Комментарий к Шмот 12:1

ויאמר ה' אל משה ואל אהרן AND THE LORD SPAKE UNTO MOSES AND AARON — Because Aaron had worked and toiled in performing the wonders just the same as Moses He paid him this honour at the first command by including him with Moses in the communication (Tanchuma Yahshan 2:3:8).

בארץ מצרים לאמר, seeing that this is a paragraph containing a great deal of legislation, it was important to state that this legislation was legislated when the Israelites were still in Egypt. The other commandments of the Torah were communicated to Moses/people either at Mount Sinai, the Tabernacle, or in the wilderness of Moav, shortly before Moses’ death. [there were also some at Marah, on the way to Mount Sinai. Ed.]

וידבר ה' אל משה ואל אהרן בארץ מצרים, “Hashem spoke to Moses and to Aaron in the land of Egypt, etc.” The emphasis here is on the word ארץ, in open country, outside the city limits, as our sages have explained. We must distinguish between such utterances of G’d to Moses as the instruction to warn Pharaoh of the plague of the dying of the firstborn, a communication Moses received while in Pharaoh’s palace, not outside the city limits. Prayers, commandments, etc., G’d had not revealed within the urban area to Moses, nor did Moses offer his prayers, there, as the urban centers were the centers which abounded with idolatrous symbols, symbols which were despicable in the eyes of G’d. In fact, Moses had already been informed about the plague but it had not been a commandment in the sense that he had to deliver the warning at a certain time. This occurred only now, and seeing that there was nothing new in it this warning this could be delivered within the urban area. The legislation about a new calendar and the Passover had to be revealed outside the urban areas of Egypt

ויאמר ה' אל משה ואל אהרן. “G’d spoke to Moses and Aaron.” Even though it appears from the wording of the verse that G’d’s words were addressed to both Moses and Aaron, Moses was the principal recipient of G’d’s words. When the Torah writes in Exodus 20,12: “honor your father and your mother,” the father is the principal subject in that commandment. Seeing that Aaron was involved in performing the miracles the Torah included his name amongst those addressed.

Kap. 12. V. 1 u. 2. also noch im Lande Mizrajim, gab Gott dem Mosche und Aaron eine neue Sendung in dem Kreise des eigenen Volkes, deren Erfolg gesicherter sein soll. Bis dahin waren Mosche und Aaron die Gottesgesandten für Israel an Pharao; sie werden fortan die Boten Gottes an Israel, und diese ihre Sendung schließt sich eng ihrer Sendung an Pharao an. אותות ומופתים im Lande Mizrajim zu üben, war bis jetzt ihr Beruf, um durch Hinweisung auf Gott offenbarende, das Menschengemüt ergreifende Naturereignisse die ägyptischen Menschen zum verlorenen Gott- und Menschenpflichtbewusstsein zurückzuführen und durch sie eine Umwandlung, eine Erneuung und Wiedergeburt des Pharao zu versuchen. Der Wahn und die Verderbnis hatten jedoch dies Herz zu stark und zu lange bereits gefangen gehalten. Nur unter dem Eindruck des Schreckens und der Angst war ihm ein Unterwerfen unter Gottes Willen abzuringen. Sich selbst wiedergegeben, blieb das Herz starr, unbeweglich das alte. An diese Erfahrung knüpfte Gott an, und — damit in seinem nun werdenden Volke der Wahn und die Verderbnis nie einniste, die dann selbst Schreckenszeichen und Strafwundern nicht weichen möchten — begann Er die innere Schöpfung seines Volkes mit Einsetzung eines אות, eines regelmäßig periodisch wiederkehrenden Wahrzeichens, das immer aufs neue den Blick des Volkes auf sich ziehe, zur immer neuen Wiedergeburt aus der Nacht des Wahns und der Verderbnis lade und die ewige Verjüngung zur Wahrheit und Reinheit also sichere, dass es Israel für immer vor ägyptischer geistiger und sittlicher Erstarrung bewahre.

בארץ מצרים, “in the land of Egypt.” Outside of the capital. If a conversation with G–d concerning a minor matter required Moses to leave the capital, as we know from Exodus 9,29, when something of major importance was to be discussed this required him to leave the capital of Egypt even more so.[This is all based on the extraneous words “in the land,” in our verse. It would have otherwise sufficed to simply write: “in Egypt.” Ed.] The reason why outside the capital of Egypt G–d would address Moses was that the land of Israel had not yet been chosen as the only area from which prophecy would be received. [When the first Temple was destroyed the prophet Ezekiel did receive prophetic visions as we know from Ezekiel 3,22. So did the prophet Jonah (Jonah 1,3) who had fled from the Holy Land. At any rate, as long as Jerusalem had not become the capital of Israel, G–d sometimes addressed prophets outside its boundaries. During those years sacrificial offerings were also acceptable outside Jerusalem. Moses’ warning in Deuteronomy 12,13, not to offer such offerings any place the owner of the animal chose to do so, was also not effective before the Temple stood in Jerusalem. The town itself was potentially on a spiritual level where prophetic visions could be received. As long as Aaron had not been appointed as High Priest, any area was potentially fit to serve as sovereign soil for the Jewish people under a king. These rules are derived from verses in Kings I 8,16, as well as from Chronicles II 13,5.

ויאמר ה' אל משה ואהרו, this paragraph had been revealed to Moses prior to the instructions about the plague of the killing of the firstborn, as it must have been revealed before the tenth of the month, seeing that it contains instructions applicable from the 10th of the month onwards. The killing of the firstborn occurred during the night from the fourteenth to the fifteenth of that month. Seeing that we have a principle that the Torah is not bound to be written in chronological order of events described, this does not present a problem. Whenever the author of the Torah did not want to interrupt a certain subject under discussion, one way of achieving this was to ignore chronology. Another reason for this here is that the laws applicable to the month of Nissan should appear consecutively without interruption or digression.

בארץ מצרים IN THE LAND OF EGYPT — This must have been outside the city! Or perhaps this is not so, but it was inside the city? Scripture however states, (Exodus 9:29) “When I leave the city [I will spread my hands (pray) unto the Lord]”. Now how was it in regard to prayer which is of light importance in comparison with a communication from God? He did not recite the prayer inside the city! Then, in the case of a divine communication which is of so weighty importance does it not follow all the more that this was also so! — And why, indeed, did He not converse with him inside the city? Because it was full of idols (Mekhilta d'Rabbi Yishmael 12:1:4).

בארץ מצרים, “in the land of Egypt.” Seeing that this chapter contains a number of commandments, it was necessary to write where these commandments were issued. Whenever no mention is made of where a commandment was issued, we can assume that it was first issued at Mount Sinai. [Though not necessarily communicated to the people at the time it was issued. Ed.]

לאמר, “go and tell them immediately.”