Bo: Redemption Depends on the Kids

by Rav Hillel Mertzbach, Rabbi of the Central Synagogue, Yad Binyamin, yeshiva.org.il, translated by Hillel Fendel.

This week's Torah portion is Bo (Sh'mot 10,1-13,16) begins with the 8^th plague visited upon Pharaoh and the Egyptians – the plague of locusts. G-d gives Moshe some words of introduction: "I have hardened the heart of [Pharoah] and his advisors, so that I will place these signs among them, and so that you [singular] tell your sons and grandsons that which I did in Egypt and the miraculous signs I performed [on] them, and you [plural] will know that I am G-d" (10,1-2).

Let us relate to the following questions:

1.     Why does G-d address Moshe first in singular and then in plural form?

2.     Of the two objectives mentioned here – punishing Egypt and telling our children – which one is the principle one?

3.     Why is there a command to tell both our children and grandchildren all that happened there?

The Centrality of Teaching the Children

Let us begin by quoting former President Zalman Shazar who served as Israel's first Education Minister in 1949. When he introduced in the Knesset the law mandating free education in Israel, he said as follows:

"The Hebrew nation is that which practiced the law 'you shall teach your children' [a Biblical command that we recite in Kriat Shma] ever since it ascended to the arena of history. It also made sure, even during its dark years, to preserve this asset of teaching its children… It instituted that every town that does not have a teacher, does not have the legal status of a town. Even in the darkness of its Exiles, and in all its communities, it instituted that every community must have teachers, paid for by all the inhabitants; rich or poor, whether one has many children or none – all together must bear the burden of the study of Torah." (These words also appeared one series of Israel's 200-shekel bills.)

[The Talmud indicates that the Tannaitic Sages R. Yehoshua ben Gamla and R. Shimon ben Shatach, nearly 2,000 years ago, cooperated in instituting a law that every village must have a school and that parents must send their children to learn there.]

When the plague of locusts struck Egypt, Pharaoh finally caved in (temporarily), and asked Moshe and Aharon whom they want to take with them out of Egypt. Moshe said, "Everyone!" His exact words were: "With our young and old we will go, with our sons and daughters, and even with our sheep and cattle" (10,8-9). Pharaoh refused, and offered only that the men should leave to worship G-d, and with that, he banished Moshe and Aharon from his presence.

Moshe had told Pharaoh that they wished to go and worship G-d, and that for this purpose, the children had to come with them. Pharaoh said there was no need for the children to join, and that only the adult males have to worship G-d. This was the dispute between them.

From Moshe's words – "with our young and old we will go" – we see that the principle worship of G-d comes with the integration of the generations, the older with the younger. "Without lambs, there are no goats," the Medrash teaches; there can be no continuation of Torah without children in schools.

In this spirit is explained the words of King David in Psalm 127: "Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the sons of youth" (verse 4). What connection is there between a warrior's arrow and children? The answer is that just as the warrior prepares to hit his target by standing and aiming carefully, the same is true in children's education: The more we think ahead and plan a correct educational approach and strategy, based on the children's needs, abilities, and inclinations, the greater are the prospects that we will actually succeed.

We must know that raising children is similar to raising trees. If the tree grows crookedly, it will be hard to straighten it afterwards – and so too, if a child learns ideas that are contrary to Torah, and lacks the proper guidance, he will have trouble connecting later with his parents' tradition.

With this, we will now seek to answer our original questions.

1.     The verse speaks first in singular and then in plural in order to show that if each individual parent teaches his children, in the end the entire nation will come to know that Hashem is our G-d.

2.     Two reasons were cited for the plagues in Egypt, to teach us that the plagues were designed to amplify G-d's name in the world – and this is done by transmitting the message to the coming generations.

3.     Why both children and grandchildren? The main purpose of the Exodus and its miracles is to pass the story and its lessons down through the generations. We must therefore ensure that not only our children hear this, but also that it continues to be told for generations afterwards as well.

 

In Conclusion

The tradition and love of Torah are the foundations of the Exodus and our entire Torah. If we succeed in bringing to our children a love of Torah, G-d's name will be magnified and sanctified in the world, and we will succeed in actualizing our ultimate purpose.