Torah Stories By Hannah Va’era

In this week’s story, G-d spoke to Moshe and said to him, “I am HaShem. I appeared to Abraham, Yitzchak, and Ya’akov as El Shaddai, but I did not make Myself known to them by My Name HaShem. I also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived. I have now heard the moaning of the Yisraelites because the Egyptians are holding them in bondage, and I have remembered My covenant. Say, therefore, to the Yisraelite people: I am HaShem. I will free you from the labours of the Egyptians and deliver you from their bondage. I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and through extraordinary chastisements. And I will take you to be My people, and I will be your G-d. And you shall know that I, HaShem am your G-d who freed you from the labours of the Egyptians. I will bring you into the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Yitzchak and Ya’akov, and I will give it to you for a possession, I, HaShem.” But when Moshe told this to the Yisraelites, they would not listen to Moshe, their spirits crushed by cruel bondage.

Then HaShem spoke to Moshe, saying, “Go and tell Pharaoh king of Egypt to let the Yisraelites depart from this land.” But Moshe appealed to HaShem saying, “The Yisraelites would not listen to me; how then should Pharaoh heed me, a man of impeded speech!” So HaShem spoke to both Moshe and Aharon in regard to the Yisraelites and Pharaoh, king of Egypt, instructing them to deliver the Yisraelites from the land of Egypt.

The following are the heads of their respective clans.

The sons of Reuben, Yisrael’s firstborn: Enoch and Pallu, Hezron and Carmi; those are the families of Reuben. The sons of Simeon: Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar and Saul the son of a Canaanite woman; those are the families of Simeon. These are the names of Levi’s sons by their lineage: Gershon, Kohath and Merari; and the span of Levi’s life was 137 years. The sons of Gershon: Libni and Shimei, by their families. The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel; and the span of Kohath’s life was 133 years. The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites by their lineage.

Amram took to wife his father’s sister Jochebed, and she bore him Aharon and Moshe; and the span of Amram’s life was 137 years. The sons of Izhar: Korah, Nepheg, and Zichri. The sons of Uzziel: Mishael, Elzaphan, and Sithri. Aharon took to wife Elisheba, daughter of Aminadab and sister of Nahshon, and she gave birth to Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. The sons of Korah: Assir, Elkanah, and Abiasaph. These are the families of the Korahites. And Aharon’s son Eleazar took to wife one of Putiel’s daughters, and she gave birth to Pinchas. Those are the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites by their families.

It is the same Aharon and Moshe to whom HaShem said, “bring forth the Yisraelites from the land of Egypt, troop by troop.” It was they who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt to free the Yisraelites from the Egyptians; these are the same Moshe and Aharon. For when HaShem spoke to Moshe in the land of Egypt and HaShem said to Moshe, “I am HaShem; speak to Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I will tell you,” Moshe appealed to HaShem, saying, “see, I am of impeded speech; how then should Pharaoh listen to me!”

HaShem said to Moshe, “See, I place you in the role of G-d to Pharaoh, with your brother Aharon as your prophet. You shall repeat all that I command you, and your brother Aharon shall speak to Pharaoh to let the Yisraelites depart from his land. But I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, that I may multiply My signs and marvels in the land of Egypt. When Pharaoh does not listen to you, I will lay My hand upon Egypt and deliver My ranks, My people the Yisraelites, from the land of Egypt with extraordinary chastisements. And the Egyptians shall know that I am HaShem, when I stretch out My hand over Egypt and bring out the Yisraelites from their midst.” This Moshe and Aharon did; as HaShem commanded them, so they did. Moshe was eighty years old and Aharon eighty three, when they made their demand on Pharaoh.

HaShem said to Moshe and Aharon, “When Pharaoh speaks to you and says, ‘Produce your marvel,’ you shall say to Aharon, ‘Take your rod and cast it down before Pharaoh.’ It shall turn into a serpent.” So Moshe and Aharon came before Pharaoh and did just as HaShem had commanded: Aharon cast down his rod in the presence of Pharaoh and his courtiers, and it turned into a serpent. Then Pharaoh, for his part, summoned the wise men and the sorcerers; and the Egyptian magicians, in turn, did the same with their spells; each cast down his rod, and they turned into serpents. But Aharon’s rod swallowed their rods. Yet Pharaoh’s heart stiffened and he did not heed them, as HaShem had said.

And HaShem said to Moshe, “Pharaoh is stubborn; he refuses to let the people go. Go to Pharaoh in the morning, as he is coming out to the water, and station yourself before him at the edge of the Nile, taking with you the rod that turned into a snake. And say to him, ‘HaShem, the G-d of the Hebrews, sent me to you to say, ‘Let My people go, that they may worship Me in the wilderness.’ But you have not listened until now. Thus says HaShem, ‘By this you shall know that I am HaShem.’ See, I shall strike the Nile with the rod that is in my hand, and it will be turned into blood; and the fish in the Nile will die. The Nile will stink so that the Egyptians will find it impossible to drink the water of the Nile.’”

And HaShem said to Moshe, “Say to Aharon: Take your rod and hold out your arm over the waters of Egypt – its rivers, its canals, its ponds, all its bodies of water – that they may turn to blood; there shall be blood throughout the land of Egypt, even in vessels of wood and stone.” Moshe and Aharon did just as HaShem had commanded: He lifted up the rod and struck the water in the Nile in the sight of Pharaoh and his courtiers, and all the water in the Nile was turned into blood and the fish in the Nile died. The Nile stank so that the Egyptians could not drink water from the Nile; and there was blood throughout the land of Egypt. But when the Egyptian magicians did the same with their spells, Pharaoh’s heart stiffened and he did not listen to them – as HaShem had spoken. Pharaoh turned and went into his palace paying no regard even to this. And all the Egyptians had to dig round about the Nile for drinking water, because they could not drink the water of the Nile.

When seven days had passed after HaShem struck the Nile, HaShem said to Moshe, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, thus says HaShem: Let My people go that they may worship Me. If you refuse to let them go, then I will plague your whole country with frogs. The Nile shall swarm with frogs, and they shall come up and enter your palace, your bedchamber and your bed, the houses of your courtiers and your people, and your ovens and your kneading bowls. The frogs shall come up on you and on your people and on your courtiers.”

And HaShem said to Moshe, “Say to Aharon: Hold out your arm with the rod over the rivers, the canals, and the ponds, and bring up the frogs on the land of Egypt.” Aharon held out his arm over the waters of Egypt, and the frogs came up and covered the land of Egypt. But the magicians did the same with their spells, and brought frogs upon the land of Egypt.

Then Pharaoh summoned Moshe and Aharon and said, “Plead with HaShem to remove the frogs from me and my people, and I will let the people go to sacrifice to HaShem.” And Moshe said to Pharaoh, “You may have this triumph over me: for what time shall I plead in behalf of you and your courtiers and your people, that the frogs be cut off from you and your houses, to remain only in the Nile?” “for tomorrow,” he replied. And Moshe said, “As you say – that you may know that there is none like HaShem our G-d; the frogs shall retreat from you and your courtiers and your people; they shall remain only in the Nile.” Then Moshe and Aharon left Pharaoh’s presence, and Moshe cried out to HaShem in the matter of the frogs which He had inflicted upon Pharaoh. And HaShem did as Moshe asked; the frogs died out in the houses, the courtyards and the fields. And they piled them up in heaps, till the land stank. But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, he became stubborn and would not listen to them, as HaShem had spoken.

Then HaShem said to Moshe, “Say to Aharon: Hold out your rod and strike the dust of the earth, and it shall turn to lice throughout the land of Egypt.” And they did so. Aharon held out his arm with the rod and struck the dust of the earth, and vermin came upon man and beast; all the dust of the earth turned to lice throughout the land of Egypt. The magicians did the like with their spells to produce lice, but they could not. The vermin remained upon man and beast; and the magicians said to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of HaShem!” But Pharaoh’s heart stiffened and he would not listen to them, as HaShem had spoken.

And HaShem said to Moshe, “Early in the morning present yourself to Pharaoh, as he is out to the water, and say to him, ‘Thus says HaShem: Let My people go, that they may worship Me. For if you do not let My people go, I will let loose swarms of insects against you and your courtiers and your people and your houses; the houses of the Egyptians, and the very ground they stand on, shall be filled with swarms of insects. But on that day I will set apart the region of Goshen, where My people dwell, so that no swarms of insects shall be there, that you may know that I HaShem am in the midst of the land. And I will make a distinction between My people and your people. Tomorrow this sign shall come to pass.’” And HaShem did so. Heavy swarms of insects invaded Pharaoh’s palace, and the houses of his courtiers; throughout the country of Egypt the land was ruined because of the swarms of insects.

Then Pharaoh summoned Moshe and Aharon and said, “Go and sacrifice to your G-d within the land.” But Moshe replied, “It would not be right to do this, for what we sacrifice to HaShem our G-d is untouchable to the Egyptians. If we sacrifice what is untouchable to the Egyptians before their very eyes, will they not stone us! So we must go a distance of three days into the wilderness to sacrifice to HaShem our G-d as He may command us.” Pharaoh said, “I will let you go to sacrifice to HaShem your G-d in the wilderness; but do not go very far. Plead then, for me.” And Moshe said, “When I leave your presence, I will plead with HaShem that the swarms of insects depart tomorrow from Pharaoh and his courtiers and his people; but let not Pharaoh again act deceitfully, not letting the people go to sacrifice to HaShem.”

So Moshe left Pharaoh’s presence and pleaded with HaShem. And HaShem did as Moshe asked: He removed the swarms of insects from Pharaoh, from his courtiers, and from his people; not one remained. But Pharaoh became stubborn this time also, and would not let the people go.

HaShem said to Moshe, “Go to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says HaShem, the G-d of the Hebrews: Let My people go to worship Me. For if you refuse to let them go, and continue to hold them, then the hand of HaShem will strike your livestock in the fields – the horses, the donkeys, the camels, the cattle, and the sheep – with a very severe pestilence. But HaShem will make a distinction between the livestock of Yisrael and the livestock of the Egyptians, so that nothing shall die of all that belongs to the Yisraelites. HaShem has fixed the time: Tomorrow HaShem will do this thing in the land.’” And HaShem did so the next day: all the livestock of the Egyptians died, but of the livestock of the Yisraelites not a beast died. When Pharaoh inquired, he found that not a head of the livestock of Yisrael had died; yet Pharaoh remained stubborn, and he would not let the people go.

Then HaShem said to Moshe and Aharon, “Each of you take handfuls of soot from the kiln, and let Moshe throw it toward the sky in the sight of Pharaoh. It shall become a fine dust all over the land of Egypt, and cause an inflammation breaking out in boils on man and beast throughout the land of Egypt.” So they took soot of the kiln and appeared before Pharaoh; Moshe threw it toward the sky, and it caused an inflammation breaking out in boils on man and beast. The magicians were unable to confront Moshe because of the inflammation, for the inflammation inflicted the magicians as well as all the other Egyptians. But HaShem stiffened the heart of Pharaoh, and he would not listen to them, just as HaShem had told Moshe.

HaShem said to Moshe, “Early in the morning present yourself to Pharaoh and say to him, ‘Thus says HaShem, the G-d of the Hebrews: Let My people go and worship Me. For this time, I will send all My plagues upon your person, and your courtiers, and your people, in order that you may know that there is none like Me in all the world. I could have stretched forth My hand and stricken you and your people with pestilence, and you would have been effaced from the earth. Nevertheless I have spared you for this purpose: In order to show you My power, and in order that My fame may resound throughout the world. Yet you continue to thwart My people, and do not let them go! This time tomorrow I will rain down a very heavy hail, such as has not been in Egypt from the day it was founded until now. Therefore, order your livestock and everything you have in the open brought under shelter; every man and beast that is found outside, not having been brought indoors, shall perish when the hail comes down upon them!’” Those among Pharaoh’s courtiers who feared HaShem’s word brought their slaves and livestock indoors to safety; but those who paid no regard to the word of HaShem left their slaves and livestock in the open.

HaShem said to Moshe, “Hold out your arm toward the sky that hail may fall on all the land of Egypt.” So Moshe held out his rod toward the sky, and HaShem sent thunder and hail, and fire streamed down to the ground, as HaShem rained down hail upon the land of Egypt. The hail was very heavy – fire flashing in the midst of the hail – such as had not fallen on the land of Egypt since it had become a nation. Throughout the land of Egypt the hail struck down all that were in the open, both man and beast; the hail also struck down all the grasses of the field and shattered all the trees of the field. Only in the region of Goshen, where the Yisraelites were, there was no hail.

Thereupon Pharaoh sent for Moshe and Aharon and said to them, “I stand guilty this time. HaShem is in the right, and I and my people are in the wrong. Plead with HaShem that there may be an end of G-d’s thunder and of hail. I will let you go, you need stay no longer.” Moshe said to him, “As I go out of the city, I shall spread out my hands to HaShem; the thunder will cease and the hail will fall no more, so that you may know that the earth is HaShem’s. But I know that you and your courtiers do not yet fear HaShem.” - Now the flax and the barley were ruined, for the barley was in the ear and the flax was in bud; but the different types of wheat were not hurt, for they ripen late. – Leaving Pharaoh, Moshe went outside the city and spread his hands to HaShem: The thunder and the hail ceased, and no hail came pouring down upon the earth. But when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunder had ceased, he became stubborn and reverted to his guilty ways, as did his courtiers. So Pharaoh’s heart stiffened and he would not let the Yisraelites go, just as HaShem had foretold through Moshe.