In Jethro’s plan, the people would be under the authority of judges who were beneath Moses’ stature. Nonetheless, G‑d approved of this system, because this way even the simplest among the people would be able to solve their problems according to the Torah’s legal system, thereby submitting their lives to its authority. If Moses had remained the people’s sole judge, some of the people would have been too intimidated by his awe-inspiring presence and spiritual stature to approach him with their problems. This might have led these people to feel alienated, or beyond the Torah’s concern.
This would have been most unfortunate, for the Torah was given to everyone, including unsophisticated, average people. It is to the Torah’s credit, and a demonstration of its truth, that its laws govern not only our most sublime moments but also the seemingly trivial concerns that crop up in our daily affairs.1
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