In terms of Emunah, Parshat Yitro and the giving of the Torah is probably one of the most fundamental sections of our story, equalled perhaps only by Yetziat Mitzrayim (coming out of Egypt) and Briyat Haolam (the Creation of the World). The Torah was given to all of Am Yisrael – men, women, children, and even the souls of future converts were present. But according to the commentators, even here, the verses seem to indicate a delineation of roles between men and women.
As Bnei Yisrael camped at the base of Har Sinai, Moshe was commanded to speak to the nation. This commandment reads: โืึนึผึคื ืชึนืืึทืจึ ืึฐืึตึฃืืช ืึทึฝืขึฒืงึนึื ืึฐืชึทืึตึผึืื ืึดืึฐื ึตึฅื ืึดืฉึฐืืจึธืึตึฝืโ – โThus you shall say to the house of Yaakov and tell to the sons of Yisrael.โ1 Rashi2, among many other commentators, jumps on the duality in the pasuk (verse). He explains, according to the midrash3, that โBeit Yaakovโ refers to the women, and โBnei Yisraelโ here refers to the men. Although the term โBnei Yisaoelโ is often used as a general title for the Jewish nation, here it is limited to the men, similar to the principle of โbneichem vโlo bnoseichemโ which is applied to the commandment of Talmud Torah4.
The midrashim and commentators note that Moshe is told to speak to the women first, and cite a few reasons for this. One rationale in the midrash sources back to Chava in Parshat Bereishit. Regarding the Etz Hadaat (Tree of Knowledge), Chava was addressed second, and the famous sin followed. Here, the women were addressed first to avoid a similar situation5. Rabbeinu Bachye brings an additional explanation, reasoning that since men and women have differing psyches, Moshe was instructed to first speak to the women, and give them an overview of the subject matter, and then address the men. This way, each group would be able to process the information according to the way their minds function6.
A womanโs role in Torah and Mitzvot goes beyond her own. She is the one that perpetuates the chain of the tradition, and guides her children on the path of Avodat Hashem. Without her, there would be no continuation to the Torah. In essence, she is the foundation of the Torah and our people. This is why she is spoken to first – she is essential to the Torahโs continuity, so she is given priority.
The Midrash Rabba7 raises two additional rationales, and the first consists of only three words. The Midrash asks: why were the women spoken to first? It answers: โืฉึถืืึตื ืึดืึฐืึธึผืจึฐืืึนืช ืึฐึผืึดืฆึฐืืึนืชโ – they have a passion for mitzvot. The women have a specific zest for mitzvot that the men do not, and because of this, they were addressed first. This could perhaps be interpreted as a reward for their eagerness, but the next explanation of the midrash seems to indicate otherwise. It continues, reasoning that the women were spoken to first because they are the ones to train their children in the ways of the Torah.
A womanโs role in Torah and Mitzvot goes beyond her own. She is the one that perpetuates the chain of the tradition, and guides her children on the path of Avodat Hashem. Without her, there would be no continuation to the Torah. In essence, she is the foundation of the Torah and our people. This is why she is spoken to first – she is essential to the Torahโs continuity, so she is given priority. This reasoning also sheds light on the previous explanation in the midrash. It is the very alacrity mentioned above that enables the woman to fulfill her role as the foundation of the tradition, and necessitates Moshe to speak to them first. Their priority was not a reward for their passion, but a natural outcome. Their enthusiasm enabled them to be the conduit for the Torahโs continuity, which made them essential to the giving of the Torah, and gave them priority in Mosheโs instruction.
This is not the Torahโs only example of when women are given priority. In Parshat Lech Lecha, the pesukim describe Avrahamโs travels to Canaan. As he settled in Shechem, the pasuk writes, โืึทืึตึผึฃื ืึธึฝืึณืึนึื,โ that he pitched his tent there8. The Midrash Rabba, quoted by Rashi9, notes that the word โืึธึฝืึณืึนึืโ is written in the feminine form. The Midrash gleans from here that Avraham pitched Saraโs tent before his own. While this is certainly a chivalrous action, there is more implied here than simply Avrohomโs dedication to his wife. Avrohom and Sara were masters of outreach, spreading belief in Hashem wherever they went. Through kindness and generosity, Avraham preached to the men and Sara to the women. Avraham erected Saraโs tent first because he recognized the power of influence that a woman has. She is the backbone of her home, and has the strongest capabilities to set the atmosphere. If the women are enlightened to the path of truth, they could spread this belief to their husbands and children. Because of this, Avraham pitched Saraโs tent before his own, knowing that if they could reach the women, they could reach everyone.
This principle can certainly be applied to the womenโs priority in our parsha. However, a further look at the midrashim may be cause for perplexity. The mechilta that Rashi quotes expounds on the different forms of speech that Moshe is commanded with regarding these two groups. To the women, the form of โamira,โ a lighter language, is used, while the harsher language of โtagidโ is used pertaining to the men. The mechilta explains that Moshe was told to give the women only a brief overview, or the basic ideas and principles of the Torah, and save the detailed, in-depth explanations for the men10.
At first glance, this can be taken as an insult. Were the women viewed as incapable of understanding the detailed explanation? On the contrary, actually. The women did not need the same level of explanation as the men. As the Midrash Rabba11 explained, women have a natural proclivity for mitzvot. They only needed to be given a basic overview, and they intuitively understood the rest. The men required a more thorough commentary to understand what the women were instinctively aware of.
In the commandment of โืึนึผึคื ืชึนืืึทืจึ ืึฐืึตึฃืืช ืึทึฝืขึฒืงึนึื,โ we learn much about the womanโs natural proclivity for Avodat Hashem, and her role in the continuity of the Torah. She is the one who is naturally able to receive and transmit the Torah to the next generation. Rabbeinu Bachya summarizes the topic succinctly in his commentary12: โืฉืืืฉื ืืืืื ืืื ืกืืื ืืชืืจื ืฉืืื ืืืืื ืืืืฉืืโ – A good woman is the main reason that the Torah has a future.
- Shemot 19:3 โฉ๏ธ
- ibid โฉ๏ธ
- Mechilta DโRabbi Yishmael โฉ๏ธ
- Rashi, Devarim 11:19 โฉ๏ธ
- Midrash Rabba, Shemot 19:3 โฉ๏ธ
- Rabbeinu Bachye, Shemot 19:3 โฉ๏ธ
- Shemot 19:3 โฉ๏ธ
- Bereishit 12:8 โฉ๏ธ
- ibid โฉ๏ธ
- Mechilta DโRabbi Yishmael, Shemot 19:3 โฉ๏ธ
- Shemot 19:3 โฉ๏ธ
- ibid โฉ๏ธ
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