Mussar sobre Gênesis 12:10

On 12,6 "Abraham traversed the land," Rashi comments נכנס לתוכה, "he entered into it." This is most appropriate, since Abraham began to understand the inner significance of ארץ ישראל. Later on we read in 12, 10 that Abraham descended (into Egypt) and subsequently (13, 1) that he ascended from Egypt. The Torah teaches that one does not recognise the advantage of light over darkness until one has experienced the latter. This was Abraham's experience in Egypt, [when he came from Charan his arrival in the land of Canaan is described only as "Abraham went…..they came to the land of Canaan (12,4/5), not a word about an עליה, an ascent. Ed.]. Egypt was considered a secondary מרכבה, as is alluded to in Genesis 41,43 when Joseph rides in מרכבת המשנה, "Pharaoh's number two state coach." Our sages understand these words as referring to the fact that next to the land of Israel, Egypt serves as an alternate מרכבה for G–d's Presence. The Zohar (Sullam edition Parshat Mikeitz page 23) describes it thus: G–d has a מרכבה עליונה and a מרכבה תחתונה. The latter one is called מרכבת המשנה, "the secondary carrier." Abraham utilized all the great wisdom he had acquired while he was in Egypt. Afterwards he ascended "southward" (13,1). Our sages have taught us the principle that "anyone who wishes to acquire wisdom should turn southward" (Baba Batra 28). Thus when Abraham returned to the "South" of the land of Canaan he began to learn the "real" wisdom, an appreciation of Jewish theology. It was then that he began to appreciate the real advantage of spiritual light over spiritual darkness.

On the verse "There was famine in the land" (12,10), Nachmanides writes as follows: Abraham descended to Egypt on account of the famine, in order to spend some time there to keep alive during the drought, and the Egyptians oppressed him by robbing him of his wife. G–d took revenge on them by striking them with great afflictions and G–d led Abraham out from there with livestock, silver and gold. Pharaoh even ordered his men to make sure that Abraham would depart. Abraham's experience was repeated when Jacob and family descended to Egypt to escape the famine in Canaan, when they were eventually oppressed and the Egyptians separated them from their wives. The Israelites were eventually liberated but only after the Egyptians had been smitten with many plagues. Everything that their patriarch Abraham experienced, his descendants experienced on a national scale. The whole matter is explained by Rabbi Pinchas in the name of Rabbi Oshiyah in Bereshit Rabbah 40,6 who has G–d tell Abraham that he should pave the way for his descendants, and that as a result you find that Abraham's experiences foreshadowed those of his descendants. Example: Abraham experienced famine and moved to Egypt; Joseph told his father Israel that there would be five more years of famine (Genesis 45,6).