2021/5781

Being high on the Borei Olam reminds me of Bob Marley, so I thought I would turn to him for a bit of Pesach guidance. His song “Exodus” defines the title word as a “movement of [Hashem’s] people.” (I’ve taken some liberty with the quote.) This is all well and good as a general definition, but was Yetziat Mitzrayim really a popular uprising in the same way the Haitian Revolution or the Arab Spring were? As we shall see, Pesach really was a movement of the people, but it was one that involved many smaller, personal revolutions, as opposed to a massive popular front.

Although Bnai Yisrael seem like passive recipients of Hashem’s miracles throughout Yetziat Mitzrayim, we started and finalized the process of salvation. Hashem calls on Moshe to lead Bnai Yisrael out of Egypt only after they “groan because of the slavery and cry out, and their cries go up to God because of the slavery” (Shemot 2:23). The redemption began because we cried out: we remembered Hashem [1], and He remembered us. Now, it’s true that then ten Makot seem to be a story of Hashem versus Mitzrayim, leaving us out of the story as active participants, yet Chazal also give us a role to play here. “Why did Hashem bring Makat Choshech?” Rashi asks (Rashi, Shemot 10:22 s.v. VaYehi Choshech Afielah). He answers that some Reshaim in Bnai Yisrael did not want to leave Egypt, and they died during the three days of Choshech. Choshech was the second to last Makah, and Bnai Yisrael could no longer let Hashem’s miracles rain (or hail, or swarm) down on them. Of course, only those opposed to the Yetziah were dying now (and not those who were simply apathetic), but the time was fast approaching when Bnai Yisrael would have to make a decision. 

This time came on the tenth of Nisan. On this day, Bnei Yisrael were to take the Korban Pesach and guard it until the 14th, when they would slaughter it. Why the four day wait? The Midrash (Mechilta DeRabbi Yishmael 12:6) provides two answers, each of which are key to understanding our redemption. The first, based on a Pasuk in Yechezkel, states that we, with nary a Mitzvah to our name, were unworthy of salvation, so Hashem gave us the blood of the Korban Pesach and the blood of Milah so we could be redeemed: “Ein Notelin Sechar Ela Al Yedei Maaseh,” “One cannot assume reward except through action.” Bnai Yisrael needed to take action in order to leave Egypt, specifically the kind of action that separated them from the Egyptians. Milah was an irrevocable stamp on their body distinguishing them as a nation, and the Korban Pesach, the sacrifice of Egypt’s god, meant they were spurning Egypt, gods and all. You can’t Shecht someone’s god and expect things to remain friendly. The second answer states that Bnai Yisrael could not, at first, respond to Moshe’s message of redemption because they were entrapped in Avodah Zarah. By taking the Korban Pesach, they were rejecting “Gilulei Mitzrayim” (Yechezkel 20:7) and accepting Hashem. The Exodus could not have taken place without Bnai Yisrael choosing for it to take place. In fact, the Halachot of Korban Pesach reflect this fact. A “Ben Neichar,” a foreigner, is forbidden from eating the Korban. Rashi explains that a “Ben Neichar'' in this context means “someone who has made his actions foreign to his Father in heaven,” including both a non-Jew and an apostate (Rashi, Shemot 12:43 s.v. Kol Ben Neichar). Rabbi Fridman calls Pesach night “a time of choosing,” where everybody must decide where his or her allegiances lie. 

Chazal teach that Hashem destroyed Sedom and saved Lot on Pesach. Lot had to make that same decision we made before we left Egypt. Lot was unsure at first: “VaYitmahmah,” “And he delayed” (BeReishit 19:16), but the angels flung him out of the city and ordered him to never look back. He dared not waver, lest he end up a pillar of salt, which, trust me, is not a fun situation to be in. Just like us, Lot was not entirely worthy of salvation, but he accomplished the final commitment that made all the difference. Lot’s wife, not so much.

The Geulah of Pesach does not just involve the collective movement of a nation, but the personal redemption of all of its members. That is why we can tell the Wicked Son that he would not have been redeemed from Egypt. A more apt quote from “Exodus” may be this: “Open your eyes and look within / Are you satisfied with the life you're living?” 

[1]  It is unclear if Bnai Yisrael were crying out to Hashem or just merely crying out, but the point remains the same. The Geulah would not have happened without our starting it.