Rabbi Simon A. Dolgin

 

Shemot: Acknowledging Kindness


"And she called his name Moses..." (Shmot 2.10)

"From this one learns the reward given to kind persons. Even though Moses had many names, he was never referred to by any name other than that given to him by Batya, Pharaoh's daughter. Even the Almighty did not call him by any other name. (Shmot Rabbah 1.26)

kindness
Moses had ten names: Yered, Chever, Yekutiel... God said to Moses, "Of all the names you have been given, I will call you only by the name given to you by Batya, daughter of Pharaoh. [As it says:] "And she called his name Moses." (Shmot 2.10). "And He called to Moses" (Vayikrah 1.1). -(Vayikrah Rabbah 1.3)

The daughter of Pharaoh saves a helpless, abandoned child, left on the riverbank by his mother. She bestows upon him a name by which he would come to be known as the great leader of the Jewish people. Even the Almighty would call him by no other name. And this was not for lack of other names. The Midrash teaches us that Moses has ten names, each one depicting a unique aspect of his character and his greatness. Her choice of names derived only from the act of drawing him from the water with no more significant meaning for the boy himself. But even God chose to refer to him by the name given to him by this gentile woman.

Here we learn the high regard in which acts of kindness are viewed. Regardless of religion, race, or creed, kind people are acknowledged for their actions, even to the extent of being credited by the Almighty Himself. This is what we are taught, and this is wht we must transmit. Kindness alone must stand at the top of our list of values and priorities.