ספר שמות

5640/1880

Regarding the verse "Come, let us deal shrewdly [with them], etc., lest they multiply, etc." And also [the phrase] "and join, etc., and go up from the land." There are two interpretations in Rashi, but they are really one.For behold, the Sages have taught that the Egyptian exile and all the exiles are for the purpose of elevating the holy sparks [nitzotzei kedushah] that are in all places, as we find [Genesis 13:10] "like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt." If so, certainly there were hidden treasures there. And also regarding Joseph's words, the Sages hinted that he hid three treasures, etc. And certainly also the Egyptians—those wise men among them—understood this. Therefore they wanted to afflict the Children of Israel with hard labor so that they would not have the strength to extract "their prey" [these treasures] from their mouths. This is what is written: "lest they multiply"—for when good increases over evil, the good sparks are clarified from the mixture. "And when war befalls us"—meaning [war] with the side of holiness. "And join [nosaf] also"—this refers to that small light hidden that is found even among them [the Egyptians]. "And go up from the land"—that point [of light] through the ascent of the Children of Israel, as it says [Exodus 3:22] "and you shall despoil Egypt, etc."Regarding the two interpretations: There is a hint in the Masoretic tradition that the Ba'al HaTurim brings—"venosaf gam hu" [and also join] connects to [Proverbs 11:24] "yesh mefazer venosaf od" [there is one who scatters yet increases more]—that the scattering of Israel is only in order to add converts to them, as stated in the Gemara, and this is a hint to the holy sparks as mentioned above.[Exodus 1:12] "But the more they afflicted them [the more they multiplied]"—for according to the extent of the labor, Israel became stronger, as it says [Genesis 25:23] "and one nation shall be stronger than the other." And Rashi [explains]: Just as they set their heart to afflict, so did the Holy One Blessed be He set His heart to multiply, etc. The meaning is: it should have just said "increased and spread," but rather the Holy One repaid Israel according to the intention and thought of the wicked to afflict them, even though they did not succeed. With the wicked, thought is combined with deed [i.e., they are judged for their evil intentions]. And according to their evil thought, so did the Holy One calculate the good for Israel.

In the Midrash on the verse "And [God] saw, etc., and God knew"—that each one of them repented, but they did not know about each other. See there, where it emphasizes "and God knew" alone. One can explain that even they themselves could not bring their thought from potential into action. As I wrote elsewhere, there is a thought that is not yet complete, which even the person himself does not understand—only the Creator, blessed be He, who examines hearts and minds, as the Sages said: "Before the thought is formed in his heart, etc."—see there. [Isaiah 60:2] "For darkness covers the earth." Therefore, even though the hearts of the Children of Israel were good, they could not clarify their inner essence to themselves. Therefore Moses our teacher, peace be upon him, did not recognize their status. Therefore the Creator, blessed be He, gave him a hint and sign: [Exodus 3:12] "when you bring forth [the people from Egypt]... you shall serve [God on this mountain]." That is to say, you will see that immediately when they leave the land of Egypt, the goodness of their hearts will be clarified, and in an instant they will transform from [working with] clay and bricks to being ready to receive the Torah. This is a wondrous testimony that the depths of Israel's hearts are toward good. And Rashi of blessed memory wrote: "In the merit of receiving the Torah." This means that the good thought of Israel, the Holy One Blessed be He joins it to the deed, even what they are destined to do. As it is written in the Zohar: for what they will sin in the future, God forbid, there is no punishment [in advance], but merits are counted. The reason is also as mentioned above—that the good is hidden in the hearts of the Children of Israel; only before the time arrives, it does not come from potential to action, but the good is already present, as mentioned. But the opposite—when one does evil, it is through a spirit of folly [ruach shtut] that enters him temporarily. Therefore future [sins] are not counted, but merits are counted, as mentioned above.