Parshas Shemos 5765

When Jacob and his sons first came to Egypt they were respected as the family of the viceroy. That quickly changed after Joseph and his brothers died. A new Pharaoh rose to power who did not want to remember the great accomplishments of Joseph. He saw the proliferation of the Jewish people throughout Egypt, and was concerned that they would try to overpower the Egyptian government. The exile of the Jews now began in earnest.

Pharaoh enacted various decrees against the Jewish people. He enticed them to help build new cities for the country. Gradually the people's freedom was severely limited and they became enslaved to Pharaoh. The Egyptians then began to oppress the Jews with backbreaking labor. Pharaoh also ordered the Hebrew midwives to abort the Jewish male fetuses shortly before birth. When they refused to listen to him he decreed that every male infant be killed. Despite these evil decrees, and actually, as the Rabbis explain, because of the decrees, the people continued to multiply and populate the land.

In this setting, a baby boy was born to a couple from the tribe of Levi. The man's name was Amram and his wife's name was Yocheved. The child's mother was afraid he would be found by the Egyptian authorities, so she put him in a lined basket and set it among the reeds in the river. Pharaoh's daughter, Bisyah, came to bathe in the river. She saw the child and took pity on him, and brought him home to raise in the king's palace. The child's sister who had been standing nearby offered to bring a Jewish nursemaid to nurse the child. Bisyah agreed and the child's own mother was brought to help raise the child. Bisyah called the child Moshe. This would be the name by which he would be known for all times.

As Moshe grew older he began to empathize with his brothers' pain. He wanted to help them, but he soon found himself having to flee Egypt for his own life. He settled in Midian where he married the daughter of Yisro, a former adviser to Pharaoh and a deeply religious man who had dedicated his life to seeking out G-d. He would later convert to Judaism.

When Moshe was eighty years old, G-d appeared to him in a burning bush, and instructed him to go to Egypt to lead the Jewish nation out of slavery. Moshe did not feel himself fit for this task. He argued that he was not an orator; He was also concerned that the people would not believe him. G-d insisted that Moshe go, and that his brother Ahron would assist him. Although the exodus would not happen for another year, the process leading to it was now ready to begin.

... the name of the first was Shifra and the name of the second was Puah. (Exod. 1:15)

The Midrash explains that the midwives' names represented their profession; "Shifra" means she helped straighten and beautify ("meshaper") the babies' bones, and "Puah" means she would coo and "pooh-pooh" the children to comfort them. Although these actions may seem insignificant, the Torah teaches us that greatness may often be seen in small actions. Rabbi Avrohom Chaim Levine would say that to a big person nothing seems too small, and to a small person, nothing seems important. In the greater scheme of life, big or small is only a perception. It is up to the person to use small things for great purposes, or to debase important things for meaningless pursuits.

Did You Know...

A person should prepare for prayer in a manner becoming to one who is speaking to the king. His clothing and body should be clean. One should use the facilities before prayer, as it is not respectful to pray before G-d when one has to relieve himself. Sometimes this may even invalidate the prayers, and they have to be repeated a second time.

One should wash his hands and face too before prayers. If water is not readily available, one may rub his hands on a hard surface to clean them. It is also proper to wash out one's mouth--except on a fast day. One's clothes should also should be fit for meeting royalty; thus one should not pray in pajamas or in bare feet.