – but if it is prattle that you seek: “Here is Rachel his daughter, coming with the sheep.” That is what is said: Speech is found among women. “He said: Behold, the day is still great, it is not time for the livestock to be gathered; give the sheep to drink, and go and herd” (Genesis 29:7).
“He said: Behold, [the day] is still…” – he said to them: ‘If you are hired watchmen, “the day is still great.” If you are herding your own, “it is not time for the livestock to be gathered.”’ “He was still speaking with them, and Rachel came with her father’s flock; for she was a shepherdess” (Genesis 29:9). “He was still speaking with them, and Rachel came” – come and see the difference between neighborhood and neighborhood.
Elsewhere, they were seven,25Jethro had seven daughters. and the shepherds sought to confront them. That is what is written: “The shepherds came and drove them away” (Exodus 2:17). However, here, it was one, and no person touched her, because: “The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them” (Psalms 34:8) – to those who are proximate to those who fear him.