Why God Chose a Thornbush and the Meaning of the Signs

"And now, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me" (Exodus 3:9): this teaches that the Holy One, blessed be He, was watching the Egyptians, how they were enslaving Israel, as it is said, "behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me." As it were, I am with them. A fifth descent: He descended to the bush, as it is said, "and I have come down to deliver him from the hand of Egypt." He left the whole mountain and dwelt within the bush, and the bush was all distress and trouble, all thorns and thistles. Why did He dwell upon it? Because He saw Israel in great trouble, as it is said, "In all their affliction He was afflicted" (Isaiah 63:9). Moses saw the fire within the bush, and the fire did not consume the bush, and the bush did not extinguish the flames of the fire; and the bush does not grow on the ground unless there is water beneath it. Moses saw and wondered and went to look at the marvel. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: "Stand, for there I am destined to give the Torah to Israel." He said to him, "And I will send you to Pharaoh." Moses said, "Master of the universe, I have no strength, for I am impaired in my speech. And moreover, you are sending me into the hand of my enemies who seek my life." He said (Exodus 4:19), "Do not fear, for all the men are dead." Were they actually dead? Rather, they had come down from their property. From here you learn that anyone who comes down from his property is as if dead. He said to Him, "Master of the worlds, please send by the hand of the man You are destined to send in the time to come." He said to him, "I did not say I would send you to Israel, but to Pharaoh; and that man of whom you speak, I will send him in the time to come to Israel," (Malachi 3:23) "Behold, I send you Elijah the prophet." He said before Him, "Give me a sign." He said to him, "Cast your staff to the ground." And why did the Holy One, blessed be He, show Moses a serpent? Because just as a serpent kills and bites human beings, so Pharaoh and his people were biting and killing the children of Israel; and it turns back and becomes like dry wood, so Pharaoh and his people were like dry wood. And why did He show him an unclean thing? Because just as the leper is unclean and defiles Israel, then turns and becomes pure, so Israel would be purified from the defilement of Egypt. And why did He show him the fire from within the bush? Because the fire is Israel, who are likened to fire, as it is said (Obadiah 1:18), "And the house of Jacob shall be fire"; "the bush" is the nations of the world, who are likened to thorns; and the nations do not extinguish the flame of Israel, which is the words of Torah, nor does the fire of Israel consume the nations. In the time to come the fire of Israel will consume all the nations, as it is said, "And the peoples shall be as the burnings of lime, as thorns cut down" (Isaiah 33:12). He said before Him, "Master of the worlds, make known to me Your great and holy Name, that I may call upon Your Name and You will answer me." And He made known to him, "I will be what I will be" [Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh] (Exodus 3:14). And the heavenly beings saw that the Holy One, blessed be He, had transmitted the Explicit Name, and they said, "Blessed are You, Lord, who graciously grants knowledge." "I will be what I will be": the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses, "Go, say to Israel, I was with them in this enslavement, and I will be with them in the enslavement under the kingdoms." He said before Him, "Master of the worlds, sufficient for the trouble is its own hour." He said to him, "Go, say to them, Ehyeh has sent me to you." And still Moses refused. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, "You deserve to be ruled with a rod." "And He said, What is that in your hand? And he said, A staff" (Exodus 4:2). The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: "If it was not in your mind to go, you should have said at the outset, I am not going; but instead you waited until I handed over to you My secrets and the Explicit Name." "And it shall be, if they do not believe the voice of the first sign" (Exodus 4:8): what does "the voice" teach? Said Resh Lakish, the staff itself was speaking before Israel: "I was with Moses in Midian and I was turned into a serpent, and afterward I became a staff again." And it too raised its voice: "I was pure and I was defiled and I returned and was purified." And so in Egypt, to make known the greatness of the Holy One, blessed be He.