אַתֶּ֣ם רְאִיתֶ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר עָשִׂ֖יתִי לְמִצְרָ֑יִם וָאֶשָּׂ֤א אֶתְכֶם֙ עַל־כַּנְפֵ֣י נְשָׁרִ֔ים וָאָבִ֥א אֶתְכֶ֖ם אֵלָֽי׃
나의 애굽 사람에게 어떻게 행하였음과 내가 어떻게 독수리 날개로 너희를 업어 내게로 인도하였음을 너희가 보았느니라
Haamek Sheilah
However, if he is able to rise above human nature and becomes an Israelite through whom God, may He be blessed, becomes glorified, His Providence in return transcends the nature of the world, and [He] will cause His glorious arm to march at his right hand.19See Isa. 63:12, “Who made His glorious arm march at the right hand of Moshe.” This matter is further elaborated in my compilation, Ha’amek Davar, on the Torah passage of Yisro,20See Ex. 19:4–6: “You have seen what I did to Egypt, and that I have borne you on the wings of eagles and brought you to Me. And now, if you hearken well to Me and observe My covenant, you shall be to Me the most beloved treasure of all peoples, for Mine is the entire world. You shall be to Me a kingdom of ministers and a holy nation.” To paraphrase the Netziv’s interpretation of these verses: “You have seen what I have done to Egypt for your sake, and how I have sustained you in a manner that transcends nature. From now on, Divine Providence will be in accordance with your acts. If you study the Torah well and serve Me, you will merit these rewards. From now on, the nations of the world can only achieve this spiritual goal if they join the Jewish nation, a beloved treasure collected of all different peoples who dwell upon My earth. If you serve me properly, Divine Providence will govern as a kingdom of ministers, in a favorable manner consistent with nature. However, if you perform the mitzvos for the sake of Heaven, you will be treated as a holy and distinctive nation in which Divine Providence shall manifest in a manner that transcends nature.” where I explain that God communicated this concept to Israel at the gathering [around Mount Sinai] prior to the giving of the Torah, with Moshe reiterating this at the giving of the Second Tablets. I also discussed these two ways of performing the Commandments and their respective ways of Providence on the Torah portion dealing with tzitzis [fringes], read daily [in the shema].21The Netziv writes in Num. 15:38–41 that the azure threads of the tzitzis represent the Divine Throne, while the white ones represent man’s involvement in the world. Some Jews are similar to the white threads, being constantly involved in worldly affairs, while those who are immersed in the Torah and in spiritual affairs are represented by the purple threads. We read the shema daily in order to understand that regardless of whether we comprise the Merkavah de-Shechinah or are immersed in day-to-day affairs, we cannot ignore the daily performance of mitzvos and we must perform them at their proper time, even if they appear to interrupt our financial or spiritual growth. Verse 41 states: “I am the Lord your God Who took you from the land of Egypt to be your God; I am the Lord your God.” The phrase “I am the Lord your God” is repeated twice to represent the two forms of Divine Providence: once for those who are involved in worldly affairs, is to perform the mitzvos that they received upon leaving Egypt, and again for those who are the Merkava de-Shechina, who existed both before and after the exodus from Egypt. This subject is quite involved and it will be explained there [in Ha’amek Davar] as God decrees that it should be so, and may He assist me in that task. [However, I am not delving into this concept of Providence] here, I am only touching on this subject to clarify and answer the question at hand.
Naftali Seva Ratzon
Birkat Hamazon: It is written in the Zohar that by participating in the zimmun121A zimmun is the introductory lines which are recited before the grace which can only be said if there is at least three people present. before the Grace after Meals, we weaken the demonic forces which might attack us in the world. This idea is based on the belief122Talmud Pesachim that doubles are unlucky. For instance, one should not drink two cups of wine – rather, one should drink a third. Similarly two people should not walk in the streets together lest they be attacked by spirits. Evil spirits have no power over threes. Perhaps the reason for this that the evil spirits are formed from two elements – fire and wind – therefore they have the ability to have control over twos, but not over things that are made up of threes. We learn that the Grace should be introduced by three from the verse, gadlu ladonai itee…123Psalm 34:4 “Ascribe greatness to the Lord with me.” Gadlu is plural so it counts for two and the word itee, “with me,” refers to one; together they equal three. We ascribe greatness to the lord in the presence of three. So when three are together blessing God we in fact weaken the sitra achra,124The Other Side is the term used in Zohar for the demonic realm. In Kabbalistic thought there is a strong belief in the existence of the a demonic realm. This realm is not anti-god but actually is an outgrowth of the Sephirah of Gevurah or Din, stern judgment, so that even the demonic is a part of God. Kabbalists discuss why evil is part of the divine plan for the universe. the demonic realm.
The different blessings of the Birkat Hamazon resulted from historic events in Jewish history. The first passage, that, God feeds everyone, was composed by Moses in response to the bestowal of manna for the people of Israel in the wilderness. Joshua decreed the second paragraph, “For the good land and the food” when the people began the conquest of the land.
Jewish law discusses the obligation of a master toward his servant. Jewish law states that a person who has a non-Jewish slave can say to him, ‘you shall work for me but I am not obligated to feed you.’ For an Israelite slave, however, the master has an obligation to provide him with food, based on the verse, “But should he say…I don’t want to leave you…and he is happy with you.”125Deuteronomy 15:16 – the assumption seems to be that for an Israelite slave it is actually good to be a servant since his master has an obligation to properly provide for him. We may be troubled with the idea that a non-Jewish slave or an Eved Canaani was treated differently than a Israelite slave. For the purpose of this discussion, this is the assumption that Rabbi Ginzburg makes – the discussion of why this is the case will have to reserved for another time. This is the reason for the statement of the sages, “One who acquires an Israelite slave, acquires a master for himself.”126Talmud Kiddushin 20a The Torah tells us that we are like Israelite slaves in relation to God. The Torah says, “For it is to me that the Israelites are slaves: they are my servants who I freed from the land of Egypt.”127Leviticus 25:55 Since we have the status of Israelite slaves in relation to God, God has an obligation to provide us with food. The Midrash tells us that it is the way of the world for a servant to serve his master: to carry a lantern before him, etc. God said, “I have changed the general custom of the world. Generally the slave does for his master; I do for my servants,” as it says “The Lord went before them…to give them light.128Exodus 13:21 It is generally the custom for the servant to carry the burden for his master, but with regard to Israel the Torah says, ”I shall carry you on the wings of eagles.”129Exodus 19:4 Following this line of reasoning, why did God change the general custom with regard to the Israelites and make himself a servant to them?
When the Israelites left Egypt God treated them like Hebrew slaves: God fed them manna, the food of angels, and he gave them fresh bread each day just as the master of servants would receive130Manna is after all, ‘bread from heaven.’. Not only that, but he gave them food every day rather than once a year as one might do with slaves. But God also called the Israelites ‘children,’ a term which would have had a different status in the eyes of Jewish law. The Torah says, “Israel is my first born.” And yet a parent has no obligation to provide food for his son once he reaches the age of Bar Mitzvah. It is not an obligation but it is a mitzvah to do so if the child is going to study Torah.131Ginzburg makes an interesting contrast here between mitzvah and hiyyuv, commandment and mitzvah obligation. From his perspective, they are not the same! Similarly, the master of a non-Israelite slave has no obligation to provide food for his servant. The Israelite, then, received food from the perspective of an obligation but not as a son or as a non-Israelite. It seems strange that the son who is similar to one who serves out of love receives less than the Hebrew slave, who serves his master out of fear!
We can now understand the language of the first blessing of the Birkat HaMazon. The passage begins by saying that, “God gives bread to all flesh, with grace, with kindness and with compassion;” that is, God supports all human beings freely and unconditionally, be they non-Jewish slave or Israelites. He supports non-Jewish slaves out of compassion and He provides for Israelites who serve Him out of love because they are like His ‘children,’ even though he has no obligation to do so. And lest one think that God provides food because we are his servants who serve God out of fear rather than love, the first paragraph goes on to say, “You provide bread for all your creatures; as your love endures forever.” This is a reference to one who serves God out of fear. God provides because His kindness is ‘forever.’
So what is the difference between one who serves God out of love and one who serves God out of fear? The Midrash says that one who serves God out of fear is protected for one thousand generations while one who serves God out of love is protected and provided for two thousand generations. Both receive God’s love but the one who serves out of love is more deserving of God’s blessing.132I don’t claim to understand what Rabbi Ginzburg is getting at here or how this ties into the first paragraph of the Grace after Meals. Whichever type of servant we are talking about here – either the one who serves out of love or the one who does so out of fear of God is the recipient of God’s kindness. God feeds us not because we are worthy of His goodness but because God is compassionate and kind to all his creatures. In the end we are all unworthy – the non-Jewish slave, the Hebrew servant who serves God out of fear or the one who does so out of love. We are all recipients of God’s constant love.
The different blessings of the Birkat Hamazon resulted from historic events in Jewish history. The first passage, that, God feeds everyone, was composed by Moses in response to the bestowal of manna for the people of Israel in the wilderness. Joshua decreed the second paragraph, “For the good land and the food” when the people began the conquest of the land.
Jewish law discusses the obligation of a master toward his servant. Jewish law states that a person who has a non-Jewish slave can say to him, ‘you shall work for me but I am not obligated to feed you.’ For an Israelite slave, however, the master has an obligation to provide him with food, based on the verse, “But should he say…I don’t want to leave you…and he is happy with you.”125Deuteronomy 15:16 – the assumption seems to be that for an Israelite slave it is actually good to be a servant since his master has an obligation to properly provide for him. We may be troubled with the idea that a non-Jewish slave or an Eved Canaani was treated differently than a Israelite slave. For the purpose of this discussion, this is the assumption that Rabbi Ginzburg makes – the discussion of why this is the case will have to reserved for another time. This is the reason for the statement of the sages, “One who acquires an Israelite slave, acquires a master for himself.”126Talmud Kiddushin 20a The Torah tells us that we are like Israelite slaves in relation to God. The Torah says, “For it is to me that the Israelites are slaves: they are my servants who I freed from the land of Egypt.”127Leviticus 25:55 Since we have the status of Israelite slaves in relation to God, God has an obligation to provide us with food. The Midrash tells us that it is the way of the world for a servant to serve his master: to carry a lantern before him, etc. God said, “I have changed the general custom of the world. Generally the slave does for his master; I do for my servants,” as it says “The Lord went before them…to give them light.128Exodus 13:21 It is generally the custom for the servant to carry the burden for his master, but with regard to Israel the Torah says, ”I shall carry you on the wings of eagles.”129Exodus 19:4 Following this line of reasoning, why did God change the general custom with regard to the Israelites and make himself a servant to them?
When the Israelites left Egypt God treated them like Hebrew slaves: God fed them manna, the food of angels, and he gave them fresh bread each day just as the master of servants would receive130Manna is after all, ‘bread from heaven.’. Not only that, but he gave them food every day rather than once a year as one might do with slaves. But God also called the Israelites ‘children,’ a term which would have had a different status in the eyes of Jewish law. The Torah says, “Israel is my first born.” And yet a parent has no obligation to provide food for his son once he reaches the age of Bar Mitzvah. It is not an obligation but it is a mitzvah to do so if the child is going to study Torah.131Ginzburg makes an interesting contrast here between mitzvah and hiyyuv, commandment and mitzvah obligation. From his perspective, they are not the same! Similarly, the master of a non-Israelite slave has no obligation to provide food for his servant. The Israelite, then, received food from the perspective of an obligation but not as a son or as a non-Israelite. It seems strange that the son who is similar to one who serves out of love receives less than the Hebrew slave, who serves his master out of fear!
We can now understand the language of the first blessing of the Birkat HaMazon. The passage begins by saying that, “God gives bread to all flesh, with grace, with kindness and with compassion;” that is, God supports all human beings freely and unconditionally, be they non-Jewish slave or Israelites. He supports non-Jewish slaves out of compassion and He provides for Israelites who serve Him out of love because they are like His ‘children,’ even though he has no obligation to do so. And lest one think that God provides food because we are his servants who serve God out of fear rather than love, the first paragraph goes on to say, “You provide bread for all your creatures; as your love endures forever.” This is a reference to one who serves God out of fear. God provides because His kindness is ‘forever.’
So what is the difference between one who serves God out of love and one who serves God out of fear? The Midrash says that one who serves God out of fear is protected for one thousand generations while one who serves God out of love is protected and provided for two thousand generations. Both receive God’s love but the one who serves out of love is more deserving of God’s blessing.132I don’t claim to understand what Rabbi Ginzburg is getting at here or how this ties into the first paragraph of the Grace after Meals. Whichever type of servant we are talking about here – either the one who serves out of love or the one who does so out of fear of God is the recipient of God’s kindness. God feeds us not because we are worthy of His goodness but because God is compassionate and kind to all his creatures. In the end we are all unworthy – the non-Jewish slave, the Hebrew servant who serves God out of fear or the one who does so out of love. We are all recipients of God’s constant love.
Kli Yakar
“As an eagle stirs up its nest, hovering over its young.” Here, the eagle is above and the fledglings below, and afterward He spreads His wings, takes him, bears him on His pinions — now the fledglings are above the eagle. This aligns with the Midrash (Song of Songs Rabbah 3:21) cited by Ramban in Parashat Chayei Sarah (24:1), that Israel is called daughter, sister, and mother, etc. For apparently this is not in order of progression. But it seems that initially the Holy One, blessed be He, called Israel “daughter” — Listen, daughter, etc. (Psalms 45:11). Just as a mother rules over her daughter, so the Holy One, blessed be He, rules over Israel. Afterward, He called them “my sister,” for just as brothers and sisters are equal, so the righteous become like partners with the Holy One, blessed be He. And afterward, He called them “mother,” for just as a mother rules over her daughter, so a righteous person rules through fear of God, as our Sages said (Moed Katan 16b): “The Holy One, blessed be He, said: ‘Who rules over Me? The righteous,’” etc. We have already explained all this in Parashat Yitro (19:4) on the verse I bore you on eagles’ wings, etc.
And if you will find a difficulty [to reconcile this], behold there it explains the verse I bore you on eagles’ wings as referring to when He calls them “daughter,” as a nursemaid carries an infant. And here you must interpret takes him, bears him on His pinions to mean that the righteous rule through fear of God. The answer is that there He mentioned the wings but not on His body, while here He mentioned His pinions [evrato] instead of wings. And I found explicitly written in the words of the commentators that pinions refers to the feathers directly on His body, and this truly indicates that the Holy One, blessed be He, has given the righteous authority over Him, for He decrees a decree and the righteous person nullifies it. These two extremes are mentioned here, and He omitted the middle position between these two extremes.
And if you will find a difficulty [to reconcile this], behold there it explains the verse I bore you on eagles’ wings as referring to when He calls them “daughter,” as a nursemaid carries an infant. And here you must interpret takes him, bears him on His pinions to mean that the righteous rule through fear of God. The answer is that there He mentioned the wings but not on His body, while here He mentioned His pinions [evrato] instead of wings. And I found explicitly written in the words of the commentators that pinions refers to the feathers directly on His body, and this truly indicates that the Holy One, blessed be He, has given the righteous authority over Him, for He decrees a decree and the righteous person nullifies it. These two extremes are mentioned here, and He omitted the middle position between these two extremes.
Rav Hirsch
프리미엄 회원 전용Rashi
יפרש כנפיו יקחהו [AS AN EAGLE …] SPREADETH ABROAD ITS WINGS, TAKETH IT — When it comes to remove them (the young) from one place to another, it does not take them with its claws, as other birds do: because other birds are afraid of the eagle that soars so high and flies above them, therefore they carry them (the young) by their (the mother’s) claws for fear of the eagle. But the eagle is afraid only of an arrow, therefore it carries them (the young) on its wings, saying, “It is better that the arrow pierce me than that it should pierce my young”. So, too, the Holy One, blessed be He, says, (Exodus 19:4) “I bare you as on eagles wings” (Mekhilta): when the Egyptians marched after them and overtook them at the Red Sea, they threw arrows and stone missiles at them, whereupon at once “The angel of God moved … and came between the camp of Egypt [and the camp of Israel]” that it might receive the arrows etc. (Exodus 14:19—20 And Rashi thereon).