הֻכָּ֣ה אֶפְרַ֔יִם שָׁרְשָׁ֥ם יָבֵ֖שׁ פְּרִ֣י בלי־[בַֽל־] יַעֲשׂ֑וּן גַּ֚ם כִּ֣י יֵֽלֵד֔וּן וְהֵמַתִּ֖י מַחֲמַדֵּ֥י בִטְנָֽם׃ (ס)
Efraim telah dipukul, akarnya telah kering, mereka tidak akan menghasilkan buah; bahkan jika mereka melahirkan anak, Aku akan membunuh buah kandungan mereka yang tercinta.
Shemot Rabbah
“Go and gather the elders of Israel, and say to them: The Lord, the God of your fathers, God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, has appeared to me, saying: I have remembered you, and what is being done to you in Egypt” (Exodus 3:16).
“Go and gather the elders of Israel.” The elders always uphold Israel, and thus it says: “And all Israel, and its elders, and its officers, and its judges, stood on this side and on that side of the ark” (Joshua 8:33). When is Israel capable of standing? It is when they have elders. Why, when the Temple was standing, did they consult with the elders, as it is stated: “Ask your father and he will tell you; your elders and they will say to you” (Deuteronomy 32:7)? It is because anyone who takes counsel from elders does not fail. Know that when ben-Hadad sent to the king of Israel, as it is stated: “So said ben-Hadad: Your silver and your gold are mine” (I Kings 20:3), the king of Israel sent to him: “As you said, my lord king: I, and everything that I have are yours” (Ibid. 20:4). He sent to him a second time: “But tomorrow at this time, I will send my servants to you and they will search your house, and the houses of your servants; and it will be, that everything precious [maḥmad] to you, they will seize, and take it” (I Kings 20:6). Was everything that he demanded initially not precious? He demanded silver and gold and they are precious, as it is stated: “And the precious items [ḥemdat] of all the peoples will come” (Haggai 2:7). 22The following verse in Haggai states: “Mine is the silver, and Mine the gold, the utterance of the Lord of hosts.” He demanded women and they are precious, as it is stated: “Son of man, behold, I am taking away from you the desire [maḥmad] of your eyes…” (Ezekiel 24:16). He demanded children, and they are precious, as it is stated: “And I will slay the beloved fruit [maḥmad] of their womb” (Hosea 9:16). You must say: Everything he demanded initially was precious, and “everything precious to you” is an item that is ultimately precious, that is the Torah, as it is stated: “More precious than gold and more than much fine gold” (Psalms 19:11).
When the king of Israel heard this, he said: ‘This is not mine, but rather it belongs to the elders.’ Immediately, “The king of Israel called all the elders of the land…and all the elders and all the people said to him: Neither heed nor consent” (I Kings 20:7–8). Once he heeded the counsel of the elders, immediately: “The king of Israel went out, and smote the horses and the chariots” (I Kings 20:21). That is Israel consulting the elders. Therefore, the Holy One blessed be He said to Moses: “Go and gather the elders of Israel.”
“Say to them…I have remembered [pakod pakadeti].” He said to him: ‘They have a tradition from Joseph that I will deliver them with this expression.23“God will remember [pakod yifkod] you” (Genesis 50:24). Go and say to them: This is the sign.’ What is pakod pakadeti? Pakod in Egypt, pakadeti at the sea; pakod in the future, pakadeti in the past. “And what is being done to you in Egypt” – in other words, I will remember for the Egyptians what they are doing to you, as it is stated: “I remember what Amalek did to you” (I Samuel 15:2). 24The verse actually states: “I remember what Amalek did to Israel.” This statement precedes God’s command to King Saul to annihilate Amalek.
“And I said: I will take you up out of the affliction of Egypt, to the land of the Canaanites and the Hitites and the Emorites and the Perizites and the Hivites and the Yevusites, to a land flowing with milk and honey. They will listen to your voice and you shall go, you and the elders of Israel, to the king of Egypt and you shall say to him: The Lord, God of the Hebrews, happened upon us. And now, please, let us go a journey of three days in the wilderness, and we will sacrifice to the Lord our God.” (Exodus 3:17-18).
“And I said: I will take you up” – Say to them that, as I said to Jacob their ancestor, so I will do. What did He say to him [Jacob]? “I will also take you up” (Genesis 46:4). 25God promised Jacob when he went to Egypt that he would take his descendants out of Egypt. Likewise, Jacob said to his sons: “God will be with you and He will return you…” (Genesis 48:21). Immediately, “they will heed your voice.” Why? It is because they have a tradition of deliverance, that any deliverer who comes and says to them a double expression of remembrance [pakod pakadeti] is a genuine deliverer. Then “you shall go, you and the elders of Israel…” – He showed respect for the elders. “You shall say to him: The Lord, God of the Hebrews, happened upon us.” Why does it call them Hebrews [ivrim]? It is because they crossed [avru] the sea.
“And now, please, let us go a journey of three days...” Why did they say three days and did not say, please let us go forever? Why did they say this? It was so the Egyptians would be misled and pursue them when they left, and would say: ‘He delivered them only so they would go three days and sacrifice to Him, and it is they who have delayed for so long.’ And they will pursue them after three days and He will drown them in the sea to punish them with a punishment to fit their crime, as they said: “Every boy that is born you shall cast into the Nile…” (Exodus 1:22).
“Go and gather the elders of Israel.” The elders always uphold Israel, and thus it says: “And all Israel, and its elders, and its officers, and its judges, stood on this side and on that side of the ark” (Joshua 8:33). When is Israel capable of standing? It is when they have elders. Why, when the Temple was standing, did they consult with the elders, as it is stated: “Ask your father and he will tell you; your elders and they will say to you” (Deuteronomy 32:7)? It is because anyone who takes counsel from elders does not fail. Know that when ben-Hadad sent to the king of Israel, as it is stated: “So said ben-Hadad: Your silver and your gold are mine” (I Kings 20:3), the king of Israel sent to him: “As you said, my lord king: I, and everything that I have are yours” (Ibid. 20:4). He sent to him a second time: “But tomorrow at this time, I will send my servants to you and they will search your house, and the houses of your servants; and it will be, that everything precious [maḥmad] to you, they will seize, and take it” (I Kings 20:6). Was everything that he demanded initially not precious? He demanded silver and gold and they are precious, as it is stated: “And the precious items [ḥemdat] of all the peoples will come” (Haggai 2:7). 22The following verse in Haggai states: “Mine is the silver, and Mine the gold, the utterance of the Lord of hosts.” He demanded women and they are precious, as it is stated: “Son of man, behold, I am taking away from you the desire [maḥmad] of your eyes…” (Ezekiel 24:16). He demanded children, and they are precious, as it is stated: “And I will slay the beloved fruit [maḥmad] of their womb” (Hosea 9:16). You must say: Everything he demanded initially was precious, and “everything precious to you” is an item that is ultimately precious, that is the Torah, as it is stated: “More precious than gold and more than much fine gold” (Psalms 19:11).
When the king of Israel heard this, he said: ‘This is not mine, but rather it belongs to the elders.’ Immediately, “The king of Israel called all the elders of the land…and all the elders and all the people said to him: Neither heed nor consent” (I Kings 20:7–8). Once he heeded the counsel of the elders, immediately: “The king of Israel went out, and smote the horses and the chariots” (I Kings 20:21). That is Israel consulting the elders. Therefore, the Holy One blessed be He said to Moses: “Go and gather the elders of Israel.”
“Say to them…I have remembered [pakod pakadeti].” He said to him: ‘They have a tradition from Joseph that I will deliver them with this expression.23“God will remember [pakod yifkod] you” (Genesis 50:24). Go and say to them: This is the sign.’ What is pakod pakadeti? Pakod in Egypt, pakadeti at the sea; pakod in the future, pakadeti in the past. “And what is being done to you in Egypt” – in other words, I will remember for the Egyptians what they are doing to you, as it is stated: “I remember what Amalek did to you” (I Samuel 15:2). 24The verse actually states: “I remember what Amalek did to Israel.” This statement precedes God’s command to King Saul to annihilate Amalek.
“And I said: I will take you up out of the affliction of Egypt, to the land of the Canaanites and the Hitites and the Emorites and the Perizites and the Hivites and the Yevusites, to a land flowing with milk and honey. They will listen to your voice and you shall go, you and the elders of Israel, to the king of Egypt and you shall say to him: The Lord, God of the Hebrews, happened upon us. And now, please, let us go a journey of three days in the wilderness, and we will sacrifice to the Lord our God.” (Exodus 3:17-18).
“And I said: I will take you up” – Say to them that, as I said to Jacob their ancestor, so I will do. What did He say to him [Jacob]? “I will also take you up” (Genesis 46:4). 25God promised Jacob when he went to Egypt that he would take his descendants out of Egypt. Likewise, Jacob said to his sons: “God will be with you and He will return you…” (Genesis 48:21). Immediately, “they will heed your voice.” Why? It is because they have a tradition of deliverance, that any deliverer who comes and says to them a double expression of remembrance [pakod pakadeti] is a genuine deliverer. Then “you shall go, you and the elders of Israel…” – He showed respect for the elders. “You shall say to him: The Lord, God of the Hebrews, happened upon us.” Why does it call them Hebrews [ivrim]? It is because they crossed [avru] the sea.
“And now, please, let us go a journey of three days...” Why did they say three days and did not say, please let us go forever? Why did they say this? It was so the Egyptians would be misled and pursue them when they left, and would say: ‘He delivered them only so they would go three days and sacrifice to Him, and it is they who have delayed for so long.’ And they will pursue them after three days and He will drown them in the sea to punish them with a punishment to fit their crime, as they said: “Every boy that is born you shall cast into the Nile…” (Exodus 1:22).
Midrash Tanchuma Buber
(Exod. 4:28:) AND MOSES TOLD AARON ALL THE WORDS OF THE LORD WITH WHICH HE HAD SENT HIM. Moses began telling him everything which the Holy One had told him, how he would go and how he would perform all the signs.118Tanh., Exod. 1:26; Exod. R. 5:11. As soon as they went, they made harmony with the elders, as stated (in Exod. 4:29): THEN MOSES AND AARON WENT AND GATHERED <ALL THE ELDERS OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL >. The elders have always supported Israel,119Exod. R.3:8. and so it says (in Josh. 8:33): AND ALL ISRAEL, THEIR ELDERS, {THEIR} OFFICERS, AND THEIR JUDGES, STOOD ON EITHER SIDE OF THE ARK. When does Israel stand? When they have elders. Why? While the Temple existed, they were in consultation with the elders, as stated (in Deut. 32:7): ASK YOUR FATHER AND HE WILL INFORM YOU; YOUR ELDERS, AND THEY WILL TELL YOU. When anyone takes advice from the elders, then person is to be commended. You yourself know that, when Ben-hadad sent to the king of Israel and said to him (in I Kings 20:3): THUS SAYS BEN-HADAD: YOUR SILVER AND GOLD ARE MINE; <YOUR BEAUTIFUL WIVES AND CHILDREN ARE MINE>, the king of Israel sent to him <and said> (in vs. 4): AS YOU SAY, MY LORD KING, I AND ALL THAT I HAVE ARE YOURS. He sent to him a second time (in vs. 6): NEVERTHELESS TOMORROW ABOUT THIS TIME I WILL SEND MY SERVANTS TO YOU; AND THEY WILL SEARCH <YOUR HOUSE AND THE HOUSES OF YOUR SERVANTS >, LAY THEIR HANDS UPON EVERYTHING YOUR EYES DELIGHT IN, AND TAKE IT AWAY. [Was not] whatever he originally demanded {was not} a delight[?] He sought silver and gold, and they are a delight, as stated (in Hag. 2:7–8): AND THE DELIGHT OF ALL THE NATIONS SHALL COME, <AND I WILL FILL THIS HOUSE WITH GLORY, SAYS THE LORD OF HOSTS. > THE SILVER IS MINE, AND THE GOLD IS MINE. He sought women, and they are a delight, as stated (in Ezek. 24:16): SON OF ADAM, SEE, I AM TAKING AWAY [FROM YOU] THE DELIGHT OF YOUR EYES (i.e., your wife) THROUGH PESTILENCE. [He sought] children, and they are a delight, as stated (in Hos. 9:16): AND I WILL PUT TO DEATH THE DELIGHTS OF THEIR WOMB. Ergo: Whatever he originally demanded was a delight. Then what is the meaning (in I Kings 20:4) of EVERYTHING YOUR EYES DELIGHT IN? Something more delightful than <any> delight, i.e., the Torah, as stated (concerning the judgments of the Holy One in Ps. 19:11 [10]): MORE DELIGHTFUL ARE THEY THAN GOLD, THAN MUCH FINE GOLD. When the king of Israel heard this, he said: This is not a matter for me but for the elders. Immediately (in I Kings 20:7–8): THEN THE KING OF ISRAEL CALLED {UNTO} [FOR] ALL THE ELDERS OF THE LAND AND SAID {TO THEM}: PLEASE COMPREHEND AND SEE HOW THIS MAN IS SEEKING EVIL; <FOR, WHEN HE SENT UNTO ME FOR MY WIVES, MY CHILDREN, MY SILVER, AND MY GOLD, I DID NOT REFUSE HIM. SO [ALL] THE ELDERS AND ALL THE PEOPLE SAID UNTO HIM: {NEVER} [DO NOT] HEED AND NEVER CONSENT. When he heard the advice of the elders, he arose. THEN (according to I Kings 20:21), THE KING OF ISRAEL WENT OUT AND SMOTE THE HORSES…. Ergo: They always consulted with the elders. So also Moses (in Exod. 19:7) SUMMONED THE ELDERS OF THE PEOPLE, and afterwards, the leaders and the judges. When did Israel have leaders? When they had elders. So here also (in Exod. 4:29): THEN MOSES AND AARON WENT AND GATHERED ALL THE ELDERS OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL. What is the meaning of GATHERED? That they appointed them as elders, just as the Holy One had told him (in Exod. 3:16): GO AND GATHER (i.e., appoint) THE ELDERS OF ISRAEL.120Cf. Lev. 11:8. The Holy One has said: In this world I have distributed glory to the elders; and in the age to come I am also sharing glory with them, as stated (in Is. 24:23): THEN <THE DIVINE> GLORY <SHALL STAND> IN THE PRESENCE OF HIS ELDERS.121See above, 1:21.
Midrash Tanchuma
And Moses told Aaron all the words of the Lord (Exod. 4:29). Moses began to reveal to him everything that the Holy One, blessed be He, had told him, and that he was to go perform the miracles. Whereupon the two of them went to the elders, as it is said: And Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel (Exod. 4:39). The elders are always held responsible for the survival of Israel. That is why Scripture says: And all Israel, and their elders and officers, and their judges, stood on this side of the ark and on that side (Josh. 8:33). When do (the people of) Israel survive? When they have elders among them. Thus, when the Temple was erected, they consulted the elders, as is said: Ask thy father, and he will declare unto thee, thine elders, and they will tell thee (Deut. 32:7). Any one who consults his elders will not blunder. This is confirmed in the episode wherein Ben-hadad sent messengers to the king of Israel. “Thus saith Ben-hadad: Thy silver and thy gold is mine; thy wives also, and thy children, even the goodliest are mine.” The king of Israel answered and said: “It is according to thy saying, my lord, O king; I am thine, and all that I have” (I Kings 20:3). Later He sent another messenger to him saying: But I will send my servants unto thee tomorrow about this time, and thy shall search thy house, and the houses of thy servants, and it shall be that whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall put it in their hand and take it away (I Kings 20:6). Does this verse imply that the things he (Ben-hadad) demanded at first were not desirable? He had asked for silver and gold, and surely they are desirable, as it is said: And the choicest things of all nations shall come (Hag. 2:7). He had demanded women, and that, indeed, is good to possess, as it is said: Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes in a plague (Ezek. 24:16).34Ezekiel’s wife was taken from him. He desired their children, and they surely are precious, as is said: Yet will I slay the beloved fruit of their womb (Hos. 9:6). The fact is that everything he wanted was desirable. What, then, is meant by And it shall be that whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes? It refers to that which is most pleasant, the Torah, as it is said: More to be desired are they then gold, yea, then much fine gold (Ps. 19:11).