Exodo 5:1 Comentario: Rashi, Chizkuni, Or HaChaim & Siftei Chakhamim

ואחר באו משה ואהרן AND AFTERWARDS MOSES AND AARON CAME — But the elders slipped away one by one from behind Moses and Aaron until every-one of them had slipped away before they arrived at the palace, because they were afraid to go there. At Sinai they were punished for this, for it is stated (Exodus 24:2) “And Moses alone shall draw near unto the Lord, but they, (the elders; cf. Exodus 24:1) shall not draw near” — He bid them stay behind. (Exodus Rabbah 5:14)

ואחר באו משה ואהרן אל פרעה ויאמרו וגו, “and after this Moses and Aaron came to Pharaoh” this line is the basis of the liturgist’s poem in the Shabbat morning prayer of the Shabbat before Passover after the line: חי וקים נורא וקדוש שמו, inserting his poem commencing with the words: ירדת להצל עמך, “You descended in order to save Your people.” Among other lines it contains the phrase: יכנס הבא במנה, a reference to the day when Moses and Aaron went to see Pharaoh without an appointment apparently. It was Pharaoh's birthday, and when advised that two elderly men stood outside waiting to be admitted, Pharaoh thought that they must have come to pay him homage. When asked about their message, they replied that the G-d of the Hebrews commanded Him to release the Hebrews to serve Him in the desert.

ואחר באו משה ואהרון ויאמרו אל פרעה, afterwards Moses and Aaron came to Pharaoh and said, etc. The word "afterwards" means after the people had believed that G'd had despatched Moses to them as their redeemer. The verse refers to fulfilment of what G'd had told Moses in 3,18. We now appreciate the dividing tone sign etnachta under the word לקולך in 3,18; we would have expected the words "and you will proceed to Pharaoh" to be part of the same sequence. Inasmuch as some considerable time passed between what was mentioned in the first half of that verse and the completion of what it was meant to lead to, the Torah repeats here that now the second part of verse 18 in chapter 3 was being played out.