Honored By Moses
The manner in which Jethro announced his arrival to Moses is also variously indicated. According to Rabbi Eliezer, Jethro sent a messenger; according to Rabbi Joshua, he wrote a letter and tied it to an arrow which he shot into the camp. Moses did not go out alone to meet his father-in-law; but was accompanied by Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel to honor Jethro. Some say that even the Shekinah itself went out to meet him (Mek. l.c.; Tan., Yitro, 6).
The words wa-yihad Yitro (Exodus 18.9), generally translated "and Jethro rejoiced," are interpreted by the Talmudists as "he circumcised himself"; or "he felt a stinging in his flesh"; that is to say, he was sorry for the loss of the Egyptians, his former coreligionists. By an interchange of the ח with the ה, the phrase would read wa-yihad, meaning "he became a Jew" (Tan., Yitro, 5).
Read more about this topic: Jethro In Rabbinic Literature
Famous quotes containing the words honored by, honored and/or moses:
“Those who do good will be honored by the spirits; those who do evil will be punished by Heaven.”
—Chinese proverb.
“I see those two hearts, I’m afraid,
Still. Cool here in the graveyard of good and evil,
They are even so to be honored and obeyed.”
—James Merrill (b. 1926)
“Life—that is: continually shedding something that wants to die. Life—that is: being cruel and inexorable against everything about us that is growing old and weak—and not only about us. Life—that is, then: being without reverence for those who are dying, who are wretched, who are ancient? Constantly being a murderer?—And yet old Moses said: “Thou shalt not kill.””
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)