Commentary for Exodus 20:2

That is the command that He commanded us to believe in God. And that is that we believe that there is an Origin and Cause, that He is the power of all that exists. And [the source of the command] is His saying (Exodus 20:2), "I am the Lord your God." And at the end of the Gemara, Makkot (Makkot 23b), they said, "There were 613 commandments stated to Moshe at Sinai [...] What is the verse [that alludes to this]? 'Moses commanded to us the Torah' (Deuteronomy 33:4)" - meaning to say, the numerical value of [the word,] Torah. And they asked about this and said, "That is 611." And the answer was, "They heard, 'I am the Lord, your God, and '[You] shall have no [other gods]' (Exodus 20:2, 3), from the mouth of the Almighty." Behold it has been made clear to you that "I am the Lord, your God," is included in the 613 commandments. And that is the command about belief in God, as we explained. (See Parashat Yitro; Mishneh Torah, Foundations of the Torah 1.)

אשר הוצאתיך מארץ מצרים WHO HAVE BROUGHT THEE OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT — That act of bringing you out is alone of sufficient importance that you should subject yourselves to Me. Another explanation: because He had revealed Himself to them at the Red Sea as a mighty man of war and here He revealed Himself as a grey-beard filled with compassion, as it is stated in connection with the Giving of the Law, (Exodus 24:10) “and there was under His feet as it were a brick-work of sapphire”, which is explained to mean that this (the brick-work) was before Him at the time of their bondage; “and there was as the essence of heaven” (i. e. joy and gladness) when they had been delivered (cf. Rashi on Exodus 24:10), thus the Divine Glory changed according to circumstances, — therefore He stated here: Since I change, appearing in various forms, do not say, “There are two divine Beings”; it is I Who brought you forth from Egypt and Who appeared to you at the Sea (cf. Mekhilta d'Rabbi Yishmael 20:2:2). Another explanation: because they then heard many voices, as it is said (v. 15) “the people heard the voices (הקלות)” — voices coming from the four cardinal points and from the heavens and from the earth — therefore God said to them, “Do not say there are many Deities”. — Why did God say in the singular אלהיך, “Thy God”, (as though speaking to one person alone)? To afford Moses an opportunity to speak in defence of Israel at the incident of the golden calf. This, is exactly what he did say, (Exodus 32:11) “Wherefore, O Lord, doth Thy wrath glow against Thy people”, for not to them didst Thou give the command, “There shall be to thee no other gods” but to me alone! (Exodus Rabbah 43:5)

I AM THE ETERNAL THY G-D. This Divine utterance constitutes a positive commandment.²⁶⁰See my Hebrew commentary, p. 388. on the position of the Hilchoth Gedoloth on this point. Ramban thus sides with Rambam, who, in his Sefer Hamitzvoth, counted this as the first commandment. See my translation, “The Commandments,” I, pp. 1-2. He said, I am the Eternal, thus teaching and commanding them that they should know and believe that the Eternal exists and that He is G-d to them. That is to say, there exists an Eternal Being through Whom everything has come into existence by His will²⁶¹The universe is thus a result of design, and not merely of necessity. See Guide of the Perplexed, II, 18. and power, and He is G-d to them, who are obligated to worship Him. He said, Who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, because His taking them out from there was the evidence establishing the existence and will of G-d, for it was with His knowledge and providence that we came out from there. The exodus is also evidence for the creation of the world, for assuming the eternity of the universe, [which precludes a Master of the universe Who is in control of it], it would follow that nothing could be changed from its nature.²⁶²“If you believe in the eternity of matter, it leads to the conclusion that if G-d should desire to shorten a fly’s wing or lengthen an ant’s foot, He would not be able to do it” (Ramban, in his sermon, “G-d’s Law Is Perfect,” Kithvei Haramban, I, p. 146). The miracles preceding the exodus, in which G-d’s mastery of the powers of nature was demonstrated, thus refuted the doctrine of the eternity of matter and established that of Creation. And it is also evidence for G-d’s infinite power, and His infinite power is an indication of the Unity, as He said, that thou [i.e., Pharaoh] mayest know that there is none like Me in all the earth.²⁶³Above, 9:14. This is the intent of the expression, Who brought thee out, since they are the ones who know and are witnesses to all these things.

אנכי, “I alone am the Lord; I am the One responsible for creating the material world, for creating egos. Individuals. I am known to you by tradition.”

אנכי ה׳ אלוקיך, "I am the Lord your G'd, etc." The reason G'd repeats "who took you out of Egypt, the house of bondage," was to heighten the contrast between then and now. The Israelites had been enslaved in a country which was notorious for not releasing slaves nor letting them escape (compare Isaiah 14,17). The Israelites had two major strikes against them at the time. They were mired deeply in impurity, and they were under the rule of a king notorious for not letting anyone escape.

אנכי ה' אלוקיך, “I am the Lord your G’d.” This is a positive commandment to believe in and feel absolutely certain of the existence of Hashem as a primordial force that preceded any phenomenon which is part of the material universe, and that He is the sole Creator of the entire universe, that He is our G’d, and that we are His people. We are obliged to serve Him, and He has taken us out of bondage in Egypt. The historical fact that He took us out of Egypt serves as eternal proof of His existence and His express desire to guide our fate. It proves that our Exodus was the product of His will. It also proves that He must have been the original cause in this universe, seeing that once the universe, i.e. the laws of nature had been formulated, no radical changes such as the taking out of a completely assimilated nation such as the Israelites from the midst of another nation was conceivable according to what is considered “normal” in our world. The Exodus was not only testimony to His power, but also to His uniqueness. For all the above reasons, G’d did not commence to identify Himself as the One Who had created heaven and earth, but He identified Himself as the One who had taken us out of Egypt, a visible historical fact witnessed by millions. [No one had been around to watch the universe come into existence. Ed.] Some commentators understand the emphasis on the word אנכי here as meant to draw attention to Hashem saying that He is the One Who had already told Avraham “I will also judge the people who will enslave your descendants and they will depart from that country with great riches” (Genesis 15,13) At the beginning of the Decalogue, G’d introduces Himself as the One who had fulfilled that promise of over 400 years ago. The first two commandments of the Decalogue which were addressed to the people in direct speech, i.e. “I have taken you out, etc.,” were distinct from the other eight in which G’d appears to refer to Himself in the third person, were spoken by G’d to the people directly, whereas the others were relayed to the people by Moses. The fact that our chapter commences with the words: וידבר אלוקים את כל הדברים האלה לאמר, “G’d spoke all these words to say,” as well as the verse in Deut. 5,19 את הדברים האלה דבר ה' אל כל קהלכם בהר, “the Lord spoke these words to you at the Mountain, etc.,” certainly gives the impression that the people had heard all the Ten Commandments directly from G’d’s mouth. Moses adds that all these words were inscribed on the two Tablets, which proves that as G’d was saying the words He simultaneously was inscribing them on the Tablets. Nachmanides claims that there is no question that G’d addressed all of the Ten Commandments to the whole people directly. The problem was that the people did not understand what they were hearing. Moses therefore needed to explain the text to the people, with the exception of the first two Commandments which they both heard and understood directly from Hashem without the need of any intermediary. The point in all this is that at that point in time the people were all on the spiritual level of prophets, who have primary knowledge of the uniqueness of Hashem, and the absolute impossibility to relate to anyone else as something Divine.

The act of bringing you out is sufficient. . . Rashi is answering the question: Why is His Godliness associated with the Exodus, rather than with Creation? Why did the Torah not write, “I am Hashem, your God, who created Heaven and Earth”?

V. 2. אנכי, wir haben schon wiederholt auf die feine Nuance hingewiesen, die אנכי und אני, insbesondere in der Rede Gottes unterscheidet. Während אני die redende Person mehr im Gegensatz zu der angeredeten, als diejenige bezeichnet, von welcher — אנה — ein Wort oder eine Wirkung ausgeht, kündet אנכי den Redenden als diejenige Persönlichkeit an, die der angeredeten innig nahe ist, die sie umfasst und trägt und hält, durch deren Persönlichkeit erst auch die angeredete in Wahrheit ihr persönliches Dasein, ihren Halt und Boden gewinnt. Nichts ist überwältigender als der Gedanke, wie hier mitten in dem Aufruhr und aus dem Aufruhr des in seinen Grundfesten erschütterten Weltalls, Gott sich als die einzige, wirkliche, absolute Persönlichkeit, als das אנכי im Weltall ausspricht, durch welches erst alles andere Sein Möglichkeit und Wirklichkeit erhält, und sich sofort zu dem einzelnen jüdischen Menschen wendet und spricht, ich bin dein אנכי ד׳ אלקיך :אנכי.

אנכי ה' אלוקיך, “I am the Lord your G–d;” how can we understand this utterance as a “commandment?” In which way does it represent an order to the listener? We must understand the words: “I am the Lord your G–d,” as implying that this is something that you must accept as fact, not merely as an article of faith, i.e. “you know, you do not merely believe.” It follows from accepting this as a fact that there is a system of reward and punishment for your actions, as He is capable of meting out reward and punishment as a result of being the Creator. Rabbi Tanchuma adds that this obligation of yours is the direct result of your having been allowed to see Him revealing Himself as a mighty warrior at the sea of reeds, when He saved you miraculously and meted out punishment to your pursuers. At the same time, He appeared to you in the guise of a merciful G–d at Mount Sinai. Do not make the mistake of thinking that the Power that addressed you at Mount Sinai, is a different Power than the One which dealt with the Egyptians. You have merely witnessed G–d manifesting Himself as possessing multiple attributes. The word אנכי is best translated as “I and no one else.” (Mechilta, bachodesh, section 5) A different approach: seeing that at the revelation G–d had been accompanied by tens of thousands of spiritual beings, angels, it was necessary for Him to point out that only He is the Lord, all other beings are merely servants of His. He also used the opportunity to show them that heaven consists of seven layers of what are commonly known as “heaven,” but that only the highest layer is the domain in which His throne is to be found. This event has been recalled by Moses in Deuteronomy 4,35, i.e.אתה הראת לדעת כי ה' הוא אין עוד מלבדו האלו-הים, “you have been given a visual demonstration that only the Lord is the G–d, there is none other." This is also why the first two commandments are addressed in the singular mode, i.e. to each Israelite separately, a fact that Moses took advantage of when pleading on behalf of the people after they committed the sin of the golden calf, when he said to G–d: “I am the only human being to whom You have addressed the first two commandments. The people only heard it from me. Therefore they have not violated a commandment that they have heard from You.” The Midrash adds that this is also the reason why all the other eight commandments were addressed to the Israelites as individuals, not collectively as in Leviticus 25,2-7, for instance, or as in Leviticus 26,3-13. G–d foresaw that individual Israelites in the future, such as the false prophet Micah (Judges chapter 17) who tried to eliminate the first commandment, or King Jerobam (Kings I chapter 12) who tried to abolish the second commandment. The list can be lengthened showing that individuals acted in a way that showed they felt they could ignore one or another basic commandment of the Ten Commandments.” By wording these Commandments in the singular mode addressed to each Israelite individually, none could claim that it did not apply to them. When you count the letters in the Ten Commandments, commencing with the letter א in אנכי and concluding with the letter in ך in לרעך there are a total of 613 letters, signaling to us that all the 613 commandments of the Torah are in one way or another contained in these Ten Commandments which are a summary. In the first chapter of tractate Kidushin, in the Talmud we are told that when the gentile nations heard the first two of the Ten Commandments, they concluded that G–d was concerned only with establishing His own reputation. When they subsequently heard of the commandment to honour father and mother, they changed their mind and accepted also the first two commandments as valid. This is what David referred to in Psalms 138,4: יודוך ה' כל מלכי ארץ כי שמרו אמרי פיך, “all the kings of the earth shall praise You, O Lord, for they have heard the words coming forth from Your mouth.”

אנכי ה' אלוקיך, “I am the Lord your G-d;” Rabbi Levi is quoted as saying (old version of Tanchuma Yitro 17) G-d appeared to the Israelites as if a multifaceted portrait visible to a thousand people at the same time (by means of refraction) so that all could see Him and vice versa. The people each heard His voice in a similar manner [as of course a visual image was out of the question since even if they had seen one that would be proof that it could not be His “face.” Ed.]. In this way every Israelite was able to claim that G-d had spoken to him individually, saying: “I am the Lord your G-d, etc. This is the reason that G-d had not said: אלוקיכם “your G-d (plural mode,)” but אלוקיך, “your G-d, (singular mode)”. He had addressed all of them in the order in which they stood assembled around the Mountain. This corresponded exactly to G-d’s commandment to Moses in 19,12: והגבלת את העם סביב לאמור, “you are to set bounds to the people around, saying:Do not raise the question that if the people had been used already to receive their daily ration of manna by picking it up around the boundaries of the encampment, and in spite of each one receiving the same amount, its taste would vary in accordance with the imagination of its recipient, then each one would presumably have a different recollection of how G-d’s voice had sounded to him?

מבית עבדים OUT OF THE HOUSE OF SLAVES — This means, from the house of Pharaoh where ye were slaves to him. Or perhaps it only says “from the house of slaves” in the sense of a house belonging to slaves to that the words imply that they were slaves to slaves (a most abject form of slavery)! But elsewhere it states, (Deuteronomy 7:8) “He redeemed thee from the house of slaves, from the hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt”, so that you must now admit that they were slaves of the king and not slaves to slaves and the meaning is: from the house where you were slaves (Mekhilta d'Rabbi Yishmael 20:2:5).

The meaning of out of the house of bondage is that they stayed in Egypt in a house of bondage as captives of Pharaoh.²⁶⁴This accords with the interpretation of the Mechilta here: “Out of the house of bondage. They were slaves to kings.” And as Rashi puts it, “from the house of Pharaoh where ye were slaves to him.” He said this to them [in order to indicate] that they are obligated [to accept] this Great, Glorious and Fearful Name²⁵⁹Deuteronomy 28:58. as their G-d, and to worship Him, because He redeemed them from Egyptian bondage. It is similar in meaning to the verse, They are My servants whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt.²⁶⁵Leviticus 25:55. I have also already alluded to above²⁶⁶Above, 19:20. by way of the Truth, [the mystic lore of the Cabala], to the reason why the two sacred Names — [the Tetragrammaton and Elokim] — are mentioned here.
This commandment, in the words of our Rabbis,²⁶⁷Berachoth 13b. is called the obligation “to take upon oneself the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven,” for these words, [i.e., the Eternal your G-d], which I have mentioned, indicate a King addressing His people. Thus the Rabbis have said in the Mechilta:²⁶⁸Mechilta on Verse 3 here. “Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.²⁶⁹Verse 3. Why is this said?²⁷⁰Since it says, I am the Eternal thy God, etc., it already means, “I, am not another.” Why then does He state again, Thou shalt not have other gods before Me? Because it says, I am the Eternal thy G-d. This can be illustrated by a parable: A king invaded a country, and his attendants said to him, ‘Issue decrees to us.’²⁷¹“Us.” In the Mechilta: “them,” i.e., the people. He, however, refused, saying: ‘No! When you have accepted my sovereignty, I will issue decrees to you, for if you do not accept my sovereignty, how will you carry out my decrees?’ Similarly, G-d said to Israel: ‘I am the Eternal thy G-d, thou shalt have no other gods. I am He Whose sovereignty you have accepted in Egypt.’ And when they said to Him: ‘Yes,’ [He continued]: ‘Now, just as you have accepted My sovereignty, so you must also accept My decrees.’” That is to say, “Since you have accepted upon yourselves and have admitted that I am the Eternal, and that I am your G-d from the [time that you were yet in the] land of Egypt, then accept all My commandments.”
Now all the [Ten] Commandments are expressed in the singular — the Eternal thy G-d, Who brought ‘thee’ out — and not, as He began to say, [before the Giving of the Torah]: ‘Ye’ have seen;²⁷²Above, 19:4. if ‘ye’ will hearken.²⁷³Ibid., Verse 5. This is because His intent is to warn that each individual is subject to punishment for [transgression of] the commandments, since He addresses Himself to each one individually, commanding him that he should not think that He will judge according to the majority and that the individual will be saved with them. This intent was explained to the people by Moses at the end of the Torah, in the section of Atem Nitzavim.²⁷⁴Deuteronomy 29:17-19. See Ramban there on Verse 17.

אלוקיך, “I keep My promise to be and remain your G’d, I am not to be worshipped through intermediaries, I am to be prayed to directly.”

מבית עבדים, “from the house of bondage.” Although the people did not need to be told this, G’d reminded them that seeing they had been enslaved by a cruel ruler such as Pharaoh, they could certainly not have any objection of trading such a ruler for Hashem. Some commentators see in the words מארץ מצרים the major significance of this line, i.e. seeing that everyone knows that there was no other country in which the Israelites had been enslaved. They therefore stress that the Egyptians being slaves, i.e. being descendants of Cham whose children Noach had condemned to be slaves, had instead become masters over descendants of Shem, had been an especially degrading experience. The fact that G’d had put an end to this geo-politically demeaning situation, deserved especial mention, and therefore the Israelites’ gratitude. [The Egyptians were fourth generation descendants of Cham. (Genesis 10,6-7) Ed.] The Ten Commandments were all formulated in the singular mode, as opposed to the summation of אתם ראיתם, in 20,19 as well as the formulation (plural) אם שמוע תשמעו, “if you will surely hearken, etc.” (19,5). The reason for the variation in the singular and plural mode is to warn the people that they are both individually and collectively obligated to carry out G’d’s instructions, and to refrain from violating negative commandments. G’d wanted to be on record as if He had spoken to every Israelite individually.

Since He revealed Himself at the Sea as One Who is powerful at war. . . I.e., His Godliness is associated with the Exodus, but not regarding all His actions [in the Exodus]. Rather, “Since He revealed Himself at the Sea. . .” Rashi cites, “And under His feet. . .” to show that Hashem’s attributes change according to the situation. And though in the verse it is written, “Who brought you out of Egypt,” Rashi nevertheless explains it as, “He revealed Himself at the Reed Sea,” because that was the culmination of the Exodus from Egypt.

G'd also referred to His dual role as both the Eternal, i.e the meaning of the tetragram and the supreme authority, i.e. אלוקיך. Anyone who rebelled against G'd's decrees would face retribution. G'd manifested Himself in this dual capacity to remove all doubt about philosophies which inspired idol worship by suggesting that He had partners. G'd's taking the Israelites out of Egypt should have dispelled any such doubts about any opposing deities possessing any power at all. מבית עבדים, from the house of bondage. G'd makes the point that since it was He Who liberated us from one master, He is entitled to demand that we show Him obeisance.

Indem dieser Satz nicht als eine Aussage, sondern als מצוה, als ein Gebot gefasst wird, spricht er nicht aus: Ich, ד׳, bin dein Gott, sondern: Ich, ד׳, soll dein Gott sein, und setzt damit als Fundament unserer ganzen Beziehung zu Gott jene Anforderung, die die Weisen unter dem Ausdruck קבלת עול מלכות שמים begreifen.

ה' אלוקין, “the Lord your G-d,” (two separate attributes of G-d) the author refers the reader to his commentary on Genesis 1,1 where he had pointed out that the “plural” ending in the word אלוהים, is not a plural ending at all.

אשר הוצאתיך מארץ מצרים, in doing so I had to overcome all the obstacles that intermediaries (forces of nature, also My creatures and appointed by Me to perform My will) had tried to use to block My efforts. I am the One Whom you accepted as such when you said (Exodus 15,2) “this is My G’d and I want to glorify Him.”

Do not think that there are two dominions. . . Meaning: Just as you acknowledge that I was One at the splitting of the Sea, for there it is written (15:2) זה אלי ואנוהו (in the singular form), so too, you should believe that I am that same God. Therefore Rashi explains, “I am the [same] One Who has brought you out of the Land of Egypt. (Re”m)

The reference to the house of bondage also alludes to the souls whom Israel came to rescue during its enforced stay in Egypt. I have explained this at length on Genesis 46,3 in connection with the expression: "I will make you (Jacob) a great nation there." Kabbalists go further and believe that Deut. 4,7: "for who is a great nation whose G'd is close to them, etc.?" is also a reference to the fact that all Jewish souls past, present, and future participated in the revelation at Mount Sinai. Accordingly, G'd repeated the statement concerning the Exodus because it referred not only to the bodies but also to the souls. The many stray souls which had been imprisoned in Egypt as part of the loot captured by the forces of the קליפה after Adam's sin had also been freed at that time.

Der sogenannte "Glaube an das Dasein Gottes", wie alte und moderne Religionsphilosophien diesen Begriff auszusprechen pflegen, ist noch um Himmelsweiten von dem ferne, was dieser Fundamentalsatz des jüdischen Denkens und Seins vom jüdischen Denken und Sein erwartet. Nicht, dass es überhaupt einen Gott gebe, auch nicht, dass es nur einen Gott gebe, sondern dass dieser eine, einzige, wahrhaftige Gott mein Gott sei, dass Er mich geschaffen und gebildet, dahin gestellt und verpflichtet, und mich schaffe und bilde, erhalte, überwache, lenke und leite, dass ich mit ihm nicht nur in zehntausendster Vermittlung als zufälliges Produkt des Universums zusammenhänge, dessen allererste Urursache Er vor Äonen gewesen, sondern: dass jeder gegenwärtige Atemzug und jeder kommende Augenblick meines Daseins ein unmittelbares Geschenk seiner Allmacht und Liebe sei und ich jeden gegenwärtigen und kommenden Moment meines Daseins nur in Seinem Dienste zu verleben habe, — kurz: nicht die Erkenntnis Gottes, sondern die Anerkenntnis Gottes als meines Gottes, als des ausschließlich einzigen Lenkers aller meiner Geschicke und als des ausschließlich einzigen Leiters aller meiner Taten, erst dies ist die Wahrheit, mit deren Zugrundelegung ich den Boden eines jüdischen Daseins gewinne. Der Anforderung: אנכי ד׳ אלקיך entspricht nur die Erwiderung: !אתה אלקי

אנכי ה' אלוקיך, this is the beginning of the first of the ten Commandments. By means of this declaration G-d commands the people never to forget that is was He Who had redeemed the people by taking them out of bondage in Egypt. As a result, He had now become their new Master. He implies that they are far better off serving Him than remaining slaves to Pharaoh.

Who brought you out. Hashem did not identify Himself as the one who created heaven and earth because there were no witnesses to that event. He also refrained from mentioning that He created human beings since it can be argued that it would have been better for them if they had not been created (see Eiruvin 13b), whereas Hashem wished to mention only the unambiguous good He had done for them.

מבית עבדים, from all exterior coercion in order for you to be free to worship Me, exclusively.

An alternate explanation: Because they had heard many sounds. . . Rashi is answering the question: According to the first explanation, [“The act of bringing you out is sufficient,”] the verse should say only: “Who brought you out of the house of slaves.” Why does it say also, “From the land of Egypt”? Therefore Rashi brings the second explanation, [“Since He revealed Himself at the Reed Sea. . .”]. According to both explanations there is a question: Why does it first say, “I am Hashem,” and only afterward, “You must not have any other gods”? First it should forbid other gods, and then say, “I am Hashem,” conveying: “I alone.” It is not the way to first command a certain action and then forbid an action that is its opposite. Therefore Rashi brings an alternate explanation: “Because they had heard many sounds. . .” So they immediately thought there were many dominions. Therefore, it was necessary to say right at the beginning, “I am Hashem. . .” to convey that there are no dominions besides Me. (Maharshal)

Yerushalmi Sukkah 5,4 commenting on Psalms 22,4: "You are the Holy One, enthroned, the Praise of Israel," states that G'd prefers the praise of Israel to that of anyone else. Whereas others praise the Lord by referring to Him as "the Lord of the universe," or as "the G'd of the angels," He prefers to be called the Lord G'd of Israel. When G'd says here: "I am the Lord your G'd," this means that He is not happy with being defined in any other way than as the G'd of Israel. By saying this, G'd advertised throughout the celestial regions that Israel was superior. By saying: אשר הוצאתיך מארץ מצרים, G'd advertised that Israel was His favourite on earth, and that He had taken them out of a place which had been considered a prison with maximum security. The statement is to be considered as a compliment to G'd. The best proof of this is to be found when Yitro described the Exodus in Exodus 18,1. He had already realised that the experience of the Exodus had stamped Israel as the choicest of the nations for all times. When G'd continues with the words מבית עבדים, the meaning is that He did not take them out of Egypt while the definition "slaves" still applied to them; rather He made the Israelites into free men at the same time. Had G'd allowed the Israelies to escape from Egypt, for instance, they would still have been considered as slaves, their status would not have undergone a change in legal terms. Their status was changed 1) because G'd had pressured Pharaoh in dismissing them, and 2) after Pharaoh pursued them and he drowned with his army, there were no longer any masters who could have disputed the Israelites' claim to being free men.

Als Begründungstatsache für diese anzuerkennende Fundamentalwahrheit, dass Gott der ausschließlich einzige Lenker unserer Geschicke und der ausschließlich einzige Leiter unserer Taten, dass Gott unser Gott sei, werden wir auf jenes von uns selbst erlebte Fundamentalfaktum der Erlösung aus Mizrajim hingewiesen, und dies eben in zwei Momenten vergegenwärtigt: אשר הוצאתיך מארץ מצרים und: מבית עבדים, wovon das eine Gott als den Lenker unserer Geschicke offenbarte und das andere die Hörigkeit und Hingebung all unserer Tatkraft an seine ausschließliche Leitung begründet.

אשר הוצאתיך, “Who has taken you out;” why did G-d choose this activity when He could have said: “I have made you,” or “I have created you?” He could have listed any number of favours that He had performed for the Jewish people already. Each one have them would have established His claim to be their Master and to obey Him. The answer is simple; they would have replied that G-d had performed deeds of loving kindness for the other nations also without requiring them to accept His Torah as a result. The one He listed here He had not performed for anyone else, however. By listing the Exodus as His claim to become their Master, He forestalled any such replies by the people.

Still another reason for the repetition of מארץ מצרים, מבית עבדים is that G'd addressed both bodies and souls separately. He said: "I am the Lord your G'd," in order to make it plain that He was speaking to the souls of the Jewish people. A soul would be able to respond to G'd describing Himself in spiritual terms; it is quite possible that the departure of the souls from the bodies we have mentioned previously took place at the moment when G'd addressed the souls as "I am the Lord your G'd." The souls then recognised their Maker. It is the essence of the souls that once they are no longer within a body they unite with their celestial origin. In Heaven there is no פרוד, separation. When G'd described Himself as "your G'd" (singular), He indicated that the Jewish souls are a single unit even in the terrestrial world which is essentially a world of divisions. This may be what David had in mind in Chronicles I 17,21 where he is quoted as describing the uniqueness of the Jewish people in these words: ומי כעמך ישראל גוי אחד בארץ, "who is like Your people Israel a unified nation even on earth?" Thanks to having been sanctified, the Israelites, like the angels, are all part of one great whole. When addressing the body of the Jewish people, G'd identified Himself in more mundane language, i.e. "Who has taken your bodies out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage."

ארץ מצרים, den Gipfel menschengewaltiger Staatskunst und die reichste Fülle von der Menschengewalt dienenden Naturkräften repräsentiert der Staat und das Land, das uns mit seinen Fesseln umfangen findet. Menschengewalt und Naturkraft brechend und nach seinem Willen frei umwandelnd und vernichtend, Menschentrotz und Naturvergötterung richtend, Tyrannei zerschmetternd, und die hilfloseste, mit Füßen getretene Unschuld, Verheißung erfüllend, rettend emporhebend, kurz: mit seiner, Menschengeschicke gestaltenden, unmittelbar in die irdischen Verhältnisse eingreifenden, allgegenwärtigen, allmächtigen, richtenden und liebenden Lenkung hat Gott sich durch unsere Erlösung, unsere "Hinausführung aus dem Lande Mizrajim" für ewig in unser Bewusstsein eingeschrieben, und, der zu uns sprechen konnte: אשר הוצאתיך מארץ מצרים, Den haben wir für alle Zeiten und für alle Verhältnisse als den ausschließlichen Lenker unserer Geschicke anzuerkennen.

The words: "I am the Lord your G'd" also mean that G'd was already our G'd before we came into this world because the Jewish people are considered to be part of the sacred light, i.e. part of G'd Himself as mentioned in Deut. 32,29: "His people are part of G'd Himself." The word "your G'd" always refers to this sanctity which is part of His Light. Kabbalists are quite familiar with this concept. The word אשר means "the reason why." G'd explains the rationale why He took the Israelites out of Egypt, why He made the whole universe tremble at that moment. It had certainly been incumbent upon Him to save remnants of sanctity and to bring them closer to Him.

מבית עבדים. Wir haben schon zu (Kap. 13, 3) bemerkt, wie בית עבדים Mizrajim als eine Stätte bezeichnet, in welcher wir geborne Sklaven waren, wo somit bereits die Tatsache gewaltsamer Freiheitsberaubung aus der zeitgenössischen Erinnerung völlig geschwunden und Sklaventum als unser natürlicher Stand betrachtet war. Die Erinnerung hieran ruft uns ins Bewusstsein, wie völlig unser sozialer Untergang vollzogen war, als Gott uns zur Freiheit und Selbständigkeit hinausrief. Aus dieser Tatsache fließt unsere gänzliche und ganz besondere Hörigkeit an Gott. Wir haben Kopf und Herz und Hand, haben Persönlichkeit und die Rechtsfähigkeit selbständig Güter zu erwerben, zu besitzen, zu verwenden, sowie die Güter selbst nur aus Gottes Händen erhalten, und darum hat Er und Er allein über unsere Personen und Güter zu verfügen, stehen wir mit unserer Person, unsern Kräften und Gütern ganz allein in seinem Dienste, haben Person, Kraft und Gut nur in seinem Dienste zu verwenden, haben ihn allein als den Leiter unserer Handlungen anzuerkennen. Nur diese gänzliche Hingebung an Gott hat uns von den Menschen frei gemacht, nur unter dieser Bedingung sind wir frei geworden und sind wir frei. Während andere Menschen und Völker nur mit ihrem geschöpflichen Dasein Gott verpflichtet sind, sind wir es auch mit unserm geschichtlichen, sozialen. Wir sind unmittelbar aus עבדות פרעה in עבודת ד׳ übergegangen, und: אני עבדך בן אמתך פתחת למוסרי dein/i geborner Sklave; denn du hast meine Bande gelüftet!"

The expression "I am your G'd" also means that G'd remains our G'd both when He employs His attribute of Mercy in dealing with us and when He employs His attribute of Justice in disciplining us.

We have a tradition that one blesses G'd joyfully when something tragic occurs in one's life (Berachot 60). The reason is that when G'd subjects us to discipline He does so in order to insure that our future will be happier, will be guiltless. G'd alluded to this by saying here that even when He is perceived as "only" אלוקיך, the G'd who exacts retribution from you, He is still השם, i.e. the G'd who deals with you from a feeling of loving kindness seeing He has your ultimate welfare at heart.

The division between the words מארץ מצרים and מבית עבדים may also be deliberate, i.e. the first expression refers to the Exodus which has already taken place, while the last expression refers to the liberation in the future when the Messiah will arrive.

The words "who has taken you out of Egypt" also provide the answer to the question why G'd did not simply replace the Egyptians in Egypt with the Jews and established us as the rulers in that land. Why was it necessary to leave the land, to travel through the desert, etc.? Surely the Israelites would have derived greater satisfaction from such a solution to their problems than to have to march to Canaan and there to dispossess a people which had never done them any harm. Moreover, it would have demonstrated G'd's power if He dispossessed the Egyptians of their land! G'd explained that inasmuch as the very land of Egypt was a בית עבדים, a house of bondage, this would not have been appropriate. We read in Deut. 32,8: "when the Supreme G'd handed out the inheritance to the various nations, He established boundaries for the peoples in relation to Israel's numbers." The Zohar volume 1 page 108 comments on this that G'd handed out certain places on earth to the guardian angels of the various nations, and that the only land He did not assign to such guardian angels was the land of Canaan. G'd had reserved the land of Canaan for Himself. The Torah says מבית עבדים, describing the place as one assigned to one of G'd's servants (the guardian angel of Egypt). G'd did not want for the Jewish people to live in a homeland which "belonged" to the guardian angel of the Egyptians. He wanted the Israelites to reside in a country which was directly under His personal guidance.