The story of Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, offers a fascinating glimpse. Jethro, who according to the tradition, excelled all other converts in his love for the Torah, wasn’t just welcomed into the Israelite camp; he was showered with miracles.
The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) tells us that on the very day Jethro arrived, manna—that miraculous bread from heaven—fell in abundance, specifically for him, at the very hour of his arrival. The amount? Enough for sixty myriads of Israelites! It's said he didn't even have to exert himself; the manna simply fell right over him, ready to be eaten. Now, that’s hospitality!
But here's where the story takes an unexpected turn. Despite this miraculous welcome, Jethro decided to return to his homeland. Why? What could possibly compel someone to leave such a privileged position?
Moses, naturally, tried to persuade him to stay. According to Ginzberg's retelling in Legends of the Jews, Moses even hinted that their journey through the desert would soon be over, implying Jethro would enter the Promised Land with them. Moses sweetened the deal, promising Jethro that they would be kinder to him than to all other proselytes.
But Jethro remained firm. He felt obligated to return. The reason? He was a trusted figure in his community. People had entrusted him with their valuables. If he stayed away too long, they might suspect him of running off with their possessions, tarnishing his good name and, by association, Moses' too. It was also said he had debts from helping the poor during a famine and didn't want to appear to be evading his creditors, which would be a hillul Hashem, a desecration of God's name.
Jethro poignantly explained, "There are people who have a fatherland, but no property there; there are also property-holders who have no family; but I have a fatherland, and have property there as well as a family; hence I desire to return to my fatherland, my property, and my family."
Moses, not willing to give up easily, then appealed to Jethro's sense of duty. He argued that if Jethro left, the Israelites might be accused of only accepting converts in the hope of gaining land, and the heathens would keep away from the true faith. If he stayed, Jethro would share in the Temple, the Torah, and the future reward of the pious. Moses even suggested Jethro stay to serve as a member of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish high court, and to teach the Torah.
Jethro countered with a beautiful metaphor: "A candle may glow in the dark, but not when the sun and the moon are shining; of what avail would my candle-light be?" He believed he could be more effective back home, converting his people and bringing them "under the wings of the Shekinah (the Divine Presence)"—the Divine Presence.
In the end, Jethro returned home, laden with gifts and honors. And, true to his word, he converted his kinsmen and compatriots to the belief in the one true God.
So, what do we take away from Jethro's story? It's a reminder that piety isn't just about personal gain or even staying within a comfortable, spiritually rich environment. Sometimes, the greatest act of faith is to return to our own communities, to use our experiences and wisdom to uplift those around us, even if it means leaving behind the miraculous manna and the company of giants like Moses. It's about recognizing where we can best serve, where our "candle" can shine brightest.
This, however, is not the only reward for Jethro's piety, who, in his love for the Torah, excelled all proselytes. A miracle occurred on the very first day of his arrival in camp for manna in his honor descended at the noon hour, the hour of his arrival; and, moreover, in as great quantities as was wont to rain down for sixty myriads of Israelites. He did not have to exert himself to gather the food, for it came over his body, so all he had to do was to carry his hand to his mouth to partake of it. Jethro, nevertheless, did not remain with Moses, but returned to his native land. Moses, of course, tried to persuade his father-in-law to stay. He said to him: "Do not think that we shall continue to move thus slowly through the desert, nay, we shall now move directly to the promised land." Only to urge Jethro to stay longer with them did Moses use the words "we move," so that his father-in-law might believe that Moses too would enter the promised land, for otherwise he would hardly have allowed himself to be persuaded to join the march to Palestine. Moses continued: "I do not want to mislead thee, hence I will tell thee that the land will be divided only among the twelve tribes, and that thou has no claim to possession of lands; but God bade us be kind to the proselytes, and to thee we shall be kinder than to all other proselytes." Jethro, however, was not to be persuaded by his son-in-law, considering himself in duty bound to return to his native land. For the inhabitants of his city had for many years made a habit of having him store their valuable, as none possessed their confidence in such a measure as he. If he had stayed still longer with Moses, people would have declared that he had absconded with all these things and fled to Moses to share it with him, and that would have been a blot on his fair name and that of Moses. Jethro had furthermore made many debts during the year in which he came to Moses, for, owing to the hail God had sent upon Egypt before the exodus of Israel, a great famine had arisen in Jethro's home too, and he had found himself obliged to lend money for the support of the poor. If he were not now to return to his home, people would say that he had run away in order to evade his creditors, and such talk concerning a man of piety would have been desecration of the Divine Name. So he said to Moses: "There are people who have a fatherland, but no property there; there are also property-holders who have no family; but I have a fatherland, and have property there as well as a family; hence I desire to return to my fatherland, my property, and my family." But Moses would not yield so soon, and said to his father-in-law: "If thou dost not accompany us as a favor, I will command thee to do so, that the Israelites might not say thou hadst been converted to our religion only in the expectation of receiving a share in the promised land, but hadst returned to thy home when thou didst discover that proselytes have no claim on property in the Holy Land. Through thy refusal to move with us, thou wilt give the heathens an opportunity to say that the Jews do not accept proselytes, since they did not accept even their own king's father-in-law, but allowed him to return to his own land. Thy refusal will injure the glory of God, for the heathens will keep away from the true faith. But if thou wilt wander with us, I assure thee that they seed shall share with us the Temple, the Torah, and the future reward of the pious. How canst thou, moreover, who hast seen all the miracles of God wrought for us during the march through the desert; who wert a witness of the way in which even the Egyptians became fond of us-how canst thou now depart from us? It is a sufficient motive for thee to remain with us, in order to officiate as a member of the Sanhedrin, and teach the Torah. We, on our part, want to retain thee, only that thou mightest in difficult cases enlighten our eyes; for thou wert the man who gave us good and fair counsel, to which God Himself could not refuse His assent." Jethro replied: "A candle may glow in the dark, but not when the sun and the moon; of what avail would my candle-light be? I had, therefore, better return to my home city that I may make proselytes of its inhabitants, instruct them in the Torah, and lead them under the wings of the Shekinah." Amid great marks of honor, and provided with rich gifts, Jethro returned to his home, where he converted his kinsmen and his compatriots to the belief in the true God, as he had intended.
