From the Teachings of the Lubavitcher Rebbe Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, Zt”l
In this week's Torah portion, Shemot, we read that Moses "saw an Egyptian man smiting a Hebrew man...and he smote the Egyptian." The next day Moses went out and saw two Jewish men fighting. "He said to the wicked one, 'Why are you striking your fellow?' " To which the man answered, "Do you intend to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?"
The two Jews then went to Pharaoh and informed on Moses. "And Moses was afraid, and he said, 'Surely this thing is known.' "
Moses was Concerned Also for the Future of the Jewish People
The Midrash explains that Moses was afraid not only for his own safety but for the future of the Jewish people. Till then, Moses had not understood what the Jews could possibly have done to justify being enslaved. But when he saw that there were Jews who engaged in gossip and slander (lashon hara), he worried that they might not be worthy of being redeemed.
At first glance, Moses' concern seems surprising. We know that during the Egyptian exile there were some Jews who descended to the level of idol worship, yet even this sin wasn't enough to prevent them from being redeemed. How could the sin of lashon hara be worse than idolatry, to the point that it justified the Jews' continued enslavement?
“A Nation that Knows G-d”
According to Maimonides, the Jewish people inherited their intrinsic faith in G-d from the Patriarchs, after which they became "a nation that knows G-d." However, "As Israel's sojourn in Egypt lengthened they regressed and learned from [the Egyptians'] deeds, and they began to worship the stars." Nonetheless, "G-d chose Israel as His inheritance, and crowned them with the commandments."
In other words, before the Exodus from Egypt the Jewish people were defined by their deeds: Jews were "a nation that knows G-d." This definition could no longer be applied when the Jews went into exile and worshipped idols. Nonetheless, it was precisely then that G-d chose them as a nation.
G-d did not choose the Jewish people because of their good deeds or superior qualities. His choice completely transcended all reason. That some Jews worshipped idols was therefore not a hindrance to their redemption.
Dissension and Infighting Among Jews Threatens our Very Existence as a Nation
However, when Moses saw that there were Jewish gossipmongers, he became very frightened. Dissention and infighting among Jews threatens their very existence as a nation. Because G-d chose the Jews as a single, united entity, Moses worried that internal strife would cause them to lose that quality, and nullify their merit to be redeemed.
As it turned out, the difficulties and suffering of the exile drew the Jews together, and their renewed sense of unity made them worthy of being chosen by G-d. The Children of Israel were thus transformed into "a people forever," whose identity can never be lost among the nations.
Reprinted from the Parshat Shemos 5761/2001 edition of L’Chaim. Adapted from Volume 31 of Likutei Sichot.
