Moshe Rabbeinu who was the redeemer of the Jewish Nation from Mitzrayim was a stutterer to the point that he needed Ahron his brother to speak for him before Pharaoh. According to human logic, would it not have been politically and psychologically more persuasive if the messenger from Hashem who demanded that the king of Egypt free the Jewish People, was not compromised with physical flaws in any way especially with his speech and the art of communication? Obviously, Hashem the Omniscient had a plan that needed Moshe to be a stutterer. Let us try to explain the concept of how from negative things can come out even better and more desired results.
Yosef told his brothers פקוד יפקוד אלקים אתכם Hashem will surely remember you and take you out of this land. After being in slavery for such a long time how would they know for sure to believe Moshe as their redeemer carrying the words of Hashem? Jewish History has portrayed many a False Mashiach who came and gone. What then would validate the authenticity of Moshe being the true messenger of Hashem?
Chazal answer that the words פקוד פקדתי was the code through which the redeemer's identity will be proven. But wait. If these two words will be the code then other people knew the code as well. What will stop them from using the code and falsely claim that they are Hashem's messenger? Many answers are given. One such answer is the Baal Haturim at the end of Veyechi that to prove one was the chosen redeemer it would not suffice to merely say the דוקפי דוקפ but he would have to explain the code. For one of the biggest questions concerning the redemption through Moshe was how can Yisrael leave Mitzrayim when the decree made with Avraham was for 400 years? Therefore the true redeemer cannot be here before another 190 years have passed!
However, Moshe knew how to explain the code in such a way that it would answer this difficult question. The word פקד besides meaning to remember also translates as missing like we find in the passuk ולא נפקד ממנו איש (Bamidbar 31,49) Therefore the passuk can be read דוקפי דוקפ אלקים Hashem דוקפ the gematriah of 190 (years) will be דוקפי will be taken away from the decree of 400 and thereby making you eligible to be redeemed before the designated time.
Only the real redeemer was given the ability to darshan the code is this fashion in order to answer the justice of the geulah at that present time. This is the reason why Yisrael believed Moshe as their .גואל
But how did they know that this derasha is heavenly sent? Why couldn't someone who was a talmid chacham who studied gematriahs come up with the same derasha? To answer this we will bring another complimentary answer. An individual who is a stutterer cannot pronounce the sound of the letter פ correctly. The fact that Moshe when he spoke the code, pronounced the double פ perfectly proved that together with the explanation, that he and his nevuah were heavenly sent.
This pshat also explains the meaning of Hashem's response to Moshe in the passuk when he argued with Hashem by telling Him that he is an ערל שפתים. Hashem responded with םש ימ פה לאלם conveying that Hashem can do anything and even to make a mute speak. Yet Hashsem sent Ahron to convey all the messages to Pharaoh and to Bnei Yisrael and Moshe's stuttering didn't change? Now we can answer that Hashem enabled Moshe to speak when it came to giving the code of the geulah for the validation of Moshe as the messenger of Hashem was evident from his ability to say the letters פ in the code.
This explanation teaches us an incredible lesson concerning our relationship with Hashem and how He orchestrates certain actions even though they are misunderstood at the present time. If we heard the story of Moshe how he became a stutterer resulting from an episode as a baby by being raised is Pharaoh's royal palace, we would feel Ouch, Nebach, and why would Hashem allow this to happen to Amram the Gadol Hador's son.
Our problem is that we only see the present while Hashem sees the future. The only reason that the Yidden believed in the geulah of פקד יפקד was because Moshe interpreted the code with the pronouncing of the letter פ perfectly even though that was an impossible achievement for a stutterer. Without the stutter, he would not have been believed. In the zechus of this tragic accident as a baby, Millions of Yidden believed in Moshe and the geulah from Mitzrayim which restored their hope and desire for the redemption which only then made the redemption possible in order to receive the Torah Revelation at Har Sinai.
Let us delve a little deeper into understanding why did Hashem choose to restore hope in the hearts of Am Yisrael for the geulah specifically from stuttering and the derasha of דוקפי דוקפ as explained by the Baal Haturim.
Man is the highest level of creation, rising above the inanimate, vegetative, and animal. He is called a medabair who was created with Tzelem Elokim and the power of speech. When one's speech is spiritually flawed in the example where he speaks Lashon Harah, Nivul Peh, lies, hurtful words to others, then a spiritual ערלה foreskin has covered his mouth, lips and his Tzelem Elokim which initially transformed him into the highest level of creation - medabair. We find a similar description of the Torah concerning one's heart תלרע תא םתלמו לבבכם that one can spiritually grow an ערלה on his heart that must then be circumcised and removed.
Moshe Rabbeinu himself did not have any of these flaws. Yet he possessed a physical flaw of stuttering called an לרע שפתים . The reason being that Moshe represented and was the embodiment all of Am Yisrael as the Medrash says that there was one woman in Mitzrayim who gave birth to 000,600 children whose name was Yocheved. The Ari writes that in Mitzrayim the דבור was in galus. In other words the highest level of Man possessed by Am Yisrael the medabair was dysfunctional as a whole. The symptom of this spiritual malaise manifested itself with the Yidden speaking Lashon Harah as Moshe declared אכן נודע הדבר , Now I know why the Yidden are in galus because their level of medabair is in galus and Yidden have distanced themselves from their origin the neshamah (see Gur Aryeh).
With all this said there was one exception within the Yid which did not disconnect the medabair from its source and that is the "Pintele Yid". There is a spark in every Yid that cannot be penetrated or defiled from alien influences. It is compared to the flask of oil of Chanukah which was not defiled and possessed the seal of the Kohen Gadol which the sefarim tell us refers to Hashem. That spark never falls into galus nor polluted by sin. It remains unadulterated in the state of constant geulah and connection with Hashem. This is the reason why Am Yisrael after being in galus for nearly 2000 years still remain a nation of Torah and Mitzvos even returning to our Mother Land from which we were exiled. It is only because the Pinteleh Yid within us is alive and well connected to Hashem forever.
Moshe was tongue tied which reflected that the Dibbur of Yisrael was in galus. However when it came for Moshe to reveal the impending geula, the code was pronounced by Moshe without stuttering. This reflected the teaching that Am Yisrael are intrinsically running 24/7 in redemption mode and they only need the tools and preparedness to actualize it. True Klal Yisrael as a whole is a stutterer but as far a geulah goes they the level of medabair is still in tack and it reflects itself with a perfect pronunciation. Now is the time to reveal the דקפ. פקדתי
Once we understand that our relationship with Hashem is supernatural above time and space, then the number of years in the decree of 400 can be changed faster than the blink of an eye since part of us was always holding in geulah. Hashem can easily remove 190 years from the decree by exposing and revealing the Pinteleh Yid to the open and what was potential geulah in hiding has become actual geulah even after just 210 years of bondage.
Now we see how the code of דוקפי דוקפ includes the many facets of the geulah. The fact that Moshe Rebbeinu could say the letter פ, together with the explanation of the Baal Haturim of removing 190 years, impacted Klal Yisrael into believing that Moshe is the messenger of Hashem to take them out of Mitzrayim now.
Now that we are in the Galus of Edom for the longest time, we must realize that we are in the same situation of Galus Mitzrayim and Hashem can redeem us prematurely. קפוד ידוד לוק פתחי לי the voice of my beloved is banging "open up for me". This passuk is referring to the Pinteleh Yid which holds the key. It is beating at the door to let it be exposed to the outside so it could radiate the glory of Hashem and therefore hasten the geulah. The word דופק contains the same letters as פקוד which is gematriah ,קץ the end, the geulah. All we have to do is to turn our inner ear on and hear the knocking of the geulah from within ourselves and then we could suddenly find ourselves standing with Moshiach and Hashem's revelation right before our eyes.
Rav Brazil
Gut Shabbos
