By Rabbi David Cohen
The meyaldot, midwives, risked their lives to save and sustain the Jewish infants. Pharaoh was a mass murderer; he would have had no problem adding two more Jewish women to his list of victims. Yet, the Torah underscores not their act of saving the children, but that their behavior was the result of a deep-rooted sense of yirat Shomayim, fear of Hashem.
The significance of a mitzvah is not measured on the barometer of the actual mitzvah (its purpose), but in accordance with the element of yirat Shomayim that comprises its performance. Thus, had the midwives not infused their life-saving actions with a profound sense of yirat Shomayim, the Torah would not have lauded their efforts. The reason for this is that yirat Shomayim invests an action with integrity. Indeed, a person’s spiritual integrity determines his yirat Shomayim.