You’ve traveled with your son-in-law and the Israelites through the desert, witnessed miracles, and then… Moses sends you packing. Back home. Just before the biggest moment in Jewish history.
Why?
It's a fascinating question, and the answer reveals something profound about community and shared experience.
According to Legends of the Jews by Rabbi Louis Ginzberg, Moses had a specific reason. He reasoned, "When God gave us a single commandment of the Torah in Egypt, the Passover, He said, 'There shall no stranger eat thereof.' Surely Jethro may not look on when God bestows on us the whole Torah."
Think about that for a moment. It's not just about keeping a secret. It's about who deserves to witness the giving of the Torah.
But there’s more to it. God Himself weighed in on the matter. He said, "Israel was in Egypt, bound to work with clay and bricks, at the same time as Jethro was sitting at home in peace and quiet. He who suffers with the community shall share their future joys, but he who does not share the sufferings of the community shall not take part in their rejoicing."
Ouch.
That’s a pretty powerful statement, isn’t it? It's not that Jethro was a bad person. Far from it! He was a wise and respected priest of Midian. But he hadn’t shared in the suffering of the Israelites in Egypt. He hadn’t felt the sting of slavery, the desperation of oppression.
This idea—that shared suffering creates a bond that merits shared joy—is a recurring theme in Jewish thought. It speaks to the importance of empathy, of standing in solidarity with those who are struggling. It speaks to the idea that Klal Yisrael—the community of Israel—is bound together by shared history and shared destiny.
It makes you wonder: what does it truly mean to be part of a community? Is it enough to simply be present during the good times? Or does it require something more… a willingness to share in the hardships, to bear the burdens alongside your fellow human beings?
Perhaps Jethro’s absence from Sinai wasn't a punishment, but a lesson. A reminder that true joy is amplified when it’s shared with those who have walked the difficult path with you. A reminder that being part of something bigger than yourself requires both presence and participation, in both times of joy and times of sorrow.