שמות א (טו) וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ מֶ֣לֶךְ מִצְרַ֔יִם לַֽמְיַלְּדֹ֖ת הָֽעִבְרִיֹּ֑ת אֲשֶׁ֨ר שֵׁ֤ם הָֽאַחַת֙ שִׁפְרָ֔ה וְשֵׁ֥ם הַשֵּׁנִ֖ית פּוּעָֽה׃ (טז) וַיֹּ֗אמֶר בְּיַלֶּדְכֶן֙ אֶת־הָֽעִבְרִיּ֔וֹת וּרְאִיתֶ֖ן עַל־הָאׇבְנָ֑יִם אִם־בֵּ֥ן הוּא֙ וַהֲמִתֶּ֣ן אֹת֔וֹ וְאִם־בַּ֥ת הִ֖וא וָחָֽיָה׃ (יז) וַתִּירֶ֤אןָ הַֽמְיַלְּדֹת֙ אֶת־הָ֣אֱלֹהִ֔ים וְלֹ֣א עָשׂ֔וּ כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר דִּבֶּ֥ר אֲלֵיהֶ֖ן מֶ֣לֶךְ מִצְרָ֑יִם וַתְּחַיֶּ֖יןָ אֶת־הַיְלָדִֽים׃ (יח) וַיִּקְרָ֤א מֶֽלֶךְ־מִצְרַ֙יִם֙ לַֽמְיַלְּדֹ֔ת וַיֹּ֣אמֶר לָהֶ֔ן מַדּ֥וּעַ עֲשִׂיתֶ֖ן הַדָּבָ֣ר הַזֶּ֑ה וַתְּחַיֶּ֖יןָ אֶת־הַיְלָדִֽים׃ (יט) וַתֹּאמַ֤רְןָ הַֽמְיַלְּדֹת֙ אֶל־פַּרְעֹ֔ה כִּ֣י לֹ֧א כַנָּשִׁ֛ים הַמִּצְרִיֹּ֖ת הָֽעִבְרִיֹּ֑ת כִּֽי־חָי֣וֹת הֵ֔נָּה בְּטֶ֨רֶם תָּב֧וֹא אֲלֵהֶ֛ן הַמְיַלֶּ֖דֶת וְיָלָֽדוּ׃ (כ) וַיֵּ֥יטֶב אֱלֹהִ֖ים לַֽמְיַלְּדֹ֑ת וַיִּ֧רֶב הָעָ֛ם וַיַּֽעַצְמ֖וּ מְאֹֽד׃ (כא) וַיְהִ֕י כִּֽי־יָרְא֥וּ הַֽמְיַלְּדֹ֖ת אֶת־הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים וַיַּ֥עַשׂ לָהֶ֖ם בָּתִּֽים׃
Shemot 1 (15) Now the king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, one who was named Shifrah, and the second, who was named Puah. (16) And he said, “When you deliver the Hebrew women, and you see on the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall put him to death, but if it is a daughter, she may live.” (17) The midwives, however, feared God; so they did not do as the king of Egypt had spoken to them, but they enabled the boys to live. (18) So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and said to them, "Why have you done this thing, that you have enabled the boys to live?” (19) And the midwives said to Pharaoh, "Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are skilled as midwives; when the midwife has not yet come to them, they have [already] given birth.” (20) God benefited the midwives, and the people multiplied and became very strong. (21) Now it took place when the midwives feared God, that He made houses for them.
תלמוד בבלי – סוטה יא:
ותחיין את הילדים תנא לא דיין שלא המיתו אותן אלא שהיו מספיקות להם מים ומזון… ויהי כי יראו המילדות את האלהים ויעש להם בתים רב ושמואל חד אמר בתי כהונה ולויה וחד אמר בתי מלכות מ"ד בתי כהונה ולויה אהרן ומשה ומ"ד בתי מלכות דוד נמי ממרים קאתי דכתיב {דברי הימים א ב':י"ט} ותמת עזובה (אשת כלב) ויקח לו כלב את אפרת ותלד לו את חור וכתיב {שמואל א י"ז:י"ב} ודוד בן איש אפרתי וגו'.
Talmud Bavli – Sotah 11b
The verse concludes: “But they kept the male children alive” (Exodus 1:17). A Sage teaches: It is not only that they did not kill the children as Pharaoh had commanded them, but that they would even provide for them water and food, as the phrase “But they kept the male children alive” indicates…The verse relates the midwives’ reward: “And it came to pass, because the midwives feared God, that He made them houses” (Exodus 1:21). Rav and Shmuel disagree as to the precise interpretation of these houses: One says that God made the houses of the priesthood and the Levites descend from the midwives, and one says that God made the houses of royalty descend from them. The one who says that it is referring to the houses of the priesthood and the Levites is referring to Aaron and Moses, who were sons of Jochebed. And the one who says that it is referring to houses of royalty is referring to David, who also comes from Miriam, as it is written: “And Azubah,” the wife of Caleb, “died, and Caleb took to him Ephrath, who bore him Hur” (I Chronicles 2:19) and, as will be explained further, Ephrath is Miriam. And it is written: “David was the son of that Ephrathite of Bethlehem in Judah” (I Samuel 17:12). Therefore, he was a descendant of Miriam.
Pharaoh instructs the Jewish midwives to murder every Jewish male infant born. They quietly refuse, risk their lives, and offer an excuse. Hashem protects them, as it says “God benefited them” (1:20, see Shadal and R’ Dovid Tzvi Hoffman) and “made houses for them” (1:21).
The Talmud tells us that Yocheved and Miriam are the progenitors of future Jewish leadership, both spiritual and political. They were put in a difficult position, and their lives were certainly in jeopardy. With that type of pressure, some might compromise on their principles. They might have given an excuse to others or themselves. But Yocheved and Miriam didn’t adjust their principles and refused change their behavior. They continued to go above and beyond, even providing food and water to families sustaining a new infant.
Rav and Shmuel disagree about which type of leadership is exemplified in the behavior of Yocheved and Miriam. They were able to maintain their principles despite outside pressure. One asserts that their resistance to external values is at the root of spiritual leadership, finding fulfillment in the future Kohanim and Leviim who served in the Temple. The other asserts that their resistance to compromising their values in the face of practical pressure is the hallmark of Jewish political leadership, finding fulfillment in the future kings and leaders of Israel. Rashi notably does not believe these ideas are mutually exclusive, and incorporates both approaches.
Later in Shemot we find another example of leadership. Pharaoh decrees that the Jewish workers will no longer be given straw to make bricks, but must nonetheless maintain the same quota of productivity. The Egyptian managers deliver the new expectations to the Jewish שוטרים –officers, who supervise the Jewish workers. There are two levels of middle management between Pharaoh and the Jews, one layer Egyptian and the other Jewish. The Egyptian managers have no problem passing this unfair arrangement on down the line. The Jewish supervisors act differently.
שמות ה (יד) וַיֻּכּ֗וּ שֹֽׁטְרֵי֙ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אֲשֶׁר־שָׂ֣מוּ עֲלֵהֶ֔ם נֹֽגְשֵׂ֥י פַרְעֹ֖ה לֵאמֹ֑ר מַדּ֡וּעַ לֹא֩ כִלִּיתֶ֨ם חָקְכֶ֤ם לִלְבֹּן֙ כִּתְמ֣וֹל שִׁלְשֹׁ֔ם גַּם־תְּמ֖וֹל גַּם־הַיּֽוֹם:
Shemot (1:14) And the officers of the children of Israel whom Pharaoh's taskmasters had appointed over them were beaten, saying, "Why have you not completed your quota to make bricks like the day before yesterday, neither yesterday nor today?"
רש"י שמות ה (יד) ויכו שטרי בני ישראל – השוטרים ישראל היו, וחסים על חבריהם מלדחקם. וכשהיו משלימים הלבנים לנגשים שהם מצרים, והיה חסר מן הסכום, היו מלקים אותם על שלא דחקו את עושי המלאכה. לפיכך זכו אותן שוטרים להיות סנהדרין, ונאצל מן הרוח אשר על משה והושם עליהם, שנאמר: אספה לי שבעים איש מזקני ישראל, מאותם שידעת הטובה שעשו להם במצרים, כי הם נגשי העם ושטריו (במדבר יא:טז).
Rashi Shemot 5:14 And the officers of the children of Israel… were beaten: The officers were Israelites, and they had pity on their fellows, [and did] not press them. They would turn the bricks over to the taskmasters, who were Egyptians, and when something was missing form the [required] amount, they [the Egyptians] would flog them [the officers] because they did not press the workers. Therefore those officers merited to become the Sanhedrin, and some of the spirit that was upon Moses was taken and placed upon them, as it is said: “Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel” (Num. 11:16), of those about whom you know the good that they did in Egypt, “that they are the elders of the people and its officers” (ibid.). — [from Tanchuma, Beha’alothecha 13 and Sifrei, Beha’alothecha 92]
According to the Abarbanel, Pharaoh did not tell his Jewish workers about the new requirement directly. He was concerned about an open rebellion. Instead, he had his Egyptian middle management deliver the message. When the Jewish supervisors later appealed to Pharaoh, he demurred and explained he needed to support the decision of the Egyptian managers. He used his layers of middle management to obfuscate responsibility.
The Jewish supervisors did not shirk their responsibility. In the face of injustice, they didn’t just pass it on down the line to someone else. Jewish leadership does not only exist at the top of a hierarchy, but at every level. In an unjust society, people say, “sorry, I don’t make the rules”. In a just society, each individual takes on the responsibility of implementing צדק ומשפט –justice and judgement. These Jewish supervisors later became the founding members of the Sanhedrin, the 70 judges who shared leadership with Moshe, exemplifying justice to the world.
References
Rosenberg, A. (1980). A new English translation of the Hebrew Bible text and Rashi, with a commentary digest. New York: Judaica Press. Retrieved from: https://www.chabad.org/library/ bible_cdo/
Translation of the Talmud from The William Davidson digital edition of the Koren Noé Talmud, with commentary by Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz Even-Israel (CC-BY-NC 4.0), digitized by Sefaria. Retrieved from: https://shas.alhatorah.org/Full/Sotah/11b.19#e0n6
