Shmot: Anyone Here Who's a Man?

by Rav Hillel Fendel.

This week's Torah portion of Sh'mot, which begins the second Book of the Pentateuch, tells the story of Bnei Yisrael's first years in Egypt, and their first decades under Egyptian bondage. The story largely revolves around Moshe Rabbeinu, who grows up in the luxury of Pharoah's palace, but still feels very strongly the pain of his suffering brethren.  

At one point, Moshe goes out and sees an Egyptian beating a Jew. The Torah tells us his response: "Moshe looked this way and that way, saw that there was no man, and smote the Egyptian and buried him in the sand." Rashi does not explain according to the simple meaning – that Moshe did not wish to be caught in this act. Rather, he says that Moshe looked "this way and that way," meaning at all the harm that this particular Egyptian had done to the Israelite, which went beyond just simple physical harm. 

However, the Netziv – the author of the Ha'amek Davar, Rabbi Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin, Rosh Yeshiva of the famous Volozhin Yeshiva – gives a different, straightforward explanation. He says that Moshe looked around in all directions, specifically to see if anyone was there who would respond to this injustice! But, "he saw that there was no man!" He saw no one who was willing to get up and act with simple humanity and right the wrong that was being done! And so, he took action himself. 

This was in accordance with the Mishna taught many centuries later by Hillel the Elder: "Where there are no men [people], strive to be a man!" (Pirkei Avot 2,5)

In short, the first lesson that Moshe our Teacher teaches us is not to wait for others to take action, but to take responsibility ourselves – and especially when our brothers' fate is at stake!

Shabbat Shalom.