Sunday, January 20, 2008

Parshas B'shalach

The pasuk states, "Hareim es Matcha..." the Midrash says that when Moshe first told the sea to split the sea told him that Moshe has no authority over me rather go to the nile where you are the ruler. The midrash continues with Moshe going to Hashem and telling Hashem what had transpired. Hashem told Moshe that when a servant refuses to listen and obey his master, the master beats him with a rod. Therefore, you should lift up your staff and strike the water Moshe. Moshe then went and struck the sea and the sea refused to split. Hashem then came down. When the sea saw Hashem coming the sea split immediatly and flowed in the opposite direction. Moshe then asked the sea why it was flowing away. The sea answered that Moshe is mistaken. Moshe you think that I am flowing away from you but I am really running away from Hashwm who is the world's creator.

An undeveloped idea: Bnei Yisrael's internal struggle about staying at Yam Suf and waiting for it to be split, and the option of turning around and going back to Mitzrayim.

The Midrash says that the Bnei Yisrael were able to make the Mahn taste the way they wanted. For instance, if a kid wanted it to taste like Pizza it could taste like Pizza or if an adult wanted it to taste like steak it could taste like stake.

If this Midrash is literal, then why did Bnei Yisrael want meat so badly. they could make the Mahn taste like any meat or quail they wanted it to taste like.

Abba suggested that there are two things that food does to a person. It gives them energy and it also makes you phycologically feel full and satiated. At the surface the Mahn seems to be a substane that let Bnei Yisrael get energy and have stregnth. The Midrash is telling us that the Mahn plaed a dual purpose. It not only gave Klal Yisrael energy in the midbar, but it also satiated them psychologically.

dvar torah parshas hashavua

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