You Will Surely Wither Under a Burden Too Heavy to Bear

Mekhilta DeRabbi Shimon Ben Yochai 18:18

Curated by Arthur·Told by Maggid·

"You will surely wither" (Exodus 18:18). Rabbi Yehoshua says: they will praise you and then provoke you. Rabbi Elazar of Modi'in says: they will wear you down and make you drop like this fig tree whose leaves fall off, and likewise it says (Isaiah 34:4): "as the leaf withers from the vine, and as a withered fig from the fig tree." "You": this is Moses. "Also": this is Aaron. "This people who are with you": these are the seventy elders. So are the words of Rabbi Yehoshua. Rabbi Elazar of Modi'in says: "You" this is Moses, "also" this is Aaron, "this people who are with you" these are the seventy elders; and when it says "also," this includes Nadab and Abihu. "For the matter is too heavy for you": he said to him, look at this beam. When it is moist, as long as people go in under it one at a time, they cannot hold it up; three or four can hold it up. Therefore it is said "for the matter is too heavy for you, you cannot do it alone."

Themes

MosesLeadershipWisdom

Continue Reading

Mekhilta DeRabbi Shimon Ben YochaiJethro Sees Moses Judging Israel Like a Seated KingJethro came out to the wilderness camp and watched his son-in-law work. From morning until evening Moses sat in a single seat, and the whole nation pressed arouMekhilta DeRabbi Shimon Ben YochaiJethro Given a Place of Honor Through the Appointing of EldersWhen Jethro told Moses outright that his method of judging was not good, the sages did not hear arrogance. They heard a man being handed a gift. Jethro was beloBen SiraCaleb and Joshua Stood Faithful Among SpiesOur story comes from the wisdom of Ben Sira, also known as Ecclesiasticus, a book of wisdom literature. It’s part of the Jewish writings of the Second Temple peBook of JubileesEsau's Declaration of War Against Jacob in JubileesThe Book of Jubilees, for those who aren't familiar, is an ancient Jewish text, considered part of the biblical apocrypha or pseudepigrapha – writings that hoveBook of JubileesEgypt — Joseph in the Days of MosesPharaoh, the most powerful man in the land, is understandably worried. He needs a solution, and fast. The text says, "let Pharaoh appoint overseers in all the lBook of TobitKingdom of King SennacheribIt’s a story packed with adventure, piety, and a healthy dose of divine intervention. to a particularly intense moment from the beginning of the story. Our hero