Parashat She'mot, Exodus 1:1 - 6:1

Parashat Sh’mot – the first portion of the second book – is one of the most famous of the entire Chumash. Indeed, its content is well-known to almost every Jewish person around the world. This is so not because it contains one of the key stories of the entire canon (the rise to power of Moshe, the most significant person in all of Judaism); rather, it is famous because a major part of it (as well as of next week’s portion) were “imported” into the Passover Hagada, a text read by many Jewish families each and every year come spring. Thus, even a non-frequent (biblical) flyer may experience a déjà-vu when reading this portion for the first time.

A Well-Known Portion

In addition to Hagada reading flash-backs, this week’s portion is no doubt a trip down memory lane to anyone who ever attended Sunday school here (or mandatory Bible classes in Israeli elementary school). For example, the wonderful story of little Moshe in the wicker basket – how he was first saved, then raised by Pharaoh’s daughter (despite her father’s decree to kill all Hebrew male babies (Exodus 2:2-10)). It also includes the famous story of Moshe standing before the burning bush, and the bush does not burn up (Exodus 3:2-3); God ordering Moshe to “Remove your shoes from your feet, as the place you are stepping upon is holy ground” (Id); Moshe arguing with God, claiming he’s not fit to become the leader of all Hebrews (on which I will talk shortly); Moshe and his brother Aharon standing before King Pharaoh and demanding “Let My People Go!” (Exodus 5:1); and many other “best-of” stories.

Obviously, I cannot discuss all of these great stories today. What I would like to do is to reiterate the ’classical‘ narrative of Moshe’s rise to power and then juxtapose this classic narrative with a more up-to-date, political-science version of the story which purports to, but stops short of, replacing God with Machiavelli.

Before I begin, a word on the title of the portion – and the book – we are reading today. The text begins with “And these are the names (Sh’mot) of …” and therefore, as usual, the portion and the book are named in Hebrew “sh’mot” – Names – following the first meaningful word in the text. The English editors however, chose a more subject-matter-oriented title, and named the portion and the book “Exodus” – which I consider unfortunate. What they missed is a very deep discussion of the actual names – and one name in particular – of the Jewish God, And that text is truly unique, though incredibly complicated either to explain or translate (you can find it in Exodus 3:14-15). None of it is even hinted on the English version. Accordingly, from now on, consider referring to this portion (and the book) by its real name – The Book of Names.

Moshe’s Rise to Power: The Classic Version

As every elementary-school student is Israel knows well, Moshe – the only true “slave of God,” – was never interested in the great honor bestowed upon him by God, namely leading the People of Israel out of Egypt (or at all, for that matter).

In fact, Moshe was never made of “leader material” (at least not in the way we consider the term today). Rather, Moshe was, a peaceful goat-herder, minding his own business. He could not be less interested in global politics: “And Moshe, tending to the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midyan, drove the flock into the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.” (Ex. 3:1-2). To his great amazement, an Angel of God – and then God Himself, no less – appear before him and instruct him of his new destiny as the leader of (what would later become) the Chosen People. Moshe protests – a sign of a true leader – and argues with God (in their first encounter ever, mind you): “Who am I to go to Pharaoh and free Israelites from Egypt?” (Ex. 3:11). God assures him that things will be fine, but Moshe is not convinced: “They [the people of Israel] would not believe me; they would not listen to me, as they will argue: ‘God has never shown Himself to you.’” (Ex. 4:1). God solves that problem as well, equipping Moshe with a set of miracles that can convince even the most doubtful of heretics. Still, Moshe is not convinced: “Please, I swear to You oh God, I have never been a man of many words . . . I am both slow of speech and slow of tongue.” (Ex. 4:10). God then allows Moshe to “outsource” the speech function to his brother Aharon, and now even Moshe, the great skeptic, is finally convinced.

All this argument, we learn, comes to show us one thing: True leaders are not power-hungry; they are not “running” for office – in fact, they are running from office; they are selected by God, usually “behind the flock” (just like David, many years later), and are not even aware of their future career until God himself tells them. End of story. End of lesson.

Is there another way to look at that same story?

Moshe’s Rise to Power: An Alternative View

Moshe’s image, as reflected by the text, is extremely interesting – both personally and in the biblical context. From a textual standpoint, we find many a clue that Moshe is like no other figure before him, and destined for greatness by way of mentioning many of the great persons that preceeded him. For example, when he is born, we are not told the name of his father (unprecedented in the text), or of the fact that he has a brother (Aharon) and a sister (Miriam) (see Ex. 2:1); thus Moshe enters this world as a “stand-alone” person – no family, no ties, no roots. We then learn that he was hidden – not in a wicker basket – but actually in an “arc” (King James Version got it right this time) – a direct reference to Noah, the first righteous man. Then we learn that Moshe is a Hebrew raised by and walking among Egyptian royalty, like another gigantic Hebrew figure, Joseph. Moshe then finds a wife in a manner strikingly similar to that of Jacob (impressing the bride-to-be by hydrating her flock) – another reference to one of most important figures in the biblical text, Finally, we learn that immediately after he was persuaded by God to lead the Israelites, “Moshe took his wife and sons and mounted them on the donkey and went back to the land of Egypt [where God ordered him to go]” – no doubt a reference to Abraham and his donkey, in the early morning hours of the Akeida.

But Moshe is also destined to greatness on his own accord, rather than by textual references. He is raised as an aristocrat at a time when his People are slaves and humiliated around the nation. He is not a part of their lives, but occasionally – we can assume – he would look out the window of his sheltered palace and view his brothers and sisters suffer.

Our first encounter with the adult Moshe is striking: “Some time after that, when Moshe has grown up, he went out to his brethren and witnessed their hard-labor. And he saw an Egyptian man attacking a Hebrew man, one of his own. And he looked around, and, after seeing that no man was there, hit the Egyptian man and buried him in the sand.” [Ex. 2:11-12]. This is truly an amazing story: Despite his aloof background – and perhaps because of it – Moshe does not merely protest the injustice he witnesses; rather, he pro-actively interrupts the situation, and without a warning or inquiry kills the Egyptian aggressor. Not exactly the act of a shy goat-herder.

The next day, Moshe goes out again. No longer shall he reside permanently at his distant palace. This time Moshe encounters two Hebrew men fighting. He turns to the aggressor, and – while not striking him – demands to know: “Why are you striking your brethren?” The answer shocks and dismays Moshe for years to come: “And [the aggressor] said: Who made you a minister and a judge upon us? Do you plan to kill me, as you have the Egyptian?” (Ex. 2:12). Thus, Moshe realizes that the source of his authority is key to any future leadership position.

It is against this background that we may now re-examine the famous encounter (and debate) with God. Recall that back then -- when there were no CNN, internet, or twitter -- political power was earned primarily by family ties, or by an act of performing a miracle – like Joseph “interpreting” the dream of Pharaoh. Moshe, obviously, had to choose the latter. So here is how the story begins:

There is a miracle. A bush is burning, but it is not consumed. Then God speaks: He invokes the three fathers: Avraham, Izaac, and Jacob – the “founding fathers.” Indeed, just as today Supreme Court Justices and Congressmen alike often invoke the (American) Founding Fathers as a source of legitimacy for their opinion, Moshe, back then, required a similar “big name” to rely on. And while today such source of legitimacy sounds self-evident, almost trivial, recall that at that time, these figures did not mean much to most Hebrew slaves: They never seen them, and I doubt many of them even heard of them. Still, Moshe is in desperate need for a legitimating source to his claim to power, and the Fathers are as good as any.

Then Moshe asks “Who am I [to do all that]” – invoking almost the exact same text of the Hebrew slave who refused to abide by his command. Here, again, Moshe is required to show to his (future) People that he is well aware of his questionable legitimacy as a leader, and wants to address this head on. Again, God invokes the Founding Fathers, and this is the message Moshe delivers later to his audience.

The next issue, Moshe’s speech impediment, is also a classic. While many view it as another sign of Moshe’s humility, a different reading emerges if we consider Moshe, with his very sharp organizational skills realizing that dividing the position of CEO and spokeperson could benefit them both. Today, every leader would agree with that notion, even the most eloquent of them (just ask Robert Gibbs)..

In short, Moshe’s first encounter with God, other than its classic reading, may also provide us with some interesting lessons about leadership, legitimacy, and using the text wisely.

Shabat Shalom,

Doron