Audio Summaries of the daily Chumash portions In loving memory of Ousher Zelig ben Myer HaLevi Z”L

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G-d Gives Moshe a Mission

G-d tells Moshe to gather the "elders", AKA those Israelites who were appointed to counsel and tell them that Hashem, G-d of their forefathers appeared to Moshe and told him that he indeed has made note of what is being done to the Israelites in Egypt, and He will raise them out of there to the land of the Canaanite, the Chittite, the Amorite, the Perizzite, the Chivite and the Yevusite, which is "flowing with milk and honey".

G-d predicts that these elders will listen to Moshe and will join him in approaching Pharaoh. G-d tells Moshe that they should tell Pharaoh that G-d happened to come upon them and that they would like permission to go on a three day journey into the wilderness to offer sacrifices to G-d.

G-d continues and says that he knows that Pharaoh will not let them go, unless He shows him how mighty G-d's hand is.

So G-d says that He will strike Egypt with wonderous acts and only then will Pharaoh let them leave.

G-d says that he will also make it so that the Israelites will be favorable to the Egyptians so that when it's time to leave, the Israelites won't leave empty handed.

G-d elaborates on this, saying that the Israelite women will ask her Egyptian landladies to give her silver and gold vessels and clothing. G-d says that they should then put these items on their children and empty out Egypt.

Moshe protests his mission, telling G-d that people won't believe that G-d actually appeared to him.

Like a magician who asks his audience to verify what something is before they perform a trick on it, G-d says to Moshe, "What is that you are holding in your hand?" Moshe replied that it is a staff.

Alternatively, G-d was hinting that Moshe was worthy of being punished with a stick (staff) for doubting his people in this way.

G-d tells Moshe to cast the staff to the ground and it became a snake. Moshe flees from it.

The inner meaning as to why G-d specifically chose a snake as the object to which the staff would transform, is because in speaking poorly about the Israelites (i.e. doubting that they would believe him), he emulated the snake in the Garden of Eden who spoke ill of G-d.

G-d then tells Moshe to reach out and grab the snake by his tail. He does, and the snake transforms back into a staff.

G-d says that this is so that the Israelites will believe Moshe.

G-d now instructs Moshe to put his hand through his shirt to his chest. He does so, and then brings out his arm and it is stricken with Tzaraas, which is a skin disease that comes about through speaking Lashon Hara. Once again, this is a consequence of Moshe voicing his doubt over the Israelites believing him.

G-d then tells Moshe to return his hand back to his chest and then when he removes it, his skin has fully healed.

Side note, we learn from this story that G-d is benevolent in so far that He is quicker to heal than to make sick. The text in Hebrew is written in such a way that it indicates that while Moshes's hand initially was struck with the Tzaraas only upon removing his hand back out, his hand healed the moment that he put it back in (instead of when he took it back out again).

G-d tells Moshe that if they don't believe him after he shows them the first sign with the staff, they will definitely believe him after they show him the second sign with the skin. This is because they already had historical precedents to the fact that anyone who tried to harm them got stricken with Tzaraas as Pharaoh and Avimelech were because of Sarah (Breishis 12:14-20 and 20:1-18).

G-d then says that if they don't believe Moshe even after the second sign, Moshe should take some water from the Nile and pour it into the ground and it will turn into blood upon hitting the land.

Side note: G-d specifically chose that this sign be regarding the Nile as an affront to the Egyptians as they worshipped it. It is G-d's custom when avenging nations other than Israel that He avenge their false deities first.

Another side note: G-d made sure that the water only turned to blood when it hit the ground and not while it was still in Moshes's hand so that no one could claim that Moshe was secretly holding some red dye in his hand that made the water appear like blood.

G-d persists in trying to get Moshe to undertake this mission for a full seven days and continuously refuses. He tells G-d that he is not fit for the job as he stutters. The real reason was that he felt it would be disrespectful to his brother Aaron who was older than him, had already experienced prophecy and was a priest.

Only after seven days when G-d gets angry at him does Moshe relent and agree to go.

G-d responds by asking rhetorically, "Who gives man a mouth or makes one mute, deaf, sighted or blind?"

G-d is pointing out in this statement how Moshe should have faith that he will be able to overcome this challenge just as G-d made it so he was able to overcome so many challenges in the past, namely:

Giving a man a "mouth" - this is alluding to Moshe having the power to defend himself when he was brought before Pharaoh in judgement (regarding the killing of the Egyptian).

Making one "mute" - this is alluding to Pharaoh not issuing his decree with full force to have Moshe executed.

"Deaf" - in that the executioners didn't listen to Pharaoh's decree to execute Moshe.

"Blind" - that the executioners did not see Moshe when he escaped from the executioner's platform.

So G-d tells Moshe not to worry and that he will put the words in his mouth.

Moshe makes a final plea to G-d, asking that he send someone else in his stead. He either means Aaron, to whom G-d had already spoken, or to whoever else would be able to lead the Israelites when they reached Israel (since Moshe prophetically knew that he would not enter into the land of Israel).

G-d gets angry and tells Moshe that contrary to Moshes's fears, Aaron will not resent Moshe for taking this leadership role, but will rather be happy about it.

Side note, usually when G-d angers, some ramification remains after the anger has passed. In this case, according to Rabbi Yehoshua Ben Karcha, there was no ramification. Rabbi Yose however, refuted this and says that there was a ramification, which was that the designation of priesthood was given to Aaron instead of Moshe, to whom it was initially meant for, and Moshes's family now took on the position of Levites instead.

G-d then goes on to say that Moshe should tell Aaron what to say and says that He will be putting words in both of their mouths and instruct them in what they must do.

G-d says that Aaron will be Moshes's spokesperson due to Moshes's stutter. He tells Moshe to take the staff with him as it is with that that he will perform the signs.

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