"Moses grew up and went out to his brethren and observed their burdens."
Exodus 2:11
After the Torah tells us that Moses went out to see his brothers in their suffering, we are told about an
incident. Moses saw an Egyptian striking an Israelite and he took action, striking down the Egyptian. The Torah adds that
before he killed the Egyptian, "He turned this way and that, and saw there was no man." Exodus 2:12
In this brief episode the Torah is teaching a number of important lessons. We know from the next episode
that there was strife and a lack of unity among the Israelites at the time. Yet, when Moses went out to his brothers he didn't
see their faults, what he saw were their burdens. This is a true measure of maturity, as the Torah hints to this when it says,
"And Moses grew up."
When he saw the injustice he did more than empathize with his brothers, he took action. When the Torah states
that he looked around and saw that there was no one around willing to help, he took action. Moses didn't miss the plight of
the individual. Moses’s greatness was that even as he saw the burdens of his brethren in general he was still able to
focus on the trouble of one individual Israelite.
The lesson for us: Take responsibility and don't be deterred by the apathy of others.
"The lad grew up, and she brought him to the daughter of Pharaoh and he was to her as
a son. And she called his name Moses." Exodus 2:10
Yahveh had Moses raised in the palace of the king in order for him to experience a royal manner of behavior.
He would both see it firsthand and get into the habit of acting this way. We see how this early training helped Moses develop
into a dynamic person. He killed an Egyptian in order to defend the person he was attacking. He rescued the maidens in
Midian and enabled them to water their flocks.
Here we see a powerful lesson on the importance of learning and preparing for greatness. Even someone with
the inherent greatness of Moses needed a total environmental learning experience of royalty to integrate the personality necessary
to be a great leader. Moses was the most humble of all men. In his personal life he mastered the ability to ignore any slights
or insults. But he was a powerful leader who accepted responsibility to save people in difficulties.
