[16]
(Exod. 9:13–14:) THEN THE LORD SAID UNTO MOSES: GO EARLY IN THE MORNING TO PRESENT YOURSELF BEFORE PHARAOH; <AND SAY UNTO HIM: THUS SAYS THE LORD,>… < LET MY PEOPLE GO TO WORSHIP ME.> FOR THIS TIME <I WILL SEND ALL MY PLAGUES UPON YOUR HEART>….
1 This text is related (to Ps. 9:21 [20]):
PUT MORAH INTO THEM, O LORD; <LET THE NATIONS KNOW THAT THEY ARE ONLY HUMAN. SELAH>. Turn their faces red. What is the meaning of
MORAH? He caused the spirit of folly to enter them.
2 Another interpretation (of Ps. 9:21 [20]):
PUT MORAH INTO THEM, O LORD. Because they are acquiring lordship (
mariyyut) for themselves, make known to them that you are Lord (
Adon) over all of them.
PUT MORAH INTO THEM, O LORD; LET THE NATIONS KNOW THAT THEY ARE ONLY HUMAN.
3 Now they were making themselves into deities. Hiram king of Tyre made himself into a deity, as stated (in Ezek. 28:2):
BECAUSE YOUR HEART IS PROUD, YOU HAVE SAID: I AM A GOD.
4 The Holy One informed him that he was mortal, as stated (in Ezek. 28:17):
I HAVE CAST YOU UNTO THE GROUND; I HAVE SET YOU BEFORE KINGS FOR THEM TO STARE AT YOU. The Holy One informed him that he was flesh and blood. Ergo (in Ps. 9:21 [20]):
LET THE NATIONS KNOW THAT THEY ARE ONLY HUMAN. SELAH.
Nebuchadnezzar made himself into a deity, as stated (in Is. 14:14): I WILL ASCEND UPON THE HEIGHTS OF A CLOUD; <I WILL BECOME LIKE THE MOST HIGH >. The Holy One informed him that he was flesh and blood, as stated (in Dan. 4:29 [32]): YOU SHALL BE DRIVEN AWAY FROM HUMANKIND.
Joash also made himself into a deity, as stated (in II Chron. 24:17): [NOW] AFTER THE DEATH OF JEHOIADA {THE PRIEST}, <THE PRINCES OF JUDAH CAME AND BOWED LOW TO THE KING.>. They said to him: You are a deity. Were you not a deity, you would not have spent six years in the Holy of Holies (II Chron. 22:12). The High Priest would only enter there one time (each year), and everyone would pray for him to enter in peace. Now you have remained there six years. Were you not a deity, you would not have lived. At that time he accepted < this ascription> from them, as stated (in II Chron. 24:17, cont.): THEN THE KING HEARKENED UNTO THEM. Immediately the Holy One informed him that he was flesh and blood. What is written (in vs. 24)? SO THEY INFLICTED JUDGMENTS ON JOASH. Ergo (in Ps. 9:21 [20]): LET THE NATIONS KNOW THAT THEY ARE ONLY HUMAN. SELAH.
Pharaoh made himself into a deity, as stated (in Ezek. 29:9): BECAUSE HE SAID: {MY} [THE] NILE IS MINE AND I MADE {MYSELF} [IT]. He said: I am the one who created myself. Immediately <the Holy One> made known to him that he was flesh and blood. The Holy One said <to Moses >: Because he has made himself into a deity, inform him that he is flesh and blood. See, he is setting out on the way to his morning toilet. Grab him and inform him that he is flesh and blood. What did Moses do? Immediately, as soon as the Holy One told him to go to Pharaoh early in the morning, Moses grabbed him. He said: Leave me alone to make my toilet, and after that I shall speak with you. Moses said to him: Is there a deity who makes his toilet? Therefore, the Holy One said to him (in Exod. 9:13): GO EARLY IN THE MORNING, and inform him that he is flesh and blood.
[17]
(Exod. 9:13:) GO EARLY IN THE MORNING. This text is related (to Prov. 22:29):
DO YOU SEE SOMEONE DILIGENT AT HIS WORK?…
5 Rabbi Judah and Rabbi Nehemiah disagree. R. Judah says: It is speaking about Joseph. When he was sold into Egypt, he was diligent in his work (according to Gen. 39:11):
AND HE CAME INTO THE HOUSE (of Potiphar)
TO DO HIS WORK. (
Prov. 22:29, cont.:)
HE SHALL STAND BEFORE KINGS. This is Joseph. What is written about him (in Gen. 41:46)? Now Joseph was thirty years old [when he stood before Pharaoh, the king of Egypt]. (
Prov. 22:29, cont.:)
HE SHALL NOT STAND BEFORE THE OBSCURE. This refers to Potiphar's wife.
6
Another interpretation (of Prov. 22:29): DO YOU SEE SOMEONE DILIGENT AT HIS WORK? It speaks about Moses. What is written (in Exod. 2:11)? AND IT CAME TO PASS IN THOSE {MANY} DAYS, WHEN MOSES HAD GROWN UP, <THAT HE WENT OUT TO HIS KINSFOLK AND LOOKED UPON THEIR BURDENS >…. R. Judah says: Do not all children grow up, just as it says (here of Moses): WHEN <MOSES> HAD GROWN UP?7 It is simply that, when he was five years old, he was found to be like a child of eleven.8 What in written (above in Exod. 2:10)? [WHEN THE BOY HAD GROWN UP.] (Likewise in vs. 11:) WHEN MOSES HAD GROWN UP. <That he HAD GROWN UP is stated> two times. Above (in vs. 10) in reference to stature; below (in vs. 11) in reference to greatness. What was his greatness (in vs. 11)? THAT HE WENT OUT UNTO HIS KINSFOLK?
(Exod. 2:13:) WHEN HE WENT OUT ON THE SECOND DAY, HERE THERE WERE TWO HEBREW MEN FIGHTING (
NTsYM). R. Abbahu said that they were emitting sparks (
NYTsWTsYN) from their heels.
9 (Ibid., cont.:)
SO HE SAID TO THE WICKED ONE: WHY ARE YOU STRIKING YOUR NEIGHBOR? R. Isaac said: You learn from here that whoever raises his hand against his comrade is called wicked, since it is stated (ibid.):
SO HE SAID TO THE WICKED ONE.
10 He said to him (in Exod. 2:14):
WHO APPOINTED YOU <A PRINCE AND A JUDGE OVER US>? R. Judah b. R. Shallum the Levite said: Moses said to the Holy One: Sovereign of the World, why is this people enslaved? There are seventy nations in the world and none of them are enslaved except this nation alone. Surely this sin is known, even as written (in Exod. 2:14, cont.):
SURELY THE MATTER IS KNOWN, since you were not were enslaved for nothing. What did Moses do (in Exod. 2:15)?
BUT MOSES FLED FROM BEFORE PHARAOH and went into Midian <to be> with Jethro.
(Prov. 22:29:) SOMEONE DILIGENT AT HIS WORK. This is Moses. (
Ibid., cont.:)
HE SHALL STAND BEFORE KINGS. This refers to Pharaoh. (Ibid., cont.:)
HE SHALL NOT STAND BEFORE THE OBSCURE. This refers to Jethro. Thus the Holy One said to him (i.e., Moses, in Exod. 4:19):
<THEN THE LORD SAID UNTO MOSES IN MIDIAN: > GO BACK TO EGYPT. Then he said to him (in Exod. 9:13):
GO EARLY IN THE MORNING <TO PRESENT YOURSELF BEFORE PHARAOH>. R. Nehemiah said: See, you have made the holy profane and the profane holy.
(Prov. 22:29:) HE SHALL STAND BEFORE KINGS, <i.e.,> before the Holy One; (ibid., cont.:)
HE SHALL NOT STAND BEFORE THE OBSCURE (rt.:
HShK). This refers to Pharaoh, as stated (in Ezek. 30:18):
IN TEHAPHNEHES11 THE DAY SHALL BE DARKENED (rt.:
HShK) <
WHEN I BREAK THERE THE YOKES OF EGYPT>.
[18] Another interpretation (of Prov. 22:29:)
HE SHALL STAND BEFORE KINGS. This refers to the Holy One, of whom it is written (in Deut. 5:28 [31]):
BUT AS FOR YOU, STAND HERE WITH ME. (
Prov. 22:29, cont.:)
HE SHALL NOT STAND BEFORE THE OBSCURE. This is Pharaoh, [since it is written <of Moses>] (in Exod. 9:13):
GO EARLY IN THE MORNING <TO PRESENT YOURSELF BEFORE PHARAOH>. All the wicked ones become corrupt during their lifetimes. You find in the case of Zedekiah, king of Judah, that all the kings were subjugated to Nebuchadnezzar. What is written about him (in Jer. 27:6)? {
ALL} [
AND EVEN]
THE BEASTS OF THE FIELD HAVE I GIVEN HIM TO SERVE HIM. Zedekiah went up to offer a gift.
12 Nebuchadnezzar said: Dine with me at noon. So he made a dinner. Now a Babylonian dinner is not like a dinner in the land of Israel. He brought him meat which he had roasted. He saw Nebuchadnezzar eating with his spittle running down onto his beard. Zedekiah looked at him in astonishment and said: Is it to this one that the whole world is subjugated? He ate with him. What did he do? After he had dined, he took Zedekiah and made him take an oath. He said to him: <Swear> that you shall not go to your land and leave me. He got free and came to the land of Israel. He began to scorn (rt.:
BZH) him, and he revoked that oath <which he had taken >. So Ezekiel cried out concerning him (in Ezek. 17:16): {
BECAUSE HE SCORNED (
BZH)
AN OATH} [
WHOSE OATH HE SCORNED (
BZH)]. The kings who were reclining with him heard him. They sent and said to him (to Nebuchadnezzar): Zedekiah is sitting <here> laughing at you. Where is it shown that they sent to him and said < this > to him? R. Samuel said: It is written (in Is. 16:1):
SEND A LAMB (
KR)
TO THE RULER OF THE LAND. What is the meaning of
KR? It is like someone who says to his comrade: Find out (
HKR) for whom he is ruling the land. Where is it shown that he had sworn an oath to him? Where it is stated (in II Chron. 36:13):
AND HE ALSO REBELLED AGAINST KING NEBUCHADNEZZAR WHO HAD MADE HIM TAKE AN OATH BY GOD. What did he do? He immediately sent and had him come. Then he fed him barley, stood him up, and scorned (rt.:
BZH) him shamefully. The Holy One said (to Nebuchadnezzar): So you have shamed (rt.:
BZH) him. By your life, you shall not depart from this world until all creatures laugh at you. Thus it is stated (in Dan. 4:29 [32]):
YOU SHALL BE DRIVEN AWAY FROM HUMANKIND. Moreover, just as you have shamed (rt.:
BZH) him, so you shall be shamed (rt.:
BZH) before all creatures. What is written (in Hab. 2:17)?
AND THE VIOLENCE OF THE BEASTS WILL TERRIFY THOSE FEMALES (rt.:
HTT+
N)….
13 R. Abba bar Kahana said that he became a bridegroom (
HTN) to all cattle and wild beasts. And what caused him this shame (rt.:
BZH)? It was simply because he had shamed (
BZH) Zedekiah.
And also in the case of Pharaoh, he was gnashing his teeth against Moses. Now he had said to them (the Israelites, in Exod. 5:17):
YOU ARE LAZY, LAZY! R. Judah b. R. Simon said: What is the meaning of
LAZY? He said to them: You are holy. (Ibid., cont.:)
THAT IS WHY YOU SAY: LET US GO AND SACRIFICE TO THE LORD. The Holy One said (in Exod. 9:13):
GO EARLY IN THE MORNING and make known to Pharaoh that he is nothing. {See, he is going out to the water.} (
Exod. 9:13, cont., & 14:)
THUS SAYS THE LORD [
THE GOD OF THE HEBREWS]:
LET MY PEOPLE GO TO WORSHIP ME. FOR THIS TIME <I WILL SEND ALL MY PLAGUES UPON YOUR HEART >…. He said to them:
LET MY PEOPLE GO TO WORSHIP ME. Then it will be good for you; but if not, <then>
FOR THIS TIME <I WILL SEND ALL MY PLAGUES UPON YOUR HEART>…. It is written (in Job 36:22):
WHO IS A TEACHER LIKE HIM (i.e., like the Holy One), who teaches the wicked to repent? He said to Pharaoh (in Exod. 9:19):
NOW SEND <AND> BRING UNDER SHELTER YOUR LIVESTOCK <AND EVERYTHING YOU HAVE>…. And what is written (in vs. 18)?
BEHOLD, AT THIS TIME TOMORROW I WILL RAIN DOWN <VERY HEAVY HAIL>,…. Then after that I will bring the locust, as stated (in Exod. 10:4–5):
BEHOLD, TOMORROW I WILL BRING LOCUSTS ON YOUR TERRITORY, AND THEY SHALL COVER THE EYE14 OF THE EARTH. Our masters have said: Just as a woman has a head, so does the earth have a head. Thus it is stated (in Prov. 8:26): <…>
NOR THE HEAD OF THE DUST OF THE WORLD.
15 And just as a woman has ears, so does the earth have ears. Thus it is stated (in Is. 1:2):
<HEAR, O HEAVENS, > AND GIVE EAR, O EARTH. And just as a woman has eyes, so does the earth have eyes. Thus it is stated (in Exod. 10:5):
AND THEY SHALL COVER THE EYE OF THE EARTH. And just as a woman has a mouth, so does the earth have a mouth. Thus it is stated (in Numb. 16:32):
AND THE EARTH OPENED ITS MOUTH <AND SWALLOWED THEM…>. And just as a woman has arms, so does the earth have arms. Thus it is stated (in Gen. 34:21):
FOR BEHOLD, THE LAND HAS BROAD ARMS. And just as a woman has a navel, so does the land have a navel. Thus it is stated (in Ezek. 38:12):
WHO DWELL ON THE NAVEL OF THE EARTH. Just as a woman conceives and gives birth, so does the earth. Thus it is stated (in Is. 66:8):
CAN A LAND PASS THROUGH LABOR IN A SINGLE DAY? IS A NATION BORN ALL AT ONCE? <YET WHEN ZION WAS IN LABOR, SHE ALSO BORE HER CHILDREN. > This refers to Israel, because the Holy One brought them and had them enter Jerusalem
ALL AT ONCE. And Jerusalem was astounded, as stated (in Is. 49:21):
AND YOU WILL SAY IN YOUR HEART: WHO HAS BORNE ME {
ALL}
THESE? The Holy One said to them: By your life, in short while I am gathering your Dispersion, for so has Isaiah said (while addressing Zion in Is. 49:18):
LIFT UP YOUR EYES ROUND ABOUT AND SEE. THEY ARE ALL ASSEMBLED, ARE COME TO YOU.
[19]
(Exod. 9:22:) THEN THE LORD SAID UNTO MOSES: HOLD OUT YOUR ARM TOWARD THE HEAVENS <THAT THERE MAY BE HAIL IN ALL THE LAND OF EGYPT,>…. This text is related (to Ps. 115:3):
<OUR GOD IS IN THE HEAVENS;> {
THE LORD} [
HE]
HAS DONE WHATEVER HE PLEASED….
16 The Holy One said (in vs. 16):
THE HEAVENS ARE HEAVENS BELONGING TO THE LORD, <BUT THE EARTH HE GAVE OVER TO THE CHILDREN OF ADAM>. To what is the matter comparable? To a king who uttered a decree for the children of Rome not to go down to Syria and for the children of Syria not to go up to Rome. So it is with the Holy One. When he created [the beings on high, he said] (in Ps. 115:16):
THE HEAVENS ARE HEAVENS BELONGING TO THE LORD, [
BUT THE EARTH HE GAVE OVER TO THE CHILDREN OF ADAM]. When the Holy One wished to give Torah to Israel, he repealed the first decree and said: let those below ascend to those on high and those on high descend to those below. And I will be the one who begins. Thus it is stated (in Exod. 19:20):
AND THE LORD CAME DOWN UPON MOUNT SINAI. It is also written (in Exod. 24:1):
THEN HE SAID UNTO MOSES: GO UP UNTO THE LORD…. Ergo (in Ps. 115:3)
THE LORD HE HAS DONE WHATEVER HE PLEASED [in the heavens and on earth]. <It was> when he wanted <that> he said (in Gen. 1:9):
LET THE WATERS <UNDER THE HEAVENS> BE GATHERED <UNTO ONE PLACE>. And <it was> when he wanted <that> he spoke and made the sea into dry ground, as stated (in Exod. 14:29):
BUT THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL WENT THROUGH THE SEA [
ON DRY GROUND],…
Another interpretation (of Ps. 115:3): THE LORD HE HAS DONE WHATEVER HE PLEASED. Thus the Holy One was not pleased to declare all creation guilty, as stated (in Ps. 5:5 [4]): <FOR YOU ARE NOT A GOD WHO> DELIGHTS IN WICKEDNESS….
(Exod. 9:22:) THEN THE LORD SAID UNTO MOSES: HOLD OUT YOUR ARM <TOWARD THE HEAVENS > [
THAT THERE MAY BE HAIL IN ALL THE LAND OF EGYPT]. Why did he smite them with hail? Because the Egyptians thought that the Israelites were their vinedressers.
17 David said (in Ps. 78:47):
HE KILLED THEIR VINES WITH HAIL, AND THEIR SYCAMORES WITH HANAMAL.
18 And how did it come down? R. Pinhas and R. Judah bar Shallum the Levite differ.
19 The first of them said: It came down like the worm and cut down the trees.
(Ps. 78:47:) HE KILLS THEIR VINES WITH HAIL,… And the other said: It came down like the
hanamal.
(Ps. 78:47:) AND THEIR SYCAMORES WITH HANAMAL.
20 It is written (in Exod. 9:32):
BUT THE WHEAT AND THE SPELT WERE NOT HURT.
21 It is simply that it came down upon each and every thing according to its power (to exhibit the wondrous works of Holy One): upon the cattle according to their power, upon the herbage according to its power, and upon humanity according to its power. What is written above on the matter (in Exod. 9:16)?
BUT NEVERTHELESS, FOR THIS REASON I HAVE PRESERVED YOU,… I have preserved you to recount my wondrous works. Thus I did not cause you to die in the first plagues, (ibid., cont.:)
IN ORDER TO SHOW YOU MY POWER AND IN ORDER FOR MY NAME TO RESOUND IN ALL THE WORLD.
[20]
(Exod. 9:18:) BEHOLD, AT THIS TIME TOMORROW I WILL RAIN DOWN <VERY HEAVY HAIL>. Zavday ben Levi said: He scratched a single mark for him on the wall.
22 He said to him: Tomorrow when the sun reaches here, I will bring hail down upon you. (
Ibid., cont.:)
SUCH AS HAS NEVER BEEN. Nothing has happened like it, but it is going to happen to the nations. It is prepared for Sennacherib. <These are> the words of R. Simon. R. Hanina said: It is prepared for the punishment of Gog and Magog, as stated (concerning Gog in Ezek. 38:22):
AND I WILL POUR TORRENTIAL RAIN, HAILSTONES, <FIRE, AND BRIMSTONE UPON HIM AND HIS HOSTS AND THE MANY PEOPLES THAT ARE WITH HIM>.
23
(Exod. 9:18:) BEHOLD, AT THIS TIME TOMORROW I WILL RAIN DOWN <VERY HEAVY HAIL>…. However (in Exod. 9:19 it says):
NOW SEND <AND> BRING UNDER SHELTER YOUR LIVESTOCK <AND EVERYTHING YOU HAVE>…. Our masters have said: during all the plagues, Pharaoh never said:
THE LORD IS IN THE RIGHT, except in the plague of the hail alone (in Exod. 9:27). Why? When someone wants to fight with his companion and overcome him, he comes upon him suddenly, kills him, and takes everything he has. But the Holy One said to Pharaoh (in Exod. 9:19):
NOW SEND <AND> BRING UNDER SHELTER YOUR LIVESTOCK <AND EVERYTHING YOU HAVE>…. <It was> at that time <that> Pharaoh said:
THE LORD IS IN THE RIGHT.
(Exod. 9:20:) THOSE <OF PHARAOH'S SERVANTS> WHO FEARED THE WORD OF THE LORD. From here R. Simeon ben Johay said: <In dealing with> the best of snakes, crush its brain; and <in dealing with> the most worthy of the Egyptians, kill.
24 It is written (in Exod. 14:7):
THEN HE TOOK SIX HUNDRED SELECT CHARIOTS. Where did they come from, in view of what is written (in Exod. 9:6):
THEN ALL THE EGYPTIAN LIVESTOCK DIED…? It is simply that (according to Exod. 9:20–21):
THOSE [
OF PHARAOH'S SERVANTS]
WHO FEARED THE WORD OF THE LORD HAD THEIR SERVANTS AND THEIR LIVESTOCK FLEE INTO THE HOUSES.
25 BUT THOSE WHO PAID NO ATTENTION TO <THE WORD OF THE LORD LEFT THEIR SERVANTS AND LIVESTOCK IN THE FIELD >. <It was with reference to these that> the Holy One said (to Moses in vs. 22):
HOLD OUT YOUR ARM TOWARD THE HEAVENS <THAT THERE MAY BE HAIL IN ALL THE LAND OF EGYPT >.
[21]
(Exod. 9:23:) AND THE LORD SENT THUNDER AND HAIL…. And why? By virtue of the Torah, which was <also> given in thunder. It is so stated (in Exod. 20:15 [18]):
NOW ALL THE PEOPLE PERCEIVED THE THUNDERINGS.
(Exod. 9:23:) AND THE LORD, <implies the Holy One> and all <his> council,
26 for did they not decree that the hail come down upon Egypt?
27
(Exod. 9:23:) AND THE LORD SENT THUNDER AND HAIL…. AS THE LORD RAINED DOWN HAIL UPON THE LAND OF EGYPT. R. Hananyah said:
AS THE LORD RAINED DOWN (rt.:
MTR)
HAIL. At first the Holy One sent down rain (
MTR) upon them, <but> as it came down it became hail. It is so stated:
AS THE LORD RAINED DOWN (rt.:
MTR)
HAIL. Why? Because no evil (such as hail) dwells with the Holy One. <It was> the rain <that> came down and <then> became hail when the wind entered it and turned it into hail. Thus it is stated (in Ps. 148:8):
STORM WIND THAT EXECUTES HIS COMMAND. Ergo (in Exod. 9:23):
AS THE LORD RAINED DOWN HAIL.
[22]
(Exod. 9:24:) SO THERE WAS HAIL AND FLASHING FIRE. R. Jose b. R. Hanina said: A flash full of fire and after that, hail.
28 But our masters have said: Rain came down and became hail, while the fire came down with it.
It is written (in Exod. 9:32): BUT THE WHEAT AND THE SPELT WERE NOT HURT BECAUSE THEY RIPEN LATE. R. Pinhas bar Hama the Priest and R. Judah bar Shallum differ.29 R. Pinhas says: What is the meaning of BECAUSE THEY RIPEN LATE (rt.: 'PL)? The Holy One performed miracles (rt.: PL') through them. But R. Judah says: They were late crops. R. Pinhas said to him: But look, it is written (in Exod. 9:25): THE HAIL SMOTE EVERY HERB OF THE FIELD; yet you say: Because they were tiny they were not smitten. Rather the Holy One performed miracles through them. At that time, when Pharaoh saw this, he said to Moses: Pray for me. He said to him: {(Exod. 8:5 [9]:) YOU MAY HAVE THIS TRIUMPH OVER ME; so I will let them go.} In the first plague you said to me: Pray for me and I will let them go. Then I prayed, but you did not let them go. {(Exod. 8:5 [9], cont.:) FOR WHAT TIME SHALL I MAKE SUPPLICATION FOR YOU…?} Pharaoh said to him (in Exod. 9:27): [THIS TIME] I HAVE SINNED {AGAINST THE LORD YOUR GOD AND AGAINST YOU.} Now I will let them go. As soon as Moses heard this, what is written (in vs. 33)? SO LEAVING PHARAOH, MOSES WENT OUT OF THE CITY AND SPREAD OUT HIS HANDS UNTO THE LORD. <THEN THE THUNDER AND THE HAIL CEASED>… See how dear the righteous are to the Holy One! For whatever they decide to do, the Holy One does <for them>. Our masters have said (in Ta'an. 3:8):30 Once upon a time Honi the Circle-Drawer prayed for rain to fall. He drew a circle and stood within it. He said to him: Sovereign of the World, your children have set their faces upon me, for here I am like a house child (i.e., a close friend) before you. I swear by your great name that I will not move from here until you have compassion upon your children. Immediately the rains came down. Now if Honi the Circle-Drawer, who was from the children of the children of Moses < could do> this, how much the more so in the case of Moses himself. Ergo (ibid.): THEN THE THUNDER AND THE HAIL CEASED, [AND NO RAIN CAME POURING DOWN TO EARTH]. And where is it to be found? Our masters have said: It is suspended in the air31 until Gog and Magog come.32 It is so stated (concerning Gog in Ezek. 38:22): AND I WILL POUR TORRENTIAL RAIN, HAILSTONES, <FIRE, AND BRIMSTONE UPON HIM AND HIS HOSTS AND THE MANY PEOPLES THAT ARE WITH HIM>.33 Immediately (after Exod. 9:33 it says in vs. 34): BUT WHEN PHARAOH SAW THAT THE RAIN AND THE HAIL <AND THE THUNDER> HAD CEASED, HE REVERTED TO SINNING.34 So it is with the wicked. When they see that trouble has come upon them, they humble themselves; but as soon as the trouble passes and one feels relief, they return to their evil deeds. When Nebuchadnezzar saw trouble come upon him, he began giving praise to the Holy One. (Dan. 4:34 [37]:) SO NOW I, NEBUCHADNEZZAR, PRAISE, EXALT, AND HONOR THE KING OF HEAVEN…. R. Berekhyah the Priest said in the name of R. Helbo, <who spoke> in the name of R. Samuel bar Nahman: Were it not for the fact that the Holy One judges the hearts and thoughts, would Nebuchadnezzar have given praise with one verse, just as David gave praise in his whole book? When Nebuchadnezzar saw himself <to have> greatness, he began to boast (in Dan. 4:1 [4] and 27 [30]): I <AM> NEBUCHADNEZZAR,… IS NOT THIS BABYLON THE GREAT < WHICH I HAVE BUILT >…? The Holy One said to him: You wicked man, what are you boasting about? (Vs. 28 [31]:) THE WORDS WERE STILL ON THE KING'S LIPS, <WHEN A VOICE FELL FROM HEAVEN…: THE KINGDOM HAS PASSED FROM YOU>…. As long as the wicked see trouble coming upon them they are humble. When they see that it is going <away>, they return to their wickedness. Thus it is stated (in Exod. 9:34): BUT WHEN PHARAOH SAW THAT <THE RAIN AND THE HAIL AND THE THUNDER> HAD CEASED, <HE REVERTED TO SINNING>. The nations of the world continue to sin, but as for Israel (according to Lam. 4:22): YOUR INIQUITY IS ENDED, O DAUGHTER OF ZION. When? When he attends to the iniquity of the house of Edom, as stated (ibid., cont.): HE HAS ATTENDED TO YOUR INIQUITY, O DAUGHTER OF EDOM. From now on Israel shall never go into exile.35 Rather the Holy One shall gather them to Jerusalem, as stated (in Ps. 107:2–3): LET THE REDEEMED OF THE LORD SAY SO, THOSE WHOM HE HAS REDEEMED FROM THE HAND OF ADVERSITY; FOR HE HAS GATHERED THEM FROM THE LANDS, FROM THE EAST AND FROM THE WEST, FROM THE NORTH AND FROM THE SEA.
The End of Parashah Wa'era.
1. There is some confusion whether this section began with 8:16 or 9:13. The verses are almost identical. See Jacob Mann, The Bible as Read and Preached in the Old Synagogue, Vol. I (Ktav, 1971), pp. 396–398.
2. The midrash understands MORAH as coming from the Greek moros, which does mean fool. In Hebrew MORAH usually means “teaching authority”, “fear,” or “razor.”
3. The Hebrew wording here differs slightly from the Masoretic Text, perhaps to bring out its meaning more clearly.
4. Mekhilta de Rabbi Ishmael, Shirata 1; Gen. R. 9:5; 96:5; Exod. R. 8:2.
5. Exod. R. 11:1; PR 6:2.
6. Cf. Cant. R. 1:1:1, according to which the obscure (literally: darkened) one is Potiphar, whose eyes the Holy One darkened by making him a eunuch. See Gen. 37:36, part of which can be translated, POTIPHAR, A EUNUCH OF PHARAOH.
7. Exod. R. 1:27.
8. Cf. Exod. R. 5:2, according to which R. Hama said that Moses was twelve years old when he left home.
9. Thus R. Abbahu understands the verse to read: HERE THERE WERE TWO HEBREW MEN SPARKING.
10. Cf. Sanh. 58b.
11. Heb.: THPNHS. Cf. Jer. 43:9, according to which Pharaoh’s house was located at THPNHS.
12. Gk.: doron.
13. This translation of Hab. 2:17 fits the context of the midrash. In the biblical translations shod is usually rendered DESTRUCTION rather than VIOLENCE. Moreover, since the midrash is concerned with sexual acts, it is necessary to translate the femimine verbal suffix meaning “them” as THOSE FEMALES.
14. A more common translation would be SURFACE, but the midrash understands the Hebrew literally here to mean EYE.
15. In the context of Proverbs these words mean that the Holy One had not yet made A BEGINNING in creating THE DUST OF THE WORLD. Similarly other verses in this paragraph are understood more literally than in some translations.
16. Tanh., Exod. 2:15; Exod. R. 12:3.
17. Since the vines of the Israelites would also have been subject to hail damage, the Egyptians believed that the Holy One would not send hail; but the Holy One did send hail and further demonstrated his power by sparing Israel’s vines in the land of Goshen. See Exod. 9:25.
18. Several English versions translate hanamal as “frost”; but since the word appears nowhere else in Scripture, it is well suited to speculation concerning its meaning.
19. Exod. R. 12:4, 6; cf. Cant. R. 3:11:1; M. Pss. 78:13; 105:10.
20. According to Exod. R. 12:4, R. Judah bar Shallum derived the meaning from the phrase WITH HANAMAL (bahanamal), which he interprets to mean, “It came (ba), it came to rest (nah), it cut off (mal)”; but R. Pinhas believed that the hail came down like an axe (pilqin, from the Gk.: pelekus) and cut down the trees. Similarly Tanh., Exod. 2:14. Cf. Yalqut Shim‘oni, Pss. 820, where these two views are attributed to other authorities.
21. See Exod. R. 12:6.
22. Tanh., Exod. 2:16; Exod. R. 12:2.
23. On Gog and Magog, see above, note 68.
24. Mekhilta de Rabbi Ishmael, Beshallah 2.
25. The argument here is that, although some Egyptians saved their livestock, Pharaoh led even this remnant, i.e., the
SIX HUNDRED SELECT CHARIOTS, to their destruction
(Exod. 14:26).
26. Gk.: sugkletos.
27. See Tanh. Exod. 2:16; Exod. R. 12:4. The exegetical principle here is that, wherever the expression, AND THE LORD, appears, there is an implication that the heavenly court is also present. So below, 3:17; yBer. 9:7 (14b); ySan. 1:1 (18a); Gen. R. 51:2; Lev. R. 24:2.
28. Cf. PRK 1:3; cf. also Tanh., Exod. 14; Exod. R. 12:4.
29. Tanh., Exod. 2:16; Exod. R. 12:6.
30. See also yTa‘an. 3:8–12 (66d-67a); Ta’an. 23a.
31. Gk.: aer.
32. Exod. R. 12:7; cf. Ber. 54b.
33. On Gog and Magog, see above, note 68.
34. Tanh., Exod. 2:17.
35. Heb. golim. The word also connotes being exposed or uncovered.