Parsha for Kids: Yitro 2023
Below is the transcript for this week’s episode of Parsha for Kids, Yitro 2023.
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Season 2 Episode 5:
Hello! My name is Chana, and this is Parsha for kids. The Parsha of the week is Yitro. Yitro is actually the name of a person. He is also known as Re’uel and he is the father of Moshe’s wife Tziporah.
But why is the Parsha named Yitro?
Well, it is because the Parsha begins by focusing on something Yitro did. You see, Yitro heard about all of the miracles that God had performed for Bnei Yisrael. He heard about the splitting of the Red Sea and the war with Amalek that Bnei Yisrael had won. You may remember that Moshe had left his wife, Tziporaah, and their two sons, Gershom and Eliezer, with Yitro in Midian. Yitro decided to bring Moshe’s family to him.
According to Rashi, Yitro sent a messenger letting Moshe know that this was happening. You may remember that Yitro was the Kohen of Midian, meaning that he was a priest there. Rashi goes further and says that Yitro was familiar with every kind of idolatry.
When Yitro arrived in the Midbar , or desert, with Moshe’s family, Moshe went out to greet Yitro with great honor. Moshe bowed down and lay himself down on the ground before him. He also kissed him. According to Rashi, Aharon and his sons Nadav and Avihu went out to greet Yitro as well, and the rest of Bnei Yisrael followed.
Rashi mentions an approach that Yitro converted to Judaism, becoming what is known as a ger. It is important to note that it doesn’t say this explicitly in the Parsha, and others say that Yitro remained a righteous non-Jew.
Moshe and Yitro went into the tent. Moshe told Yitro all about everything God had done to Pharoah and the Egyptians as well as the difficulties Bnei Yisrael had experienced - such as being trapped in front of the Yam Suf and having Amalek come up behind them- and that God had saved them in every situation. Yitro was happy about all the good things God had done for the Israelites. However, according to Rashi, he was disturbed by the destruction of the Egyptians. This is not surprising because Yitro would likely identify with the Egyptians since they were not Jewish and he wasn’t either before he converted. Rashi teaches that we learn from this to be careful about how we speak about people who are not Jewish in front of converts. It is important not to hurt the feelings of converts.
Yitro blessed God and said that now he knew that God was greater than all other gods because “with the thing they plotted, God came upon them.”
What does the last part of this sentence mean? Yitro was referring to the fact that the Egyptians had plotted to destroy Israel through water by having their baby boys thrown into the water but God had punished the Egyptians by actually having THEM drown in the water.
Yitro then offered sacrifices to God. Aharon and the Zekenim, which means elders, of Israel came to eat with Yitro to show him honor. Rashi notices that Moshe is not mentioned in the pasuk and wonders what happened to him. Rashi explains that Moshe was a very humble person. This means he did not think of himself as being of higher status than anyone else or being too good to do typical chores. Due to this, Moshe was actually serving Yitro his meal rather than sitting with him to eat it.
We can learn something valuable from Moshe’s behavior now. Sometimes people might think that they are too important to do something- like take out the garbage or set the table or serve others. If even Moshe Rabbeinu, who was the greatest prophet who ever lived, and who took Bnei Yisrael out of Egypt didn’t think that way, we can learn from him to be willing to do whatever is needed and not to think we are too busy or important to do it.
TRANSITION
The next day Moshe sat down and all of Bnei Yisrael stood in a long line to wait their turn to be judged by him. You may be wondering what kind of judgements the people needed from Moshe. The Midrash tells us that some wanted him to answer questions about how to best fulfill a mitzvah. Others had quarreled with someone else and wanted him to decide who was right.
Imagine being a member of Bnei Yisrael standing in a very, very long line until it was your turn to meet Moshe. You would probably get tired of waiting for so long. You might also get tired of standing and wish you could sit down. Yitro watched this happen and saw that Moshe was judging the people from morning until night.
So Yitro went up to Moshe and said, “What is this thing that you are doing to the people? Why do you sit by yourself while all the people stand before you from morning till evening?”
Moshe explained he did this because the people were coming to him l’drosh Elohim, to seek God. If any of them have a case, I Moshe judge between them and explain the teachings of God.
Yitro said, “The thing you are doing is not good. You will surely wear yourself out and also the people who are waiting for you. Ki Chaved Mimcha HaaDavar- because the matter is too heavy for you- you cannot do it alone. Now listen to me. I will give you advice, and may God be with you.”
Then Yitro clarified what he thought Moshe’s role was and could be and where other people could be helpful in assisting Moshe in his job. Yitro explained that Moshe needed to represent the nation before God and also clarify to them God’s will and God’s teachings.
But then Yitro said that Moshe should choose certain kinds of men from the nation. These men needed to be: men who were wealthy, God fearing, men of truth and who don’t themselves love money. Moshe should appoint these men over the nation to be leaders and judges.
Let’s look at the criteria Yitro suggested and analyze why he did so.
Yitro said the men needed to be wealthy. Can you think of why?
Here is the answer. When people have their own money, they will not be interested in bribes or expensive gifts. It’s important for a judge to be wealthy because otherwise someone might say to them, “If you rule that I am right in this court case, I will give you a million dollars.” Then the judge might be tempted to make that decision not because it’s actually right or true but because they want the million dollars.
Then Yitro said the men should be God fearing. This is important because it means they would do their best to uphold God’s law. They would be more concerned about doing what God wants than being liked by other human beings.
Yitro said they should be men of truth. Rashi explains that means that these were men who keep their promises. If they have a reputation of keeping to what they say, the nation will see them as reliable.
Finally, Yitro said that they should not love money themselves. This is similar to the first idea, where the judge should be wealthy. If the judge is obsessed with their own money and retaining their money, they will be too focused on riches and not focused enough on being fair to anyone who comes before them with a court case, whether rich or poor.
Yitro explained that after these judges were chosen, a court system could be set up. The court system would work in layers. If the judges were not qualified to judge the case, they would pass it up to the next layer of judges. In this way, only the most difficult or major cases would make their way all the way to Moshe. The other cases would be resolved before reaching Moshe.
Yitro said that if Moshe listened to his advice, Moshe would be able to survive, and all the people would be able to come to their place in peace.
TRANSITION
Moshe listened to Yitro’s advice. From here we learn some valuable things.
First, we learn that it is important to speak up if we see a situation we think can be made better. Yitro had a good idea to solve a problem that he saw. Therefore, he spoke up and brought his solution to Moshe’s attention. In your own life, you might be in a situation in school or camp where you see something that could be fixed or done better. Perhaps you can tell your counselor or teacher about your idea to solve the problem, and you can make things work better for everyone around you.
We also see how important it is to listen to other people’s good ideas. Moshe didn’t have the idea of creating a court system on his own. It took an outsider, someone traveling from the land of Midian, to see things in a new way and come up with a new suggestion. Sometimes a pair of fresh eyes can see things differently. When Moshe heard the good suggestion, he didn’t get offended or upset. He didn’t say that Yitro hadn’t been around the Israelite nation long enough to offer any opinions. Instead, Moshe saw the merit in the suggestion and he accepted it. Having the ability to listen to good ideas no matter who suggests them is a very important skill.
Moshe chose judges to help him judge the nation. Tziporah and Gershom and Eliezer remained with Moshe, but Yitro left and went back to his own land.
TRANSITION
In the third month from the time Bnei Yisrael left Egypt, they arrived in Midbar Sinai, the wilderness of Sinai. They camped there opposite a mountain, Har Sinai.
Moshe went up to God. God said to Him, “Tell Beit Yaakov, the House of Jacob, and Bnei Yisrael, the Children of Israel, you have seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I took you out on kanfei nesharim, the wings of eagles, and I brought you to Me.”
What did God mean when He said He took Bnei Yisrael out on kanfei nesharim, the wings of eagles? (By the way, not everyone translates nesher as eagle; Rabbi Natan Slifkin who has researched birds in the Tanakh says that they are most likely griffon vultures). Rashi explains that the nesher carries her baby birds on her back. The other birds carry their birds in their claws because otherwise they would be afraid that a different bird would seize their children and eat them. But the nesher only fears hunters who might shoot arrows at her from below, not other birds, since she flies at the highest height. Similarly, God fears no one, and protected Bnei Yisrael, placing his cloud before them to intercept any arrows from the Egyptians.
God continued telling Moshe, “If you obey me and keep my Brit, you shall be a segulah mikol ha’amim, a treasure from among all the nations, for the entire Earth belongs to me. And you shall be to me a kingdom of princes and a holy nation.”
Moshe told these words to the elders of Bnei Yisrael. All the people responded together and said “All that God has spoken we will do!”
Then God told Moshe, “I am going to come to you in the thickness of cloud so that the people hear when I speak to you and they will also believe in you forever.” God planned to reveal Himself to the nation of Israel by meeting them at the mountain. God instructed Moshe to tell the people to prepare themselves for three days. They needed to wash their clothing and also build a fence around the mountain. This was so that no one would accidentally touch the mountain, because if anyone touched the mountain, they would die. (You can imagine powerful, crackling, fizzing electricity and how it’s dangerous if anyone touches a live wire; similarly, when God would come down on that mountain, His holiness would cover it and make it dangerous for anyone to touch.) When the shofar sounded, only then would it be safe for members of Bnei Yisrael to come up the mountain.”
TRANSITION
Three days later, when it was morning, Moshe brought the people to God and stood them at the bottom of the mountain.
Thunder boomed and lightning flashed. A thick cloud covered the mountain and there was a very loud blast of a Shofar. The entire Har Sinai smoked because God had come there in fire. The mountain itself shook. The sound of the Shofar became even stronger. The entire nation trembled.
Imagine what it would have been like to stand there. Bnei Yisrael must have felt excited, overwhelmed and scared as they stood at the foot of the mountain behind the fence. Hearing the thunder, watching the lightning, and seeing the fire and smoke that wreathed the mountain, they realized they were about to meet God. Every single one of their senses was engaged.
God told Moshe to ascend the mountain. God then warned Moshe to make sure that no members of Bnei Yisrael come too close to the mountain and therefore die. Moshe warned the people about this again.
Then, finally, God spoke. The words God spoke are called the Aseret HaDibrot, the Ten Commandments.
TRANSITION
God began by saying, “I am the Lord your God, who took you out of Egypt.” This first statement focused on explaining who God was and making clear to Bnei Yisrael that they should believe in Him.
The second commandment was, “You shall have no other gods before me.” In this way, God was making clear that He was to be Bnei Yisrael’s only God. They were not allowed to worship Him while also worshiping another god or idol. God added on to this commandment, explaining that Bnei Yisrael were not allowed to make statues or sculptures for themselves of anything found in the heavens or the earth. The concern was that Bnei Yisrael might start making statues or sculptures of the sun or moon and might come to worship them.
The third commandment was, “Do not take God’s name in vain.” This meant that people were not allowed to swear by God’s name if they were going to say something untrue or unnecessary. For example, if someone ate a piece of cake yesterday, they could not swear, “I swear by God’s name that I did not eat cake yesterday.” Similarly, they should not use God’s name to say something unnecessary, like, “I swear by God’s name that the sun is in the sky right now.”
The fourth commandment was, “Remember Shabbat to keep it holy.” Shabbat takes place every Friday night and Saturday. During the six days of the week, we can work and perform creative acts. On the seventh day, we do not do melacha, work, but instead rest. We do this because God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh day, and we are emulating God.
The fifth commandment was “Honor your father and mother.” It is important to listen to your parents and help them as much as you can. Remember that if not for your parents, you would not be alive.
The sixth commandment was, “Do not murder.” Only God has the ability to decide when a person should live or die. That is not a decision we as humans should make for other people.
The seventh commandment was, “Do not commit adultery.” This means that a married woman should not go and get married to another man while she is still married to her husband. Similarly, her husband should not get married to a different woman who is already married. Instead, when people are married, they should focus on building a strong and loving relationship with each other.
The eighth commandment was, “Do not kidnap or steal.”
The ninth commandment was, “Do not act as a false witness.” A false witness is someone who lies and says that he saw someone do something that he didn’t actually see. A false witness might say they saw someone steal money when really the person never even touched the money.
The tenth commandment was “Do not want things that belong to someone else.” Maybe your friend has a nice toy or house. You should not bother him and say, “I wish I had your toy.” It is important to be happy with the things that you have. Of course, you can be motivated to work hard so that you can earn money to buy things that you would like, but that is different from wanting something that does not belong to you- because when you get that thing, that means the other person loses it.
TRANSITION
The people saw the voices, the fire, the sound of the shofar and the smoking mountain. Rashi explains that they actually saw the voices. Usually you can only hear voices or music; Bnei Yisrael were able to see them. Bnei Yisrael were afraid and said to Moshe, “You speak to us, and we will hear, but God should not speak to us because then we might die.”
But Moshe told them not to be afraid, because God was revealing Himself to them at this mountain so that they would be glorified among the nations of the world. God’s revealing Himself to the people would also mean that Bnei Yisrael would know Him in a way that would make them afraid to sin or make wrong choices.
The people still stayed far away, but Moshe came close to the thick cloud where God was. God spoke to Moshe and told him to tell Bnei Yisrael, “You have seen that from the heavens I have spoken to you. Do not make images of people, the sun, the moon, the stars or angels. This will help you keep far away from idol worship. Instead, make an altar, mizbeach, of earth for me. You shall slaughter sacrifices for Me and mention my Name there; then I will come to you and bless you. When you make me a mizbeach of stones, they cannot be made of cut stones. You cannot use an iron instrument like an ax to cut the stones for the Mizbeach. Iron is what is used to make weapons, and so iron should not touch the mizbeach, because the mizbeach is a place of peace.”
Finally, God told Moshe that Bnei Yisrael should not build steps to lead up to the Mizbeach. Instead, Bnei Yisrael should build a ramp to lead up to the Mizbeach.
I think that the reason God explained the laws of the Mizbeach is because God wanted to make sure Bnei Yisrael understood how to connect with Him. Since he was forbidding them to make images of any of the creations in the sky or earth, they might have wondered how to connect to God. This was an example of an item they WERE allowed to build, albeit with special instructions, as a way of coming close to God. It’s important that when we forbid people to do one thing, we offer them another option of what they are permitted to do.
TRANSITION
So here’s what we learned this week!
Moshe was humble and demonstrated that he didn’t think he was too good to serve or care for other people. We should emulate him.
Yitro stepped up when he saw a situation that he thought he could fix, and offered good advice in an effort to fix it. Moshe listened to his advice. Similarly, it’s important for us to try to offer helpful suggestions and to listen when other people are offering us feedback.
God revealed Himself to us in a way that would never be forgotten. There was fire, smoke, Shofar blasts, lightning and thunder. Sometimes if you want people to remember an important event, it’s necessary to set the tone. We learn this from God.
God gave us the ten commandments. All of them are important in helping us to lead a good and meaningful life.
God explained several ways He did not want us to serve Him; for example, by saying He did not want us to make statues or sculptures of the sun, moon, stars and the like. However, God also gave us a way to serve Him by explaining how we could build a Mizbeach in order to connect with Him. This shows us the importance of telling people what is permitted in addition to telling them what is forbidden.
If you have any questions or comments on this week’s episode, please email me at parsha4kids@gmail.com. That’s parsha the number 4 kids at gmail.com. Good Shabbos!