Road to Zion

Va’era ( I Appeared) Exodus 6:2-9:35

Va’era ( I Appeared) Exodus 6:2-9:35

1.What was G-d’s purpose for the plagues?

  • The Egyptians shall know I am the L-RD. (Exodus 7:5)
  • That you may know there is no one like the L-RD our G-d. (Exodus 8:10)
  • So that you will know that I, the L-RD, am in this land. (Exodus 8:22)
  • In order to show you My power and in order to proclaim My name through all the earth. (Exodus 9:16)
  • And that you may tell in the hearing of your son, and of your grandson, how I made a mockery of the Egyptians and how I performed My signs among them, that you may know that I am the L-RD. (Exodus 10:2)
  • Against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments—I am the L-RD. (Exodus 12:12)
  • I will be honored through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the L-RD. (Exodus 14:4)

In Exodus 9:16 we read where not only will G-d’s Name be known in Egypt but in the whole earth. So the plagues were a direct face-off between the G-d of the Israelites and the gods of the Egyptians, a demonstration of G-d’s absolute power. 

As I read this I thought of each of us. 

Our purpose in this world is that G-d’s name will be known in the whole earth. G-d’s plan is that the world would be redeemed through knowing who He is. 

Of course we may not be around to see this in our life time. Nevertheless it is something each of us must be actively involved in. How do we do this? I think as we go through every day the Father gives us opportunities to make a difference and not just be a spectator or be indifferent to G-d given opportunities.

2. In this Torah portion we read for the first time, not of Pharaoh hardening his heart but of G-d doing so: “I will harden Pharaoh’s heart,” said G-d to Moses, “and multiply My signs and wonders in the land of Egypt” (Exodus 7:3). And so indeed we find in the sixth plague, boils (Exodus 9:12), the eighth, locusts (Exodus 10:1, 20), and the tenth, the firstborn (Exodus 11:10), the hardening is attributed to G-d. I would like you to take a look, again, at a question most asked about this Torah portion. Did Pharaoh have the freedom to let the Israelites go or did G-d pre-program him to fail? Did G-d set him up to make the choices he made? Was he “free” to make decisions or were they already made for him? Does this apply to us?

I think, in the beginning Pharaoh was free to choose to let the people go. But he gradually lost that freedom. As believers freedom is a matter of choice. Are we swept away by fads or destructive behavior others are participating in? Do we stop and think should I do this? Does this action represent who I am as a child of G-d?  

We have to work hard to achieve freedom. We acquire it slowly in stages, and we can lose it, as Pharaoh lost his, and as drug addicts, workaholics, and people addicted to computer games lose theirs. 

When we sin or make a decision that is not life giving for us, you can be sure another opportunity will come our way to commit that same sin again and again. This is where we can begin to lose our freedom. Or we can repent, choose a new path, and vow never go that route again. This is where our freedom can grow. We need to develop a mental mindset that pauses before any significant action and asks, “Is this who I want to be? 

When we continue down a path of least resistance it will get harder and harder to break away from the sin we are committing.  This quote says it all, “At first, the evil impulse is called a wayfarer, then a guest, then finally a master.”

G-d, knowing human nature, gave us tools to make these decisions.  He gave us Shabbat, for example, to liberate us from work, from smart phones, from TV. He gave us Torah which gives us a framework to live by. Last but not least, He gave us the Holy Spirit to guide our decision making. 

3.The Haftorah for this week is found in Ezekiel 28:25-29:21. What connection does this have to the Torah portion? Why was G-d pronouncing judgement on Egypt? What did Pharaoh do that was so bad? What lesson is there for us in this story?

There are two connections to the Torah portion.

First we again see the prideful actions of the Egyptians and their Pharaoh.

In Ezekiel 29:3 and again in verse 9 Pharaoh said, “My River is my own; I have made it for myself”: This was the proud boast of Egypt and Pharaoh. They believed that the great Nile River both belonged to them and was created by them. They refused to recognize and honor the G-d of Israel as the creator and owner of all. 

The Nile was in every way the secret of the wealth and power of that land and people. Here Pharaoh is represented, not as worshipping the River, but claiming to possess it, and to have created it. Without the Nile river the land would have been a desert.

This story reminds us of the fact that when we begin to forget what G-d has done in our lives we begin to see ourselves as god. We begin to boast about what we have or what we have accomplished instead of giving Him all the glory.

Second, G-d, through His actions reminds the Egyptians that He alone is G-d

Ezekiel 29:8-9 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign L-rd says: I will bring a sword against you and kill both man and beast. Egypt will become a desolate wasteland. Then they will know that I am the L-rd. ‘Because you said, “The Nile is mine; I made it,”

G-d says the Egyptians will know that He is L-rd, just as He did in our Torah portion this week with the plagues.

4.In our Torah portion the word to describe Pharaoh’s heart is mentioned at least 10 times. Beginning in Exodus 7:3 Pharaoh’s heart was hardened. This word hardened is translated 3 different ways in Hebrew. Ex 7:3 it is kashay or hard, Ex 7:14 it is kaved meaning heavy and Ex. 8:15 it is hazak meaning strong. Does this change your view of what was happening with Pharaoh? Can we apply this to our own life?

If the word hardened had been translated more precisely these verses may have given us a clearer picture of Pharaoh’s struggle between himself and G-d. It might also help us understand our own spiritual struggles.

Pharaoh had no fear of this unknown Hebrew G-d. So his heart would have been strong (hazak). He was the strongest leader of the world at that time. His natural course of action would have been to respond strongly when he felt threatened.

Jeremiah 17:9-10 says, “ The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? I the L-rd search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct,  according to what their deeds deserve.” 

Do we ever allow our hearts to become strong. Do we ever plow ahead in our thoughts and actions and ignore that small voice telling us what we are doing is wrong? What is usually the outcome of this behavior?

In Exodus 7:3 it says G-d hardened Pharaoh’s heart. The Hebrew word used here is kashay or hard. If his heart was hard then nothing could move him. He did as he pleased and no one questioned his actions. Even when his magicians told him this was the one true G-d he continued in his hardness. When we become “hard hearted” it is difficult for us to allow G-d to change us. Our heart must be soft to hear G-d’s voice.

Lastly in Exodus 8:11 Pharaoh’s heart was heavy or kaved. Something that is heavy is hard to move. Pharaoh was trying to guard his position of power. By this time he must have known this contest was different than anything he had ever faced before. He had to stand and not let the people go even though his country was being destroyed.

This is a lesson for us. A person unable to exercise self-control over his own behavior is a person in bondage.When we continue down a path that is wrong and we see it is destroying our walk with the Father our only path out is to humble ourselves before the Father, soften our hearts and allow Him to cleanse us.

Proverbs 28:14, “Blessed is the one who always trembles before G-d, but whoever hardens their heart falls into trouble.”