5783/2023
In Parashat BeShalach, some of the details of Bnei Yisrael’s exodus from Mitzrayim come across as quite unsettling. First off, the Pasuk states “וַיִּקַּ֥ח מֹשֶׁ֛ה אֶת־עַצְמ֥וֹת יוֹסֵ֖ף עִמּ֑וֹ,” “And Moshe took the bones of Yosef with him” (Shemot 13:19). Why does Moshe Rabbeinu, the leader of a nation in its becoming, carry the bones of Yosef himself? Second, every time we say Hallel, we mention the phrase “הַיָּם רָאָה וַיָּנֹס,” “the sea saw and fled” (Tehillim 114:3), but what did the sea see? Third, Bnei Yisrael were complaining about food and stated that they would rather be subjugated as slaves in Mitzrayim than remain in the desert. Yet, Hashem was never angered. In fact, in one instance, He even gave Bnei Yisrael new Mitzvot (Rashi to Shemot 15:25). What caused Hashem to express such patience towards Bnei Yisrael’s disrespect?
The Kli Yakar addresses the first question with a magnificent idea: Moshe Rabbeinu busied himself with an important Mitzvah while Bnei Yisrael emptied Mitzrayim’s coffers. Yet, surely not everyone was too obsessed with money to help Moshe Rabbeinu. There must be another reason.
Moshe Rabbeinu was separated from the rest of Bnei Yisrael because he spent most of his life outside of Mitzrayim–he left as a young adult and returned when he was eighty. When Makkat Bechorot hit the Egyptians, Bnei Yisrael must have been traumatized. Although they were persecuted and enslaved in Mitzrayim, it was still their home. To see your home decimated and tragedy-stricken by the firstborns’ deaths would leave lasting nightmares. Moshe Rabbeinu was the singular person who did not grow up in Mitzrayim, so he could carry Yosef’s bones without trauma.
In fact, it is possible that Kriyat Yam Suf occurred only because of Bnei Yisrael’s ingrained aversion to death. In the titular Pasuk, the Torah states “וַיְהִי בְּשַׁלַּח פַּרְעֹה אֶת־הָעָם וְלֹא־נָחָם אֱלֹהִים דֶּרֶךְ אֶרֶץ פְּלִשְׁתִּים כִּי קָרוֹב הוּא כִּי אָמַר אֱלֹהִים פֶּן־יִנָּחֵם הָעָם בִּרְאֹתָם מִלְחָמָה וְשָׁבוּ מִצְרָיְמָה,” “When Paroh ejected the nation, Hashem did not lead them through the land of the Pilishtim, although it was closer, because Hashem said that the nation might reconsider when they see war and return to Mitzrayim” (ibid. 13:17). At the prospect of war, Bnei Yisrael would balk and return to their life of slavery in Mitzrayim because that was better than facing the possibility of death in combat.
Alternatively, the words “נחם” and "ינחם” in this Pasuk, which Rashi translated as “guided,” could mean “comforting,” as one does with a mourner. Therefore, the original questions can be answered by explaining that Hashem was trying to comfort Bnei Yisrael.
When the sea saw and fled, the Midrash explained that it refused to move until it saw the coffin of Yosef HaTzaddik. The bones, the epitome of death, serve a positive purpose to save Bnei Yisrael by splitting the sea. Additionally, when Bnei Yisrael complain, and Hashem repeatedly yields to their demands for food, we see flavors of Aveilut, or mourning. In Hilchot Avel 4:9, Rambam writes that it is not allowed for a mourner to eat their own food on the first day of mourning; instead, the community must feed them. Here too, Hashem decides to give Bnei Yisrael water (ibid. 25:25), Manna (ibid. 16:4), and meat (ibid. 16:12), instead of reprimanding the nation.
The Manna serves another purpose on top of satiating the nation’s appetite: it helped Bnei Yisrael move on. The Manna is described as “כְּזֶרַע גַּד לָבָן,” “like coriander seed” (ibid. 16:31). With the ability to create a plant full of life, a seed comforted Bnei Yisrael with the beauty of creation to counter the death plaguing of their past, and, led by the pillar of fire, helped them look towards a brighter future.