ON THE PARSHA
          Parshas Sh'mos

          by Dovid Lipman, Jerusalem


The World Of The Supernatural

     (4:18) "And Yisro told Moshe, 'Go to peace.' " This
phrase, according to the gemara (Bera. 64a), should be used
instead of 'go in peace', for we see here that the result
was Moshe's tremendous success in leading the Jews, whereas
when Dovid HaMelech said 'go in peace' to his son Avshalom,
in the end Avshalom died a horrible death. Rav Yisroel
Reisman explains that 'shalom' means more than peace - it
refers to the perfection a person tries to grow towards in
this world. Each level of perfection a person acquires is
called 'his shalom'. So, if one says, 'go in peace', a curse
of death is implied, for only death keeps a person at his
current level of perfection. However, 'go to peace' is a
blessing, implying a wish that the other person reach more
levels of perfection. It is appropriate to add here that the
gemara warns us (Bera. 7a) not to underestimate the blessing

or curse of any person.

A Time To Laugh

     (3:21-22) "...you won't go empty-handed...silver and
gold vessels..." This promise seems anticlimactic, coming
right on the heels of the promise of freedom from slavery.
It can be explained with a story.
     There was once a Jewish orphan girl who lived in Boro
Park. She worked as a housemaid for a relatively well-to-do
family, who gave her room and board, plus a tiny allowance.
Every Thursday afternoon she polished the silver, until it
gleamed. She washed the windows every other week, and took
care of all the laundry regularly. She kept the furniture
in good shape as well, and washed the expensive dishes. One
day it was time for her to marry, and, without family,
education, or money of her own, she was fortunate to find
a young accountant from out of town. Her employers were sad
to see her go, for she had served them well. She and her
husband moved into a medium-sized apartment near his place
of work. One day, he found her crying while polishing the
small candlesticks, all the silver they had. "I'm sorry,"
she said. "I was remembering my old home." Her husband was
surprised. "You were a servant, there, and also never had
money of your own. Here you are in charge, and are free to
spend our money as you like. Why are you sad?" She shook
her head, unable to explain how hard it was, after growing
up in a beautiful and fancy house, to have to live in a
small place with only a pair of cheap candlesticks to look
at.
     Rashi says (in Lech L'cha) that if one values Judaism,
then it's better to be a slave in a Jewish home than to be
a queen in Egypt. How much more so for the Jews, who had no
life in Egypt, as we read (1:14) "They embittered their
lives"! But the gemara (Pesa. 25a) says some people value
money more than their life. So for any Jews who felt like
that, it was like the girl in the story - who wants to live
freely, if the monetary situation around me is so shabby!
So Hashem pointed out that there was nothing to lose - they
would be taking Egypt's wealth WITH them!

Worthy Of Note

     (1:19) "The midwives said to Par'o..." The Pharaoh's
name is not mentioned until this point. Instead, he is called
"the king of Egypt". Perhaps this is due to the veiled way
that the slavery began - it was touted as 'patriotic
construction projects', etc. Maybe even the midwives' killing
project was described by the king as a 'kindhearted idea',
aimed at ending the 'unfortunate situation' the Jews were in.
He proposed that life as a slave was not worth living, so let
the males be killed, and the girls counld live, for since they
surely would marry Egyptians (with the Jewish men extinct),
they would not be slaves. But the midwives addressed him as
Par'o, having seen through the trick, and afterwards he no
longer had his facade, and decreed that the boys be killed by
force, by throwing them into the Nile.

From the Gemara

     (3:6) "And Moshe hid his face, for he was afraid to gaze
at Hashem." Berachos 7a - For hiding his face, he was rewarded
with the rays of glory, so the Jews could not look upon his
face. For his fear, he was rewarded that the Jews feared to
approach him. And for not gazing, he was rewarded that "He
gazed at a picture of Hashem," his unparalelled level of prophecy.
     (4:20) Pesachim 3a - The language of "riding" is normally
not used when referring to women, but here it is considered
normal use because the sons are included in the same phrase.
     (4:22) Shabbos 31a - A convert noted that he could
obviously never become Kohein Gadol, for even born Jews who
were called "Hashem's firstborn child" cannot, unless they are
from the family of Aharon.

Rare And Unusual Words

     (5:1) "VeYaChogu" Two meanings are possible: "They shall
make a celebration", or "They shall bring festive offerings".
The gemara deduces that the latter is correct (Chag. 10b) from
the later pasuk, when Moshe informs Par'o of the need for them
to bring animals to offer.