Jethro in Rabbinic Literature - Honored By Moses

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).

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