The Profound Word

Parashat Beshalah 5770
The Profound Word
Howard S. Joseph
http://TheProfoundWord.com

The Warrior

The Exodus is over but not over. Pharaoh decides to pursue Israel and try to bring them back. Not until the great adventure at the sea does the final blow against Egypt complete the Exodus. The great warrior God has permanently defeated the enemy. They are finished with Egypt.

The crossing of the sea is commemorated on the seventh day of Passover. Unlike the events in Egypt proper it does not engender its own practices. It is the final part, the last battle. The war is over.

So now we will look at how these events will be remembered and commemorated, how they will remain in the consciousness of the people.

The Egyptian experience inspires many social attitudes and practices. On the basis of the suffering we knew we should not inflict this on others. We know the soul of the stranger and therefore must treat strangers with care. We know the vulnerability of the weak and therefore must protect the weaker members of society: the widow, orphan and stranger.

Now let us look at what some of what we might call the ceremonial programs that are established zekher liyetziat mizrayim, in remembrance of the Exodus.

We return to chapter 13:1-16. In the Masoretic text this appears as two paragraphs. They are found in the Tefilin boxes [phylacteries] and recited by many communities after donning the Tefilin.

1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

2. Sanctify to me all the firstborn, whatever opens the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast; it is mine.

3. And Moses said to the people, Remember this day, in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery; for with strength of hand the Lord brought you out from this place; there shall no leavened bread be eaten.

4. This day you came out in the month of Abib [Spring].

5. And it shall be when the Lord shall bring you into the land of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, that you shall perform this service in this month.

6. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and in the seventh day shall be a feast to the Lord.

7. Unleavened bread shall be eaten seven days; and no leavened bread shall be seen with you, neither shall there be leaven seen in all your quarters.

8. And you shall tell your child in that day, saying, This is done because of that which the Lord did to me when I came forth out of Egypt.

9. And it shall be for a sign to you upon your hand, and for a memorial between your eyes, that the Lord?s Torah may be in your mouth; for with a mighty hand has the Lord brought you out of Egypt.

10. You shall therefore keep this ordinance in his season from year to year.

11. And it shall be when the Lord shall bring you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and to your fathers, and shall give it to you,

12. That you shall set apart to the Lord all that opens the womb, and every firstling that comes of a beast which you have; the males shall be the Lord?s.

13. And every firstling of an ass you shall redeem with a lamb; and if you will not redeem it, then you shall break his neck; and all the firstborn of man among your children shall you redeem.

14. And it shall be when your child asks you in time to come, saying, What is this? that you shall say, By strength of hand the Lord brought us out from Egypt, from the house of slavery;

15. And it came to pass, when Pharaoh refused to let us go, that the Lord slew all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man, and the firstborn of beast; therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all that opens the womb, being males; but all the firstborn of my children I redeem.

16. And it shall be for a sign upon your hand, and for frontlets between your eyes; for by strength of hand the Lord brought us forth out of Egypt.

Neziv again seizes upon the expression “strength of hand” which appears three times in this section, as well as the phrase “a mighty hand.” Somehow this passage is connected to the previous use of those terms

Neziv also looks at the broader question: why are so many activities directed here and elsewhere towards the remembrance process? True enough the Exodus story is the foundational one for the nation. But, one must admit that we are called upon to remember and celebrate it quite often.

Finally, Neziv is surprised that Moses took so long to reach the issue of the bekhor [first-born] which is what God asked him to do. He introduces many other matters until he arrives a the rules for the bekhor. Let us see how he understands the continuing process of creating the Nation of Israel, the theme of this book.

The subject here is that after the Torah advised [12,51]us that Israel left Egypt “al tzivotam,” [which seems to suggest an orderly and purposeful military formation- hsj] unlike a mass liberation of slaves in which each person is for him-or herself with no connection to the others to form a united group appearing as an independent nation. Israel, however, was liberated to be as a military formation united for a purpose.

Now the union formed by any independent people cannot survive unless they have strong leadership to help them face up to outside forces as well as destructive internal opinions which can destroy all blessings and strength. Israel, too, its name and purpose cannot survive in the world without strength of arm [hozek yad] to fight with the many nations who wish to remove us from our purpose and against the forces of desire and greed that can destroy the collective.

The strength of any nation lies in three things.

1. The sovereign and its flags. That is that there is a collective agreement [a social contract] to submit to the will of the king and to give their minds and bodies to elevate the glory of the kingdom. The king, too, must watch out for anything that can disturb the peace of the kingdom.

2. The heads of the army and the army. It is not the practice of a king to appear always before the army to instruct them and lead them. Therefore, they must appoint officers who can capably lead the army according their abilities. They too have to prepare and strengthen themselves. Those who do not focus and prepare properly are negligent in their work and are actually allies of the enemy.

3.Proper armaments with which to fight.

All this applies to the spiritual regime of Israel which is its only purpose in the world. Whether we are in our Holy Land or in exile these three elements are our “strength of arm.”

1. Accepting Heaven’s [God's] Sovereignty by submission to God’s service and will and to give our lives and means for God’s honor. We are to believe that God provides directly for us, His people, as we often see so clearly. From this we must believe that this is so, even when it appears that God hides His face from us.

1. The leaders of Israel who are able to discern the will of God and to fight God’s battles. All Israel is bound to honor and revere them and to follow their guidance in matters that affect the survival of the nation…. When in our land and certainly in exile we must appoint capable leaders who wish to give themselves to this difficult task. If those capable of leadership do not put themselves fully to God’s service and leading Israel to it, they thereby are harming the collective. In Midrash Ruth there is a comment on the verse ?our chieftains will be firmly established? [Psalm 144:14]: At the moment in which the great ones of Israel [gedolei yisrael] do not care for Israel’s needs, the Blessed |Holy One begins judgment against Israel’s elders.
2. Armaments. This is the Torah which is called the sword of Israel as is written in many places and we will explain further.

These are the three constituents of “strength of hand” of Israel.

Neziv presents the above comments in reference to the bekhor, the first-born, who were initially expected by the Torah to provide the leaders of the people. In telling Moses to “Sanctify to me all first-born,” God was asking for Moses to instruct them about their responsibility and train them for their role. They were to be part of the hozek yad of the new nation.

Then Neziv adds:

So too one who is set aside from the womb [for the task] must still prepare for it by learning for the battle of Israel that is the Torah. This is as any military chief. Besides all training in knowledge and in matters that do not apply to ordinary soldiers the chief must be proficient in weaponry like any soldier. So too all leaders of Israel. Besides possessing high intelligence and other abilities in the ways of the world, and patience in leading the community and similar good qualities which are not necessary for other talmidei hakhamim [Torah scholars] who carry the sword of Israel [the Torah], they need to excel in Torah matters [the sword of Israel] as well.

Now God says: “it is mine” [li hu], the first-born belongs to Me. Neziv comments:

Why did God choose them in particular? He acquired them when they were in danger of death [from the plague of the First Born] on the night of the Exodus. Therefore, it is upon them to be separate from ordinary worldly affairs and to involve themselves with service of God and service as leaders of Israel. Because of this God sanctified them in the womb so they will be prepared for this; this is the word of God.

Then Moses added to God’s word on his lips to explain to the first-born as well as to all Israel the necessity and purpose of all this so they should not say that the Blessed Holy One did this only for His glory when He acquired them by saving them so that Israel may wonder why does the Holy Blessed One ask for a reward, God forbid. After all, all belongs to God. Therefore, Moses explains that this [selection of the first-born] is for hozek yad, to strengthen the hand of Israel to face the future. This is the general concern of this section.

Therefore we must realize that these two paragraphs are among the fundamental principles of our faith similar to the first two paragraphs of Shema [Shema and veHaya]. The latter are fundamentals for each individual. The former are fundamentals for the entire Israelite nation so that they should know the basis of their existence in the world.

Well, now we understand why all these four paragraphs contain the instruction to be bound upon the arm and placed between the eyes and, of course, are placed in the Tefilin.

Alas, God’s intention for the bekhor did not work out. Their special place was removed after the Golden Calf episode and given over to the tribe of Levi who produced the priestly functionaries. Other leaders emerged from other tribes and eventually political leadership emerged from Judah. However, Neziv believes that the responsibilities here outlined are lessons for any of those who would emerge for the new nation.

Neziv continues at length to comment on this section explaining the various Passover practices as well as Tefilin as fitting into these goals. We will save these profound comments for another occasion.

Shabbat Shalom

Hayyim Shemuel Yosef

Shevat 15 5770

January 30, 2010

A weekly parashah essay based on the writings of Rabbi Naphtali Zvi Yehudah Berlin, the Neziv, in Ha’amek Davar [HD] and Harhev Davar [HRD]. Please feel free to distribute this material for educational purposes. All rights reserved.

Parashat Bo 5770
The Profound Word
Howard S. Joseph
http://TheProfoundWord.com

The Mighty Hand and Outstretched Arm

Already in Moses’ first encounter with God at the Burning Bush he is told:

3:19. However, I know that the king of Egypt will not permit you to go, except through a mighty hand.

In other words, Moses’ is correct in his hesitations. Pharaoh will not treat this as a negotiation between equals leading to an easy resolution. Pharaoh will take a power position on the issue: how many legions does God have. There will ultimately be a power contest which will necessitate God demonstrating superior power to that of Pharaoh.

At the end of Parashat Shemot, after the initial failure of Moses’ mission and in a moment of despair, God again raises the issue as words of reassurance are offered to Moses:

6:1. And the Lord said to Moses, “Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh, for with a mighty hand he will send them out, and with a mighty hand he will drive them out of his land.”

Power will definitely be a necessary factor in this struggle. The mighty hand of God will engage and defeat the mighty hand of Pharaoh. Only then can redemption proceed.

A few verses later, in Parashat Vaera, another image is presented:

6:6 …I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.

Through this:

… you will know that I am the Lord your God, Who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.

In the book of Deuteronomy, when Moses prescribes the recitation for the First Fruits offering we are told to recite:

26:8. And the Lord brought us out from Egypt with a strong hand and with an outstretched arm, with great awe, and with signs and wonders.

Both images appear in this formulation: the hand and the arm.

Initially, the use of force is described as directed at the Egyptian first born:

4:22,23 You shall say to Pharaoh, ‘So said the Lord, “My firstborn son is Israel.? So I say to you, ‘Send out My son so that he will worship Me, but if you refuse to send him out, behold, I am going to slay your firstborn son.’ ”

In this week’s parashah, the first born issue, the bekhor, assumes prominent place. The final plague is the destruction of the Egyptian first born. Then, when out of Egypt, the status of the first born Israelite is consecrated and various practices are instituted regarding even the bekhor in the animal kingdom.

13:1-16. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,

Sanctify to me all the firstborn, whatever opens the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast; it is mine.

Based on this directive, Moses addresses the people. Major practices are instituted as part of the commemoration of the Exodus experience. Moses is here developing many of the acts by which we still commemorate the Exodus. We will look at these next week. What interests us now specifically, and Neziv as well, are the continual references to the ‘mighty hand’ and ‘outstretched arm’ by which the redemption was accomplished. [We will assume that hozek yad (=strength of hand) and yad hazakah (= mighty hand) are synonymous.]

We saw last week that Neziv believes that the initial failure and subsequent despair were necessary components of the redemption process. Moses was told not to despair at the ups and downs. In fact, the failures brought to the fore the necessity for the mighty hand to be exercised. [Midrashim and commentators note that the mighty hand had to be used not only against Pharaoh and Egypt but also against reluctant Israelites unwilling to participate in the redemption and wanting to remain in Egypt.] The dire circumstances will lead Israel to understand that only through God’s power lies their redemption. The display of power will be a way of glorifying God in the eyes of Israel who will come to know that I am the Lord your God, as well as the Egyptians who will also come to know that I am the Lord. [7:5, 14:4]

How is this all to come about? How will the outstretched arm and mighty hand effect the glorious results? How will they be commemorated in the future? Let’s see how Neziv moves through these issues over the course of the parashiyot that deal with them.

6:6 I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments?

Neziv: It is necessary to explain the various changes that occur in these verses. Sometimes we find only ‘a might hand’; sometimes we find ‘a mighty hand and an outstretched arm’; and here we find only ‘an outstretched arm’ and not ‘a mighty hand.’ This is not a random matter, God forbid.

To understand this we must first see the comment of the Mekhiltah in Beshalah at 14:30: ‘On that day the Lord saved Israel from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dying on the seashore.’

This is as a person holding a bird [in hand]; if he wishes he can instantly choke it. And, like a person trying to knock the fetus from a cow as it says [in Deut. 4:34]: Or has any god performed miracles to come and take him a nation from the midst of another nation, with trials, with signs, and with wonders, and with war and with a strong hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with great awesome deeds, as all that the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?

The explanation for all this is that besides the power of Egypt a that time there were two other factors as obstacles for the Exodus: One was that all Israel was in one place. Therefore, when Pharaoh would see that the the hand of God is superior to his, he could choose to kill all Israel at once. Our Sages already taught [in Pesahim 87b]:

R. Oshaia said: What is meant by the verse, Even the righteous acts of His Ruler in Israel? [Judg. V, 11.] The Holy One, blessed be He, showed righteousness [mercy] unto Israel by scattering them among the nations.

However, it was not this way in Egypt where they were all in one place. This is the meaning of the simile of the bird in one hand. If a more powerful opponent comes and strikes him a few times in order to release the bird, what will he do when he realizes that he cannot prevail against him? He will squeeze and choke the bird to anger his opponent and all the opponent’s power will be useless. This was the worry in Egypt. However, the Holy Blessed one saved them.

The strength of the blows [makkot] was not what was most effective here. There was a strategy behind them, just as we might advise the opponent hitting the holder of the bird: do not leave any reprieve between the blows for then he can plan how to respond how to anger the opponent. He should strike him blow after blow with an outstretched arm until the bird is released alive. The holder has no time to think but only to release.

This is what the Holy Blessed One did. Between the makkot there was no complete reprieve so that Pharaoh and his advisers could plan a response against God’s will. The passing blow would leave death and destruction among the Egyptian leaders and Pharaoh’s advisers…. [Presumably this would leave them in confusion and chaos-hsj] All this so that Pharaoh and his advisers would not have any reprieve to respond to the event. This is what is called ‘with an outstretched arm.’ In the Passover Haggadah, the Maggid [narrator] called this the sword, that is, the death that occurred between the makkot.

The second factor preventing the Exodus was that the power of the blows is ineffective to deliver the persecuted unless the latter cries to go out, for if not what good would hitting the persecutor do?

This too prevailed in Egypt. There were some who refused to go out for they were wealthy and among Pharaoh’s officers. Or, they did not want to serve God or accept the Torah. Nevertheless, God took them out through a plague [dever] that affected them during the plague of darkness.

This is the explanation of the simile of the fetus. If the fetus does not wish to go out the blows to the cow will be ineffective…. This is called ‘with a mighty hand’: against one’s will….

Now we understand the changes of expression in various verses. Here it is impossible to say beyad hazakah for they at this point all had free choice to wish to go out. [Therefore, only 'outstretched arm' is mentioned here- hsj]

Neziv treated us to a lengthy and profound psychological-military-strategic explanation on the uses of power as reflected in these verses. The Exodus story for him is really a military contest. He would probably object to our translation of the ten makkot as ten plagues. They are blows, strikes against an enemy, not epidemics or other natural mysteries.

Power issues and struggles are constant features of life. Certainly, the lessons of power are valuable for the future We must remember them as we move on in history. Next week we will look at the commemorations that were established to remember these lessons.

Shabbat Shalom

Hayyim Shemuel Yosef

Shevat 8, 5770

January 23, 2010

A weekly parashah essay based on the writings of Rabbi Naphtali Zvi Yehudah Berlin, the Neziv, in Ha’amek Davar [HD] and Harhev Davar [HRD]. Please feel free to distribute this material for educational purposes. All rights reserved.

Parashat Vaerah 5770
The Profound Word
Howard S. Joseph
http://TheProfoundWord.com

The Name

WARNING: SERIOUS THEOLOGY AHEAD. MATURE SUBJECT MATTER. READER DISCRETION ADVISED.

Theology is not a very popular subject for discussion these days. Yet there are major theological assumptions and concepts that underlie all our religious life. However, when someone tries to articulate them it proves difficult. Those who try more strenuously are often rewarded with suspicion and disbelief. So, synchronizing our religious life with theology is often left aside.

Sometimes, however, we are forced to confront this process. Neziv believes this is so in the opening section of our parashah. It has to do with the very name of God.

The previous parashah ends in a moment of great despair. After Moses’ reluctant acceptance of the mission to bring about the end of slavery and the Exodus from Egypt everything seems to have fallen apart. Pharaoh is not very impressed with Moses’ demands while Israel too is hesitant which turns to anger after Pharaoh increases the burdens in response to Moses requests. However, we anticipate a momentous change for the parashah ends with God’s direct response to the situation:

6,1. And the Lord said to Moses, “Now you will see what I will do to Pharaoh, for with a mighty hand he will send them out, and with a mighty hand he will drive them out of his land.”

Neziv explained there:

Not as you [Moses] think that this new evil is for their detriment and not for their benefit…. This is not the case. You will now clearly see that by trying to hurt Israel they will have hastened the time of redemption….

In other words, the Egyptian reaction to God’s demand now made it more likely that the redemption will come sooner up and that God will react with a mighty hand.

Now, our parashah opens:

Chapter 6

2. God spoke to Moses, and He said to him, “I am the Lord [YHWH].

3. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob with [the name] Almighty God, but by My name YHWH, I did not become known to them.

4. Also, I established My covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their sojournings in which they sojourned.

5. And also, I heard the moans of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians are holding in bondage, and I remembered My covenant.

These words are God’s attempt to continue to reassure Moses that this great venture will proceed. God has heard the cries and remembered the covenant. However, commentators have always wondered what connection this question of God’s name has to the issue at hand.

The Torah uses many different names for God. The creation chapter uses E-lohim which we saw refers to judgment and balance that God used in order to create the universe. [See TheProfoundWord, Parashat Bereishit 5770].

However, Jewish tradition has always considered the four-letter name YHWH as the most sacred, special and most personal name for God. It expresses God’s personal relationship to all creation and is understood to express God’s provident loving care for the creation.

Because of the holiness of this name it was only recited by the High Priest on the day of Yom Kippur when he entered the Holy of Holies in the Jerusalem Temple. Since then, tradition claims, the correct vocalization of the name has been lost. In its stead the pronunciation is not even attempted. While praying Jews use a word meaning Lord or Master: A-donai. In casual conversation even this is deemed irreverent and the faithful say Ha-shem, the Name.

So, we see, that the names of God have significance in referring to different aspects of God’s relationship to the world.

Our opening verses go even further. They suggest that the Ancestors, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob did not experience God’s presence as YHWH. They understood God as E-l Sh-addai. God did not reveal to them the fuller existence of YHWH. What does this mean? What does this have to do with the Exodus process? And, what does this have to do with the ultimate goals of Israel as the people of God?

Neziv faces the challenge of these verses right away:

When the Blessed Holy One answered Moses… an independent statement is presented which was necessary for that time as well as for the future to know the ways of God. [Verses 1-9 are written in the Masoteric Torah text as an independent portion (sidrah).]

Something momentous and significant is happening.

E-lohim spoke: We already explained in the beginning and end of Bereishit that this name always refers to the workings of nature…. Here as well it refers to God as the creator of nature..

and He said to him, “I am the Lord [YHWH]: who provides all through particular Providence [hamehaveh hakol behashgahah peratit], not like humans who build a home:? the builder’s power is in the home while under construction. When the home is finished his power is no longer in the home. Afterwords, the home does not stand through his power. However, the earth created in the name of Elohim stands and survives through the power of the name of YHWH who sustains all.

In this is included the response to Moses’ question. For Moses’ question assumed that Pharaoh’s decree in response to his demand was not part of the Providential plan but rather through the natural ways of these matters [i.e., the ways of political negotiations etc... (hsj)]. So God’s response is that nature is also part of Providence and that this is true for the future as well.

Now this will also be difficult for Moses; he will think how is this possible for he sees the strangeness in the natural ways of the world [i.e., how can they be part of the ways of God ?(hsj)].

So, therefore, God now continues:

I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob with [the name] Almighty God [E-l Sh-addai: It has already been explained in the book of Bereishit that whenever this name is used it is to show that the purpose of the creation and nature is to reflect the glory of God.... This is what the name E-l Sh-addai means: that God said 'dai' [enough] to the creation. Only in this manner can the purpose [of filling the world with God's glory] be accomplished. This could not happen if less were done [i.e., 'enough' had been said earlier (hsj)]. Even though it is not within human power to understand that this is the only way for the goal to be achieved, these are the concepts of the Blessed Holy One and we cannot question them just as we cannot know what is before creation and what is after. What God revealed to the Ancestors is that the entire purpose is God’s glory. That is the meaning of the name E-l Sh-addai.

but [with] My name YHWH, I did not make known to them: In actuality my name is YHWH the provider of all. However, according to appearances, anything that occurs on earth and does not seem to reflect the ultimate purpose would not seem to be a product of Divine Providence. However, this is not so for ‘ I am YHWH’. Even though these events seem to contradict the ultimate purpose that is only from a human perspective: if my name is E-l Sh-addai then not everything appears to be providential; and if everything is providential then not everything reflects God’s glory and name of Sh-addai. Yet I am YHWH; but I did not reveal to the Ancestors how this is possible.

This is a response to Moses and a teaching for the future as well. Just as they saw various things that they thought showed an absence of God’s glory and did not let this trouble them for I told them that I am E-l Sh-addai, so too Moses and we should not be troubled by this. We should believe that this is the way it is and that eventually God’s glory will emerge from it. This matter that we should believe that everything comes through Providence and that we should not be troubled by strange things, is a fundamental principle especially in exile. Therefore, Moses later instructed us in Deuteronomy[1] [concerning this.]

Moses himself at the beginning of his greatness could also not accept and believe this until these words were addressed to him by God.

Just a few opening words of the parashah have provoked Neziv to this lengthy theological excursus. He seems to be following the rhythm of the Torah itself which interrupts the flow of the story. This is directed at Moses who correctly expresses the moment of despair caused by Pharaoh’s and the people’s reaction to the events. Things have gotten worse rather than better.

God’s address to Moses is supposed to be reassuring. God reminds Moses with whom he is dealing: God, the creator, provider and sustainer of the universe. These qualities are accomplished through wisdom: the knowledge and ability to say ‘enough’ during the process of creation. God knew how to balance the order of the world so that it is sustainable. Through wisdom, balance and love the world continues. Harmonizing these qualities is no easy task and from our human perspective cannot be fully comprehended. What looks to us like a rupture in the process may not necessarily be so. The world as is, as created, is the only world that can successfully exist. Various midrashim indicate that God contemplated other possible worlds but they were not functional and sustainable. God knew when to say enough, to balance all the forces necessary in order to have a universe.

Interestingly, science today would agree that the universe, as it is, is in balance and any change to the smallest degree would not be compatible with the existence of the universe as it is. Knowing how to create and when to stop the process is a measure of Divine wisdom.

Moses is being taught, and, we as well, that we should not be overwhelmed by appearances. The rest of this section continues the theme of reassurance. It results in what are called the four expressions of redemption which are commemorated and toasted each year in the four cups of wine at the Pessah seder.

6-8 Therefore, say to the children of Israel, ‘I am the Lord:

• • I will take you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians;
  • I will save you from their labor;
  • I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments;
• I will take you to Me as a people,

and I will be a God to you, and you will know that I am the Lord your God, Who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.

I will bring you to the land, concerning which I raised My hand to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, and I will give it to you as a heritage; I am the Lord.’ “

It is clear from these assertions that the purpose is to get back on the redemption track. However, also clear is the ultimate purpose of being God’s nation: and you will know that I am the Lord your God. To be a light to the nations, to bring the world closer to God, they must not only be freed but know and understand and cling to God. The process is envisaged in this passage. It will unfold in the parashiyot ahead. We will see how Neziv understands the process and its profound implications for the nature of the Judaism and the Jewish people.

Shabbat Shalom

Hayyim Shemuel Yosef

Rosh Hodesh Shevat

January 16, 2010

A weekly parashah essay based on the writings Rabbi Naphtali Zvi Yehudah Berlin, the Neziv, in Ha’amek Davar [HD] and Harhev Davar [HRD]. Please feel free to distribute this material for educational purposes. All rights reserved.

Parashat Shemot 5770
The Profound Word
Howard S. Joseph
http://TheProfoundWord.com

What’s in “The Names”?

Well, we thought that we had arrived at the end of the beginning as we completed the book of Bereishit. Yet there seem to be some issues left unresolved. This has led generations of commentators to speculate as to the name of the second book.

The usual Hebrew name is Shemot called after the opening words ve’eyleh shemot: these are the names. Other names found in the literature may reflect the substance of the book: Exodus, or the the Book of Redemption as suggested by Ramban, for the grand Exodus from Egyptian slavery occupies so much of the book.

Neziv begins his introduction to the book citing the ninth century scholar known as Behag after the name of his famous work Halakhot Gedolot [most probably authored by Rabbi Simeon Kayyara, who lived in Basra, Babylonia], and who calls it Homash Sheni, literally, the second fifth. [ His five names for the books are: Bereishit, Homash Sheni [the second fifth], Book of Kohanim (Leviticus), Homash Hapekudim (the fifth of Census), and Mishneh Torah (Deuteronomy.] In the Talmud, Sotah 36b, the names for the second and fourth books are similar.]

Neziv builds on this idea and maintains that:

this comes to teach us this particular book is second to the book of the beginning of creation for it is the second part of this book. That is, in it is completed the order of creation…. For the general purpose of the world is that there is required one people who is intimately connected to God [ki helek Hashem amo]. This was not completed until Israel left Egypt and came to their purpose to be worthy of being a light to the nations to bring them to knowledge of God…. This is the purpose of the creation which was created for God’s glory…. So the giving of the Torah is the completion of the creation,…, Israel came to the purpose of its creation…. Only the Torah is the purpose of the elevation of Israel who were fashioned as a covenant people to be a light to the nations. So, the Book of Shemot is the second to the first [book of creation] as if they were one topic with two parts of the Book of Creation.

Here Neziv cites a famous Talmudic source in Avodah Zara, 3a:

And R. Simeon b. Lakish further said: What is conveyed by the phrase. And there was evening and there was morning the sixth day? [Hebrew: Ha-Shishi; the other days of creation do not have the 'ha' prefix without which it could mean 'day six'. The 'hey' vocalized as 'ha' provides emphasis that this day is special: it is the sixth day(hsj).] It teaches us that God made a condition with the works of creation, saying: If Israel accepts my Torah it will be well, but if not, I shall return you [the world] to a state of chaos. [ The connection is that the Sinai Revelation took place on the sixth day of the month of Sivan. In other words, the sixth day of creation depends upon the sixth day of Sivan for its completion(hsj).]

So, with the Exodus and the Sinai Torah revelation, the second book of the Torah is really also part of the creation story. It is the story of the creation of Israel as a unique nation prepared for it’s role in history. The Book of Genesis is not enough. Why not?

Firstly, Neziv always refers back to the initial promise to Abram at the Covenant of the Pieces:

Know for a certainty that your seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge; and afterward shall they come out with great wealth. [Gen. 15, 13-14.]

Certainly, this process has not yet been completed. Genesis ends with Jacob’s family, the incipient nation of Israel, still only a family or clan, living in peace in Egypt. This process is deemed essential for the creation of the nation of Israel. A period of slavery, suffering and redemption is necessary in order to create the Israel that will be the nation that God requires.

Neziv uses the term creation in regards to Israel. This means for him that Israel as an entity is a special unique creation in the world. While Neziv takes seriously the existence of other nations, they may come or go throughout history. Israel, however, is a necessary structural part of the world order. It is a creation like other creations. It has a function and purpose. The experience in Egypt is a fundamental part of the creation of Israel as God’s nation on earth. As we proceed in this book we will see why he believes the experience of slavery and redemption is so necessary.

For Neziv the verse your seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs is not a prediction but a command. Israel must keep itself separate. It must maintain its identity and not assimilate into other nations. If it loses its identity it loses its purpose and function in the world. It then loses its special status and becomes subject to the travails of history like any other nation. It becomes frail and vulnerable, no longer under the Divine Providence through which it was created as a unique structure. It also arouses the enmity of the nations rather than their love when it tries to be like them. It is this lesson among others that Israel has to learn in Egypt.

At the outset of the book and Parashah we are told that the land [of Egypt] was filled with them.

Neziv comments:

This comes to teach us that they dwelled not only in the area of Goshen which was theirs but they lived throughout Egypt among the Egyptians…. In all available places that they found to purchase and live in they did so….

Scripture tells us this to alert us to the subsequent cause of hatred, governmental decrees and suspicion of what was not at all their intention [i.e., to harm Egypt.] All this occurred because they wished to depart from the will of Jacob that they live only in Goshen and remain alone and separate from Egypt. However, they did not wish to do so.

In the Midrash Shemot Rabbah it says that they also stopped circumcision for this reason: to be like the Egyptians. For after they began to live among them they thought it would be good to be like them and not be visibly identifiable as Jews. For this reason, says the midrash, God reversed their hearts to hate His people.

We have already explained in the the book of Bereishit that the verse ?your seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs? is the cause that in all generations that enemies rise against us to destroy us when we refuse to be like strangers separate from the nations.

This may appear counter-intuitive. However, the realities of the modern world confirm Neziv’s insight. True enough, immigrants, strangers may eventually integrate completely into their new surroundings but the process is not always smooth. Nineteenth century antisemites would often target the more assimilated Jews as the enemies of Europe reasoning that if Jews did not have loyalty to their own traditions then how could one trust them to be loyal to opportunistically adopted cultural norms. They would shed these for other more beneficial opportunities. In this way they echoed what Pharaoh says: there may come a war and they may join our enemies. They have no fundamental loyalty but will go with the best deal. People without the fundamental virtue of loyalty are hard to trust. If Israel is to be a blessing to the world it must gain the trust of the world. It must remain loyal to the ein Yaakov, the vision of Jacob, and maintain itself as a separate, identifiable entity, preparing itself for its ultimate role. This profound lesson it must learn.

Shabbat Shalom

Hayyim Shemuel Yosef

Tevet 23 5770

January 9, 2010