'And Yisro, the leader of Midian, Moshe's father-in-law, heard all that God did to Moshe and His nation Israel...and Yisro came...to the desert...to the mountain of God.' (18:1-5) What exactly did Yisro hear that propelled him to come to Moshe and Bnei Yisroel? Rashi invokes the explanation of the Gemara and Mechilta that Yisro heard about the splitting of the sea and the war with Amalek; these events caused him to go to the desert toward Moshe and the Jews.

What was it about the splitting of the sea and the war with Amalek - of all things - that moved Yisro? Were not the Makkos (Plagues) more miraculous than the war with Amalek?

The answer seems to be that - unlike the Makkos - the splitting of the sea and the war with Amalek demonstrated Hashem's unique relationship with Bnei Yisroel. The Makkos could reasonably be interpreted as heavenly retribution against the sinful, cruel Egyptians, who persecuted our people for over 100 years. In the Makkos, Yisro observed God's justice at work, invoking severe punishment against a nation of aggressors. However, the splitting of the sea and the war with Amalek indicated a different message: that God reveals Himself through the Jews because of His unique relationship with them. The Medrash says that the malachim (angels) posed a question to Hashem as the sea was about to crash down upon the Egyptians: The Jews also sin; why should they be granted such salvation? Rashi further quotes the Mechilta to the effect that Bnei Yisroel were also in a state of judgment when they arrived at the sea. Nonetheless, God clearly deemed the Jews worthy of salvation. So, too, only when Moshe's hands were raised in prayer did Bnei Yisroel triumph in the conflict with Amalek, indicating a unique chosen status.

Although one Midrashic interpretation (see Targum Yonasan on 18:6 and Torah Temimah on v. 1) posits that Yisro came to Moshe in the desert with the intent to become a ger - a convert - not all opinions agree with this. If so, why did Yisro come?

The answer is that Yisro had rejected avodah zarah (idolatry), but he had not yet arrived at a positive religious identification. When witnessing the special relationship that Hashem shared with the Jews, Yisro correctly concluded that God's Presence in this world is manifest through Bnei Yisroel. This was evidenced by K’rias Yam Suf (the splitting of the Sea of Reeds) and the war with Amalek. Whereas prior to the sins of the generations of Adam and Noach, God's Presence was manifest in a general fashion, it became restricted to the Jews at the period of the Avos (Forefathers), as the Avodah piyut (hymn) of Yom Kippur proclaims. Yisro's yearning for Hashem led him to the Bnei Yisroel, where the Shechinah could be experienced.