Moshe unburdens himself to Hashem:

לֹא־אוּכַל אָנֹכִי לְבַדִּי לָשֵׂאת אֶת־כׇּל־הָעָם הַזֶּה כִּי כָבֵד מִמֶּנִּי׃

I cannot carry all these people by myself, for it is too much for me. (11:14)

G-d responds:

וַיֹּאמֶר ד’ אֶל־מֹשֶׁה אֶסְפָה־לִּי שִׁבְעִים אִישׁ מִזִּקְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר יָדַעְתָּ כִּי־הֵם זִקְנֵי הָעָם וְשֹׁטְרָיו וְלָקַחְתָּ אֹתָם אֶל־אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וְהִתְיַצְּבוּ שָׁם עִמָּךְ׃

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Gather for Me seventy of Israel’s elders of whom you have experience as elders and officers of the people, and bring them to the Tent of Meeting and let them take their place there with you. (11:16)

The word for men in this verse is אִישׁ, Ish, which typically means man in the singular form. There are other places in the Torah where we find this and each time there is a reason given for this peculiarity.

The Midrash comments that the word אִישׁ, Ish, is meant to reference us to two other places in the Torah where the word Ish is found. At the splitting of the red Sea in Exodus 15:3 we find, ד’ אִישׁ מִלְחָמָה, “G-d is (so to speak) a man (Ish) of war.” G-d was perceived as a warrior when He saved the Jewish people from the Egyptians. The other place is in this week’s parsha, 12:3, ”וְהָאִישׁ מֹשֶׁה עָנָו מְאֹד מִכֹּל הָאָדָם אֲשֶׁר עַל־פְּנֵי הָאֲדָמָה” – “the man (Ish) Moshe was exceedingly humble, more than any man on earth.”

Rabbi Shlomo Breuer, of blessed memory, explains that G-d’s message to the new leaders was that you have to embody these two depictions of Ish. You are to be an Ish like Moshe. No matter the power and authority you possess, always remain humble and selflessly dedicated to the people.

At the same time you must also embody G-d’s depiction as a man (Ish) of war. As humble as you may be, never be afraid to stand up and even battle for G-d and his Torah. Never back down from being firm and stern when necessary to the same people you act so humbly towards.

The saintly Rabbi Yisroel Meir Kagan, known as the Chafetz Chaim, was an exceedingly humble person. He always wondered why people approached him for a blessing. But when he heard about a community that due to infighting was not doing needed repairs to the local Mikvah, he did what he did many times during his lifetime and took a very difficult trip for a man his age to that city to address the issue. Humility and strength are not conflicting traits.

We all fill the role of a leader whether as a parent, teacher, or friend. There are times we need to be humble and times to be properly authoritative and firm. This combination is challenging.But it is key to being a successful leader, fulfilling our responsibilities to G-d and to His people.

Shabbat Shalom!
Yitzchak