Shemot (parsha)
Encyclopedia
Shemot, Shemoth, or Shemos (שְׁמוֹת — Hebrew
for “names,” the second word, and first distinctive word, of the parsha) is the thirteenth weekly Torah portion (parsha) in the annual Jewish
cycle of Torah reading
and the first in the book of Exodus. It constitutes Jews in the Diaspora
read it the thirteenth Sabbath
after Simchat Torah
, generally in late December or January.
came down to Egypt
, and the Israelite
s were fruitful and filled the land. Joseph
and all of his generation died, and a new Pharaoh
arose over Egypt who did not know Joseph. He told his people that the Israelites had become too numerous and required shrewd dealing, lest they multiply and in a war join Egypt’s enemies. So the Egyptians set taskmasters over the Israelites to afflict them with burdens — and the Israelites built store-cities for Pharaoh, Pithom
and Raamses
— but the more that the Egyptians afflicted them, the more they multiplied. The Egyptians embittered the Israelites’ lives with hard service in brick and mortar and in the field.
Pharaoh told the Hebrew midwives
Shiphrah
and Puah
that when they delivered Hebrew women, they were to kill the sons, but let the daughters live. But the midwives feared God
, and disobeyed Pharaoh, saving the baby boys. Pharaoh asked the midwives why they had saved the boys, and the midwives told Pharaoh that the Hebrew women were more vigorous than the Egyptian women and delivered before a midwife could get to them. God rewarded the midwives because they feared God, and God made them houses. The Israelites continued to multiply, and Pharaoh charged all his people to cast every newborn boy into the river
, leaving the girls alive.
couple had a baby boy, and the woman hid him three months. When she could not longer hide him, she made an ark of bulrushes, daubed it with slime and pitch, put the boy inside, and laid it in river. As his sister watched, Pharaoh’s daughter
came to bathe in the river, saw the ark, and sent her handmaid to fetch it. She opened it, saw the crying boy, and had compassion on him, recognizing that he was one of the Hebrew children.
His sister asked Pharaoh's daughter whether she should call a nurse
from the Hebrew women, and Pharaoh's daughter agreed. The girl called the child's mother, and Pharaoh's daughter hired her to nurse the child for her. When the child grew, his mother brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, who adopted him as her son, calling him Moses
, because she drew him out of the water.
When Moses grew up, he went to his brethren and saw their burdens. He saw an Egyptian striking a Hebrew, he looked this way and that, and when he saw no one, he struck the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. When he went out the next day, he came upon two Hebrew men fighting, and he asked the wrongdoer why he struck his fellow. The man asked Moses who had made him king, asking him whether he intended to kill him as he did the Egyptian, so Moses realized that his deed was known. When Pharaoh heard, he sought to kill Moses, but Moses fled to Midian
, where he sat down by a well.
Moses was content to live with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah
to marry. Moses and Zipporah had a baby boy, whom Moses called Gershom
, saying that he had been a stranger in a strange land.
with Abraham
, Isaac
, and Jacob.
When Moses was keeping his father-in-law Jethro
’s flock at the mountain of God, Horeb (another name for the Biblical Mount Sinai
), the angel
of God appeared to him in a flame in the midst of a bush that burned
but was not consumed. God called to Moses from the bush, and Moses answered: “Here I am.” God told Moses not to draw near, and to take off his shoes, for the place on which he stood was holy
ground. God identified as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, reported having seen the Israelites’ affliction and heard their cry, and promised to deliver them from Egypt to Canaan
, a land flowing with milk and honey. God told Moses that God was sending Moses to Pharaoh to bring the Israelites out of Egypt, but Moses asked who he was that he should do so. God told Moses that God would be with him, and after he brought them out of Egypt, he would serve God on that mountain.
Moses asked God whom he should say sent him to the Israelites, and God said “I Will Be What I Will Be” (Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh), and told Moses to tell the Israelites that “I Will Be” (Ehyeh) sent him. God told Moses to tell the Israelites that the Lord (YHVH
), the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, had sent him, and this would be God’s Name forever. God directed Moses to tell Israel
’s elders what God had promised, and predicted that they would heed Moses and go with him to tell Pharaoh that God had met with them and request that Pharaoh allow them to go three days' journey into the wilderness
to sacrifice
to God. God knew that Pharaoh would not let them go unless forced by a mighty hand, so God would strike Egypt with wonders, and then Pharaoh would let them go. God would make the Egyptians view the Israelites favorably, so that the Israelites would not leave empty handed, but every woman would ask her neighbor for jewels and clothing and the Israelites would strip the Egyptians.
Moses predicted that they would not believe him, so God told him to cast his rod on the ground, and it became a serpent
, and Moses fled from it. God told Moses to take it by the tail, he did so, and it became a rod again. God explained that this was so that they might believe that God had appeared to Moses. Then God told Moses to put his hand into his bosom, he did, and when he took it out, his hand was leprous
, as white as snow. God told him to put his hand back into his bosom, he did, and when he took it out, it had returned to normal. God predicted that if they would not heed the first sign, then they would believe the second sign, and if they would not believe those two signs, then Moses was to take water from the river and pour it on the land, and the water would become blood. Moses protested that he was not a man of words but was slow of speech, but God asked him who had made man's mouth, so Moses should go, and God would teach him what to say. Moses pleaded with God to send someone else, and God became angry with Moses. God said that Moses’ well-spoken brother Aaron
was coming to meet him, Moses would tell him the words that God would teach them, he would be Moses’ spokesman, and Moses would be like God to him.
Moses returned to Jethro and asked him to let him return to Egypt, and Jethro bade him to go in peace. God told Moses that he could return, for all the men who sought to kill him were dead. Moses took his wife and sons and the rod of God and returned to Egypt. God told Moses to be sure to perform for Pharaoh all the wonders that God had put in his hand, but God would harden his heart
, and he would not let the people go. And Moses was to tell Pharaoh that Israel was God’s firstborn son, and Pharaoh was to let God’s son go to serve God, and should he refuse, God would kill Pharaoh’s firstborn son.
and circumcised
her son, and touched his legs with it, saying that he was a bridegroom of blood to her, so God let him alone.
but force them to go and gather straw for themselves to make the same quota of bricks. The people scattered to gather straw, and the taskmasters beat the Israelite officers, asking why they had not fulfilled the quota of brick production as before. The Israelites cried to Pharaoh, asking why he dealt so harshly with his servants, but he said that they were idle if they had time to ask to go and sacrifice to God. So the officers met Moses and Aaron as they came from meeting Pharaoh and accused them of making the Israelites to be abhorrent to Pharaoh and his servants and to give them a weapon to kill the people. Moses asked God why God had dealt so ill with the people and why God had sent him, for since he came to Pharaoh to speak in God’s name, he had dealt ill with the people, and God had not delivered the people. And God told Moses that now he would see what God would do to Pharaoh, for by a strong hand would he let the people go, and by a strong hand would he drive them out of his land.
at the well in Each involves (1) a trip to a distant land, (2) a stop at a well, (3) a young woman coming to the well to draw water, (4) a heroic drawing of water, (5) the young woman going home to report to her family, (6) the visiting man brought to the family, and (7) a subsequent marriage. (See Victor P. Hamilton. The Book of Genesis: Chapters 18–50, 254–55. Grand Rapids, Mich.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1995. ISBN 0-8028-2309-2.)
reports skin disease (tzara’at, צָּרַעַת) and a person affected by skin disease (metzora, מְּצֹרָע) at several places, often (and sometimes incorrectly) translated as “leprosy” and “a leper.” In to help Moses to convince others that God had sent him, God instructed Moses to put his hand into his bosom, and when he took it out, his hand was “leprous (m’tzora’at, מְצֹרַעַת), as white as snow.” In Leviticus the Torah sets out regulations for skin disease (tzara’at, צָרַעַת) and a person affected by skin disease (metzora, מְּצֹרָע). In Numbers
after Miriam spoke against Moses, God’s cloud removed from the Tent of Meeting
and “Miriam was leprous (m’tzora’at, מְצֹרַעַת), as white as snow.” In Deuteronomy Moses warned the Israelites in the case of skin disease (tzara’at, צָּרַעַת) diligently to observe all that the priests would teach them, remembering what God did to Miriam. In 2 Kings
(part of the haftarah
for parshah Tazria
), the prophet Elisha
cures Naaman
, the commander of the army of the king of Aram
, who was a “leper” (metzora, מְּצֹרָע). In (part of the haftarah for parshah Metzora
), the story is told of four “leprous men” (m’tzora’im, מְצֹרָעִים) at the gate during the Arameans’
siege of Samaria
. And in 2 Chronicles
after King Uzziah
tried to burn incense in the Temple in Jerusalem
, “leprosy (tzara’at, צָּרַעַת) broke forth on his forehead.”
explained that Pharaoh ordered that girl babies be allowed to live, because women were disinclined to and unfit for war, and Pharaoh ordered that boy babies be destroyed, because an abundance of men could be a fortress difficult to take and difficult to destroy. (On the Life of Moses, 1:3:8.)
that the Shechinah
was with the Israelites when they were exiled to Egypt, and that the Shechinah went with the Israelites wherever they were exiled demonstrated how beloved the Israelites were in the sight of God. (Babylonian Talmud
Megillah 29a.)
A midrash
deduced from the words “these are the names of the sons of Israel” in that Israel is equal in importance to God with the host of heaven. For says “names,” and Psalm
also says “names” in reference to the stars when it says of God, “He counts the number of the stars; He gives them all their names.” So when Israel came down to Egypt, God counted their number, too, and because they were likened to stars, God called them all by their names. Hence says, “these are the names.” (Exodus Rabbah
1:3.)
The Sifre
asked why makes special note of Joseph, saying “Joseph was in Egypt already,” when the reader would already know this. The Sifre explained that Scripture meant thereby to tell of Joseph’s righteousness. Joseph was shepherding Jacob’s flock, and even though Pharaoh made Joseph like a king in Egypt, he remained Joseph in his righteousness. (Sifre to Deuteronomy 334:3:2.)
As reports that “Joseph died, and all his brethren,” the Rabbis concluded that Joseph died before his brothers. Rabbi Judah haNasi
taught that Joseph died before his brothers because Joseph “commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father” (as reports). But the Rabbis taught that Jacob had directed his sons to embalm him, as reports that “his sons did to him as he commanded them.” According to the Rabbis, Joseph died before his brothers because nearly five times Judah said to Joseph, “Your servant my father, your servant my father” (four times himself in 27, 30, and 31, and once together with his brothers in ), yet Joseph heard it and kept silent (not correcting Judah to show humility to their father). (Genesis Rabba
h 100:3.)
Reading the report of “the children of Israel were fruitful and increased abundantly,” a midrash taught that each woman bore six children at every birth (for contains six verbs implying fruitfulness). Another midrash said that each woman bore 12 children at every birth, because the word “fruitful” (פָּרוּ, paru) implies two, “multiplied” (וַיִּשְׁרְצוּ,va-yisheretzu) another two, “increased” (וַיִּרְבּוּ, va-yirbu) another two, “grew” (וַיַּעַצְמוּ,va-ye'atzmu) another two, “greatly, greatly” (בִּמְאֹד מְאֹד, bi-me'od me'od) another two, and “the land was filled with them” (וַתִּמָּלֵא הָאָרֶץ, אֹתָם, va-timalei ha’aretz otam) another two, making 12 in all. The midrash counseled that the reader should not be surprised, for the scorpion
, which the midrash considered one of the swarming things (sheratzim, which is similar to וַיִּשְׁרְצוּ, va-yisheretzu), gives birth to 70 offspring at a time. (Exodus Rabbah 1:8.)
The Tosefta
deduced from that as long as Joseph and his brothers were alive, the Israelites enjoyed greatness and honor, but after Joseph died (as reported in ), a new Pharaoh arose who took counsel against the Israelites (as reported in ). (Tosefta Sotah 10:10.)
Rav
and Samuel differed in their interpretation of One said that the “new” Pharaoh who did not know Joseph really was a different person, reading the word “new” literally. The other said that only Pharaoh’s decrees were new, as nowhere does the text state that the former Pharaoh died and the new Pharaoh reigned in his stead. The Gemara
interpreted the words “Who knew not Joseph” in to mean that he issued decrees against the Israelites as if he did not know of Joseph. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:8.)
taught that Pharaoh originated the plan against Israel first in , and therefore was punished first when in frogs came “upon [him], and upon [his] people, and upon all [his] servants.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a.)
The Gemara noted that in Pharaoh said, “Come, let us deal wisely with him,” when he should have said “with them.” Rabbi Hama ben Hanina said that Pharaoh meant by that: “Come, let us outwit the Savior of Israel.” Pharaoh then considered with what to afflict them. Pharaoh reasoned that if the Egyptians afflicted the Israelites with fire, then Isaiah
indicates that God would punish the Egyptians with fire. If the Egyptians afflicted the Israelites with the sword, then indicates that God would punish the Egyptians with the sword. Pharaoh concluded that the Egyptians should afflict the Israelites with water, because as indicated by God had sworn not to bring another flood to punish the world. The Egyptians failed to note that while God had sworn not to bring another flood on the whole world, God could still bring a flood on only one people. Alternatively, the Egyptians failed to note that they could fall into the waters, as indicated by the words of “the Egyptians fled towards it.” This all bore out what Rabbi Eleazar said: In the pot in which they cooked, they were themselves cooked — that is, with the punishment that the Egyptians intended for the Israelites, the Egyptians were themselves punished. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:9.)
Rabbi Hiyya bar Abba said in the name of Rabbi Simai that Balaam
, Job, and Jethro stood in Pharaoh’s council when he formulated this plan against the Israelites. Balaam devised the plan and was slain; Job acquiesced and was afflicted with sufferings; and Jethro fled Pharaoh’s council and thus merited that his descendants should sit in the Hall of Hewn Stones
as members of the Sanhedrin
. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:9.)
The Gemara questioned why in Pharaoh expressed concern that “when war befalls us,” the Israelites would “leave the land.” The Gemara reasoned that Pharaoh’s concern should have been that “we [the Egyptians] will leave the land.” Rabbi Abba bar Kahana concluded that the usage was like that of a man who fears a curse on himself but speaks euphemistically in terms of a curse on somebody else. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:9.)
The Gemara noted that used the singular in “they set taskmasters over him,” when the text should have read “over them.” The School of Rabbi Eleazar ben Simeon deduced from this that the Egyptians hung a brick mold round Pharaoh's neck, and whenever an Israelite complained that he was weak, they would ask him, “Are you weaker than Pharaoh?” The Gemara thus noted the similarity between the Hebrew word “taskmasters” (“missim”) and something that forms (“mesim”). (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a.)
The Gemara noted that used the singular in “to afflict him with their burdens,” when the text should have read “them.” The Gemara deduced from this that the verse foretold that Pharaoh would be afflicted with the burdens of Israel. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a.)
Rav and Samuel differed in their interpretation of the words in “and they built for Pharaoh store cities (miskenot).” One said that they were called that because they endangered (mesakkenot) their owners, while the other said it was because they impoverished (memaskenot) their owners, for a master had declared (as reported in Babylonian Talmud Yevamot 63a) that whoever occupies himself with building becomes impoverished. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:10.)
Rav and Samuel differed in their interpretation of the names “Pithom and Raamses” in One said that the single city’s real name was Pithom, but it was called Raamses because one building after another collapsed (mitroses). The other said that its real name was Raamses, but it was called Pithom because the mouth of the deep (pi tehom) swallowed up one building after another. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a; Exodus Rabbah 1:10.)
The Gemara questioned why the words “the more they afflicted him, the more he will multiply and the more he will spread abroad” in were not expressed in the past tense as “the more they multiplied and the more they spread abroad.” Resh Lakish interpreted the verse to teach that at the time, the Divine Spirit foretold to them that this would be the result of the affliction. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a.)
The Gemara interpreted the words “And they were grieved (wa-yakuzu) because of the children of Israel” in to teach that the Israelites were like thorns (kozim) in the Egyptians’ eyes. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a.)
Rabbi Eleazar interpreted the words “with rigor (parech)” in to mean that Pharaoh lulled the Israelites into servitude “with a tender mouth (peh rak).” But Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani
interpreted the words to mean “with rigorous work (perikah).” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a–b.)
Rabbi Ahawa the son of Rabbi Ze'ira taught that just as lettuce is sweet at the beginning (in the leaf) and bitter at the end (in the stalk), so were the Egyptians sweet to the Israelites at the beginning and bitter at the end. The Egyptians were sweet at the beginning, as reports that Pharaoh told Joseph, “The land of Egypt is before you; have your father and brethren dwell in the best of the land.” And the Egyptians were bitter at the end, as reports, “And they (the Egyptians) made their (the Israelites’) lives bitter.” (Genesis Rabbah 95.)
Rava
interpreted to teach that at first, the Egyptians made the Israelites’ lives bitter with mortar and brick, but finally it was with all manner of service in the field. Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani said in the name of Rabbi Jonathan
that the Egyptians assigned men's work to the women and women's work to the men. And even Rabbi Eleazar, who explained “rigor (פָרֶךְ, parech)” as meaning “with tender mouth” in admitted that at the close of parech meant “with rigorous work.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
Finding four instances of the verb “to charge,” for example in (וַיְצַו, vayetzan), a midrash taught that Pharaoh decreed upon the Israelites four decrees. At first, he commanded the taskmasters to insist that the Israelites make the prescribed number of bricks. Then he commanded that the taskmasters not allow the Israelites to sleep in their homes, intending by this to limit their ability to have children. The taskmasters told the Israelites that if they went home to sleep, they would lose a few hours each morning from work and never complete the allotted number or bricks, as reports: “And the taskmasters were urgent, saying: ‘Fulfill your work.’” So the Israelites slept on the ground in the brickyard. God told the Egyptians that God had promised the Israelites’ ancestor Abraham that God would multiply his children like the stars, as in God promised Abraham: “That in blessing I will bless you, and in multiplying, I will multiply your seed as the stars of the heaven.” But now the Egyptians were cunningly planning that the Israelites not increase. So God set about to see that God’s word prevail, and immediately reports: “But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied.” (Exodus Rabbah 1:12.) When Pharaoh saw that the Israelites increased abundantly despite his decrees, he then decreed concerning the male children, as reports: “And the king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives . . . and he said: ‘When you do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women, you shall look upon the birthstool: if it be a son, then you shall kill him.’” (Exodus Rabbah 1:13.) So finally (as reports), “Pharaoh charged all his people, saying: ‘Every son that is born you shall cast into the river.’” (Exodus Rabbah 1:18.)
The Gemara interpreted to teach that as the reward for lying among the sheepfolds, the Israelites merited the Egyptians’ spoils, noting that speaks of “a dove covered with silver, and her pinions with yellow gold.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:12.)
The Gemara taught that when the Israelite women conceived, they returned to their homes, and when the time for childbirth arrived, they delivered beneath apple trees, as reflected in Song of Songs
God sent an angel to wash and straighten the babies as a midwife would, as reflected in Ezekiel
The angel provided the infants cakes of oil and honey, as reflected in When the Egyptians discovered the infants, they came to kill them, but the ground miraculously swallowed up the infants, and the Egyptians plowed over them, as reflected in After the Egyptians departed, the infants broke through the earth like sprouting plants, as reflected in When the children grew up, they came in flocks to their homes, as reflected in (reading not “ornaments (ba'adi ‘adayim)” but “flocks (be'edre ‘adarim)”). And thus when God appeared by the sea, they were the first to recognize the Divine, saying in the words of “This is my God and I will praise Him.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:12.)
Rav and Samuel differed about the identity of the midwives Shiphrah and Puah, to whom Pharaoh spoke in One said that they were mother and daughter, and the other said that they were mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. According to the one who said that they were mother and daughter, they were Jochebed
and Miriam; and according to the one who said that they were mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, they were Jochebed and Elisheba
, who married Aaron. A Baraita taught in accordance with the one who said that they were mother and daughter, teaching that Jochebed was called Shiphrah because she straightened (meshapperet) the limbs of the newborns. Another explanation was that she was called Shiphrah because the Israelites were fruitful (sheparu) and multiplied in her days. Miriam was called Puah because she cried out (po'ah) to the unborn children to bring them out. Another explanation was that she was called Puah because she cried out (po'ah) with the Divine Spirit to say: “My mother will bear a son who will save Israel.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
The Gemara interpreted the words that Pharaoh spoke in “When you do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women, you shall look upon the birthstool (אָבְנָיִם, obnayim). Rabbi Hanan taught that Pharaoh gave the midwives a sign that when a woman bent to deliver a child, her thighs would grow cold like stones (abanim). Another explained that the word obnayim referred to the birthing stool, in accordance with Jeremiah
which says: “Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he was at his work on the stones.” Just as a potter would have a thigh on one side, a thigh on the other side, and the block in between, so also a woman giving birth would have a thigh on one side, a thigh on the other side, and the child in between. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
Rabbi Hanina deduced from the words “If it is a son, then you shall kill him” in that Pharaoh gave the midwives a sign that when a woman was to give birth to a son, the baby’s face was turned downward, and if a daughter, the baby’s face was turned upward. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
Rabbi Jose son of Rabbi Hanina deduced from the words “to them (אֲלֵיהֶן, aleihen)” in that Pharaoh propositioned the midwives, but they refused him. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
A Baraita interpreted the words “but saved the boys alive” in to teach that not only did the midwives not kill the boy babies, but they supplied them with water and food. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
The Gemara interpreted the midwives’ response to Pharaoh in that the Israelite women “are lively (חָיוֹת, chayot)” to mean that they told him that the Israelites were like animals (chayot), for called Judah “a lion's whelp,” called Dan “a serpent,” called Naphtali
“a hind let loose,” called Issachar
“a strong ass,” called Joseph “a firstling bullock,” called Benjamin
“a wolf that devours,” and called the mother of all of them “a lioness.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
Rav and Samuel differed in their interpretation of the report in that “because the midwives feared God,” God “made them houses.” One said that God made them the ancestors of the priestly and Levitical houses, as Aaron and Moses were children of Jochebed. And the other said that God made them the ancestors of the royal house of Israel, teaching that Caleb
married Miriam, whom 1 Chronicles
calls Ephrath
, and reports that David
was the son of an Ephrathite. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
The Tosefta deduced from that the Egyptians took pride before God only on account of the water of the Nile, and thus God exacted punishment from them only by water when in God cast Pharaoh’s chariots and army into the Reed Sea
. (Tosefta Sotah 3:13.)
Rabbi Jose son of Rabbi Hanina deduced from the words “Pharaoh charged all his people” in that Pharaoh imposed the same decree on his own people as well as the Israelites. Rabbi Jose thus concluded that Pharaoh made three successive decrees: (1) in Pharaoh decreed “if it be a son, then you shall kill him”; (2) in Pharaoh decreed “every son that is born you shall cast into the river”; and (3) in Pharaoh imposed the same decree upon his own people. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
heard that Pharaoh had decreed (as reported in ) that “every son that is born you shall cast into the river,” Amram concluded that having children was in vain, he divorced his wife, and all the Israelite men followed suit and divorced their wives. But Amram’s daughter told him that his decree was more severe than Pharaoh's, as Pharaoh’s decree affected only sons, while Amram’s decree affected both sons and daughters. Pharaoh’s decree affected only this world, but Amram’s decree deprived children of both this world and the world to come. And doubt existed whether Pharaoh’s decree would be fulfilled, but because Amram was righteous, it was certain that his decree would be fulfilled. Persuaded by her arguments, Amram took back his wife, and the Israelite men followed suit and took back their wives. The Gemara thus asked why reported that Amram “took to wife” Jochebed when it should have read that he took her back. Rav Judah bar Zebina taught that Amram remarried Jochebed as though it were their first marriage; he seated her in a sedan chair
as was the custom for first brides, Aaron and Miriam danced before her, and the ministering angels called her (in the words of ) “a joyful mother of children.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
Reading literally the words “a daughter of Levi
” in Rabbi Hama ben Hanina deduced that Jochebed was conceived during Jacob’s family’s journey to Egypt (as did not list her among those leaving for Egypt) and was born within the walls of Egypt (as Numbers
reports that Jochebed “was born to Levi in Egypt”). Even though this would thus make her by the Gemara’s calculation 130 years old, Rav Judah taught that she was called “a daughter” because the characteristics of a young woman were reborn in her. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
Interpreting the words “she hid [the baby] three months” in the Gemara explained that she was able to do this because the Egyptians only counted the time of her pregnancy from the time when Amram and Jochebed were remarried, but by then, she had already been pregnant three months. The Gemara ask how then should report “the woman conceived and bore a son” when she had already been pregnant three months. Rav Judah bar Zebina explained that thus meant to compare Jochebed’s delivery of Moses to his conception; as his conception was painless, so was his birth. The Gemara deduced that Providence excluded some righteous women from the decree of on Eve
that “in pain you shall bring forth children.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
Interpreting the words “and when she saw him that he was good” in Rabbi Meir
taught that his name was Tov, meaning “good.” Rabbi Judah
said that his name was Tobiah, meaning “God is good.” Rabbi Nehemiah
deduced from the word “good” that Jochebed foresaw that Moses could be a prophet. Others said that he was born needing no further improvement, and thus that he was born circumcised. And the Sages noted the parallel between which says, “and when she saw him that he was good,” and which says, “And God saw the light that it was good,” and deduced from the similar use of the word “good” that when Moses was born, the whole house filled with light. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
The Gemara asked why it was (as reported in ) that “she could not longer hide him.” The Gemara explained that whenever the Egyptians were informed that a child was born, they would take other children into the neighborhood so that the newborn should hear the other children crying and cry along with them, thus disclosing the newborn’s location. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
Rabbi Eleazar explained that Jochebed’s choice of bulrushes — a cheap material — for the ark (as reported in ) demonstrated that righteous people’s money is dearer to them than their bodies, so that they should not be driven to steal. Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani explained that she chose bulrushes for the ark because they provided a soft material that could withstand encounters with soft and hard materials alike. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
A Baraita taught that Jochebed “daubed it with slime and with pitch” (as reported in ) with the slime on the inside and the pitch on outside so that the righteous baby Moses would not be subjected to the bad odor of the pitch. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
Interpreting the words “she put the child therein and laid it in the reeds (סּוּף, suf)” in Rabbi Eleazar read suf to mean the Red Sea (called the Yam Suf, יַם-סוּף). But Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani said that suf means “reeds,” as it does in where it says, “the reeds and flags shall wither away.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a–b.)
The Mishnah
cited for the proposition that Providence treats a person measure for measure as that person treats others. And so because, as relates, Miriam waited for the baby Moses, so the Israelites waited seven days for her in the wilderness in (Mishnah Sotah 1:7–9.) The Tosefta taught that a reward for good deeds is 500 times greater than the punishment for retribution. (Tosefta Sotah 4:1.) Abaye
thus said that in connection with good deeds, the principle of measure for measure does not apply strictly with equivalence. Rava replied that the Mishnah taught, “It is the same in connection with the good,” so the Mishnah must mean that Providence rewards good deeds with the same sort of measure, but the measure of reward for good is greater than the measure of punishment. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a.)
Rabbi Isaac noted that used several words associated elsewhere in Scripture with the Shechinah, and deduced that the Divine Presence thus stood with Miriam as she watched over the baby Moses. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a.)
Rabbi Judan said in the name of Rabbi Isaac that God saved Moses from Pharaoh’s sword. Reading Rabbi Yannai asked whether it was possible for a person of flesh and blood to escape from a government. Rather, Rabbi Yannai said that Pharaoh caught Moses and sentenced him to be beheaded. Just as the executioner brought down his sword, Moses’ neck became like an ivory tower (as described in ) and broke the sword. Rabbi Judah haNasi said in the name of Rabbi Evyasar that the sword flew off of Moses’ neck and killed the executioner. The Gemara cited to support this deduction, reading the words “and delivered me” as superfluous unless they were necessary to show that God saved Moses but not the executioner. Rabbi Berechyah cited the executioner’s fate as an application of the proposition of Proverbs
that a wicked ransoms a righteous one, and Rabbi Avun cited it for the same proposition applying In a second explanation of how Moses escaped, Bar Kappara
taught a Baraita that an angel came down from heaven in the likeness of Moses, they seized the angel, and Moses escaped. In a third explanation of how Moses escaped, Rabbi Joshua ben Levi
said that when Moses fled from Pharaoh, God incapacitated Pharaoh’s people by making some of them mute, some of them deaf, and some of them blind. When Pharaoh asked where Moses was, the mutes could not reply, the deaf could not hear, and the blind could not see. And it was this event to which God referred in when God asked Moses who made men mute or deaf or blind. (Jerusalem Talmud
Berakhot 87a.)
Rabbi Eleazar deduced from that God redeemed the Israelites from Egypt for five reasons: (1) distress, as reports, “the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage”; (2) repentance, as reports, “and their cry came up to God”; (3) the merits of the Patriarchs
, as reports, “and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob”; (4) God's mercy, as reports, “and God saw the children of Israel”; and (5) the term of their slavery having come to an end, as reports, “and God took cognizance of them.” (Deuteronomy Rabbah
2:23.)
cited along with for the proposition that whenever God spoke to Moses, God first called out to him. (Sifra 1:1.) And the Sifra cited and for the proposition that when God called the name of a prophet twice, God expressed affection and sought to provoke a response. (Sifra 1:4.)
A Baraita taught that a person should not enter the Temple
Mount either with a staff in hand or shoe on foot, or with money tied up in a cloth, or with a money bag slung over a shoulder, and should not take a short cut through the Temple Mount. The Baraita taught that spitting on the Temple Mount is forbidden a fortiori from the case of wearing a shoe. While the wearing of a show does not show contempt, in God instructed Moses, “Put off your shoes.” The Baraita deduced that the rule must apply all the more to spitting, which does show contempt. But Rabbi Jose bar Judah said that this reasoning was unnecessary, for Esther
says, “none may enter within the king's gate clothed in sackcloth.” And thus one may deduce a fortiori that if that is the rule for sackcloth, which is not in itself disgusting, and before an earthly king, how much more would that be the rule with spitting, which is in itself disgusting, and before the supreme King of Kings! (Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 62b.)
A Baraita taught in the name of Rabbi Joshua ben Korhah that God told Moses that when God wanted to be seen at the burning bush, Moses did not want to see God’s face; Moses hid his face in for he was afraid to look upon God. And then in when Moses wanted to see God, God did not want to be seen; in God said, “You cannot see My face.” But Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani said in the name of Rabbi Jonathan that in compensation for three pious acts that Moses did at the burning bush, he was privileged to obtain three rewards. In reward for hiding his face in his face shone in In reward for his fear of God in the Israelites were afraid to come near him in In reward for his reticence “to look upon God,” he beheld the similitude of God in (Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 7a.)
The Gemara reported a number of Rabbis’ reports of how the Land of Israel did indeed flow with “milk and honey,” as described in and 17, 13:5, and 33:3, Leviticus and 14:8, and 11:9, 26:9 and 15, 27:3, and 31:20. Once when Rami bar Ezekiel visited Bnei Brak, he saw goats grazing under fig trees while honey was flowing from the figs, and milk dripped from the goats mingling with the fig honey, causing him to remark that it was indeed a land flowing with milk and honey. Rabbi Jacob ben Dostai said that it is about three miles from Lod
to Ono
, and once he rose up early in the morning and waded all that way up to his ankles in fig honey. Resh Lakish said that he saw the flow of the milk and honey of Sepphoris
extend over an area of sixteen miles by sixteen miles. Rabbah bar Bar Hana said that he saw the flow of the milk and honey in all the Land of Israel and the total area was equal to an area of twenty-two parasang
s by six parasangs. (Babylonian Talmud Ketubot 111b–12a.)
The Tosefta equated God’s visitation with God’s remembrance in verses such as (Tosefta Rosh Hashanah 2:13.)
“believed in the Lord,” while reports that Moses “did not believe.” Thus, Moses was smitten when in God turned his hand white as snow. (Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 97a.)
The Mishnah counted the miraculous rod of among ten things that God created at twilight at the end of the sixth day of creation. (Mishnah Avot 5:6.)
A midrash explained why Moses returned to Jethro in The midrash taught that when Moses first came to Jethro, he swore that he would not depart without Jethro’s knowledge. Thus when God commissioned Moses to return to Egypt, Moses first went to ask Jethro to absolve him of his oath. (Exodus Rabbah 4:1; see also Babylonian Talmud Nedarim 65a.)
Rabbi Levi bar Hitha taught that one bidding farewell to a living friend should not say, “Go in peace (לֵךְ בְּשָׁלוֹם, lech b’shalom)” but “Go unto peace (לֵךְ לְשָׁלוֹם, lech l’shalom).” The Gemara cited Jethro’s farewell to Moses in as a proof of the proper farewell, for there Jethro said, “Go unto peace,” and Moses went on to succeed in his mission. The Gemara cited David’s farewell to Absalom
in as a proof of an improper farewell, for there David said, “Go in peace,” and Absalom went and got caught up in a tree and became easy prey for his adversaries, who killed him. (Babylonian Talmud Moed Katan 29a.)
Rabbi Johanan
said on the authority of Rabbi Simeon ben Yohai that wherever the Torah mentions “quarrelling” (nizzim), the Torah refers to Dathan
and Abiram
. Thus the Gemara identified as Dathan and Abiram the men whom reports sought the life of Moses. Resh Lakish further explained that they had not actually died, as appears to report, but had become impoverished, for (as a Baraita taught) the impoverished are considered as if they were dead (for they have similarly little influence in the world). (Babylonian Talmud Nedarim 64b; see also Exodus Rabbah 5:4.)
A Baraita cited the Septuagint’s Greek translation of as one of several instances where translators varied the original. Where the Hebrew of says, “And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon a donkey,” the Baraita reported that the Greek translation said, “And Moses took his wife and his children, and made them ride on a carrier of men,” so as to preserve the dignity of Moses. (Babylonian Talmud Megillah 9a.)
A non-Jew asked Shammai
to convert
him to Judaism on condition that Shammai appoint him High Priest
. Shammai pushed him away with a builder’s ruler. The non-Jew then went to Hillel
, who converted him. The convert then read Torah, and when he came to the injunction of 3:10, and 18:7 that “the common man who draws near shall be put to death,” he asked Hillel to whom the injunction applied. Hillel answered that it applied even to David
, King of Israel, who had not been a priest. Thereupon the convert reasoned a fortiori that if the injunction applied to all (non-priestly) Israelites, whom in God had called “my firstborn,” how much more so would the injunction apply to a mere convert, who came among the Israelites with just his staff and bag. Then the convert returned to Shammai, quoted the injunction, and remarked on how absurd it had been for him to ask Shammai to appoint him High Priest. (Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 31a.)
A Baraita taught that Rabbi Joshua ben Karha said that great is circumcision, for all the meritorious deeds performed by Moses did not protect him when he delayed circumcising his son Eliezer
, and that failure brought about what reports: “and the Lord met him, and sought to kill him.” Rabbi Jose
, however, taught that Moses was not apathetic towards circumcision, but reasoned that if he circumcised his son and then immediately left on his mission to Pharaoh, he would endanger his son’s life. Moses wondered whether he should circumcise his son and wait three days, but God had commanded him (in ) to “return into Egypt.” According to Rabbi Jose, God sought to punish Moses because Moses busied himself first with securing lodging at an inn (rather than seeing to the circumcision), as reports, “And it came to pass on the way at the lodging-place.” Rabban Simeon ben Gamaliel
taught that the Accuser did not seek to slay Moses but Eliezer, for reports, “Then Zipporah took a flint, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet; and she said: ‘Surely a bridegroom of blood are you to me.’” Rabban Simeon ben Gamaliel reasoned that the one who could be called “a bridegroom of blood” was the infant who had been circumcised. Rabbi Judah bar Bizna taught that when Moses delayed circumcising Eliezer, two angels named Af (אַף, Anger) and Hemah (חֵמָה, Wrath) came and swallowed Moses up, leaving nothing but his legs unconsumed. Zipporah deduced from the angels’ leaving the lower part of Moses exposed that the danger stemmed from failing to circumcise Eliezer, and (in the words of ) she “took a sharp stone and cut off the foreskin of her son,” and right away Af and Hemah let Moses go. At that moment, Moses wanted to kill Af and Hemah, as says, “Cease from anger (Af) and forsake wrath (Hemah).” Some say that Moses did kill Hemah, as says, “I have not wrath (Hemah).” But says, “I was afraid of anger (Af) and wrath (Hemah),” so the two must have been alive at that later time. The Gemara posited that there might have been two angels named Hemah. Alternatively, the Gemara suggested that Moses may have killed one of Hemah’s legions. (Babylonian Talmud Nedarim 31b–32a.)
argued that the requirement for the appearance offering
was greater than that for the festival offering, the House of Hillel
cited to show that the festival offering applied both before and after the revelation at Mount Sinai
, and thus its requirement was greater than that for the appearance offering. (Tosefta Chagigah 1:4.)
A midrash interpreted the words of “A man’s pride shall bring him low; but he that is of a lowly spirit shall attain to honor,” to apply to Pharaoh and Moses, respectively. The midrash taught that the words, “A man’s pride shall bring him low,” apply to Pharaoh, who in haughtily asked, “Who is the Lord that I should hearken to His voice?” and so, as reports, God “overthrew Pharaoh and his host.” And the midrash taught that the words, “but he that is of a lowly spirit shall attain to honor,” apply to Moses, who in humbly asked Pharaoh, “Have this glory over me; at what time shall I entreat for you . . . that the frogs be destroyed,” and was rewarded in with the opportunity to say, “As soon as I am gone out of the city, I will spread forth my hands to the Lord [and] the thunders shall cease, neither shall there be any more hail.” (Numbers Rabbah
13:3.)
The Pharisees
noted that while in Pharaoh asked who God was, once God had smitten him, in Pharaoh acknowledged that God was righteous. Citing this juxtaposition, the Pharisees complained against heretics who placed the name of earthly rulers above the name of God. (Mishnah Yadayim 4:8.)
and Sefer ha-Chinuch
, there are no commandments
in the parshAH (Maimonides. Mishneh Torah
. Cairo
, Egypt, 1170–1180. Reprinted in Maimonides. The Commandments: Sefer Ha-Mitzvoth of Maimonides. Translated by Charles B. Chavel, 2 vols. London: Soncino Press, 1967. ISBN 0-900689-71-4. Sefer HaHinnuch: The Book of [Mitzvah] Education. Translated by Charles Wengrov, 1:93. Jerusalem: Feldheim Pub., 1991. ISBN 0-87306-179-9.)
The haftarah
for the parshah is:
in his commentary on Isaiah 27:6–8 drew connections between the fruitfulness of and between the killings of and God’s slaying of Pharaoh’s people in, for example, and between the winds of and those that drove the Reed Sea in
in the haftarah. In both the parshah and the haftarah, God calls to the prophet , the prophet resists, citing his lack of capacity , but God encourages the prophet and promises to be with him.
Haggadah, in the magid section of the Seder
, quotes to elucidate the report in that the Israelites had become “great” and “mighty.” (Menachem Davis. The Interlinear Haggadah: The Passover Haggadah, with an Interlinear Translation, Instructions and Comments, 44. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications
, 2005. ISBN 1-57819-064-9. Joseph Tabory. JPS Commentary on the Haggadah: Historical Introduction, Translation, and Commentary, 91. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 2008. ISBN 978-0-8276-0858-0.)
Next, the Haggadah cites to elucidate the report in that “the Egyptians dealt ill with us [the Israelites], and afflicted us, and laid upon us hard bondage.” (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 45–46; Tabory, at 91–92.) The Haggadah quotes for the proposition that the Egyptians attributed evil intentions to the Israelites or dealt ill with them. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 45; Tabory, at 91.) The Haggadah quotes for the proposition that the Egyptians afflicted the Israelites. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 45; Tabory, at 92.) And the Haggadah quotes for the proposition that the Egyptians imposed hard labor on the Israelites. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 46; Tabory, at 92.)
Also in the magid section, the Haggadah quotes to answer the question: For what purpose do Jews eat bitter herbs (maror
)? The Haggadah quotes for the proposition that Jews do so because the Egyptians embittered the Israelites’ lives in Egypt. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 59–60; Tabory, at 100.)
Also in the magid section, the Haggadah cites and to elucidate the report in that “we cried to the Lord, the God of our fathers, and the Lord heard our voice, and saw our affliction, and our toil, and our oppression.” (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 46–47; Tabory, at 92–93.) The Haggadah quotes to explain the Israelites’ travail, interpreting that travail as the loss of the baby boys. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 47; Tabory, at 93.) The Haggadah quotes for the proposition that the Israelites cried to God. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 46; Tabory, at 92.) The Haggadah quotes for the proposition that God heard the Israelites’ voice. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 46–47; Tabory, at 92.) The Haggadah quotes for the proposition that God saw the Israelites’ affliction, interpreting that affliction as the suspension of family life. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 47; Tabory, at 92.) And the Haggadah quotes to explain the Israelites’ oppression, interpreting that oppression as pressure or persecution. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 47; Tabory, at 93.)
And shortly thereafter, the Haggadah quotes to elucidate the term “signs” in interpreting the “sign” to mean the staff of Moses
. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 50; Tabory, at 94.)
The “cry” (tza’akah) of the Israelites that God acknowledged in appears in the Ana B’khoah, prayer for deliverance recited in the Kabbalat Shabbat prayer service
between and Lekhah Dodi
. (Reuven Hammer
. Or Hadash: A Commentary on Siddur Sim Shalom
for Shabbat and Festivals, 20. New York: The Rabbinical Assembly
, 2003. ISBN 0-916219-20-8.)
According to a midrash, states God’s intention in removing Israel from Egyptian slavery when it says, “you shall serve God upon this mountain.” And it was to this service that Moses dedicated the Tabernacle
, and it was on the day that Moses completed the Tabernacle that Moses composed which Jews recite in the Pseukei D’Zimrah section of the morning (Shacharit
) prayer service. (Menachem Davis. The Schottenstein Edition Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals with an Interlinear Translation, 272. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 2002. ISBN 1-57819-697-3.)
The exchange of Moses and God in about God’s name is in part about how we as humans can perceive God, and that in turn is one of the motivations of prayer. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at XXVI.)
Some Jews read about the staff of Moses in as they study Pirkei Avot chapter 5 on a Sabbath between Passover and Rosh Hashanah
. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 571.)
, Sephardi Jews each week base the songs of the services on the content of that week's parshah. For Parshah Shemot, Sephardi Jews apply Maqam Rast, the maqam that shows a beginning or an initiation of something. In this case it is appropriate because we are initiating the Book of Exodus.
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Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
for “names,” the second word, and first distinctive word, of the parsha) is the thirteenth weekly Torah portion (parsha) in the annual Jewish
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
cycle of Torah reading
Torah reading
Torah reading is a Jewish religious ritual that involves the public reading of a set of passages from a Torah scroll. The term often refers to the entire ceremony of removing the Torah scroll from the ark, chanting the appropriate excerpt with special cantillation, and returning the scroll to...
and the first in the book of Exodus. It constitutes Jews in the Diaspora
Jewish diaspora
The Jewish diaspora is the English term used to describe the Galut גלות , or 'exile', of the Jews from the region of the Kingdom of Judah and Roman Iudaea and later emigration from wider Eretz Israel....
read it the thirteenth Sabbath
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
after Simchat Torah
Simchat Torah
Simchat Torah or Simḥath Torah is a celebration marking the conclusion of the annual cycle of public Torah readings, and the beginning of a new cycle...
, generally in late December or January.
Summary
Affliction in Egypt
Seventy descendants of JacobJacob
Jacob "heel" or "leg-puller"), also later known as Israel , as described in the Hebrew Bible, the Talmud, the New Testament and the Qur'an was the third patriarch of the Hebrew people with whom God made a covenant, and ancestor of the tribes of Israel, which were named after his descendants.In the...
came down to Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
, and the Israelite
Israelite
According to the Bible the Israelites were a Hebrew-speaking people of the Ancient Near East who inhabited the Land of Canaan during the monarchic period .The word "Israelite" derives from the Biblical Hebrew ישראל...
s were fruitful and filled the land. Joseph
Joseph (Hebrew Bible)
Joseph is an important character in the Hebrew bible, where he connects the story of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in Canaan to the subsequent story of the liberation of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt....
and all of his generation died, and a new Pharaoh
Pharaoh
Pharaoh is a title used in many modern discussions of the ancient Egyptian rulers of all periods. The title originates in the term "pr-aa" which means "great house" and describes the royal palace...
arose over Egypt who did not know Joseph. He told his people that the Israelites had become too numerous and required shrewd dealing, lest they multiply and in a war join Egypt’s enemies. So the Egyptians set taskmasters over the Israelites to afflict them with burdens — and the Israelites built store-cities for Pharaoh, Pithom
Pithom
Pithom also called Per-Atum or Heroöpolis or Heroonopolis Pithom also called Per-Atum or Heroöpolis or Heroonopolis Pithom also called Per-Atum or Heroöpolis or Heroonopolis (Greek: or , Strabo xvi. 759, 768, xvii. 803, 804; Arrian, Exp. Alex. iii. 5, vii. 20; Joseph. Ant. Jud. ii. 7. § 5;...
and Raamses
Avaris
Avaris , capital of Egypt under the Hyksos , was located near modern Tell el-Dab'a in the northeastern region of the Nile Delta, at the juncture of the 8th, 14th, 19th and 20th Nomes...
— but the more that the Egyptians afflicted them, the more they multiplied. The Egyptians embittered the Israelites’ lives with hard service in brick and mortar and in the field.
Pharaoh told the Hebrew midwives
Midwifery
Midwifery is a health care profession in which providers offer care to childbearing women during pregnancy, labour and birth, and during the postpartum period. They also help care for the newborn and assist the mother with breastfeeding....
Shiphrah
Shiphrah
Shiphrah was one of two midwives who helped prevent the genocide of Hebrew children by the Egyptians, according to Exodus 1:15-21.The name is found in a list of slaves in Egypt during the reign of Sobekhotep III. This list is on Brooklyn 35.1446, a papyrus scroll kept in the Brooklyn Museum. The...
and Puah
Puah
Puah is a name given to two persons in the Bible:* One of the two midwives who feared God, and helped prevent the genocide of Hebrew male children by the Egyptians, according to Exodus 1:15-21. Her colleague was Shiphrah....
that when they delivered Hebrew women, they were to kill the sons, but let the daughters live. But the midwives feared God
Names of God in Judaism
In Judaism, the name of God is more than a distinguishing title; it represents the Jewish conception of the divine nature, and of the relationship of God to the Jewish people and to the world. To demonstrate the sacredness of the names of God, and as a means of showing respect and reverence for...
, and disobeyed Pharaoh, saving the baby boys. Pharaoh asked the midwives why they had saved the boys, and the midwives told Pharaoh that the Hebrew women were more vigorous than the Egyptian women and delivered before a midwife could get to them. God rewarded the midwives because they feared God, and God made them houses. The Israelites continued to multiply, and Pharaoh charged all his people to cast every newborn boy into the river
Nile
The Nile is a major north-flowing river in North Africa, generally regarded as the longest river in the world. It is long. It runs through the ten countries of Sudan, South Sudan, Burundi, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda and Egypt.The Nile has two major...
, leaving the girls alive.
Baby Moses
A LeviteLevite
In Jewish tradition, a Levite is a member of the Hebrew tribe of Levi. When Joshua led the Israelites into the land of Canaan, the Levites were the only Israelite tribe that received cities but were not allowed to be landowners "because the Lord the God of Israel himself is their inheritance"...
couple had a baby boy, and the woman hid him three months. When she could not longer hide him, she made an ark of bulrushes, daubed it with slime and pitch, put the boy inside, and laid it in river. As his sister watched, Pharaoh’s daughter
Bithiah
According to Hebrew beliefs; Bithiah or in Modern Hebrew Bityah was an Egyptian princess, and a daughter of Pharaoh. The name of her father is not in the Bible, but Rabbinic Midrash makes her the daughter of one of the Pharaohs of the Exodus,...
came to bathe in the river, saw the ark, and sent her handmaid to fetch it. She opened it, saw the crying boy, and had compassion on him, recognizing that he was one of the Hebrew children.
His sister asked Pharaoh's daughter whether she should call a nurse
Wet nurse
A wet nurse is a woman who is used to breast feed and care for another's child. Wet nurses are used when the mother is unable or chooses not to nurse the child herself. Wet-nursed children may be known as "milk-siblings", and in some cultures the families are linked by a special relationship of...
from the Hebrew women, and Pharaoh's daughter agreed. The girl called the child's mother, and Pharaoh's daughter hired her to nurse the child for her. When the child grew, his mother brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, who adopted him as her son, calling him Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
, because she drew him out of the water.
When Moses grew up, he went to his brethren and saw their burdens. He saw an Egyptian striking a Hebrew, he looked this way and that, and when he saw no one, he struck the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. When he went out the next day, he came upon two Hebrew men fighting, and he asked the wrongdoer why he struck his fellow. The man asked Moses who had made him king, asking him whether he intended to kill him as he did the Egyptian, so Moses realized that his deed was known. When Pharaoh heard, he sought to kill Moses, but Moses fled to Midian
Midian
Midian , Madyan , or Madiam is a geographical place and a people mentioned in the Bible and in the Qur'an. It is believed to be in northwest Saudi Arabia on the east shore of the Gulf of Aqaba and the northern Red Sea...
, where he sat down by a well.
Moses in Midian
The priest of Midian’s seven daughters had come to water their father's flock, but shepherds drove them away. Moses stood up and helped the daughters, and watered their flock. When they came home to their father Reuel, he asked how they were able to come home so early, and they explained how an Egyptian had delivered them from the shepherds, and had also drawn water for the flock. Reuel then asked his daughters why they had left the man there, and told them to call him back to join them for a meal.Moses was content to live with the man, and he gave Moses his daughter Zipporah
Zipporah
Zipporah or Tzipora is mentioned in the Book of Exodus as the wife of Moses, and the daughter of Reuel/Jethro, the priest or prince of Midian...
to marry. Moses and Zipporah had a baby boy, whom Moses called Gershom
Gershom
According to the Bible, Gershom was the firstborn son of Moses and Zipporah. The name appears to mean a sojourner there , which the text argues was a reference to Moses' flight from Egypt; biblical scholars regard the name as being essentially the same as Gershon, and it is Gershom rather than...
, saying that he had been a stranger in a strange land.
The calling of Moses
The Pharaoh died, and the Israelites groaned under their bondage and cried to God, and God heard them and remembered God’s covenantCovenant (biblical)
A biblical covenant is an agreement found in the Bible between God and His people in which God makes specific promises and demands. It is the customary word used to translate the Hebrew word berith. It it is used in the Tanakh 286 times . All Abrahamic religions consider the Biblical covenant...
with Abraham
Abraham
Abraham , whose birth name was Abram, is the eponym of the Abrahamic religions, among which are Judaism, Christianity and Islam...
, Isaac
Isaac
Isaac as described in the Hebrew Bible, was the only son Abraham had with his wife Sarah, and was the father of Jacob and Esau. Isaac was one of the three patriarchs of the Israelites...
, and Jacob.
When Moses was keeping his father-in-law Jethro
Jethro
In the Old Testament or the Hebrew Bible, Jethro |Shu-ayb]]) is Moses' father-in-law, a Kenite shepherd and priest of Midian. He is also revered as a prophet in his own right in the Druze religion, and considered an ancestor of the Druze.-In Exodus:...
’s flock at the mountain of God, Horeb (another name for the Biblical Mount Sinai
Biblical Mount Sinai
The Biblical Mount Sinai is the mountain at which the Book of Exodus states that the Ten Commandments were given to Moses by God...
), the angel
Angel
Angels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...
of God appeared to him in a flame in the midst of a bush that burned
Burning bush
The burning bush is an object described by the Book of Exodus as being located on Mount Sinai; according to the narrative, the bush was on fire, but was not consumed by the flames, hence the name...
but was not consumed. God called to Moses from the bush, and Moses answered: “Here I am.” God told Moses not to draw near, and to take off his shoes, for the place on which he stood was holy
Sacred
Holiness, or sanctity, is in general the state of being holy or sacred...
ground. God identified as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, reported having seen the Israelites’ affliction and heard their cry, and promised to deliver them from Egypt to Canaan
Canaan
Canaan is a historical region roughly corresponding to modern-day Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, and the western parts of Jordan...
, a land flowing with milk and honey. God told Moses that God was sending Moses to Pharaoh to bring the Israelites out of Egypt, but Moses asked who he was that he should do so. God told Moses that God would be with him, and after he brought them out of Egypt, he would serve God on that mountain.
Moses asked God whom he should say sent him to the Israelites, and God said “I Will Be What I Will Be” (Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh), and told Moses to tell the Israelites that “I Will Be” (Ehyeh) sent him. God told Moses to tell the Israelites that the Lord (YHVH
Tetragrammaton
The term Tetragrammaton refers to the name of the God of Israel YHWH used in the Hebrew Bible.-Hebrew Bible:...
), the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, had sent him, and this would be God’s Name forever. God directed Moses to tell Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
’s elders what God had promised, and predicted that they would heed Moses and go with him to tell Pharaoh that God had met with them and request that Pharaoh allow them to go three days' journey into the wilderness
Wilderness
Wilderness or wildland is a natural environment on Earth that has not been significantly modified by human activity. It may also be defined as: "The most intact, undisturbed wild natural areas left on our planet—those last truly wild places that humans do not control and have not developed with...
to sacrifice
Korban
The term offering as found in the Hebrew Bible in relation to the worship of Ancient Israel is mainly represented by the Hebrew noun korban whether for an animal or other offering...
to God. God knew that Pharaoh would not let them go unless forced by a mighty hand, so God would strike Egypt with wonders, and then Pharaoh would let them go. God would make the Egyptians view the Israelites favorably, so that the Israelites would not leave empty handed, but every woman would ask her neighbor for jewels and clothing and the Israelites would strip the Egyptians.
Moses predicted that they would not believe him, so God told him to cast his rod on the ground, and it became a serpent
Serpent (symbolism)
Serpent in Latin means: Rory Collins :&, in turn, from the Biblical Hebrew word of: "saraf" with root letters of: which refers to something burning-as, the pain of poisonous snake's bite was likened to internal burning.This word is commonly used in a specifically mythic or religious context,...
, and Moses fled from it. God told Moses to take it by the tail, he did so, and it became a rod again. God explained that this was so that they might believe that God had appeared to Moses. Then God told Moses to put his hand into his bosom, he did, and when he took it out, his hand was leprous
Leprosy
Leprosy or Hansen's disease is a chronic disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Named after physician Gerhard Armauer Hansen, leprosy is primarily a granulomatous disease of the peripheral nerves and mucosa of the upper respiratory tract; skin lesions...
, as white as snow. God told him to put his hand back into his bosom, he did, and when he took it out, it had returned to normal. God predicted that if they would not heed the first sign, then they would believe the second sign, and if they would not believe those two signs, then Moses was to take water from the river and pour it on the land, and the water would become blood. Moses protested that he was not a man of words but was slow of speech, but God asked him who had made man's mouth, so Moses should go, and God would teach him what to say. Moses pleaded with God to send someone else, and God became angry with Moses. God said that Moses’ well-spoken brother Aaron
Aaron
In the Hebrew Bible and the Qur'an, Aaron : Ααρών ), who is often called "'Aaron the Priest"' and once Aaron the Levite , was the older brother of Moses, and a prophet of God. He represented the priestly functions of his tribe, becoming the first High Priest of the Israelites...
was coming to meet him, Moses would tell him the words that God would teach them, he would be Moses’ spokesman, and Moses would be like God to him.
Moses returned to Jethro and asked him to let him return to Egypt, and Jethro bade him to go in peace. God told Moses that he could return, for all the men who sought to kill him were dead. Moses took his wife and sons and the rod of God and returned to Egypt. God told Moses to be sure to perform for Pharaoh all the wonders that God had put in his hand, but God would harden his heart
Heart (symbol)
The heart has long been used as a symbol to refer to the spiritual, emotional, moral, and in the past, also intellectual core of a human being...
, and he would not let the people go. And Moses was to tell Pharaoh that Israel was God’s firstborn son, and Pharaoh was to let God’s son go to serve God, and should he refuse, God would kill Pharaoh’s firstborn son.
Circumcision on the way
At the lodging-place along the way, God sought to kill him. Then Zipporah took a flintZipporah at the inn
Zipporah at the inn is the name given to an episode alluded to in three verses of Exodus. It is one of the more unusual, curious, and much-debated passages of the Pentateuch....
and circumcised
Circumcision
Male circumcision is the surgical removal of some or all of the foreskin from the penis. The word "circumcision" comes from Latin and ....
her son, and touched his legs with it, saying that he was a bridegroom of blood to her, so God let him alone.
Meeting the elders
God told Aaron to go to the wilderness to meet Moses, and he went, met him at the mountain of God, and kissed him. Moses told him all that God had said, and they gathered the Israelite elders and Aaron told them what God had said and performed the signs. The people believed, and when they heard that God had remembered them and seen their affliction, they bowed their heads and worshipped.Moses before Pharaoh
Moses and Aaron told Pharaoh that God said to let God’s people go so that they might hold a feast to God in the wilderness, but Pharaoh asked who God was that he should let Israel go. They said that God had met with them, and asked Pharaoh to let them go three days into the wilderness and sacrifice to God, lest God fall upon them with pestilence or the sword. Pharaoh asked them why they caused the people to rest from their work, and commanded that the taskmasters lay heavier work on them and no longer give them straw to make brickBricks without straw
Bricks without straw is a phrase which refers to a task which must be done without appropriate resources.-Origin:In Exodus 5 , Moses and Aaron meet with Pharaoh and deliver God's message, "Let my people go"...
but force them to go and gather straw for themselves to make the same quota of bricks. The people scattered to gather straw, and the taskmasters beat the Israelite officers, asking why they had not fulfilled the quota of brick production as before. The Israelites cried to Pharaoh, asking why he dealt so harshly with his servants, but he said that they were idle if they had time to ask to go and sacrifice to God. So the officers met Moses and Aaron as they came from meeting Pharaoh and accused them of making the Israelites to be abhorrent to Pharaoh and his servants and to give them a weapon to kill the people. Moses asked God why God had dealt so ill with the people and why God had sent him, for since he came to Pharaoh to speak in God’s name, he had dealt ill with the people, and God had not delivered the people. And God told Moses that now he would see what God would do to Pharaoh, for by a strong hand would he let the people go, and by a strong hand would he drive them out of his land.
Exodus chapter 1
The report of that the Israelites were fruitful and multiplied echoes GenesisExodus chapter 2
The meeting of Moses and Zipporah at the well in is the Torah’s third of several meetings at watering holes that lead to marriage. Also of the same type scene are Abraham’s servant’s meeting (on behalf of Isaac) of Rebekah at the well in and Jacob’s meeting of RachelRachel
Rachel , as described in the Hebrew Bible, is a prophet and the favorite wife of Jacob, one of the three Biblical Patriarchs, and mother of Joseph and Benjamin. She was the daughter of Laban and the younger sister of Leah, Jacob's first wife...
at the well in Each involves (1) a trip to a distant land, (2) a stop at a well, (3) a young woman coming to the well to draw water, (4) a heroic drawing of water, (5) the young woman going home to report to her family, (6) the visiting man brought to the family, and (7) a subsequent marriage. (See Victor P. Hamilton. The Book of Genesis: Chapters 18–50, 254–55. Grand Rapids, Mich.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1995. ISBN 0-8028-2309-2.)
Exodus chapter 4
The Hebrew BibleTanakh
The Tanakh is a name used in Judaism for the canon of the Hebrew Bible. The Tanakh is also known as the Masoretic Text or the Miqra. The name is an acronym formed from the initial Hebrew letters of the Masoretic Text's three traditional subdivisions: The Torah , Nevi'im and Ketuvim —hence...
reports skin disease (tzara’at, צָּרַעַת) and a person affected by skin disease (metzora, מְּצֹרָע) at several places, often (and sometimes incorrectly) translated as “leprosy” and “a leper.” In to help Moses to convince others that God had sent him, God instructed Moses to put his hand into his bosom, and when he took it out, his hand was “leprous (m’tzora’at, מְצֹרַעַת), as white as snow.” In Leviticus the Torah sets out regulations for skin disease (tzara’at, צָרַעַת) and a person affected by skin disease (metzora, מְּצֹרָע). In Numbers
Book of Numbers
The Book of Numbers is the fourth book of the Hebrew Bible, and the fourth of five books of the Jewish Torah/Pentateuch....
after Miriam spoke against Moses, God’s cloud removed from the Tent of Meeting
Tabernacle
The Tabernacle , according to the Hebrew Torah/Old Testament, was the portable dwelling place for the divine presence from the time of the Exodus from Egypt through the conquering of the land of Canaan. Built to specifications revealed by God to Moses at Mount Sinai, it accompanied the Israelites...
and “Miriam was leprous (m’tzora’at, מְצֹרַעַת), as white as snow.” In Deuteronomy Moses warned the Israelites in the case of skin disease (tzara’at, צָּרַעַת) diligently to observe all that the priests would teach them, remembering what God did to Miriam. In 2 Kings
Books of Kings
The Book of Kings presents a narrative history of ancient Israel and Judah from the death of David to the release of his successor Jehoiachin from imprisonment in Babylon, a period of some 400 years...
(part of the haftarah
Haftarah
The haftarah or haftoroh is a series of selections from the books of Nevi'im of the Hebrew Bible that is publicly read in synagogue as part of Jewish religious practice...
for parshah Tazria
Tazria
Tazria, Thazria, Thazri’a, Sazria, or Ki Tazria’ is the 27th weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the fourth in the book of Leviticus...
), the prophet Elisha
Elisha
Elisha is a prophet mentioned in the Hebrew Bible and the Qur'an. His name is commonly transliterated into English as Elisha via Hebrew, Eliseus via Greek and Latin, or Alyasa via Arabic.-Biblical biography:...
cures Naaman
Naaman
Naaman was a commander of the armies of Ben-Hadad II in the time of Joram, king of Israel. He is mentioned in of the Tanakh. According to the narrative, he was afflicted with tzaraath...
, the commander of the army of the king of Aram
Aram (Biblical region)
Aram is the name of a region mentioned in the Bible located in central Syria, including where the city of Aleppo now stands.-Etymology:The etymology is uncertain. One standard explanation is an original meaning of "highlands"...
, who was a “leper” (metzora, מְּצֹרָע). In (part of the haftarah for parshah Metzora
Metzora (parsha)
Metzora, Metzorah, M’tzora, Mezora, Metsora, or M’tsora is the 28th weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the fifth in the book of Leviticus...
), the story is told of four “leprous men” (m’tzora’im, מְצֹרָעִים) at the gate during the Arameans’
Aramaeans
The Aramaeans, also Arameans , were a Northwest Semitic semi-nomadic and pastoralist people who originated in what is now modern Syria during the Late Bronze Age and the Iron Age...
siege of Samaria
Samaria
Samaria, or the Shomron is a term used for a mountainous region roughly corresponding to the northern part of the West Bank.- Etymology :...
. And in 2 Chronicles
Books of Chronicles
The Books of Chronicles are part of the Hebrew Bible. In the Masoretic Text, it appears as the first or last book of the Ketuvim . Chronicles largely parallels the Davidic narratives in the Books of Samuel and the Books of Kings...
after King Uzziah
Uzziah
Uzziah , also known as Azariah , was the king of the ancient Kingdom of Judah, and one of Amaziah's sons, whom the people appointed to replace his father...
tried to burn incense in the Temple in Jerusalem
Temple in Jerusalem
The Temple in Jerusalem or Holy Temple , refers to one of a series of structures which were historically located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem, the current site of the Dome of the Rock. Historically, these successive temples stood at this location and functioned as the centre of...
, “leprosy (tzara’at, צָּרַעַת) broke forth on his forehead.”
Exodus chapter 1
PhiloPhilo
Philo , known also as Philo of Alexandria , Philo Judaeus, Philo Judaeus of Alexandria, Yedidia, "Philon", and Philo the Jew, was a Hellenistic Jewish Biblical philosopher born in Alexandria....
explained that Pharaoh ordered that girl babies be allowed to live, because women were disinclined to and unfit for war, and Pharaoh ordered that boy babies be destroyed, because an abundance of men could be a fortress difficult to take and difficult to destroy. (On the Life of Moses, 1:3:8.)
Exodus chapter 1
Rabbi Simon ben Yohai deduced from 1 SamuelBooks of Samuel
The Books of Samuel in the Jewish bible are part of the Former Prophets, , a theological history of the Israelites affirming and explaining the Torah under the guidance of the prophets.Samuel begins by telling how the prophet Samuel is chosen by...
that the Shechinah
Shekhinah
Shekinah is the English spelling of a grammatically feminine Hebrew word that means the dwelling or settling, and is used to denote the dwelling or settling divine presence of God, especially in the Temple in Jerusalem.-Etymology:Shekinah is derived...
was with the Israelites when they were exiled to Egypt, and that the Shechinah went with the Israelites wherever they were exiled demonstrated how beloved the Israelites were in the sight of God. (Babylonian Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
Megillah 29a.)
A midrash
Midrash
The Hebrew term Midrash is a homiletic method of biblical exegesis. The term also refers to the whole compilation of homiletic teachings on the Bible....
deduced from the words “these are the names of the sons of Israel” in that Israel is equal in importance to God with the host of heaven. For says “names,” and Psalm
Psalms
The Book of Psalms , commonly referred to simply as Psalms, is a book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Bible...
also says “names” in reference to the stars when it says of God, “He counts the number of the stars; He gives them all their names.” So when Israel came down to Egypt, God counted their number, too, and because they were likened to stars, God called them all by their names. Hence says, “these are the names.” (Exodus Rabbah
Exodus Rabbah
Exodus Rabbah is the midrash to Exodus, containing in the printed editions 52 parashiyyot. It is not uniform in its composition.- Structure :In parashiyyot i.-xiv...
1:3.)
The Sifre
Sifre
Sifre refers to either of two works of Midrash halakhah, or classical Jewish legal Biblical exegesis, based on the biblical books of Bamidbar and Devarim .- The Talmudic-Era Sifre :The title "Sifre debe Rab" is used by R. Hananeel on Sheb. 37b, Alfasi on Pes...
asked why makes special note of Joseph, saying “Joseph was in Egypt already,” when the reader would already know this. The Sifre explained that Scripture meant thereby to tell of Joseph’s righteousness. Joseph was shepherding Jacob’s flock, and even though Pharaoh made Joseph like a king in Egypt, he remained Joseph in his righteousness. (Sifre to Deuteronomy 334:3:2.)
As reports that “Joseph died, and all his brethren,” the Rabbis concluded that Joseph died before his brothers. Rabbi Judah haNasi
Judah haNasi
Judah the Prince, or Judah I, also known as Rebbi or Rabbeinu HaKadosh , was a 2nd-century CE rabbi and chief redactor and editor of the Mishnah. He was a key leader of the Jewish community during the Roman occupation of Judea . He was of the Davidic line, the royal line of King David, hence the...
taught that Joseph died before his brothers because Joseph “commanded his servants the physicians to embalm his father” (as reports). But the Rabbis taught that Jacob had directed his sons to embalm him, as reports that “his sons did to him as he commanded them.” According to the Rabbis, Joseph died before his brothers because nearly five times Judah said to Joseph, “Your servant my father, your servant my father” (four times himself in 27, 30, and 31, and once together with his brothers in ), yet Joseph heard it and kept silent (not correcting Judah to show humility to their father). (Genesis Rabba
Genesis Rabba
Genesis Rabba is a religious text from Judaism's classical period. It is a midrash comprising a collection of ancient rabbinical homiletical interpretations of the Book of Genesis ....
h 100:3.)
Reading the report of “the children of Israel were fruitful and increased abundantly,” a midrash taught that each woman bore six children at every birth (for contains six verbs implying fruitfulness). Another midrash said that each woman bore 12 children at every birth, because the word “fruitful” (פָּרוּ, paru) implies two, “multiplied” (וַיִּשְׁרְצוּ,va-yisheretzu) another two, “increased” (וַיִּרְבּוּ, va-yirbu) another two, “grew” (וַיַּעַצְמוּ,va-ye'atzmu) another two, “greatly, greatly” (בִּמְאֹד מְאֹד, bi-me'od me'od) another two, and “the land was filled with them” (וַתִּמָּלֵא הָאָרֶץ, אֹתָם, va-timalei ha’aretz otam) another two, making 12 in all. The midrash counseled that the reader should not be surprised, for the scorpion
Scorpion
Scorpions are predatory arthropod animals of the order Scorpiones within the class Arachnida. They have eight legs and are easily recognized by the pair of grasping claws and the narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back, ending with a venomous stinger...
, which the midrash considered one of the swarming things (sheratzim, which is similar to וַיִּשְׁרְצוּ, va-yisheretzu), gives birth to 70 offspring at a time. (Exodus Rabbah 1:8.)
The Tosefta
Tosefta
The Tosefta is a compilation of the Jewish oral law from the period of the Mishnah.-Overview:...
deduced from that as long as Joseph and his brothers were alive, the Israelites enjoyed greatness and honor, but after Joseph died (as reported in ), a new Pharaoh arose who took counsel against the Israelites (as reported in ). (Tosefta Sotah 10:10.)
Rav
Abba Arika
Abba Arika was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, known as an amora of the 3rd century who established at Sura the systematic study of the rabbinic traditions, which, using the Mishnah as text, led to the compilation of the Talmud...
and Samuel differed in their interpretation of One said that the “new” Pharaoh who did not know Joseph really was a different person, reading the word “new” literally. The other said that only Pharaoh’s decrees were new, as nowhere does the text state that the former Pharaoh died and the new Pharaoh reigned in his stead. The Gemara
Gemara
The Gemara is the component of the Talmud comprising rabbinical analysis of and commentary on the Mishnah. After the Mishnah was published by Rabbi Judah the Prince The Gemara (also transliterated Gemora or, less commonly, Gemorra; from Aramaic גמרא gamar; literally, "[to] study" or "learning by...
interpreted the words “Who knew not Joseph” in to mean that he issued decrees against the Israelites as if he did not know of Joseph. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:8.)
The Israelites' affliction
The Tosefta deduced from that Pharaoh began to sin first before the people, and thus God struck him first, but the rest did not escape. (Tosefta Sotah 4:12.) Similarly, a BaraitaBaraita
Baraita designates a tradition in the Jewish oral law not incorporated in the Mishnah. "Baraita" thus refers to teachings "outside" of the six orders of the Mishnah...
taught that Pharaoh originated the plan against Israel first in , and therefore was punished first when in frogs came “upon [him], and upon [his] people, and upon all [his] servants.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a.)
The Gemara noted that in Pharaoh said, “Come, let us deal wisely with him,” when he should have said “with them.” Rabbi Hama ben Hanina said that Pharaoh meant by that: “Come, let us outwit the Savior of Israel.” Pharaoh then considered with what to afflict them. Pharaoh reasoned that if the Egyptians afflicted the Israelites with fire, then Isaiah
Book of Isaiah
The Book of Isaiah is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, preceding the books of Ezekiel, Jeremiah and the Book of the Twelve...
indicates that God would punish the Egyptians with fire. If the Egyptians afflicted the Israelites with the sword, then indicates that God would punish the Egyptians with the sword. Pharaoh concluded that the Egyptians should afflict the Israelites with water, because as indicated by God had sworn not to bring another flood to punish the world. The Egyptians failed to note that while God had sworn not to bring another flood on the whole world, God could still bring a flood on only one people. Alternatively, the Egyptians failed to note that they could fall into the waters, as indicated by the words of “the Egyptians fled towards it.” This all bore out what Rabbi Eleazar said: In the pot in which they cooked, they were themselves cooked — that is, with the punishment that the Egyptians intended for the Israelites, the Egyptians were themselves punished. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:9.)
Rabbi Hiyya bar Abba said in the name of Rabbi Simai that Balaam
Balaam
Balaam is a diviner in the Torah, his story occurring towards the end of the Book of Numbers. The etymology of his name is uncertain, and discussed below. Every ancient reference to Balaam considers him a non-Israelite, a prophet, and the son of Beor, though Beor is not so clearly identified...
, Job, and Jethro stood in Pharaoh’s council when he formulated this plan against the Israelites. Balaam devised the plan and was slain; Job acquiesced and was afflicted with sufferings; and Jethro fled Pharaoh’s council and thus merited that his descendants should sit in the Hall of Hewn Stones
Hall of Hewn Stones
The Hall of Hewn Stones was the meeting place of the Sanhedrin during the Second Temple period. The Talmud deduces that it was built into the north wall of the Temple, half inside the sanctuary and half outside, with doors providing access both to the temple and to the outside...
as members of the Sanhedrin
Sanhedrin
The Sanhedrin was an assembly of twenty-three judges appointed in every city in the Biblical Land of Israel.The Great Sanhedrin was the supreme court of ancient Israel made of 71 members...
. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:9.)
The Gemara questioned why in Pharaoh expressed concern that “when war befalls us,” the Israelites would “leave the land.” The Gemara reasoned that Pharaoh’s concern should have been that “we [the Egyptians] will leave the land.” Rabbi Abba bar Kahana concluded that the usage was like that of a man who fears a curse on himself but speaks euphemistically in terms of a curse on somebody else. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:9.)
The Gemara noted that used the singular in “they set taskmasters over him,” when the text should have read “over them.” The School of Rabbi Eleazar ben Simeon deduced from this that the Egyptians hung a brick mold round Pharaoh's neck, and whenever an Israelite complained that he was weak, they would ask him, “Are you weaker than Pharaoh?” The Gemara thus noted the similarity between the Hebrew word “taskmasters” (“missim”) and something that forms (“mesim”). (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a.)
The Gemara noted that used the singular in “to afflict him with their burdens,” when the text should have read “them.” The Gemara deduced from this that the verse foretold that Pharaoh would be afflicted with the burdens of Israel. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a.)
Rav and Samuel differed in their interpretation of the words in “and they built for Pharaoh store cities (miskenot).” One said that they were called that because they endangered (mesakkenot) their owners, while the other said it was because they impoverished (memaskenot) their owners, for a master had declared (as reported in Babylonian Talmud Yevamot 63a) that whoever occupies himself with building becomes impoverished. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:10.)
Rav and Samuel differed in their interpretation of the names “Pithom and Raamses” in One said that the single city’s real name was Pithom, but it was called Raamses because one building after another collapsed (mitroses). The other said that its real name was Raamses, but it was called Pithom because the mouth of the deep (pi tehom) swallowed up one building after another. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a; Exodus Rabbah 1:10.)
The Gemara questioned why the words “the more they afflicted him, the more he will multiply and the more he will spread abroad” in were not expressed in the past tense as “the more they multiplied and the more they spread abroad.” Resh Lakish interpreted the verse to teach that at the time, the Divine Spirit foretold to them that this would be the result of the affliction. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a.)
The Gemara interpreted the words “And they were grieved (wa-yakuzu) because of the children of Israel” in to teach that the Israelites were like thorns (kozim) in the Egyptians’ eyes. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a.)
Rabbi Eleazar interpreted the words “with rigor (parech)” in to mean that Pharaoh lulled the Israelites into servitude “with a tender mouth (peh rak).” But Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani
Samuel ben Nahman
Samuel ben Nahman or Samuel Nahmani was a rabbi of the Talmud, known as an amora, who lived in the Land of Israel from the beginning of the 3rd century until the beginning of the 4th century. He was a pupil of R. Jonathan ben Eleazar and one of the most famous haggadists of his time...
interpreted the words to mean “with rigorous work (perikah).” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a–b.)
Rabbi Ahawa the son of Rabbi Ze'ira taught that just as lettuce is sweet at the beginning (in the leaf) and bitter at the end (in the stalk), so were the Egyptians sweet to the Israelites at the beginning and bitter at the end. The Egyptians were sweet at the beginning, as reports that Pharaoh told Joseph, “The land of Egypt is before you; have your father and brethren dwell in the best of the land.” And the Egyptians were bitter at the end, as reports, “And they (the Egyptians) made their (the Israelites’) lives bitter.” (Genesis Rabbah 95.)
Rava
Rava (amora)
For the third generation Amora sage of Babylon, with a similar name, see: Joseph b. Hama .Abba ben Joseph bar Ḥama, who is exclusively referred to in the Talmud by the name Rava , was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, known as an amora, born in 270. He is one of the most often-cited Rabbis...
interpreted to teach that at first, the Egyptians made the Israelites’ lives bitter with mortar and brick, but finally it was with all manner of service in the field. Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani said in the name of Rabbi Jonathan
Rabbi Jonathan
Rabbi Jonathan was a Palestinian tanna of the 2nd century and schoolfellow of R. Josiah, apart from whom he is rarely quoted. Jonathan is generally so cited without further designation; but there is ample reason for identifying him with the less frequently occurring Jonathan b. Joseph Rabbi...
that the Egyptians assigned men's work to the women and women's work to the men. And even Rabbi Eleazar, who explained “rigor (פָרֶךְ, parech)” as meaning “with tender mouth” in admitted that at the close of parech meant “with rigorous work.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
Finding four instances of the verb “to charge,” for example in (וַיְצַו, vayetzan), a midrash taught that Pharaoh decreed upon the Israelites four decrees. At first, he commanded the taskmasters to insist that the Israelites make the prescribed number of bricks. Then he commanded that the taskmasters not allow the Israelites to sleep in their homes, intending by this to limit their ability to have children. The taskmasters told the Israelites that if they went home to sleep, they would lose a few hours each morning from work and never complete the allotted number or bricks, as reports: “And the taskmasters were urgent, saying: ‘Fulfill your work.’” So the Israelites slept on the ground in the brickyard. God told the Egyptians that God had promised the Israelites’ ancestor Abraham that God would multiply his children like the stars, as in God promised Abraham: “That in blessing I will bless you, and in multiplying, I will multiply your seed as the stars of the heaven.” But now the Egyptians were cunningly planning that the Israelites not increase. So God set about to see that God’s word prevail, and immediately reports: “But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied.” (Exodus Rabbah 1:12.) When Pharaoh saw that the Israelites increased abundantly despite his decrees, he then decreed concerning the male children, as reports: “And the king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives . . . and he said: ‘When you do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women, you shall look upon the birthstool: if it be a son, then you shall kill him.’” (Exodus Rabbah 1:13.) So finally (as reports), “Pharaoh charged all his people, saying: ‘Every son that is born you shall cast into the river.’” (Exodus Rabbah 1:18.)
The righteous midwives
Rav Awira taught that God delivered the Israelites from Egypt as the reward for the righteous women who lived in that generation. When the righteous women went to draw water, God caused small fish to enter their pitchers. When they drew up their pitchers, they were half full of water and half full of fishes. They set two pots on the fire, one of water and the other of fish. They carried the pots to their husbands in the field. They washed, anointed, and fed them, gave them to drink, and had relations with them among the sheepfolds, as reflected in (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:12 (citing Rabbi Akiva) and Babylonian Talmud Yoma 75a.)The Gemara interpreted to teach that as the reward for lying among the sheepfolds, the Israelites merited the Egyptians’ spoils, noting that speaks of “a dove covered with silver, and her pinions with yellow gold.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:12.)
The Gemara taught that when the Israelite women conceived, they returned to their homes, and when the time for childbirth arrived, they delivered beneath apple trees, as reflected in Song of Songs
Song of songs
Song of Songs, also known as the Song of Solomon, is a book of the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament. It may also refer to:In music:* Song of songs , the debut album by David and the Giants* A generic term for medleysPlays...
God sent an angel to wash and straighten the babies as a midwife would, as reflected in Ezekiel
Book of Ezekiel
The Book of Ezekiel is the third of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, following the books of Isaiah and Jeremiah and preceding the Book of the Twelve....
The angel provided the infants cakes of oil and honey, as reflected in When the Egyptians discovered the infants, they came to kill them, but the ground miraculously swallowed up the infants, and the Egyptians plowed over them, as reflected in After the Egyptians departed, the infants broke through the earth like sprouting plants, as reflected in When the children grew up, they came in flocks to their homes, as reflected in (reading not “ornaments (ba'adi ‘adayim)” but “flocks (be'edre ‘adarim)”). And thus when God appeared by the sea, they were the first to recognize the Divine, saying in the words of “This is my God and I will praise Him.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b; see also Exodus Rabbah 1:12.)
Rav and Samuel differed about the identity of the midwives Shiphrah and Puah, to whom Pharaoh spoke in One said that they were mother and daughter, and the other said that they were mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. According to the one who said that they were mother and daughter, they were Jochebed
Jochebed
According to the Torah, Jochebed was a daughter of Levi and mother of Aaron, Miriam and Moses. She was the wife of Amram, as well as his aunt. No details are given concerning her life. According to Jewish legend, Jochebed is buried in the Tomb of the Matriarchs, in Tiberias.-Birth of Moses:The...
and Miriam; and according to the one who said that they were mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, they were Jochebed and Elisheba
Elisheva
Elisheva or Elisheba was the wife of Aaron "the priest" , the forefather of the Kohanim, the Jewish priests, in the Bible. She is a daughter of Amminadab, and a sister of Nahshon, from the Tribe of Judah. According to later Jewish tradition, she is buried in the Tomb of the Matriarchs in Tiberias...
, who married Aaron. A Baraita taught in accordance with the one who said that they were mother and daughter, teaching that Jochebed was called Shiphrah because she straightened (meshapperet) the limbs of the newborns. Another explanation was that she was called Shiphrah because the Israelites were fruitful (sheparu) and multiplied in her days. Miriam was called Puah because she cried out (po'ah) to the unborn children to bring them out. Another explanation was that she was called Puah because she cried out (po'ah) with the Divine Spirit to say: “My mother will bear a son who will save Israel.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
The Gemara interpreted the words that Pharaoh spoke in “When you do the office of a midwife to the Hebrew women, you shall look upon the birthstool (אָבְנָיִם, obnayim). Rabbi Hanan taught that Pharaoh gave the midwives a sign that when a woman bent to deliver a child, her thighs would grow cold like stones (abanim). Another explained that the word obnayim referred to the birthing stool, in accordance with Jeremiah
Book of Jeremiah
The Book of Jeremiah is the second of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, following the book of Isaiah and preceding Ezekiel and the Book of the Twelve....
which says: “Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he was at his work on the stones.” Just as a potter would have a thigh on one side, a thigh on the other side, and the block in between, so also a woman giving birth would have a thigh on one side, a thigh on the other side, and the child in between. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
Rabbi Hanina deduced from the words “If it is a son, then you shall kill him” in that Pharaoh gave the midwives a sign that when a woman was to give birth to a son, the baby’s face was turned downward, and if a daughter, the baby’s face was turned upward. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
Rabbi Jose son of Rabbi Hanina deduced from the words “to them (אֲלֵיהֶן, aleihen)” in that Pharaoh propositioned the midwives, but they refused him. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
A Baraita interpreted the words “but saved the boys alive” in to teach that not only did the midwives not kill the boy babies, but they supplied them with water and food. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
The Gemara interpreted the midwives’ response to Pharaoh in that the Israelite women “are lively (חָיוֹת, chayot)” to mean that they told him that the Israelites were like animals (chayot), for called Judah “a lion's whelp,” called Dan “a serpent,” called Naphtali
Naphtali
According to the Book of Genesis, Naphtali was the second son of Jacob with Bilhah. He was the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Naphtali. However, some Biblical scholars view this as postdiction, an eponymous metaphor providing an aetiology of the connectedness of the tribe to others in the...
“a hind let loose,” called Issachar
Issachar
Issachar/Yissachar was, according to the Book of Genesis, a son of Jacob and Leah , and the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Issachar; however some Biblical scholars view this as postdiction, an eponymous metaphor providing an aetiology of the connectedness of the tribe to others in the Israelite...
“a strong ass,” called Joseph “a firstling bullock,” called Benjamin
Benjamin
Benjamin was the last-born of Jacob's twelve sons, and the second and last son of Rachel in Jewish, Christian and Islamic tradition. He was the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Benjamin. In the Biblical account, unlike Rachel's first son, Joseph, Benjamin was born in Canaan. He died in Egypt on...
“a wolf that devours,” and called the mother of all of them “a lioness.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
Rav and Samuel differed in their interpretation of the report in that “because the midwives feared God,” God “made them houses.” One said that God made them the ancestors of the priestly and Levitical houses, as Aaron and Moses were children of Jochebed. And the other said that God made them the ancestors of the royal house of Israel, teaching that Caleb
Caleb
Caleb is a male given name. A character called Caleb is named in both the Bible and Quran.-Caleb:When the Hebrews came to the outskirts of Canaan, the land that had been promised to them by God, after having fled slavery in Egypt, Moses sent twelve spies into Canaan to report on what was...
married Miriam, whom 1 Chronicles
Books of Chronicles
The Books of Chronicles are part of the Hebrew Bible. In the Masoretic Text, it appears as the first or last book of the Ketuvim . Chronicles largely parallels the Davidic narratives in the Books of Samuel and the Books of Kings...
calls Ephrath
Ephrath
Ephrath or Ephratah is the name of a Biblical place.The first mention of Ephrath occurs in Genesis, in reference to where Rachel dies giving birth to Benjamin and is buried on the road from Bethel...
, and reports that David
David
David was the second king of the united Kingdom of Israel according to the Hebrew Bible and, according to the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, an ancestor of Jesus Christ through both Saint Joseph and Mary...
was the son of an Ephrathite. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11b.)
The Tosefta deduced from that the Egyptians took pride before God only on account of the water of the Nile, and thus God exacted punishment from them only by water when in God cast Pharaoh’s chariots and army into the Reed Sea
Yam Suph
Yam Suph is a phrase which occurs about 23 times in the Tanakh and has traditionally been understood to refer to the salt water inlet located between Africa and the Arabian peninsula, known in English as the Red Sea...
. (Tosefta Sotah 3:13.)
Rabbi Jose son of Rabbi Hanina deduced from the words “Pharaoh charged all his people” in that Pharaoh imposed the same decree on his own people as well as the Israelites. Rabbi Jose thus concluded that Pharaoh made three successive decrees: (1) in Pharaoh decreed “if it be a son, then you shall kill him”; (2) in Pharaoh decreed “every son that is born you shall cast into the river”; and (3) in Pharaoh imposed the same decree upon his own people. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
Exodus chapter 2
Reading the words “And there went a man of the house of Levi” in the Gemara asked where he went. Rav Judah bar Zebina taught that he followed the counsel of his daughter. A Baraita taught that when AmramAmram
In the Book of Exodus, Amram Arabic عمران Imran, is the father of Aaron, Moses, and Miriam and the husband of Jochebed.-In the Bible:In addition to being married to Jochebed, Amram is also described in the Bible as having been related to Jochebed prior to the marriage, although the exact...
heard that Pharaoh had decreed (as reported in ) that “every son that is born you shall cast into the river,” Amram concluded that having children was in vain, he divorced his wife, and all the Israelite men followed suit and divorced their wives. But Amram’s daughter told him that his decree was more severe than Pharaoh's, as Pharaoh’s decree affected only sons, while Amram’s decree affected both sons and daughters. Pharaoh’s decree affected only this world, but Amram’s decree deprived children of both this world and the world to come. And doubt existed whether Pharaoh’s decree would be fulfilled, but because Amram was righteous, it was certain that his decree would be fulfilled. Persuaded by her arguments, Amram took back his wife, and the Israelite men followed suit and took back their wives. The Gemara thus asked why reported that Amram “took to wife” Jochebed when it should have read that he took her back. Rav Judah bar Zebina taught that Amram remarried Jochebed as though it were their first marriage; he seated her in a sedan chair
Litter (vehicle)
The litter is a class of wheelless vehicles, a type of human-powered transport, for the transport of persons. Examples of litter vehicles include lectica , jiao [较] , sedan chairs , palanquin , Woh , gama...
as was the custom for first brides, Aaron and Miriam danced before her, and the ministering angels called her (in the words of ) “a joyful mother of children.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
Reading literally the words “a daughter of Levi
Levi
Levi/Levy was, according to the Book of Genesis, the third son of Jacob and Leah, and the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Levi ; however Peake's commentary suggests this as postdiction, an eponymous metaphor providing an aetiology of the connectedness of the tribe to others in the Israelite...
” in Rabbi Hama ben Hanina deduced that Jochebed was conceived during Jacob’s family’s journey to Egypt (as did not list her among those leaving for Egypt) and was born within the walls of Egypt (as Numbers
Book of Numbers
The Book of Numbers is the fourth book of the Hebrew Bible, and the fourth of five books of the Jewish Torah/Pentateuch....
reports that Jochebed “was born to Levi in Egypt”). Even though this would thus make her by the Gemara’s calculation 130 years old, Rav Judah taught that she was called “a daughter” because the characteristics of a young woman were reborn in her. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
Interpreting the words “she hid [the baby] three months” in the Gemara explained that she was able to do this because the Egyptians only counted the time of her pregnancy from the time when Amram and Jochebed were remarried, but by then, she had already been pregnant three months. The Gemara ask how then should report “the woman conceived and bore a son” when she had already been pregnant three months. Rav Judah bar Zebina explained that thus meant to compare Jochebed’s delivery of Moses to his conception; as his conception was painless, so was his birth. The Gemara deduced that Providence excluded some righteous women from the decree of on Eve
Eve (Bible)
Eve was, according to the creation of Abrahamic religions, the first woman created by God...
that “in pain you shall bring forth children.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
Interpreting the words “and when she saw him that he was good” in Rabbi Meir
Rabbi Meir
Rabbi Meir or Rabbi Meir Baal Hanes was a Jewish sage who lived in the time of the Mishna. He was considered one of the greatest of the Tannaim of the fourth generation . According to legend , his father was a descendant of the Roman Emperor Nero who had converted to Judaism. His wife Bruriah is...
taught that his name was Tov, meaning “good.” Rabbi Judah
Judah ben Ilai
Judah bar Ilai, also known as Judah ben Ilai, Rabbi Judah or Judah the Palestinian , was a tanna of the 2nd Century and son of Rabbi Ilai I. Of the many Judahs in the Talmud, he is the one referred to simply as "Rabbi Judah" and is the most frequently mentioned sage in the Mishnah.Judah bar Ilai...
said that his name was Tobiah, meaning “God is good.” Rabbi Nehemiah
Rabbi Nehemiah
Rabbi Nehemiah was an Israelite, circa AD 150 .He is attributed as the author of the Mishnat ha-Middot , making it the earliest known Hebrew text on geometry, although other historians assign to a later period by an unknown author...
deduced from the word “good” that Jochebed foresaw that Moses could be a prophet. Others said that he was born needing no further improvement, and thus that he was born circumcised. And the Sages noted the parallel between which says, “and when she saw him that he was good,” and which says, “And God saw the light that it was good,” and deduced from the similar use of the word “good” that when Moses was born, the whole house filled with light. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
The Gemara asked why it was (as reported in ) that “she could not longer hide him.” The Gemara explained that whenever the Egyptians were informed that a child was born, they would take other children into the neighborhood so that the newborn should hear the other children crying and cry along with them, thus disclosing the newborn’s location. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
Rabbi Eleazar explained that Jochebed’s choice of bulrushes — a cheap material — for the ark (as reported in ) demonstrated that righteous people’s money is dearer to them than their bodies, so that they should not be driven to steal. Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani explained that she chose bulrushes for the ark because they provided a soft material that could withstand encounters with soft and hard materials alike. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
A Baraita taught that Jochebed “daubed it with slime and with pitch” (as reported in ) with the slime on the inside and the pitch on outside so that the righteous baby Moses would not be subjected to the bad odor of the pitch. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a.)
Interpreting the words “she put the child therein and laid it in the reeds (סּוּף, suf)” in Rabbi Eleazar read suf to mean the Red Sea (called the Yam Suf, יַם-סוּף). But Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani said that suf means “reeds,” as it does in where it says, “the reeds and flags shall wither away.” (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 12a–b.)
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
cited for the proposition that Providence treats a person measure for measure as that person treats others. And so because, as relates, Miriam waited for the baby Moses, so the Israelites waited seven days for her in the wilderness in (Mishnah Sotah 1:7–9.) The Tosefta taught that a reward for good deeds is 500 times greater than the punishment for retribution. (Tosefta Sotah 4:1.) Abaye
Abaye
Abaye was a rabbi of the Jewish Talmud who lived in Babylonia [בבל], known as an amora [אמורא] born about the close of the third century; died 339 . His father, Kaylil, was the brother of Rabbah bar Nachmani, a teacher at the Academy of Pumbedita. Abaye's real name was Nachmani, after his...
thus said that in connection with good deeds, the principle of measure for measure does not apply strictly with equivalence. Rava replied that the Mishnah taught, “It is the same in connection with the good,” so the Mishnah must mean that Providence rewards good deeds with the same sort of measure, but the measure of reward for good is greater than the measure of punishment. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a.)
Rabbi Isaac noted that used several words associated elsewhere in Scripture with the Shechinah, and deduced that the Divine Presence thus stood with Miriam as she watched over the baby Moses. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 11a.)
Rabbi Judan said in the name of Rabbi Isaac that God saved Moses from Pharaoh’s sword. Reading Rabbi Yannai asked whether it was possible for a person of flesh and blood to escape from a government. Rather, Rabbi Yannai said that Pharaoh caught Moses and sentenced him to be beheaded. Just as the executioner brought down his sword, Moses’ neck became like an ivory tower (as described in ) and broke the sword. Rabbi Judah haNasi said in the name of Rabbi Evyasar that the sword flew off of Moses’ neck and killed the executioner. The Gemara cited to support this deduction, reading the words “and delivered me” as superfluous unless they were necessary to show that God saved Moses but not the executioner. Rabbi Berechyah cited the executioner’s fate as an application of the proposition of Proverbs
Book of Proverbs
The Book of Proverbs , commonly referred to simply as Proverbs, is a book of the Hebrew Bible.The original Hebrew title of the book of Proverbs is "Míshlê Shlomoh" . When translated into Greek and Latin, the title took on different forms. In the Greek Septuagint the title became "paroimai paroimiae"...
that a wicked ransoms a righteous one, and Rabbi Avun cited it for the same proposition applying In a second explanation of how Moses escaped, Bar Kappara
Bar Kappara
Shimon Bar Kappara was a Jewish rabbi of the late 2nd and early 3rd century CE, during the period between the tannaim and amoraim. He was active in Caesarea in the Land of Israel, from around 180 to 220 CE. His name, meaning “Son of Kapparah”, was taken from his father, Eleazar ha-Kappar...
taught a Baraita that an angel came down from heaven in the likeness of Moses, they seized the angel, and Moses escaped. In a third explanation of how Moses escaped, Rabbi Joshua ben Levi
Joshua ben Levi
Joshua ben Levi or Yehoshua ben Levi was an amora who lived in the land of Israel of the first half of the third century. He headed the school of Lydda in the southern Land of Israel. He was an elder contemporary of Johanan bar Nappaha and Resh Lakish, who presided over the school in Tiberias...
said that when Moses fled from Pharaoh, God incapacitated Pharaoh’s people by making some of them mute, some of them deaf, and some of them blind. When Pharaoh asked where Moses was, the mutes could not reply, the deaf could not hear, and the blind could not see. And it was this event to which God referred in when God asked Moses who made men mute or deaf or blind. (Jerusalem Talmud
Jerusalem Talmud
The Jerusalem Talmud, talmud meaning "instruction", "learning", , is a collection of Rabbinic notes on the 2nd-century Mishnah which was compiled in the Land of Israel during the 4th-5th century. The voluminous text is also known as the Palestinian Talmud or Talmud de-Eretz Yisrael...
Berakhot 87a.)
Rabbi Eleazar deduced from that God redeemed the Israelites from Egypt for five reasons: (1) distress, as reports, “the children of Israel sighed by reason of the bondage”; (2) repentance, as reports, “and their cry came up to God”; (3) the merits of the Patriarchs
Patriarchs (Bible)
The Patriarchs of the Bible, when narrowly defined, are Abraham, the ancestor of all the Abrahamic nations; his son Isaac, the ancestor of the nations surrounding Israel/Judah; and Isaac's son Jacob, also named Israel, the ancestor of the Israelites...
, as reports, “and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob”; (4) God's mercy, as reports, “and God saw the children of Israel”; and (5) the term of their slavery having come to an end, as reports, “and God took cognizance of them.” (Deuteronomy Rabbah
Deuteronomy Rabbah
Deuteronomy Rabbah is an aggadic midrash or homiletic commentary on the Book of Deuteronomy. Unlike Bereshit Rabbah, the Midrash to Deuteronomy which has been included in the collection of the Midrash Rabbot in the ordinary editions does not contain running commentaries on the text of the Bible,...
2:23.)
Exodus chapter 3
The SifraSifra
Sifra is the Halakic midrash to Leviticus. It is frequently quoted in the Talmud, and the study of it followed that of the Mishnah, as appears from Tanḥuma, quoted in Or Zarua, i. 7b. Like Leviticus itself, the midrash is occasionally called "Torat Kohanim" , and in two passages also "Sifra debe...
cited along with for the proposition that whenever God spoke to Moses, God first called out to him. (Sifra 1:1.) And the Sifra cited and for the proposition that when God called the name of a prophet twice, God expressed affection and sought to provoke a response. (Sifra 1:4.)
A Baraita taught that a person should not enter the Temple
Temple in Jerusalem
The Temple in Jerusalem or Holy Temple , refers to one of a series of structures which were historically located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem, the current site of the Dome of the Rock. Historically, these successive temples stood at this location and functioned as the centre of...
Mount either with a staff in hand or shoe on foot, or with money tied up in a cloth, or with a money bag slung over a shoulder, and should not take a short cut through the Temple Mount. The Baraita taught that spitting on the Temple Mount is forbidden a fortiori from the case of wearing a shoe. While the wearing of a show does not show contempt, in God instructed Moses, “Put off your shoes.” The Baraita deduced that the rule must apply all the more to spitting, which does show contempt. But Rabbi Jose bar Judah said that this reasoning was unnecessary, for Esther
Book of Esther
The Book of Esther is a book in the Ketuvim , the third section of the Jewish Tanakh and is part of the Christian Old Testament. The Book of Esther or the Megillah is the basis for the Jewish celebration of Purim...
says, “none may enter within the king's gate clothed in sackcloth.” And thus one may deduce a fortiori that if that is the rule for sackcloth, which is not in itself disgusting, and before an earthly king, how much more would that be the rule with spitting, which is in itself disgusting, and before the supreme King of Kings! (Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 62b.)
A Baraita taught in the name of Rabbi Joshua ben Korhah that God told Moses that when God wanted to be seen at the burning bush, Moses did not want to see God’s face; Moses hid his face in for he was afraid to look upon God. And then in when Moses wanted to see God, God did not want to be seen; in God said, “You cannot see My face.” But Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani said in the name of Rabbi Jonathan that in compensation for three pious acts that Moses did at the burning bush, he was privileged to obtain three rewards. In reward for hiding his face in his face shone in In reward for his fear of God in the Israelites were afraid to come near him in In reward for his reticence “to look upon God,” he beheld the similitude of God in (Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 7a.)
The Gemara reported a number of Rabbis’ reports of how the Land of Israel did indeed flow with “milk and honey,” as described in and 17, 13:5, and 33:3, Leviticus and 14:8, and 11:9, 26:9 and 15, 27:3, and 31:20. Once when Rami bar Ezekiel visited Bnei Brak, he saw goats grazing under fig trees while honey was flowing from the figs, and milk dripped from the goats mingling with the fig honey, causing him to remark that it was indeed a land flowing with milk and honey. Rabbi Jacob ben Dostai said that it is about three miles from Lod
Lod
Lod is a city located on the Sharon Plain southeast of Tel Aviv in the Center District of Israel. At the end of 2010, it had a population of 70,000, roughly 75 percent Jewish and 25 percent Arab.The name is derived from the Biblical city of Lod...
to Ono
Ono, Benjamin
Ono - a town of Benjamin, in the "plain of Ono" ; now Kiryat-Ono, 5 miles north of Lydda , and about 30 miles northwest of Jerusalem. Not succeeding in their attempts to deter Nehemiah from rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, Sanballat and Tobiah resorted to stratagem, and pretending to wish a...
, and once he rose up early in the morning and waded all that way up to his ankles in fig honey. Resh Lakish said that he saw the flow of the milk and honey of Sepphoris
Tzippori
Tzippori , also known as Sepphoris, Dioceserea and Saffuriya is located in the central Galilee region, north-northwest of Nazareth, in modern-day Israel...
extend over an area of sixteen miles by sixteen miles. Rabbah bar Bar Hana said that he saw the flow of the milk and honey in all the Land of Israel and the total area was equal to an area of twenty-two parasang
Parasang
The parasang is a historical Iranian unit of itinerant distance comparable to the European league.In antiquity, the term was used throughout much of the Middle East, and the Old Iranian language from which it derives can no longer be determined...
s by six parasangs. (Babylonian Talmud Ketubot 111b–12a.)
The Tosefta equated God’s visitation with God’s remembrance in verses such as (Tosefta Rosh Hashanah 2:13.)
Exodus chapter 4
Resh Lakish taught that Providence punishes bodily those who unjustifiably suspect the innocent. In Moses said that the Israelites “will not believe me,” but God knew that the Israelites would believe. God thus told Moses that the Israelites were believers and descendants of believers, while Moses would ultimately disbelieve. The Gemara explained that reports that “the people believed” and reports that the Israelites’ ancestor AbrahamAbraham
Abraham , whose birth name was Abram, is the eponym of the Abrahamic religions, among which are Judaism, Christianity and Islam...
“believed in the Lord,” while reports that Moses “did not believe.” Thus, Moses was smitten when in God turned his hand white as snow. (Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 97a.)
The Mishnah counted the miraculous rod of among ten things that God created at twilight at the end of the sixth day of creation. (Mishnah Avot 5:6.)
A midrash explained why Moses returned to Jethro in The midrash taught that when Moses first came to Jethro, he swore that he would not depart without Jethro’s knowledge. Thus when God commissioned Moses to return to Egypt, Moses first went to ask Jethro to absolve him of his oath. (Exodus Rabbah 4:1; see also Babylonian Talmud Nedarim 65a.)
Rabbi Levi bar Hitha taught that one bidding farewell to a living friend should not say, “Go in peace (לֵךְ בְּשָׁלוֹם, lech b’shalom)” but “Go unto peace (לֵךְ לְשָׁלוֹם, lech l’shalom).” The Gemara cited Jethro’s farewell to Moses in as a proof of the proper farewell, for there Jethro said, “Go unto peace,” and Moses went on to succeed in his mission. The Gemara cited David’s farewell to Absalom
Absalom
According to the Bible, Absalom or Avshalom was the third son of David, King of Israel with Maachah, daughter of Talmai, King of Geshur. describes him as the most handsome man in the kingdom...
in as a proof of an improper farewell, for there David said, “Go in peace,” and Absalom went and got caught up in a tree and became easy prey for his adversaries, who killed him. (Babylonian Talmud Moed Katan 29a.)
Rabbi Johanan
Yochanan bar Nafcha
Rabbi Yochanan ;...
said on the authority of Rabbi Simeon ben Yohai that wherever the Torah mentions “quarrelling” (nizzim), the Torah refers to Dathan
Dathan
Dathan was an Israelite mentioned in the Old Testament as a participant of the Exodus.He was a son of Eliab, the son of Pallu, the son of Reuben. Together with his brother Abiram, the Levite Korah and others, he rebelled against Moses and Aaron...
and Abiram
Abiram
Abiram, also spelled Abiron, |father]] is exalted") is the name of two people in the Old Testament. One was the son of Eliab, who, along with his brother Dathan, joined Korah in the conspiracy against Moses and Aaron. He and all the conspirators, with their families and possessions, were swallowed...
. Thus the Gemara identified as Dathan and Abiram the men whom reports sought the life of Moses. Resh Lakish further explained that they had not actually died, as appears to report, but had become impoverished, for (as a Baraita taught) the impoverished are considered as if they were dead (for they have similarly little influence in the world). (Babylonian Talmud Nedarim 64b; see also Exodus Rabbah 5:4.)
A non-Jew asked Shammai
Shammai
Shammai was a Jewish scholar of the 1st century, and an important figure in Judaism's core work of rabbinic literature, the Mishnah....
to convert
Conversion to Judaism
Conversion to Judaism is a formal act undertaken by a non-Jewish person who wishes to be recognised as a full member of the Jewish community. A Jewish conversion is both a religious act and an expression of association with the Jewish people...
him to Judaism on condition that Shammai appoint him High Priest
Kohen Gadol
The High Priest was the chief religious official of Israelite religion and of classical Judaism from the rise of the Israelite nation until the destruction of the Second Temple of Jerusalem...
. Shammai pushed him away with a builder’s ruler. The non-Jew then went to Hillel
Hillel the Elder
Hillel was a famous Jewish religious leader, one of the most important figures in Jewish history. He is associated with the development of the Mishnah and the Talmud...
, who converted him. The convert then read Torah, and when he came to the injunction of 3:10, and 18:7 that “the common man who draws near shall be put to death,” he asked Hillel to whom the injunction applied. Hillel answered that it applied even to David
David
David was the second king of the united Kingdom of Israel according to the Hebrew Bible and, according to the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, an ancestor of Jesus Christ through both Saint Joseph and Mary...
, King of Israel, who had not been a priest. Thereupon the convert reasoned a fortiori that if the injunction applied to all (non-priestly) Israelites, whom in God had called “my firstborn,” how much more so would the injunction apply to a mere convert, who came among the Israelites with just his staff and bag. Then the convert returned to Shammai, quoted the injunction, and remarked on how absurd it had been for him to ask Shammai to appoint him High Priest. (Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 31a.)
A Baraita taught that Rabbi Joshua ben Karha said that great is circumcision, for all the meritorious deeds performed by Moses did not protect him when he delayed circumcising his son Eliezer
Eliezer
For the mathematician and Tamil activist see C.J. Eliezer; for the AI researcher and writer on rationality see Eliezer Yudkowsky; for the Levite priest of the Hebrew Bible, see Eleazar...
, and that failure brought about what reports: “and the Lord met him, and sought to kill him.” Rabbi Jose
Jose ben Halafta
Rabbi Jose ben Halafta or Yose ben Halafta was a Tanna of the fourth generation . Jose was a student of Rabbi Akiba and was regarded as one of the foremost scholars of halakha and aggadah of his day...
, however, taught that Moses was not apathetic towards circumcision, but reasoned that if he circumcised his son and then immediately left on his mission to Pharaoh, he would endanger his son’s life. Moses wondered whether he should circumcise his son and wait three days, but God had commanded him (in ) to “return into Egypt.” According to Rabbi Jose, God sought to punish Moses because Moses busied himself first with securing lodging at an inn (rather than seeing to the circumcision), as reports, “And it came to pass on the way at the lodging-place.” Rabban Simeon ben Gamaliel
Shimon ben Gamliel
Simeon ben Gamliel was a Tanna sage and leader of the Jewish people. He succeeded his father Gamliel I as the nasi of the Sanhedrin after his father's death in 50 CE and just before the destruction of the Second Temple...
taught that the Accuser did not seek to slay Moses but Eliezer, for reports, “Then Zipporah took a flint, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet; and she said: ‘Surely a bridegroom of blood are you to me.’” Rabban Simeon ben Gamaliel reasoned that the one who could be called “a bridegroom of blood” was the infant who had been circumcised. Rabbi Judah bar Bizna taught that when Moses delayed circumcising Eliezer, two angels named Af (אַף, Anger) and Hemah (חֵמָה, Wrath) came and swallowed Moses up, leaving nothing but his legs unconsumed. Zipporah deduced from the angels’ leaving the lower part of Moses exposed that the danger stemmed from failing to circumcise Eliezer, and (in the words of ) she “took a sharp stone and cut off the foreskin of her son,” and right away Af and Hemah let Moses go. At that moment, Moses wanted to kill Af and Hemah, as says, “Cease from anger (Af) and forsake wrath (Hemah).” Some say that Moses did kill Hemah, as says, “I have not wrath (Hemah).” But says, “I was afraid of anger (Af) and wrath (Hemah),” so the two must have been alive at that later time. The Gemara posited that there might have been two angels named Hemah. Alternatively, the Gemara suggested that Moses may have killed one of Hemah’s legions. (Babylonian Talmud Nedarim 31b–32a.)
Exodus chapter 5
While the House of ShammaiHouse of Shammai
The House of Shammai was the school of thought of Judaism founded by Shammai, a Jewish scholar of the 1st century...
argued that the requirement for the appearance offering
Korban
The term offering as found in the Hebrew Bible in relation to the worship of Ancient Israel is mainly represented by the Hebrew noun korban whether for an animal or other offering...
was greater than that for the festival offering, the House of Hillel
Hillel the Elder
Hillel was a famous Jewish religious leader, one of the most important figures in Jewish history. He is associated with the development of the Mishnah and the Talmud...
cited to show that the festival offering applied both before and after the revelation at Mount Sinai
Biblical Mount Sinai
The Biblical Mount Sinai is the mountain at which the Book of Exodus states that the Ten Commandments were given to Moses by God...
, and thus its requirement was greater than that for the appearance offering. (Tosefta Chagigah 1:4.)
A midrash interpreted the words of “A man’s pride shall bring him low; but he that is of a lowly spirit shall attain to honor,” to apply to Pharaoh and Moses, respectively. The midrash taught that the words, “A man’s pride shall bring him low,” apply to Pharaoh, who in haughtily asked, “Who is the Lord that I should hearken to His voice?” and so, as reports, God “overthrew Pharaoh and his host.” And the midrash taught that the words, “but he that is of a lowly spirit shall attain to honor,” apply to Moses, who in humbly asked Pharaoh, “Have this glory over me; at what time shall I entreat for you . . . that the frogs be destroyed,” and was rewarded in with the opportunity to say, “As soon as I am gone out of the city, I will spread forth my hands to the Lord [and] the thunders shall cease, neither shall there be any more hail.” (Numbers Rabbah
Numbers Rabbah
Numbers Rabbah is a religious text holy to classical Judaism. It is a midrash comprising a collection of ancient rabbinical homiletic interpretations of the book of Numbers ....
13:3.)
The Pharisees
Pharisees
The Pharisees were at various times a political party, a social movement, and a school of thought among Jews during the Second Temple period beginning under the Hasmonean dynasty in the wake of...
noted that while in Pharaoh asked who God was, once God had smitten him, in Pharaoh acknowledged that God was righteous. Citing this juxtaposition, the Pharisees complained against heretics who placed the name of earthly rulers above the name of God. (Mishnah Yadayim 4:8.)
Commandments
According to MaimonidesMaimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
and Sefer ha-Chinuch
Sefer ha-Chinuch
The Sefer ha-Chinuch , often simply "the Chinuch" is a work which systematically discusses the 613 commandments of the Torah. It was published anonymously in 13th century Spain...
, there are no commandments
Mitzvah
The primary meaning of the Hebrew word refers to precepts and commandments as commanded by God...
in the parshAH (Maimonides. Mishneh Torah
Mishneh Torah
The Mishneh Torah subtitled Sefer Yad ha-Hazaka is a code of Jewish religious law authored by Maimonides , one of history's foremost rabbis...
. Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
, Egypt, 1170–1180. Reprinted in Maimonides. The Commandments: Sefer Ha-Mitzvoth of Maimonides. Translated by Charles B. Chavel, 2 vols. London: Soncino Press, 1967. ISBN 0-900689-71-4. Sefer HaHinnuch: The Book of [Mitzvah] Education. Translated by Charles Wengrov, 1:93. Jerusalem: Feldheim Pub., 1991. ISBN 0-87306-179-9.)
Haftarah
Haftarah
The haftarah or haftoroh is a series of selections from the books of Nevi'im of the Hebrew Bible that is publicly read in synagogue as part of Jewish religious practice...
for the parshah is:
- for Ashkenazi JewsAshkenazi JewsAshkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim , are the Jews descended from the medieval Jewish communities along the Rhine in Germany from Alsace in the south to the Rhineland in the north. Ashkenaz is the medieval Hebrew name for this region and thus for Germany...
: and - for Sephardi JewsSephardi JewsSephardi Jews is a general term referring to the descendants of the Jews who lived in the Iberian Peninsula before their expulsion in the Spanish Inquisition. It can also refer to those who use a Sephardic style of liturgy or would otherwise define themselves in terms of the Jewish customs and...
:
Ashkenazi — Isaiah 27
The parshah and haftarah in both address how Israel could prepare for God’s deliverance. RashiRashi
Shlomo Yitzhaki , or in Latin Salomon Isaacides, and today generally known by the acronym Rashi , was a medieval French rabbi famed as the author of a comprehensive commentary on the Talmud, as well as a comprehensive commentary on the Tanakh...
in his commentary on Isaiah 27:6–8 drew connections between the fruitfulness of and between the killings of and God’s slaying of Pharaoh’s people in, for example, and between the winds of and those that drove the Reed Sea in
Sephardi — Jeremiah 1
The parshah and haftarah in both report the commissioning of a prophet, Moses in the parshah and JeremiahJeremiah
Jeremiah Hebrew：יִרְמְיָה , Modern Hebrew:Yirməyāhū, IPA: jirməˈjaːhu, Tiberian:Yirmĭyahu, Greek:Ἰερεμίας), meaning "Yahweh exalts", or called the "Weeping prophet" was one of the main prophets of the Hebrew Bible...
in the haftarah. In both the parshah and the haftarah, God calls to the prophet , the prophet resists, citing his lack of capacity , but God encourages the prophet and promises to be with him.
In the liturgy
The PassoverPassover
Passover is a Jewish holiday and festival. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt...
Haggadah, in the magid section of the Seder
Passover Seder
The Passover Seder is a Jewish ritual feast that marks the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Passover. It is conducted on the evenings of the 14th day of Nisan in the Hebrew calendar, and on the 15th by traditionally observant Jews living outside Israel. This corresponds to late March or April in...
, quotes to elucidate the report in that the Israelites had become “great” and “mighty.” (Menachem Davis. The Interlinear Haggadah: The Passover Haggadah, with an Interlinear Translation, Instructions and Comments, 44. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications
ArtScroll
ArtScroll is an imprint of translations, books and commentaries from an Orthodox Jewish perspective published by Mesorah Publications, Ltd., a publishing company based in Brooklyn, New York...
, 2005. ISBN 1-57819-064-9. Joseph Tabory. JPS Commentary on the Haggadah: Historical Introduction, Translation, and Commentary, 91. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 2008. ISBN 978-0-8276-0858-0.)
Also in the magid section, the Haggadah quotes to answer the question: For what purpose do Jews eat bitter herbs (maror
Maror
Maror also Marror, refers to the bitter herbs eaten at the Passover Seder in keeping with the biblical commandment "with bitter herbs they shall eat it." .-Biblical source:...
)? The Haggadah quotes for the proposition that Jews do so because the Egyptians embittered the Israelites’ lives in Egypt. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 59–60; Tabory, at 100.)
Also in the magid section, the Haggadah cites and to elucidate the report in that “we cried to the Lord, the God of our fathers, and the Lord heard our voice, and saw our affliction, and our toil, and our oppression.” (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 46–47; Tabory, at 92–93.) The Haggadah quotes to explain the Israelites’ travail, interpreting that travail as the loss of the baby boys. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 47; Tabory, at 93.) The Haggadah quotes for the proposition that the Israelites cried to God. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 46; Tabory, at 92.) The Haggadah quotes for the proposition that God heard the Israelites’ voice. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 46–47; Tabory, at 92.) The Haggadah quotes for the proposition that God saw the Israelites’ affliction, interpreting that affliction as the suspension of family life. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 47; Tabory, at 92.) And the Haggadah quotes to explain the Israelites’ oppression, interpreting that oppression as pressure or persecution. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 47; Tabory, at 93.)
And shortly thereafter, the Haggadah quotes to elucidate the term “signs” in interpreting the “sign” to mean the staff of Moses
The Staff of Moses
According to the Book of Exodus in the Bible, the staff used by Moses was by his side throughout important milestones in the narrative...
. (Davis, Passover Haggadah, at 50; Tabory, at 94.)
The “cry” (tza’akah) of the Israelites that God acknowledged in appears in the Ana B’khoah, prayer for deliverance recited in the Kabbalat Shabbat prayer service
Jewish services
Jewish prayer are the prayer recitations that form part of the observance of Judaism. These prayers, often with instructions and commentary, are found in the siddur, the traditional Jewish prayer book....
between and Lekhah Dodi
Lekhah Dodi
Lekhah Dodi is a Hebrew-language Jewish liturgical song recited Friday at dusk, usually at sundown, in synagogue to welcome Shabbat prior to the Maariv...
. (Reuven Hammer
Reuven Hammer
Reuven Hammer is a Conservative Jewish rabbi, scholar of Jewish liturgy, author and lecturer. He is a founder of the Masorti movement in Israel and a past president of the International Rabbinical Assembly. He served many years as head of the Masorti Beth Din in Israel...
. Or Hadash: A Commentary on Siddur Sim Shalom
Siddur Sim Shalom
Siddur Sim Shalom may refer to any siddur in a family of siddurim, Jewish prayerbooks, and related commentaries on these siddurim, published by the Rabbinical Assembly and the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism....
for Shabbat and Festivals, 20. New York: The Rabbinical Assembly
Rabbinical Assembly
The Rabbinical Assembly is the international association of Conservative rabbis. The RA was founded in 1901 to shape the ideology, programs, and practices of the Conservative movement. It publishes prayerbooks and books of Jewish interest, and oversees the work of the Committee on Jewish Law and...
, 2003. ISBN 0-916219-20-8.)
According to a midrash, states God’s intention in removing Israel from Egyptian slavery when it says, “you shall serve God upon this mountain.” And it was to this service that Moses dedicated the Tabernacle
Tabernacle
The Tabernacle , according to the Hebrew Torah/Old Testament, was the portable dwelling place for the divine presence from the time of the Exodus from Egypt through the conquering of the land of Canaan. Built to specifications revealed by God to Moses at Mount Sinai, it accompanied the Israelites...
, and it was on the day that Moses completed the Tabernacle that Moses composed which Jews recite in the Pseukei D’Zimrah section of the morning (Shacharit
Shacharit
Shacharit is the the daily morning Tefillah of the Jewish people, one of the three times there is prayer each day.Shacharit is said to have been established by the patriarch Abraham when he prayed in the morning...
) prayer service. (Menachem Davis. The Schottenstein Edition Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals with an Interlinear Translation, 272. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 2002. ISBN 1-57819-697-3.)
The exchange of Moses and God in about God’s name is in part about how we as humans can perceive God, and that in turn is one of the motivations of prayer. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at XXVI.)
Some Jews read about the staff of Moses in as they study Pirkei Avot chapter 5 on a Sabbath between Passover and Rosh Hashanah
Rosh Hashanah
Rosh Hashanah , , is the Jewish New Year. It is the first of the High Holy Days or Yamim Nora'im which occur in the autumn...
. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 571.)
The Weekly Maqam
In the Weekly MaqamThe Weekly Maqam
In Mizrahi and Sephardic Middle Eastern Jewish prayer services, each Shabbat the congregation conducts services using a different maqam. A maqam , which in Arabic literally means 'place', is a standard melody type and set of related tunes. The melodies used in a given maqam aims effectively to...
, Sephardi Jews each week base the songs of the services on the content of that week's parshah. For Parshah Shemot, Sephardi Jews apply Maqam Rast, the maqam that shows a beginning or an initiation of something. In this case it is appropriate because we are initiating the Book of Exodus.
Further reading
The parshah has parallels or is discussed in these sources:Ancient
- Satire of Trades. Papyrus Sallier II, column VI, lines 1-3 Middle Kingdom Egypt. (life of bricklayers).
- The Legend of SargonSargon of AkkadSargon of Akkad, also known as Sargon the Great "the Great King" , was an Akkadian emperor famous for his conquest of the Sumerian city-states in the 23rd and 22nd centuries BC. The founder of the Dynasty of Akkad, Sargon reigned in the last quarter of the third millennium BC...
. AssyriaAssyriaAssyria was a Semitic Akkadian kingdom, extant as a nation state from the mid–23rd century BC to 608 BC centred on the Upper Tigris river, in northern Mesopotamia , that came to rule regional empires a number of times through history. It was named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur...
, 7th century BCE. Reprinted in e.g. James B. PritchardJames B. PritchardJames Bennett Pritchard was an American archeologist whose work explicated the interrelationships of the religions of ancient Israel, Canaan, Egypt, Assyria, and Babylon...
. Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, 119. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1969. ISBN 0691035032. (child upon the water).
Biblical
(sojourn in Egypt); (circumcision); (abandoned infant); (courtship at the well); (courtship at the well). 20, 27; 8 (hardening Pharaoh’s heart). (hardening of heart); (hardening of heart); (bush).- JoshuaBook of JoshuaThe Book of Joshua is the sixth book in the Hebrew Bible and of the Old Testament. Its 24 chapters tell of the entry of the Israelites into Canaan, their conquest and division of the land under the leadership of Joshua, and of serving God in the land....
(hardening of heart). (abandoned infant). - JobBook of JobThe Book of Job , commonly referred to simply as Job, is one of the books of the Hebrew Bible. It relates the story of Job, his trials at the hands of Satan, his discussions with friends on the origins and nature of his suffering, his challenge to God, and finally a response from God. The book is a...
(God asking who created the world).
Early nonrabbinic
- Ezekiel the TragedianEzekiel the TragedianEzekiel the Tragedian, also known as Ezekiel the Poet, was a Jewish dramatist who wrote in Alexandria during the 2nd century BCE. His work survives only in fragments found in the writings of Eusebius, Clement of Alexandria, and Pseudo-Eustathius. His only known work, Exagōgē, is a five-act drama...
. Exagōgē. 2nd century BCE. Translated by R.G. Robertson. In The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha: Volume 2: Expansions of the “Old Testament” and Legends, Wisdom and Philosophical Literature, Prayers, Psalms, and Odes, Fragments of Lost Judeo-Hellenistic works. Edited by James H. CharlesworthJames H. CharlesworthJames H. Charlesworth is the George L. Collord Professor of New Testament Language and Literature and director of the Dead Sea Scrolls Project at Princeton Theological Seminary. He is noted for his research in Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Hebrew and Christian Bibles, the Dead Sea Scrolls,...
, 808–15. New York: Anchor BibleAnchor Bible SeriesThe Anchor Bible project, consisting of a Commentary Series, Bible Dictionary, and Reference Library, is a scholarly and commercial co-venture begun in 1956, when individual volumes in the commentary series began production...
, 1985. ISBN 0-385-18813-7. - RomansEpistle to the RomansThe Epistle of Paul to the Romans, often shortened to Romans, is the sixth book in the New Testament. Biblical scholars agree that it was composed by the Apostle Paul to explain that Salvation is offered through the Gospel of Jesus Christ...
1st century. (hardening Pharaoh’s heart). - 2 TimothySecond Epistle to TimothyThe Second Epistle of Paul to Timothy, usually referred to simply as Second Timothy and often written 2 Timothy, is one of the three Pastoral Epistles traditionally attributed to Saint Paul, and is part of the New Testament...
Rome, 67 CE. (magicians opposing Moses). - HebrewsEpistle to the HebrewsThe Epistle to the Hebrews is one of the books in the New Testament. Its author is not known.The primary purpose of the Letter to the Hebrews is to exhort Christians to persevere in the face of persecution. The central thought of the entire Epistle is the doctrine of the Person of Christ and his...
Late 1st century. (Moses). - MatthewGospel of MatthewThe Gospel According to Matthew is one of the four canonical gospels, one of the three synoptic gospels, and the first book of the New Testament. It tells of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth...
Late 1st century. (slaughter of the innocentsMassacre of the InnocentsThe Massacre of the Innocents is an episode of infanticide by the King of Judea, Herod the Great. According to the Gospel of Matthew Herod orders the execution of all young male children in the village of Bethlehem, so as to avoid the loss of his throne to a newborn King of the Jews whose birth...
). - ActsActs of the ApostlesThe Acts of the Apostles , usually referred to simply as Acts, is the fifth book of the New Testament; Acts outlines the history of the Apostolic Age...
Late 1st century. (Moses).
- RevelationBook of RevelationThe Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament. The title came into usage from the first word of the book in Koine Greek: apokalupsis, meaning "unveiling" or "revelation"...
Late 1st century. (changing hearts to God’s purpose). - JosephusJosephusTitus Flavius Josephus , also called Joseph ben Matityahu , was a 1st-century Romano-Jewish historian and hagiographer of priestly and royal ancestry who recorded Jewish history, with special emphasis on the 1st century AD and the First Jewish–Roman War, which resulted in the Destruction of...
. Antiquities of the JewsAntiquities of the JewsAntiquities of the Jews is a twenty volume historiographical work composed by the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus in the thirteenth year of the reign of Roman emperor Flavius Domitian which was around 93 or 94 AD. Antiquities of the Jews contains an account of history of the Jewish people,...
2:9:1–2:13:4. Circa 93–94. Reprinted in, e.g., The Works of Josephus: Complete and Unabridged, New Updated Edition. Translated by William WhistonWilliam WhistonWilliam Whiston was an English theologian, historian, and mathematician. He is probably best known for his translation of the Antiquities of the Jews and other works by Josephus, his A New Theory of the Earth, and his Arianism...
, 66–73. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Pub., 1987. ISBN 0-913573-86-8. - Qur'anQur'anThe Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
20:9–48; 26:10–29; 27:7–12; 28:3–35; 79:15–19. Arabia, 7th century.
Classical rabbinic
- MishnahMishnahThe Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
: Sotah 1:9; Avot 5:6; Yadayim 4:8. 3rd century. Reprinted in, e.g., The Mishnah: A New Translation. Translated by Jacob NeusnerJacob NeusnerJacob Neusner is an American academic scholar of Judaism who lives in Rhinebeck, New York.-Biography:Born in Hartford, Connecticut, Neusner was educated at Harvard University, the Jewish Theological Seminary of America , the University of Oxford, and Columbia University.Neusner is often celebrated...
, 449, 686, 1131. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1988. ISBN 0-300-05022-4.
- ToseftaToseftaThe Tosefta is a compilation of the Jewish oral law from the period of the Mishnah.-Overview:...
: Rosh Hashanah 2:13; Chagigah 1:4; Sotah 3:13, 4:12, 10:10. 3rd–4th century. Reprinted in, e.g., The Tosefta: Translated from the Hebrew, with a New Introduction. Translated by Jacob NeusnerJacob NeusnerJacob Neusner is an American academic scholar of Judaism who lives in Rhinebeck, New York.-Biography:Born in Hartford, Connecticut, Neusner was educated at Harvard University, the Jewish Theological Seminary of America , the University of Oxford, and Columbia University.Neusner is often celebrated...
, 615, 665, 841, 848, 877. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Pub., 2002. ISBN 1-56563-642-2. - Jerusalem TalmudJerusalem TalmudThe Jerusalem Talmud, talmud meaning "instruction", "learning", , is a collection of Rabbinic notes on the 2nd-century Mishnah which was compiled in the Land of Israel during the 4th-5th century. The voluminous text is also known as the Palestinian Talmud or Talmud de-Eretz Yisrael...
Berakhot 87a. 4th century. Reprinted in, e.g., Talmud Yerushalmi: Tractate Berachos. Edited by Chaim Malinowitz, Yisroel Simcha Schorr, and Mordechai Marcus, vol. 2. Brooklyn: Mesorah Pubs., 2006. ISBN 1-4226-0235-4. - Babylonian TalmudTalmudThe Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
: Berakhot 7a, 55a; Eruvin 53a; Pesachim 39a, 116b; Megillah 29a; Sotah 11a–13a, 35a, 36b; Kiddushin 13a; Bava Batra 120a; Sanhedrin 101b, 106a; Chullin 92a, 127a. Babylonia, 6th century. Reprinted in, e.g., Talmud Bavli. Edited by Yisroel Simcha Schorr, Chaim Malinowitz, and Mordechai Marcus, 72 vols. Brooklyn: Mesorah Pubs., 2006.
Medieval
- Exodus RabbahExodus RabbahExodus Rabbah is the midrash to Exodus, containing in the printed editions 52 parashiyyot. It is not uniform in its composition.- Structure :In parashiyyot i.-xiv...
1:1–5:23. 10th century. Reprinted in, e.g., Midrash Rabbah: Exodus. Translated by S. M. Lehrman. London: Soncino Press, 1939. ISBN 0-900689-38-2.
- RashiRashiShlomo Yitzhaki , or in Latin Salomon Isaacides, and today generally known by the acronym Rashi , was a medieval French rabbi famed as the author of a comprehensive commentary on the Talmud, as well as a comprehensive commentary on the Tanakh...
. Commentary. Exodus 1–6. TroyesTroyesTroyes is a commune and the capital of the Aube department in north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about southeast of Paris. Many half-timbered houses survive in the old town...
, France, late 11th century. Reprinted in, e.g., Rashi. The Torah: With Rashi’s Commentary Translated, Annotated, and Elucidated. Translated and annotated by Yisrael Isser Zvi Herczeg, 2:1–51. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 1994. ISBN 0-89906-027-7. - Judah HaleviYehuda HaleviJudah Halevi was a Spanish Jewish physician, poet and philosopher. He was born in Spain, either in Toledo or Tudela, in 1075 or 1086, and died shortly after arriving in Palestine in 1141...
. KuzariKuzariThe Kitab al Khazari, commonly called the Kuzari, is one of most famous works of the medieval Spanish Jewish philosopher and poet Rabbi Yehuda Halevi, completed around 1140. Its title is an Arabic phrase meaning Book of the Khazars...
. 4:3, 15. ToledoToledo, SpainToledo's Alcázar became renowned in the 19th and 20th centuries as a military academy. At the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936 its garrison was famously besieged by Republican forces.-Economy:...
, Spain, 1130–1140. Reprinted in, e.g., Jehuda Halevi. Kuzari: An Argument for the Faith of Israel. Intro. by Henry Slonimsky, 202, 221. New York: Schocken, 1964. ISBN 0-8052-0075-4. - ZoharZoharThe Zohar is the foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material on Mysticism, mythical cosmogony, and mystical psychology...
2:2a–22a. Spain, late 13th century.
Modern
- Niccolò MachiavelliNiccolò MachiavelliNiccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli was an Italian historian, philosopher, humanist, and writer based in Florence during the Renaissance. He is one of the main founders of modern political science. He was a diplomat, political philosopher, playwright, and a civil servant of the Florentine Republic...
. The PrinceThe PrinceThe Prince is a political treatise by the Italian diplomat, historian and political theorist Niccolò Machiavelli. From correspondence a version appears to have been distributed in 1513, using a Latin title, De Principatibus . But the printed version was not published until 1532, five years after...
, ch. 6. FlorenceFlorenceFlorence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, Italy, 1532.
- Thomas HobbesThomas HobbesThomas Hobbes of Malmesbury , in some older texts Thomas Hobbs of Malmsbury, was an English philosopher, best known today for his work on political philosophy...
. LeviathanLeviathan (book)Leviathan or The Matter, Forme and Power of a Common Wealth Ecclesiasticall and Civil — commonly called simply Leviathan — is a book written by Thomas Hobbes and published in 1651. Its name derives from the biblical Leviathan...
, 3:36, 37; 4:45. England, 1651. Reprint edited by C. B. MacphersonC. B. MacphersonCrawford Brough Macpherson O.C. M.Sc. D. Sc. was an influential Canadian political scientist who taught political theory at the University of Toronto.-Life:...
, 456, 460, 472, 671. Harmondsworth, England: Penguin Classics, 1982. ISBN 0140431950. - Moshe Chaim LuzzattoMoshe Chaim LuzzattoMoshe Chaim Luzzatto , also known by the Hebrew acronym RaMCHaL , was a prominent Italian Jewish rabbi, kabbalist, and philosopher.-Padua:Born in Padua at night, he received classical Jewish and Italian educations, showing a...
Mesillat YesharimMesillat YesharimThe Mesillat Yesharim is an ethical text composed by the influential Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto . It is quite different from Luzzato's other writings, which are more philosophical....
, ch. 2. Amsterdam, 1740. Reprinted in Mesillat Yesharim: The Path of the Just, 31. Jerusalem: Feldheim, 1966. ISBN 0-87306-114-4. - J.H. IngrahamJoseph Holt IngrahamJoseph Holt Ingraham was an American author.- Biography :Ingraham was born in 1809 in Portland, Maine. He spent several years at sea, then worked as a teacher of languages in Mississippi. In the 1840's he published work in Arthur's Magazine...
. The Pillar of Fire: Or Israel in Bondage. New York: A.L. Burt, 1859. Reprinted Ann Arbor, Mich.: Scholarly Publishing Office, University of Michigan Library, 2006. ISBN 1425564917. - Arthur E. SouthonArthur Eustace SouthonThe Reverend Arthur Eustace Southon , usually known as A. E. Southon, was an English minister in the Methodist Church, and author...
. On Eagles' Wings. London: Cassell and Co., 1937. Reprinted New York: McGraw-Hill, 1954. - Sigmund FreudSigmund FreudSigmund Freud , born Sigismund Schlomo Freud , was an Austrian neurologist who founded the discipline of psychoanalysis...
. Moses and MonotheismMoses and MonotheismMoses and Monotheism, 1939 by Sigmund Freud, ISBN 978-0394700144 is a book where Freud hypothesizes that Moses was not Jewish, but actually born into Ancient Egyptian nobility and was perhaps a follower of Akhenaten, an ancient Egyptian monotheist, or perhaps Akhenaten himself...
. 1939. Reprint, New York: Vintage, 1967. ISBN 0-394-70014-7. - Zora Neale HurstonZora Neale HurstonZora Neale Hurston was an American folklorist, anthropologist, and author during the time of the Harlem Renaissance...
. Moses, Man of the Mountain. J.B. Lippincott, 1939. Reprint, Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 2008.
- Thomas MannThomas MannThomas Mann was a German novelist, short story writer, social critic, philanthropist, essayist, and 1929 Nobel Prize laureate, known for his series of highly symbolic and ironic epic novels and novellas, noted for their insight into the psychology of the artist and the intellectual...
. Joseph and His BrothersJoseph and His BrothersJoseph and His Brothers is a four-part novel by Thomas Mann, written over the course of 16 years. Mann retells the familiar stories of Genesis, from Jacob to Joseph , setting it in the historical context of the Amarna Period...
. Translated by John E. WoodsJohn E. WoodsJohn E. Woods is a translator who specializes in translating German literature, since about 1978. His work includes much of the fictional prose of Arno Schmidt and the works of contemporary authors such as Ingo Schulze and Christoph Ransmayr...
, 101, 492–93, 729, 788, 859. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2005. ISBN 1-4000-4001-9. Originally published as Joseph und seine Brüder. Stockholm: Bermann-Fischer Verlag, 1943. - Thomas Mann. "Thou Shalt Have No Other Gods Before Me." In The Ten Commandments, 3-70. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1943.
- Dorothy Clarke WilsonDorothy Clarke WilsonDorothy Clarke Wilson was an American author and playwright.Dorothy Clarke was born in Gardiner, Maine in 1904. She attended Bates College and graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1925 and married classmate, Elwin L. Wilson...
. Prince of Egypt. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1949. - Sholem AschSholem AschSholem Asch, born Szalom Asz , also written Shalom Asch was a Polish-born American Jewish novelist, dramatist, and essayist in the Yiddish language.-Life and work:...
. Moses. New York: Putam, 1951. ISBN 999740629X. - Martin BuberMartin BuberMartin Buber was an Austrian-born Jewish philosopher best known for his philosophy of dialogue, a form of religious existentialism centered on the distinction between the I-Thou relationship and the I-It relationship....
. Moses: The Revelation and the Covenant. New York: Harper, 1958. Reprint, Humanity Books, 1988. ISBN 1573924490. - Howard FastHoward FastHoward Melvin Fast was an American novelist and television writer. Fast also wrote under the pen names E. V. Cunningham and Walter Ericson.-Early life:Fast was born in New York City...
. Moses, Prince of Egypt. New York: Crown Pubs., 1958. - Dorothy M. Slusser. At the Foot of the Mountain: Stories from the Book of Exodus, 9–31. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1961.
- Martin Buber. On the Bible: Eighteen studies, 44–62, 80–92. New York: Schocken Books, 1968.
- Samuel Sandmel. Alone Atop the Mountain. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1973. ISBN 0-385-03877-1.
- A. M. KleinA. M. KleinAbraham Moses Klein was a Canadian poet, journalist, novelist, short story writer, and lawyer. He has been called "One of Canada's greatest poets and a leading figure in Jewish-Canadian culture."...
. “The Bitter Dish.” In The Collected Poems of A. M. Klein, 144. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 1974. ISBN 0-07-077625-3. - James S. Ackerman. “The Literary Context of the Moses Birth Story (Exodus 1–2).” In Literary Interpretations of Biblical Narratives. Edited by Kenneth R.R. Gros Louis, with James & Thayer S. Warshaw, 74–119. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1974. ISBN 0-687-22131-5.
- David DaichesDavid DaichesDavid Daiches was a Scottish literary historian and literary critic, scholar and writer. He wrote extensively on English literature, Scottish literature and Scottish culture.-Early life:...
. Moses: The Man and his Vision. New York: Praeger, 1975. ISBN 0-275-33740-5.
- Elie WieselElie WieselSir Eliezer "Elie" Wiesel KBE; born September 30, 1928) is a Hungarian-born Jewish-American writer, professor, political activist, Nobel Laureate, and Holocaust survivor. He is the author of 57 books, including Night, a work based on his experiences as a prisoner in the Auschwitz, Buna, and...
. “Moses: Portrait of a Leader.” In Messengers of God: Biblical Portraits & Legends, 174–210. New York: Random House, 1976. ISBN 0-394-49740-6. - Marc Gellman. Does God Have a Big Toe? Stories About Stories in the Bible, 65–71, 77–83. New York: HarperCollins, 1989. ISBN 0-06-022432-0.
- Aaron WildavskyAaron WildavskyAaron Wildavsky was an American political scientist known for his pioneering work in public policy, government budgeting, and risk management....
. Assimilation versus Separation: Joseph the Administrator and the Politics of Religion in Biblical Israel, 1, 8, 13–15. New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction Publishers, 1993. ISBN 1-56000-081-3. - Sandy Eisenberg Sasso. "In God's Name". Woodstock, Vermont: Jewish Lights Publishing, 1994. ISBN 1879045265.
- Barack ObamaBarack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
. Dreams from My FatherDreams from My FatherDreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance is a memoir by United States President Barack Obama. It was first published in July 1995 as he was preparing to launch his political career, five years after being elected the first African-American president of the Harvard Law Review in...
, 294. New York: Three Rivers Press, 1995, 2004. ISBN 1-4000-8277-3. (Moses and Pharaoh). - Walter Wangerin, Jr.Walter Wangerin, Jr.Walter Wangerin, Jr. is an award-winning American author and educator best known for his religious novels and children's books.-Biography:...
. The Book of God: The Bible as a Novel, 101–11. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 1996. ISBN 0-310-20409-7. - Jan AssmannJan AssmannJan Assmann is a German Egyptologist who was born in Langelsheim.-Education and teaching:He went to school in Lübeck and Heidelberg before going on to study Egyptology, Classical Archeology and Greek Studies in Munich, Heidelberg, Paris and Göttingen...
. Moses the Egyptian: The Memory of Egypt in Western Monotheism. Harvard University Press, 1997. ISBN 0-674-58738-3. - Orson Scott CardOrson Scott CardOrson Scott Card is an American author, critic, public speaker, essayist, columnist, and political activist. He writes in several genres, but is primarily known for his science fiction. His novel Ender's Game and its sequel Speaker for the Dead both won Hugo and Nebula Awards, making Card the...
. Stone Tables. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1998. ISBN 1-57345-115-0. - Jonathan KirschJonathan KirschJonathan Kirsch is a Biblical scholar, an attorney, and columnist for the Los Angeles Times. He is a bestselling author of books on religion, the Bible, and Judaism. He earned a B.A. degree in Russian and Jewish history from the University of California, Santa Cruz and a J.D. degree from Loyola...
. Moses: A Life. New York: Ballantine, 1998. ISBN 0-345-41269-9. - Jacob MilgromJacob MilgromJacob Milgrom was a prominent American Jewish Bible scholar and Conservative rabbi, best known for his comprehensive Torah commentaries and work on the Dead Sea Scrolls.-Biography:...
. Leviticus 1–16, 3:747. New York: Anchor Bible, 1998. ISBN 0-385-11434-6. (bridegroom of blood). - Brenda Ray. The Midwife's Song: A Story of Moses' Birth. Port St. Joe, Fla.: Karmichael Press, 2000. ISBN 0965396681.
- Pharaoh's DaughterPharaoh's DaughterPharaoh's Daughter is a world music band from New York City. Their music is a mix of American folk, Jewish klezmer, and Middle Eastern sounds.The bandleader is Basya Schechter...
. "Off and On." In Exile. Knitting Factory, 2002. (burning bush). - Joel Cohen. Moses: A Memoir. Mahwah, N.J.: Paulist Press, 2003. ISBN 0-8091-0558-6.
- Ogden Goelet. “Moses’ Egyptian Name.” Bible ReviewBible ReviewBible Review was a publication that sought to connect the academic study of the Bible to a broad general audience. Covering both the Old and New Testaments, Bible Review presented critical and historical interpretations of biblical texts, and “reader-friendly Biblical scholarship” from 1985 to...
19 (3) (June 2003): 12–17, 50–51. - Reuven HammerReuven HammerReuven Hammer is a Conservative Jewish rabbi, scholar of Jewish liturgy, author and lecturer. He is a founder of the Masorti movement in Israel and a past president of the International Rabbinical Assembly. He served many years as head of the Masorti Beth Din in Israel...
. Or Hadash: A Commentary on Siddur Sim ShalomSiddur Sim ShalomSiddur Sim Shalom may refer to any siddur in a family of siddurim, Jewish prayerbooks, and related commentaries on these siddurim, published by the Rabbinical Assembly and the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism....
for Shabbat and Festivals, 30. New York: The Rabbinical AssemblyRabbinical AssemblyThe Rabbinical Assembly is the international association of Conservative rabbis. The RA was founded in 1901 to shape the ideology, programs, and practices of the Conservative movement. It publishes prayerbooks and books of Jewish interest, and oversees the work of the Committee on Jewish Law and...
, 2003. ISBN 0-916219-20-8. (The Name of God). - Alan Lew. This Is Real and You Are Completely Unprepared: The Days of Awe as a Journey of Transformation, 122. Boston: Little, Brown and Co., 2003. ISBN 0-316-73908-1. (the burning bush).
- Joseph TelushkinJoseph TelushkinJoseph Telushkin is an American rabbi, lecturer, and author.-Biography:Telushkin attended the Yeshiva of Flatbush, was ordained at Yeshiva University, and studied Jewish history at Columbia University....
. The Ten Commandments of Character: Essential Advice for Living an Honorable, Ethical, Honest Life, 150–52, 290–91. New York: Bell Tower, 2003. ISBN 1-4000-4509-6. - Marek HalterMarek HalterMarek Halter is a French-Jewish novelist. He was born in Warsaw, Poland in 1936. During World War II, he and his parents escaped from the Warsaw Ghetto and fled to the Soviet Union, spending the remainder of the war in Ukraine, Moscow and later in Kokand, Uzbekistan...
. Zipporah, Wife of Moses, 1–245. New York: Crown, 2005. ISBN 1400052793. - Rebecca Kohn. Seven Days to the Sea: An Epic Novel of the Exodus. New York: Rugged Land, 2006. ISBN 1-59071-049-5.
- Lawrence KushnerLawrence KushnerLawrence Kushner is a Reform rabbi and currently the scholar-in-residence at Congregation Emanu-El in San Francisco, California.-Biography:Born in Detroit, Kushner graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Cincinnati, after which he went on to receive his rabbinical ordination from Hebrew...
. Kabbalah: A Love Story, 78, 112. New York: Morgan Road Books, 2006. ISBN 0-7679-2412-6. - Suzanne A. Brody. “Torah Sparks” and “Holy Ground.” In Dancing in the White Spaces: The Yearly Torah Cycle and More Poems, 11, 75. Shelbyville, Kentucky: Wasteland Press, 2007. ISBN 1-60047-112-9.
- Esther JungreisEsther JungreisEsther Jungreis is the founder of the international Hineni movement in America. A Holocaust survivor, she has made it her life's mission to bring back Jews to Orthodox Judaism.-Biography:...
. Life Is a Test, 62, 203–04, 240–41, 251–53, 255. Brooklyn: Shaar Press, 2007. ISBN 1-4226-0609-0. - Karen ArmstrongKaren ArmstrongKaren Armstrong FRSL , is a British author and commentator who is the author of twelve books on comparative religion. A former Roman Catholic nun, she went from a conservative to a more liberal and mystical faith...
. The Case for GodThe Case for GodThe Case for God is a 2009 book by Karen Armstrong. It is an answer to the recent atheism of Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, Sam Harris and Daniel Dennett and focuses on the three Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam from the paleolithic age to the present day...
, 113. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2009. ISBN 978-0-307-39743-0. - Edward M. KennedyTed KennedyEdward Moore "Ted" Kennedy was a United States Senator from Massachusetts and a member of the Democratic Party. Serving almost 47 years, he was the second most senior member of the Senate when he died and is the fourth-longest-serving senator in United States history...
. True Compass, 190–91. New York: Twelve, 2009. ISBN 978-0-446-53925-8. (Senator Willis Robertson’sAbsalom Willis RobertsonAbsalom Willis Robertson was an American lawyer and Democratic Party politician from Lexington, Virginia. Also known as A. Willis Robertson, he represented Virginia in both the U.S...
interpretation of Pharaoh’s daughter’s finding of Moses). - Alicia Jo Rabins. “Snow/Scorpions and Spiders.” In Girls in Trouble. New York: JDub Music, 2009. (Miriam watching over the infant Moses).
Texts
Commentaries
- Academy for Jewish Religion, California
- Academy for Jewish Religion, New York
- Aish.com
- American Jewish University
- Anshe Emes Synagogue, Los Angeles
- Bar-Ilan University
- Chabad.org
- Department for Jewish Zionist Education
- eparsha.com
- Jewish Theological Seminary
- Miriam Aflalo
- MyJewishLearning.com
- Ohr Sameach
- Orthodox Union
- Parshah Parts
- Rabbi Shmuel Herzfeld
- Reconstructionist Judaism
- Sephardic Institute
- Shiur.com
- Tanach Study Center
- Torah.org
- Union for Reform Judaism
- United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth
- United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism