This week's Torah portion, Shemot, chronicles the events that happened to the Jewish people after they had been living in Egypt, beginning more than 100 years after they had entered that country. Nevertheless, the opening verse, "These are the names of the people who were coming into Egypt," indicates that, despite having lived there for so long, they were still "coming into Egypt." To them, it was a foreign land, i.e. not their natural habitat. They had been born in Egypt, even their parents had been born in Egypt, but it was not their home. It was exile; home was Eretz Yisrael, the Land of Israel, and they still felt like foreigners in the process of "coming to Egypt."
What's the difference between Egypt and Israel? In the Biblical era, the societies were primarily agricultural, so when the Torah wants to contrast the two countries, it points to their water supply, stating: "The land to which you are coming to possess is not like the land of Egypt... where you plant your seed and water it by foot. Instead,... it is a land of hills and valleys. From the rain of heaven, it derives its water." In other words, in Egypt, the water came from the Nile, in Israel however, there are no large rivers, meaning the water supply is almost entirely dependent on rain.
When the supply of water comes from a river, no G-dly influence is apparent and the natural order seems to control the water supply. In Israel, by contrast, "the eyes of all must look upward" to "the One Who holds the key to rain." It is clearly apparent that toil and till, try as we may, the success of our crops depends on G-d's blessings. In this way, the land itself educates us to trust in G-d, and to see ourselves as in His hands and His providence, controlling our lives.
In Chasidic thought, it is explained that Egypt is not only a geographical location but also a state of mind. In fact the Hebrew name for Egypt, "Mitzrayim," is almost identical to the word "meitzarim," which means straits or limitations. Because Israel taught the Jewish people to continually look up to G-d, they never could feel at home in Egypt. The concept of life being governed by natural routine was inherently foreign. Hence - as stated above - even after living in Egypt for an extended period, the place was new to them.
When viewed in that light, the exodus was an inevitable occurrence. Yes, it took years and, at a certain point, even the Jewish people's faith was somewhat weakened. But since the Jews, as individuals and as a people, were continually looking to G-d, ultimately, it was to be anticipated that G-d would turn to them and redeem them.
When G-d called upon him to accept the incredible task of leading the Jewish people from slavery to liberation, Moses hesitated.
“Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh?” he asked.
“For I will be with you,” G-d reassured him.
Moses would not go alone. G-d would be with him every step of the way.
Moses understood that before he could even try to influence Pharaoh, he first had to influence the Jewish people. He had to impress upon them that G-d, the G-d of their fathers, was about to take them out of Egypt with a strong hand and an outstretched arm. And he sensed that this task—inspiring them to believe in the imminent redemption—would not be easy.
And Moses said to G-d, “Behold I come to the children of Israel, and I say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they say to me, 'What is His name?' what shall I say to them?”
Moses understood that upon hearing that the G-d of their fathers was about to redeem them, the first question the Jewish people would ask was, “What is His name?” G-d's assorted names represent the various ways He expresses Himself: kindness, judgment, compassion, etc. Moses knew that the Jews would immediately ask, how did G-d behave in a way that caused us to suffer so terribly for so many decades? What is His name? What is the “name,” the attribute, the justification, for G-d to be silent in the face of such terrible human suffering? He realized that before the Jews could accept G-d's promise for redemption, they must first understand how and why He allowed their suffering.
G-d said to Moses, “Ehyeh asher ehyeh (I will be what I will be),” and He said, “So shall you say to the children of Israel, 'Ehyeh (I will be) has sent me to you.'”
What is the meaning of the name Eheyeh - “I will be what I will be”? And how does it address the question: which name would allow for so much Jewish suffering?
Rashi explains:
“Ehyeh asher ehyeh (I will be what I will be)”: “I will be” with them in this predicament “what I will be” with them in their subjugation by other kingdoms.
According to Rashi, G-d explained to Moses that the question of how He allows so much suffering is indeed the most powerful question that can be asked. Yet, to be a Moses, to bring a message of hope to the people, to lead them to physical and spiritual liberation, one does not need to know the answer to the question. Moses must convey to the Jewish people a far more powerful insight: that G-d is with us in our suffering. That He has not abandoned us. That He is present even when His presence is hidden.
Indeed, we have survived so much pain and suffering throughout our history, not because we had a philosophical explanation how G-d allows such suffering, but because we sensed we were never alone.
Each of us is a Moses. We will each experience a time in life when we are called upon to offer comfort and encouragement to someone who is suffering. Perhaps the lesson from G-d's words to Moses is that when a child, a spouse, a stranger, or friend is suffering, we should not attempt to rationalize, explain, justify, philosophize, or blame. The most important thing we can do is simply be present and help the person feel that he or she is not alone.
