“ויהי ברד ואש מתלקחת בתוך הברד, כבד מאוד אשר לא היה כמהו בכל מצרים מאז היתה לגוי”
“There was hail, and fire blazing inside the hail, very heavy, such as had never been in the entire land of Mitzrayim, from the time it became a nation.“ Rashi tells us that there was fire blazing inside the hail. This was a miracle within a miracle. The fire and hail were intermingled, and although the hail is made of water, and fire and water by nature do not coexist, yet to perform the will of their Creator, they made peace between themselves. What exactly was the miracle within a miracle, and why did Hakadosh Boruch Hu create this miracle within a miracle?
The Midrash says that the fire in the middle of the hail can be compared to two parts of the same army that are rivals of each other. When the king needs them to go to battle for him, they make peace and go do the king’s bidding. So too here, the hail and fire made peace with each other and worked in tandem to fulfill ratzon Hashem.
Hakadosh Boruch Hu performed this miracle to be meramez that here Klal Yisroel were zoche to this makkah through two middos, middas harachamim and middas hadin. The din turned to rachamim for Klal Yisroel; the Mitzriyim were afflicted, and Klal Yisroel were not. It is known that fire represents din, and water represents rachamim. They were working in tandem here. The fire and water made peace Above, representing that middas hadin and middas harachamim were working together. (חכמת התורה)
There is something that we call nature. It is the system that Hakadosh Boruch Hu placed in this world, and there are basic laws that it follows. Hakadosh Boruch Hu created those laws, and He can go outside of those laws whenever He chooses. Fire and ice do not mix according to the laws of nature. However, when it comes to Hakadosh Boruch Hu, there are no restrictions of nature. The fire and ice came together for ratzon Hashem, which superseded their natural tendencies.
The first miracle that occurred was that there was hail and fire that fell upon the land of Mitzrayim, which was contrary to nature. Then, on top of that, the hail and fire fell together, the fire within the hail, and they worked in tandem and not against each other. This was a sign that Hakadosh Boruch Hu does not work within the confines of nature.
There is also a deeper lesson that can be learned from here. Fire represents middas hadin, and water represents middas harachamim. Many in the world believed that they were two separate powers, from two separate sources. In fact, we all know, that it is all one; it is all from Hakadosh Boruch Hu. Hakadosh Boruch Hu can unleash middas hadin at the same time as middas harachamim. While here, by the makkah of Barad, this was just a remez, at Krias Yam Suf, this became clear to all. While Hakadosh Boruch Hu was employing middas harachamim and saving Klal Yisroel, simultaneously, He was employing middas hadin and killing the Mitzriyim. Hakadosh Boruch Hu was showing Klal Yisroel His great love for them, that although the middas hadin was alive and active, He treated them with middas harachamim and saved them. We must reciprocate that love for Hakadosh Boruch Hu and seek to truly be one with Him.
