Get Out and Stay Out
Moshe Blitz
Throughout the drama of the Jewish exodus from Egypt, there are many confrontations between Moshe and Pharaoh. But none, perhaps, is as dramatic as the one that occurs after makkas choshech, the plague of darkness. Pharaoh at first appears to acquiesce to Moshe’s desire to offer karbanos to Hashem. However, he throws in one caveat. Moshe must agree to leave behind the Jewish flocks. Moshe refuses to accept this modification, and Pharaoh refuses to send the Jews out.
Then Pharaoh does something unprecedented. Pharaoh says to Moshe, "Go away from me! Watch yourself, I never want to see your face again, for on that day you will die." Moshe responds no less passionately, "So you have pronounced; I shall never see you again!"
Analysis of this discussion leaves one perplexed. By this time, Pharaoh has been thoroughly humiliated. He has suffered through plague after plague, each one increasingly trying to both him and his people. At the moment when he seems to be at the brink of resignation, he instead lashes out at Moshe, daring the Jewish leader to show his face again. What did Pharaoh expect to gain from this explosion? Didn’t Pharaoh expect that his refusal of Moshe’s request would invite another plague--much as his previous refusals had? And, assuming he did expect this, how did he plan to end the next plague without the aid of Moshe?
Moshe’s response is equally perplexing. First, how did Moshe know that Hashem would not ask him to go and speak to Pharaoh again? How could he say with such conviction that he would never see Pharaoh again?
Many of the Rishonim and Achronim are bothered by these questions, though their solutions vary.
Rashi deals only with Moshe’s response of "Ken dibarta - So you have pronounced." "Yafeh dibarta ubizmano dibarta, emes shelo osef od liros panecha -- You have spoken well, in its proper time, and it is true that I will never see you again."
Rashi seems to be emphasizing that there were three messages included in Moshe’s short statement of ken dibarta. The Maharal, in his commentary Gur Aryeh, elucidates these three points:
Why was Pharaoh's obstinacy yafeh; wouldn’t it have been nicer had Pharaoh let them leave? Rashi means that it was yafeh in the sense that it was bizmano, timely. Moshe himself had already resolved never to see Pharaoh again long before Pharaoh ordered Moshe away. Moshe was happy to see that this feeling was mutual. Rashi believes this is evident in the force of Moshe’s response. For Moshe to have responded with such finality, he must have planned long before never again to meet with Pharaoh. Moshe ends his statement by saying emes shelo osef od liros panechah. The reason we will never see each other again is not because you said so, but because that is what is destined to be.
The Ramban understands Moshe’s response somewhat differently. Moshe observed a trend in his negotiations with Pharaoh. Hashem would bring a plague against the Egyptians, and Pharaoh would send for Moshe to ask that he end the plague. From now on, Moshe told Pharaoh, I will not come running at your summons. If you want to see me, you can come to me yourself, but I will not come to you.
While both Rashi and the Ramban to explain Moshe's response, "ken dibarta," the Ohr HaChaim HaKadosh looks to understand both ends of the dialogue. Pharaoh noticed a pattern in the makkos. They had been divided into three series of three: two plagues preceded by a warning and one imposed without such warning (e.g. Pharaoh was warned of the impending dam and tzfardeya, but kinnim came suddenly). The most recent plague, darkness, had not been preceded by a warning. Pharaoh understood that the next plague would require a warning. By denying Moshe a future audience, Pharaoh hoped to prevent Hashem from bringing any more plagues upon him and his people. Moshe, though, was undaunted by Pharaoh's death threat. He responded sarcastically, yafeh dibarta. Once before, after I killed the Mitzri who tried to strike a Jew, you tried unsuccessfully to kill me. Just as you were unable to hurt me before, you will be equally impotent now.
A more creative understanding is provided by R’ Yonason Eybeshuitz. He explains, much like the Ohr HaChaim HaKadosh, that Pharaoh's refusal to see Moshe was a ploy to ensure that no more makkos would be brought against him and his people. Based on the concept of ein chavin le’adam eleh befanav--we do not assign something negative to a person unless he is present to defend himself--, Pharaoh hoped to prevent any further plagues. Moshe’s response of yafeh dibarta was an equally "lumdish" reply. The Gemara in Sanhedrin teaches us that a Ben Noach does not require hasra'ah to be convicted of a capital crime. (Moshe was able to kill the Mitzri without hasra'ah for this reason.) The final plague was makkas bechoros, the death of the first born. This required no warning and therefore Moshe was confident that he would never have to appear before Pharaoh again.
Finally, I submit the short explanation offered by the Sifsei Chachamim. How could Moshe be so confident that Hashem wouldn’t ask him to go back and see Pharaoh again? The Sifsei Chachamim suggests that there is a concept of Tzadik Gozer VaHashem Mikayem, a righteous person decrees and Hashem fulfills the request. Moshe was confident that if he said he would never see Pharaoh again, Hashem would see to it that he would never have to see Pharaoh again.
A Powerless Pharaoh
By Herzl Ginsburg
The Exodus marks the triumph of the Jewish nation over her oppressors, proving to all that God watches over her. The importance of this event in our history and faith highlights itself in the number of mitzvos performed zecher litzias mitzrayim -- in remembrance of the Exodus. Moreover, once a year we attempt to reenact and thus re-experience the day and its glory: during the holiday of Pesach. It's all the more saddening, therefore, that the day's development depended on God unjustly punishing Pharaoh and his people.
The injustice is evident in both Parshas Va'era and Parshas Bo, where God strengthens Pharaoh's resolve to deny Moshe's request to allow the Jewish people to leave -- Vayechazek es lev Paraoh. Five times Pharaoh refuses Moshe of his own free will; five times -- vayechazek es lev Paraoh. With the killing of the first born, God shows in one act of Divine Justice who are the chosen people; this declaration would not have come about if not for Pharaoh’s forced refusal of Moshe’s requests. Pharaoh and his people were forced against their will to continue their enslavement of the Jewish people; how can we revel in the retribution meted out to them?
Forgiveness is essential to humanity. Even the closest of friends err, accidentally or intentionally, hurting one another as a result. What greater love can there be than that of husband and wife? Yet their marriage, though healthy, demands their willingness to ask and grant forgiveness to one another. In contrast, God does not err and hence never needs our forgiveness. Consequently, there is nothing compelling God to forgive us for our mistakes. Justice demands that if we err and sin, God punish us for the mistake. The fact that God accepts our repentance -- teshuva -- is a gift, one often taken for granted.
Abarbanel assumes that the gift of Divine Forgiveness belongs solely to the Jewish people. Polytheists too may merit this forgiveness, but only with a complete turning to God and a renouncement of their idolatry. (Abarbanel discusses the teshuva of anshei ninveh in his commentary on Yonah.) After Pharaoh and the Egyptians had sinned, their fate was sealed. In this case, God chose to use them to glorify His might and power and prove His love for us. Part of Pharaoh’s punishment was his inability to accept Moshe’s request and thus stop the wave of plagues.
A Cut Above
Micky Siev
The Torah states (Shemos 11:3) "Gam haIsh Moshe gadol meod b’eretz mitzrayim b’einei avdei Pharoh uv’einei ha’am." Moshe’s reputation and renown had spread throughout Mitzrayim, and he was considered to be a very "great" person. The exact nature of this ‘greatness’, though, is unclear. What was it about Moshe that impressed the Mitzrim? Was it simply the fact that he had brought suffering to Egypt, or was there perhaps a deeper understanding and appreciation of Moshe’s special qualities?
The Meshech Chochmah explains that there are two types of greatness, each with its own way of making a person famous, honored, and perceived as being a cut above the rest of humanity. One type of greatness relates to a person who performs feats that seem to be extraordinary and unnatural. In such cases, it is the hamon am who are the first to notice the person. They herald him as having supernatural powers, spread the stories of his accomplishments, and, inevitably, grossly exaggerate his capabilities. In this way, the person’s fame is spread throughout the people until even the leaders and thinkers of the people, who were initially cautious about believing these stories, also come to ascribe supernatural powers to the person.
The second type of greatness and way of attaining recognition in the eyes of the world is only applicable to a person whose greatness stems from his intellect and purity of character. The upper echelons of a people, those who are sensitive to spiritual, moral and intellectual qualities, perceive the greatness of a person who has these qualities. They are inspired by him, and they slowly spread his fame until everyone has heard of the person and views him with awe and reverence. In this way, he too gains the respect of an entire society.
Moshe Rabbeinu achieved both types of honor. He performed feats that were clearly beyond the abilities of a normal person. Because he was a messenger of God, no exaggeration was necessary to assert that he was unique in this regard. This aspect of his persona made a quick impression upon the people, but the wise men of Egypt, the chachamim and the chartumim, were not immediately impressed. It was only after the plague of kinim that they too admitted that "etzba Elokim hi" and recognized that Moshe was clearly out of their league. However, Moshe was also recognized for the purity of his character, his humility, his wisdom and his spiritual greatness. This took longer for people to recognize, and it was the members of the Egyptian court, the elite of society, who were the first to do so. It is for this reason that they refer to Moshe as "zeh" (10:7- "ad masai yihiyeh zeh lanu l’mokesh"), and not haIsh. They recognized that they could not call him ish, and thereby include him in their ranks. He was a cut above. This realization spread from the court advisors to the rest of the people, and it is to this recognition that pasuk 11:3 refers. "Gam haIsh Moshe"- Moshe, for his human, natural qualities, and not just for the miracles he performed, "gadol meod b’eretz mitzrayim"- was respected and revered in Egypt; first "b’einei avdei Pharoh", and finally also "b’einei ha’am."
