The Frogs Spoke to The Stones:
The Medrash (Shemos Rabbah 10:3) states that during the plague of tzefardea, if a wall was made of marble stones and the frogs could not get through, the frogs would tell the marble to split so that it could go and do Hashem’s will. The Bais Avrohom of Slonim zy”a (Yalkut Sichos Kodesh) quotes his father, the Divrei Shmuel zy”a, as saying: “a Yid must tell his heart to split open in order to allow him to do the will of Hashem. If one doesn’t do this, he is worse than the frogs who told this to the marble so that they could fulfill Hashem’s will.”
Targum explains that this is referring to Hashem’s nation that he took out of Mitzrayim. The pasuk continues with Hashem saying that He will stretch out His hand. This means that He will open His hand to accept the teshuva of the lowly ones.
Rashi explains this to mean: “His literal hand.” This can be understood with the words of Rashi in Devarim (30:3): “The day on which Yisroel’s exiles will be gathered is so monumental and will be so difficult, that it is as though Hashem Himself must literally take each individual Jew with His very hands out of his place.”
וְשָׁרַ ץ הַיְאֹר צְפַרְ דְּ עִים וְעָלוּ וּבָאוּ בְּבֵיתֶךָ וגו' וּבְתַנּוּרֶ יךָ וּבְמִ שְׁ אֲרוֹתֶיךָ (ז, כח)
And the river will swarm with frogs, and they will go up and come into your house... and into your ovens and into your kneading bowls. (7:28)
The Song of The Frogs:
Sefer Tzemach Dovid asks why the word “vayitzak” (and he cried out) is only used in regards to this makkah. Secondly, he notes that the word “devar” (the matter of) seems unnecessary.
He answers by quoting the Medrash (Yalkut Shimoni Tehillim, Remez 889) that says that frogs sing a lot of shira to Hashem – even more than Dovid Hamelech. The Gemara says (Pesachim 53B) that the frogs sacrificed their lives to perform their mission by jumping into the fiery ovens. Chananya, Mishoel and Azariah learned from them that they too must sacrifice their lives for Hashem.
It is certain that the frogs sang shira when they did this great mitzvah. Therefore, Moshe was reluctant to bring an end to this makkah and stop the shira. When it came time that he had to end it, he davened with “tze’aka”, which means a prayer said in the heart – not out loud (see Zohar Hakadosh, Shemos 20A). He did not want to openly daven to stop the shira, so he davened silently, in his heart.
The reason he did, in fact, daven to end the makkah was “because of the matter of the frogs that were placed in Pharaoh.” The frogs that were inside the stomachs of the Egyptians were also saying shira. But because they were in an unclean place, it was not respectful for them to be praising Hashem. Therefore, Moshe had a reason to stop the makkah.
He Wanted Pharaoh to Say Shira:
Alternatively, the Tzemach Dovid explains the pasuk to mean that Moshe davened that Pharaoh should say shira instead of the frogs, as this would be an even bigger Kiddush Hashem. Therefore, the pasuk says that he davened “that the matter of the frogs should be placed on Pharaoh.”
The Tefillah Must be Explained:
The concept of tefillah is mentioned several times in the story of the exodus from Egypt in regards to the prayers of Moshe Rabenu and Klal Yisroel during the bondage, and for the redemption. Furthermore, we can learn an important lesson in regards to tefillah from these stories. The Ohr Hachaim Hakadosh states that we learn from the frogs that one must say his tefillos out loud, in a clear way, with his requests fully explained.
One Who Davens For His Friend is Answered First:
In regards to the greatness of tefillah, I would like to relate that I personally witnessed in my work for the tzedakah organization “Lachmei Mordechai”, which distributes food packages every week to widows and orphans in the city of Beit Shemesh. The leaders of the organization once asked an orphaned girl to say Perek Shira for forty days as a zechus for a bochur who was in need of a shidduch in exchange for a nice payment. On the 40th day, the girl called the organizers of Lachmei Mordechai and asked if the bochur was engaged yet. They answered that he was not. She then said that she had good news. On that day, her 40th day of saying Perek Shira, she had become a kallah. She said that she would now say Perek Shira for another 40 days, without any payment, for the benefit of the bochur.
We saw a clear fulfillment of the Gemara’s words (Bava Kama 92A) that when one davens for his friend while he is in need of the same thing, he will be answered first. In this story, she davened from the depths of her heart for someone else, but she received her yeshua first.
The truth is that it is very hard for a person to bring about his own salvation, as Chazal say (Brachos 5B) that a prisoner cannot free himself from jail. However, if one davens for someone else, it is easier to arouse Divine mercy for oneself. This is because Hashem says: If a human being has mercy on his friend, I certainly should have mercy on him.
כִּי אִ ם אֵינְךָ מְ שַׁלֵּחַ אֶת עַמִּ י הִנְנִי מַשְׁ לִיחַ בְּךָ וּבַעֲבָדֶיךָ וּבְעַמְּ ךָ וּבְבָתֶּיךָ אֶת הֶעָרֹב וגו' (ח, יז)
For if you do not let My people go, I will send upon you and your servants and your nation and in your houses a mixture of wild animals. (8:17)
The Lice Returned:
The Dubno Magid zy”a notes that, in the Torah, the plague of kinim came before the plague of arov. However, the pasuk in Tehillim (105:31) says arov before kinim, which makes it sound like arov was first.
He answers this contradiction with a parable of a rich man who married off his son. In honor of the wedding, he made a lavish feast that lasted for seven days. On the first day, he invited all of his relatives. On the second day, he invited the Torah scholars of the town. On the third day, he invited all of the wealthy residents. On the fourth day, he invited all the poor people.
On the fourth day, he noticed that one of those in attendance had already been there on the first day. When he asked him why he had come back if he had already had a turn, the man said, “I am both a relative of yours and a poor man. On the first day, I came as a relative. Today, I came as a pauper.”
Similarly, the kinim first came for makkas kinim. They returned for makkas arov, when all of the wild animals came. This time, they came in their capacity as a wild animal.
וְשַׂמְ תִּ י פְדֻת בֵּין עַמִּ י וּבֵין עַמֶּךָ לְמָחָר יִהְיֶה הָאֹת וגו' (ח, יט)
And I will make separation between My people and your people; this sign will come about tomorrow. (8:19)
The Difference Between the Souls of a Jew and Non-Jew:
The Imrei Emes zy”a (quoted in Sefer Likutei Yehuda) explains this pasuk by quoting the Magen Avrohom (46:10) who says in the name of Mekubalim that we make the brachos of “shelo asani goy” and “shelo asani aved” in the morning to thank Hashem for not allowing the neshamos of a gentile or a slave to enter our bodies while we slept. He asks: How does a person know that the nashama of a non-Jew did not enter his body? If he is able to bless Hashem and utter His name, it is a clear sign that this did not occur.
Accordingly, the pasuk is saying: “And I will make a separation between My people and your people; this sign will come about tomorrow (in the morning)” – every morning, when one recites Birchas Hashachar, the separation between a Jew and non-Jew is evident.
A Daily Transformation:
He states further that the reason the “Yid Hakadosh” was known by this name was because he sanctified himself every day to rise to a new level of holiness that was as far above his previous level as the difference between a Jew and a non-Jew. This concept is seen from this pasuk that says that the separation between a Jew and non-Jew is seen every morning, which means that a Jew is able to undergo a transformation every day in which he reaches a new level that is as far from his old level as the difference between a Jew and a non-Jew.
וְאוּלָם בַּעֲבוּר זֹאת הֶעֱמַדְ תִּ יךָ וגו' וּלְמַעַן סַפֵּר שְׁ מִ י בְּכָל הָאָרֶ ץ (ט, טז)
But, for this I have allowed you to stand...in order to declare My name all over the earth. (9:16)
Not Being Embarrassed From the Mockers:
My grandfather, the Kretchnifer Rebbe zy”a (Gilyon Kol Emunah) asked why Hashem cares if His name is declared all over the world.
He answered that this is meant as a lesson for all Jews. When we walk in the streets, we should not be embarrassed that we are Jews. Why should we care if bareheaded strangers who live whatever lifestyle they want make fun of us for having payos and dressing like religious Jews?
Thus, the pasuk says that we should declare Hashem’s name throughout the land, meaning that we should be unashamed to show the world that we are connected to Hashem.
