Musar su Esodo 10:35

Pharaoh considered Esau's plan as foolish since it allowed for Jacob himself to become fruitful in the interval preceding Isaac's death. Since the continuity of the universe is due to the Torah study of children (Shabbat 119), Esau's plan would have misfired even if Jacob had been sufficiently diverted from Torah study during the mourning period for his father. The Torah study of small children is of such merit that it even nullifies evil decrees that have been promulgated in Heaven against the Jewish people. The future of the Jewish people would certainly not have been cut short or even endangered. By drowning all the Jewish baby boys Pharaoh also meant to undermine the second of the three pillars the universe stands on, i.e. עבודה, sacrificial service and prayer. He hoped to achieve this since women are not qualified to perform such service. We know that Pharaoh had at one time become willing to allow a three day absence from work of the Jewish males in order to enable them to perform such sacrificial service (Exodus 10,11).

This is the reason that we recite the paragraphs dealing with G–d having created the universe both in the mornings and in the evenings immediately prior to reciting the Kriyat Shema declaration. In those paragraphs we mention G–d as having created both night and day in order to demonstrate our conviction that they are part of the same whole and do not represent different domains presided over by different deities. This is why the Torah, when describing the process of creation, keeps saying ויהי ערב ויהי בוקר, "it was evening it was morning." Night is part of the unit called day and vice versa. Rashi explains on Exodus 10,21: וימש חשך, "that the darkness was tangible," that this was a phenomenon that intensified the normal darkness of the night. The night is darkest immediately before dawn. Before the sun sets in the evening, we observe the sun assuming a reddish colour in preparation for evening and night; the same process happens in reverse prior to sunrise. All this proves the basic unity of night and day. G–d is eternal, without beginning or end, without limitation of His powers, etc., as I have explained on other occasions. When G–d created the universe, He created "limits," as distinct from Himself who is limitless. In order to do this G–d imposed some restrictions, צמצום, upon Himself. The universe itself represents an act of G–d's self-restriction.

We can explain the plain meaning of these verses in the following manner. First, (10,8) Pharaoh enquired who the people that would actually participate in that service to G–d would be, i.e. מי ומי ההולכים? Moses replied: "We will go with our young ones and with our old ones; with our sons and with our daughters as well as with our sheep and with our cattle, we will go, because it is a festival to G–d for us." Why did Pharaoh repeat מי ומי? The word ומי seems superfluous! Why did Moses twice say נלך, "We shall go?" When Pharaoh denied this request in verse 11, why did he preface his words with לא כן "Not so"?

Later, after experiencing the plague of darkness, Pharaoh humbled himself yet more and offered to let go all the people, women and infants included (10,24). He excluded only the livestock. He implied that the Israelites could take sufficient livestock with them to offer sacrifices. When he said: רק צאנכם ובקרכם יצג, "Only your sheep and your cattle has to stay put, he referred to the livestock that would remain after the sacrifices had been offered. The word גם in גם טפכם indicates that he had already conceded something else, namely the livestock required for the sacrifices, before conceding the departure of the infants. When speaking about צאן ובקר, Pharaoh added the word רק, "only," to show that he restricted the amount of sheep and cattle that could be taken. We now understand both the use of the word גם, which indicates an inclusion, and the word רק, which indicates an exclusion.

There is also the expression "not a hoof will remain" which Moses spoke of in 10,26. If "hooves" would remain, obviously animals would remain also. What point then was there in mentioning פרסה, a hoof? It appears that Onkelos changed the word in his translation when he renders "not anything will remain." When the word ]רסה occurs in Leviticus 11,3 , Onkelos translates it as "hoof." Rashi, on the other hand, explains the word as meaning the same both here and in Leviticus. His exact words are: "sole of the foot." Targum Yonathan also adopts the translation "hoof."

Since the Temple was going to be built on territory belonging to the tribe of Benjamin, Joseph alluded to the five important manifestations of the שכינה, the Divine Presence, that were missing during the period of the second Temple, and which will be restored when the third Temple will be built. All the details that the Torah reports here about Joseph and his brothers allude to matters of the future, to Messianic times. Joseph's fate, i.e. the גלגולים, wanderings, upheavals he experienced during his lifetime, foreshadowed the גלגולים of the Jewish nation in the future. He set in motion the descent of his family into the first exile, and thus became instrumental in the refining process which this experience proved to be for the Jewish people. Every subsequent exile had as its purpose the further refinement of the character of the Jewish people. Prior to the eventual redemption, Joseph will once again appear in the flesh as the משיח בן יוסף. Permanent rule will be reserved for Yehudah, however. The missing letter א from אדם that we have discussed, and which left only the word דם with its negative connotation, was restored when the Jewish people underwent mass circumcision at the hands of Joshua before conquering the land of Canaan. At that time the prediction of Pharaoh's horoscope which indicated a bloody end to the Jewish people was reversed (cf. Rashi on Exodus 10, 10). The דם, blood, which had had negative connotations up to that time, was converted into a positive, lifegiving experience through the act of circumcision. The mystical dimension of the letters ד"ם in the name אדם, is also an allusion to דוד in his capacity as the משיח. We have explained more than once that the mystical dimension of אדם is “אדם-דוד-משיח.” The seventy years that David lived were a gift of אדם who wanted to be rehabilitated through David, and thereby ultimately complete his life in the glory in which it had begun.

This brings us to the mystical dimension of Exodus 10,1: למען שיתי אתתי אלה בקרבו, "In order that I can place these My signs in its midst." G–d performed all these miracles in His capacity as י-ה-ו-ה, as I have pointed out in my commentary on the last two portions, in connection with G–d proclaiming: אני י-ה-ו-ה. The Zohar, commenting on Kohelet 8,9: עת אשר שלט האדם באדם לרע לו, "There is a time when one man rules over the other to his detriment," explains that just as the oppressors of the Jewish people became the ראש because they temporarily enjoyed the fact that the שכינה had chosen them to be its "mantle", so the same שכינה, when the time is ripe, will exploit this fact to humiliate these oppressors. This is the mystical dimension of the words אשר שלט האדם, the ideal prototype of man as found under G–d's "throne," in the verse just mentioned. The second word באדם in the same verse refers to אדם הבליעל, depraved man. The letters in G–d's name "expand" to engulf and humiliate the respective שר who functioned as a temporary בכור, first-born. The plagues on the nation of Egypt were orchestrated with the help of the מטה, staff. The letter י of the name of G–d on that staff expanded into Ten Plagues, whereas the letter ה engraved on that staff ensured that each plague would appear in five guises as mentioned by Rabbi Akiva in the Haggadah shel Pessach.

Let me first quote a statement by our sages before turning to the text of Rashi's commentary. Shemot Rabbah, 13,3, commenting on Exodus 10,1: כי אני הכבדתי את לב פרעה, "For I have hardened the heart of Pharaoh," quotes Rabbi Yochanan as follows: "Here the Torah seems to provide an opening for the heretics to say that Pharaoh was not guilty because G–d prevented him from repenting. Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish replied that on the contrary we can use this verse to stop such heretics in their tracks. Solomon tells us in Proverbs 3,34: 'At the scoffers He scoffs, but to the humble He shows grace.' G–d warns a person up to three times. After a person ignores three such warnings and fails to repent, G–d makes such a person's heart unresponsive to thoughts of repentance in order to now pay him his just deserts. This is what happened with the wicked Pharaoh. G–d gave Pharaoh five chances [during the first five plagues no mention is made of G–d hardening the heart of Pharaoh. Ed.] and Pharaoh failed to respond. Then G–d said to him: 'Since you have insisted on being obstinate, and have made your own heart unresponsive, I shall now add more impurity to the impurity you have already heaped upon yourself.' This is the meaning of 10,1: 'I have hardened Pharaoh's heart '" Thus far the Midrash.

To return to the subject which we touched upon earlier of how the שר can don the "mantle" of the שכינה. Although this is a tremendous display of power for such a שר, it will boomerang and become the cause of his downfall as we mentioned earlier. This procedure is alluded to in the words of our פרשה in 10,2, where the Torah says: "how I have made a mockery of the Egyptians." Rashi explains that the word התעללתי במצרים, means "I have toyed with them." We need to understand the meaning of this שחוק, game, that G–d played. When we consider the august position of the שר של מצרים as we have described, we realise that when he was at the height of his power, this שר gave no thought to his eventual demise, and that the higher he would rise, the greater would be his eventual fall into a deep pit. The very "mantle" of the שכינה which he wore would become the cause of his downfall. At that time, G–d in Heaven, who is aware of the exact moment in time when events would cause the שר של מצרים to fall, would smile. The timing of these events is alluded to in Moses' words to Pharaoh in 10,3: "How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me?" Humbling oneself means to turn from being evil to being good. We have a prime example of this when Samael, who had been Jacob's arch-enemy, changed direction and accorded Jacob his blessing, his recognition (Genesis 32,29).

To return to the subject which we touched upon earlier of how the שר can don the "mantle" of the שכינה. Although this is a tremendous display of power for such a שר, it will boomerang and become the cause of his downfall as we mentioned earlier. This procedure is alluded to in the words of our פרשה in 10,2, where the Torah says: "how I have made a mockery of the Egyptians." Rashi explains that the word התעללתי במצרים, means "I have toyed with them." We need to understand the meaning of this שחוק, game, that G–d played. When we consider the august position of the שר של מצרים as we have described, we realise that when he was at the height of his power, this שר gave no thought to his eventual demise, and that the higher he would rise, the greater would be his eventual fall into a deep pit. The very "mantle" of the שכינה which he wore would become the cause of his downfall. At that time, G–d in Heaven, who is aware of the exact moment in time when events would cause the שר של מצרים to fall, would smile. The timing of these events is alluded to in Moses' words to Pharaoh in 10,3: "How long will you refuse to humble yourself before Me?" Humbling oneself means to turn from being evil to being good. We have a prime example of this when Samael, who had been Jacob's arch-enemy, changed direction and accorded Jacob his blessing, his recognition (Genesis 32,29).

Pharaoh's repentance was of the category described by Jeremiah. He even said it openly when he exclaimed in 10,17: ויסר מעלי רק את המות הזה, "In order that He should remove from me only this death!" His servants who told him "dismiss these people and let them serve their G–d, for do you not know yet that Egypt will perish?" were not much better. This is why Moses said to Pharaoh in 9,30: "I know that neither you nor your servants have yet experienced true reverence for the Lord G–d." Moses merely intimated that he knew that the motivation of Pharaoh's professed remorse was not a true תשובה. G–d confirmed this in 10,3 when He said to Pharaoh (through Moses): "How long do you refuse to humble yourself before Me?"

Adam and Eve, who were the cause of the drop of semen becoming smelly, were also instrumental in Adam ejaculating semen for one hundred and thirty years without that semen impregnating his wife. Instead, that semen turned into a variety of evil spirits, thus necessitating additional refinement צירוף, and תקונים. The exile in Egypt was the first step designed to remove impurity from the holy seed of the descendants of Jacob who resembled the spiritual beauty of Adam before he had sinned. Jacob's first drop of semen was intended to impregnate Rachel, whom he thought he had married under the wedding canopy. It was Joseph who kept alive the covenant with G–d, and therefore the descent to Egypt of Jacob's entire family was orchestrated through Joseph. The area in which this refinement was to take place was one called ערות הארץ, a part of the earth in which shame resides. The earth is perceived as being similar to a human being in that it has a head, eyes, arms, legs, as well as parts corresponding to the private parts of a human being, מקום ערוה. Our sages deduce this from such verses as Proverbs 8, 26: ראש עפרות תבל, "the head of the clumps of dust in the world;" earth is also described as רחבת ידים "possessed of generous hands" (Genesis 34,21). Scripture speaks of the earth's טבור, "navel." There are many similar metaphors which describe parts of the earth. This means that though earth is one continuous mass, entity, it possesses many parts just as a human being, who is a unit, has many parts. Just as various organs in the human body perform different functions and possess different degrees of importance, so earth has many parts, each of which performs a different function.