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Exodus 13:1-20 Chavurah Shalom Sat 10/29/16 When We Come to The Exodus 13:1-20 Chavurah Shalom Sat 10/29/16 When we come to the Sanctification of the Firstborn, we are reminded that in keep- ing the Torah, Yeshua's family performed this rite along with the Brit Milah at the appointed times, Luke 2:21-24. We are very carefully and precisely told of the keeping of the very first of the mitzvot concerning a mother giving birth to a male child, including the circumcision of the child at 8 days, the purification rites for a woman who gave birth to a male child, and the redemption of the firstborn son. You will also note the naming of the child at the Brit Milah, in keeping with the modern Jewish practice, as revealed in the Siddur, (The Complete Artscroll Siddur, Sephard Edition), p. 225-229. Genesis 17:11-12; 21:4; Leviticus 12:3; compare Luke 1:57-59. We are told that the naming of sons at the time of circumcision is not attested in Jewish sources until the post-Talmudic period (eighth centu- ry)....The note "to present him" likely refers to the pidyon ha-ben, the redemp- tion of the firstborn (Exodus 13:2, 12, 15; Numbers 18:15-16; Nehemiah 10:35-36); no law prescribes this presentation; presenting children at the Temple is not a recognized custom.--The Jewish Annotated New Testament, p. 100, 102. Our text for this morning begins with the firstborn, then turns aside to the Matzot and the Tefillin, then returns to the firstborn before summing things up to end our parashah. Our passage is also noted to end on the next day of the journey, so that the movement is now from Succoth to Etham. Vv. 1-2 The Firstborn Our text begins with the command of ADONAI to sanctify to Him all the firstborn of all the wombs of the sons of Israel. Now this settles the concept that whenever we see the term "sons of Israel," that it always means men. Obviously men do not give birth to children, but only women do, so here, the reference to "b'nay Israel," .refers to women and not to men ,בְ נֵי יִשְׂרָ אֵ ל Our next question then, is what is the importance of the first born? It is explicitly related in Numbers 3:12 and 8:16, 18 that in the course of the wilderness wan- derings the Levites supplanted the first-born in assuming priestly and ritual functions. It may therefore be safely inferred that Moses is here instructed to in- stall the first-born to fulfill priestly duties. Mishnah Zevahim 14:4 expresses the developments this way: “Before the creation of the Tabernacle, shrines (Heb. bamot) were permitted, and the worship was performed by the first-born; once - 1 - the Tabernacle was erected, the shrines were prohibited, and the worship was performed by the priests [of the tribe of Levi].”--JPS Torah Commentary, p. 65. The Chumash noted: The Salvation of the Jewish firstborn from the plague is what consecrated them to God; by extending His protection over them, God "ac- quired" them, as it were. This sanctity was in addition to the previously existing rule that the sacrificial service was performed by the firstborn, and, as the story of Jacob and Esau demonstrates, the firstborn was the one expected to receive the blessings and responsibilities of spiritual service.--p. 83. We actually have no rulings in the Scripture concerning this role or function of the firstborn, nor any recorded ruling from the time prior to Moshe. These concepts and ideas espoused above are taken from the fact that prior to this time Avraham, Isaac, and Jacob were all building altars and worshipping ADONAI. We find addi- tionally that both Cain and Abel brought sacrifices to ADONAI. These concepts of the firstborn carrying out priestly functions then cannot be adamantly affirmed. What makes one a firstborn? Of mother or of father? This question is raised and answered by the JPS Torah Commentary, the Chumash, and the Jewish Study Bible. All three point to the Jewish understanding that the first issue of every womb describes the firstborn of the mother, and not of the father. The Chumash noted that the Plague of the Firstborn struck the firstborn of both men and women, yet the commandment of sanctification of the firstborn applies only to the first sons of women. We are then faced with the concept of being sanctified, or set apart unto God. It is not until v. 12 that the text qualifies the firstborn as the firstborn male. Our present verse simply says the firstborn of the womb, and could refer as easily to the first- born female. Our word is qualified and explained by the fact that "it is Mine;" or "it belongs to Me." It is set apart unto God for His use. In the case of animals, it is understood, as the rest of the verses will reveal, to mean to be given unto ADONAI in sacrifice. We might well understand the sacrifice of man as well, but in the light of the kind of sacrifice Paul speaks of in Romans 12:1-2. It is to be wholly devot- ed to ADONAI and to the fulfillment of His Will. The verb våd∂q in the Qal connotes the state of that which belongs to the sphere of the sacred. Thus it is distinct from the common or profane.... In the Piel and Hiphil it connotes the act by which the distinction is effected. In the Piel the word is used most frequently of the act of consecration. In Ex 19:23 the conse- cration of Mt. Sinai by establishing boundaries around it served to keep out all - 2 - that might have profaned God’s holy presence.--Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament. Vv. 3-10 Mitzvot of Matzot and Tefillin Moshe said to the people, "Remember this day." We are to remember the day of the Passover and of the Exodus. Everything else mentioned today in our text has to do with how we remember, or what we do to remember this day. Symbols and practices are begun in order that we might remember the events of the last Plague, the Passover, and the Exodus. Some will regard "this day" to refer quite specifical- ly to the 15th, the day of the Exodus itself as they begin their journey out of Egypt and towards the Promised Land. The reference to the Powerful Hand of God how- ever evokes not only the power to be able to leave, but also the events leading up to the Exodus as well as the final destruction of Pharaoh himself and his vast army in the waters of the Red Sea. We are to remember this day that we went out from Egypt, from the House of Slaves. It [this term House of Slaves] may derive from the Egyptian practice of settling the labor gangs in workmen’s villages in proximity to the site of the project for which they were conscripted. These villages were wholly enclosed by walls. One such has been uncovered at Deir el-Medinah, near Thebes. It served the laborers engaged in the construction of royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings. To the Israelite conscripts, such a village may have appeared to be a gigantic “slave house.”--JPS Torah Commentary, p. 65. Egypt continues to be used as the epitome of slavery, subjection, sin and darkness. They continue to stand opposed to Israel. But when we went out, it was not by our own ability, our own strength or effort. Rather we remember this day, because ADONAI brought us out of there by His Strong Hand. Therefore, you are to eat nothing leavened as a means to remember this day. For seven days we are to eat Matzah, and then on the 7th day there is to be a feast. For the duration of those seven days, there is not to be seen to you either chametz nor seor, the leavening agent nor the finished product. It is called "The Bread of Af- fliction," Deuteronomy 16:3. We are to observe this service in this month, the month of Aviv, in "its appointed time," its moed. Specifically, we are to observe this when we come into the promised land. However, it is to be remembered from generation to generation, or as it is stated in our text, from year to year. The literal Hebrew is "day to days." This expression is understood to mean whenever the days come around, thus from year to year. - 3 - We are to tell our "sons," or as we would interpret "children," that "It is because of what ADONAI did for me when I came out of Egypt." Thus we are to continue to tell the story of the mighty hand of God. This story would be specifically con- cerning the Exodus itself, and the many mighty Acts of God that both saved them, made a distinction between Israel and Egypt, and brought them out of Egypt while destroying their enemies. It is from this v. 8, that we get the word for the Hag- hig-gad-ta. We are thus given the ,הִ גַּדְ תָּ gadah. The term in Hebrew is responsibility to tell the story every Passover, so that we might remember from where we have come, by Whom we have come, and to Where we have come. Then we have a most unusual allusion to the Tefillin. There are four basic references to the use of Tefillin in the Scriptures of the Tanach: Exodus 13:9, 16; Deuteronomy 6:8; 11:18.
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