"Mishpatim — Part VII — Moshe’s Ascent & the Structure of Creation"

7.7 — Application: The Ascent of a Human Being

What Moshe’s ascent teaches about personal growth

At the close of Parshas Mishpatim, Moshe ascends the mountain and enters the cloud for forty days and forty nights. The Torah presents this not only as a historical event, but as a model of spiritual ascent. Moshe rises from the physical world into a higher realm of Divine awareness. His journey becomes the paradigm for the growth of every human being.

The Torah states:

שמות כ״ד:י״ח
“וַיָּבֹא מֹשֶׁה בְּתוֹךְ הֶעָנָן, וַיַּעַל אֶל־הָהָר; וַיְהִי מֹשֶׁה בָּהָר אַרְבָּעִים יוֹם וְאַרְבָּעִים לָיְלָה.”
“Moshe entered into the cloud and ascended the mountain; and Moshe was on the mountain forty days and forty nights.”

This ascent reflects a universal truth: spiritual growth is not a single leap, but a lifelong climb.

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks: Covenant as a Journey Upward

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks often emphasized that the Torah does not describe faith as a static condition. It describes it as a journey. From Avraham’s first call to leave his land, to the Exodus from Egypt, to the ascent of Sinai, the Torah is filled with movement. The covenant is not a fixed state. It is a path.

Moshe’s ascent reflects this idea. He does not receive the Torah instantly. He must climb the mountain. He must enter the cloud. He must remain there for forty days. Revelation comes through process, discipline, and perseverance.

For Rabbi Sacks, this is the essence of covenantal life. A covenant is not a contract fulfilled once and completed. It is a relationship that unfolds over time. Every generation, and every individual, must climb their own mountain.

The covenant therefore transforms life into a journey of ascent:

• From instinct to responsibility.
• From self-interest to moral awareness.
• From isolation to relationship with Hashem.

Moshe’s ascent becomes the model for the spiritual biography of the Jewish people and of every individual soul.

Rav Avigdor Miller: Growth Through Daily Climbing

Rav Avigdor Miller taught that the path to greatness is built not through dramatic moments, but through daily effort. Many people imagine spiritual growth as a sudden inspiration or emotional breakthrough. But the Torah’s model is different.

Moshe does not leap to the top of the mountain. He climbs. He waits. He prepares. He spends forty days in transformation.

Rav Miller would describe spiritual life as a series of small ascents:

• A moment of restraint instead of anger.
• A word of kindness instead of criticism.
• A short period of Torah study each day.
• A simple prayer said with sincerity.

Each act is a step upward. Over time, these steps accumulate into a mountain.

For Rav Miller, the greatness of Moshe is not only in the revelation he received, but in the discipline that prepared him for it. The same principle applies to every person. Spiritual elevation is the result of consistent effort.

The Structure of a Human Ascent

Moshe’s forty-day climb reflects a pattern that appears in every life. Growth rarely happens in a straight line. It unfolds in stages.

A person often moves through:

• A period of inspiration.
• A period of struggle or confusion.
• A period of renewed clarity.

Each stage is part of the ascent. Even setbacks become steps upward when they lead to deeper understanding.

The Torah’s model is not perfection without effort. It is steady movement toward higher awareness.

The Mountain Within

Har Sinai is not only a physical mountain. It is a symbol of the inner life of the human being. Every person carries within himself different levels of existence:

• The physical drives of the body.
• The emotional instincts of the heart.
• The intellectual awareness of the mind.
• The spiritual yearning of the soul.

Spiritual growth means rising from one level to the next. It means allowing the higher parts of the self to guide the lower.

Moshe’s ascent reflects this inner process. As he rises toward the summit, he leaves behind the ordinary concerns of physical life and enters the cloud of Divine presence. The human being, too, is meant to rise from instinct to awareness, from impulse to purpose.

Why the Ascent Takes Time

The Torah emphasizes that Moshe remained on the mountain for forty days and forty nights. Transformation takes time.

Just as:

• A child develops over months in the womb.
• A nation develops over decades in the wilderness.
• The land is conquered “little by little.”

So too, the soul develops over a lifetime.

A person who seeks instant perfection often becomes discouraged. But the Torah’s message is different. Growth is gradual, and every step upward has value.

Application for Today — Living the Ascent

Moshe’s climb up the mountain is the story of every human life. Each person is given a mountain to climb: a path of growth, responsibility, and spiritual awareness.

A practical way to live this teaching includes:

• Setting small, realistic spiritual goals.
• Building daily habits of Torah study and prayer.
• Viewing setbacks as part of the climb rather than the end of the journey.
• Measuring success by direction, not by speed.
• Remembering that every step upward matters.

Spiritual greatness is not reserved for prophets. It begins with ordinary people who choose to take the next step upward.

Moshe entered the cloud and rose toward the Divine presence. Every human being is called to make the same ascent, step by step, throughout the course of a lifetime.

📖 Sources

• Full sources available on the Mitzvah Minute Parshas Mishpatim page under insights and commentaries.