Midrash su Ezechiele 32:19
מִמִּ֖י נָעָ֑מְתָּ רְדָ֥ה וְהָשְׁכְּבָ֖ה אֶת־עֲרֵלִֽים׃
Chi passi in bellezza? Scendi e sii steso con il non circonciso.
Mekhilta d'Rabbi Yishmael
In the past, Pharaoh's servants said to him (Exodus 10:7) "How long will this one be a stumbling block to us?" and now (Ibid. 14:5) "What is this that we did in sending Israel away from serving us?" They said to him: If we were smitten and we had not sent him away, that would have been enough for us. Or if we were smitten and had sent him away and he had not taken our wealth from us, that would have been enough for us. But we have been smitten, and we have sent him away, and he has taken our wealth from us! An analogy: A man sent to his servant: Go and bring me a fish from the marketplace. He goes and buys him a rotten fish, at which the master says to him: Either eat the fish, or receive a hundred lashes, or pay me a hundred maneh. The servant: I'll eat it. He begins eating, but does not finish before saying: I'll take the lashes. He receives sixty lashes, and does not finish before saying: I'll pay the hundred maneh. In the end, he has eaten the fish, received the lashes, and paid the hundred maneh! Thus, with Egypt: They were smitten, and they sent Israel away, and their wealth was taken! Variantly: "And the heart of Pharaoh was reversed": Scripture hereby apprises us that when Israel left Egypt, its kingdom came to an end, as it is written (Ezekiel 32:19) "Whom have you (Egypt) surpassed in beauty? Descend and be laid to rest with the uncircumcised!"
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Midrash Tanchuma Buber
[(Exod. 13:17, cont.:) THAT GOD DID NOT HAVE COMPASSION (NHM).] <One should read the verse in this way,>19The Masoretic Text reads NHM as naham (LEAD THEM), but the midrash understands the word as niham (HAVE COMPASSION). because the Holy One said to the Prophet (Ezek. 32:18): SON OF ADAM, LAMENT OVER THE MASSES OF EGYPT…. Pharaoh began vaunting himself, and he said: Am I going down to them (in the grave)? He said to him (in Ezek. 32:19): WHOM DO YOU SURPASS IN LOVELINESS? Whom do you surpass in beauty? Are you better than the king of Assyria or the king of Tyre and Sidon? (Ibid., cont.:) GO DOWN AND BE LAID WITH THE UNCIRCUMCISED. (Vs. 22:) THERE IS ASSYRIA WITH ALL ITS COMPANY. (Vs. 24:) THERE IS ELAM AND ALL ITS MASSES. (Vs. 26:) THERE ARE MESHECH AND TUBAL WITH ALL THEIR MASSES. (Vs. 29:) THERE IS EDOM WITH ITS KINGS AND ALL ITS PRINCES. (Vs. 30:) THERE ARE THE PRINCES OF THE NORTH. When Pharaoh saw them, he was consoled (rt.: NHM), as stated (in vs. 31): [THESE] SHALL PHARAOH SEE, AND HE SHALL BE CONSOLED (NHM) [OVER ALL THESE MASSES SLAIN BY THE SWORD, PHARAOH AND ALL HIS ARMY.] The Holy One said to him: Pharaoh, you shall not be consoled because of what you did to my children. [Ergo:] GOD DID NOT HAVE COMPASSION (NHM).
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