Yitro - יתרו : “Jethro”
Torah : Exodus 18:1–20:23 (26)
Haftarah : Isaiah 6:1–7:6; 9:5–6
Gospel : Matthew 6:1-8:1

Thought for the Week:

“‘Is not my word like fire,’ declares the LORD, ‘and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?’” (Jeremiah 23:29). The School of Rabbi Yishmael taught that the verse “and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces,” means that just as a hammer is divided into many sparks, so too every single word that went forth from the Holy One, blessed be He, [at Sinai] split up into [all] languages.” (Talmud, b.Shabbat 88b)

Commentary:

The festival of Shavuot (Pentecost) is the traditional anniversary of the day on which God spoke at Sinai. According to one ancient tradition, when God gave the Ten Commandments, His voice spoke them in all languages of the world. According to another legend, His words came forth as visible torches of fire, which came to every Jew individually.

In Acts 2, the disciples gathered to celebrate Shavuot (Pentecost), the anniversary of the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. The Holy Spirit fell upon them in the form of tongues of fire. The torches of fire came to rest ...