Ilustration Credit: Rebecca Kerzner
Midrash מִדְרָשׁ
Moshe gets angry when he thinks that his nephews Elazar and Itamar offered a קָרְבָּן (korban, sacrifice) in the wrong way. But Aharon defends Elazar and Itamar by explaining what they did. Here’s Moshe’s reaction:
וַיִּשְׁמַ֣ע מֹשֶׁ֔ה וַיִּיטַ֖ב בְּעֵינָֽיו׃
Moshe heard this and it was good in his eyes.
What does Moshe’s reaction teach us?
הוֹצִיא כָּרוֹז לְכָל הַמַּחֲנֶה וְאָמַר, אֲנִי טָעִיתִי אֶת הַהֲלָכָה וְאַהֲרֹן אָחִי בָּא וְלִמֵּד לִי.
Moshe sent a proclamation out to the whole camp and said: I made a mistake in understanding the halakhah and my brother Aharon came and taught me (what was right).
This midrash believes that Moshe did more than simply hear Aharon's explanation. Moshe really listened to Aharon; he was truly open to new ideas even if they conflicted with his own. The words וַיִּיטַב בְּעֵינָיו (va-yitav be-einav, and it was good in his eyes) show that Moshe was not upset or resentful about being wrong. He was just happy to know the truth.
- It can be hard to do this kind of listening! Do you think it was difficult for Moshe?
- Why would Moshe want everyone to know he’d been wrong? What was he trying to teach them?
- Some people might feel embarrassed to admit they’d made a mistake. Does it seem that Moshe felt that way? Why do you think he was able to do what he did? What would you say to someone who’s feeling bad about admitting a mistake?
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