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Parashas BoExodus 11: 2 Please speak in the ears of the people and let every man ask his fellow (Egyptian) and every woman ask her fellow for vessels of silver and vessels of gold . RASHI: Please speak. Rashi: The word "na" can only mean [here] "please." I beseech you [Moses], please instruct them about this (i.e. that the Israelites should take the silver and gold vessels of the Egyptians), so that the righteous man, Abraham, should not say "He fulfilled [the promise] "and they will enslave and afflict them" but [the promise] "and afterwards they will go free with great wealth" He did not fulfill. What is Rashi Saying? Let us begin this analysis by first understanding what Rashi is saying. First, he says that the word "na" in our verse means "please." He certainly doesn't mean that this is what the word always means. We know that this word can also mean "now" as when Avram speaks with Sarai his wife and says "Behold, I now ["na"] know that you are a beautiful woman." (Genesis 12:11 So Rashi is telling us that in this verse the word means "please." He then explains why G-d was beseeching ("please") Moses to tell the Israelites take the silver and golden vessels from the Egyptians. The reason: So that Abraham won't have a complaint against G-d. What would you ask here? Your Question: Questioning Rashi A Question: Why does Rashi offer this remote drash? (Taken from the Talmud Brochos 9a) What is wrong with the simple meaning of the verse i.e. G-d is asking Moses to tell the Israelites to take the silver and gold from their Egyptian masters before they depart Egypt ? Your Answer: What Is Bothering Rashi? An Answer: G-d is pleading ("please") with Moses to tell the people to take "reparations" from the Egyptians, their valuables. The problem is, why the need to say "please", as if G-d were asking them to do Him a favor? Taking the precious vessels should be all too readily appreciated by Moses and by the freed slaves. The poetic justice of despoiling the Egyptians after the all the years that the Egyptians had despoiled them - physically, monetarily and morally - the Israelites would certainly have been ready to fulfill this mitzvah without any prompting. Why then the need for the term "please" ? How does Rashi's drash deal with this problem? Your Answer: Understanding Rashi An Answer: Rashi tells us that this was a special request from G-d, Who wanted the freed slaves to take the gold and silver so that Abraham would not accuse Him of not keeping His word completely. Does that make sense to you? It shouldn"t! What would you ask on this midrash which Rashi quotes? Your Question: Questioning the Drash A Question: If G-d promised Abraham that his offspring would leave Egypt with great wealth, why is G-d concerned that his promise be fulfilled only "so that the righteous man, Abraham, won't complain" ? If G-d promised Abraham, then He should keep his promise whether Abraham would complain or not. Is G-d concerned with Abraham's opinion more than He is with His moral obligation to keep His word? Do you have an answer? Hint: The source of this drash, as we pointed out above, is in the Talmud, tractate Brachos page 9a. If you look it up, you will see the continuation of the drash. This should answer the question. What does it say there? Your Answer: Understanding the Drash Answer: The drash continues (after the part quoted by Rashi): "They (the Israelites) said to him (Moses, after he told them to take the vessels) : "Oh! That we ourselves should get out of here!" This is similar to a man who was in jail and they said to him "we will free you tomorrow and then you will receive a lot of money." He answered them "I beg you, free me now and I'll gladly forgo the money." In light of the completed midrash can you now answer the question? Your Answer: Answer: The parable of the man in jail makes it abundantly clear that the Israelite slaves wanted to get out of Egypt as soon and as sure as possible. They would have gladly forfeited the "great wealth" promised Abraham, just to get their Freedom Now. In that case, it was not a question of G-d keeping His promise or not, since the beneficiaries of that wealth would have willingly forfeited it, just to escape as soon as possible from their imprisonment in the Land of Bondage. Had G-d allowed them to leave without the wealth, they would have been grateful and would not have complained. This would not be interpreted as G-d reneging on His promise. However, since G-d wanted to be faithful to Abraham and to the promise He made to him, He therefore beseeched ("please") Moses to convince the people to take the time and effort to take the wealth from the Egyptians so "that the Righteous one, Abraham" would have no complaints to G-d. A note to our readers: We are preparing to publish the Vayikra volume of "What's Bothering Rashi?" It will add another dimension to the study of Rashi - this time Rashi's creative use of the midrash. We are looking for sponsors of this volume to enable us to publish it. Contributions can be made in Memory of or in Honor of close ones. The previous volumes of "What's Bothering Rashi?" have been adopted for use in many schools and into many Jewish homes. Your sponsorship will make it possible to continue and enlarge this project. Those interested can write msbonch@mscc.huji.ac.il Shabbat Shalom
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