The Education of a Hebrew Slave

There is a well known drasha concept of interpreting parshiyos and pesukim that are juxtaposed near each other. Each parsha and posuk is used to interpret or even establish a halacha. As we read and learn parshas Mishpotim, the question arises; what is the juxtaposition of the laws of Eved Ivri, a Hebrew slave, right after Aseres HaDibros and Matan Torah of Yisro? Why did the Torah start iterating the civil laws of Mishpotim with the laws of Eved Ivri? What can we learn from this?

Harav HaGaon R'M Torah Vodas Harav Shmuel Yakov Traube ztvkl expounded on this topic in his daily chumash shiur to our first year mesifta class over 50 years ago. Let's look at this guy who just was sold into slavery. Real misfit he is. Chazal tell us that he either sold himself because he had no money to feed his family; or that he was sold to pay back the owner of a robbery that he had done. Obviously he didn't have that money to pay back because he too needed the money to feed his family. Not a very educated man either. He somehow forgot or didn't know that Hashem had said "avodai heim", they are My servants and not servants to others.

Chazal tell us that a person who purchases an Eved Ivri is purchasing a Master on himself. If all this slave knew was bookkeeping, the owner could not make him work in the fields or even serve in the kitchen. If the owner had but one pillow, he had to give it to the slave. All this in addition to being required to feed the slave's family. Said Rav Traube so prophetically over 50 years ago: What type of person, tzadik actually, would buy an Eved Ivri? Only someone like Rav Pam (ztvkl). To what purpose? To teach him Torah and Yiddishkeit and midos tovos. To make this dejected person into a normal member of society. 

This is what we can learn from Eved Ivri coming after Matan Torah. The fundamental importance of education as a central part of our communal life. Without education we would all be like humans without souls, empty of ethics and societal cooperation. Torah education must be the first thing on our minds as we take leave of Matan Torah. Without Torah education a Jews life is meaningless.