BS”D
Volume 39, No. 15
3 Shevat 5785
February 2, 2025
Sponsored by the Vogel family in memory of Yisrael ben Elimelech Vogel and the other Kedoshim of Oleszyce, Poland Hy”d
In this week’s Parashah, the Exodus takes place. The Torah relates that when the time came for Bnei Yisrael to leave Egypt (Shmot 12:39), “They could not delay.” Our Sages explain that Bnei Yisrael had descended in Egypt to the penultimate, 49th level of impurity; had they remained in Egypt another moment, they would have been lost forever.
But why did Hashem wait until the last moment? R’ Yaakov Moshe Charlap z”l (1882-1951; rabbi of Yerushalayim’s Sha’arei Chessed neighborhood and Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivat Mercaz Harav) explains: Hashem has made us His Chosen Nation, but not for any reason that we can discover or articulate. To the contrary, Hashem chose us unconditionally, with no apparent ulterior motive. Therefore, He chose us when we had no more merit than the Egyptians themselves, as the guardian angel of Egypt argued at the Yam Suf: “These are idolators and these are idolators.” This similarity between the Egyptians and Bnei Yisrael is what the Torah refers to when it says (Devarim 4:34), “Or has any god ever miraculously come to take for himself a nation from amidst a nation . . .” Bnei Yisrael at the time of the Exodus were a nation amidst another nation (Egypt), with little to distinguish them.
R’ Charlap continues: Being chosen by Hashem is what enables us to sanctify ourselves through our actions. Before the Exodus, when Bnei Yisrael performed the Mitzvot of Brit Milah and Korban Pesach, Hashem gave them a loan, so-to-speak, from the bank of holiness that they would accumulate later–specifically, when they would prove that they were worthy of being chosen by declaring “Na’aseh Ve’nishmah” / “We will do and we will hear.” (Haggadah Shel Pesach Mei Marom p.92)
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“Hashem said to Moshe and Aharon in the land of Egypt, saying, ‘This month shall be for you the beginning of the months . . .’” (12:1-2)
Why did Hashem address Aharon together with Moshe at this point? Rabbeinu Nissim ben Reuven Gerondi z”l (Spain; 1320-1376) explains:
The Torah relates that Moshe initially declined to be Hashem’s messenger to take Bnei Yisrael out of Egypt, saying (Shmot 4:13), “Please, my Master, send through whomever You will send!” Our Sages explain that Moshe was attempting to defer to his older brother, Aharon, who had already been sent to Bnei Yisrael as a prophet. Hashem informed Moshe, however, that Aharon would not be jealous; to the contrary, says that next verse, “And he will see you, and he will rejoice in his heart.”
Our Sages say further that in the merit of this “rejoicing in his heart” Aharon merited to wear the Urim V’tumim over his heart. Rabbeinu Nissim explains: One might have assumed that the task of the Kohen Gadol is entirely unrelated to the task of a prophet. It is not so, however; just as a prophet foretells the future, so the Kohen Gadol foretells the future using the Urim V’tumim. Why did Aharon merit that he and his descendants, the High Priests, would be able to foretell the future? Because he rejoiced when his brother was appointed as the prophet par excellence of the Jewish People. This, writes Rabbeinu Nissim, illustrates the idea that Hashem rewards (and punishes) Middah-K’negged-Middah / measure-for-measure.
Rabbeinu Nissim continues: The idea that Hashem rewards and punishes Middah-K’negged-Middah is one of the foundations of the Torah. Therefore, here, when the first Mitzvah is being given to Bnei Yisrael and the Giving of the Torah is beginning, the Torah alludes to this foundational principle by mentioning Aharon. (Derashot Ha’Ran #3)
R’ Moshe Shapiro z”l (1935-2017; Rosh Yeshiva in several Israeli yeshivot; best known for his lectures on Jewish Thought) observes: The similarity between the Hebrew words “Chodesh” / “month” and “Chadash”/ “new” is a reflection of the Torah’s view of time. Time is not primarily something that passes, but rather an opportunity to build a future, to progress toward a goal. Not coincidentally, the letters of the word “Zman” / “time” form the root of the word “Hazmanah,” whose meanings include “to invite,” “to prepare,” and “to set aside for a specific purpose.” The Torah teaches this lesson in connection with the Exodus because the Exodus was not meant to be an end in itself, but rather a preparation for a higher purpose, as Hashem told Moshe at the beginning of his mission (Shmot 3:12), “When you take the people out of Egypt, you (plural) will serve Elokim on this mountain,” i.e., receive the Torah. (Shiurei Rabbeinu: Parashat Ha’chodesh p.412)
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“‘It shall be that when your children say to you, “What is this service to you?” You shall say, “It is a Pesach feast-offering to Hashem, Who passed over the houses of Bnei Yisrael in Egypt when He struck the Egyptians, but He saved our households”,’ and the people bowed their heads and prostrated themselves.” (12:26-27)
Rashi z”l writes: The people bowed their heads in thanksgiving for the tidings of the approaching deliverance, for the promise that they would enter the Land, and for the tidings about the children they would have. [Until here from Rashi]
R’ Zvi Einfeld shlita (Antwerp, Belgium and Yerushalayim, Israel) asks: What is the nature of Bnei Yisrael’s thanksgiving at the tidings regarding children? Did they otherwise think that they would not have children? Moreover, the question quoted in the verse–“What is this service to you?”–is the one the Pesach Haggadah associates with the Rasha / wicked son. Why would Bnei Yisrael bow their heads in thanksgiving upon hearing that they would have sons who would be wicked?
R’ Einfeld explains: When Hashem first dispatches Moshe to Pharaoh, He tells Moshe to say (Shmot 4:22-23), “So said Hashem, ‘Yisrael is My firstborn son. So I say to you, “Send out My son that he may serve Me”.’” This teaches that, with the Exodus from Egypt, we were “born” as Hashem’s children. This is not merely a figure of speech, R’ Einfeld writes. Rather, it describes a relationship in which the Jewish People are eternally bound to Hashem, as a son is bound by his very nature to his father, whether he acts consistently with that relationship or not.
This, writes R’ Einfeld, explains why Hashem was ready to kill Moshe on his way to Egypt when he failed to circumcise his son (see Shmot 4:24). Brit Milah / circumcision is the physical confirmation of our unique relationship with Hashem; it testifies that we are His sons. Moshe’s delay in performing that Mitzvah called into question his fitness to be the messenger to develop Bnei Yisrael into Hashem’s children. This explains, as well, why the Pesach Seder, more than any other observance, revolves around the parent-child relationship.
Returning to our original questions, R’ Einfeld explains: The tidings regarding children were not about having physical children, which was never in doubt. Rather, the tidings were about the continuity of the Jewish People’s unique relationship as children of Hashem. As noted, that relationship is eternal, and it cannot be severed. Of course, we are expected to observe the Torah but, just like a parent-child relationship, a Jew’s relationship with Hashem is inborn, and it cannot be severed even by wicked deeds. (Rabbi Akiva V’doro Shel Shmad p.21-23)
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Shabbat
The Gemara (Sanhedrin 38a) teaches: Mankind was created on Erev Shabbat. Why? So that heretics will not say that man was Hashem’s partner in Creation. Another answer: So that if man becomes haughty, Hashem can say to him, “Even the gnat was created before you.” Another answer: So that he will enter a Mitzvah–i.e., Shabbat–immediately. Another answer: So that man would encounter a world ready to enjoy. To what may this be compared? To a human king who built a palace, perfected it, set up a feast, and only then allowed guests to enter. [Until here from the Gemara as explained by Rashi z”l]
R’ Yehuda Loewe z”l (Maharal of Prague; died 1609) asks: Why would anyone think that man was Hashem’s partner in Creation? Indeed, our Sages say that angels were created on the second day of Creation, not on the first day, so no one would think that they were Hashem’s partners. If that was enough to stop people from believing that the angels were Hashem’s partners, why could man not be created on the second day also without raising any concerns?
Maharal answers: Mankind is the pinnacle of Creation, the only creation that combines the physical world–a body–and the spiritual world–a soul. [Because of this uniqueness, one might think that man was Hashem’s partner.] Therefore, it was fitting that man be created last, not on the second day, just as one does not attach two parts of a garment to each other until each is complete.
Maharal continues: Regarding the answer that man was created on Erev Shabbat so that he will enter a Mitzvah–Shabbat–immediately, this means to say that this is the purpose for which man was created: to serve Hashem, as we read (Kohelet 12:15), “The sum of the matter, when all has been considered–fear Elokim and keep His commandments, for that is entirety of man.” (Chiddushei Aggadot)