Chasidut zu Schemot 10:11
לֹ֣א כֵ֗ן לְכֽוּ־נָ֤א הַגְּבָרִים֙ וְעִבְד֣וּ אֶת־יְהוָ֔ה כִּ֥י אֹתָ֖הּ אַתֶּ֣ם מְבַקְשִׁ֑ים וַיְגָ֣רֶשׁ אֹתָ֔ם מֵאֵ֖ת פְּנֵ֥י פַרְעֹֽה׃ (פ)
Nicht so! Gehet doch, ihr Männer, und dienet dem Herrn, denn nur dies verlangt ihr ja! Und man trieb sie hinaus von Pharao.
Kedushat Levi
Exodus 10,1. “G’d said to Moses: ‘come to Pharaoh for I have hardened his heart, etc.;’” It is appropriate to examine why in this case G’d tells Moses to בא אל פרעה, “come to Pharaoh,” whereas elsewhere He told him; לך אל פרעה, ”go to Pharaoh.” Another change in nuance which has caught our attention is that in conjunction with the plague of locusts G’d describes Himself as “I have hardened the heart of Pharaoh.” In order to account for these expressions, we need to remember that there are two classes of miracles. One reason for G’d having to perform miracles is in order to punish those who have been persecuting His people, and to persuade them to refrain from doing that. The second class of miracles is intended to bring about a complete change of heart among those who persecute us, and to encourage them to deal kindly with us instead.
When we examine the Purim story we are struck by the fact that whereas Haman was punished, Achashverosh was not punished, but that G’d caused his heart to undergo a revolutionary change and he became friendly to the Jews. According to Sh’mot Rabbah 9,12, we find an allusion to this in the Torah where we are told that each of the plagues [except the killing of the firstborn, of course, Ed.] lasted for a month of 31 days including one week after the warning which gave the people a chance to repent. The plague of the killing of the firstborn occurred in the middle of the month of Nissan, so that the plague of hail occurred in the first half of the month of Sh’vat, a month before Purim. This is alluded to in the words כי אני הכבדתי את לבו, i.e. that “Achashverosh’s heart had become captive to Me.” According to the Talmud Sotah 11, based on the previous Mishnah, G’d repays sinners in a manner that corresponds to their sins, whereas He rewards people who have done something good in a measure that even exceeds merits earned for the good they have done. If Achasheverosh had been dealing kindly with the Jewish people, then G’d, as an act of compensation would also cause his ministers and servants to display a positive attitude towards the Jews. Since Jews are in the habit of studying the commandments and rules pertaining to the proper observance of the Passover festival for 30 days prior to the festival itself, (Pessachim 6) G’d will compensate them for this generously. If G’d could turn a stubborn King’s heart, He could do so more easily with the hearts of his servants and ministers.
When we examine the Purim story we are struck by the fact that whereas Haman was punished, Achashverosh was not punished, but that G’d caused his heart to undergo a revolutionary change and he became friendly to the Jews. According to Sh’mot Rabbah 9,12, we find an allusion to this in the Torah where we are told that each of the plagues [except the killing of the firstborn, of course, Ed.] lasted for a month of 31 days including one week after the warning which gave the people a chance to repent. The plague of the killing of the firstborn occurred in the middle of the month of Nissan, so that the plague of hail occurred in the first half of the month of Sh’vat, a month before Purim. This is alluded to in the words כי אני הכבדתי את לבו, i.e. that “Achashverosh’s heart had become captive to Me.” According to the Talmud Sotah 11, based on the previous Mishnah, G’d repays sinners in a manner that corresponds to their sins, whereas He rewards people who have done something good in a measure that even exceeds merits earned for the good they have done. If Achasheverosh had been dealing kindly with the Jewish people, then G’d, as an act of compensation would also cause his ministers and servants to display a positive attitude towards the Jews. Since Jews are in the habit of studying the commandments and rules pertaining to the proper observance of the Passover festival for 30 days prior to the festival itself, (Pessachim 6) G’d will compensate them for this generously. If G’d could turn a stubborn King’s heart, He could do so more easily with the hearts of his servants and ministers.
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