DECEMBER 2018/5779 FRIEDMAN REVIEW PARASHAT SHEMOT
Torah Reading Schedule Torah : Exodus (Shemot) 1:1-6:1 Haftarah : Isaiah 27:66-28; 29:22,23 Gospels : Luke 5:12-39
Exodus 1:1-6:1 is our reading portion for this Sabbath. It’s called “Shemot” (‘names’), and with it, we begin our study of the book of Exodus. I am reposting comments that I made 2 years ago about this portion, as I am continually impressed by what the text tells us.
I am rarely struck by the power of the opening words of a parasha portion, as I am when reading this week’s portion. Indeed, the very opening word itself is full of meaning, power and a strong function:
And these are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt: the man Yakov and his family came. Reuven, Shimon, Levi and Yehudah, Issachar, Zevulun and Binyamin, Dan, Naftali, Gad and Asher. So it was that all of Yakov’s descendants were 70 people, as Yosef was already in Egypt (Exodus 1.1-5, Friedman translation, bold mine).
The very first word of both our book, and of our parasha, is “and” (the one letter word “ve” in Hebrew). In ancient Hebrew poetry, it is not rare to begin a sentence with the word “and”. It is both rhythmic and contributes to the ability to memorize the given verses. Although it is not considered the highest form of spoken Hebrew, many people will often use “and” at the beginning of their spoken sentences today.
What does our “and” in Exodus 1.1 refer to? Is it merely a poetic beginning to our portion? Or does it have further value? This first word of our book begs us for a further understanding. I believe it functions more than just lending a poetic addition.
The word “ve” connects the books of Genesis and Exodus together. The phrase “And these…” (1.1) begins unfolding the family genealogy, leading into the story of the redemption from Egypt, as relayed by the first five verses of Exodus 1, quoted above.
Around the time of his death, Joseph had strongly conveyed to his brothers that the family’s descendants would be powerfully visited by God sometime in the future. Last week’s parasha reads:
Joseph had his brothers take an oath, stating that, “When God visits you, you will bring my bones out of here, with you.” (Gen. 50.25, Friedman translation). The Hebrew structure of this sentence puts strong emphasis on the words “visits you”. In other words, God would powerfully make Himself present in the lives of their descendants.
Therefore, the books of Genesis and Exodus are strongly connected to each other. The end of one (Genesis) builds a solid bridge into the necessity and historical narrative of the other (Exodus). One fine, small word connects the family history together—“ve”. This is thus a powerful one-letter word that fills an important task for us, the students of Torah. Scholar Nahum Sarna, in his commentary to the Book of Exodus, notes that the two books are also connected through the promises given in one (Genesis, i.e. Gen.15.13-14, Gen. 35.23-26 and Gen. 46.8, 26-27). These promises come to pass in the narratives of the other (Exodus). Sarna also notes, in agreement with the perspective given above, that:
“The initial vav (the name of the letter of the word “ve” in Ex. 1.1) acts as a connection with the book of Genesis. Two millennia ago, Rabbi Ishmael and Rabbi Akiva argued with each other about whether every word in the Bible was purposefully chosen and placed into the text. Today that discussion continues on. And yet no matter where we come out on that discussion, it is clear that in Exodus 1.1, our tiny word “ve” does have meaning and function, and is specifically placed there by our Torah scribes, to be that previously mentioned connective bridge.
So we have a connecting bridge: that word “and”. Within that “and” lays a world of connections that we as students make, between the promises of Genesis and their fulfillment in Exodus. For a limited example:
Genesis 15: 13-14: Then He said to Avram, “Understand that your descendants will definitely live in a foreign land that is not theirs, and they will be enslaved and tortured for four hundred years. Yet I will judge the nation that enslaves them. Immediately afterward, they (Avram’s descendants) will leave there with many possessions (Friedman translation).
Exodus 1.11-14: So they appointed tax officials for them (for Israel), to oppress them with backbreaking work; thus they (Israel) built the store cities of Pitom and Ramses for Pharaoh. But when they (the Egyptians) oppressed them… Then Egypt enslaved Israel harshly. So they made their lives bitter through hard labor with bricks and mortar, as well as in all types of agricultural work in the field; this was the harshly imposed slave labor. (Friedman translation, underlining mine).
Exodus 12.33, 35-36: So Egypt supplied the people (of Israel), and hurried them out of that land, because they said, ‘All of us will be dead!’ And the people of Israel did just as Moshe had said, and asked the Egyptians for their vessels of silver, gold and clothing. So God caused Egypt to have great favor on the people, and they requested from them, and they complied. And they took advantage of the Egyptians (Friedman translation, underlining mine).
The three sets of verses above clearly show us that these promises given in Genesis find their fulfillment through the events recorded in Exodus. The two books complement each other, and our “ve bridge” paints a picture of the relationship between them.
Additionally, the next phrase in Exodus 1.1 further connects our books, their themes and their historical development: “…these are the names of the sons of Israel…” (1.1a). Through the lives, legacies and promises given to the sons of Israel, the family in Genesis becomes a people in the book of Exodus. The offspring, the physical DNA carriers, of Jacob and his twelve sons come front and center on the stage of world history in the book of Exodus. The Genesis 15.13-15 promises that were given to Abraham are lived out in history through events in the book of Exodus. The bridge between the two books is built, and now across the bridge come the people involved: Jacob and his family. In Exodus, they grow into the people of Israel, who then become the nation of Israel as they receive Torah on Mt. Sinai, and enter their beloved homeland. But that is a different story for a different time, and other parasha portions!
Shabbat Shalom, David & Margalit Friedman