Torah Portion: Exodus 18:1-20:23, 'Yitro' (Jethro)

Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, visits him in the wild, bringing his wife and sons in advance of the law of God being given.

A Kingdom of Priests

The Lord our God is One. Moses' family was now together again. His father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, had also been united with God’s people, converted by the testimony of all the good things the Lord had done for Israel in rescuing them from the hand of the Egyptians who had treated them arrogantly. Moses’ testimony was, "My father's God was my helper. He saved me from the sword of Pharaoh". Indeed, this was three times true: not only through the mighty deliverance of the whole nation at the Red Sea; Moses was also saved from Pharaoh's murderous sword at birth. God also saved him from the sword of justice when, as a young man, Moses killed an Egyptian and hid him in the sand, after witnessing his mistreatment of a fellow Hebrew.

Jethro was welcomed into the community of Aaron and the elders of Israel as he brought his sacrifices and they ate bread together in the presence of God. The next day, Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people. One man to judge more than a million people…Jethro, blessed with wisdom for the moment, saw God's solution:

Teach them God's decrees and laws and show them the way to live…choose capable men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain to…serve as judges for the people but have them bring every difficult case to you.

Jethro showed Moses that even though God is one, leadership is plural – that the Lord wants a kingdom of priests.

The Fear of the Lord

They came to Mt Sinai, probably the same place as Mt Horeb, where Moses saw the flaming, unconsumed bush and heard the call of God. God descended in fire on the mountain. There was thunder and lightning; thick cloud and smoke as from a furnace billowed upwards; the whole mountain trembled violently. God's voice shook the earth.

The trumpet sound grew continually louder and everyone in the camp trembled. The sight was so terrifying, even Moses said he was trembling with fear. God spoke His laws: the ten commandments. The people stayed at a distance. “The fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning”, Moses said.

How much we need the fear of God in our society today! We rejoice, that we “have not come to a mountain…to thick darkness, fire and tempest…[but] to the city of the living God…to thousands upon thousands of joyfully assembled angels” (Heb 12:18-22). And we rejoice that “What the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did, in sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering” (Rom 8:3-4). Yet, there is still great need of that reverential awe and fear of the Lord in our hearts and homes. We need, in our nation, to hear, learn and remember His words all over again – and to do them.

God is truly shaking the nations - and perhaps this one in particular at the moment - so that what cannot be shaken may remain. May He keep us in His grace to stand in unity on the truth of His word, walking in the reverential fear of the Lord, with our attention focused on Him in all things.

Author: Sally Bolton