Parshas Vaeira contains the first seven
of the Ten Makkos. Each makkah was specifically designed to target a different
area of resistance for the Egyptians until they would finally give in and let the
Bnei Yisrael leave. The meforshim go in depth on each makkah and bring out many
different ideas. However, it’s not just from the makkos themselves that we
learn new ideas, the circumstances around them teach us new things as well.
By several of the Makkos, Paroh asks
Moshe to daven to Hashem to remove the makkah from his people. The makkos were
Frogs, Wild Animals, Hail, and Locusts (found in next week’s parsha). And by
each one, Moshe agrees to daven for him. The last makkah in this week’s parsha,
Barad/Hail, includes something more than the other ones. “וַיֹּ֤אמֶר
אֵלָיו֙ משֶׁ֔ה כְּצֵאתִי֙ אֶת־הָעִ֔יר אֶפְרֹ֥שׂ אֶת־כַּפַּ֖י אֶל־יְהֹוָ֑ה
הַקֹּל֣וֹת יֶחְדָּל֗וּן וְהַבָּרָד֙ לֹ֣א יִֽהְיֶה־ע֔וֹד” “Moshe said to him
(Paroh), ‘When I leave the city I shall spread out my hands to Hashem; the
thunder will cease and the hail will no longer be” (Shemos 9:29). Rashi
explains that by this makkah Moshe had to leave the city in order to daven
since it was full of Egyptian avoda zara and Moshe didn’t want to daven in such
an environment.
The Sifsei Chachamim asks a simple
question on this Rashi. If the idolatry of Egypt prevented Moshe from davening
in the city, how come it didn’t affect his tefillos by the Frogs and Wild
Animals? Why was this time different? He provides two answers.
First, by Barad, Paroh insisted Moshe
daven immediately since the Barad was terrifying everyone. So Moshe needed to
explain to him that he would not be able to daven immediately as he first had
to leave the city. However, by the previous two instances, Moshe did not daven
until the next day after meeting Paroh. Therefore, he didn’t need to tell Paroh
where he would be when he would daven, since it wouldn’t make any difference.
The second answer is as follows. We know
that the avoda zara of the Egyptians was the sheep. Even though the sheep is an
animal we utilize as well, even while we were still in Egypt, any that were
being used for idol worship had to be treated like the avoda zara that they
were. As long as they were around the city, Moshe couldn’t daven there. However,
on a normal day, the sheep would be taken outside the city to graze, leaving
the city empty of avoda zara. So by the first two times Moshe was asked to
daven, he was able to stay in the city since the sheep weren’t around. However,
before bringing the hail upon the Egyptians, Hashem had told Moshe to warn them
to bring all their livestock into the house or they would be killed by the storm.
There were many people who feared Hashem and decided to heed Moshe’s warning,
meaning, that when Moshe went now to daven, he was in a city full of sheep!
Therefore, only now was it necessary for him to leave the city. So now that
Moshe says he has to leave the city since this was the only time he actually
did!
Shabbat Shalom!
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