In the Haggada it is written, "In every generation, man is obligated to view himself as if he actually left Egypt." Reading the Haggada at the seder is insufficient. In order to properly tell over the story of the exodus, every Jew is obligated to relive the story by feeling as if he were enslaved in Egypt and God, in His great mercy, took him out of Egypt.
Let us go back in time over 3,300 years. We are now slaves in Egypt. As slaves, we have no independence, few possessions and much hardship. Suddenly, a leader rises from among us. He claims that he has experienced divine revelation and that God has told him to take the Israelites out of Egypt. The Egyptian hierarchy laughs upon hearing about this so-called prophet, Moshe. When the Israelites hear of Moshe, the response sounds like this: "A likely story! We're slaves! What makes Moshe think that he can take us out of Egypt? We've been here for so long. Who are we? We're slaves and we belong here in Egypt. Pharaoh will never let us leave!"
Moshe then begins to flex his muscles. He starts showing the Egyptians that he means business and that he really is God's messenger to take the Israelites out of Egypt. First he does some small miracles, like transforming a staff into a snake, but the Egyptians aren't convinced. He then brings out the heavy artillery; he and his brother Aharon go out to the Nile, the source of life for the Egyptian people, and suddenly turn it to blood. Then he summons frogs from the Nile and then he brings an infestation of lice upon the Egyptians.
The Israelites begin to think, "Hey, this guy Moshe is for real. Maybe he is a messenger of God, and he really will take us out of Egypt. Wow! These miracles are definitely divine!"
As the plagues continue, the hope and longing for redemption grows among the Israelites. They remember hearing from their parents and grandparents that they are descendants of Avraham, Yitzchak and Ya'akov, and that they were promised to be brought out of exile to the land of Canaan. The Israelites realize that they really are special and God-chosen, because the plagues are affecting the Egyptians, but not the Israelites.
"This definitely isn't coincidental. God is going to take us out of Egypt!"
After seeing so many miracles and plagues which afflicted the Egyptians, any Israelite would follow Moshe and his God into the desert. Any thinking Israelite would prefer personal and national freedom rather than hardship and slavery in Egypt. However, our rabbis (Tanchuma, Beshalach) teach that when the Israelites left Egypt, only one out of five actually left Egypt. The other 80% of the Israelites died in the plague of darkness and were buried by their fellow Israelites. There is an opinion in the midrash that only one out of 50 left Egypt. There is even an opinion that only one out of 500 Israelites left Egypt and that the remainder died during the plague of darkness.
Apparently, there were some Israelites who were not so captivated by Moshe and the show that he and his God put on in Egypt. Despite the supernatural miracles, at least 80% of the Israelites were not convinced, did not believe in God and were left in Egypt. They were too set in their ways and too accustomed to their lifestyles as slaves to recognize that the redemption was occurring in front of their eyes. The exile had become part of their nature and they were unable to take the small step of faith required to follow God into the desert and to gain personal and national freedom.
Every Jew, on the night of the Seder must ask himself the following question: "What would I have done had I been in Egypt? Would I have seen God's hand and followed him into the desert? Would I have wanted to become part of his chosen nation, to receive His Torah and to receive a portion in His land? Would I have woken up or would I have been too set in my ways, too accustomed to the exile, and too psychologically lethargic to be redeemed?"
In our times, God has made it easier for us to visualize this situation. To answer this question, a Jew does not have to pretend he is a slave. A Jew does not have to go back 3,300 years and dress up like an ancient Egyptian. All one has to do is to look at the changes which have occurred to the Jewish people over the last 50 years. Since the War for Israeli Independence in 1948, God has been showing the Jewish people miracles. God granted us a state and, for the first time in 2000 years, gave us national independence. We won a war against our surrounding Arab neighbors with a makeshift army.
The hand of God was clearly shown again in 1967. Against all odds we defeated our enemies on all fronts. Another miracle! It happened yet again in 1973. Our enemies surprised us, but we were able to defeat them with the help of God. In 1991, dozens of Iraq's SCUD missiles miraculously caused only one fatality. Now the Jewish population of the state of Israel has grown tenfold since its inception. In the land of Israel, God is fulfilling the prophecies of returning the lost exiles from Russia, Yemen, Ethiopia and from all over the world.
On the Seder night, every Jew must ask himself a simple question: "Do I recognize the great miracles God is performing for His people? Do I realize that the redemption is occurring in front of my eyes and the words of the prophets are being fulfilled in our time? Am I willing to follow God into the land promised to our forefathers? Am I willing to gain national independence and personal freedom by leaving the exile and following God into the land of Israel, our homeland? Or am I too set in my ways to recognize the miracles that God is doing? Am I content to live under the rule of foreign nations, because I am so accustomed to 2000 years of exile? Am I too psychologically lethargic, after so many years of exile, to actually change my lifestyle and to be redeemed?" In the Haggada it is said about the wicked son, "If you were there [in Egypt at the time of the exodus], you would not have been redeemed." In order to be redeemed from our current exile, every Jew must open his eyes and become part of the redemption which is unfolding in front of his eyes.
The prophet (Yirmiya 2:2) relates that God remembers the exodus from Egypt as "the righteousness of your youth, and the love of your beloved, you walked after me into the desert, into a barren land." In our generation, we have been placed in a similar situation as the Israelites of 3,300 years ago. Like our forefathers, we can show God our willingness to leave a land that is not ours and to follow Him into the desert. If God will see that we are willing to follow him, He will complete the redemption process.
I wish all of our entire nation the blessing we say at the Seder before recounting the story of leaving Egypt: "Now we are here, next year may we be in the land of Israel. Now we are slaves, next year may we be free."
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Rabbi Chermon is at a Hesder Yeshiva in Israel.
Let us go back in time over 3,300 years. We are now slaves in Egypt. As slaves, we have no independence, few possessions and much hardship. Suddenly, a leader rises from among us. He claims that he has experienced divine revelation and that God has told him to take the Israelites out of Egypt. The Egyptian hierarchy laughs upon hearing about this so-called prophet, Moshe. When the Israelites hear of Moshe, the response sounds like this: "A likely story! We're slaves! What makes Moshe think that he can take us out of Egypt? We've been here for so long. Who are we? We're slaves and we belong here in Egypt. Pharaoh will never let us leave!"
Moshe then begins to flex his muscles. He starts showing the Egyptians that he means business and that he really is God's messenger to take the Israelites out of Egypt. First he does some small miracles, like transforming a staff into a snake, but the Egyptians aren't convinced. He then brings out the heavy artillery; he and his brother Aharon go out to the Nile, the source of life for the Egyptian people, and suddenly turn it to blood. Then he summons frogs from the Nile and then he brings an infestation of lice upon the Egyptians.
The Israelites begin to think, "Hey, this guy Moshe is for real. Maybe he is a messenger of God, and he really will take us out of Egypt. Wow! These miracles are definitely divine!"
As the plagues continue, the hope and longing for redemption grows among the Israelites. They remember hearing from their parents and grandparents that they are descendants of Avraham, Yitzchak and Ya'akov, and that they were promised to be brought out of exile to the land of Canaan. The Israelites realize that they really are special and God-chosen, because the plagues are affecting the Egyptians, but not the Israelites.
"This definitely isn't coincidental. God is going to take us out of Egypt!"
After seeing so many miracles and plagues which afflicted the Egyptians, any Israelite would follow Moshe and his God into the desert. Any thinking Israelite would prefer personal and national freedom rather than hardship and slavery in Egypt. However, our rabbis (Tanchuma, Beshalach) teach that when the Israelites left Egypt, only one out of five actually left Egypt. The other 80% of the Israelites died in the plague of darkness and were buried by their fellow Israelites. There is an opinion in the midrash that only one out of 50 left Egypt. There is even an opinion that only one out of 500 Israelites left Egypt and that the remainder died during the plague of darkness.
Apparently, there were some Israelites who were not so captivated by Moshe and the show that he and his God put on in Egypt. Despite the supernatural miracles, at least 80% of the Israelites were not convinced, did not believe in God and were left in Egypt. They were too set in their ways and too accustomed to their lifestyles as slaves to recognize that the redemption was occurring in front of their eyes. The exile had become part of their nature and they were unable to take the small step of faith required to follow God into the desert and to gain personal and national freedom.
Every Jew, on the night of the Seder must ask himself the following question: "What would I have done had I been in Egypt? Would I have seen God's hand and followed him into the desert? Would I have wanted to become part of his chosen nation, to receive His Torah and to receive a portion in His land? Would I have woken up or would I have been too set in my ways, too accustomed to the exile, and too psychologically lethargic to be redeemed?"
In our times, God has made it easier for us to visualize this situation. To answer this question, a Jew does not have to pretend he is a slave. A Jew does not have to go back 3,300 years and dress up like an ancient Egyptian. All one has to do is to look at the changes which have occurred to the Jewish people over the last 50 years. Since the War for Israeli Independence in 1948, God has been showing the Jewish people miracles. God granted us a state and, for the first time in 2000 years, gave us national independence. We won a war against our surrounding Arab neighbors with a makeshift army.
The hand of God was clearly shown again in 1967. Against all odds we defeated our enemies on all fronts. Another miracle! It happened yet again in 1973. Our enemies surprised us, but we were able to defeat them with the help of God. In 1991, dozens of Iraq's SCUD missiles miraculously caused only one fatality. Now the Jewish population of the state of Israel has grown tenfold since its inception. In the land of Israel, God is fulfilling the prophecies of returning the lost exiles from Russia, Yemen, Ethiopia and from all over the world.
On the Seder night, every Jew must ask himself a simple question: "Do I recognize the great miracles God is performing for His people? Do I realize that the redemption is occurring in front of my eyes and the words of the prophets are being fulfilled in our time? Am I willing to follow God into the land promised to our forefathers? Am I willing to gain national independence and personal freedom by leaving the exile and following God into the land of Israel, our homeland? Or am I too set in my ways to recognize the miracles that God is doing? Am I content to live under the rule of foreign nations, because I am so accustomed to 2000 years of exile? Am I too psychologically lethargic, after so many years of exile, to actually change my lifestyle and to be redeemed?" In the Haggada it is said about the wicked son, "If you were there [in Egypt at the time of the exodus], you would not have been redeemed." In order to be redeemed from our current exile, every Jew must open his eyes and become part of the redemption which is unfolding in front of his eyes.
The prophet (Yirmiya 2:2) relates that God remembers the exodus from Egypt as "the righteousness of your youth, and the love of your beloved, you walked after me into the desert, into a barren land." In our generation, we have been placed in a similar situation as the Israelites of 3,300 years ago. Like our forefathers, we can show God our willingness to leave a land that is not ours and to follow Him into the desert. If God will see that we are willing to follow him, He will complete the redemption process.
I wish all of our entire nation the blessing we say at the Seder before recounting the story of leaving Egypt: "Now we are here, next year may we be in the land of Israel. Now we are slaves, next year may we be free."
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Rabbi Chermon is at a Hesder Yeshiva in Israel.