"And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him: for he had straitly sworn the children of Israel, saying, God will surely visit you; and ye shall carry up my bones away hence with you" (Exodus 13:19). The Children of Israel departed Egypt, marching from slavery to freedom. It was a monumental historical event, a defining moment for an entire people. Yet Moses, the great leader, paused and delayed the camp for one thing alone: the bones of Joseph. He did this because Joseph had asked not to be left behind, because a promise had been made, and because responsibility required it. There is only one week a year when we read this verse – and that week is now.
Master Sgt. Ran Gvili is a hero of Israel who went out to fight on the morning of Oct. 7 despite being wounded; he was the first to fight and the last to return. After two years and three months of relentless pain, of profound brokenness, of an uncertainty that allows no rest, we can finally put the darkest period we have ever known behind us. Now, from this pain and this responsibility, we must advance to the next stage: the rehabilitation of Israeli society. This means a personal, deep, and lengthy recovery for the hostages who have returned – and for the families who waited for them all.
Ran has returned home. He has returned to a proper burial. This is a moment of painful closure – a moment when the heart clenches, but the soul finally finds release. Ran was not left behind – not in the field, not in memory, and not in the national consciousness. Judaism holds a deep, fundamental, almost self-evident value: the final kindness. We do not leave a person without a name, without a place, or without an answer.
A grave is not merely a stone – it is a boundary. It is an end. It is a place where one can lay one's head, truly weep, and begin the process of mourning. As someone who returned from captivity after two years, I know what it means to face a tomorrow that may never come. I know how time feels when it stretches endlessly, how days swallow one another, and how nights make every thought ten times heavier.
But I know one more thing, perhaps the hardest of all: the truly unbearable uncertainty belongs to the family that waits, expects, and does everything for your return. Day by day. Hour by hour. Without answers, without information, without control.
There is only imagination, fear, hope crashing against reality, and prayers that do not always know their destination. There is no greater pain than this – living without knowing.
Not knowing whether to mourn, not knowing whether to hold on, not knowing if it is permissible to cry yet, or if one must stay strong. Therefore, the return of Gvili, even in this manner, even in a pain beyond words, is a human and Jewish moment of the highest order. It is a moment when we can say, with a heavy but whole heart: We have fulfilled our human duty. We have fulfilled our Jewish duty. We did not give up. We did not become indifferent.
We did not say "it is too complex," "it is too far," or "too much time has passed."
My family and I embrace the Gvili family. We share in their deep sorrow and strengthen them for their courage, their insistence, and their determination to bring their son home – as is fitting for every human being, and as the State of Israel owes its citizens. I want to say a massive thank you to the Creator and to all the IDF soldiers who did everything they could. They fought, they risked their lives, and they did not waver. They acted out of mutual responsibility, deep commitment, and the simple understanding that we leave no one behind. They brought Ran home. They are heroes. This was a test of our mutual responsibility. I wish us all days of quiet, of love, and of light at the end of the tunnel.
Ran was not left behind – not in the battle, not in memory, and not in the national consciousness. In Judaism, there is a deep respect for finality. Not to leave a person without a name, without a place, without an answer.
The writer was abducted by Hamas terrorists during the massacre at the Nova festival on October 7, 2023, and was released as part of an agreement with Hamas on October 13, 2025.
