Комментарий к Шмот 18:8

ויספר משה לחתנו AND MOSES RELATED TO HIS FATHER-IN-LAW [ALL THAT THE LORD HAD DONE] — in order to allure his heart that he might attach him to the Torah (Mekhilta d'Rabbi Yishmael 18:8).

את אשר עשה ה' לפרעה ולמצרים על אודות ישראל. A reference to G’d performing vengeance as the avenger of His people. Compare Deuteronomy 32,41 for similar syntax used by Moses. when he quotes G’d as saying אשיב נקם לצרי, “vengeance will I wreak on My foes.” This referred to the Egyptians experiencing G’d’s retribution on their own bodies when they drowned in the sea. In Psalms 78,49 the psalmist describes 4, resp. 5 stages of G’d’s anger which the Egyptians had to experience before they died. Tthat verse is the subject of detailed analysis in the Haggadah shel Pessach. These events proved that G’d had chosen the Jewish people as His most treasured possession among the nations.

ויספר משה לחתנו, Moses told his father-in-law, etc. Although the Torah told us that Yitro had heard all that G'd had done, there may have been some details which he had not heard about. Alternatively, Yitro had assumed that what he had heard previously was grossly exaggerated; Moses now explained to him that what he heard was true to the last detail. It is also possible that until Moses told him otherwise Yitro had been under the impression that the Israelites were still vassals of the Egyptians, not totally free. Moses told him of the slaying of the guardian angel of the Egyptians, something that Yitro could not have heard about from any other source as only the Israelites had seen the "dead" guardian angel (Zohar second volume page 52). Once Yitro heard about this he knew that the Egyptians did no longer have any hold over the Israelites.

התלאה אשר מצאתם בדרך, Pharaoh’s pursuit, problems of lack of water and food in the desert, all of which had been solved for them by G’d.

את כל התלאה, “and about all the travail, etc.” Ibn Ezra says that the word תלאה is closely related to the word ונלאו in Exodus 7,18 where the futile search for water by the Egyptians is described as ונלאו מצרים. The letter ת is an additional letter. The whole word describes the frustration experienced when after many efforts one does not succeed in attaining one’s objective.

את כל התלאה, “all the hardship, etc.” this was a reference to the waters having turned bitter at Marah, to the Israelites having run out of dough which they had taken with them from Egypt to make into bread; he told him about their having been attacked by Amalek. He added that in spite of all these hardships which they encountered on the way the Lord had saved them in a critical situation each time.

In order to draw his heart to bring him closer to the Torah. [Rashi knows this] because otherwise, why did Moshe tell him? Yisro already heard everything, as it is written: “Yisro heard. . . about all that Elohim had done” (v. 1).

(Ibid. 8) "And Moses related to his father-in-law: to appeal to his feelings, to draw him near to Torah. "all that the L rd did": in the exodus from Egypt. "all the ordeals that they had undergone": at the Red Sea. "on the way": the war with Amalek. "and the L rd had rescued them": from everything.

V. 8. תלאה von לאה, siehe Kap. 7, 18.

את כל התלאה ALL THE TRAVAIL that they had experienced at the Red Sea, and that caused by Amalek (Mekhilta d'Rabbi Yishmael 18:8).

את כל התלאה אשר מצאתם בדרך, hunger, thirst, and the unprovoked attack by Amalek.

Perhaps the Torah itself alludes to this with the words את כל התלאה אשר מצאתם בדרך ויצילם השם, "all the travail that had come upon them on the way from which G'd had saved them." Seeing Yitro had been a religious leader he would be familiar with the fact that different nations had guardian angels in the celestial regions; Moses told Yitro about the personal pursuit by that guardian angel and how the Israelites had been very frightened of that guardian angel. When Yitro heard about all this he exclaimed: "blessed be the Lord who has delivered this nation from the hand of Mitzrayim (the guardian angel)."

התלאה — The ל and א are part of the primary form of the word and the ת is a formative letter and a part of the primary form of the noun which sometimes is omitted from it. Similar examples are תרומה and תנופה and תקומה and תנואה.

'ויצילם ה, this demonstrated G’d’s personal concern and involvement in the fate of the Jewish nation. The reason for this could only be that the religious principles as well as their deeds found favour in G’d’s eyes, preparing the way for all of them to serve Him in unison.