Exodus · Chapter 6

And Hashem said to Moses: Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh, for by a mighty hand he will send them out, and by a mighty hand he will drive them from his land.

עתה תראה וגו׳ NOW THOU SHALT SEE etc. — You have criticised My methods of guiding the world. You are not like Abraham to whom I said. (Genesis 21:12) “for through Isaac shall seed be raised unto thee” and to whom I afterwards said, (Gen 22:2) “bring him up as a burnt offering”, and yet he did not criticise My ways, therefore, עתה תראה NOW THOU SHALT SEE — what will now be done to Pharaoh thou shalt see, but thou shalt not see what will be done to the kings of the seven nations of Canaan when I shall bring them (the Israelites) into the Holy Land (cf. Sanhedrin 111a). כי ביד חזקה ישלחם this means: for on account of My strong hand (i. e. the strong hand which I will use against him, the ב in ביד denoting “on account of”) — which will prove strong against him he will send them away. וביד חזקה יגרשם מארצו AND WITH A STRONG HAND SHALL HE DRIVE THEM OUT OF HIS LAND — against the will of the Israelites themselves will he drive them out of his land: they will not have sufficient time to prepare provisions for themselves for the journey. So, indeed, does Scripture state: (Exodus 12:33) “And Egypt was urgent (תחזק. lit., was strong) upon the people etc.”.

"And He said" — 'Now you will see.' When I bring the plagues upon Egypt, there will be some relief for them, as I will explain further.

. עתה תראה, now that you have seen yourself the sin of Pharaoh who has the nerve to hold on to the Israelites with the authority of his office, you will see that he will not only release them voluntarily, but ביד חזקה ישלחם, not only will he release them, but he will be forced to get rid of them post haste due to the problems he will have while they are still in his country. וביד חזקה יגרשם מראצו, in contrast with his keeping the Israelites enslaved in his country at this time, he will eventually be forced to expel them by force so that not a single one of them will remain behind.

עתה תראה אשר אעשה לפרעה, "Now you are about to see what I shall do to Pharaoh, etc." The word עתה was G'd's answer to Moses' ומאז באתי, that G'd had made things worse for Israel than prior to Moses' appointment. G'd told Moses that not only would the additional hardships cease forthwith but also the hardships endured by the people up until then would come to an end immediately. We have already mentioned that slave labour ceased from the time the river Nile was struck and turned into blood. G'd made it plain to Moses that not only had he been wrong in assuming that the most recent decree of Pharaoh would last for twelve months, but even his previous decrees would become inoperative at once. G'd also answered Moses concerning what Moses had perceived as G'd's failure to respond to the way Pharaoh had slighted Him. This is why He told Moses that He would smite him until Pharaoh would dismiss the Israelites because he had experienced G'd's strong hand. We explained already that G'd delayed the final plague in order to punish Pharaoh for his blasphemy. וביד חזקה, "and with a mighty hand, etc." This second reference to G'd's mighty hand was a preview of the consternation G'd would cause at the time of the killing of the firstborn when the Torah reports that there was not a single house in Egypt in which not at least one person died at that time (compare Yalkut Shimoni on Exodus 12,30 where it is explained that if there was no actual firstborn in a specific house at the time, the oldest would be killed). As a result of all this the Egyptians would not only dismiss the Israelites but would actually יגרשם, "expel them," as each Egyptian feared for his own life every minute (compare Exodus 12,33). G'd answered Moses' other argument as to why He had allowed things to get worse in the next פרשה.

כי ביד חזקה, because through a combination of (My) strong hand and coupled with (his) obstinacy, i.e. ויד חזקה, he will expel them from Egypt. When G-d said in 11,1 that Pharaoh would dispatch, ישלח, the Israelites, He referred to his dispatching them permanently, not for a three day trip into the desert.

Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh. The word now is a proper response to Moses regarding what he said, Why have You done evil to this people? For Moses did not complain about Pharaoh not immediately sending the Israelites when he came to him, as the Holy One, blessed be He, had already told him twice that the king of Egypt would not allow them to go. Rather, he complained about how He made things worse for this people than before, because at the very least if his mission did not immediately help them, it should not have harmed them. Yet our eyes see that his mission did harm them. Moses said, “Perhaps I was the cause of this because You sent to him a man with a heavy mouth and tongue like me. Therefore, Pharaoh’s anger was intensified because he said, ‘See, the Jews are mocking me,’ and if so, why did You send me?” Moses perhaps understood this from Pharaoh’s words, Why, Moses and Aaron, do you disturb the people, as he should have said, “Moses and Aaron, why do you disturb?” Rather, this is what he meant: “If some other suitable and eloquent person had been sent on this mission to disturb the people from their work, I would have been silent. But why Moses and Aaron, who are not fit for this mission, and they disturb the people from their work?” This angered him even more — that this mission was carried out by an unworthy messenger rather than someone appropriate for the task. And the Holy One, blessed be He, answered him, “Now you will see, etc.” For it is known that this is the natural order — that every day, just before the dawn rises, the darkness becomes even more intense than the night’s darkness, and afterward the light of dawn breaks through and rises. Similarly, most sick people, just before their death, strengthen and sit up in bed and ask for food, and afterward death overpowers them. And likewise in the winter days, just before the sun rises, the cold intensifies, and finally it is overcome by the sun. This is natural, for any natural thing that senses something opposing it coming to nullify its existence will strengthen itself against its opponent and refuse to yield before it, exerting in its nature all the power it can muster, until finally it is defeated because the opposite force has overpowered it. This is true in all the examples we mentioned. Similarly, the fact that Pharaoh has now worsened his treatment of Israel more than before is conclusive proof that his end is near and that the time of redemption is close, which will nullify all of Pharaoh’s actions. Therefore, he wants to strengthen his efforts. This is what is meant by Now you will see — with the word now, He answered Moses’ question of Why have You brought harm…? Because now the time has arrived when Pharaoh will be compelled to send them away and expel them, therefore he wishes to rise up against them with a strong hand. And this is proof that My salvation is close to come, and My righteousness to be revealed. One can also interpret the word “now you will see,” to indicate that the end of the 400 years that they were supposed to be in Egypt had not yet arrived, for they were only enslaved for 210 years. Therefore, [God] increased their suffering and servitude so that the smaller amount [of time] would count as a larger calculation, because in these few days it was as if they had been enslaved for many years, and through this the end time would be brought closer to them, so that now, immediately, you will see what I will do to Pharaoh. This is a correct inference.

עתה תראה, “now you will see;” according to Rashi the word “now” means that whereas Moses would witness the redemption from Egypt, he would not witness the entry of the people into the Holy Land. Both the accusation Moses leveled against G’d that He had worsened the fate of the people, and the failure to speak to the rock instead of hitting it in Numbers 20, 5-14, combined to his not being allowed to witness conquest of the land of Canaan.

כי ביד חזקה ישלחם, He will send them off in spite of the Israelites. The reference is to the fact that the Israelites will be expelled by him, not released, as the Torah reports in Exodus 12,33.

עתה תראה, “now you are about to see, etc;” according to Rashi, this is a criticism, G–d saying to Moses that when He subjected Avraham to a test of his faith, [when He had asked him to offer his son Yitzchok as a sacrifice, Ed.] the latter did not question His judgment, as opposed to Moses. [This editor does not understand the comparison, as Moses was concerned about his people, and when Avraham had heard about the impending destruction of Sodom and all its inhabitants, he also engaged in a dialogue with G–d requesting an explanation, and the Sodomites were far from being his people. Ed.] Our author, in referring to Avraham’s having asked G–d for a sign that he would fulfill His promise to make him into the founder of a great nation, Genesis 15,8 does not consider this as a criticism of G–d’s attributes. He supposedly asked only by what merit he had deserved to be given such a promise. G–d told him then that it was the merit of the sacrifices he would be about to be asked to offer forthwith.

And Hashem spoke with Moses and said to him: I am Hashem.

וידבר אלהים אל משה AND GOD SPOKE UNTO MOSES — He took him to task because he had spoken so censoriously when he said, (Exodus 5:22) “Wherefore hast thou done so evil to this people”. ויאמר אליו אני ה׳ AND HE SAID UNTO HIM, I AM THE LORD, Who am faithful to recompense with a full reward those who walk before Me. Nor have I sent you with no purpose in view (cf. 5:22), but to fulfil the promise which I made to the early patriarchs. In this sense we find that the phrase is to be explained in many passages: אני ה׳ signifies, I am the Lord, Who am faithful to exact punishment — when it is spoken in reference to a matter that demands punishment, as, for instance, (Leviticus 19:12) “And thou profanest the name of thy God; I am the Lord”; and when it is spoken in reference to observing the Divine commands — as in, (Leviticus 22:31) “Ye shall keep my commandments and do them; I am the Lord” — it signifies, “I am the Lord Who am faithful to give reward.”

AND G-D SPOKE UNTO MOSES. Rashi explains that He spoke to him harshly because he had been critical when he said, Wherefore hast Thou dealt ill with this people? AND HE SAID UNTO HIM: “I AM THE ETERNAL, Who am faithful to recompense reward to those who walk before Me wholeheartedly.” In this sense we find the phrase explained in many places, etc.

"And He spoke" — Scripture said, 'And the people believed' (above, 4:31), but not all of the people. Everyone, even Pharaoh, acknowledges God, as I will explain further. That is why it says, 'And He said to him: I am Hashem' — therefore say to the children of Israel, 'I am Hashem' (v. 6), 'and you shall know that I am Hashem your God, who brings you out' (v. 7).

'אני ה, the One Who maintains the entire universe all alone. I have not only called it into existence, but I also maintain it, and there is no other prime cause which exercises any independent influence on any part of My universe. Compare Nechemyah 9,6 ואתה מחיה את כולם “and You alone provide the nourishment to keep all creatures alive.” Unless I had given My consent no creature could continue to exist.

וידבר אלוקים אל משה, G'd spoke sternly to Moses, etc. Why did the Torah not tell us what G'd said? Besides, why did G'd refer to Himself as י־ה־ו־ה after He had already told Moses who He was in 3,15? At that time He had added: "this is My name forever!" Why then did He have to tell Moses at this juncture אני ה׳? Inasmuch as Moses had spoken in an unseemly manner in the presence of the Almighty, something that he never would have dared to do if G'd had not previously shown him His smiling face as represented by the attribute י־ה־ו־ה, G'd had to show him a different attribute i.e. אלוקים before answering him in detail. The Torah introduces this chapter (from verse 2) by letting us know that G'd spoke in His capacity as the attribute of Justice, i.e. אלוקים. When G'd appears to make a turnabout at the end of our verse and refers to Himself as the attribute of Mercy this is in line with the principle expressed in Berachot 30 that "wherever there is גלה, joy in one's relationship with G'd, there must be רעדה, fear or dread, simultaneously." Although G'd had previously displayed His attribute of Mercy this did not mean that man should not display an appropriate degree of trepidation when facing Him. Our verse may also be understood thus: וידבר אלוקים, G'd spoke to Moses on matters of justice. Since G'd wanted Moses to know that his argument had been heard and considered, He added: אני השם. The use of this attribute at this juncture is equivalent to G'd asking Moses: "how could you attribute to Me a negative virtue such as being the originator of harm befalling My people? My outstanding characteristic is the sttribute of חסד, love, mercy, etc." Even the prophet Jeremiah has already made it plain that evil never originates with G'd (compare Lamentations 3,38: "Evil does not originate from G'd (but only Good)." The letter ו in front of the word והטוב in the verse in Lamentations refers to the fact that G'd does not interfere if a person wants to be good or evil. These decisions are up to each individual. It is up to man to choose good rather than evil. When you study the Bible you will find that whenever G'd mentions that the wicked are being remembered when they receive their deserts, the Bible underlines that the evil they are being punished for is of their own making. Compare in this respect Samuel I 24,13: "Wicked deeds come from wicked men." Jeremiah 2,19: "Your evil deeds will cause you to be disciplined." Isaiah 64,6: "You have made us melt because of our iniquities." There are many more similar quotations in the Bible. In view of this what gave Moses the right to assume that the Israelites' additional hardships were not due to something they had done themselves? It is also possible that the Israelites had not yet been adequately punished for whatever they had been guilty of prior to Moses' appointment. Perhaps some of the people had even become guilty of lack of faith after Moses had accredited himself as their prophet and leader. Your best pro...

אני ה, “I am the Lord;” even though I have told you that you will be elohim as far as Pharaoh is concerned, I did not mean that Pharaoh is to stand in awe of you. He too is to stand in awe of Me. Rashi understands the line as “I am the One who is certain to reward and punish as and when required.” If you were to ask how the 4-lettered tetragram conveys that G-d rewards and punishes, and that this applies to this attribute of His more so than to any other attribute, this is the meaning when He explained in Exodus 3,14-15 that the very fact of His being eternal, and enjoying a full view of past and future developments, “this enables Me to mete out both reward and punishment equitably as I can foresee the implications of all of My actions.”

And God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am the Lord.” The phrase to him is completely redundant because Moses’s name was already mentioned. It seems to me that this follows the way our Sages explained (see Pirkei d’Rabbi Eliezer, Ibn Ezra, Sforno on Exodus 2:10) that Moses was called “Moshe” and not “Mashui” [one who was drawn out] because “Moshe” is in the present tense, and the spirit of God spoke through Pharaoh’s daughter to call him “Moshe,” meaning “one who draws out,” because he would be the one to draw Israel out from exile, from the treacherous waters. If Moses had examined his name, he would have truly known that Israel would be redeemed through him, and he would not have complained saying, Why have You sent me? Why have You brought harm (Exodus 5:22–23). However, on the other hand, there is room to judge Moses favorably because he examined his own nature and saw himself as “heavy of mouth and tongue,” therefore he thought he was not worthy of this mission. For this reason it says, And God spoke — harsh speech, “Elohim” representing the attribute of judgment, to Moses — suggesting that he deserved judgment for not examining his name “Moshe” and understanding from it that he would be the one to draw Israel out from exile. From this perspective, he should not have said Why have You brought harm. But because of his essence, God was filled with compassion for him, and said — gentle speech, to him — because of his essential nature, since he was “heavy of mouth and tongue,” therefore his heart was emboldened to say Why have You sent me? And because of to him, it was said to him I am the Lord, which indicates mercy, for His name and His essence contradicted each other. Therefore He said, I am the Lord, full of mercy, to judge you favorably.

וידבר אלוקים....וארא אל אברהם, “G’d said….I have appeared to Avraham, etc.” Rashi explains that instead of writing הודעתי, “I have made known,” the Torah wrote a passive mode לא נודעתי, “I have not become well known.” This means that G’d’s attribute of Hashem had not become properly known, familiar, to the patriarchs. Seeing that this attribute reveals more of G’d’s essence than such attributes as shaddai, or elokim, the element of G’d’s fulfilling commitments He made of a long term nature, such as the promise to Avraham that his descendants would survive 400 years of exile and enslavement and proceed to the land of Canaan and take it over as their ancestral homeland, this attribute would from now on become better known. G’d implies that seeing that the time frame after which the redemption was supposed to occur had not yet been completed, the fact that this attribute of G’d had not yet been appreciated was not a reflection of G’d having withheld important information. Rashi also quotes an alternate commentary which suggests that the people should have inquired after this attribute of G’d, [why He had failed to keep His promises, the ones made to the patriarchs, Ed.] and that G’d now explains the reason why He had not yet seen fit to do so. Rashi rejects such a commentary saying that the time for G’d fulfilling His promises had not arrived yet, so that such a complaint would have been inappropriate. The problem with such interpretations is that already during the very first revelation of G’d to Avraham at the covenant between the pieces (Genesis chapter 15), the Torah clearly states that “the word of Hashem came to Avram,” In other words, G’d introduced Himself to Avram not as shaddai or as elokim, but by His name Hashem.” He had added further that His claim on Avraham’s obedience was based on His having saved him from the furnace Nimrod had thrown him into in Ur Casdim. Rashi’s rejecting לא נודעתי as meaning “I have not made known,” is based on this appearance of G’d precisely as the attribute of Mercy, an essential attribute, as Avraham had not had a claim to being saved at the time, seeing he had voluntarily submitted to that test of his faith. [my words based on Rabbi Yitzchok Arama. Ed.] The question is why did G’d have to tell Moses: “I am Hashem,” seeing that He had been known as such to the patriarchs. I believe that the answer is simple. G’d tells Moses that although He had been known in His capacity as Hashem to the patriarchs, [compare how Avraham describes Mount Moriah after the binding of Yitzchok, as compared to the opening lines of that chapter (Genesis 22) Ed.] He had not appeared in that guise to the Jewish people as yet. The problem was that the people had not enquired as to the difference between these various attributes of G’d, i.e. when He would prefer to relate to them under one heading (attribute), and when He would prefer to relate to them under a different heading (attribute). Knowing all this, we can better understand Moses’ question to G’d in 3,13 “which of Your attributes (name) shall I say to them is the one which will orchestrate the redemption?” According to the interpretation of לא נודעתי להם, “I have not been known to them,” Moses’ question at that time should have been: “when they ask me what shall I tell them?” Rashi’s explanation that the entire paragraph contains a criticism of Moses who had questioned G’d’s handling of the situation since He had appointed him as leader, was to contrast his behaviour with that of the patriarchs who, even when faced with what appeared G’d’s inexplicable behaviour, had not questioned this. [I find all this somewhat strange. Avraham, when having to come to terms with G’d’s treatment of others, such as the people of Sodom had questioned G’d’s judgment, though he had never questioned it when it concerned his own fate. Moses too, questions why his people are suffering more; he does not question his own image being tarnished. Ed.] At any rate, we must not mistakenly understand G’d as saying that He had not been known as possessing the attribute of Hashem, but as explaining that only now had the time come to guide the fate of the Jewish people under that heading. Ibn Ezra writes that the letter ב in the word בא-ל, suggests that it applies also to an additional factor, i.e. meaning ”with.” [as in “and in addition to”, i.e. ובשמי ה', “and with My additional name, etc.” Ed.] Accordingly, we are to understand the line וארא אל אברהם ואל יצחק ואל יעקב בא-ל שדי ובשמי ה' לא נודעתי להם, “My task in appearing to the patriarchs as the attribute shaddai, i.e. the attribute which governs My power to control nature, the sun, moon, etc., was different from My task at this time when I have to demonstrate My power on earth, a domain basically assigned to man. [some of these words are my own, though I trust they reflect that of the author quoted. Ed.] The patriarchs had been taught that their experience when G’d saved them from famine, from the sword during war, etc., that these were phenomena not related to their specific good deeds, but to G’d exercising His השגחה, benevolent providence, as part of the השגחה כללית, supervision of the universe as a whole. [When directing phenomena devoid of free will such as nature, G’d employs a different attribute from that which He has to employ when facing opposing forces equipped with a free will, such as man. Ed.] During His guidance of the universe at the time of the patriarchs, He did not confront man’s free will. The blessings and curses promised in the Torah are not addressed to the conduct of individuals but to the conduct of mankind as a whole or the Jewish people as a whole, [although G’d warns individuals not to use the people as a whole as an umbrella to hide their individual misdeeds (Deuteronomy 29,17-20) Ed.] The real reward in this life for observing the Torah’s commandments is something known only to G’d, the lawgiver, it is in the nature of a נס נסתר, “a hidden miracle,” i.e. when it does occur no one can pinpoint it as something unnatural. [the concept is familiar from the string of “natural” coincidences and their timing which combine to make up the Purim story. Ed.] These apparent coincidences are actually part of the process of reward and punishment, except that they are not recognized by us as such at the time. The reason why the sages tell us that astronomical influences, i.e. mazzal, do not govern the lives of the Israelites is that the same G’d Who runs nature, also interferes in an invisible manner in what astrologers believed was a forecast of their fates in the stars. This does not mean that astrology is “for the birds,” on the contrary, it means that the Creator can manipulate the events forecast by astrology in a manner which changes their impact on the individuals whom He chooses to be so impacted. Such intervention enabled Rivkah to become pregnant and have children, and it resulted in the Jewish people surviving a bloody encounter forecast by the stars, by the blood in question becoming the blood of the mass circumcision performed by Joshua, instead of becoming the loss of their lifeblood. Moses had actually posed two questions to G’d. 1) Why did you send me on this mission at all? 2) Why have you so far failed to save the Jewish people from their misery? Concerning his second question G’d answered him: “now you are going to see why I sent you. You will witness what I am about to do to Pharaoh.” Concerning Moses’ first question G’d said: “I am Hashem.” G’d told him that He had used the patriarchs to demonstrate His stature as shaddai, the G’d controlling events from the heavenly throne, whereas now He would employ Moses to demonstrate how He organized events on earth, by Moses being as it were “His hand and His outstretched arm.” It is your task to make My attribute of Hashem familiar both to the Israelites and to the Egyptians, i.e. the rest of mankind.

וידבר אלוקים אל משה; in the land of Egypt, 'אני ה, My name will convey that I am the One able to keep all His promises.

And I revealed Myself to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob as El Shaddai, but My name Hashem I did not make known to them.

וארא AND I APPEARED — to the patriarchs. באל שדי BY THE NAME OF GOD ALMIGHTY — I made certain promises to them and in the case of all of these I said unto them, “I am God Almighty”. ושמי ה׳ לא נודעתי להם BUT BY MY NAME THE LORD WAS I NOT KNOWN TO THEM — It is not written here לא הודעתי [My name the Lord] I did not make known to them, but לא נודעתי [by My name, the Lord], was I not known [unto them] — i. e. I was not recognised by them in My attribute of “keeping faith”, by reason of which My name is called ה׳, which denotes that I am certain to substantiate My promise, for, indeed, I made promises to them but did not fulfill them [during their lifetime].

“AND I APPEARED UNTO ABRAHAM, etc., BY THE NAME ‘E-IL SHA-DAI’ (G-D ALMIGHTY). I made many promises to him, and in all cases I said to him, I am G-d Almighty. BUT BY MY NAME, THE ETERNAL, WAS I NOT KNOWN UNTO THEM.” It was not written here, [“But My Name, the Eternal], I did not make known to them.” Rather, it is written, [But by My Name, the Eternal], was I not known unto them, meaning: “I was not recognized by them in My attribute of keeping faith, by reason of which My Name is called Eternal, which denotes that I am certain to fulfill the words [of My promise]. Indeed I made promises to the patriarchs but did not fulfill them [during their lifetime].”All these are the words of Rashi. His intent is to explain that the fulfillment of His promise [to the patriarchs] had not taken place. Even though the time for the fulfillment had not arrived [in their lifetime, and consequently the absence of such fulfillment was no indication of a lack of His “keeping faith” since the time had not arrived], yet He was not known to the patriarchs in the fulfillment of His promise. But with all this interpretation, Rashi has not properly explained the language of the text. [According to his interpretation], it should be said, lo hodati [“and My Name, the Eternal, ‘I did not make known’ to them,” instead of lo nodati (I was not made known), as the text reads]. Or it should have said, “and My Name, the Eternal, lo noda (was not known) to them.” Perhaps according to Rashi’s opinion, the sense of the verse is: “and My Name is the Eternal, v’lo nodati lahem,” meaning that “I was not made known to them by that Name.” And the learned Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra explained that the letter beth of the words b’E-il Sha-dai (by the Name G-d Almighty) connected [with the ensuing words ush’mi Hashem, making it ubish’mi Hashem], which has the following meaning: “And I appeared unto Abraham, etc., by the Name E-il Sha-dai (G-d Almighty), but by My Name the Eternal I was not made known unto them.”The purport of the verse is that He appeared to the patriarchs by this Name [E-il Sha-dai], which indicates that He is the victor [and prevailer] over the hosts of heaven, doing great miracles for them except that no change from the natural order of the world was noticeable, [as was the case with the miracles performed through Moses our teacher]. In famine, He redeemed them from death, and in war from the power of the sword, and He gave them riches and honor and all the goodness, just like all the assurances mentioned in the Torah [in the section dealing] with the blessings and curses. It is not [in nature] that man should be rewarded for performance of a commandment or punished for committing a transgression but by a miracle. If man were left to his nature or his fortune, his deeds would neither add to him nor diminish from him. Rather, reward and punishment in this world, as mentioned in the entire scope of the Torah, are all miracles, but they are hidden. They appear to the onlooker as ...

"And I appeared" — The patriarchs' prophecy came through night visions; hence the word 'and I appeared.' The word 'Shaddai' is difficult to explain. The Gaon [Saadia] said that the shin is a prefix, like the shin in 'that you are speaking with me' (Judg. 6:17), and the meaning would be: He who said 'enough' to the world. But I do not know the basis for this interpretation, for how can 'Shaddai' be a name with the meaning 'enough' unless it is an adjective, like 'good and forgiving' (Ps. 86:5) or 'my heart is faint within me' (Jer. 5:15). The Nagid, Rav Shmuel [ibn Nagrela], explained it in Arabic as 'al-qahhar,' meaning 'the Conqueror' and 'the Mighty.' The yod [in Shaddai] substitutes for a doubled letter, like the yod in 'his legs drooping like a lame man' (Prov. 26:7) and the alef in 'which the rivers have scorned' (Isa. 18:2). Compare: 'like the voice of the Almighty' (Ezek. 1:24), 'and the Almighty shall be your treasure' (Job 22:25). This is a fine interpretation. The word 'noda'ti' is in the niphal (passive) form; it is not equivalent to 'hoda'ti' (I made known), contrary to what Menahem [ibn Saruq] said. Rabbi Marinus said that 'and My name Hashem' is an oath — for in Arabic there is a vav used for swearing — and the meaning of 'I was not known to them' is: not as I was made known to you. But this use of the vav we have not found in the Holy Tongue. His grammatical point is this: there are words that draw themselves and other words along with them, and likewise letters — for example, the mem of 'from the God of your father and He shall help you, and from the Almighty' (Gen. 49:25), which means 'and from Shaddai'; similarly the bet in 'as El Shaddai,' as though it were written 'and by My name Hashem I was not known to them.' Rav Saadia Gaon said that the word 'alone' is missing at the end, as though it read 'and by My name Hashem alone I was not known to them — only sometimes by El Shaddai and sometimes by the name Hashem.' Analogous, in my view, is [the verse]: 'No longer shall your name be called Jacob alone, but Israel shall be associated with it.' But there is no need for this emendation, for we know that El Shaddai is the glorious God and there is no difference between them — except that 'Shaddai' is an adjective, whereas the glorious Name is sometimes a proper name and sometimes an adjective, as I have explained. We find written of Abraham: 'I am Hashem who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans' (Gen. 15:7), and of Jacob: 'I am Hashem, the God of Abraham your father' (ibid. 28:13). R. Yeshua said that Abraham and Jacob did not know this Name, and that Moses wrote it thus on his own. But R. Yeshua did not speak correctly — for how would Moses write a name that God had not mentioned? There is no doubt that the patriarchs knew this Name as a proper name; only this Name as an adjective they did not know. Now I will reveal to you a part of the secret of El Shaddai. We know that God created three worlds, which I have mentioned; the lower world receives its power from the middle world, each particular thing according to its supernal alignment. Since the human soul is higher than the middle world, if the soul is wise and recognizes the works of God — both without intermediaries and through intermediaries — and forsakes the desires of the lower world and devotes itself to cleaving to the glorious Name, then even if the astral alignment at the time of one's conception portends harm to befall him on a given day, God, to whom he cleaves, will arrange circumstances to save him from that harm. Likewise, if the alignment indicates that he will be barren, God will set right the power of his reproductive capacity and he will beget children. This is why our Sages of blessed memory said that God told Abraham, 'Go forth from your astrology,' and close in meaning is the principle, 'Israel is not subject to the stars.' I will explain this further in the portion Ki Tisa. This is why, before multiplying Abraham's seed, God said to him: 'I am El Shaddai' (Gen. 17:1) — meaning 'the Conqueror of the supernal alignments.' Not that the alignment is destroyed, but that one who cleaves to God's Name will know that He can renew for him a good that is not in his alignment. Therefore Jacob said, 'the angel who has redeemed me from all harm' (Gen. 48:16) — meaning, harm that was about to come upon me. This is the secret underlying the whole Torah, as I will explain further. The patriarchs did not attain the level of cleaving to the Name as Moses did, of whom it is said that Hashem knew him face to face. Therefore Moses was able to alter the natural order of the lower world and to renew signs and wonders that the patriarchs could not renew. Moses raised two complaints: the first, 'Why did You send me?' (above, 5:22), and the second, 'Neither have You delivered Your people' (ibid. 5:23). He answered the second: 'Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh' (above, 6:1), and He answered the first with 'And He said to him: I am Hashem' (above, 6:2) — meaning: through the patriarchs My name became known as El Shaddai, but through you My glorious name Hashem will be made known in the world, as He said: 'Therefore say to the children of Israel, I am Hashem.' It is for this purpose that I sent you.

וארא, in a vision, a communication by G’d just below that of the level we know as נבואה, prophecy. Genesis 18,1 was one such example of G’d “appearing” to Avraham after his circumcision. בא-ל שדי, by the attribute which demonstrates that I have created existence as such, as was pointed out in Genesis 17,1. ושמי ה' לא נודעתי להם, the letter ב in the expression בא-ל שדי applies to the word ושמי. In effect what G’d is saying is that He has not made a point of becoming familiar to the patriarchs by His attribute Hashem when appearing to them, such as in the example mentioned. This was because He never experienced the need to change the laws of nature on their behalf. Seeing that the patriarchs could not have passed on knowledge about Me which I had not revealed to them, they in turn had not been able to pass on such knowledge to their children. I have to do this now in order to ensure that I can preserve the Children of Israel as My people.

וארא אל אברהם, I used to appear to Abraham, etc. The reason G'd did not lump the three patriarchs together but referred to each one by name is, that G'd's relationship with each one of the patriarchs was based on something unique to the patriarch in question. Abraham was unique in that he recognised his Creator without having had guidance from another human being. If someone had foreknowledge of the existence of G'd and His power, he does not deserve special credit for conducting himself in line with such knowledge. Every intelligent being would choose good over evil once he possessed such knowledge. Abraham did not possess any of these advantages which would have acquainted him with G'd's attributes. We have explained in connection with Isaiah 41,9 that the reason G'd called Abraham "the one who loves Me" was because his faith and morality was the result of his being a "self-starter." He cleaved to his faith in G'd in spite of the most demanding tests G'd subjected him to. Isaac possessed another unique characteristic; he had submitted without question to his father's request made in the name of G'd to give his life for that G'd. He did not even ask for an explanation of why he had to give his life. Jacob was unique in not wasting a single drop of semen by producing offspring which was not worthy of him. All his children remained loyal to his teachings. G'd explained to Moses that He had not revealed His attribute of the four-lettered name י־ה־ו־ה which He had revealed to Moses to any of these three patrirachs, but had revealed to them only His attribute שדי. G'd now told Moses that in view of the revelations He had already made to him, he had displayed ingratitude by speaking to Him in an inappropriate, critical manner. While it is true that in the Torah's report of G'd's communications with Abraham (Genesis 18,1) we find such an expression as וירא ה׳ אל אברהם, which seems to suggest that G'd revealed this aspect (the tetragram) of His attributes to Abraham, this is misleading. G'd may have dealt with him on that basis, but He had not confided that fact to Abraham, i.e. Abraham remained unaware of the difference between G'd in His capacity as אל שדי and G'd in His capacity as י־ה־ו־ה. This is what G'd meant when He said ושמי ה׳ לא נודעתי להם, "they were not informed of My name י־ה־ו־ה. G'd also meant that the patriarchs were not aware of the unique simultaneous effectiveness of both of G'd's attributes, as we mentioned in connection with verse two. The mystical dimension of this is recorded in Kings I 18,39 when the assembled people realised this after Eliyahu's demonstration on Mount Carmel. The prophet Zachariah also makes reference to this phenomenon in Zachariah 14,9 when he describes that in the futre והיה ה׳ אחד ושמו אחד, people will realise that in spite of G'd's many attributes these are all part of the same Essence. G'd's name and G'd's Essence will be perceived as an indivisible unit, unlike all creatures whose names do not necessa...

ושמי ה' לא נודעתי להם, Rashi explains this as follows; “and My attribute (name) of Hashem I have not let them be familiar with.” It is significant that G-d did not use the active causative mode of הודעתי here. In answering the question why He had not done so, what comes to mind is first: “they did not bother to ask Me about it.” [They should have asked as I revealed Myself to Avraham as such already at the covenant between the pieces in Genesis 15,7, where G-d told Avraham that He had saved him miraculously in order to give him (his descendants) that land in which He appeared to him. G-d reminds Moses that neither Avraham nor Yitzchok or Yaakov, to all of whom He had spoken far less that He had to Moses, ever questioned what they could have questioned about G-d’s judgments. To quote just one such example: when after having been told by G-d that his descendants would inherit the land of Canaan, and it came to burying his wife Sarah there, he could not even do this without paying a minor fortune for a cave, he surely might have asked Me about this. They believed Me on My word alone, without the need for any miracles or proof. They could not have known me by My real name, as I had made promises and had not yet kept them. My true name is based not only on My ability to promise but on My ability beyond question to also keep My promises. Now, G-d says, “I will explain to you why I did not reveal Myself to the patriarchs as the attribute of Hashem. The promises I made to them referred to a distant future.” They would not live to see their fulfilment. The promises I made to you and through you to My people, will be fulfilled within the immediate future. As this occurs, the past partially passive mode of the root ידע will be appropriate, i.e. “I will have become known as Hashem.” Seeing that this is so, the people should not have asked: “what is His name?” Who asks about something that he knows and is familiar with? Rashi also explains why the conjunctive letter ו in וגם in verse 4 is appropriate. The word: הקימותי is not to be confused with “I have kept (a promise),” but is to be understood as the promises made to the patriarchs still being in effect, and the fact that they had not yet been fulfilled is due to their having been made by G-d in His capacity as שדי, “the G-d whose promises are meaningful because He is able to fulfill them and no one can stop Him from doing so.” The reason that the time for fulfilling them has arrived is because the Children of Israel’s outcry on account of their suffering is justified.

ה' קנני ראשית דרכו קדם מפעליו מאז, “The Lord created me at the beginning of His course; as the first of His works of old” (Proverbs 8,22). In this verse Solomon speaks in the name of the emanation חכמה, wisdom. This is the level of wisdom which is concealed even from the מלאכי השרת, “the ministering angels.” Job referred to this elusive wisdom when he said: ”but where can wisdom be found?” (Job 28,12) Concerning this level of wisdom we also have a verse in Job 28,21 “it is hidden from the eyes of all living, concealed from the fowl of heaven.” Our sages interpreted the words: “from the fowl of heaven” as a reference to the ministering angels. This is the “wisdom” which preceded creation of heaven and earth. We have an allusion to this fact in Proverbs 3,19: “The Lord founded the earth by wisdom; He established the heavens by understanding.” We have a further verse in Scripture alluding to this in the very next verse. “By His knowledge the depths burst apart, and the skies distilled dew.” All the verses we have just quoted prove that heaven and earth, the depths and all that is contained within them have been created by G’d using this חכמה, “wisdom” as His instrument. This is also what Solomon meant to say in Proverbs 8,25-29: “Before [the foundations of] the mountains were sunk, before the hills I was born. He had not yet made earth and fields of the world’s first clump of clay. I was there when He set the heavens into place; when He fixed the horizon upon the deep. When He made the heavens above firm, and the fountains of the deep gushed forth; when He assigned the sea its limits so that its waters never transgress His command.” If you want to examine the various expressions used by Solomon in greater depth, the expression “the deep” refers to what our sages call the קו ירוק, another word for the emanation בינה, “insight.” The word הרים, “mountains” is a reference to the patriarchs. (the emanations חסד, גבורה and תפארת represented by the patriarchs.) The word ארץ is a reference to the emanation סוף [an alternate name for the emanation מלכות, Ed.] Solomon called this חכמה by the name ראשית, seeing that it preceded the creation of the universe popularly known as מעשה בראשית. This was also the reason that when the Torah commenced its report about the creation of the universe it had to commence with the word בראשית. The word ראשית not only refers to the beginning of something in terms of time, but it also means that something is superior in quality. An example is found in Amos 6,6: וראשית שמנים ימשחו, “and anoint themselves with the best oils.” Just as superior oil floats to the top of all other liquids so wisdom rises to the top of all other forms of existence. This is what is meant by the words in our opening verse: “He has created (acquired) me at the beginning of His discourse.” In other words, wisdom proclaims that it had been G’d’s first acquisition, something G’d has secured for Himself from a hidden source. This mysterious source is the region in which wisdom originates. Inasmuch as the words “and from the fowl of heaven it is hidden,” were understood to be a reference to the angels, it is clear that the word קנני of which Solomon spoke in Proverbs 8,22, has its root in the word קן, i.e. a bird’s nest. The nest is the place in which the bird originates. Solomon explained that the original “site” of wisdom gave birth to wisdom which is its first “nest.” Wisdom relates to all other phenomena in this universe as does the nest to all the chicks hatched in it, i.e. it is its origin. If all this is true then wisdom was not created out of a total void as some of the philosophers have thought, but it is a phenomenon and a derivative of the original אין, void or nothingness, the supreme and hidden source. This is what Job spoke about when he said: “where can wisdom be found?” These words of Job must not be understood as an inquiry, a question expressing hopelessness, but as a piece of information. The Torah has informed us that “wisdom” emanates from a hidden source. The Torah itself was created by drawing on that hidden source. Seeing that the Torah originates in that domain it is called לקח טוב, “good instruction” (Proverbs 4,2) and the ministering angels are envious that it was entrusted to man. Our sages in Shabbat 85 confirmed this when they described that when G’d was about to give the Torah to Moses the angels were upset and remonstrated with G’d how He could entrust such a hidden treasure to mere man, a creature that defiles himself so often, a creature dominated often by its evil urge? We derive the fact that such a conversation took place from David’s remark in Psalms 8,2: “O Lord, our Lord, How majestic is Your name throughout the earth, You Who have covered the heavens with Your splendor!“ This statement reflects the angels’ argument that G’d’s splendor should remain in the heaven and not be made available on earth. G’d answered the angels with rhetorical questions such as: “it is written in the Torah ‘you should remember the Sabbath to keep it holy.’ It is written: ‘honor your father and your mother!;’ it is written in the Torah: ‘you shall not steal, etc., etc.’ Is there any need for such instructions for celestial beings? Do you suffer from either an evil urge or exposure to defilement? Are there foods which are permitted to you and others which are not?” Thus far the Midrash. I believe that when the Midrash speaks about “jealousy” between the angels and man we need to examine these words. Jealousy is an emotion which is the result of man being equipped with an evil urge. Seeing that G’d Himself is on record as denying that the angels possess an evil urge, how could they be described as being “jealous” of man? This fact is spelled out even more forcefully in Chagigah 15 where the Talmud states: “in the celestial regions such concepts as standing, being seated, jealousy and competition are non-existent.” It is a region in which all beings are inclined to agree with one another in the search for a deeper understanding of the Essence of their Creator. The nutrition of these celestial beings consists of their obtaining progressively deeper insights into the Essence of G’d. This ensures the continued existence of the ministering angels. Seeing that all these beings are united in the same aspirations, how could there exist amongst them something described as ‘jealousy?” At the same time, it is no secret that jealousy is a well known phenomenon amongst human beings which afflicts mostly people who are envious of their immediate superiors. You do not find that a king is envious or jealous of a simple villager, neither is the villager envious of the king seeing that the difference between their respective social situations makes comparisons pointless. A fool is not jealous of a scholar as he has no conception of what it means to be a scholar. The scholar is not envious of the fool as he has no need of him. Jealousy is reserved for people of similar status. A scholar may be jealous of another scholar, a warrior of another warrior who has achieved greater fame, etc. A rich man is jealous of someone richer than himself (compare Avodah Zarah 55). Having appreciated all this, how could one apply the term “jealousy” to a relationship between such unequals as human beings and the ministering angels? We must therefore understand this term when used by the Midrash to describe a situation prevailing in the celestial regions as a mere euphemism, a parable. Clearly, the angels were aware of the difference between human beings, creatures who were a fusion of body and soul, of the material and the spiritual. It is equally clear that they were aware that most of what is written in the Torah in the form of legislation was not addressed to them as they were not capable of fulfilling such commandments by reason of their being of a uniform “material,” i.e. disembodied creatures. What concerned the angels was that there was a “wisdom” which was deemed appropriate for creatures whom they considered inferior by definition precisely because they had bodies and urges which interfered with their serving their Creator at all times. They could not understand why such a superior wisdom would be entrusted to inferior beings instead of to them! They had assumed that the absence of a body made them superior to man by definition. They considered any matter which was a combination of materials as something inferior to matter consisting of a single element. Creatures which were the result of some fusion represented to the angels something of a dichotomy, containing built-in tensions. G’d, in a manner of speaking agreed with them, saying that precisely because of this built-in tension the superior wisdom represented by Torah was needed by man. A superior person such as Moses attained the highest level of insight called ראשית, something not attained by any other living human being, as testified to in the Torah itself (Deut. 33,21) where we read: ”He saw (chose) for himself the ראשית, the best; for that is where the lawgiver’s portion is hidden.” He received this from the domain called ראשית. This attainment by Moses was not part of his prophetic qualities but an intellectual achievement on his part. This is why the Torah refers to it as וירא, “he saw,” i.e. he comprehended. The other outstanding achievement of Moses, the one called by our sages אספקלריא מאירה, “a clear vision,” was something that he attained as a prophetic quality. It was an insight into the workings of the attribute of Mercy. This was something which the patriarchs with whom G’d communicated in His dimension as the attribute of Justice had not comprehended as personal insights. [They had been aware of it as a phenomenon but not by personal experience applied to their lives. Ed.] All the other prophets who experienced various levels of revelations did not experience such revelations of the attribute of Mercy. This was an attribute which resulted in certain supernatural miracles becoming part of G’d’s manifestations during those days. The word אספקלריא employed by our sages (Yevamot 49) to describe visions received by the prophets is an acronym composed of ספק קלריא, i.e. “supplied a degree of light, enlightenment.” It resembles the ability to look through a solid body because the material the body is made of is transparent glass. When the sages said that all prophets other than Moses received אספקלריא שאינה מאירה, the meaning is not that they received blurred visions which they could not decipher, but that G’d did not supply additional light so that what was beyond the solid material was lit up brilliantly. The “picture” they saw was clear, not blurred, but insufficiently illuminated to reveal to them every detail. When Moses received a similar vision, the “picture” was brilliantly illuminated so that he could distinguish every detail in it. To reflect this fact G’d made the skin of Moses’ forehead radiate light so brilliant that the people approaching him became intimidated by that light (Exodus 34,20). They could not absorb it, i.e. “digest it.” It blinded them. Proof that Avraham and the other patriarchs did not receive this level of prophetic insight is provided by the fact that Avraham never uttered the tetragrammaton when he addressed G’d but used the name א-ד-נ-י. Moses, on the other hand, used the name י-ה-ו-ה when addressing G’d. Moses employed both the attribute of G’d שדי as well as His attribute י-ה-ו-ה when he was active in his capacity as a prophet. When G’d reveals Himself to a prophet preparatory to performing “hidden” miracles, i.e. miracles which are not directly “impossible” in terms of the laws of nature, such revelations are also called אספקלריא שאינה מאירה, “unclear vision.” וארא אל אברהם אל יצחק ואל יעקב באל שדי, ושמי ה’ לא נודעתי להם. “whereas I appeared to Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov, I appeared to them in My capacity as the G’d Shaddai, but in my capacity as Hashem I did not become familiar to them.” The Torah used the expression וידבר אלו-הים when telling Moses about this, whereas at the beginning of the chapter, 2 verses earlier, when G’d spoke to Moses this was prefaced by the words ויאמר ה'. There is a reason for this. The name ה’ denotes the attribute of Mercy, and the word ויאמר implies a friendly tone used by the speaker, whereas the name אלו-הים is a reference to the attribute of Justice, and the word וידבר implies that the speaker uses stern language. We find proof of this when the brothers related how Joseph had spoken to them when he accused them of being spies. They said: (Genesis 42,30) דבר האיש אדוני הארץ אתנו קשות, “the man, the ruler of the country spoke harshly with us.” When you examine the entire dialogue between G’d and Moses at the burning bush, you will find that in all the sixteen instances when G’d addressed Moses He did not once use דבור, i.e. stern language. Here G’d resorted to דבור, to stern language, after Moses had challenged His method of doing justice with the words: “why did You make matters bad for the people, etc.?” Also the attribute אלוה-ים which is mentioned here indicates that it was the attribute of Justice which addressed Moses here in contrast with the attribute of Mercy which G’d had employed previously at the burning bush. At the end of the previous portion G’d is on record as responding kindly to Moses’ challenge, i.e. ויאמר ה’...עתה תראה, He had reassured Moses that He was going to punish those who deserved it and reward those who had experienced suffering. Now however, G’d wanted to let Moses know that he had overstepped the bounds of what is proper by asking that question. It is not unusual for G’d to at almost one and the same time appear both as a stern mentor and as a kindly teacher. In Leviticus 19,3 we read איש את אמו ואביו תיראו ואת שבתותי תשמורו אני ה’ אלוקיכם, “each one of you shall display reverence for his mother and his father and you shall observe My Sabbath days, I am Your G’d (the merciful) and the (just).” G’d employs the attribute of Justice to lend weight to the command, but He also employs the attribute of Mercy to inform us that He can be counted on to reward our compliance with His instructions. We encounter a similarly worded verse in Leviticus 19,12 where the Torah first forbids the use of G’d’s name to swear a false oath, by writing לא תשבעו בשמי לשקר וחללת את שם אלוה-יך, “do not use My name to swear a false oath and to thereby defile My name (attribute of Justice)- אני ה’, “for I am the Merciful G’d (attribute of Mercy). Again our sages explain the conclusion of this verse in which G’d suddenly switches to the use of the tetragrammaton as meaning that (“I am guaranteed to pay you your reward for observing My commandment”). The point G’d is making here is that although He had not bothered to add the assurance that He would recompense the patriarchs for observing His commandments again and again, they nevertheless had not seen fit to question His manner of running the universe every time they were mystified by something which appeared to affront their sense of justice. Moses, who had been the recipient of such assurances, seeing he had become privy to the fact that G’d upsets the laws of nature (in order to help His people) had seen fit to question Him and His methods. Use of the word שדי in our verse is a reference to G’d’s handling the universe and sometimes employing an attribute designed to overcome the powers He has delegated to the horoscopic influences on the fate of man. However, He had not employed the powers inherent in the use of His four-lettered holy name י-ה—ו-ה in His relations with them. According to the opening word וארא, “I have become visible,” in our verse, the word נודעתי used as a contrast is strange; we would have expected the Torah to write לא נראתי להם, I have not become visible to them, by My attribute י-ה-ו-ה, or words to that effect. Or, the verse should have commenced with the words ואודע אל אברהם אל יצחק וגו’ “I became visible to Avraham, to Yitzchak, etc.” Why this asymmetry in the verbs used here? The answer is that the patriarchs as a rule experienced their visions at night. It was appropriate therefore to apply the expression “vision” from the root ראה “to see” to their experiences of encounters with G’d. G’d wanted to contrast the fact that Moses had been granted a revelation of His presence while he was fully awake already the first time he had had a communication from G’d. The word נודעתי which is derived from ידע, “to know intimately,” was therefore more appropriate to bring home to Moses that G’d had seen fit to let him experience a superior form of divine communication. In fact the use of the intransitive form לא נודעתי instead of the transitive form לא הודעתי להם, “I have not made (Myself) known to them,” teaches that He and His name are all one. We find a similar switch between the transitive and intransitive use of the same word in Exodus 33,22 והיה בעבור כבודי.....עד עברי. The Torah wanted to inform Moses (and us) that he and His כבוד are all one. Nachmanides writes as follows. “The true message of this verse is in strict accordance with the text. G’d announced to Moses that “whereas I had appeared to the patriarchs as the attribute שדי,” such as when G’d contrasted His appearance to them with what He spelled out to Aaron and Miriam in Numbers 12,6 when He said: במראה אליו אתודע, ‘I make Myself known to him (prophets other than Moses) in a vision.’” G’d implied that He certainly did not reveal Himself to those prophets in His capacity as ‘by My name י-ה-ו-ה ‘ while granting them prophetic insights.” This did not imply that the patriarchs had not been aware of such an attribute of G’d. This then accounts for the fact that when Avraham addressed G’d he employed the name of the letters א-ד-נ-י (superior to the attribute אלו-הים) which contains two of the letters of the tetragrammaton. G’d’s entire dealings with Moses were based on use of the attribute of Mercy on a regular basis. This attribute is present in more pronounced form in the name י-ה-ו-ה than in any other name of G’d. [I am omitting the balance of Nachmanides’ comments on this verse. Ed.]

“And I appeared to Abraham, etc.” It began with the language of seeing and concluded with the language of knowing, for it should have said, “And I appeared to Abraham, etc.” and “by My name the Lord I did not appear to them,” or it should have said, “And I made Myself known to Abraham, etc.” and “My name the Lord was not known to them.” What seems most likely to me is that the language of seeing indicates a clearer understanding of something than the language of knowing. For you can have knowledge of something that is recognizable and known through a logical deduction, which can be subject to error, or through hearing, which can be subject to falsehood. But something that a person sees with his own eyes is better than all of these, for nothing seen can be subject to error or falsehood. You should know that the name Shaddai indicates that the Holy One, blessed be He, said to His world “enough” [dai], and that He would say “enough” to their troubles, as Rashi explained on the verse And may El Shaddai grant you mercy (Genesis 43:14). And it is known that the Patriarchs lived most, if not all, of their lives in pain. For Abraham was thrown into a furnace, wandered as a nomad, and had his wife taken. And likewise with Isaac; moreover his wells were blocked, and he was a stranger in the land. And Jacob’s [suffering] was even more obvious than all of them. The Holy One, blessed be He, said “enough” to all their troubles, and this is what they saw with their own eyes — all the hardship that passed over them, and how God saved them through the name Shaddai, saying “enough” to their troubles. But the name Lord, which indicates complete mercy without any mixture of bad things — not only did they not see this with their own eyes, but even through knowledge by way of proof, it was not known to them that I am the Lord who does good to all. And if so, it mentioned seeing and knowledge in the way of “not only this but also that,” because for the bad things, not only did they know them, but they even saw them with their own eyes. And for the complete mercies, not only did they not yet see them, but I was not even known to them in demonstrable knowledge. Indeed, I said to the forefathers I am the Lord, full of mercy, but I have not yet fulfilled this promise to them. This is the first sign of the redemption and of the transformation. The second sign is And I have also established My covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan — but I have not yet given it to them. The third sign is And I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians are making to work with harder labor than was decreed, because I was angry a little, but they helped for evil. These three are joined to the depth of the three promises that are mentioned afterwards in three consecutive verses, because in them is explicitly mentioned Therefore say to the children of Israel: I am the Lord, etc. And He mentioned great judgments to be done upon their enslavers, and the coming to the land, as is clear to anyone who examines these verses. A second way [of explaining] the continuation of these verses is, that “Elohim” only means Judge, and it is not yet explained in what judgment the Holy One, blessed be He, judged. Therefore, it seems to me that this judgment refers to the preceding verse where it says, Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh. Our Sages of blessed memory explained (Sanhedrin 111), “but not what will be done to the kings of the seven nations.” The word “kings” seems redundant because it could have simply said “not what will be done to the seven nations.” (And in Shemot Rabbah 5:23) it concludes “and you will not see what I will do in the war against the 31 kings.” This is difficult: why do we need this count? Do we not already know that Israel fought against 31 kings? And there’s another difficulty: why does it say Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh — why do I need the word now? Although I explained the meaning of “now” at the end of Parshat Shemot, nevertheless there are additional divine interpretations to explain it in another way, namely:The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses, I am the Lord who was, is, and will be. For all flesh and blood cannot be certain to fulfill their promises, since the spirit leaves him and he is gone and cannot fulfill his promise. Therefore, he must fulfill it immediately. And if not, then justifiably those who were promised complain about why the pronouncement of his word was not done quickly, for if not now, when? But I exist eternally, equally throughout all times, therefore the forefathers did not complain but waited and anticipated when the word of God would come, and they were confident that it would ultimately be fulfilled. But you complained that My words were not fulfilled immediately, therefore all the more so you would complain about the wars against the 31 kings, because those wars would necessarily be prolonged, as it is written Joshua waged war with all those kings for a long time (Joshua 11:18). For Israel could not inherit all the land quickly lest the beasts of the field multiply against them, but rather [the seven nations] would be driven out gradually. And because it is your way to complain when a promise is not fulfilled quickly, therefore I am penalizing you that justifiably you will not see the prolonged war against the 31 kings, except for the war against Pharaoh who is a single king, and you can see now — meaning immediately — what I will do to Pharaoh. Only that you will see. And the main exclusion comes from the word now meaning you will only see what is done immediately, but not something that will not be done now but only after many days, such as the war against 31 kings — that you will not see. And this is what is meant by and My name, the Lord which indicates that I exist eternally and My promise will ultimately be fulfilled, but they did not yet know this, and they waited to see [the fulfillment of] My words as mentioned. The third approach is, that the Holy One, blessed be He, wanted to publicize in the world that He created His world ex nihilo [something from nothing]. Since miracles demonstrating creation were not yet widespread in the world, the Holy One, blessed be He, needed to perform all these miracles so that people would retroactively believe that God created His world ex nihilo, as it is written, By this you shall know that I am the Lord, and similarly Jethro said, Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods (Exodus 18:11). Many commentators have discussed how the miracles in Egypt were demonstrations of the world’s creation. Therefore, He said, I appeared to the forefathers as El Shaddai, because this name indicates that the Holy One, blessed be He, said to His world “enough” [dai], and it is evidence of creation, but not of creation ex nihilo. This is the meaning of but by My name YHVH I did not make known to them, because this name of YHVH [Havayah] indicates that the Holy One, blessed be He, brings everything into existence [mehaveh et hakol], and all existences come from Him, blessed be He. This confirms the concept of creation ex nihilo, saying that no existence has being except through Him, blessed be He. This is the answer to Moses who complained and said, Why have You brought harm, etc. Even though God had already told him, the king of Egypt will not let you go, Moses still wanted to know the reason for Pharaoh’s extreme stubbornness. And if it was in order to perform all the miracles, this itself raises the question: what need is there for all these miracles? Until the Holy One, blessed be He, told him the reason for the matter: For I am YHVH who brings everything into existence, and this fact had not yet been publicized in the world. For to the forefathers I appeared only with the name Shaddai, which indicates that I said to My world “enough,” but a miracle demonstrating creation ex nihilo had not yet been publicized. This is the meaning of but by My name YHVH I did not make Myself known to them. Therefore, I need to harden Pharaoh’s heart in order to perform miracles that demonstrate creation ex nihilo. And if you ask, what is different about this day, and what is the need for this knowledge now more than at other times? About this it said, And I also established My covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan. If I do not publicize now that all the earth is Mine, then the nations will say, “You are robbers,” because with a strong hand you are conquering the lands of the seven nations, and God did not rebuke them (1 Samuel 3:13). This would lead them to denial and heresy, saying there is no judge and no justice, as explained above in Genesis (1:1) regarding the words of Rabbi Isaac. And if you ask, didn’t I also promise the forefathers to give them the land without making a public announcement about this innovation? About this it said, And I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel, etc. This means that the forefathers did not need miracles because they were faithful believers anyway, and for all the nations there was no need for this knowledge yet. But now that I have heard the groaning of the children of Israel and the time has come for their entry into the land, therefore I need to publicize now through miracles that I am the Lord who brings everything into existence and all the earth is Mine, and it is in My power to give the land to whomever I wish. This is what it means when it says, And I will give it to you as an inheritance, I am the Lord. Because I am the Lord who brings everything into existence, and I made the earth and all that is upon it, therefore it is in My power to give it to you as an inheritance. The fourth approach is, based on what our Sages of blessed memory said (Sanhedrin 90b): “From where in the Torah do we learn about the resurrection of the dead? As it is said, And I have also established My covenant with them to give to them the land of Canaan. It does not say ‘to you’ but rather to them, from here we learn about the resurrection of the dead from the Torah.” Rashi explains that from here we learn that they [the Patriarchs] are destined to live again and inherit the land. But his explanation is difficult due to several questions. For what does the resurrection of the dead have to do with this conversation that the Holy One, blessed be He, had with Moses when he complained? Furthermore, we do not find in the Torah, Prophets, or Writings that during the Messianic era the Patriarchs will live again and dwell in the land of Israel, for what benefit would they have in exchanging an eternal world for a transient one? And all the more so at the time of resurrection, for then the world will be destroyed, so how will the Patriarchs dwell on the land? Additionally, there is a difficulty with the Midrash that Rashi quotes (on verse 9): “Alas for those who are lost and not to be found” etc. “I have much to lament over the death of the Patriarchs. I said to Abraham, Arise, walk through the land in its length and breadth, for I will give it to you, yet when he sought a place to bury Sarah, he could not find one until he purchased it with money. Similarly with Isaac, they disputed over the wells, and likewise with Jacob, who had to purchase a field,” etc., “and yet he did not question Me.” This is difficult no matter how you look at it: if the promise of the land was specifically to their descendants and not to the Patriarchs themselves, then why would the Patriarchs question or protest? After all, God never promised the Patriarchs that they would have a portion in the land. And if He did promise it also to the Patriarchs, then where is His promise? And what seems closest to me is to say that it addresses different aspects, because the Patriarchs were not given a portion in the land for the purpose of using this world, but only a burial place, as the dead of the Land of Israel will be the first to be resurrected. And in every place where it says for to you and to your seed I will give all these lands, the giving is not equal to both, for how could individuals inherit such a large land? Rather, [the land was given] to their descendants in this world, and to them [the Patriarchs] for the purpose of the resurrection of the dead in the World to Come, so that they would have a portion and burial in the land to be saved from the suffering of “rolling through tunnels” [a reference to the belief that those buried outside Israel would need to roll underground to reach Israel for resurrection]. And therefore, when Abraham sought a place to bury Sarah and did not find one, Abraham had reason to doubt this fundamental promise to the Patriarchs which was that they would have a burial place, and he did not find one. Nevertheless, this promise was later fulfilled when he found [a place] to purchase with money. But before he found a place to buy, he had reason to doubt yet did not doubt. Similarly, when they disputed Isaac about the wells, he also had reason to doubt lest they would not give him even a burial place in the land, since they were so particular not to give him even a small portion in the land. And the same with Jacob. The concept of resurrection of the dead is connected to the renewal of the world, for one who believes in the renewal [of the world] will also believe in resurrection through a fortiori reasoning [kal vachomer], as it states in the Gemara (Sanhedrin 91a): “If something that did not exist comes into existence, then certainly something that already existed can come back into existence.” This is what is meant by And God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am the Lord” — the One who brings everything into being, who was, is, and will be in the future. All of this serves as evidence for resurrection. Therefore, I needed to perform all the miracles with Pharaoh and all his servants so that they would also believe in resurrection. For until now, My name the Lord, which indicates renewal, was not known to them. Nevertheless, I established My covenant with them to give to them the land of Canaan — to them meaning that they would be buried in the land so that they could be assured of arising in the future without the suffering of rolling through underground tunnels [to reach the Holy Land at resurrection]. This explanation works well both according to the third approach, that the entire passage is stated factually and not as an accusation against Moses for complaining, as well as according to Rashi’s approach, who explained “Alas for those who are lost [and are not found]…” And it further appears to me, that He mentioned the name of Shaddai to the forefathers in the promise of the land, to hint to them that the purpose of the land is in both this world and the world to come. For the letters “yud-shin” [י“ש] from the name ”Shaddai“ [שדי] hint at the reward of the world to come, as it is said To bequeath substance [יש - ‘yesh’] to those who love me (Proverbs 8:21). And the letter ”dalet“ [ד] from ”Shaddai“ hints at the reward of this world which extends to the four [ד’ - dalet represents the number 4] directions of the world, as it is written And you shall spread out to the west and to the east, etc. (Genesis 28:14). And regarding this it was said to Moses And You shall see My back, but My face shall not be seen (Exodus 33:23). The Holy One, blessed be He, showed Moses the knot of the tefillin, because the letter ”dalet“ from ”Shaddai“ is in the knot of the tefillin at the back, through which the Holy One, blessed be He, showed him all the reward of this world hinted at by the four directions, as it is said to Moses, Ascend to the top of the summit and lift Your eyes westward and northward, etc. (Deuteronomy 3:27). But My face — meaning the letters ”yud-shin“ which are in the tefillin in the front, alluding to the reward of the world to come, namely the ”shin“ in the head tefillin and the ”yud“ in the hand tefillin — shall not be seen. He told him that the reward of the world to come cannot be seen, as it is written No eye has seen God besides You (Isaiah 64:3). Therefore, He mentioned here the name of Shaddai to say that they [the forefathers] did not question why they did not find a burial place in the land, which is meant for the purpose of resurrection, even though they were also promised resurrection with the name of Shaddai.

בא-ל שדי, a promise concerning the future that I have not yet fulfilled. 'ושמי ה, we have to explain the sequence as follows: “Although I have revealed Myself to the patriarchs as the attribute of Shaddai, My principal name, the one that represents My essence, etc.” We are faced with a repetition here, hence לא נודעתי להם, “I did not reveal Myself to the patriarchs as My principal attribute but only as My attribute Shaddai. But to you, Moses, I have revealed My principal attribute which I described as אהיה and זכרי ה'. In your lifetime I plan to fulfill My promise.” לתת להם את ארץ כנען, to give the people the land of Canaan. The words ושמי ה' are connected to what was written at the beginning of the verse as I explained already. If the Torah had written הודעתי להם instead of נודעתי להם, the words ושמי ה' would have belonged to the statement לא הודעתי.

And I also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their sojourning in which they sojourned.

וגם הקמתי את בריתי וגו׳ Then, ALSO, when I appeared unto them by the name of God Almighty I ESTABLISHED and set up MY COVENANT between Myself and them לתת להם את ארץ כנען TO GIVE THEM THE LAND OF CANAAN — Of Abraham it is stated in the chapter that contains the commandment of the Circumcision, (Genesis 17:1, and 17:8) “[The Lord appeared to Abraham and said unto him], I am God Almighty etc., and I will give to thee and to thy seed after thee the land of thy sojourning”. Of Isaac it is stated, (Genesis 26:3) “[The Lord appeared unto him and said], For unto thee and unto thy seed I will give all these countries, and I will establish the oath which I sware unto Abraham, thy father”, and that oath here referred to which I sware to Abraham I uttered by the name of God Almighty. Of Jacob it is stated, (Genesis 35:9, 11, 12) “[And God appeared unto Jacob … and God said unto him], I am God Almighty; be fruitful and multiply, … the land which I gave [Abraham and Isaac to thee I will give it] etc.” So you see that I made certain vows to them and I have not yet fulfilled them.

AND I HAVE ALSO ESTABLISHED MY COVENANT WITH THEM … AND MOREOVER I HAVE HEARD THE GROANING OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL. The meaning thereof is as follows: “I have appeared to the patriarchs by the Name ‘E-il Sha-dai’ and I have also established this covenant [by this Divine Name] before Me, and moreover with My Great Name I have now heard the groaning of the children of Israel, and I have remembered My covenant which I have established for them with Me.” The student learned [in the mystic lore of the Cabala] will understand. Now as regards what our Rabbis have expounded: i.e., that [the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses], “Alas for those that are gone, [namely, the patriarchs], and are no more to be found! Many a time did I reveal Myself to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob by the Name E-il Sha-dai, and I did not inform them that My Name is the Eternal as I have said it to you, and yet none of them cast aspersions upon My dealings with them, etc. Moreover, none of them asked Me what My Name is, as you asked. Right at the beginning of My mission, you said to Me, ‘What is Your Name?’ And at the end you said, For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Thy name, he hath dealt ill with this people, etc.” It is in connection with this [complaint] that G-d said to Moses, And I have also established My covenant with them, etc. The purport of this Midrash likewise fits in with the text. The Rabbis, of blessed memory, found it difficult to understand why G-d mentioned the prophecy of the patriarchs altogether, diminishing their accomplishment in prophecy and saying that He appeared to them only by the Name of E-il Sha-dai. What purpose did that serve? He could have said, “I am the Eternal, and wherefore say unto the children of Israel: ‘I am the Eternal, and I will bring you [from under the burdens of the Egyptians], and you shall know that I am the Eternal Who brought you out.’” Therefore the Rabbis explained that the message constituted a rebuke to Moses, telling him: “Behold, the patriarchs, whose accomplishment in prophecy was not as high as yours inasmuch as they contemplated Deity only through the Name E-il Sha-dai, believed in Me, And I have also established My covenant with them, and I have heard the groaning of their children for their sake. Surely you who have known Me by the Great Name and whom I have given My assurance [by that Name], you should have trusted in [My] mercies and assured Israel in My Name that I will do signs and wonders for them.” This interpretation too is correct and fitting.

"And also I established" — Another reason I sent you is that I established [a covenant] with the patriarchs to give to them, or to their children who are as they are, the land of Canaan.

וגם הקימותי, I have also sworn, as per Onkelos in Genesis 31,53 on the word וישבע which he renders as וקיים. “G’d swore to keep His promise.” Compare a similar phrase but worded differently in Psalms 106, 44-45. “When He saw that they were in distress, when He heard their cry, He was mindful of His covenant and in His great faithfulness He relented.”

וגם הקימותי את בריתי, "And I also maintain My covenant, etc." G'd may have added here (according to our previous commentary) that even if He had already fulfilled His covenant with the patriarchs, they still would not have become privy to the degree of revelation that Moses had already now become privy to. Put simply, G'd explains to Moses in our verse that He owed the patriarchs something over and beyond His having revealed Himself to the patriarchs as the אל שדי. That something was the fulfilment of His promise/oath that the people of Israel would be redeemed from bondage. The time had now arrived for that promise to be kept; G'd also explained to Moses why he had to wait for the redemption somewhat longer, i.e. that G'd now invoked His מדת הרחמים. G'd was afraid that Moses would not have the emotional fortitude to pursue his mission with all the necessary vigour when he saw Pharaoh's obstinacy, or when he would face the pursuing Egyptian cavalry behind him and the sea in front; G'd therefore explained to Moses that the purpose of the redemption was not only the Exodus but also the conquest of the Holy Land. את ארץ מגוריהם, "the land in which they (the patriarchs) used to sojourn." Why did the Torah not content itself with describing the land the patriarchs had lived in as "the land of Canaan?" Why did the words את ארץ מגוריהם have to be added? Perhaps the Torah wanted to make us aware that the status of being aliens (which was part of the period of 400 years G'd had spoken to Abraham about) had already commenced during the lifetime of the patriarchs. This would have a great bearing on the timing of the Exodus. Still, this would leave open why the Torah had to use the word את twice when referring to that land. Use of that word creates the impression that the land of Canaan and the land in which the patriarchs sojourned were two different countries. Perhaps the Torah wanted to include the land of the Philistines [the coastal strip including Gaza, seeing that the Philistines were not of Canaanitic descent Ed.]. I have already explained this on Genesis 26,3.

וגם אני הקימותי, Accordingly, the correct translation of the word הקימותי here is: “and also I have sworn,” exactly as in Genesis 3,53, where the word וישבע does not mean “I have sworn,” in the sense of “it is the truth,” but “I confirm solemnly something that I have promised already previously.”

וגם הקימותי, “moreover, I have established;” I have also sent you in order for you to be the instrument through which I will keep My covenant with the patriarchs, if they are like them, to give them the land of Canaan.

And also the outcry of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians are forcing to labor, has been heard before Me, and I have remembered My covenant.

וגם אני — Since I established and set up My covenant it is incumbent upon Me to fulfil it; therefore, שמעתי את נאקת בני ישראל I HAVE HEARD THE GROANING OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL who groan (complain) אשר מצרים מעבדים אתם THAT THE EGYPTIANS ARE ENSLAVING THEM, ואזכר AND I REMEMBER that covenant which I have already made with them; because at the covenant “between the pieces” I said to him, (Genesis 15:14) “And also against that nation whom they shall serve will I pronounce judgment.”

"And also" — Yet another reason I sent you: because Israel repented and cried out to Me.

(1) I HAVE ALSO HEARD. And the third cause of the redemption is that I have heard their moaning and their prayers in their distress. (2) AND I HAVE REMEMBERED MY COVENANT. And in this way, they showed themselves fit for Me to remember My covenant, as with (Ps. 106:44-45), "Upon seeing that they were in distress, and on His hearing their cry, He recalled His covenant."

וגם אני שמעתי את נאקת בני ישראל, "I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel, etc." The word וגם, "and also," refers to something over and beyond the prayers of the Israelites to the attribute of Mercy. In addition to the prayers of the Israelites and G'd's love for the patriarchs, there was a third consideration which had a bearing on G'd's timetable for the redemption, namely the outcry of the Israelites due to the torture they were experiencing. This third element is referred to by G'd in our verse by the words: וגם אני, "also I." G'd reveals His name of אני as an aspect of the attribute of Mercy. Previously, this name had only appeared in conjunction with the tetragram. G'd revealed that there are occasions when people's groanings even when not accompanied by verbalised prayer reach the attribute of Mercy and evoke a response. This is why He added אשר מצרים מעבידים אותם, "the manner in which the Egyptians have enslaved them." I refer the reader to my comments on Exodus 2,23 in this respect. ואזכר את בריתי, "I have remembered My covenant." G'd means that He remembered both parts of the covenant, i.e. to redeem the people and to bring them to the Holy Land. [This had been a covenant with the patriarchs. What is new is that the present generation of Israelites would be the ones who would experience realisation of that covenant.] In this instance G'd spoke about a covenant which had not yet been spelled out but which follows immediately in the next four verses. G'd repeats the covenant only as an explanation of why He has advanced the date it is to become effective. The commentators who understand this covenant as a promise to punish the Egyptians are wrong; none of this has been mentioned in the verse following this declaration.

וגם אני שמעתי, “moreover, I have heard, etc.” an additional reason why I have sent you is that I have heard the groaning of the people, i.e. that they have repented their ways and seen fit to appeal to Me. Hence, just as I endure forever, so My promise will be in effect until carried out. I will demonstrate this with My outstretched arm. Concerning the opening line in our paragraph ושמי ה' לא נודעתי, something which we might have expected to have employed the same verb, i.e. ראה, for instance וארא אל אברהם...ושמי הי לא נראתי, “I have appeared to Avraham, but My name Hashem has not appeared, etc.” the reason for this is that, generally speaking, visions granted to the patriarchs occurred during the night, while they were asleep, whereas the manifestations of G’d you and your people will experience will all occur while you are fully awake. In other words, you will become privy to revelations of far greater dimensions than the ones granted to the patriarchs.

Therefore say to the children of Israel: I am Hashem. I will bring you out from under the oppression of the servitude of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from their bondage, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.

לכן THEREFORE, i. e. in accordance with the tenor of that oath (cf. Exodus Rabbah 6) אמר לבני ישראל אני ה׳ SAY UNTO THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL, I AM THE LORD Who am faithful in My promise, והוצאתי אתכם AND I WILL BRING YOU OUT, — for so did I promise them: (Genesis 15:14) “and afterwards shall they go out with great substance”. סבלת מצרים means the encumbrance of the burdens of Egypt.

AND I WILL BRING YOU OUT FROM UNDER THE BURDENS OF THE EGYPTIANS. He assured them that He will take them out from the land of the Egyptians and that they will no longer suffer from their heavy burden. AND I WILL DELIVER YOU FROM THEIR BONDAGE. The Egyptians will no longer rule over them at all, nor will they subject them to be a servant under tribute wherever they live. AND I WILL REDEEM YOU. He will bring such judgments upon them until the Egyptians will say: “Here You have the Israelites as a redemption for our lives.” The meaning of the word g’ulah (redemption) is close to the subject of mecher (sale), [thus implying that “I will buy you from the Egyptians”]. And the meaning of the expression, with an outstretched arm, is that His arm will be extended over them until He takes them out from Egypt.

"Therefore" — Just as I stand firm, so shall My word stand firm: I will redeem you with an outstretched arm from heaven to earth.

'לכן אמור לבני ישראל אני ה. The Torah speaks of three reasons (stages of the redemption) why G’d at this time reveals knowledge about Himself which He had not revealed previously. 1) והוצאתי אתכם מתחת סבלות מצרים there will be an immediate cessation of the Israelites performing slave labour for the Egyptians. 2) והצלתי, on the day the Israelites would depart from Ramses, when they would cross the border out of the land of Egypt. 3) וגאלתי, on the day the pursuing Egyptians would be drowned in the sea, as testified in Exodus 14,30 ויושע ה' ביום ההוא, “on that day the Lord orchestrated salvation, etc.” After the death of the ones who enslaved, the enslaved are obviously free.

לכן אמור לבני ישראל אני ה׳. "Therefore, say to the Israelites: 'I am י־ה־ו־ה.'" Moses was to tell the Israelites in the name of G'd that He was the attribute of Mercy and that He had decided to invoke this attribute on their behalf. As a result, He would lead them out of Egypt and perform the other stages which would complete the process of redemption. The word לכן is a form of an oath as we know from Ezekiel 20,30-42. In that instance the prophet refers to our verse as something concerning which G'd had said: "I have raised My hand," i.e. a clear form of an oath. G'd enumerates the steps of the redemption. 1) First "I will take you out from beneath the hard labour of Egypt;" this is the removal of the slave labour performed for the Egyptians. It would commence immediately with the plague of blood. Although this resulted in the dispersal of the taskmasters, the Israelites continued to perform light duty tasks. 2) "I will save you from their bondage;" this referred to the remaining kind of labour the Israelites performed for the Egyptians. 3) "I will liberate you;" this refers to the actual departure of the Israelites from the country. This also includes the splitting of the sea as the departure would have been meaningless without that final stage. The word וגאלתי must refer to a liberation which is not followed by pursuit. Following that stage the Jewish people would experience ולקחתי אתכם לי לעם," I will take you to be My people" which is a reference to the revelation at Mount Sinai when G'd gave us the Torah. At that point G'd would be able to say that: "I have truly become your G'd." These latter words may also refer to Moses' prayer in Exodus 33,16 which Berachot 7 interprets to mean that G'd should not reveal Himself to any other nation nor give them prophets. The operative word in והייתי לכם לאלוקים then would be לכם, "for you exclusively." One could also understand this verse as speaking of four separate redemptions as does Shemot Rabbah 6,4. This may be alluded to in G'd first again repeating His attribute as the tetragram. Accordingly, the four activities of which G'd speaks here would each be a redemption from a different decree of Pharaoh. The words "I shall be your G'd" would then refer to G'd having proved that He kept His promise. The name אלוקים often occurs as symbolic of truth and honesty. The knowledge of G'd as the attribute of Mercy will become widespread amongst the people as a result of these four redemptions.

לכן אמור אל בני ישראל אני י-ה-ו-ה . Therefore “say to the Children of Israel: “I AM י-ה-ו-ה-.” After the Torah had written earlier (3,15) “and say also to the Children of Israel ‘Hashem the G’d of your forefathers has sent me to you this is My name forever and My remembrance from generation to generation,’ and He had already commanded him to inform the Israelites of this attribute of G’d, He now repeated these instructions adding that the redemption would occur in four stages, i.e. ‘I will take you out, I will save you, I will redeem you and I will acquire you as My people (and I will bring you to the land, etc.).’” The difference between these four stages of the redemption is as follows: stage one referred to termination of slave labor. Stage two meant that the Israelites would no longer be legally inferior to the Egyptians. Stage three was a hint of the crossing of the sea by the Israelites. Stage four was a hint that they would be given the Torah. The promise of freedom from slave labor is contained in the words. והוצאתי אתכם מתחת סבלות מצרים. This implied that whereas the slave labor would be canceled, the Israelites would still be under the authority of the Egyptians. In fact, according to our tradition this state of affairs continued for six months. According to Rosh Hashana 11 the slave labor terminated on the first of Tishrei, whereas the Exodus followed 61/2 months later on the 15th of Nissan. Concerning this event the Torah wrote here והצלתי אתכם מעבודתם, “I will save you from being slaves to them.” It meant freedom from paying taxes to the Egyptian government. The advent of total independence was promised in the words וגאלתי אתכם בזרוע נטויה ובמשפטים גדולים, “and I will liberate you with an outstretched arm and great judgments.” This was an allusion to what would occur at the Sea of Reeds. This experience would remove the Israelites’ fear, (i.e. their slave mentality) from their erstwhile masters. Seeing how the Egyptians drowned would once and for all free the people not only physically but also mentally. The words “great judgments” in the plural referred to a number of phenomena witnessed by the Jewish people; they were first referred to in Exodus 14,31 and they have been elaborated on by Isaiah 51,9 when he specifically referred to G’d employing His ‘arm’ as He had done once before. Rashi, quoting Mechilta on the Shirat Hayam, already points to the fact that when the Egyptians drowned horse and rider remained inseparably attached to one another; he based himself on Exodus 15,1. Moses enumerated several additional phenomena in that song, all of which account for the expression “great judgments.” This stage was going to be followed by והייתי לכם לאלו-הים, “I will become your G’d”- seeing that you accept Me as such. The words ולקחתי אתכם לי לעם, “I will take you to be My nation,” implies the promise of being given the Torah, a tangible demonstration of that promise. The words וידעתם כי אני ה’ אלוקיכם mean that henceforth, after the revelation at Mount Sinai, “you will know forever more that I am the Lord your G’d” (both attributes.). The promise concludes with the words המוציא אתכם מארץ מצרים, “Who is taking you out of the land of Egypt;” you will never credit anyone else including yourselves with having accomplished that feat.

I will bring you out, I will save you, I will redeem you, and I will take you. These correspond to the four things that happened to them, as it is said (Genesis 15:13), Your offspring shall be strangers — this refers to their status as foreigners; in a land not their own — this refers to the distance from the Divine Presence, for one who dwells outside the Land of Israel is like one who has no God, etc. (Ketubot 110b). And the text places the distance from the Divine Presence next to their status as foreigners because one depends on the other — the distance from the Divine Presence stems from their being foreigners outside the Land of Israel, in a place distant from the Divine Presence. And they shall serve them — this is something additional to being foreigners, for a typical foreigner is at least not a slave. And they shall afflict them — this is something additional to slavery, for a typical slave is not afflicted without reason. In the redemption, the Holy One, blessed be He, saw fit to save them gradually, bit by bit. First, He saved them from the most dangerous thing, which was affliction, and about this it is said, I will bring you out from under the burdens of Egypt, for burdens refers to affliction, as it is written, to afflict them with their burdens. And afterward, He saved them from slavery as well, and about this it is said, I will save you from their labor. And afterward, He saved them from the lightest of all, which was their status as foreigners, and about this it is said, I will redeem you, etc., for a typical foreigner has no redeemer, as it is written (Numbers 5:8), If the man has no redeemer, which our Sages interpreted (Bava Kamma 109a) as referring to a foreigner, etc. And since from the [status of] foreignness comes the removal of the Divine Presence, for this reason it was necessary to connect to [the concept of] foreignness the statement in a land not their own which indicates the removal of the Divine Presence. In contrast to this, here it says that with the nullification of [their status of] foreignness, they will merit to cleave to the Divine Presence. And regarding this it says, I will take you to Me for a people, and I will be to you as God — an actual taking [signifying marriage in Biblical Hebrew], like a man [takes] a maiden. And since one who dwells outside the Land of Israel is as if he has no God, therefore it says here, and I will be to you as God. And through this cleaving, you shall know that I am the One who brings you out from under the burdens of Egypt, the greatest of evils. And afterwards, He explained this taking by saying, And I will bring you to the land, etc. Therefore, they instituted four cups [of wine] on Passover corresponding to the salvation from these four evils. And above, in Parshat Vayeshev (40:11), regarding the cup mentioned concerning the chief butler, you will find a very correct reason for the four cups of Passover, see there. And behold, in these four expressions of redemption, which mention the name of God four times in the verse Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: The God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you — why do we need both the general statement and the specific details? This is to tell us that from the foreignness they were saved in the merit of Abraham who left his land, his birthplace, and his father’s house to go to a foreign land. And in the merit of Isaac’s service, who was bound upon the altar for the service of God, they were saved from the labor of Egypt. And in the merit of Jacob who endured afflictions all his days, they were saved from the affliction of Egypt. However, regarding the divine attachment, all the forefathers were equal in it; therefore, He grouped them together and said God of your fathers for in the merit of all of them, they would merit the attachment of the Divine Presence. And some say that I will deliver you from their labor [avodah, which can also mean worship] means from the zodiac sign of Aries which the Egyptians worshipped, meaning from their deities, which is their worship, and that is correct.

והוצאתי אתכם מתחת סבלות מצרים, “I will take you out from under the slave labour of Egypt.” This is G’d’s promise that He would take them out of the land of Egypt and that they would not again experience having to perform slave labour. Seeing that this promise still left open the possibility that after leaving Egypt the Israelites would be subjected to heavy taxation in their host country, G’d added: והצלתי אתכם, “I will save you,” i.e. you will not be subjugated to some other government at all. וגאלתי אתכם, “and I will liberate you.” I will perform so many judgments on the Egyptians that they will liberate you altogether in preference to enduring more plagues. The word גאולה is used here in the same sense as “selling,” i.e. setting free. The meaning of the words בזרוע נטויה, is that G’d will twist their arm until they release the Israelites.

And I will bring you near before Me as a people, and I will be your God, and you will know that I am Hashem your God, who brings you out from under the oppression of the servitude of Egypt.

AND I WILL TAKE YOU TO ME FOR A PEOPLE. That is, when you will come to Mount Sinai and you will accept the Torah. There, [at Mount Sinai], it was said, Then ye shall be Mine own treasure. AND YE SHALL KNOW THAT I AM THE ETERNAL YOUR G-D WHO BROUGHT YOU OUT FROM UNDER THE BURDENS OF THE EGYPTIANS. The purport thereof, said Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra, is that it was in the combined mighty power of the higher constellations that the children of Israel should yet stay in the exile. But this is not of the theme of the chapter. Rather He says: “When I will redeem you with an outstretched arm visible to all nations, you shall know that it is I the Eternal Who performs new signs and wonders in the world, and that I am your G-d and for your sake I had so acted, for you are the portions of the Eternal. ”.

"And I will take" — [This refers to] when you receive the Torah at Mount Sinai. The meaning of 'who brings you out' is that it was decreed by the great conjunction [of the stars] serving the supernal hosts that they would remain yet in exile — and this will be clarified for you in the portion Ki Tisa.

ולקחתי אתכם לי לעם, this will occur at the revelation at Mount Sinai. וידעתם, then the Israelites will realise that all of G’d’s promises have indeed come true. We find a similar verse in Deuteronomy 11,2 וידעתם היום כי לא את בניכם אשר לא ידעו, “you will know this day, that not with your children who did not know, etc.” but כי אני ה' אלוקיכם המוציא, that inasmuch as it is I, the Lord your G’d Who leads you out and watches over you very closely, AM THE ONE who will do everything that I promised.

וידעתם כי אני ה׳ אלוקיכם, "you will know that I י־ה־ו־ה am the Lord your G'd." G'd means that the Israelites will now receive clear evidence which attribute of G'd it is that will set in motion the various steps of the redemption. They will also realise in retrospect that the attribute of Mercy had been predominant in all of G'd's actions.

ולקחתי אתכם לי לעם, “I will acquire you to be My people.” This will take place when you come to Mount Sinai and accept the Torah. וידעתם כי אני ה' אלוקיכם המוציא אתכם, “then you will know that it is I, your G’d, Who is taking you out, etc.” Ibn Ezra says that according to astrology, the Israelites would have remained in exile still longer. G’d declared that He will supersede what is written in the stars concerning their fate. Nachmanides feels that this explanation does not conform to the tenor of the whole portion. He therefore suggests that the meaning is that when you will observe the brute force used by the Lord to bring you out of Egypt, and this will be witnessed by all the surrounding nations, you will realize that He is really your G’d, and that He has orchestrated all this on your account and for your benefit.

And I will bring you into the land which I swore by My Word to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, and I will give it to you as an inheritance. I am Hashem.

נשאתי את ידי I HAVE LIFTED UP MY HAND — I have lifted it up to swear by My Throne.

AND I WILL BRING YOU IN UNTO THE LAND CONCERNING WHICH I LIFTED UP MY HAND. “I have lifted it up to swear by My throne.” Thus the language of Rashi. Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra said that it is an idiom [denoting the exercise of power], just like a man who lifts his hand to the heavens and swears, such as: For I lift up My hand to heaven [to take an oath of vengeance]; And he lifted up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and swore. By way of the Truth, [the mystic lore of the Cabala], I lifted up My hand means that “I have raised the strength of My arm to Myself that I will give them the Land.” Similarly, For I lift up My hand to heaven means that “I will lift up the great hand to the heavens since it abounds in eternal life.” But the verse, And he lifted up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, has no relevance here, for that was said concerning the angel clothed in linen, who swore by Him that liveth for ever.

"And I will bring you to the Land" — because many of those who left Egypt, and their children as well, are reckoned as [part of] them. The meaning of 'I raised My hand' is a metaphor, as a man who raises his hand toward the heavens and swears — as in 'when I lift My hand to heaven' (Deut. 32:40) and 'he raised his right hand and his left hand to the heavens' (Dan. 12:7). The meaning of 'I am Hashem' is: I who will fulfill this.

והבאתי אתכם אל, once they would mentally digest all this you would be worthy of My bringing you to the land, and I will give it to you.

והבאתי אתכם אל הארץ, "And I shall bring you to the land, etc." It is difficult to reconcile this promise with our tradition that G'd speaks the unvarnished truth when we know it to be a fact that the generation G'd was addressing at that time did not get to the Holy Land. Only the children of that generation actually crossed the Jordan and took possession of the land of Canaan. Every one of the people who left Egypt at an age of twenty or over died on the way. Our problem is even more serious in view of the statement of our sages (Shemot Rabbah 6:4) that the word לכן in 6,6, is a form of an oath. I believe that G'd Himself was already aware of this problem and that is why He prefaced the statement "I will bring you to the land, etc," with the words: "you will know that I am the merciful G'd who is about to take you out from under the slave labour of Egypt." The two statements are to be considered as conditions. What G'd meant was simply this. "Provided that you will have realised that I am the One who takes you out of Egypt and that I have demonstrated to be the merciful G'd,-then you will also experience that I shall bring you to the land which I have sworn to your forefathers and will give it to you as an inheritance." G'd was very careful to insert this condition in the very midst of the promise He made and not only as an afterthought. In the event that the Israelites would not fulfil the conditions laid down history would have to take its course in accordance with their conduct.

והבאתי אתכם אל הארץ, “I will bring you to the land, etc.” Seeing that all the previous promises were meant to be realized in the immediate future, this promise too was intended to be fulfilled promptly. If the sin of the spies who talked the people into refusing to engage in a military struggle to oust the Canaanites had not occurred, this promise too would have been fulfilled promptly. The prophet Ezekiel 34,13 speaks of similar four stages of redemption of the Jewish people in the future. I quote: “I shall bring them out from the nations and gather them from the lands and bring them to their ground and tend them on Israel’s mountains, etc.” When commemorating the Exodus annually on the night of the Seder we drink four cups of wine corresponding to these four stages of our redemption outlined by the above-mentioned four expressions. The reward received by the righteous for their conduct has been compared to a כוס, a cup, by David in Psalms 23,5 where he speaks of כוסי רויה, “my cup is abundant.” We find a similar reference in Psalms 16,5: “G’d is my allotted share and cup.” The word כוס, cup, in that context occurs also in Psalms 116,13 “I will raise the cup (in thanksgiving) for salvations experienced.” Isaiah writes something similar (Isaiah 66,11) “that you may suck from her breast consolation to the full.” The author continues to quote examples from the Bible showing that traditionally we either drank or will drink cups of wine as a form of thanksgiving to the Lord for salvations experienced or yet to be experienced. נשאתי את ידי, “I have raised My hand.” The Torah employs an anthropomorphism here (using language employed by human beings to portray non-existent limbs of disembodied Beings such as G’d). The whole verse is to be understood as an allegory. When a man swears an oath he usually raises his hand towards heaven to reflect his sincerity and earnestness. The Torah used this form of expression to describe that G’d related with similar seriousness and determination to what He had in mind for the descendants of Avraham, etc. This is not an isolated instance in which G’d is described as “raising His hand.” Compare Deuteronomy 32,40: “For I have raised My hand to heaven.” Nachmanides writes in a similar fashion, prefacing his comment with the words: על דרך האמת. “I have raised My strong arm to Myself that I will give them the land.” He also quotes the verse in Deut. 32,9 as a parallel to our verse. Nachmanides points out, however, that he does not consider Daniel 12,7 ורם ימינו ושמאלו אל השמים, “he (the man dressed in linen, an angel) raised his right hand and his left hand to heaven,” to be in the same category. In that instance the angel is portrayed as swearing an oath in the name of the Lord. מורשה, “an inheritance.” G’d refrains from saying ירושה. There is a difference between מורשה and ירושה . The people addressed were not the ones who would personally receive the land as a heritage seeing that all those who were adults would never get there due to the sin of the spies. They would, however, bequeath their claim to it to their children, i.e. they would be מורישים. This is why the Torah used the word מורשה instead of ירושה. We need to interpret the word מורשה in Deut. 33,4 in a similar manner. Torah cannot be handed down as an inheritance as if it were a house, a field, or a business, i.e. some object merely to be passed on from father to son. Inasmuch as Torah is an inheritance it remains such only for that particular generation. which stood at Mount Sinai and had received it as an inheritance, i.e. something inalienable, not to be stolen from them. The next generation had to study Torah on its own in order that it should become an inheritance for them also. However, the children of someone who “owned” Torah are predisposed to acquire it for themselves. Hence Torah is forevermore a מורשה for such children. Parents have been commanded not only to study Torah but to train their children in studying Torah, ושננתם לבניך, (Deut. 6,7). it is a מורשה, something to be transmitted to successive generations down the ages. By the same token later generations of Jews are as duty-bound to observe the commandments of the Torah as were those who had actually received it at Sinai. According to our sages the souls of those generations had already stood at Mount Sinai at the time when G’d revealed Himself to Moses and to the people (Pesikta Zutrata Va'etchanan 5,3). This concept is spelled out in detail in Deut. 29,14 “including all those who are not present (in the flesh) on this day.” (the day Moses renewed the covenant with the generation who would enter the Holy Land). G’d concluded this promise with the words אני ה’, seeing He had commenced the paragraph (verse 2). The message is : “I Who make a promise can be relied upon to translate it into reality.”

ונתתי אותה לכם מורשה, “and I will give it to you as an ancestral heritage.” G’d did not speak about ירושה “an inheritance;” this means that the people leaving Egypt during the Exodus would not be the ones inheriting that land, but their offspring would.

And Moses spoke thus to the children of Israel, but they did not accept from Moses, because of anguish of spirit and because of the bondage that was hard upon them.

ולא שמעו אל משה BUT THEY HEARKENED NOT TO MOSES — they did not accept his words of comfort. מקצר רוח THROUGH ANGUISH (lit. shortness) OF SPIRIT — If one is in anguish his breath comes in short gasps and he cannot draw long breaths. In a somewhat similar manner to this I heard this section expounded by Rabbi Baruch the son of Rabbi Eliezer, and he cited the following verse to me in proof of his explanation: (Jeremiah 16:21) “This once will I cause them to know My hand and My might, and they shall know that My Name is the Lord”. Rabbi Baruch said: we may learn from this text that when the Holy One, blessed be He, fulfils His words, even when it is a matter of punishment, He makes it known that His Name is the Lord; and, of course, this is all the more so, when He fulfils His words in a matter of bestowing reward. — Our Rabbis explained it (this section) as having reference to what precedes it — that Moses said (5:22): “Wherefore hast thou done so evil [to this people]”. Whereupon God said to him, “Alas, for those that are gone (i. e. the patriarchs) and are no more to be found! I really have reason to deplore the death of the patriarchs. Many a time did I reveal Myself to them by the name ‘God Almighty’, and not once did they ask Me, What is Thy Name? (i. e. what is the name that describes Thy true essence); but thou hast at once said (Exodus 3:13) “[If they ask] ‘what is His name’, what shall I say unto them?!” (Exodus Rabbah 6:4; Sanhedrin 111a). וגם הקמתי וגו׳ ALSO I SET UP [MY COVENANT WITH THEM TO GIVE THEM THE LAND OF CANAAN], and yet when Abraham wished to bury Sarah he could not obtain a grave until he purchased one at a high price. So, too, in the case of Isaac, people strove with him for possession of the wells which he had dug. Similarly, of Jacob it is stated, (Genesis 33:19) “He purchased a parcel of field,” in which to pitch his tent. Yet none of them criticised My dealings with them, whilst you say “Wherefore hast Thou done so evil [to this people!]” — But this Midrashic exposition does not fit in with the text for several reasons. Firstly, because Scripture does not state “And they did not ask of Me regarding my Name, the Lord”. And if you say in refutation of my objection that they did not mean that ושמי ה' לא נודעתי actually signifies that they did not ask what is My Name, but it means “He did not tell them that this was His Name and yet they did not ask Him what it was”, then I reply that these words cannot mean that He did not tell them His name, for at the very first when He revealed Himself to Abraham at the Covenant “between the pieces’’ it is said, (Genesis 15:7) “I am the Lord (אני ה׳) who brought thee out from Ur of the Chaldees”. Further (secondly), how does the context run on to the statements which Scripture places after the above verses, viz., “And I have also heard etc.” and “Wherefore say unto the children of Israel etc.”? Therefore I say: let Scripture be explained in its literal sense so that each statement fits...

BUT THEY HEARKENED NOT UNTO MOSES FOR IMPATIENCE OF SPIRIT, AND FOR CRUEL BONDAGE. It was not because they did not believe in G-d and in His prophet [that they hearkened not]. Rather, they paid no attention to his words because of impatience of spirit, as a person whose soul is grieved on account of his misery and who does not want to live another moment in his suffering even though he knows that he will be relieved later. The “impatience of spirit” was their fear that Pharaoh would put them to death, as their officers said to Moses, and the “cruel bondage” was the pressure, for the taskmasters pressed upon them and hurried them [in their daily task], which gave them no chance to hear anything and consider it.

"And Moses spoke" — but they did not listen and did not lend an ear to his words, for their spirit was shortened by the length of the exile and by the harsh labor that had been newly imposed upon them.

ולא שמעו אל משה, to mentally absorb all this, so that they would have full trust in the salvation of G’d and give Him credit for this. This is where they were different from Avraham in his time, who believed implicitly in an impossible-sounding promise, and who gave credit to G’d for making such a promise. This was eventually the reason why this part of G’d’s promise was not fulfilled in the lifetime of the people who were being addressed at this time. מקצר רוח, for it did not appear believable to their present state of mind, so that their heart could not assimilate such a promise. ומעבודה קשה, if it had not been for the heavy labour which they had to perform they would have paid much more attention to Moses’ words, and they would have understood that Moses’ arguments made what he said very believable.

מקצר רות ומעבודה קשה, for impatience of spirit and cruel bondage. Perhaps the people did not respond positively to this assurance because they had not yet received the Torah. Since Torah broadens a person's mind, the Torah may hint at that by describing the Israelites' state of mind as "narrow minded, limited." ומעבודה קשה, and because of the cruel bondage. The reason that the Torah writes: "and because of the cruel bondage," is that they suffered from קצר רוח, impatience, quite independently of the effects of the bondage on their state of mind. They had become impatient at their fate when they pondered the additional workload Pharaoh had imposed upon them. A person who is in that frame of mind cannot even perform the labour he is normally capable of performing. This is why the Torah adds the words ומעבודה קשה. The people had good reason for becoming impatient at their fate because when Moses had come he had given them hope that their liberation was close at hand. This had given them a new and broader perspective on life. Now, when Pharaoh had decreed additional hardships their minds could concentrate only on how to cope with the immediate and even worse situation. The word מעבודה may therefore be understood as something comparative, i.e. the even greater bondage than had been their lot prior to Moses' coming.

ולא שמעו אל משה, “but they did not listen (accept) what Moses had said to them;” they were too afraid to accept what Moses said to them on account on the recent worsening of their condition as a result of Moses’ intervention and Pharaoh’s reaction to this. Pharaoh had succeeded at this stage in making the people forget their dreams of freedom or at least improved conditions, by burdening them with additional hard labour. (Compare 5,9) The words דברי שקר, there refer to Moses’ “false promises.”

ולא שמעו אל משה, “but they did not listen to Moses.” The reason was not that they either disbelieved G’d’s promise or His servant Moses, but it was due only to shortness of breath and hard work. The people’s collective condition was much like that of an individual who wishes himself dead as he can no longer bear the pain that he is enduring. According to a Midrashic approach (Pessikta Zutrata) the word מקצר in the expression מקצר רוח which totals 430 in numerical value, made them believe that the redemption was due to occur only after 430 years of such suffering. Such a prospect naturally made them deaf to Moses’ promises at this time. [They did not realise that by commencing the count from the time G’d had revealed Himself to Avraham at the covenant between the pieces 430 years had just about elapsed so that the redemption was close at hand. Ed.]

“And Moses spoke thus to the children of Israel, etc.” There are several questions in this narrative because shortness of breath is the same as hard labor, so why separate them? Furthermore, what is written afterwards, Come, speak to Pharaoh, implies that this was meant to fix the refusal and resistance of Israel, and this matter requires explanation. And everyone asks, isn’t there a rebuttal to this kal vachomer [a fortiori argument] [in 6:12]? For what applies to Israel who had shortness of breath [does not apply to Pharaoh]. And what did the Holy One, Blessed be He, answer to this kal vachomer, and how was it fixed by what was said, And He commanded them concerning the children of Israel, etc. And what appears to me in this matter, is that in the entire narrative from “And I appeared to Abraham” until “And I will give it to you as an inheritance,” there is no mention at all of Pharaoh sending them from his land. This could be understood as if God wanted them to leave on their own without the king’s permission, as implied by the language “I will take you out” and “I will take you.” Even though God had already said to Pharaoh, “Let My people go so they may serve Me,” perhaps after Pharaoh’s refusal, God wanted them to leave against Pharaoh’s will. Moses erred in this matter because he should have added of his own understanding and spoken to Israel also this time that Pharaoh would send them forth, for they would compel him until he said, “I am willing,” since the Blessed One is not a man that He should change His mind. But Moses did not add anything; rather, he told them God’s words exactly as they were, as it says, And Moses spoke thus to the children of Israel. The word “thus” indicates that the words were exactly as stated and they did not listen to Moses — they did not accept his words. They should have responded to his words, “How can we leave without the king’s permission?” just as it is said, How can I go? If Saul hears, he will kill me (First Samuel 16:2). But because of their shortness of spirit, their breathing was short like a panicked person, therefore they couldn’t verbalize their response to him. Furthermore, they feared the hard labor, lest it become even heavier upon them as it had become after Moses’ first mission. When God saw Israel’s intention and the reason for their refusal and rejection, He wanted to correct their error, so God spoke to Moses: Go, speak to Pharaoh, etc. For even from the beginning, it never arose in His blessed mind that they would go without permission, except that both Moses and Israel misunderstood His first words. And indeed he erred in these words of his as well, because he thought that since the mission was dependent on Pharaoh, it implied that only the consent of the sender was needed, but not the consent of Israel, since with a strong hand he will drive them out against their will. Therefore, he said, Behold, the children of Israel have not heeded me. Not as a logical deduction [kal vachomer], but rather he was saying, “In my opinion, they don’t want to listen to leave Egypt at all.” For our Sages found that during the plague of darkness, there were many wicked Israelites who did not want to leave, as Rashi explained in Parashat Bo (10:2). And although the verse tells us the truth that they did not listen because of shortness of spirit, Moses nevertheless thought they did not listen because they had no desire to leave at all. Therefore, Moses said, without a logical deduction: since the children of Israel did not listen to me and have no desire to leave, how then will Pharaoh listen to me to drive them out? For Pharaoh will use their refusal and reluctance as an excuse. And when God saw Moses’s mistake and the mistake of Israel, He wanted to correct both at once, as it says, And He commanded them concerning the children of Israel and concerning Pharaoh king of Egypt. So that there would be both the consent of the sender and the consent of the sent, for one cannot be without the other. He would speak to the children of Israel to persuade them to leave, speaking to their hearts good words of comfort, and to Pharaoh to persuade him to send them. And those among Israel who did not want to leave died during the three days of darkness. And as for why Moses again said, How then will Pharaoh listen to me, seeing that I am of uncircumcised lips? It was because when God told him, “Go, speak to Pharaoh,” Moses thought that perhaps God had retracted His statement that “he [Aaron] shall be your spokesman,” and now wanted Moses himself to do all the speaking, not Aaron. Therefore, he said, “Behold, I am of uncircumcised lips.” To this it says, And the Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron and gave them a command, showing that He had not retracted this, and Aaron would be Moses’s spokesman, thus fixing everything. According to the simple understanding, we can also say that there is no refutation to this kal vachomer [a fortiori argument]. Because Moses did not understand their intention when they did not listen due to shortness of spirit, and he thought that they did not listen to him because they did not believe in his prophecy. Therefore, he reasoned, all the more so Pharaoh would not believe him. But the Holy One, blessed be He, knew the truth that they did not listen because of shortness of spirit. Therefore, He did not bother to respond to him at all regarding this kal vachomer, for the Holy One, blessed be He, knew that there was no substance to this kal vachomer. And He only responded to Moses’ statement I am of uncircumcised lips by saying that Aaron would be his interpreter, as mentioned. And what Moses said a second time at the end of the matter Behold, I am of uncircumcised lips, was because it was said, Speak to Pharaoh, king of Egypt, all that I speak to you, and Moses thought that what God would speak to him and to Aaron would be the speech that Aaron would be his mouthpiece for, but what God would speak to him alone, he alone would need to speak to Pharaoh. For this is implied by the language all that I speak to you. Therefore, the Holy One, blessed be He, responded to him, You shall speak, etc., and Aaron your brother shall speak to Pharaoh all the words, even what I speak to you alone.

ולא שמעו אל משה, now, although initially, they did believe in Moses and his mission. As we know from Exodus 4,31 ויאמן העם, “the people believed,” this was based on their expecting immediate relief from their servitude. Now they had not only not experienced relief, but a worsening of their condition.

And Hashem spoke with Moses, saying:

AND THE ETERNAL SPOKE UNTO MOSES ‘LEIMOR’ (SAYING). The commentators said that throughout the entire Torah, the word leimor means “saying to Israel,” the purport thereof being that G-d said to Moses, “Say these, My words, to Israel.” Here the word leimor means “saying to Pharaoh.” But the verse stating [Laban’s words to Jacob], The G-d of your father spoke unto me yesternight ‘leimor’ (saying): Take heed to thyself that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad, does not fit in correctly with this explanation [since Laban was not commanded to relate these words to Jacob]. Similarly, there are many cases in Scripture where the term “saying” is repeated, [and it is not correct to say that it means “saying it to others”]. Thus: And the Eternal spoke unto Moses, saying: Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them; And the Eternal spoke unto Moses, saying: Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them; And they [Moses and Aaron] spoke unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying; And the children of Israel spoke unto Moses, saying: Behold we perish; And I spoke unto you at that time, saying. There are many other such verses. Likewise in this seder we find: And the Eternal spoke unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying: When Pharaoh will speak unto you, saying, and the word “saying” cannot correctly mean “saying it to others.”The correct interpretation appears to me to be that in all places the word leimor indicates the clarification of a subject. The verse, And the Eternal spoke unto Moses, saying, means really explicitly, free from doubt or uncertainty. This is why this expression always appears in the Torah, for of Moses’ prophecy it was said, Mouth to mouth do I speak with him, even manifestly, and not in dark speeches. And Laban also said to Jacob: “Yesternight G-d spoke unto me, saying clearly that I should not harm you; except for that, I would have done you evil.” Similarly, the verse, And the children of Israel spoke unto Moses, saying: Behold, we perish, means that they said so explicitly to Moses and Aaron, shouting to them brazenly. [In Hebrew], the infinitive is used for clarification of a subject. Occasionally, it comes before the verb, and sometimes it comes after the verb, such as: ‘omrim amor’ (they surely say) unto them that despise Me.

"And Hashem spoke" — [The word 'saying'] means: directing Moses, similar to 'Speak to the children of Israel and say to them' (Lev. 1:2).

ויאמר…. בא דבר אל פרעה, He said:" come and speak sternly with Pharaoh, etc." Moses was to tell Pharaoh that G'd had instructed him to speak to Pharaoh and to demand that he should let the Jewish people depart from his land. The letter ו at the beginning of the word וישלח is significant because it does not make sense as a conjunctive letter; nothing else had been demanded prior to that in the conversation described. It must therefore refer to Moses telling Pharaoh that his first instruction had been to tell him that he spoke at the behest of G'd. It was quite an event that an ordinary individual should present himself at court without invitation and make demands on the Monarch. The manner in which these demands were to be made was even more astounding. Moreover, it appears that Moses was to demand not only that Pharaoh should not object if the Israelites would leave of their own accord, but he was to demand that Pharaoh actually give them a "send-off."

וידבר ה' אל משה לאמור, “the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, etc.” Nachmanides writes that some commentators claim that whenever the word לאמור appears in the Torah in the context of something being addressed to Israel, it means that G’d instructed Moses to address the text following to the Children of Israel, whereas in this verse there is an exception and the words of G’d were to be relayed to Pharaoh Such an approach is flawed, for when Lavan related to Yaakov that G’d had addressed him during a dream on the night before, warning him that he was not to harm Yaakov even by word of mouth, he quoted G’d as prefacing His remarks to him with the word לאמור, (Genesis 31,29). The same difficulty is obvious in all the instances when the Torah wrote וידבר ה' אל משה למור, followed by the words דבר אל בני ישראל וגו', “speak to the Children of Israel, etc.” If the word לאמור had already meant that Moses was to relate what follows to the Israelites, why would we need the words דבר אל בני ישראל, “say to the people of Israel,” at all? He believes therefore that the word לאמור precedes the instruction to Moses to be precise in his instructions to the Children of Israel, not to leave anything in doubt, not to speak allegorically, or by hinting only. The reason why this is so is because Moses, as the only prophet on such a level, received clear and unmistakable instructions from G’d. Other prophets received what our sages call “blurred visions.” If Moses were not to relay what he had been told clearly and unmistakably, why would G’d have troubled Himself to spell His instructions out to him in the first place? This is what G’d told Aaron and Miriam in Numbers 12,6-8, when He warned them not to compare their level of prophetic insights to that of Moses, with whom G’d spoke as clearly as a man speaks to his fellow man.

Go, speak to Pharaoh king of Egypt, that he send the children of Israel out of his land.

"Go" — into the king's palace.

!בא דבר אל פרעה, “go and speak sternly to Pharaoh!” G-d implies that He will go with Moses on this mission. On the other hand, at the time when Moses is bidden to go outside instead of into the city, G-d uses the term: לך, [as when G-d instructed Avraham to leave Charan and to go to a land which He would show him (Genesis 12,1). Ed.], as in Exodus 7,15 where G-d is told to speak to Pharaoh at the banks of the Nile.

And Moses spoke before Hashem, saying: Behold, the children of Israel have not accepted from me; how then will Pharaoh accept from me, and I am heavy of speech?

ואיך ישמעני פרעה HOW THAN SHALL PHARAOH HEAR ME? — This is one of the ten inferences from minor to major which are found in the Bible (Genesis Rabbah 92:7). ערל שפתים OF UNCIRCUMCISED LIPS — It really means obstructed as regards the lips. So, too, in respect to all forms derived from ערל I say that they signify obstructed. E. g. (Jeremiah 6:10) “their ear is עֲרֵלָה — stopped up so that it will not hear; (Jeremiah 9:25) “עַרְלִי in heart” — their hearts are closed so that they will not understand; (Habakkuk 2:16) “Drink thou, also וְהֵעָרֵל” — and become thou closed up (in thy senses) through intoxication caused by the cup of curse mentioned in that passage; the foreskin (ערלה) of the flesh is so called because the membrum is closed up and covered by it; (Leviticus 19:23) וערלתם ערלתו signifies, make for it (the tree) a closure (אוטם) and cover by means of an inhibition that will prove a barrier against eating it; (Leviticus 19:23 “Three years shall it be to you as ערלים” — it shall be closed up and covered and barred so that it many not be eaten.

BEHOLD, THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL HAVE NOT HEARKENED UNTO ME because You have done nothing [for Israel] so that my words should be acceptable to them. AND HOW THEN SHALL PHARAOH HEAR ME? AND besides, I AM OF UNCIRCUMCISED LIPS, and I am not fit to speak before a great king. It is possible to explain that Moses thought that due to his deficiency — for he was of uncircumcised lips — the children of Israel would not hearken to him, for he could not frame [words] to speak kindly to them, words of good cheer and comfort, and all the more how could he speak to Pharaoh?Now the reason that Moses again broached this argument [of his speech-impediment, when he had already mentioned it above in Chapter 4, Verse 10], is that G-d did not originally command him that he was to speak before Pharaoh. He merely said, And thou shalt come, thou and the elders of Israel, unto the king of Egypt, and ye shall say unto him. In that case it was possible that the elders should speak [before Pharaoh] and Moses would remain silent. Then Moses said that he was ashamed even to speak to the people, saying, I am not a man of words. Whereupon the Holy One, blessed be He, answered him, And he [Aaron] shall be thy spokesman unto the people. And so indeed Moses and Aaron did when they first came to the people, as it is said, And Aaron spoke all the words which the Eternal had spoken unto Moses, and did the signs in the sight of the people. But now Moses himself was commanded, Wherefore say unto the children of Israel: I am the Eternal, and he did speak to them as He commanded him, but they did not hearken to him. Now when He again commanded Moses to speak to Pharaoh, Moses said, “How can I speak to him, I who am of uncircumcised lips.” Then the Holy One, blessed be He, associated Aaron with him, and gave both of them a charge unto the children of Israel, that they should say to them whatever He will command them, and unto Pharaoh to bring them forth out of his land. Now Rashi commented: “[And He gave them a charge unto the children of Israel, and unto Pharaoh, king of Egypt]. That is to say, He gave them a command with regard to the children of Israel and His mission on which He had sent them to Pharaoh.” But there is no need for this.

"And Moses spoke" — 'Behold, the children of Israel, who are Your people, have not listened to me — how then will Pharaoh listen to me, seeing that he is a king and is not of Your people? Furthermore, it is a great deficiency that I should speak before him while I am of uncircumcised lips. For the first time [You sent me] You promised that You would direct my mouth, so that I would not stumble over the letter that is heavy for me [to pronounce]. Perhaps my tongue will falter before him — yet You said that Aaron would be the interpreter between me and Israel.'

הן בני ישראל לא שמעו אלי, he believed that this was due to the fact that from the moment he had started speaking to Pharaoh the latter had become worse in his attitude and the people, putting two and two together, had concluded that his mission had failed. If he felt that way, Pharaoh would certainly not pay any heed to him and continue doing what he liked. This was especially so, seeing that he was also an ערל שפתים, afflicted with a speech handicap. He mentioned this as he did not believe that Aaron would accompany him other than for the time he identified himself as G’d’s emissary when he spoke to the people.

לפני ה׳ לאמור הן בני ישראל לא שמעו אלי, in G'd's presence, saying: "here the Israelites do not listen to me, etc." What is the meaning of the word לאמור in this context? Who was G'd to communicate Moses' comments to? Perhaps we should not understand this verse as Moses' contemplating to refuse this mission but as a comment addressed to himself, bemoaning his failure thus far. The word לאמור could be a rhetorical comment Moses made that instead of results, all his attempts of speaking to Pharaoh would remain just that, words. Moses may also have alluded to his inability to speak effectively due to his stammer which had made even the Israelites unwilling to respond to him. He implied that G'd should heal his disability in order to make him a more effective spokesman. הן בני ישראל לא שמעו, "even the children of Israel have not listened, etc." The logic expressed by Moses in this verse seems untenable if Moses accepted the Torah's statement in verse nine that the reason the Israelites did not respond to Moses was their קצר רוח, their understandable impatience. How could Moses compare Pharaoh's potentially negative response to that of the Israelites? What comparable pressure had Pharaoh been under? Perhaps Moses' logic is valid when we consider some other aspects. While it is true that the Israelites suffered from an impatient state of mind, there were other reasons why they should have listened to Moses. The most important such reason was their faith in G'd. Secondly, this inherent faith should have been reinforced by the good news Moses had brought them. When contrasted with these two factors which certainly did not influence Pharaoh who had blasphemed "who is G'd?", the fact that the Israelites did not listen to him made it seem totally unjustified to expect that Pharaoh should take Moses' demands seriously. Moses suggested that the קצר רוח displayed by the Israelites was minor compared to the קצר רוח which Pharaoh would display once he heard Moses' demands. The reason Moses added at this juncture that he had a stammer was because he felt this would reinforce Pharaoh's rejection of anything he had to say. Pharaoh would reason- at least to himself- that if the powerful G'd that Moses spoke about had not even cured his spokesman of a simple speech defect, it was laughable to think that He could impose His will on the mightiest ruler in the world. In fact, if this kind of reasoning were to be conveyed to the Israelites, it might further undermine their faith in G'd. There was another reason for Moses' argument at this point. Whereas in Exodus 4,16 G'd had countered Moses' argument about his stammer by appointing Aaron as his mouthpiece, this was only in order to convey G'd's message to Moses to the Jewish people. We find confirmation of this in 4,30. However, already in 5,1 we find that Moses himself spoke in his mission to Pharaoh (at least also). If we look for confirmation of this thought in the text we may find it in the way Moses describes the...

הן בני ישראל לא שמעו אלי, “behold, even the Children of Israel have not listened to me, etc.” according to Rashi this was one of the ten occasions when we encounter an “a fortiori” method, i.e. a logical argument in the Torah. This comment seems uncalled for, seeing that the Torah had spelled out that the reason why the Children of Israel did not listen to Moses was because the terrible conditions under which they laboured had which made them unable to think rationally, i.e. they suffered from קוצר רוח, “impaired intellectual judgment.” Seeing that Pharaoh did not suffer from that same ailment, where was the logic that Moses referred to? Seeing that the commentators are obviously aware of this counterargument, they explain Moses’ argument as follows: “if even the Israelites themselves are afraid of leaving Egypt seeing the very discussion of such a plan brought additional hardship upon them, surely this knowledge will fuel Pharaoh’s determination not to let them go.” Alternatively, Moses simply meant that when Pharaoh saw that the Israelites themselves did not pay heed to their leader, why should he pay heed to him? ואיך ישמע אלי פרעה?, “how can Pharaoh be expected to take me seriously?” We need to understand the sequence of events as follows: originally Moses had been instructed to take the elders with him when they would speak to Pharaoh. (3,18) It is possible that at that point the elders did the talking, while Moses was silently listening. Moses was also too shy to speak to the people, as we know from his having told G’d that he was not איש דברים, someone qualified to appeal to people by his oratory. At that point, G’d had assured him that his brother Aaron would make a good mouthpiece for him, and that he would formulate what Moses intended to say to the people. He would also perform the miracles, etc. Now that G’d suddenly tells Moses to speak to the people himself, without Aaron as his mouthpiece, and after having done so, the people did not respond to him, he asked G’d how he could possibly expect Pharaoh to be more responsive than his own people? G’d now added Aaron to be Moses’ spokesman in all interviews with Pharaoh. The Torah also confirms that Aaron addressed the people conveying all that G’d had said. (4,30) He had commanded both of them to address the people of Israel, but it was enough that one of them should be the actual speaker during these encounters. Now that G’d commands Moses himself to be the speaker, He repeats once more that He is the One Who had appeared to him previously. When G’d now said (verse 13) that he and Aaron are to speak both to the people and to Pharaoh, Moses is satisfied. The procedure was that G’d would tell Moses what was to be said, and he would tell Aaron of the instructions he had received, and Aaron would address these instructions to Pharaoh or the people, in accordance of what the situation called for. Aaron’s part in all this was comparable to the part of a prophet throughout the ages who would be commanded by G’d to relay a message to the people, except that in Aaron’s case the instructions would come from Moses, so that Moses fulfilled the role normally fulfilled by elokim. Hence G’d told him that he would have that role vis a vis Aaron. This was a major promotion for Moses, and enhanced his stature considerably. Moses merited this promotion due to his humility, not wanting to arrogate to himself a role unfitting for someone suffering from a speech handicap. This is also why the Torah testifies at a later stage, (11,3) that “Moses was considered as a person of great stature both in the eyes of Pharaoh and in the eyes of the Egyptians generally.” This does not conform to Rashi’s explanation that the words וידבר ה' אל משה לאמור in verse 10 are an introduction to what follows in verse 13. The fact is that verses 10-12 are, while verse 13 is a separate paragraph, if you will, as is evident by their being written as separate paragraphs. We therefore do not need Rashi’s comment that Moses was to deliver the stark message and Aaron was to elaborate on it. Consequently, we stick by our explanation that Moses delivered the message in the presence of Pharaoh, but that Aaron addressed it to Pharaoh.

הן בני ישראל לא שמעו אלי, “seeing that(even) the Children of Israel do not listen to me, etc.” According to the plain meaning of the text what Moses is saying is that the people do not listen to him, so what chance is there that Pharaoh would listen to him. In the event that one would excuse their failure to listen to him to their state of mind, i.e. they did not have a chance to indulge in day dreams, he adds that he attributes their failure to listen to him to his speech impediment, and therefore does not blame them. Alternately, perhaps Moses was not aware of the Torah having told us, the reader, that the reason why the people did not listen to him was their state of mind, i.e. impatience. I have heard from my teacher a Rabbi from Lisbon, that what Rashi meant when describing Moses’ logic here as unassailable, that the reason given as their state of mind, was an additional reason. His logic went as follows. Normally, when a potential redeemer promises his people that he has come to redeem them from slavery, they will be overjoyed. Seeing that the Israelites’ reaction to his message had been so negative, how much more negative would Pharaoh’s response be to their demanding a holiday!

And Hashem spoke with Moses and with Aaron and charged them regarding the children of Israel and regarding Pharaoh king of Egypt, to bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt.

וידבר ה' אל משה ואהרן AND THE LORD SPAKE UNTO MOSES AND UNTO AARON — because Moses had said, “I am of uncircumcised lips”. The Holy One, blessed be He, associated Aaron with him to be his mouth-piece and spokesman. ויצום אל בני ישראל signifies that HE GAVE THEM A CHARGE regarding them; viz., to deal with them in a gentle manner and to be patient with them (Exodus Rabbah 7:3) ואל פרעה מלך מצרים signifies that He charged them with regard to PHARAOH, KING OF EGYPT, viz., that they should show respect to him in all that they spoke. This is a Midrashic explanation (Exodus Rabbah 7:3; Midrash Tanchuma, Vaera 2); but the real meaning is: He gave them a command with regard to Israel and with regard to His mission on which he had sent them to Pharaoh. And what the purport of this command was is explained in the second section from here (vv. 29—31) after the order of genealogy set forth in the next passage. It properly should follow here, but because Scripture has mentioned Moses and Aaron here, it interrupts the narrative by interpolating the section beginning (v. 14), “These are the heads of their fathers’ houses”, in order to inform us how Moses and Aaron were born (who were their parents) and with whom they are connected by descent.

AND HE GAVE THEM A CHARGE UNTO THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL. Rashi wrote: “The purport of this command is explained in the second section, after the order of genealogy. [It properly belongs here], but because Scripture mentioned Moses and Aaron here, it interrupted the subject-matter [with the narrative of their genealogy], informing us how each was born and with whom they are connected by descent. And the Eternal spoke unto Moses in the land of Egypt, saying: I am the Eternal; speak thou unto Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I speak unto thee. This is the selfsame command which is mentioned here [in Verse 11]: Go in, speak unto Pharaoh king of Egypt. However, because Scripture broke off the subject-matter in order to record their genealogy, it reverts to it [further in Verse 29] and begins it anew. And Moses said before the Eternal: Behold, I am of uncircumcised lips, and how shall Pharaoh hearken unto me? This is the selfsame statement Moses made here [in Verse 12]: Behold, the children of Israel have not hearkened unto me, etc. However, because Scripture broke off the subject-matter [for the abovementioned reason], it repeats it there [further in Verse 30]. Such indeed is a proper method, just as a person who says, ‘Let us return to the previous subject.’” And so also is the opinion of Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra. But I do not agree with this. Rather, [it is my opinion] that when G-d commanded Moses to speak to the children of Israel — as it is said, Wherefore say unto the children of Israel — he did so and they hearkened not unto him. Then He commanded him to go before Pharaoh and bid him to let them go out of his land, and Moses answered: Behold, the children of Israel have not hearkened unto me, etc. Then the Holy One, blessed be He, commanded both Moses and Aaron to speak to the people and to Pharaoh. Moses thus thought that both of them — [he and Aaron] — are to take equal part in all the signs they are to do; both of them are to come to the children of Israel and to Pharaoh. But indeed [Moses reckoned that] it is sufficient that only one should speak, for such is the customary way of all pairs of emissaries, that one speaks and the other is silent. This was consented to, and G-d then said to him: “I am the Eternal, Who revealed Myself to you only to speak in My Great Name. Speak thou unto Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I speak unto thee, for it is to you that all communications are given, not to Aaron [primarily] and to you. It is you that I made the emissary to Pharaoh.” Then Moses answered once again: Behold, I am of uncircumcised lips, etc. And G-d said to him: “See, I have set thee in G-d’s stead to Pharaoh, and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet. You will go before Pharaoh with Aaron, and there [in Pharaoh’s presence] you will command Aaron while Pharaoh will not hear your words, and Aaron as your emissary will make your words heard.” This is just as G-d commands a prophet and the prophet makes His words audible and chastises [the people]...

"And Hashem spoke" — Here the matter is summarized: Aaron too would be the interpreter between [Moses] and Pharaoh, as will be explained further; therefore both of them were joined together in the speech. "And He commanded them" — to go to the children of Israel and to Pharaoh king of Egypt. R. Yeshua said that the meaning of 'and He commanded them' is that they should not grow angry at Israel if they do not listen to them — but there is no need for this.

ויצום, He appointed them as ministers. We find something parallel in Numbers 27,23 when ויצוהו means that Moses appointed Joshua as his successor with the same authority as he had possessed during the previous 40 years. Also in Samuel I 25,30 the words וצוך לנגיד, refer to David being appointed the supreme authority over the Jewish people. There are more similar examples in Scripture. אל בני ישראל, the same as על בני ישראל, “over the Children of Israel,” i.e. to be in charge of them. Compare Ezekiel 18,6 אל ההרים לא אכל which means: “he did not eat on the mountains.” ואל פרעה מלך מצרים להוציא, as well as in charge of Pharaoh the King of Egypt, for the purpose of leading the Jews out, etc.. Concerning this topic both Pharaoh and the people of Israel were placed under the direction of Moses and Aaron.

וידבר ה׳ אל משה ואל אהרון, G'd spoke to Moses and to Aaron, etc. First of all we need to know what G'd said to them, secondly what did the Torah mean when it added :"He commanded them to the children of Israel and to Pharaoh, etc." According to Shemot Rabbah 7,3 G'd informed Moses and Aaron about how intractable the people could be and how they were apt to heap abuse on their leaders. Moses and Aaron should therefore lead them בנחת, in an easy-going manner. G'd also told Moses and Aaron not to be disrespectul to Royalty, i.e. to the person of Pharaoh. These comments are purely homiletical. Furthermore, where is G'd's response to Moses who had questioned the point of this whole mission? The very least G'd could have told Moses was that his logic was faulty! Whereas it is possible to construe G'd's silence as disapproval of Moses' reasoning, we cannot do so in this instance. Let us look for a moment at the verse that follows. Assuming that Moses had not been concerned about what G'd would answer him in response to his question "how can Pharaoh listen to me if even the Israelites do not listen to me?" Why wouldn't G'd have continued immediately with what He had to say in verse 29? What is the whole point of the Torah repeating Moses' question again in 6,29-30 unless Moses had not received an answer from G'd to his קל וחומר, his logical argument? In view of the above I believe the correct explanation is that G'd did reply to Moses' argument that the Israelites had not listened to him, and even to his second argument, that Pharaoh would most certainly not listen to him either as long as he was still afflicted with his speech defect. We need to understand G'd's reply thus: וידבר ה׳ אל משה ואהרון, G'd equated Moses with Aaron in their mission so that Aaron would speak to Pharaoh (just as he had spoken to the Israelites as Moses' mouthpiece) Seeing that thus far the Israelites had not listened to either Aaron or Moses ויצום, He commanded them, He appointed them as "kings" over the Israelites so that the people would accept their authority forthwith. We find something similar in Samuel I 13,14 where Samuel told King Saul that he would be supplanted and that G'd had looked for someone else (David) whom "G'd appointed as leader for His people" i.e. ויצווהו ה לנגיד על עמו. When G'd added the words להוציא את בני ישראל, He meant that the reason Moses and Aaron would have to wield the kind of authority only a king can have was in order that He should be able to take the children of Israel out of Egypt. Moses would have the authority to deal with anyone who refused to leave Egypt, for instance. At the same time Moses' and Aaron's authority would also ensure that Pharaoh could not refuse them. It is even possible that when Moses referred to the Israelites who had not listened to him, he referred to his lack of legal authority to force them to leave Egypt when the time came, and that he was already aware that there would be such Jews. When we consider all this...

,אל משה ואל אהרן ,“to Moses and Aaron.” G-d took Aaron with to this interview with Pharaoh in order to put Moses at ease. [I fail to understand this comment by our author, seeing that Aaron had accompanied Moses also at the first interview. Ed.] An alternate interpretation, especially on the words: ויצום אל בני ישראל, “He commanded them to the Children of Israel;” Moses was to tell the Israelites everything that G-d had said to him from the beginning of the portion until לכם מורשה אני ה', “for you as an ancestral land;” (in verse 8). Moses was to go to Pharaoh after having told the people, and they, Moses and Aaron, were to tell Pharaoh to release the Children of Israel from bondage in Egypt.

ויצום אל בני ישראל, “He commanded them regarding the Children of Israel.” G’d commanded Moses and Aaron to put up with the expressions of frustration by the people and not to get impatient with them nor to curse them. ואל פרעה מלך מצרים, “and regarding Pharaoh the King of Egypt.” He instructed them to display respect for Pharaoh seeing he was the King of Egypt. Our sages in Shemot Rabbah 6,3 use the unusual wording on 5,3 where Moses and Aaron referred to G’d as punishing Israel if they did not offer sacrifices to Him as proof. What Moses and Aaron meant was that G’d would punish Pharaoh for refusing to let the Israelites do that. However, they deliberately phrased it the way they did out of respect for Pharaoh’s official position. Here too, G’d repeats the warning to Moses and Aaron to continue in their deferential manner. We note that even in Exodus 11,8 (near the end of all the plagues when Moses predicted that instead of his having to come to Pharaoh’s palace for an audience the role of petitioner and the one who is being petitioned would be reversed) he did not say (though he meant it) that Pharaoh would trouble himself to come to him, but said “all your servants will come down to me and will bow down to me begging us to leave.” Another Midrash (Mechilta on the verse we quoted from 11,8) understands the words: “He commanded them concerning the Children of Israel,” as a warning to tell the Israelites to desist from idolatrous practices. The Midrash bases this interpretation on Genesis 2,16 where the word ויצו is also understood as a warning against idolatrous practices [one of the 7 Noachide laws]. They derive this meaning of the word צו from Hoseah 5,11 כי הואיל הלך אחרי צו, “for he (the Jewish people) agreed to follow the command of its kings to indulge in idolatry).” Ezekiel 20,5-9 also makes clear reference to the Israelites serving idols while they were enslaved in Egypt, and their being warned to desist prior to the redemption. He warns his compatriots not to commit the same errors made by the Israelites then.

These are the heads of their fathers' households: the sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel — Hanoch and Pallu, Hezron and Carmi; these are the clans of Reuben.

אלה ראשי בית אבתם THESE ARE THE HEADS OF THEIR FATHERS’ HOUSES — Since it (Scripture) finds itself compelled to give the genealogy of the tribe of Levi as far as Moses and Aaron because of Moses and Aaron, it begins to give the genealogy of the tribes in the order of their birth commencing from Reuben. And in Pesikta Rabbati 7 (on Numbers 7:12) I have seen the statement, that because their father Jacob reproached these three tribes in the hour of his death Scripture again enumerates here their genealogy alone of all the tribes to indicate that they nevertheless were men of worth.

THESE ARE THE HEADS OF THEIR FATHERS’ HOUSES: THE SONS OF REUBEN…. Scripture did not wish to begin with the statement, And these are the names of the sons of Levi according to their generations, so that it should not appear that henceforth in honor of Moses, Levi is first in genealogy. Instead, [Scripture therefore] mentioned Levi’s elder brothers, [i.e., Reuben and Simeon], and that Levi is counted third. Now Scripture mentioned the sons of Levi according to their generations because in the case of Reuben and Simeon, it mentioned only those who went down to Egypt with them, but in the case of Levi it mentioned his children, the number of years of his life, the birth of the fathers of the prophets — [namely, Kohath the grandfather, and Amram the father of Moses and Aaron] — and the number of years of their lives, all in honor of the prophets. Besides, they themselves — [Kohath and Amram] — were the pious ones of the Most High, worthy to be spoken of as the fathers of the world.

"These are the heads of their fathers' houses" — referring to Moses and Aaron; or it refers back to the children of Israel mentioned above, and the men listed are those who went down to Egypt. The list begins with Reuben, for no honor was left to him except to be reckoned first. These four sons of his are those who went down to Egypt.

אלה ראשי בית אבותם, Moses and Aaron were justifiably referred to as the heads of the various tribal groups of Israel, as they were the most respected and most honoured. ראובן בכור ישראל, seeing that none of his descendants were particularly noteworthy except his sons who had been part of the original 70 persons who had come to the land of Egypt from Canaan, none other are mentioned. All those 70 persons had already died as we know from Exodus 1,6. The same consideration held true for the descendants of Shimon. On the other hand, Levi, the longest surviving member of the original 70 Hebrews who migrated to Egypt, managed to raise even his grandchildren to become leaders of the people in their own right. Amram produced three outstanding children in the persons of Aaron, Moses and Miriam, all of whom attained prophetic stature. Aaron married a sister of Nachshon who had been considered the most notable member of the nation in his time. He begat leaders of the generation who were later on appointed as priests. Eleazar, son of Aaron took as a wife one of the daughters of Putiel who was also considered outstanding in his generation (compare Nachmanides). This union produced Pinchas who was granted a covenant of “peace” by G’d as a reward for spontaneously slaying a high ranking Israelite prince who flagrantly engaged in forbidden sex with a Midianite princess and had challenged Moses to do something about it. (Numbers 25,12) אלה ראשי אבות הלוים, just to tell us that Moses and Aaron were the respective heads of the Levites.

אלה ראשי בית אבותם, These are the heads of the various families, etc. The reason the family background of Moses is listed here is in accordance with the principle that only people whose genealogy can be traced back directly to Jacob are fit to be appointed as kings over Israel. This is the reason the Torah did not state the יחוס of Moses and Aaron until they had been given Royal authority. This is all still part of the answer of G'd to Moses' comment that the Israelites did not and would not listen to him.

אלה ראשי בית אבותם, “these are the heads of their father’s houses.” Seeing that the time of the end Israelites’ stay in Egypt was close at hand, and their redemption meant their separation from Egyptian society, the Torah saw fit to list their genealogies from Reuven until Levi, seeing that Moses and Aaron were Levites. The word אלה, “these,” is used to disqualify anyone else from belonging to the Jewish nation. Had the Torah not begun this list with the tribe of Reuven but had only listed Levi as the head of the “houses,” we might have thought that Levi was the firstborn as far as the genealogy of the Israelites leaving Egypt was concerned, and that the entire list was only recorded in honour of Moses.

These are the heads of their fathers’ houses. Because God wanted to give the threefold Torah through a tribe that was tripled in many ways of triplets mentioned in the Gemara (Shabbat 88), therefore He began to examine the heads of their fathers’ houses and found Reuben had four families, Simeon had five families, and Levi had three families. Therefore, He rejected the first ones and chose Levi who was tripled twice. And the commentators said that He was searching first in Reuben to see if He could find among his sons a man after His heart who would be suitable for this mission, just as the prophet Samuel searched among the sons of Jesse. And we learn “searching” from “searching” in that case — just as there He rejected the first ones until He found a man after His heart, so too He wanted to search here among the sons of Reuben and Simeon, and He searched but did not find until He examined the character of Levi and found Aaron and Moses, and then He no longer needed to search.

אלה ראשי בית אבותם, “These were the heads of their father’s houses.” The Torah’s intention in this paragraph is only to give us the genealogy of the house of Levi, whereas Reuven’s and Shimon’s genealogy are mentioned only in order to accord them the courtesy due to seniority. Had the Torah ignored the genealogy of Reuven and Shimon at this point, some people might have thought that Levi was the senior of the brothers. In order to show that the Torah wishes to focus on the genealogy of Levi, the genealogy of the two senior brothers is abbreviated and is commenced only from the point where they arrived in Egypt. In the case of Levi, we are even told details of the number of years some of the principals lived. This enables the reader to reconstruct the chronology of the Jewish people commencing with the birth of Yitzchok. Ibn Ezra writes that the report of the number of years Levi lived was meant to honour Moses and Aaron. Seeing that the Torah meant to honour Moses and Aaron, it also included details about the years Amram, their father lived, as well as some details about the other sons of Levi. In the case of Yitzhar, even his grandchildren’s names were mentioned as the marriage of Amram to Yocheved is reported, seeing they were the founding couple from whom the leadership of the nation devolved. The sons of Yitzhar are mentioned only in order to put the conduct of Korach, the rebel, into proper perspective. The brothers of Korach, Nefeg and Zichri are mentioned without their children’s names, although they did not join their brother in his rebellion, whereas Korach’s sons are mentioned precisely because they did not join their father in his rebellion, as the Torah states on another occasion ובני קרח לא מתו, “Korach’s sons had not died during the rebellion.” (Numbers 26,11) Uzziel’s sons are mentioned as they distinguished themselves when removing Nadav and Avihu’s corpses from the Tabernacle. (Leviticus 10,4-5) Seeing that no information could be added to Chetzron, the Torah did not bother to list his children’s genealogy here.

אלה ראשי בית אבותם, this is explained in the Mechilta as a reference to the three (potential) tribes Reuven, Shimon, and Levi, whom Yaakov had chastised on his deathbed. At this point the Torah enumerates their genealogy to demonstrate their importance in the fabric of Jewish nationhood. According to the plain meaning of the text, the Torah had to provide details of the tribes’ genealogy as far as Moses and Aaron, whereas it also had to provide details as far down the line as Korach, and the sons of Uziel; as well as Pinchas all of whom are mentioned by name and deed in the Torah later on. If we had not heard about their roots in this chapter we would not have known who these people had been.

And the sons of Simeon: Jemuel and Jamin and Ohad and Jachin and Zohar and Shaul the son of the Canaanite woman; these are the clans of Simeon.

"And the sons of Simeon" — The family of Ohad was cut off in Egypt or in the wilderness, since it is not mentioned in the portion of Pinchas. And Zerah — that is Zohar.

And the sons of Shimeon, Jemuel, and Jamin, and Ohad, and Jakin, and Sochar, and Shaul (he is Zimri, who yielded himself unto fornication, as among the Kenaanaee); these are the race of Shimeon.

And these are the names of the sons of Levi according to their generations: Gershon and Kohath and Merari. And the years of the life of Levi were one hundred and thirty-seven years.

ושני חיי לוי וגו׳ AND THE YEARS OF THE LIFE OF LEVI WERE etc. — Why is the number of the years of Levi mentioned? In order to tell us how long the period of slavery lasted — because so long as even one of the sons of Jacob (lit. the tribes) remained alive there was no slavery imposed upon the Israelites, as it is said, (Exodus 1:6) “And Joseph died and all his brethren”, and afterwards it is stated (Exodus 1:8), “Now there arose a king” (who enslaved them); and Levi lived the longest of all of them (Seder Olam 3).

"The sons of Levi" — [Scripture] mentioned these two tribes [Reuben and Simeon] first, since they are older than Levi; yet Levi is the essential one, for the only purpose now is to set out the lineage of Moses and Aaron. It mentioned Gershon, Kohath, and Merari in the order in which they were born, [and notes that] they went down to Egypt. [The verse says] 'he is Aaron and Moses' — it placed Aaron's name first on account of his age. And it mentioned the years of Levi's life, but not the years of the other tribes, on account of the honor of Moses and Aaron.

ושני חיי לוי, according to the plain meaning which I explained in Genesis 5,31 all the lifetimes of generations between Adam and Noach, and from Noach to Avraham were mentioned. After that, basically only the lifetimes of Avraham, Yitzchok, Yaakov, Levi, and his sons Kehot, grandson Amram, and great grandson Moses are enumerated, followed by the number of years Joshua lived. Subsequently the Bible provides some details about the length of lives of the Judges and the Kings during the first Temple, to enable us to calculate crucial dates in our history.

The sons of Gershon: Libni and Shimei, according to their clans.

"The sons of Gershon" — He had no sons except these two.

And the sons of Kohath: Amram and Izhar and Hebron and Uzziel. And the years of the life of Kohath were one hundred and thirty-three years.

ושני חיי קהת … ושני חיי עמרם וגו׳ AND THE YEARS OF THE LIFE OF KOHATH WERE etc. … AND THE YEARS OF THE LIFE OF AMRAM WERE etc. — From these numbers we may gather regarding the period of residence of the children of Israel, — viz., four hundred years, of which Scripture speaks, that these four hundred years were not passed in Egypt alone, but that they date from the day of Isaac’s birth. You know that Kohath was one of those who went down to Egypt; now reckon all his years (133) although really we should not take into account the years he lived before he went down to Egypt, and the years of Amram, his son (137), and the eighty years of Moses, the latter’s son, which he had attained when the Israelites left Egypt, and you will not find them totaling to four hundred, and in this calculation many years of the sons’ ages are included in those of their fathers (i. e. in such a calculation one must deduct in each instance the father’s age when his son was born since this number is included in the total age of each of these persons) (cf. Rashi on Exodus 12:40)

"And the sons of Kohath" — It mentioned the years of Kohath's life, but not the years of Gershon and Merari, on account of the honor of the two emissaries [Moses and Aaron, who descended from Kohath].

ובני קהת עמרם ויצהר וגו, “and the sons of Kehot were Amram, Yitzhar, etc.;” the reason why the Torah does not mention the sons of Moses and the sons of Chevron and Ittamar, is that no specific action in which these had been involved has been recorded. The Torah did mention the sons of Amram, as they had been mentioned independently in the Torah so many times, i.e. both Moses and Aaron. The sons of YItzhar were mentioned on account of their involvement in the uprising of Korach. The sons of Uzziel were mentioned because they were called upon to remove the bodies of Nadav and Avihu who had died in the precincts of the Tabernacle on account of having offered unauthorized incense in the Sanctuary, and having added man made fire to their censers. The sons of Ittamar were mentioned in Chronicles on account of the High Priest Eli. (Rash’bam)

ובני קהת עמרם ויצהר וחברון ועוזיאל. Whereas the Torah provides details of the names of the first three sons of Kehot, i.e. Amram, Yitzhar and Uzziel, no mention is made of any sons of Chevron. If this were to lead us to assume that Chevron had no sons, the Torah in Numbers 26,58 adds details under the heading: “and the family of Uzziel, etc.” This raises the question why the Torah kept silent about these details at this point. The reason appears to be that the names of the sons of Chevron do not appear in connection with any of their activities elsewhere in the Torah, whereas the names of the ones mentioned here appear also in their own right, not only as sons of their respective fathers. Amram appears as father of Moses, Aaron, and Miriam. The sons of Yitzhar appear in connection with the uprising of Korach (numbers 16,1) The sons of Uzziel, Mishael and Eltzafan, appear in connection with the burial of the two sons of Aaron Nadav and Avihu in Leviticus 10,4. The sons of Korach, Assir and Elkanah are complimented as not having died in the uprising headed by their father in Numbers 26,12. The sons of Aaron are mentioned specifically already in Exodus 24,1 as is Pinchas, the son of Eleazar. The sons of his brother Ittamar are not mentioned as they do not feature specifically elsewhere in the Torah.

And the sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of Levi according to their generations.

"And the sons of Merari" — He had only two sons, no more. Therefore it says, 'These are the families of Levi according to their generations,' for those who went down to Egypt — the sons of Jacob — begot only these. It also mentioned the years of Amram's life on account of the honor of his sons.

And Amram took Jochebed, his father's sister, as a wife, and she bore to him Aaron and Moses. And the years of the life of Amram were one hundred and thirty-seven years.

יוכבד דדתו JOCHEBED HIS AUNT — The Targum has: his father’s sister; she was daughter of Levi (cf. Exodus 2:1) and sister of Kohath.

ויקח עמרם את יוכבד דודתו “Amram married his aunt Yocheved;”The only reason that seems feasible in understanding why G-d agreed to such great people as Moses and his siblings to be born from a union that the Torah would forbid once it was revealed at Mount Sinai, is the rule that we do not appoint a person to the highest position in the land unless the people were aware of at least something inappropriate that such a person had been guilty of actively or passively before his appointment. [This rule, if enforced, will diminish the chances of such high ranking people allowing their high office to develop feelings of superiority to those around him. Ed.] The best known example of the rule is King David, one of whose ancestors was Ruth, the Moabite, a people with whom intermarriage is strictly prohibited by the Torah. [He was reminded of this repeatedly during his life, not only his fitness as king being questioned, but even his claim to be Jewish. Compare Rashi on Yuma 22. Ed.]

ויקח עמרם את יכבד דדתו לו לאשה, “Amram took his aunt Yocheved to be his wife;” I have seen a Midrash where it is explained that the reason why when the Torah lists the penalties for incestuous relationships, (Leviticus chapter 20,10-21) but fails to list the karet penalty for marrying one’s aunt, is because Moses was born out of a relationship which the Torah would forbid later on.

And the sons of Izhar: Korah and Nepheg and Zichri.

"And the sons of Izhar" — These are mentioned on account of Korah, who quarreled with Moses.

ובני יצהר, “and the sons of Yitzhar;” why did the Torah list the sons of Amram and the sons of Yitzhar as well as the sons of Uzziel, who were great-grandchildren of Kehat, while not listing the descendants of either Gershon or Merari, nor did it list the descendants of Chevron who were related in a similar degree? We may have to answer that the descendants of Amram who included Moses and Aaron, were important, and similarly the descendants of Yitzhor who included Korach were important, and Uzziel was important as his sons Mishael and Elitzafan brought Nadav and Avihu to burial, so that his sons are mentioned here also. (Compare Leviticus chapter 10)

And the sons of Uzziel: Mishael and Elzaphan and Sithri.

"And the sons of Uzziel" — Uzziel is mentioned on account of the honor of Mishael and Elzaphan in the Torah; [Scripture] did not trouble to mention the sons of Hebron.

And Aaron took Elisheba, daughter of Amminadab, sister of Nahshon, as a wife, and she bore to him Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar.

אחות נחשון THE SISTER OF NAASHON — Hence they (the Rabbis) learned (i.e. from the fact that Scripture states who her brother was when it mentions her marriage to Aaron) that he who is about to take a wife should strictly investigate who her brothers are (Bava Batra 110a).

AND AARON TOOK HIMSELF ELISHEBA, THE DAUGHTER OF AMMINADAB, THE SISTER OF NACHSHON TO WIFE. Just as Scripture mentioned the mother of the prophets, [namely, Jochebed], in their honor, saying that she was the daughter of Levi, a righteous man, and alluding to the fact that a miracle occurred to her, it also mentioned the mother of priesthood, i.e., that she was related to the seed of royalty, being the sister of the great prince [Nachshon of the tribe of Judah].Scripture mentioned the mother of Phinehas, for he too was a priest, a reward which he earned himself. Now if this name Putiel — [Phinehas’ maternal grandfather] — is a proper name, it is not clear why Scripture [suddenly] mentions the name of a person whose identity we do not know. It is for this reason that our Rabbis have said that Phinehas was of the family of Joseph, who conquered his passion, and of the family of Jethro, who fattened calves for idolatrous sacrifice, and he is mentioned for praise [here together with Aaron and his sons], who for their righteousness were worthy to be endowed with everlasting priesthood. In line with the plain meaning of Scripture, we will say [that the mothers of Moses and Aaron, of Aaron’s sons, and of Phinehas are mentioned here because] in the case of kings, it is the customary way of Scripture to mention the names of their mothers: And his mother’s name was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom; And his mother’s name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi; and so in all cases. It may be that [Scripture does not relate more about Putiel because] he was an honorable and known person in his generation, and it [sufficed just to] mention him in praise. Scripture says, of the daughters of Putiel, and not “the daughter of Putiel,” because Putiel had many daughters and Eleazar chose one of them. It may be that she was not his daughter but his daughter’s daughter who related herself to him on account of his distinction, and therefore Scripture did not mention her name.

"And Aaron took" — Aaron's wife is mentioned on account of the honor of Elazar. The sister of Nahshon is mentioned on account of the honor of the priesthood. The sons of Korah are mentioned because they were righteous, as it is written, 'and the sons of Korah did not die' (Num. 26), and the prophet Samuel was from the sons of Korah.

ויקח אהרן את אלישבע, Aaron married Elisheva; she is mentioned by name because of the priestly status of her husband. (Compare Nachmanides)

ויקח אהרן את אלישבע בת עמינדב אחות נחשון, “Aaron married Elisheva daughter of Aminadav, sister of Nachshon (from the tribe of Yehudah).” The point of the Torah giving us these details at this time was to show that the tribe representing Royalty and the tribe representing the Priesthood (religious leadership) formed a liaison through marriage. Elisheva was the sister of the outstanding one of the princes of the twelve tribes, Nachshon scion of the tribe of Yehudah. The verse even mentions the background of the mother of Pinchas seeing that Pinchas became a High Priest in due course through his own — rather than merely hereditary — merit. It is customary in Scriptures that the mother of the ruling monarchs are mentioned (by name and /or background) For instance: Kings I 15,2 records the name of the mother of Aviyam King of Yehudah as being Maachah daughter of Avishalom. In Chronicles II 20,31 we are told that the mother of King Yehoshaphat was Azuvah daughter of Shilchi. The reason the Torah identifies the wife of Eleazar as “of the daughters (pl) of Putiel” instead of merely stating her personal name or that she was “a daughter” of Putiel is to indicate that she was descended either from Yitro or from Joseph. According to Sotah 43 there was some doubt if this lady was related paternally or maternally respectively to descendants of Joseph/Yitro respectively. Our paragraph contains the names of no fewer than six prophets from the tribe of Levi. They are: Aaron, Moses, Pinchas (identical with Elijah), plus three sons of Korach Assir, Elkanah, and Aviasaph (verse 24). They have been enumerated in the list of 48 prophets in Megillah 14. These six prophets all lived during the same time. Presumably, the verse in Numbers 26,11 stating that Korach’s sons did not die (during the uprising) refers to these three prophets.

ויקח אהרן, “Aaron took a wife, etc.” This detail is mentioned to show that even members of the priesthood, a hereditary distinction, paid tribute to the line of the kings, so that Aaron married a member of the Royal House of Yehudah, i.e. the sister of Nachshon, who was the 5th generation after Yehudah through his son Peretz. (Chronicles I,2,7) The Torah also mentions by name the marriage of Eleazar, son of Aaron, to a daughter of Putiel, in light of their illustrious son Pinchas, seeing that Pinchas, though born before his father had become a priest, merited elevation to the priesthood by a special decree of G’d. [anyone born to a father who was already a priest at that time became a priest through hereditary genes. Ed.] Our sages state that the reason why the Torah mentioned that Eleazar married “one of the daughters of” Putiel, instead of simply ”a daughter of” Putiel, is a compliment, not a reference to a Putiel who used to sacrifice to idols, but a descendant of Joseph who had demonstrated self control in not allowing himself to be seduced by the wife of his master Potiphar. (Baba Batra 115) [the use of the expression בנות (plural of בת) here alludes to multiple genetic input, including that of Joseph. Ed.] Elezar’s wife being a granddaughter, not a daughter of Putiel, is the reason that her name is not mentioned.

And the sons of Korah: Assir and Elkanah and Abiasaph; these are the clans of Korah.

And Eleazar son of Aaron took for himself one of the daughters of Putiel as a wife, and she bore to him Phinehas. These are the heads of the fathers of the Levites according to their clans.

מבנות פוטיאל ONE OF THE DAUGHTERS OF PUTIEL — of the family of Jethro (cf. Rashi on Exodus 4:18) who used to fatten (פטם) calves for idolatrous sacrifice, and of the family of Joseph who overcame (פטפט, who talked or argued with) his passion (Sotah 43a; Bava Batra 109b).

"And Elazar" — Elazar's wife is mentioned on account of the honor of Phinehas, to whom the priesthood was granted forever. Hence, by way of reason, Putiel was of the sons of Israel, and we do not know the meaning of Putiel — just as we do not know the meaning of Mishael — and all the names mentioned [in the Torah], such as Aaron: had Moses' deeds not been written, we would not know why he was so called.

אלה ראשי אבות, just to tell us that Moses and Aaron were the respective heads of the Levites.

מבנות פוטיאל, of the daughters of Putiel; she is mentioned by name because of her son Pinchas who was granted the hereditary priesthood forever (Numbers 25,11; see also Ibn Ezra here).

It is the same Aaron and Moses to whom Hashem said: Bring out the children of Israel from the land of Egypt according to their hosts.

הוא אהרן ומשה THESE ARE THAT AARON AND MOSES who are mentioned above where it states (v. 20) that Jochebed bore them to Amram. הוא אהרן ומשה There are some passages where Scripture mentions Aaron before Moses (as here) and other passages where it mentions Moses before Aaron; this is done in order to indicate that they were equal in all respects (more lit., that they weighed alike) (Mekhilta). על צבאתם — This is the same as בצבאותם with their hosts — all their hosts according to their tribes. Sometimes the word על is merely used in place of a single letter (ב as a prefix); e. g., (Genesis 27:40) “על חרבך shalt thou live” which is the same as בחרבך, by thy sword; (Ezekiel 33:26) “Ye stand על חרבכם” which is the same as בחרבכם, by your sword.

"He is Aaron and Moses" — Aaron is placed before Moses because he is older in years, and also because he prophesied to Israel before Moses arrived.

הוא אהרן ומשה, repeated, seeing these two were the most honoured of their families and it was therefore they who were fit to be entrusted by G’d with the command: הוציאו את בני ישראל, seeing that their voices would be heeded by their compatriots, of all the various tribes. על צבאותם, the entire community including all their respective members, simultaneously.

הוא אהרון ומשה, they are the same Aaron and Moses, etc. The ones whose genealogy has been traced in our paragraph are the ones whom G'd gave the authority to orchestrate the Exodus, etc.

הוא אהרן ומשה, whenever Moses and Aaron are mentioned in context of their respective ages, Aaron is mentioned first as he was the senior of the two. When these two brothers are mentioned in context of their respective status amongst the people, Moses is mentioned first, as in verse 27. After all, Moses took out the Israelites from slavery in Egypt.

הוא אהרן ומשה, “the same Aaron and Moses, etc.” Aaron was mentioned here ahead of Moses seeing he was the older of the two brothers. In verse 27, the Torah lists Moses ahead of Aaron seeing that he was greater than his brother in stature as prophet. We find that the Torah sometimes mentions Joshua ahead of Calev (Numbers 14,38), whereas at other times it mentions Calev ahead of Joshua (Numbers 14,30). Joshua was greater than Calev seeing he was a prophet. Calev was greater than Joshua by genealogy, seeing he was from the tribe of Yehudah. We also find something similar when the Torah mentions heaven and earth. In Genesis 1,1 the Torah mentions heaven ahead of earth seeing that disembodied celestial beings are more distinguished than creatures who require a body in order to be functional. They also enjoy infinite life as distinct from creatures on earth. On the other hand, in Genesis 2,4 the Torah lists the earth ahead of the heaven. The reason is that the Holy Temple and the Shechinah are at home on earth rather than in the heaven. The reason the Torah repeats (verse 28) “it was on the day that G’d spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt,” is because earlier (verse 13) it sounded as if the command to release the Israelites from Egypt was addressed to both Moses and Aaron. The Torah wants to clarify that the verbal instructions for this were issued by G’d only to Moses. Moses relayed them to Aaron.

“He is Aaron and Moses. He is Moses and Aaron.” Since concerning the essence of the mission, it appears that Moses is the primary one, as God appeared to him alone at the burning bush. So I might have said that Aaron was secondary to him, therefore Scripture teaches us He is Aaron and Moses, to whom God said, “Bring out the children of Israel”, telling you that Aaron has a share in the exodus just like Moses. Therefore, it puts Aaron first. But regarding speaking to Pharaoh, it seems that Aaron is the primary one and Moses is subordinate to him, since Moses was slow of speech and slow of tongue. Therefore it says, “They are the ones who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt, he is Moses and Aaron,” putting Moses first to tell you that even in the matter of speaking to Pharaoh, he is not secondary to Aaron, but they are equal in every matter. Another interpretation: Before this mission, we find that Aaron was sent to the Israelites to turn them away from their evil ways, in order that they should be worthy of leaving Egypt. In that mission, Aaron was the primary one, and due to this Moses said, Send, I pray, by the hand of him whom You will send (Exodus 4:13), meaning, by the hand of the one whom You are accustomed to sending, as Rashi explains on that verse. And regarding that mission it says, He is Aaron and Moses to whom God said, “Take out, etc.” — because in that mission Aaron was the primary one, therefore he is mentioned first. But in the current mission, which was primarily to Pharaoh, certainly Moses was the primary one, therefore he is mentioned first, and it says, These are the ones who spoke to Pharaoh, etc. — it is Moses and Aaron.

הוא אהרן ומשה אשר אמר, “this was Aaron and Moses to whom He said, etc.” The point of this verse is that in respect to אמירה, verbal communication, the Torah mentioned Aaron ahead of Moses, as it was he who delivered Moses’ message to Pharaoh. He did the actual talking. On the other hand, whenever the Torah makes reference to the Exodus, Moses is invariably mentioned ahead of his older brother Aaron. Ibn Ezra explains the Torah mentioning Aaron first as something natural, seeing he was the senior of the two. Moreover, Aaron had displayed prophecy to the people before Moses had been appointed as the prophet. After this, whenever they were speaking to Pharaoh, Moses is mentioned first, seeing he had superior rank. This is why after this exception you will no longer find that the Torah mentions Aaron first when G’d addresses both of them, or when the Torah discusses something in which both brothers participated. One cannot bring a counter argument from the verse (Numbers 3,1) אלה תולדות אהרן ומשה, “these are the generations of Aaron and Moses,” (in this order) or from the verse ותלד את אהרן ואת משה, ”she (Yocheved) bore Aaron and Moses,” seeing that the Torah there merely records the order in which they were born.

הוא אהרן ומשה, Aaron, the one born prior to Moses is described as הוא, i.e. a distinction, whereas the same distinction expressed by the same word הוא is also applied to Moses. Both were singled out as G’d’s messengers.

They are the ones who spoke with Pharaoh king of Egypt to bring out the children of Israel from Egypt — it is Moses and Aaron.

הם המדברים וגו׳ THESE ARE THEY WHO SPAKE TO PHARAOH — It was they who received the command to speak to Pharaoh (cf. v. 26), and it was they who carried it out by actually speaking to him (cf. e.g. Exodus 7:7). הוא משה ואהרן THESE ARE MOSES AND AARON — they remained always the same in carrying out their mission and in their integrity from beginning to end (cf. Megillah 11a).

"They are" — Now, from the moment they spoke to Pharaoh, Moses is placed first on account of the greatness of his station: Hashem spoke with him face to face, and he drew near to the thick darkness where God was — not so Aaron. Scripture testifies: 'Not so My servant Moses' (Num. 12:7), and Aaron said to him twice, 'I beseech you, my lord.' Therefore, from the beginning of this verse onward, you will not find anywhere in the Torah that Aaron precedes Moses — nor in the Prophets, nor in the Writings. There is no objection from 'These are the descendants of Aaron and Moses' (Num. 3:1) or 'and she bore him Aaron and Moses' (ibid. 26:59), for there [Aaron precedes] because of when they were born — and the proof is the words 'descendants' and 'and she bore.'

הם המדברים, they were fit to be the spokesmen to Pharaoh and to be listened to by him with respect.

הם המדברים אל פרעה מלך מצרים, they were the ones who talked tough to Pharaoh the king of Egypt. They spoke to him as does a king who issues decrees. The Torah also wanted to remind us that though G'd had instructed Moses to speak, Aaron spoke also, as I shall explain in greater detail on verse 28. הוא משה ואהרון, they are the same Moses and Aaron, etc. The Torah wants to convey that Moses and Aaron enjoyed equal status; this is why sometimes Aaron is mentioned first whereas other times Moses is mentioned first. The Torah makes this point doubly clear by referring to both of them in the singular i.e. הוא, as opposed to הם. The Torah uses the plural also i.e. הם המדברים. This is because Moses and Aaron did not speak simultaneously but they alternated when speaking to Pharaoh.

הם המדברים, in connection with דבור, speaking, Moses is still mentioned first followed by Aaron, although in order of birth Aaron preceded Moses, being the firstborn.

And it came to pass on the day that Hashem spoke with Moses in the land of Egypt,

And it came to pass on the day that the Lord spoke unto Moses in the land of Egypt: [This is connected with the following verse]

AND IT CAME TO PASS ON THE DAY WHEN THE ETERNAL SPOKE UNTO MOSES IN THE LAND OF EGYPT. It is possible to explain that the verse refers to the one above. Scripture is thus stating: “And it came to pass that it was they — [Moses and Aaron] — who spoke to Pharaoh, king of Egypt at the time when the Eternal spoke unto Moses in the land of Egypt.” For since Scripture said, These are that Aaron and Moses, to whom the Eternal said: Bring out the children of Israel from the land of Egypt, it might have appeared that the communication came to both of them equally. Therefore it now explains [in Verse 28] that the communication came to Moses, and the command to bring them forth from Egypt was to both of them. This is why Scripture closed the chapter [of the genealogy of Moses and Aaron with this subject].

"And it came to pass" — One should wonder about the one who arranged the portions: why did he attach this verse to those that follow it, adjacent to them? If we do not know the reason, [we see] that 'on the day that Hashem spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt' refers to what He spoke to him: 'I am Hashem; speak to Pharaoh.' Compare: 'And it came to pass, when all the men of war had perished from among the people' (Deut. 2:16), which is connected to the portion immediately following it. Perhaps the one who set the parashah divisions knew a reason for doing so, for his understanding is broader than ours.

ויהי ביום דבר ה' אל משה, when G’d spoke to Moses that he should speak to Pharaoh and he answered G’d that Pharaoh would not listen to him, i.e. after G’d had already appointed Moses and Aaron as the leading authorities over Israel as well as over Pharaoh, as reported, G’d explained that He had not intended to give both Moses and Aaron equal status, but that Moses would be an authority, G’d like, for Pharaoh, whereas Aaron would be his mouthpiece, his interpreter.

ויהי ביום דבר ה׳ אל משה, It was on the day that G'd spoke to Moses. The Torah here wants to correct any mistaken impression that the equality of Moses and Aaron had already existed on the day G'd told Moses while still in Midian (Exodus 4,14) that his brother Aaron was on the way to met him. This is why the Torah adds here: "On the day G'd spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt," as if to say: "on that day Moses and Aaron were of equal stature." The Torah therefore had good reason to repeat that G'd told Moses: "I am the G'd י־ה־ו־ה, speak sternly to Pharaoh." The repetition was meant to reassure Moses that he could rely on what G'd had told him. He was to go and speak to Pharaoh personally. In other words, nothing had changed since the first time G'd had identified Himself to Moses as the tetragram at the beginning of our portion. I explained that at that point G'd had not yet appointed Aaron to be Moses' mouthpiece except when Moses wanted to say something to the Israelites. What happened in the meantime was that Moses repeated his argument that he had a speech defect and was not suited to speak in public after G'd had told him to speak to Pharaoh. Hence G'd authorised Aaron to speak to Pharaoh also in 7,1. As a result Aaron had become Moses' equal concerning what they had to tell Pharaoh. Inasmuch as Moses had not previously complained about his not being fit to speak to Pharaoh there had been no need for G'd to appoint Aaron as His spokesman. All the above shows G'd's concern to employ Moses as His exclusive messenger. He had co-opted Aaron only when Moses had raised repeated objections. Perhaps the reason that our verse employs the word ויהי, which always reflects something regrettable, is to let us know how much G'd regretted the necessity of having Aaron share what was originally meant to be Moses' exclusive mission. The word ויהי may therefore suggest that if Moses had indeed remained G'd's sole messenger the quality of the redemption might have been different; some of the side-effects of the incomplete redemption which led to such disasters as the golden calf episode might never have occurred, for instance. Perhaps the reason that the editor of this paragraph in the Torah saw fit to write our verse as a paragraph by itself and not as the beginning of chapter seven or even before verse eight in chapter seven was, that he wanted us to know that G'd was saddened by the fact that He had to appoint someone to share Moses' mission with him. Had Moses been the only one, he himself might have entered the Holy Land as leader of the people as had been G'd's original intention. He might have lived to participate in the building of the Holy Temple which Solomon built over 400 years after Moses' death. That Temple might then have endured forever. It is also possible that the Torah made a special paragraph out of this single verse in order to tell us that Aaron's status was equal to Moses as of that day in Egypt, and that even previously when G'd had...

“And it was on the day when the Lord spoke to Moses, etc.” Rashi explained that this [verse] is connected to the following verse, and all other commentators criticized him saying, “If that is so, why is there a break in between?” I say that this [verse structure] is intended to teach us about the superiority of Moses our teacher’s prophecy over all other prophets. For all [other] prophecies come in night visions, as it is written, If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make Myself known to him in a vision, and will speak to him in a dream. Not so with My servant Moses, etc. (Numbers 12:6) For his prophecy was literally during the day, as our Sages learned (Yalkut Shimoni, Tzav 511) from the verse on the day when He commanded stated (in Parashat Tzav 7:38), that Moses was commanded all the commandments during the day. Therefore, it says here, And it was on the day — when it was actually daytime, then the Lord spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt. Since this was the beginning of his prophecy, therefore [the Torah] informs us that the beginning of his prophecy was during the day, and presumably all of Moses’ prophecies were during the day.

ויהי ביום דבר, “It was on the day Hashem spoke, etc.” According to Ibn Ezra this verse is directly linked to what follows, i.e. verse 29 ויהי ביום דבר ה', “it was on the day that Hashem spoke,etc.” Nachmanides claims that it is possible to understand verse 28 as referring to what had preceded it, i.e. to verse 26 where Moses and Aaron are described as the ones who had been commanded by G’d to take the Israelites out of Egypt. Seeing that once we have a verse in which Moses is mentioned first, and another in which Aaron is mentioned first, the meaning may well be that the commandment to take the Israelites out of Egypt applied to both of them in equal measure. The Torah now clarifies that the word of G’d was issued to Moses, but that the commandment to carry it out applied to both of them in equal measure. This is the reason why this paragraph was split into two sections.

that Hashem spoke with Moses, saying: I am Hashem. Speak to Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I speak to you.

וידבר ה׳ AND THE LORD SPAKE — This is the self-same command which was mentioned before, viz., (v. 11) “Go in, speak unto Pharaoh, king of Egypt”, but because it (Scripture) broke off the narrative in order to record their genealogy it now reverts to it and begins it anew. אני ה׳ I AM THE LORD — I am powerful enough to send you and to carry out the matter on which I have sent you.

"And Hashem spoke" — Now he explains the matter of 'And Hashem spoke to Moses and to Aaron,' and this is: 'Go, speak to Pharaoh king of Egypt.'

And Moses said before Hashem: Behold, I am heavy of speech; how then will Pharaoh accept from me?

ויאמר משה לפני ה׳ AND MOSES SAID BEFORE THE LORD — This is the statement which he made above, (v. 12), “Behold, the children of Israel have not hearkened unto me”. Scripture repeats it here, because it broke off the narrative for the reason already given. So is the method of the historian — just as a person who says, “let us return to the previous subject”.

?ואיך ישמעני פרעה, “what is the likelihood of Pharaoh listening to me (when my own people do not)? This paragraph is a continuation of the previous paragraph in which Moses complained about the people not listening to him. (verse 12) [Moses attributes the reason both times to his lack of eloquence or his stammer.] The only difference between the two occasions is that earlier he was very brief, as the Torah wished to insert the passage of the ancestry of some of the principal characters in the hierarchy. The Torah takes up the thread that had been interrupted so that the reader is reminded of where it was interrupted. In this way the lines of ואני ערל שפתים, and ואהרן אחיך יהיה נביאך, “I am afflicted with a speech defect,” and “your brother Aaron will be your spokesman,” have been joined together.

הן אני ערל שפתים ואיך ישמע אלי פרעה, ”here I am (still) of sealed lips. How could Pharaoh listen to me?” When G’d had commanded Moses and Aaron to go to Pharaoh earlier in our chapter Moses had remained silent. He assumed that the instructions had been intended for Aaron. When, at this point, he alone was addressed by G’d i.e. “all that I am saying to you,” he repeated his previous argument that his speech defect made him unfit to serve as G’d’s vessel and that even the people did not listen to him. At this point G’d explained to him (ויאמר ה’) in a friendly fashion how He would deal with that problem.

ואיך ישמע אלי פרעה?, This paragraph is a repeat of what we had in verse 12 where Moses had raised the same question. At that point the Torah had only presented a summary of the answer, in order to reach the chapter detailing the genealogies after which the reader would be familiar with all the personages that played leading roles.