Clothing Choices

וְכִי מִצְרִי הָיָה משֶׁה, אֶלָּא לְבוּשׁוֹ מִצְרִי, וְהוּא עִבְרִי

Much of Parshas Shemos is devoted to the life of Moshe Rabbeinu, including his birth and development, the incidents that led to his departure from Mitzrayim, and then his arrival in Midian. The Torah then tells us that Moshe arrived at the Be’er in Midian and encountered the daughters of Yisro, and rescued them from the local shepherds.

Because they were able to tend to the needs of their flocks unimpeded, the Bnos Yisro arrived home earlier than usual, leading their father to ask: מַדּוּעַ מִהַרְתֶּן בֹּא הַיּוֹם? Yisro’s daughters responded by relating the events of the day: אִישׁ מִצְרִי הִצִּילָנוּ מִיַּד הָרֹעִים וְגַם־דָּלֹה דָלָה לָנוּ וַיַּשְׁקְ אֶת־הַצֹּאן. They credited an אִישׁ מִצְרִי for saving them their daily harassment, and helping them tend their sheep, so that they could return home.

Now, as we know, it was not an אִישׁ מִצְרִי who saved them on that day, it was Moshe Rabbeinu himself. The Medrash notes this discrepancy, asking: וְכִי מִצְרִי הָיָה משֶׁה. Moshe was not a Mitzri; why did Bnos Yisro refer to him in this way? The Medrash answers: אֶלָּא לְבוּשׁוֹ מִצְרִי, וְהוּא עִבְרִי. Moshe was indeed an Ivri, but he was dressed as a Mitzri, so they reffered to him this way.

While this Medrash is quite short and seems to address the question on the Passuk very neatly, it requires explanation from several perspectives.

First, why, indeed, was Moshe dressed as a Mitzri? Although there is no direct source in Chazal, some Rishonim suggest that among the Zechuyos that led to Yetzias Mitzrayim was the fact that Bnei Yisroel maintained distinctive dress in Mitzrayim: שֶׁלֹּא שִׁנּוּ אֶת לְבוּשָׁם. If so, why would Moshe Rabbeinu, of all people, be dressed in the same way as a Mitzri?

Now, we might assume that Moshe was forced to disguise himself to escape Mitzrayim, but why would he still be wearing this disguise when he arrived at the Be’er? This question is bolstered by another Medrash, found in Yalkut Shimoni here.

The Yalkut teaches that after Moshe Rabbeinu fled Mitzrayim, he went to the land of Kush. It was there that he interceded in a war, allowing Kush to emerge victorious, and was made king of the land as a reward. The Medrash relates that Moshe served as Melech Kush for up to forty years, before he was relieved of his position, and it was then that he went to Midian.

According to this Medrash, by the time Moshe arrived at the Be’er, he was long removed from Mitzrayim—why would he still have been wearing the clothes in which he fled? It was so many years later, why would Moshe still be defined in terms of his clothing as לְבוּשׁוֹ מִצְרִי?

Even discounting the time that Moshe spent in Kush, it doesn’t even seem like the events of that day occurred immediately upon his arrival in Midian. The Passuk tells us: וַיִּבְרַח מֹשֶׁה מִפְּנֵי פַרְעֹה וַיֵּשֶׁב בְּאֶרֶץ־מִדְיָן וַיֵּשֶׁב עַל־הַבְּאֵר. First the Torah says the Moshe left Mitzrayim, then we are told that he settled in Midian, and only then that he arrived at the Be’er. Rashi explains the words וַיֵּשֶׁב בְּאֶרֶץ־מִדְיָן in terms of the amount of time Moshe spent in Midian, נִתְעַכֵּב שָׁם, and only then does the Torah tell us about the Be’er. If so, it stands to reason that Moshe no longer had to be wearing the clothing in which he fled Mitzrayim—why does the Medrash seem to suggest otherwise?

Even if we assume that, for some reason, Moshe had the bearing or appearance of a Mitzri, there is another important question that needs to be answered.

Why did Bnos Yisro have to include this piece of information in their retelling of the incident, and why did the Torah include that point in the Passuk? Yisro’s daughters could have just said אִישׁ הִצִּילָנוּ—why was his nationality important? In fact, it seems likely that at some point in their interactions, the Bnos Yisro realized that Moshe Rabbeinu was not in fact a Mitzri, but an Ivri. If so, why did they make a point of referring to him as an אִישׁ מִצְרִי, if this only really described his appearance or clothing?

There is a second Pshat in the Medrash that answers this question. The Medrash brings a Mashal to one who was rushing to a river to salve a snake bite, and he happened upon a drowning baby, whom he was able to save. Rather than taking credit for himself, however, he says: לֹא אֲנִי הִצַּלְתִּיךָ אֶלָּא הֶעָרוֹד שֶׁנְּשָׁכַנִּי וּבָרַחְתִּי הֵימֶנּוּ הוּא הִצִּילֶךָ. In a sense, it was the snake whose bite led the man to the river, to whom the baby owed his life. Similarly, explains the Medrash, when the Bnos Yisro thanked Moshe for saving them, he replied: אוֹתוֹ מִצְרִי שֶׁהָרַגְתִּי הוּא הִצִּיל אֶתְכֶם. It was the Mitzri that Moshe was forced to kill, who cause the Bnos Yisroel to be saved.

This approach helps us understand why the Bnos Yisro told their father אִישׁ מִצְרִי הִצִּילָנוּ, but this question remains unanswered according to the first approach in the Medrash, which teaches לְבוּשׁוֹ מִצְרִי וְהוּא עִבְרִי.

How can we understand this Medrash? Why is Moshe said to be wearing the clothing of a Mitzri, and why did the Bnos Yisro mention this to their father?

The truth is that it would seem safe to assume that Chazal are not merely informing us of the sartorial choices made by Moshe Rabbeinu—the term Ish Mitzri must have its own meaning. What might that be? What defines an Ish Mitzri, and in what way did Moshe Rabbeinu fit this description?

While there are many Medrashim that speak about the Mitzriyim, they are mostly in the pejorative, and we cannot assume that the words אִישׁ מִצְרִי הִצִּילָנוּ are meant to convey a negative message about Moshe Rabbeinu. There is, however, one Mamar Chazal that perhaps reveals a positive aspect of Mitzrayim, and can therefore maybe be instructive.

The Gemara in Sotah tells us: בִּשְׁבִיל אַרְבָּעָה פְּסִיעוֹת שֶׁלִּוָּה פַּרְעֹה לְאַבְרָהָם...נִשְׁתַּעְבֵּד בְּבָנָיו אַרְבַּע מֵאוֹת שָׁנָה. When Avrohom left Mitzrayim, Pharoah took four steps to escort him, and was rewarded by having Yisroel as Avadim for the duration of four hundred years.

How can we understand this Gemara? The effort of אַרְבָּעָה פְּסִיעוֹת hardly seems commensurate to the benefit of four hundred years of slave labor—why did Pharaoh receive a reward that seems outsized in this way?

To answer this question, we must understand the nature of the Mitzriyim, as discussed by Chazal.

In Shiras HaYam, the Passuk says וּבְרֹ֥ב גְּאוֹנְךָ֖ תַּהֲרֹ֣ס קָמֶ֑יךָ תְּשַׁלַּח֙ חֲרֹ֣נְךָ֔ יֹאכְלֵ֖מוֹ כַּקַּֽשׁ, comparing the Mitzryim to straw, a comparatively weak species. The Mechilta, there, points out that in contrast we find that other Malchios compared to Eitz. This is seen in a Passuk in Yechezkel that says הִנֵּה אַשּׁוּר אֶרֶז בַּלְּבָנוֹן יְפֵה עָנָף, and another Passuk in Amos that says וְאָנֹכִי הִשְׁמַדְתִּי אֶת הָאֱמֹרִי מִפְּנֵיהֶם, אֲשֶׁר כְּגֹבַהּ אֲרָזִים גָּבְהוֹ. Similarly, other Malchios are compared to gold and silver, and Mitzrayim is compared to lead: צָֽלְלוּ֙ כַּֽעוֹפֶ֔רֶת בְּמַ֖יִם אַדִּירִֽים.

These differences support a statement made earlier in the Medrash: לֹּא הָיְתָה מַלְכוּת יְרוּדָה יוֹתֵר מִשֶּׁלְּמִצְרָיִם, of all the Malchios that existed, the lowest and least respected, was Mitzrayim. In fact, adds the Medrash, נָּטְלָה שְׂרָרָה לְשָׁעָה, בִּשְׁבִיל כְּבוֹדָן שֶׁלְּיִשְׂרָאֵל, the only reason they had any power at all, was because of Bnei Yisroel.

How can we understand this Mechilta? What does it mean that לֹּא הָיְתָה מַלְכוּת יְרוּדָה יוֹתֵר מִשֶּׁלְּמִצְרָיִם? Why, in fact, were they so much lower than all the other Malchios, and what does this teach us?

R’ Chatzkel Sarna, in Delios Yechezkel, explains that at the root of many of the mistakes that the Mitzriyim made was a lack of awareness as to their true situation. They saw Bnei Yisroel as a threat, not understanding that their entire Melchua was due to the presence of the Yidden: נָּטְלָה שְׂרָרָה לְשָׁעָה, בִּשְׁבִיל כְּבוֹדָן שֶׁלְּיִשְׂרָאֵל. If the Mitzriyim had been more self-aware and cognizant of the Bracha that Bnei Yisroel had brought to the land, they certainly would have made different choices.

The Mashgiach continues, explaining the Mussar that we are meant to learn from this Medrash.

Sometimes a person thinks that someone else is the source of his troubles, be they in his Parnassah or any other aspect of life, and seeks ways to remedy this situation. In fact, however, it is possible that all the Bracha he enjoys actually from having this person in his life.

R’ Sarna points out that others made the same mistake: Lot didn’t realize that all he had came from Avrohom, and therefore he eventually ended up in Sedom, where he was once again saved by Avrohom. Similarly, Lavan sought to destroy Yaakov Avinu, sadly unaware that it was Yaakov Avinu who brought Bracha into his life.

This, explains the Mashgiach, was the core failing of Mitzrayim: rather than understanding reality, לֹּא הָיְתָה מַלְכוּת יְרוּדָה יוֹתֵר מִשֶּׁלְּמִצְרָיִם, their illusions of grandeur caused them to see Bnei Yisroel as the issue and attempt to excise the very source of their Malchus from within their midst. This, of course, comes from a lack of humility: if a person thinks that the world revolves around them, they cannot fathom that someone who seems to be their enemy is actually the source of Bracha in their livs.

It seems that we can understand the Gemara in Sota based on this idea. While the four steps taken by Pharaoh may seem insignificant to us, they may have taken great effort on his part. When Pharaoh took Sarah Imenu, who he thought was the sister of Avrohom Avinu, the Passuk tells us: וּלְאַבְרָ֥ם הֵיטִ֖יב בַּעֲבוּרָ֑הּ וַֽיְהִי־ל֤וֹ צֹאן־וּבָקָר֙ וַחֲמֹרִ֔ים וַעֲבָדִים֙ וּשְׁפָחֹ֔ת וַאֲתֹנֹ֖ת וּגְמַלִּֽים. Pharaoh enriched Avrohom, only to find out that he had been duped. Rather than reacting forcefully, however, he escorted Avrohom, showing him deference. This could only have happened if Pharaoh understood, on some level, that the צֹאן־וּבָקָר֙ וַחֲמֹרִ֔ים וַעֲבָדִים֙ וּשְׁפָחֹ֔ת וַאֲתֹנֹ֖ת וּגְמַלִּֽים were meant to go to Avrohom. The אַרְבָּעָה פְּסִיעוֹת שֶׁלִּוָּה פַּרְעֹה לְאַבְרָהָם went against the natural instincts of Mitzrayim, and showed the humility that brings awareness to reality.

Perhaps this is what the Medrash means to tell us about Moshe Rabbeinu.

When Moshe arrived in Midyan he may have been wearing the clothing of a Mitzri, but that was besides the point. What Bnos Yisro understood from their interactions was that he was an אִישׁ מִצְרִי. Of course Moshe Raabeinu did not have the Middos of a Mitzri—he understood that he was just like the Mitzriyim, totally bereft of any Zechus of his own. Moshe Rabbeinu, the עָנָו מִכֹּל אָדָם, did not assume that he was the cause from Bracha that was in his life—he attributed it to the true מְקוֹר הַבְּרָכָה.

Mitzrayim was the lowliest Malchus and Moshe Rabbeinu saw himself as a lowly person—in that way, he was a true אִישׁ מִצְרִי. The difference between the two was in their awareness of their status: Moshe understood that he alone could not bring Bracha into his life, whereas Mitzrayim were totally ignorant of the fact that they were נָּטְלָה שְׂרָרָה לְשָׁעָה, בִּשְׁבִיל כְּבוֹדָן שֶׁלְּיִשְׂרָאֵל.

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This could be why Yisro’s daughters to him אִישׁ מִצְרִי הִצִּילָנוּ : Moshe's character was defined by how he saw himself and by the clothing he wore. His Anava, which led to his bearing as an אִישׁ מִצְרִי, led him to become the leader that he was, and is of course an example for us all.