Transcript
Okay, good morning. I want to thank our sponsors this morning, Judy and Lester Henner, in commemoration of the yahrzeit of their beloved mothers, Peggy Wolin and Mina Henner, and beloved grandmothers of Benji and Zelda Henner, and beloved great-grandmothers of Samantha, Rebecca, Evan, and Jordan Henner. Thank you for your sponsorship. נשמה should have an עליה neshama should have an aliyah. We have the privilege this week of studying פרשת שמות Parshas Shmos, and with that beginning ספר שמות Sefer Shmos. I have way too much going on up here. Can't find what I'm looking for. ספר שמות Sefer Shmos.As I mentioned over a year when we begin ספר שמות Sefer Shmos, is an incredible transition. We have five books of חומש Chumash, five distinct books of Torah, and each one has a character, each one has a theme. Certainly the פרשיות parshiyos themselves tell narratives, they tell story. The פרשיות parshiyos themselves communicate ideals, values, laws, and our history. But the books too have a theme that develops. So what is the theme of ספר שמות Sefer Shmos? The Smag, the author of the ספר מצות גדולות Sefer Mitzvos Gedolos, titles each of the five books of the Torah, consistent with the titles that חז״ל Chazal gave, but also a little bit different. בראשית Beraishis, he calls ספר היצירה Sefer Hayetzira. It's the story of formation, of creation, of when the world came into being ex nihilo, there was a vacuum, תוהו ובוהו tohu vavohu, there was utter nothingness, and creation. בראשית Beraishis tells the story of the world, of our lives. In סדר siddur snippets that we're learning each day, we're up to אלקי נשמה שנתת בי Elo-kai neshama shenasata bi, אתה בראתה אתה יצרתה אתה נפחתה Ata v'rasa, ata y'tzarta, ata n'fachta. We go through, there's three different descriptions that describe the three levels, the רוח הנפש והנשמה ruach, hanefesh, v'haneshama. So the book of בראשית Beraishis is the story of our creation. The epitome, the climax of creation is the נשמה neshama, man is created on the sixth day. Each day of creation, it continues to progress, continues to elevate. The ultimate creation, the culmination of creation is man, on the sixth day. Some like to point out that the culmination of creation is actually not man. The final act of creation, which represents, I guess, the pinnacle of all creation, that gender likes to say, is woman. When woman, when חוה Chava is created, is extracted from אדם Adam, that is the last act of creation, represents the pinnacle of the peak of creation. So the book of בראשית Beraishis is ספר היצירה Sefer Hayetzira. ויקרא Vayikra is תורת כהנים Toras Kohanim because, again, this is what חז״ל Chazal called it, and the מדרש Midrash calls it תורת כהנים Toras Kohanim, is the story of our great כהנים Kohanim, their laws, and their distinct position, and what's expected of them and so on. במדבר Bamidbar, ספר הפקודים Sefer Hapekudim, the book of counting. We have several counts. דברים Devarim, משנה תורה Mishneh Torah because Moshe's monologue or soliloquy recounts so much of the Torah that had been communicated before. But the ספר מצות גדולות Sefer Mitzvos Gedolos does not offer a unique name to the book of שמות Shmos. What does he call the book of שמות Shmos? We call it שמות Shmos. But he calls it ספר השני Sefer Hasheini, the second book. That is the worst name ever for a book. Imagine you write a book and then you put out a sequel, and for the sequel, you call it the second book. Instead of Harry Potter, I don't even know the names of the Harry Potter books. Do they have different names each book? Oh. So but instead, imagine how far it would have gotten if she just called it The Second Book. ספר השני Sefer Hasheini? That's it? He couldn't come up with a more creative name, a name that better describes what is happening in this book? So the understanding is that really what the ספר מצות גדולות Sefer Mitzvos Gedolos is telling us is, שמות Shmos and בראשית Beraishis are two halves of one book. True they're divided. We have חומש Chumash. חמשה חומשי תורה Chamisha Chumshei Torah, we have five books. So they appear, they're published separately as two books, but their themes are two sides of a coin. The truth is their themes are really one and the same. How are the themes really one and the same? Because they're all about birth. They're all about the development. The book of בראשית Beraishis is the birth of the first family, and it has all the family dynamics. We mention this every year. If you go through ספר בראשית Sefer Beraishis, we go through dysfunction to function. What's the definition of a dysfunctional family? Any family with more than one person in it. So ספר בראשית Sefer Beraishis is the very first dysfunctional family. It's an amazing book because it gives us license, it gives us permission to be dysfunctional. We don't read ספר בראשית Sefer Beraishis and say, we'll never measure up, we can't compare, we can't strive, we'll never aspire to be them. We look and we say, there were struggles, parenting struggles, and marriage struggles, and sibling rivalry, and family conflict. And when the curtain closes on the פרשה parsha of ויחי Vayechi on the book of בראשית Beraishis, at least ostensibly, we've quoted the רבינו בחיי Rabbeinu Bachya before, that the reason for עשרת הרוגי מלכות Aseres Harugei Malchus is because the brothers never really asked for forgiveness and Yosef never really forgave them, because it was the most disingenuous apology. Sort of like LeBron James's apology, which we'll get to. So it's a disingenuous apology. It's not worthy, it's not deserving of forgiveness. Yosef never really forgives them. That's why we have עשרת הרוגי מלכות Aseres Harugei Malchus. That's what Rabbeinu Bachya is saying is פשט pshat. But the simple understanding is the curtain falls on the book of בראשית Beraishis, and finally we have a family united, unified, getting along. Finally, they're functional. We bless our children to be אפרים ומנשה Ephraim u'Menashe, the first generation of siblings who get along, the foundational ברכה bracha what we hope for our children. The book of בראשית Beraishis is the story of a family, the birth of a family, going through the growing pains of a family, adolescence of a family, the maturing of a family, and now we have a functional family. And for the ספר מצות גדולות Sefer Mitzvos Gedolos, the book of שמות Shmos is the other side of that same coin. Not the birth of a family, but now we have the birth of a, of a nation, of a people. 70 we went down to מצרים Mitzrayim, but we came out a nation, a people. And what the book of בראשית Beraishis represents for a family is what the book of שמות Shmos represents for a people. Dysfunction, growing pains, rivalry. We don't conclude ספר שמות Sefer Shmos the way we do בראשית Beraishis because we have במדבר Bamidbar. Talk about the adolescence of a people, complaining, negativity, bitterness, lack of appreciation, the whole book of במדבר Bamidbar. By the end of דברים Devarim, when Moshe is ready to give us our charge and we're entering, ready to enter the land, then finally, then finally we're ready. But that's, שמות Shmos is the corollary, or שמות Shmos is the complement. It's the other side of the coin of בראשית Beraishis. בראשית Beraishis is the development, the birth of our first family, and שמות Shmos is the birth of our, of our people.My friend, Rabbi Kenny Schiowitz, wrote about it, quoted the ספר מצות גדולות Sefer Mitzvos Gedolos, and he suggests you also see this in terms of the very character and the mission of the family and then of, of the people, of the nation. אברהם אבינו Avraham Avinu is described as, the פסוק pasuk says ויגד לאברם העברי Vayaged l'Avram ha'Ivri. רבי יהודה אומר כל העולם מעבר אחד והוא מעבר אחר Rebbi Yehuda omer kol ha'olam me'ever echad v'hu me'ever acher. We are the עברים Ivrim. Even before we were יהודים Yehudim, we take after יהודה Yehuda, Yehuda's wonderful character traits, what Yehuda taught us, ויגש יהודה Vayigash Yehuda, Yehuda's assertiveness, Yehuda's leadership, Yehuda's fallibility, Yehuda's willingness to apologize and to admit, we are יהודים Yehudim. But before we were יהודים Yehudim, before we were Jews, we were עברים Ivrim, or simultaneous, we still are עברים Ivrim, after אברם העברי Avram ha'Ivri. An עברי Ivri is a Hebrew. We speak the Hebrew language. We've always had that special language, לשון הקודש Lashon Hakodesh. This very unique language. But more than that, we're not just Hebrews because of our language, but the מדרש Midrash tells us, Rabbi Yehuda's telling us, כל העולם מעבר אחד והוא מעבר אחר kol ha'olam me'ever echad v'hu me'ever acher. That אברהם אבינו Avraham Avinu was willing to stand on the other side. He was willing to be alone. That when the whole world said this is moral, this is the ethic, the whole world said this is normal, Avram said, \"No, that's not normal.\" The Torah defines my normalness. God tells me what's right, what's just, what's moral, what's ethical, what's correct, what's normal. And just because you, the fashion industry, or pop culture, or just because you, the world of politics, or just because you have decided there's a new normal in the 21st century, a new normal on how we relate to one another, how we view ourselves, how we dress, how we interact, what's moral, what's ethical, only the Torah teaches me, the Torah lays the anchor of what is normal. Avram is the עברי Ivri because מעבר אחר me'ever acher, he's willing to stand on the other side. And this people that emerged, that developed, that are born and grow in the book of שמות Shmos, like our forefather, like our patriarch Avram, we too are willing to stand alone, and we're destined to stand alone. And that's what the Torah tells us. הן עם לבדד ישכון Hein am l'vadad yishkon. We're isolated in our existence and in our beliefs. To be a Jew is to be willing to swim upstream, to go against the tide, to stand alone, even when it's unpopular, even when it's difficult. The Jews in Egypt were trying to resist assimilation. Our whole story of the book of שמות Shmos. שמות Shmos, according to others, the name of the book is שמות Shmos, because one of the three things that preserved our identity and helped us fight off assimilation and enabled us or empowered us to be redeemed, was that we preserved our name, our name, our dress, Hebrew, or עברי Ivri, our language. We were willing to stand alone, to go upstream. And that too is part of this pattern of following Avram. So what book, maybe the ספר מצות גדולות Sefer Mitzvos Gedolos calls the book of שמות Shmos, ספר השני Sefer Hasheini, not because he lacked creativity, couldn't come up with a better name, the sequel, but rather because it complements ספר בראשית Sefer Beraishis. These two books together represent the birth of a family and the birth of a people. How does it begin by recounting to us how many we were? אלה שמות בני ישראל Eileh shmos Bnei Yisrael, when we came to מצרים Mitzrayim, Yaakov, his family, Reuven, Shimon, Levi, Yehuda, as if since last week's פרשה parsha we forgot the names of the tribes. As if. Now as we have a whole week in between, and we have a whole, we have a whole page break in between the first book and the second book of חומש Chumash. But if you're reading, if you're reading straight through, you're not going to forget the names. So why is the Torah repeating the names? So רש״י Rashi tells us why. אף על פי שמנאם בחייהם בשמותם, חזר ומנאם במיתתם Af al pi shemonom b'chayeihem b'shmosam, chazar u'monom b'misosam. רש״י Rashi tells us that God is recounting, recalling the Jewish people. Even when they were alive, he called them by name and he counted them and he recognized them. But he does it now in their death. Why? להודיע חבתם שנמשלו לכוכבים שמוציאם ומכניסם במספר ובשמותם, שנאמר המוציא במספר צבאם לכולם בשם יקרא L'hodia chibasom she'nimshlu l'kochavim she'motzi'am u'machnisam b'mispar u'v'shmosam, she'ne'emar ha'motzi v'mispar tzva'am l'chulam b'shem yikra. So רש״י Rashi tells us why? Because Hashem is communicating his affection. He's communicating his love for us. The Jewish people are like the stars. Hashem brings out and brings in by number and by name. He counts and enumerates. If you look at the sky, there are billions of stars and billions of galaxies and endless, and yet each one for Hashem has a name, has a purpose, has a mission. Each one shines bright in Hashem's eyes. And the same is true for people, the same is true for the Jewish people. So Hashem recounts the Jewish people, even though we just had their names, in order to display, to communicate his love and his affection. Asks the שפת אמת Sfas Emes, the גערער רבי Gerer Rebbe, Reb Yehuda Leib of Gur. Asks the שפת אמת Sfas Emes, for whom is Hashem counting? אלה שמות בני ישראל Eileh shmos Bnei Yisrael. We just read this, and we read the names. For whom is he expressing this affection? Why is Hashem expressing this affection and for whom and to whom is it directed? And the גערער רבי Gerer Rebbe answers, you know who Hashem is expressing the affection for? Us. For us to hear. This isn't for the nations of the world. This isn't for anyone else. It's for כלל ישראל Klal Yisrael. הקדוש ברוך הוא מבקש להודיע חבתם של ישראל לישראל עצמם. כל יהודי ויהודי מחוייב לדעת כי השם יתברך אוהב כל אחד מישראל Hakadosh Baruch Hu mevakesh l'hodia chibasom shel Yisrael l'Yisrael atzmam. Kol Yehudi v'Yehudi mechuyav ladaas ki Hashem Yisbarach ohev kol echad miYisrael. Every Jew needs to know that Hashem loves them. Everyone needs to know that we're a shining star in Hashem's eyes. We've been doing our סדר siddur snippets, six minutes a day of of insights into the סדר siddur. If you want to sign up for the WhatsApp group, let me know and you get your daily six-minute audio of insight. So on מודה אני Modeh Ani, we conclude רבה אמונתך raba emunasecha. We finish, we wake up every morning, we open our eyes and we say, רבה אמונתך raba emunasecha. Hashem, you have incredible אמונה emuna. What do you mean Hashem has אמונה emuna? We have אמונה emuna. We're the ones who are supposed to believe in him. In whom does Hashem have אמונה emuna? What does he believe in? If in God we trust, in whom does Hashem trust? רבה אמונתך Raba emunasecha, Hashem, your belief in us is great. How do I know you believe in me, Hashem? Because I woke up today. Because I opened my eyes, because my heart is beating in my chest, and air is flowing in my lungs, I'm alive. You've renewed my contract another day, רבה אמונתך raba emunasecha, you believe in me. רב צדוק הכהן Rav Tzadok Hakohen in צדקת הצדיק Tzidkas Hatzadik writes and preaches צדק tzedek, that we have to believe in Hashem, but part of believing in Hashem is believing in ourselves, because we are a piece of Hashem. We're a צלם אלקים tzelem Elokim. And we are only here because Hashem wills us to be. And if we believe in him, then we must believe in ourselves as an extension of him. If he's tapped us to be here and that we have a mission, then we have to believe. And that's the theme, that's exactly the פסוקים pesukim that we're going to analyze together. When Moshe turns to Hashem and he says, \"How do I know?\" and \"I can't go,\" and \"This is never going to work.\" And Hashem says, gives him an answer. We're going to examine it. But his answer is, \"I'm sending you. And if I'm tapping you, and I'm the source of everything, if I believe in you, then you have to believe in yourself.\" That's the message of פרשת שמות Parshas Shmos. If I believe in you, you have to believe in you. אלה שמות בני ישראל הבאים מצרימה Eileh shmos Bnei Yisrael haba'im Mitzrayma, חבתם של ישראל chibasom shel Yisrael. For whom? For us. When we read about how much Hashem loves every Jew, we should feel his love. Now, is that just a kumbaya? Hashem loves us, we can do no wrong in his eyes? There's no consequences, there's no accountability, he has no expectations? Of course he has expectations. Of course we have הלכה halacha, and we have שכר ועונש schar v'onesh, and we have rules and principles that guide us. And there's accountability and consequences. But underlying it all, just like a parent has with their child. You can't act in my home however you want without repercussions. You can't just do what you want. There's rules, there's regulations, there's family code. And there's consequences if you don't abide by them. At least there's threats of them. Hopefully there's follow through too. But there's, there's consequences. But in the end of the day, what underlines those consequences and that system of, of accountability is love. Because I love you and want you to be the best you can be. I want to teach you, I want to raise you into being the best version of yourself. So הקדוש ברוך הוא Hakadosh Baruch Hu holds us accountable, and he sets expectations, and he makes demands, but all of that stems from because he loves us. And we're really great at emphasizing the expectations and the accountability and demands. We're good at the scare tactics. We're good at the שכר ועונש schar v'onesh, we're good at the do the right thing or else something bad's going to happen and so on. But we sometimes forget to reinforce, הקדוש ברוך הוא Hakadosh Baruch Hu loves us. He loves us. Other religions, other religions stole that from us. That's our bumper sticker. That's our motto. Hashem loves us. Says the שפת אמת Sfas Emes, that's who he's counting for. He's not counting for anyone else to see. He's not expecting someone else to read the חומש Chumash. He's counting for the Jewish people that when we begin ספר שמות Sefer Shmos each year and we read that he counts us again and compares us to the stars in the sky, for us, for Hashem, every one of us shines as bright as a star. Every one of them has a name. And that's the book of שמות Shmos. It reminds us, it reaffirms our purpose and it reaffirms our Hashem's belief, Hashem's belief in us. Okay. The Torah then tells us about Paro's plot. ויקם מלך חדש Vayakom melech chadash. With the famous debate, was it really a new king or a king who forgot Yosef? How could a king forget Yosef? How could a king forget Yosef? Yosef saved the economy. His picture adorned Congress of Egypt, the palace of Egypt. He, he was the model for the Fed chairman of Egypt. He saved the economy of Egypt. How could he possibly be forgotten? The Sforno, the Ibn Ezra, they point out, you know how he was forgotten? Because the Jewish people stopped having a relationship with government, with leadership. To me, this is always a מקור mukor, a source for the work of AIPAC or of advocacy. We have a voice, we have an opportunity to lobby. We have an opportunity to remind people that we count, that we can influence and to use that influence to to affect the policies that we care about. ויקם מלך חדש Vayakom melech chadash. There's a turnover. Not going to give the, you know, AIPAC plug now, but the turnover in Congress, the degree over the last few cycles, I think more than 50, 60% of Congress has turned over. ויקם מלך חדש Vayakom melech chadash, the people who vote, that send aid to our beloved Israel or that dictate the rules, the the laws that govern us, there's an enormous turnover. ויקם מלך חדש Vayakom melech chadash. So the leader לא ידע את יוסף lo yada es Yosef, they'll forget about us because we neglect those relationships, or we nurture those relationships. And the book of שמות Shmos, the גלות galus is a reminder to us what happens when we neglect and fail to nurture the relationships that we have an opportunity to have that voice. לא ידע את יוסף lo yada es Yosef. So Paro sees, ויאמר אל עמו הנה עם בני ישראל רב ועצום ממנו vayomer el amo hinei am Bnei Yisrael rav v'atzum mimenu. This is a growing nation. First of all, they're הבאים מצרימה haba'im Mitzrayma, they're described. The Jewish people are אלה שמות eileh shmos, they're הבאים מצרימה haba'im Mitzrayma. Rav Soloveitchik points out, why are they באים ba'im in the הווה hoveh? Shouldn't it be אשר באו asher bau? They came to Egypt. Why does it say אשר באים asher ba'im, they're coming to Egypt? So the Rav points out, based on the מדרש Midrash which notes this anomaly, כאילו באו היום ke'ilu bau hayom. It's as if Bnei Yisrael had come that very day. The term הבאים haba'im suggests the people of Egypt did not consider the Jewish people as part of their state, society, and culture. They looked upon them as that they had just entered Egypt. הבאים Haba'im. You Jews are never real citizens. We've never really fully accepted you. You're באים ba'im, you're immigrants. At what point do you lose the status of immigrants and get to be treated as equal residents? For the Jew, never. You're always an immigrant. You're always a stranger. You're always a foreigner. What what began, what precipitated this hatred of Paro, what precipitated the animosity that led to this strategy for extermination of the Jewish people, was a mentality and an attitude that the Jews a stranger. They are forever an immigrant. Forever an immigrant and outsider. Never allowed to fully join. הבאים Haba'im, not באו bau, but הבאים haba'im. They continue. This belief in the otherness of the Jew repeats itself through history, writes the Rav. Jews lived in Germany even before the Dark Ages. During the Middle Ages, the Jews supported Germany from within. They were an integral part of society. Yet many centuries after they arrived, these Jews were wiped out in the Holocaust, charged with being strangers, not counted among society. The essence of anti-semitic doctrine throughout history always depicted the Jew as a stranger. They charged that we are strangers, עברים Ivrim. We never assimilate ourselves into any community, we are outsiders. And that's the present tense. That's what it means. הבאים Haba'im, not אשר באו asher bau. What was Paro's mentality, his strategy? He communicated, he depicted the Jewish people as if they were poised to rebel, as if they were about to rise up. And therefore he instilled this fear within the citizens of Egypt, that they had to eliminate the Jews, otherwise they were at risk from the Jews. Rabbi Soloveitchik uses the beginning of this parsha to really describe, obviously weighed heavily on his heart still the Holocaust, and for us too, the anti-semitism that we see beginning or continuing to rise in our time, this is very instructive of what we need to be, of what we need to be looking out for. It says ויעבדו מצרים את בני ישראל בפרך Vaya'avdu Mitzrayim es Bnei Yisrael b'farech, the Egyptians enslaved the Jewish people with backbreaking labor. It took place in three stages, writes the Rav. In the first stage, Paro demonized the nation, arguing that they constituted a potential fifth column and threatened Egypt from within. פן ירבה והיה כי תקראנה מלחמה ונוסף גם הוא על שונאינו Pen yirbeh, v'haya ki sikrena milchama, v'nosaf gam hu al soneinu. Maybe they're going to increase, they'll war, they'll join our enemies. The second step was to enlist them into a sort of national service to build storage cities. They could prove their loyalty to Egypt. This phase evolved into servitude so abject that women were forced to submit to the hard labor normally relegated to men, while men were relegated to work that involved the fine manual dexterity typically performed by women. This role reversal resulted in profound demoralization, the work so ill suited to the slaves that there was no sense of accomplishment. So there was this three-pronged approach of Paro to demoralize the people, which is exactly how his strategy worked. He so overworked us, so burdened us, and made us so busy that we forfeited the ability to even dream of a better future, of a brighter future. Paro's strategy was brilliant. The Slonimer Rebbe develops, he spoke about it yesterday, you can listen online. The Slonimer Rebbe develops that גלות galus is הסתלקות הדעת histalkus hadaas. Exile is the inability to think. True exile is when you're in a state of despair, when your life is so noisy and busy and confusing, fractured and fragmented and divided. Basically a description of our reality. We have the greatest proliferation of technology, progress, the gifts that it affords us, which we welcome and which are wonderful, and which I too benefit from and enjoy. But if we're not mindful of how we use them, they take over our lives. And then instead of giving us freedom, they enslave us. We're enslaved and attached and connected to that technology, but we also have that background noise, and we live in a world that measures success by busyness. However busy you are is how impressive you are. How you doing? I'm busy. Crazy busy. Psycho busy. Insanely busy. As if we're trying to impress other people by our busyness. But we have busyness, we have no ישוב הדעת yishuv hadaas. ישוב הדעת Yishuv hadaas is גאולה geula, is redemption, is freedom. מנוחת הנפש Menuchas hanefesh, peace, serenity, the capacity to think, to be, to live mindfully, that's גאולה geula, that's redemption. Lack of דעת daas, that's גלות galus. So Paro knew, how do I truly, how do I ruthlessly oppress and persecute this people? By making them busier and busier and busier. More and more and more work. No space, no margin, no time off, no ability to think or be or interact. The busier I make them, the more enslaved they are, the less they can dream, the less that they can take their own destiny into their own hands. And that's exactly his methodology, is that he makes them busier and busier. The Slonimer Rebbe, ויקם מלך חדש vayakom melech chadash, says the מלך חדש melech chadash is the יצר הרע yeitzer hara. זה לעומת זה ברא אלקים Zeh l'umas zeh bara Elokim. Hakadosh Baruch Hu created everything equal. So the moment that our יצר הטוב yeitzer hatov was increasing, what happens? The Jewish people are growing. פן ירבה פן ירבה ורב ועצום Pen yirbeh pen yirbeh v'rav v'atzum. We were growing, the יצר הטוב yeitzer hatov, our positive bright light, our good influence was growing. So to offset that the יצר הרע yeitzer hara. And how do we defeat that יצר הרע yeitzer hara? By not allowing it to make us believe we're so busy, by quieting the noise and carving out space and finding an ability to live with serenity and with a sense of mindfulness. So Paro's strategy is busy, busy, busy, busy. We have, the Torah then tells us the story of of Miriam and Yocheved, Shifra and Puah, and how they are saving these Jewish children, even though they're supposed to be, they're supposed to be killing them. All of that was part of Paro's plan to show the Jewish people are so lack such integrity themselves. They don't even sympathize one for another. These two Jewish midwives are the ones killing their own brothers and sisters, killing their own children. It's Paro's effort, strategic effort to demoralize the Jewish people. Then we have Moshe Rabbeinu. וילך איש מבית לוי ויקח את בת לוי Vayeilech ish mibeis Levi vayikach es bas Levi. We have the story of the birth of Moshe Rabbeinu, which begins generically. It doesn't tell us his parents' names. The Torah obscures it by saying an איש מבית לוי ish mibeis Levi, a בת לוי bas Levi. Why don't their names deserve to be mentioned? Why don't the names deserve to be mentioned here? It's a good question we're not going to get into it because we're going to try to actually get to the pesukim this week. So what happens? They can't possibly risk Moshe's life. We all know, they make this Moshe's basket, put him in the basket, he's floating. Paro's daughter sees a bright light, sees that there's something amazing. Miriam is watching. The lad, he's crying. This is something amazing. Who's crying? Torah tells us, ותפתח ותראהו את הילד והנה נער בוכה Vatiftach vatir'eihu es hayeled v'hinei naar bocheh. So the Bas Paro, Bisyah, not Basya, Bisyah, Bas Paro is going for a swim and she notices this basket, she looks inside and she's struck, awestruck. And she opens it and ותראהו את הילד והנה נער בוכה vatir'eihu es hayeled v'hinei naar bocheh. She sees a נער naar is crying. Who's crying? Who's crying? So Rashi says, Rashi says Moshe's crying. Now, one second, it describes the Torah that the one who's crying is a נער naar. והנה נער בוכה v'hinei naar bocheh. A נער naar is not a baby. It doesn't say והנה תינוק בוכה v'hinei tinok bocheh. It says והנה נער בוכה v'hinei naar bocheh. So Rashi says who's the נער naar? קולו כנער Kolo k'naar. It's Moshe Rabbeinu, he's a baby, but Moshe is very mature, Moshe is very developed, and his voice sounds like a child, sounds already like an adolescent, sounds like a נער naar, not simply like a baby. But the בעל הטורים Baal Haturim has an amazing פשט pshat. It says the בעל הטורים Baal Haturim, והנה נער בוכה v'hinei naar bocheh is not talking about Moshe that he had some mature developed voice, but והנה נער בוכה v'hinei naar bocheh writes the בעל הטורים Baal Haturim, אהרן שהניחתו אצל התיבה, נער בוכה בגימטריא זה אהרן הכהן Aharon she'hinichso eitzel ha'teiva, naar bocheh b'gematria zeh Aharon Hakohen. You know who the נער בוכה naar bocheh is? It's Aharon. When Aharon with his sister put their brother in the basket, you think he put Moshe in a basket, sent them floating down the river, and then went back home, opened his Gemara or played another game of Fortnite, or sat down to have a meal, drink a beer? You think Aharon just went back to business, life as usual? חלילה Chalila. והנה נער בוכה V'hinei naar bocheh. True, he had no choice but to put Moshe in the basket to try to save him, but עמו אנכי בצרה imo anochi b'tzara, he stood by his side and he watched what would be. And the voice of that cry came not from that baby Moshe, והנה נער בוכה v'hinei naar bocheh is Aharon who's watching what will be and what is the destiny of his brother, of his child. And that's the other theme of פרשת שמות Parshas Shmos, replete throughout Shmos. We're not going to have enough time to fully develop it right now. But why does Hashem choose Moshe? Because this is the quality that Hashem cares about most in a leader. The Alter of Kelm has a whole essay, I study it with you another time because it's incredible, where he shows all these periods of Moshe's life that when Hashem comes time to say, who is going to be my quintessential leader? Who is going to be the one who is the redeemer of the Jewish people, not only in that period, but one of the Rambam's 13 principles of faith is that Moshe is categorically different. He's the אב הנביאים av ha'nevi'im. Why is Moshe the אב הנביאים av ha'nevi'im? What is it about Moshe that makes him distinguished to be that leader? Because he was smarter than anyone else? Better looking, more charismatic, more powerful? Greater athlete, greater artist? Certainly wasn't a greater orator. So why is Moshe chosen? What makes Moshe better? And the Alter of Kelm shows through the מדרשים midrashim, what makes Moshe chosen is עמו אנכי בצרה imo anochi b'tzara, his capacity for empathy. The fact that he doesn't live in his own bubble, he's not isolated in his own world, he's not self-centered. He sees people around him, he sees pain around him, and he cares about other people. Everyone else walks by this burning bush, but Moshe Rabbeinu sees it. And later he steps out of the palace. It's an amazing pasuk. It says, it says, ויגדל, where's the pasuk? It's too high. ויהי בימים ההם ויגדל משה ויצא אל אחיו Vayehi bayamim hahem vayigdal Moshe vayeitzei el echav. In those days, Moshe grew up and he went out to his brothers. So the commentary say, what is ויגדל משה vayigdal Moshe? How do you know he grew up? Because what does it mean as a Jew to grow up? It's to ויצא אל אחיו vayeitzei el echav. To be a grownup is to go out to your brothers. A child only cares about themselves. They want the first portion, they want the best seat. They want their happiness. A child, an immature, petty child is self-centered. What does it mean to ויגדל vayigdal? What does it mean to grow up? ויצא אל אחיו Vayeitzei el echav. To go out to your brothers. To look and to see and to care about what's happening outside yourself and outside your world. That's what it means to be a גדול gadol. We have a lot of people who in age are גדולים gedolim but in attitude are קטנים katanim. People 40s, 50s, 60s, 80-year-olds who are still קטנים katanim, they're still minors because they've never ויצא אל אחיו vayeitzei el echav. They're still trying to grab the best seat and the first portion and they're trying to care only about themselves. And you could have children who are incredibly empathic and sensitive and kind, and they're mature because ויצא אל אחיו vayeitzei el echav even at a young age, ויגדל vayigdal, they're already showing they're grownups. These attributes are not chronology, they're not an age. Age is just a number. And some of my children who remind me of that time, age is just a number, but maturity, being a קטן katan or גדול gadol is all about caring, ויצא אל אחיו vayeitzei el echav. The Lubavitcher Rebbe zatzal says similarly, you know, where do we learn that a בר מצוה Bar Mitzvah is a 13 years old? Anyone know from what pasuk do we learn that you become Bar Mitzvah at 13? The Gemara associates it with fertility, the capacity to parent a child, 12 for a girl, 13 for a boy. The Midrash identifies, associates it with a pasuk. Which pasuk? When Dina is taken hostage and her brothers, Levi and Shimon, go and fight for her release, and they stand up and they confront Shechem in order to get Dina back, the Midrash says how old were they when that happened? Says they were 13 years old. Precocious young men, certainly at 13 years old, but at 13 years old they stood up. And the Lubavitcher Rebbe says on that, you see that what it means to be a גדול gadol, what it means to be a בר מצוה Bar Mitzvah, what it means to be counted among your people. is when you go and you redeem your sister when she's taken captive. It's the same exact פשט pshat over here. ויגדל משה ויצא אל אחיו Vayigdal Moshe vayetze el echav. What does it mean to be a גדול gadol? What it means to be a גדול gadol is to care about other people. A קטן katan only cares about themselves. How do you know משה ויגדל Moshe vayigdal, how do you know משה Moshe was a גדול gadol? Because ויצא אל אחיו vayetze el echav. He saw. And what happens? וירא בסבלותם Vayar b'sivlosam. He goes outside and he sees their suffering. וירא איש מצרי מכה איש עברי מאחיו Vayar ish Mitzri makeh ish Ivri me'echav, and he sees an Egyptian smiting... the only context I know whatever uses that word, smiting. But he sees an Egyptian smiting a Jew, an עברי Ivri, a Hebrew, מעבר me'eiver. ויפן כה וכה Vayifen koh vachoh, he looks both ways and so on, we know the story. וירא בסבלותם Vayar b'sivlosam. He leaves the palace. Now he could have looked away. He could have looked away. You know who looks away? We have an example of someone who looks away. You know who looks away? הגר Hagar. When אברהם Avraham kicks הגר Hagar and ישמעאל Yishmael out of his home because שרה Sarah tells him to and הקדוש ברוך הוא Hakadosh Baruch Hu פוסקן's paskens that we have to listen to the pinnacle of creation. כל אשר תאמר אליך שרה שמע בקולה Kol asher tomar eilecha Sarah shma b'kolah. So, that's the curse that we continue to suffer from until today. So, so שרה Sarah tells אברהם Avraham to expel הגר Hagar and ישמעאל Yishmael from the home and he does. And ישמעאל Yishmael is is suffering. So what happens? What does הגר Hagar do? ותלך ותשב לה מנגד הרחק כמטחוי קשת כי אמרה אל אראה במות הילד Vateilech vateishev lah mineged harchaik kimtachvei keshes, ki amra al er'eh b'mos hayeled. She positions herself away from ישמעאל Yishmael and with her back to him. Why? She says, כי אמרה אל אראה במות הילד ki amra al er'eh b'mos hayeled, I can't bear to watch the death of my son. I can't bear to see. I can't bear to watch. Can't bear to watch? Someone who's loving and empathic and caring, a mother can't bear to look away. Can't stop. הגר Hagar looks away. אהרן Aharon, הדאגה בקרב איש ישחנה hadaga b'kerev ish yashchena, can't walk away. He stands in the bank of the river, and he won't leave משה's Moshe's side until he sees what happens with משה Moshe. הגר Hagar looks away, אהרן Aharon can't look away.משה Moshe could have stayed in the palace. He had everything. Royalty. But he can't bear to not look. ויצא אל אחיו Vayeitzei el achav, he goes out to his brothers, וירא בסבלותם vayar b'sivlosam, he can't bear to not look. That's משה Moshe. So later, it says וירא ה' כי סר לראות ויקרא אליו אלקים מתוך הסנה Vayar Hashem ki sar liros vayikra eilav Elokim mitoch hasneh. At the סנה sneh, you have this fire that's burning but not consuming fuel. And השם Hashem calls out to משה Moshe from the סנה sneh. וירא ה' כי סר לראות Vayar Hashem ki sar liros. So the simple understanding of the פסוק pasuk is, why does God call משה Moshe from the סנה sneh? Simple understanding is, וירא ה' כי סר לראות vayar Hashem ki sar liros. Because everyone else is walking right by. There's this amazing phenomenon taking place. This supernatural phenomenon. Normally there's a fire and the fuel is being consumed. Here, there's a סנה sneh, a fire, and the fuel's not being consumed. And everyone else is so busy texting and reading and looking and listening, they don't even look up, they miss it. We are missing miracles all around us because we're so busy looking down. Looking down at the phone. Texting and beeping and buzzing and vibrating, social media and liking and following. We're so busy looking down, we fail to see anything going on. Simple פשט pshat is that השם Hashem saw, וירא ה' כי סר לראות vayar Hashem ki sar liros, that משה Moshe wasn't, he's the one person walking down the street. You ever stand on the street, go to Manhattan? Stand and just just watch the people. On the street in Manhattan. It's unbelievable. It's unbelievable. You're the only one, because everyone else is looking down, everyone else is miserable and running and racing and chasing and... slow, calm, no מנוחת הנפש menuchas hanefesh. Everyone else is enslaved. And if you can have מנוחת הנפש menuchas hanefesh, you're the only one who's free. Everyone else is is connected to their leash, called headphones. We now have Bluetooth leashes, but they're still leashes. And you can be free of the noise and of the connectivity and so on. So וירא ה' כי סר לראות vayar Hashem ki sar liros, the simple understanding is everyone else walked by, and משה Moshe stopped to look. So when השם Hashem saw, וירא ה' vayar Hashem, when השם Hashem saw, כי סר לראות ki sar liros, that משה Moshe stopped to look, he said, ah, this is my man. He's living in the present, he's mindful, he's my man. That's a simple understanding. But the מדרש Midrash has a different understanding. Listen to this מדרש Midrash, it's in במדבר רבה Bamidbar Rabbah. ויהי בימים ההם ויגדל משה Vayehi bayamim hahem vayigdal Moshe. The מדרש Midrash says, בן עשרים שנה היה משה ben esrim shana haya Moshe, משה Moshe was 20 years old then. ויש אומרים בן ארבעים V'yesh omrim ben arbaim, some say he was 40. So ויגדל משה vayigdal Moshe, וכי אין הכל גדול v'chi ein hakol gadol... what do you mean? If he was 20 or 40, either way, he's not 13. He's not a little בר מצוה Bar Mitzvah יונגל yungele, so what's, what do you mean ויגדל vayigdal, he grew up now? So the מדרש Midrash says no, the ויגדל vayigdal is ויצא אל אחיו vayeitzei el achav. The fact that he went out is the definition of what it means to be a גדול gadol. And that says the מדרש Midrash, listen to this, this is a גישמאק geshmak מדרש Midrash. That says the מדרש Midrash is, וירא ה' כי סר לראות vayar Hashem ki sar liros, ראה הקדוש ברוך הוא משה שסר מעסקיו לראות בסבלותם Ra'ah Hakadosh Baruch Hu Moshe she'sar me'asakav liros b'sivlosam. וירא ה' כי סר לראות Vayar Hashem ki sar liros, השם Hashem saw כי סר לראות ki sar liros that משה Moshe went to see, not the bush, but כי סר לראות ki sar liros, לראות בסבלותם liros b'sivlosam. That the fact that משה Moshe left the palace and couldn't bear to peel his eyes away from seeing the suffering of his brothers and sisters because he felt so connected to it. וירא ה' כי סר לראות Vayar Hashem ki sar liros, לראות בסבלותם liros b'sivlosam. So why is משה Moshe tapped? Why is he tasked with being the leader of the Jewish people? Why? Because he has this capacity for empathy. He cares. Yes, he's brilliant. And yes, there's a charisma even if he's not an orator. And yes, משה Moshe has the מדות middos and the humility. He's got all the other incredible qualities, the incredible מדות טובות middos tovos. But the reason he's tapped says the אלתר פון קעלם Alter of Kelm is, כי סר לראות לראות בסבלותם ki sar liros liros b'sivlosam. This is משה Moshe. The אלתר פון קעלם Alter of Kelm quotes the מדרש Midrash with the sheep. He's a he's a shepherd, one of his sheep in מדין Midyan runs off, and he finds the sheep, and he sees the sheep had run off because it was desperate for some water, it's drinking at a river. The מדרש Midrash describes how משה Moshe puts the little sheep all over on his shoulders and carries it and cares for it and nurtures it. And השם Hashem says, wow, this brilliant man shows such love for a sheep, this is my man. This is my man. Why? Because this is השם's Hashem's מדה middah.Says רש\"י Rashi, מתוך הסנה mitoch hasneh. Why does השם Hashem speak to משה Moshe from a thornbush? מתוך הסנה Mitoch hasneh, a lowly thornbush. The thornbush is the lowliest of the vegetative world. Why a thornbush? Why not roses? have thorns, but roses, violets? What if some name some fancy flowers. Bougainvilleas, is that what they're called? Why not some fancy, beautiful flower? Why סנה sneh? Says רש\"י Rashi, לא אילן אחר lo ilan acher, not from a mango tree? Why did השם Hashem speak from a... speak to משה רבנו Moshe Rabbeinu, recruit him from a mango tree? Who doesn't love a delicious mango? No. משום עמו אנכי בצרה mishum imo anochi b'tzarah. Because השם Hashem was showing, was displaying, עמו אנכי בצרה imo anochi b'tzarah. This is הקדוש ברוך הוא's Hakadosh Baruch Hu's quality. עמו אנכי בצרה Imo anochi b'tzarah, the Jewish people are suffering, I'm right by their side, I'm with them. And משה Moshe had that same quality, that's what השם Hashem saw that made him recruit. And it's not a coincidence that one of the 48 ways that the תורה Torah is acquired is, is being עמו אנכי בצרה imo anochi b'tzarah, is being נושא בעול עם חברו nosei b'ol im chavero. Our capacity for empathy, caring about people around us is the display, is the sign of maturity, of being a גדול gadol. It's why משה Moshe is recruited. And I'm I'm telling you this whole thing because you're going to see, we're going to now delve into our פסוקים psukim, but it's going to explain an anomaly or question we have in our פסוקים psukim. Alright, so we basically went through the rest of the summary. משה Moshe is a shepherd, he has to run to מדין Midyan, he comes back, he's a shepherd. הקדוש ברוך הוא Hakadosh Baruch Hu recruits him from the bush. He sends him, he says, how do I know? There's the part we're going to look at, he asks for השם's Hashem's name, the request from the Egyptians, he doubts the people's faith. השם Hashem responds, he heads down to מצרים Mitzrayim. צפורה Tzipporah gives a ברית bris to the kids. Can a woman be a מוהל mohel? Separate discussion. משה Moshe and אהרן Aharon come to פרעה Paroh, they demand let my people go. פרעה Paroh just increases the burden, the people said, you see, we knew you were going to make things worse, not better. And that's how we end off our פרשה parsha. Okay, let's see where we left off. I checked. Last year, פרק ג' פסוק ט Perek Gimel Pasuk Tes. Chapter three, verse nine is where we last left off last year. פרק ג' פסוק ט Perek Gimel Pasuk Tes. But I'm sure you all remembered that. We are on page 302 in the ArtScroll חומש Chumash, page 302. I got so many things going on over here.Okay, so let's start. ועתה הנה צעקת בני ישראל באה אלי וגם ראיתי את הלחץ אשר מצרים לחצים אתם V'ata hinei tza'akas Bnei Yisrael ba'ah eilai v'gam ra'isi es halachatz asher Mitzrayim lochatzim osam. So what's happening here? Where are we in this section? השם Hashem is recruiting משה Moshe to be this leader. And he tells him the time has come. I'm ready to redeem this people. ועתה V'ata, and now, צעקת בני ישראל באה אלי tza'akas Bnei Yisrael ba'ah eilai. The cries of the Jewish people are coming to me. וגם ראיתי את הלחץ V'gam ra'isi es halachatz. I see the לחץ lachatz. What is that לחץ lachatz? I see the לחץ lachatz. What does the word לחץ lachatz mean? I see the pressure, I see the squeeze that they're under. So what is this squeeze? What is this לחץ lachatz? What is the לחץ lachatz that they're suffering from?The ספורנו Sforno says, what is this לחץ lachatz? ועתה ויוצא כולו אמת וזה טעם ועתה בכל מקום V'ata v'yotzei kulo emes v'zeh ta'am v'ata b'chol makom. Anytime it says ועתה v'ata, it's all אמת emes, it's true. This is exactly what happened. ועתה V'ata, and now, וביותר אמת שידעתי את מכאוביהם ונגיע ללבבם u'v'yoser emes sheyada'ati es mach'oveihem v'negi'a l'levavam. I feel their pain השם Hashem says. I can't withstand their cries anymore. I can't be unresponsive to their cries. צעקת בני ישראל באה אלי Tza'akas Bnei Yisrael ba'ah eilai, שקבלתי תפילתם shekibalti tefilosam, I've accepted their prayers. מאחר שקראוני באמת לא על דרך ויפתו בפהם me'achar shekera'uni b'emes lo al derech v'yiftu b'fihem. They've called out to me באמת b'emes. Since they've cried out to me באמת b'emes, I can't help but answer. קרוב ה' לכל קוראיו לכל אשר יקראוהו באמת Karov Hashem l'chol korav, l'chol asher yikra'uhu v'emes. Their prayers are so sincere, they're so genuine, they're so authentic, השם Hashem says, even though I had planned for there to be slaved and to be slaves for how long? 400 years, but השם Hashem says, I can't I can't bear, I can't listen anymore. So השם Hashem shortens it because of צעקה tza'akah. See from here a very powerful and very important lesson that we have the capacity to influence our destiny and even overcome what השם Hashem had planned through sincere and authentic תפילה tefillah. וגם ראיתי את הלחץ V'gam ra'isi es halachatz says the ספורנו Sforno, מצד רוב הלחץ, רואה לאונש הלוחצים mitzsad rov halachatz, ra'uy l'onesh halochatzim, כי אני קצף גדול אני קצף על הגוים השאננים אשר אני קצפתי מעט והמה עזרו לרעה ki ani katzav gadol ani katzav al hagoyim hasha'ananim asher ani katzafti me'at v'hema azru l'ra'ah. Says the ספורנו Sforno, what's the לחץ lachatz? לחץ Lachatz means that the Egyptians were excessive in the persecution and oppression. השם Hashem wanted the Jewish people to go through trial by fire, the כור הברזל kur habarzel. We would only come out and emerge a people. Would we have the resolve, the resiliency, the tenacity to have survived through the millennia that we have if we weren't first forged and formed with tough skin and a strong backbone and those qualities in מצרים Mitzrayim? השם Hashem, and if you have a metal, you want to refine the metal and burn out the impurities in the metal, you throw it in the fire. So השם Hashem wanted to forge a hard and strong metal of the Jewish people, prove our mettle. So where did he do it? In the כור הברזל kur habarzel in מצרים Mitzrayim. He needed to go through that experience. First of all, the contrast of the Egyptian culture to the ideals and values of the culture השם Hashem wants for us. So he put us through that fiery furnace. But the Egyptians turned the temperature up a little too high. That's the לחץ lachatz. They got too much of a גישמאק geshmak out of turning the temperature up a little high. So, that we were supposed to go through persecution, that was from above, that's from השם Hashem. That degree, that excessive persecution, that לחץ lachatz says the ספורנו Sforno, so השם Hashem says, you know what? They've accelerated the process. You were supposed to slow cook at this temperature for a longer time, but the Egyptian turned the oven up, so I'm taking you out of the oven faster. Because you're fully cooked. You're fully cooked, and they need to be punished for turning up the temperature. Nobody touches my oven, says השם Hashem. So they need to be punished for that לחץ lachatz. I heard your cries and the ספורנו Sforno interprets the לחץ lachatz for the לחץ lachatz, they need to be, they need to be punished.ועתה לכה ואשלחך אל פרעה והוצא את עמי בני ישראל ממצרים V'ata lecha v'eshlachacha el Paroh v'hotzei es ami Bnei Yisrael miMitzrayim. So השם Hashem says, here's the deal. It's time to take them out. You know who's going to be the one to take them out? You. You. The אור החיים Ohr Hachaim here writes by the way on באה אלי ba'ah eilai that we have different forms of תפילה tefillah. Some of our תפילה tefillah gets upstairs, makes it close, doesn't quite get there. But the צעקה tza'akah, he says I heard צעקת בני ישראל באה אלי tza'akas Bnei Yisrael ba'ah eilai. The most authentic, sincere, genuine, heartfelt prayers, they take the express train. They've got high speed. They go all the way right up to the כסא הכבוד Kisei Hakavod. The more sincere, the more authentic, the more genuine, the more it's real, not just lip service and not just racing through the words, the more we understand what we're saying, we feel what we're saying, and we mean what we're saying, and we rely on what we're saying, the more efficacious, the more productive it is. באה אלי Ba'ah eilai. It'll get to the destination. You know, there's different ways of sending mail. Second class, first class, bulk mail, and and how you what you invest in the mail determines when it arrives. Right? Are you a member of Prime? Did you pay for the overnight delivery? The what you pay determines the speed in which it's delivered. So what we invest in our תפילה tefillah determines the speed in which that תפילה tefillah is delivered to הקדוש ברוך הוא Hakadosh Baruch Hu. If you want it to be באה אלי ba'ah eilai to reach the כסא הכבוד Kisei Hakavod, it's got to be צעקת בני ישראל tza'akas Bnei Yisrael. It's got to come from a very deep and very heartfelt place. So השם Hashem says, taking them out of the oven faster. And who's going to be the one? Put on your oven mitts, משה Moshe, because you're going down to פרעה Paroh, to מצרים Mitzrayim. ועתה לכה ואשלחך אל פרעה והוצא את עמי בני ישראל ממצרים V'ata lecha v'eshlachacha el Paroh v'hotzei es ami Bnei Yisrael miMitzrayim. And now I'm sending you to פרעה Paroh and you are going to take the people out.Now משה רבנו Moshe Rabbeinu reacts and he says, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. ויאמר משה אל האלקים, מי אנכי כי אלך אל פרעה וכי אוציא את בני ישראל ממצרים Vayomer Moshe el ha'Elokim, mi anochi ki eilech el Paroh v'chi otzi es Bnei Yisrael miMitzrayim? Who am I? Who am I to go to פרעה Paroh and am I the one to take בני ישראל Bnei Yisrael out of מצרים Mitzrayim? Now we need three hours to go through this פסוק pasuk. And we don't have it, we've got nine minutes. So we're going to try to do this in a little bit of an accelerated way. But is משה רבנו Moshe Rabbeinu asking one question or two? It seems like he's asking two questions. מי אנכי כי אלך אל פרעה Mi anochi ki eilech el Paroh? Who am I? Who am I to go to פרעה Paroh? Please, what am I? Who am I? And secondly, וכי אוציא את בני ישראל v'chi otzi es Bnei Yisrael, do I have the ability to take the Jewish people out? Can I redeem the people? ויאמר Vayomer, so השם Hashem answers. And what's השם's Hashem's answer? No, relax. כי אהיה עמך Ki eheyeh imach. I'll be with you. You're not going alone. Relax, I'm not sending you by yourself. וזה לך האות כי אנכי שלחתיך V'zeh lecha ha'os ki anochi shlachticha. And how will you know that I am the one who sent you? The sign, the evidence that I'm the one who sent you, בהוציאך את העם ממצרים תעבדון את האלקים על ההר הזה b'hotziacha es ha'am miMitzrayim ta'avdun es ha'Elokim al hahar hazeh. That when you leave, you will come back and serve me, God, on this mountain. Which mountain? הר סיני Har Sinai. So משה Moshe demurs, he hesitates, he says, whoa, whoa, whoa, who am I? I'm nothing, I can't, I don't speak well... And secondly, even if I was willing to take on this assignment, how can I complete it? How can I take the Jewish people out? And God says, well, relax. I'm going with you, A, and B, the sign, when I take you out, you'll... this is a very backward sign. The sign is after the fact. Normally משה Moshe says, how do I know right now? Prove it to me now, and no problem, I'll take it on. השם Hashem says, go do it, and the sign is later you're going to come, worship at the mountain. You understand the question?So is משה רבנו Moshe Rabbeinu asking one thing, is he asking two things? And how exactly does השם's Hashem's response answer what משה רבנו's Moshe Rabbeinu's question, what משה רבנו's Moshe Rabbeinu's question is? So everybody everybody weighs in on this. Everybody weighs in on this. רבי לוי יצחק מברדיצ'ב Reb Levi Yitzchak of Berdichev says, the ברדיצ'בר Berdichever has a great פשט pshat. He says משה Moshe says, מי אנכי כי אלך אל פרעה mi anochi ki eilech el Paroh. משה Moshe was saying, I'm I'm humble, I'm nothing, I'm a גורנישט gurnisht, who am I to go to פרעה Paroh? Later by the way, at מתן תורה Matan Torah, when משה Moshe is chosen to be the one who will communicate the whole תורה Torah, he doesn't resist. So why not? So רבי לוי יצחק מברדיצ'ב Reb Levi Yitzchak of Berdichev, the ברדיצ'בר Berdichever says, that what השם Hashem is saying, וזה לך האות v'zeh lecha ha'os, later you're going to stand at this mountain. What he was telling him is, what's different about this mountain than the other mountains? We know, משה קיבל תורה לא בסיני אלא מסיני Moshe kibel Torah lo b'Sinai ela mi'Sinai. משה Moshe received the תורה Torah from סיני Sinai. He didn't receive it on הר סיני Har Sinai. He received the lesson from הר סיני Har Sinai. What's the lesson from הר סיני Har Sinai? We all know this, our little children and grandchildren know this, that all the other mountains said, I've got the most friends, I've got the most followers, I've got the most money, I've got the most power, I'm the biggest mountain, choose me. And this little mountain didn't try to assert itself and didn't try to grab the spotlight. הקדוש ברוך הוא Hakadosh Baruch Hu says, you're the mountain. So the notion, the lesson of humility as a precursor, humility as a necessary prerequisite for תורה Torah, משה Moshe learned that lesson not on הר סיני Har Sinai, but from הר סיני Har Sinai. משה קיבל תורה לא בסיני אלא מסיני Moshe kibel Torah lo b'Sinai, ela mi'Sinai. Says the ברדיצ'בר Berdichever, that's what's going on here. השם Hashem says, וזה לך האות v'zeh lecha ha'os. מי Mi... who am I to go do this? If you're right. If I was looking for the one with the most friends, the one with the most followers, the one with the biggest spotlight, the one who with the most power, the one with the most notoriety and fame, you're right. Who are you? You're humble. But guess what? וזה לך האות V'zeh lecha ha'os, you know who I'm looking for? The most humble. That's how השם Hashem was answering משה Moshe. When משה Moshe says who am I, says וזה לך האות v'zeh lecha ha'os, check out this mountain. Later, you're going to accept the תורה Torah on this mountain, and you know why this mountain will be designated, not the other superior mountains? Says השם Hashem, because for me, humility is superior. Humility rules the day. השם Hashem says, for me, it's all about the humility, that's why this mountain will be chosen, and that's why you are the one who's being, that's why you are the one who's being chosen. The ספר שבט סופר Sefer Shevet Sofer, רבי שמחה בונם סופר Reb Simcha Bunim Sofer, has a different פשט pshat. משה רבנו Moshe Rabbeinu says, who am I, מי אנכי כי אלך אל פרעה mi anochi ki eilech el Paroh? And השם Hashem says, וזה לך האות כי אנכי שלחתיך v'zeh lecha ha'os ki anochi shlachticha. So רש\"י Rashi, look at רש\"י Rashi, he says, what's the וזה לך האות כי אנכי שלחתיך v'zeh lecha ha'os ki anochi shlachticha?Let's look at רש\"י Rashi, let's catch up. רש\"י Rashi says מי אנכי, מה אני חשוב לדבר עם המלכים mi anochi, ma ani chashuv l'daber im hamelachim? Who am I to go speak to royalty, aristocracy? Who am I? וכי אוציא את בני ישראל ממצרים V'chi otzi es Bnei Yisrael miMitzrayim? ואף אם חשוב אני, מה זכו ישראל שיעשה להם נס ואוציאם ממצרים v'af im chashuv ani, ma zachu Yisrael she'ya'aseh lahem nes v'otzi'am miMitzrayim? And what merit do the Jewish people deserve to be redeemed and that I should be that catalyst of the redemption? And השם Hashem says, ויאמר כי אהיה עמך vayomer ki eheyeh imach. השיבו על ראשון ראשון ועל אחרון אחרון Heshivo al rishon rishon v'al acharon acharon. שאמרת מי אנכי כי אלך אל פרעה She'amarta mi anochi ki eilech el Paroh says רש\"י Rashi, you משה Moshe hesitated because you said, who am I to go to פרעה Paroh? לא שלך היא כי אם משלי Lo shelcha hi ki im misheli. You're not going to represent yourself, you are my ambassador and my agent. כי אהיה עמך Ki eheyeh imach, I'm going to be with you. וזה המראה שראית בסנה, לך האות כי אנכי שלחתיך, וכדאי אני להציל v'zeh hamar'eh she'raisa basneh, lecha ha'os ki anochi shlachticha, u'chdai ani l'hatzil. And that's what you saw when you looked into the burning bush. The sign is that I've sent you. כשם שראית את הסנה עושה שליחותי ואיננו אוכל, כך תלך בשליחותי ואינך ניזוק K'shem she'raisa es hasneh oseh shlichusi v'einenu uchal, kach teilech b'shlichusi v'eincha nizok. Just like you saw that this bush was an aberration, is a deviation from the norm, this bush is on fire but it's not being consumed, it's doing what I sent it to do. And you saw that the bush took its mission, its charge and did what it's supposed to do, so too, I'm sending you. You're right, if you were going on your own, then who says you'll be successful in your mission? But you're not going on your own, you're my agent, you're my ambassador, I'm sending you. And just like the bush succeeded in doing its mission, because you're doing my mission, my bidding, you will be successful, says רש\"י Rashi. וששאלת מה זכות יש לישראל שייצאו ממצרים U'shesha'alta ma z'chus yesh l'Yisrael she'yeitzu miMitzrayim, דבר גדול יש לי על הוצאה זו, שהרי עתידים לקבל את התורה על ההר הזה davar gadol yesh li al hotza'ah zu, sheharei atidim l'kabel es haTorah al hahar hazeh. They're going to receive the תורה Torah on this mountain. You're right. To take them out to be some other secular political entity, to take them out to be a nation like every other, ah, let them rot. But I have a reason to take them out. The whole purpose in taking them out is to make it back here to this mountain and give them their תורה Torah and let them be a microcosm for the world to see, let them be role models for the world of how to live. לשלושה חדשים שיצאו ממצרים L'shlosha chodashim she'yeitzu miMitzrayim, three months later they're going to be here. וזה לך האות, ועל דבר זה שאני מבטיחך v'zeh lecha ha'os, v'al davar zeh she'ani mavtichacha. And this is the sign, I'm making a promise. שבהוציאך אותם ממצרים תעבדון אותי על ההר הזה, שכדאי קבלת התורה ליוצא sheb'hotziacha osam miMitzrayim ta'avdun osi al hahar hazeh, shek'dai kabbalas haTorah l'yotzei, that when I take them out they're going to come and they're going to worship. So משה Moshe says, who am I? השם Hashem says, you're right, you are a גורנישט gurnisht, you're a nobody. Don't think you're all that because I'm asking you to go, I'm asking you to go to represent me. You're my agent, you're my lawyer, you've got power of attorney from me, you're my spokesman. And why are the Jewish people going to be redeemed? You're right. In the present, they don't deserve to be redeemed. But they're going to be redeemed because of the bright future that I have in store for them. They're going to receive the תורה Torah and they have a mission to carry out. They're not just some secular political, some other nation. They have a unique mission to fulfill and that's why I'm taking them out now. So says רבי שמחה בונם סופר Reb Simcha Bunim Sofer, he says, when רש\"י Rashi says that it's talking about the the bush, he says, מה זה תשובה לשאלה שלו, באיזה זכות נבחר ma zeh tshuva l'she'ela shelo, b'eizeh z'chus nivchar? What, how is... he asked in what merit should the people be redeemed and השם Hashem says, let's go look at the bush. So we understood go look at the bush, the bush fulfilled its mission, you should fulfill your mission. So says רבי שמחה בונם Reb Simcha Bunim, but רש\"י Rashi, כי עיקר זכות משה שהיה משתתף בצערם של ישראל ki ikar zchus Moshe she'haya mishtatef b'tza'aram shel Yisrael. ואף שנתגדל בבית פרעה והיה לו כל טוב וכלום חסר בבית המלך, בכל זאת עינו ולבו על צרת אחיו ונתן חלק בצרם v'af shenisgadal b'veis Paroh v'haya lo kol tuv v'chlum chaser b'veis hamelech, b'chol zos eino v'libo al tzaras achiv v'nasan chelek b'tza'aram. What השם Hashem was telling him is, like the bush, the bush represents עמו אנכי בצרה imo anochi b'tzara. Remember we said? Why not the mango tree? Why not the בוגנוויליה bougainvillea, is that how you pronounce it? Why not some fancy flower? Why not some fancy flower? השם Hashem should speak to him from a magnificent חופה chuppah covered in flowers. Oh, that should draw משה's Moshe's attention. From a lowly thornbush, why? עמו אנכי בצרה Imo anochi b'tzara. השם Hashem says, that עמו אנכי בצרה imo anochi b'tzara that caught your eye. And it caught your eye because you too practice עמו אנכי בצרה imo anochi b'tzara. וירא בסבלותם Vayar b'sivlosam. And that's why. It's in that merit that you have been designated, that you are the one. You are משתתף mishtatef with me. Just like I care about their pain, you care about their pain, and that's why you're the man. So that's who you are. When משה Moshe says, who am I to go? You know who you are? You're the one who noticed the bush. The bush was the עמו אנכי בצרה imo anochi b'tzara, the symbol of עמו אנכי בצרה imo anochi b'tzara. The bush is the symbol of נושא בעול עם חברו nosei b'ol im chavero. Since that's your character, it's who you are, is you noticed it when everyone else walked by, that's why you are the one who are going is going to be my ambassador and you're the one who's going to take them out. I'll end with רבי סולובייצ'יק's Rabbi Soloveitchik's interpretation, even though I had a hundred more things to tell you. But רבי מוסקוביץ Rabbi Moskowitz is giving his great class next and I don't want to go too far into his time. רבי סולובייצ'יק Rabbi Soloveitchik says the following. The master of the universe appears to משה Moshe, the seemingly very simple shepherd, tending to his flock, and he says, I've heard the cries, take you out. אשלחך Eshlachacha, I'll send you as my שליח shliach. Listen to what the רב Rav says. Reflect for a moment on the paradoxical implications of this nondescript phrase. The creator of worlds, the master of the universe, the infinite, appoints flesh and blood, temporal man who is today alive but tomorrow in the grave, as his agent, his שליח shliach. How can weak, finite man possibly act as the agent of the infinite creator of worlds? Although there's no sound resolution to this question, the imperative for man to accept the assignment remains. The רב Rav is confounded. I understand if I ask you to do something, you can represent me. Because I'm mortal, you're mortal, I'm finite, you're finite, I'm imperfect, you're imperfect. You represent me. How can any of us be the representative of השם Hashem? The גמרא Gemara in numerous places tells us, שליח של אדם כמותו shliach shel adam k'moso, that an agent is likened to, has the status of the sender. So the רב Rav says, since man, the agent was created בצלם אלקים b'tzelem Elokim, like the sender, he's compelled to accept the assignment despite his feeble capabilities and temporal nature. Such a גישמאק geshmak insight. When השם Hashem is answering משה Moshe is, you're right. If you human being were independent and created having nothing to do with me, who would you be, who would be you to be my agent? But because you're created in my image and there's a צלם אלקים tzelem Elokim... this comes full circle to how we began the שיעור shiur with רב צדוק הכהן מלובלין Rav Tzadok Hakohen of Lublin. רבה אמונתך Rabbah emunasecha. Because I'm in you. If you believe in me, you have to believe in yourself. You can be my שליח shliach, why? Because така, שליח של אדם כמותו shliach shel adam k'moso. Because you are like me. You have a צלם אלקים tzelem Elokim in you. We have to believe in ourselves and believe that we have a mission and believe that we have a plan and we believe that we can that we can make that difference, that we are שליח shliach of השם Hashem. Every one of us has our own שליחות shlichus. Every one of us has been tapped for our unique mission. משה Moshe hesitates and resists his mission. And השם Hashem says, ועתה לכה ואשלחך v'ata lecha v'eshlachacha, go and be my agent. And he says the exact same thing to us. רבה אמונתך Rabbah emunasecha. If you woke up today, it's because השם Hashem tapped you on the shoulder and said, go be my agent. You might be retired from your profession, but you're not retired from your agency, from your mission, from what השם Hashem has in store for us to accomplish and whatever way he wants it us to accomplish it. What is our calling? How can we be his agents? How can we improve and repair his world? And when we do, השם Hashem says, relax, I'm going with you. I will be with you all along the way, and that's פרשת בא Parshas Bo. בא אל פרעה Bo el Paroh. השם Hashem doesn't say go to פרעה Paroh, he says, בא bo, come to פרעה Paroh, because all throughout this mission of משה Moshe, השם Hashem is right there by his side. And בעזרת השם b'ezras Hashem we'll pick up from here next year. Don't forget, tonight...
