(For the riddles, please see back page)
1) The Medrash (Shemos Rabbah 9:10) teaches that from the Plague of Blood Klal Yisroel got rich.
The Medrash explains, that a Jew and Egyptian would be in the same house, and the Egyptian would go to the barrel of water to draw water to drink, and it would turn into blood. The Yid would then go to get water, and it would remain as water. The Egyptian would then ask the Jew for a bit of water, and it would turn into blood. The Egyptian would then tell the Jew that they should drink at the same time from the same cup, and again the Jew got water, and the Egyptian got blood. Then they had no choice but to pay the Jew for the water, and then it would remain as water.
If a Jew would have mercy on an Egyptian and give him water free of charge, the Rokeach writes: If the Egyptian paid money – then he would have water to drink, if, however, he was given it for free as present – the water would turn into blood.
Which Egyptian Didn’t Suffer from the Plague of Blood?
The Meshech Chochmah says an incredible chiddush. The pasuk says, “Pharoah paid no attention also to this”. The Meshech Chochmah explains, that the reason Pharoah never paid attention (to the Plague of Blood) was because he never suffered from the Plague of Blood. He explains that the Egyptians suffered from the Plague of Blood, so that they would have to pay money to the Jews, however, Pharaoh already paid lots of money – as he brought up Moshe Rabbeinu in his palace like a king. Therefore, in his house there was no plague of blood, therefore, he “never paid attention to it”.
The Chida in his Sefer Pnei Dovid brings from the Rokeach a dovar pela. He writes: The Plague of Blood effected water in all utensils – besides for iron and metal. Like it says in the pasuk: “There was blood throughout the land of Egypt, in the wood and in the stones”, however, the pasuk never mentions metal. Pharoah drank from a metal utensil, therefore, he never had to drink blood, rather he drank water.
He writes further: “For this reason we place iron in the water at the time of the tekufah [certain time on the calendar when certain demons have power to cause harm] – as they are not common in metal, and this way demons won’t have any power over the water” (see Rema, Yoreh Deah 116:5, and Be’er Heitev).
2) The Darkei Teshuvah (13, s.k. 5) cites the Maharashdam, who learns that if fish are gathered from the water after they are dead, they are forbidden to be eaten.
The Gemara says, that the reason fish don’t need shechitah [slaughtering] is because: אסיפתן מן המים זוהי שחיטתן – their gathering from the water is their slaughtering. Therefore, if they are already dead, the Maharashdam learns that gathering them from the water doesn’t help, as one can’t fulfil the mitzvah of shechitah on a dead animal (see Kesef Mishnah, Hilchos Shechitah 1:3).
Bnei Yisroel were careful to only eat kosher in Egypt as is clear from the Mavor Yabok (Derush to Parshas Shemos). Therefore, if dead fish are forbidden to eat, then presumably Bnei Yisroel were careful not to eat them.
If, So, How Did the Yidden Have Gefilte Fish on Shabbos?
The above is not difficult, as the plague only effected the Egyptians water, however, the Yidden’s water remained water, and the fish in it never died, so Klal Yisroel were able to eat fish from their own water supply. However, if they would want to take fish from the Nile, or from any other Egyptian water supply, then they wouldn’t be able to eat the fish.
3) The Ibn Ezra learns that the frogs that came to attack the Egyptians, were the regular frogs that we find today in most rivers throughout the world.
However, it’s clear from Rabbeinu Bechayeh (Parshas Bo, 10:19) that the plague included crocodiles. Rabbeinu Bechayeh writes: The words of Moshe Rabbeinu’s prayers are true for now and for all generations. Moshe said about the frogs “in the river they shall remain”, and until today there remains in the rivers a water creature called a אלתמס''ח, a crocodile, and there it grows. People say, sometimes this creature leaves the Nile River where it grows, and goes onto the riverbank and swallows what it finds – two or three people at once. Spears and axes don’t harm it, unless they are aimed at the stomach. The doctors say, it contains a poison, and one who touches its body can be harmed even after he dies. It’s a type of frog, and due to the power of Moshe it remains there until this day.
The Abarbenal agrees to Rabbeinu Bechayeh and adds: These crocodiles would leave the river to get food for their hungry souls, as all the fish died in the Nile during the Plague of Blood, and they couldn’t sustain themselves from the dead fish that remained. Until today, sometimes they leave the river to snack on people. However, at the time of plague it was very common, and they went all over Egypt, and they would enter the houses and grab the children who were too young to run away. See inside for a lengthier discussion.
The Netziv in HeMek Dovar reconciles the Ibn Ezra who learns it was regular frogs, and Rabbeinu Bechayeh who learns it was crocodiles and says, throughout Egypt there were regular frogs, however, in Pharoah’s house, there were crocodiles.
Interesting Fact About Crocodiles
The sefer Madreigas Adam (Bebakoshas HaShleimus, Perek 17) writes something fascinating. He writes: The nature of a crocodile is, that when it wants to hunt and eat a bird high up on a tree, it goes underneath the tree and opens its mouth very wide. It shows the bird its sharp teeth and gives the bird a sharp stare. The bird then looks into the crocodile’s mouth, gets a huge fright, gets very scared and falls from the high up tree into the crocodiles mouth.
4) R’ Chaim Kanievsky (Tama Dekra) explains, the Gemara in Taanis (21) teaches that a wild animal in and of itself is not so dangerous.
They are only dangerous when they are sent specifically by people to attack. This explains R’ Chaim is what Moshe was saying to Pharaoh: Don’t think the animals that will attack are random wild animals, rather, they are wild animals that have been sent specifically by Hashem to attack, therefore, they are very dangerous.
5) The Medrash in this week’s parsha writes: Come and see the extent of the mercy of Hakodosh Boruch Hu, even when He is angry, he has mercy on reshoim and their animals.
As we find by the Plague of Borad [Hailstones] that he only destroyed the crop, and He warned the Egyptians to take their animals and themselves inside.
We see from this Medrash, that Hashem had mercy even on the money belonging to a non-Jew.
If, so why does the Gemara only mention: שהתורה חסה על ממונם של ישראל – “The Torah has mercy on the money of Jews”?
The Moishav Zekeinim brings from HaRav Boruch, that in this case Hashem protected the animals for the Yidden’s sake, as we find that the animals were eventually given to the Yidden (10:25).
Tosfos Rabbeinu Chaim Paltiel answers: The Gemara is referring to a small loss such as pachim ketanim [small jugs], however, when it comes to a big loss, like a flock of animals and horses, and various other animals, then even by non-Jew’s Hashem has mercy.
