Yalkut Shimoni on Torah Reader

Another interpretation: [she was called Puah] because she would cry out [po'ah] through the Holy Spirit and say: My mother is destined to bear a son who will save Israel.

Another interpretation: [she was called Puah] because she would cry out [po'ah] and weep over her brother, as it is said, "And his sister stationed herself at a distance" (Exodus 2:4).

(Exodus 1:16) "And he said: When you deliver the Hebrew women, look upon the birthstool [ovnayim]." He handed them a great sign, as it is written, "And I went down to the potter's house, and behold, he was doing work upon the stones [ovnayim]" (Jeremiah 18:3). He said to them: Just as this potter has one thigh on this side and one thigh on that side and the block in the middle, so too a woman has one thigh on this side and one thigh on that side and the child in the middle. And there are those who say: at the moment she crouches to give birth, her thighs grow cold like stones. "If it is a son, you shall put him to death" (Exodus 1:16). He handed them a great sign: a son's face is downward, a daughter's face is upward. "And the midwives feared God and did not do as he spoke to them" (Exodus 1:17). It should have said "to them [lahen]." Rather, this teaches that he demanded of them a matter of transgression, and they were not taken. "And they did not do as the king of Egypt spoke to them" [interpreted as: he solicited them and they did not submit].

"And they kept the children alive" (Exodus 1:17). It was not enough for them that they did not put them to death, but they even supplied them with water and food. (Exodus 1:19) "And the midwives said to Pharaoh: Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are lively [chayot]." What is "chayot"? If you say literally midwives [chayot], is it so that a midwife does not herself need another midwife to deliver her? Rather, thus they said to him: This nation is compared to a wild animal [chayah]. "Judah is a lion's whelp" (Genesis 49:9); "Dan shall be a lion's whelp" (Deuteronomy 33:22); "Naphtali is a hind let loose" (Genesis 49:21); "Issachar is a strong-boned donkey" (Genesis 49:14); "Joseph is a firstling bull, majesty is his" (Deuteronomy 33:17); "Benjamin is a wolf that tears" (Genesis 49:27). For the one of whom it is written, it is written; and for the one of whom it is not written, it is written, "What was your mother? A lioness; among lions she crouched" (Ezekiel 19:2). (Exodus 1:21) "And it was, because the midwives feared God, that He made them houses." Rav and Levi: one said, houses of priesthood and Levitical service, Aaron and Moses; and one said, houses of royalty. David too came from Miriam.

"And He made them houses" (Exodus 1:21). As for these "houses," I do not know what they are. But when Scripture says, "At the end of twenty years, in which Solomon had built the two houses, the house of the LORD" (1 Kings 9:10), this refers to the priesthood; and "the house of the king," this refers to the kingship. Thus Yocheved merited the priesthood, and Miriam merited the kingship. As it is said, "And Koz begot Anub and Zobebah, and the families of Aharhel" (1 Chronicles 4:8) - this "Aharhel" alludes to Miriam, as it is said, "And all the women went out after her [aharei-ha]" (Exodus 15:20). "The son of Harum" (1 Chronicles 4:8) - this alludes to Yocheved, as it is said, "Every devoted thing [herem] in Israel shall be yours" (Numbers 18:14). And Miriam was married to Caleb, as it is said, "And Azubah died, and Caleb took to himself Ephrath, and she bore him Hur" (1 Chronicles 2:19), and Scripture says, "And David was the son of that Ephrathite" (1 Samuel 17:12). You see, then, that whoever draws himself near, Heaven draws him near.

Another interpretation: Yocheved received her reward as priesthood and kingship, namely Moses and Aaron. What reward did Miriam receive? Wisdom, as it is said, "Behold, the fear of the LORD, that is wisdom" (Job 28:28). He raised up from her Bezalel, who was wise, as it is said, "And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom" (Exodus 31:3). "And Pharaoh charged all his people" (Exodus 1:22) - he decreed even upon his own people. For the astrologers were saying: On this day the redeemer of Israel is born, but we do not know whether he is an Egyptian or not. At that hour Pharaoh gathered all the Egyptians and said to them, Lend me your sons for one day. As it is said, "Every son that is born you shall cast into the river" - it is not written here "to Israel," but "every son," whether of Israel or of Egypt. Who is the one who decreed a thing, and the LORD did not command it (Lamentations 3:37)? As it is said, "For with a strong hand he will send them out" (Exodus 6:1), and so it came to pass: "And He overthrew Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea" (Psalms 136:15). And likewise, "according to all that Haman commanded" - Haman commanded "to destroy, to slay, and to cause to perish" (Esther 3:13); who is the one who decreed and the LORD did not command it? And what did the LORD command? "His wicked device should return upon his own head" (Esther 9:25), and so it came to pass: "And they hanged him and his sons upon the gallows." "And Pharaoh charged all his people" - he decreed even upon his own people. At first he decreed, If it be a son, you shall kill him; afterward, "every son that is born"; and at the last, he decreed even against his own people.

"And a man went from the house of Levi" (Exodus 2:1). Where did he go? He went according to the counsel of his daughter. It was taught: Amram was the great man of his generation. When he saw that Pharaoh had decreed "every son that is born," he said, We labor in vain. He arose and divorced his wife, and all the men arose and divorced their wives. His daughter said to him, Father, your decree is harsher than Pharaoh's. For Pharaoh decreed only against the males, but you decree against both males and females. Pharaoh decreed only in this world, but you decree in this world and in the world to come. Pharaoh is wicked, and it is doubtful whether his decree will stand or not; but you are righteous, and your decree will surely stand, as it is said, "You shall decree a thing, and it shall be established for you" (Job 22:28). He arose and took back his wife, and all the men arose and took back their wives. "And he took the daughter of Levi" - it should have said "and he took back." Rather, this teaches that he performed an act of taking in marriage anew: he seated her in a bridal litter, and Aaron and Miriam danced before her, and the ministering angels said, "a joyful mother of children" (Psalms 113:9). "The daughter of Levi" - is it possible she was a hundred and thirty years old, yet Scripture calls her "daughter"? For Rav Hama bar Hanina said, This is Yocheved, whose conception was on the way and whose birth was between the walls, as it is said, "whom she bore to Levi in Egypt" (Numbers 26:59) - her birth was in Egypt but not her conception; and yet Scripture calls her "daughter"? Rather, the signs of youth were born anew in her: the flesh grew tender, the wrinkles smoothed out, and beauty returned to its place. Our rabbis taught: Three looked but did not see [what they thought]. Nebat, and Ahithophel, and Pharaoh's astrologers. Nebat saw fire issuing from his member and supposed that he himself would reign, but it was not so; it was Jeroboam who came from him. Ahithophel saw leprosy shining upon his member and supposed that he himself would reign, but it was not so; it was Bathsheba, from whom came Solomon. Pharaoh's astrologers saw that the savior of Israel would be smitten through water. For Rav Hanina said: What is the meaning of "these are the waters of Meribah" (Numbers 20:13)? These are what the astrologers saw, and they erred: they said "every son that is born," but they did not know that it was on account of the strife at Meribah that he would be smitten. Pharaoh said, While they are little, I will strangle them under my throne.

"Every son that is born you shall cast into the river" (Exodus 1:22). Rabbi Shila said: All the children whom they cast in, the river would spit out into the wilderness, and the Holy One, blessed be He, would bring a rock to the mouth of each one, and a rock at its side: the rock between them would nurse them with honey and milk, and the rock at their side would anoint them with oil, like a beast that suckles her young. As it is said, "And He made him suck honey out of the rock" (Deuteronomy 32:13). Rav Yannai says: The Egyptians enslaved Israel only for one hour of the day of the Holy One, blessed be He, namely eighty-six years. For the magicians said to Pharaoh, A certain boy is destined to be born, and he will bring Israel out of Egypt. Pharaoh answered and said, Cast them into the river. For three years and a third they cast them into the river, until Moses was born; and when he was born they said to Pharaoh, Behold, he is born, and he is hidden from our eyes. He said to them, Since he is born, from now on do not cast the children into the river, but place upon them a harsh yoke to embitter their lives, as it is said, "And they made their lives bitter" (Exodus 1:14). "And a man went from the house of Levi, and the woman conceived and bore a daughter and called her name Miriam" - in those days the Egyptians began to embitter [memarer] the lives of the children of Israel. "And she conceived again and bore a son and called his name Aaron" - for in the days of her pregnancy Pharaoh began to pour out their males to the ground, and some of them to cast into the river.

"And the woman conceived and bore a son" (Exodus 2:2). But she had already been carrying him three months from the outset. Rather, Scripture compares her giving birth to her conceiving: just as her conceiving was without pain, so too her giving birth was without pain. From here we learn of righteous women who were not included in the decree of Eve. "And she saw him, that he was good" (Exodus 2:2). Rabbi Meir says, "Good" was his name. Rabbi Yehudah says, He was fit for prophecy. Rabbi Nehemiah says, His name was Toviah. Others say, He was born already circumcised. And the sages say, At the hour Moses was born, the whole world was filled with light. It is written here "that he was good," and it is written there, "And God saw the light, that it was good" (Genesis 1:4). The rabbis said to Rabbi Perida: Rabbi Ze'ira, the grandson of Rabbi Avtolas, who is tenth in descent from Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah, who is tenth in descent from Ezra, is standing at the gate. He said to them, What is all this? If he is a man of Torah, that is fine; if he is of distinguished lineage and a man of Torah, that is fine and fine; but if he is of lineage and not of Torah, may fire consume him. They said to him, He is a man of Torah. He said, Let him enter and come in. He saw that the man's mind was troubled, and he opened and expounded thus. "Let the Majestic One come and exact recompense for the majestic from the majestic in the majestic." "Majestic" - this is the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is said, "The LORD on high is mighty" (Psalms 93:4). "Recompense for the majestic" - these are Israel, as it is written, "the majestic in whom is all my delight" (Psalms 16:3). "From the majestic" - these are the Egyptians, as it is written, "they sank like lead in the majestic waters" (Exodus 15:10). "In the majestic" - these are the waters, as it is said, "mightier than the breakers of the sea" (Psalms 93:4). "Let the beloved son of a beloved come and build for the beloved, in the portion of the beloved, that the beloved may find atonement through it." "Let the beloved come" - this is Solomon, as it is written, "and He called his name Yedidyah" (2 Samuel 12:25). "Son of a beloved" - this is Abraham, as it is written, "What has my beloved to do in my house?" (Jeremiah 11:15). "And build for the beloved" - this is the Temple, as it is written, "How beloved are your dwellings" (Psalms 84:2). "For the beloved" - this is the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is written, "Let me sing for my beloved" (Isaiah 5:1). "In the portion of the beloved" - this is Benjamin, as it is said, "Of Benjamin he said, the beloved of the LORD" (Deuteronomy 33:12). "That the beloved may find atonement through it" - these are Israel, as it is written, "I have given the beloved of my soul into the hand of her enemies" (Jeremiah 12:7). "Let the good come and receive the good from the Good for the good." "Let the good come" - this is Moses, as it is written, "and she saw him, that he was good." "And receive the good" - this is the Torah, as it is written, "for I give you good doctrine" (Proverbs 4:2). "From the Good" - this is the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is written, "The LORD is good to all" (Psalms 145:9). "For the good" - these are Israel, as it is written, "Do good, O LORD, to the good" (Psalms 125:4). "Let this one come and receive this from this One for this people." "Let this one come" - this is Moses, as it is written, "for this Moses" (Exodus 32:1). "And receive this" - this is the Torah, as it is written, "and this is the Torah" (Deuteronomy 4:44). "From this One" - this is the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is written, "This is my God and I will glorify Him" (Exodus 15:2). "For this people" - these are Israel, as it is written, "this people whom You have acquired" (Exodus 15:16). "And she hid him three months" - because the Egyptians counted for her only from the time she was remarried, but she had already been carrying him three months from the outset.

"And she could no longer hide him" (Exodus 2:3). Why could she not simply keep hiding him and go on? Rather, whenever the Egyptians heard that an infant had been born, they would bring an infant of their own there and make it cry, so that the hidden child would hear and cry along with it, as it is written, "Catch us the foxes" (Song of Songs 2:15). "And she took for him an ark of bulrushes" (Exodus 2:3). Why specifically bulrushes? Rabbi Elazar said: From here we learn of the righteous, that their money is more precious to them than their bodies. And why so? Because they do not stretch out their hands to robbery, [so they used the cheapest material]. And Rabbi Shmuel bar Nahmani said: It is a soft material that can withstand both a soft encounter and a hard one. "And she daubed it with slime and with pitch" (Exodus 2:3) - the slime within and the pitch without, so that the righteous child should not smell the foul odor [of the pitch].

"And she put it among the reeds" (Exodus 2:3). Rav Elazar said: This means the Red Sea. Rabbi Shmuel bar Nahman said: A marsh, as it is written, "the reed and the rush shall wither" (Isaiah 19:6). "And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash" (Exodus 2:5) - she went down to cleanse herself from the idols of her father's house. And so Scripture says, "When the LORD shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion" (Isaiah 4:4). "And her maidens walked along" (Exodus 2:5). "Walking" here is none other than an expression of death, and so Scripture says, "Behold, I am going [walking] to die" (Genesis 25:32). "And she saw the ark among the reeds" (Exodus 2:5). When the maidens saw that she wished to rescue Moses, they said to her: Our mistress, it is the way of the world that when a king of flesh and blood issues a decree, even if the whole world does not keep it, his own children and the members of his house keep it; yet you would transgress your father's decree? Then Gabriel came and struck them to the ground.

It is written, "And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took" (Exodus 15:20) - and not "the sister of Moses." This teaches that she was prophesying while she was still only the sister of Aaron, and she said: My mother is destined to bear a son who will save Israel. At the hour Moses was born, the whole house was filled with light. Her father arose and kissed her on her head; he said to her, My daughter, your prophecy has been fulfilled. But when they cast him into the river, [her father arose] and tapped her on her head and said to her, Where now is your prophecy? This is the meaning of what is written, "And his sister stood at a distance" (Exodus 2:4) - to know what would be the end of her prophecy.

With the measure that a person measures, it is measured out to him. And so it is also regarding the good: Miriam waited for Moses one hour, as it is said, "And his sister stood at a distance" (Exodus 2:4); therefore Israel was delayed on her account seven days in the wilderness, as it is said, "And the people did not journey until Miriam was gathered in" (Numbers 12:15). And likewise Joseph, and so forth. But are these comparable? There it was a single hour, here it was seven days. Say rather that with regard to the good measure it is not so. Rava said: And so too with regard to the good measure it corresponds, measure for measure, and yet the good measure is always greater than the measure of punishment. "And she stood" (Exodus 2:4): Rabbi Yitzchak said, this entire verse is spoken in reference to the Divine Presence. "And she stood [vatetatzav]" as it is written, "And the LORD came and stood and called as at other times" (1 Samuel 3:10). "His sister [achoto]," as it is written, "Say to wisdom, You are my sister" (Proverbs 7:4). "From afar [merachok]," as it is written, "From afar the LORD appeared to me" (Jeremiah 31:2). "To know [le-de'ah]," as it is written, "For a God of knowledge is the LORD" (1 Samuel 2:3). "What [mah]," as it is written, "What does the LORD your God ask of you" (Deuteronomy 10:12). "Would be done [ye'aseh]," as it is written, "The LORD will make for my lord a faithful house" (1 Samuel 25:28). "To him [lo]," as it is written, "And he called it the LORD is peace" (Judges 6:24). This teaches you that with the measure a person measures it is measured out to him: Miriam waited for Moses one hour, as it is written, "And his sister stood," and the Omnipresent delayed for her in the wilderness the Ark, the Divine Presence, the priests, the Levites, and the seven clouds of glory, as it is said, "And the people did not journey," and so forth.

"And the daughter of Pharaoh went down to bathe at the river" (Exodus 2:5): for she was afflicted with severe skin afflictions, and she could not bathe in hot water, so she went down to bathe in the river. And she saw the boy weeping, and she stretched out her hand and took hold of him, and she was healed, and she kept him alive. And she said, This boy is righteous, and whoever sustains a single soul, it is as though he sustained an entire world. Therefore she merited the life of the World to Come.

The LORD sent scorching heat and sun and burning upon the land of Egypt, and the flesh of man blazed upon him as the sun blazes in the season of Tammuz, and it distressed them greatly; and the daughter of Pharaoh went down to bathe because of the heat and the scorching wind. "And she sent her amah and took it" (Exodus 2:5): Rabbi Yehudah and Rabbi Nechemyah differ. One said, her arm; and one said, her maidservant. The one who said "her arm" holds so because the word amah is written. And the one who said "her maidservant," because it does not write "her arm." Now, according to the one who said "her maidservant" - but did you not say that Gabriel came and dashed them to the ground, leaving her only one, since it is not the way of the world for a king's daughter to stand alone? And according to the one who said "her arm," let it write "her arm" plainly. This comes to teach us that it was stretched out and elongated, as the master said, And so you find with the arm of Pharaoh's daughter. And so you find with the teeth of the wicked, as it is said, "You have broken [shibarta] the teeth of the wicked" (Psalms 3:8): do not read it shibarta [you broke] but shirbavta [you stretched out]. "And she opened it and saw him, the child" (Exodus 2:6): it should have said "and she saw," but rather she saw the Divine Presence with him. "And behold, a weeping boy [na'ar]": it calls him na'ar [youth] and it calls him yeled [child]. It was taught: he was a child, but his voice was like a youth's, the words of Rabbi Yehudah. Rabbi Nechemyah said to him: If so, you have made Moses blemished; rather, this teaches that his mother made him a youth's canopy within the ark.

Another interpretation of "And behold, a weeping boy" (Exodus 2:6): this is Aaron.

Another interpretation: this is the angel who was accompanying him, for an angel is called na'ar [youth], as it is said, "Run, speak to that youth, saying, Jerusalem shall be inhabited as unwalled towns" (Zechariah 2:8). "And she had compassion upon him" (Exodus 2:6): this teaches that when her maidens said to her, leave him, and she had set him down, the Holy One, blessed be He, cast compassion into her heart and she brought him back to her. "And she said, This is one of the children of the Hebrews" (Exodus 2:6): for through him Israel would one day say, "This is my God and I will glorify Him" (Exodus 15:2). "And the maiden went [ha-almah]" (Exodus 2:8): for she concealed [he'elimah] matters, that she did not say that she was his mother. "Take this child away" (Exodus 2:9): this teaches that she showed her all the limbs of Moses and said to her, See, and be careful with him, that you return him to me whole.

"This is one of the children of the Hebrews" (Exodus 2:6): how did she know? Because she saw him circumcised. This teaches that she prophesied without knowing it: this one falls, but no other falls. And this is what Rabbi Elazar said: What is the meaning of that which is written, "And when they say to you, Inquire of the ghosts and the familiar spirits that chirp and mutter" (Isaiah 8:19)? They peer but do not know what they peer at; they mutter but do not know what they mutter. They saw that the savior of Israel would be smitten through water, so they arose and decreed, "Every son that is born" (Exodus 1:22) you shall cast into the river. And once he was cast into the water, they said, We no longer see that sign, and they annulled their decree, not knowing that it was through the waters of Merivah that he would be smitten. And this is what is written, "These are the waters of Merivah" (Numbers 20:13): "these" the astrologers of Pharaoh saw, and they erred. And this is what Moses said, "about six hundred thousand on foot" (Numbers 11:21). Moses said to Israel, On my account you were all saved. Rabbi Chanina bar Pappa said: That day was the twenty-first of Nisan; the ministering angels said before the Holy One, blessed be He, Master of the universe, shall the one who is destined to recite song before You at the sea on this day be smitten on this day? Rav Acha bar Chanina said: That day was the sixth of Sivan; the ministering angels said before the Holy One, blessed be He, shall the one who is destined to receive the Torah from Sinai on this day be smitten on this day? It works out well for the one who says the sixth of Sivan, for you find three months, as the master said: On the seventh of Adar Moses was born and on the seventh of Adar Moses died, and from the seventh of Adar to the sixth of Sivan is three months. But according to the one who says the twenty-first of Nisan, how do you find it? That year was a leap year: most of the first month and most of the last and the middle one complete. "And his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call for you a nursing woman from the Hebrew women" (Exodus 2:7): why specifically from the Hebrew women? This teaches that they passed him among all the Egyptian women and he would not nurse. He said, A mouth that is destined to speak with the Divine Presence shall it nurse what is impure? And this is what is written, "Whom shall He teach knowledge, and whom shall He make understand the message? Those weaned from milk, those drawn from the breasts" (Isaiah 28:9). "And the maiden went" (Exodus 2:8): that she went with alacrity. Rabbi Shmuel bar Nachmeni said: that she concealed her words. "And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, Take him away [heilikhi]" (Exodus 2:9): she prophesied without knowing what she prophesied: here is yours [ha likhi] this is what is yours. "And I will give your wages": it is not enough for the righteous that their lost ones are returned to them, but they are even given a reward. "And Miriam the prophetess took" (Exodus 15:20) and so forth, until her father arose and tapped her on the head and so forth, what would be the end of her prophecy.

"And it came to pass at the end of two years that she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her son, and she called his name Moses, for I drew him from the water" (Exodus 2:10). And his father called him Chaver, because on his account he was rejoined with his wife whom he had divorced. And his mother called him Yekutiel, because she had set her hope [kivtahu] on him toward her breasts and God returned him to her. And his sister called him Yered, because on his account she went down [yardah] after him to the river to know what would be his end. And his brother called him Avi Zanoach, saying, my father abandoned [zanach] my mother and brought her back on account of this one. And Kehat and his nurse called him Avi Sokho, saying, like a booth [sukkah] he was hidden three months from the sons of Ham. And all Israel called him Shemayah ben Netanel, because in his days God heard [shama] their groaning from the hand of their oppressors. And it came to pass in the third year from Moses' birth, and Pharaoh was sitting upon his throne, and the queen sitting at his right and Batyah sitting at his left, and the boy sitting in her lap, and all the officers of the kingdom sitting beside him. And as they sat at the table, the boy stretched out his hand and took the crown from the head of the king and set it upon his own head. And the king and the officers were alarmed at this and wondered a very great wonder. And Balaam the magician, one of the king's eunuchs, answered and said, Remember now, my lord the king, the dream you dreamed and what your servant interpreted; now is not this child one of the children of the Hebrews, in whom is the spirit of God, and out of wisdom he did this and has chosen for himself the kingdom of Egypt? What did Abraham do, who weakened the army of Nimrod king of the Chaldeans and Abimelech king of Gerar, and inherited the land of the children of Heth and all the kingdoms of Canaan? He too went down to Egypt and said of his wife, She is my sister, to ruin Egypt and its king. Isaac too, what did he do to the Philistines among whom he dwelt in Gerar, when his strength grew greater than all the Philistines, and he too wished to ruin their king by saying of his wife, She is my sister. And Jacob walked with cunning and took from the hand of his brother, his mother's son, his birthright and his blessing, and went to Padan Aram to the house of Laban his mother's brother and took his daughters and his cattle and all that he had and fled and dwelt in the land of Canaan. His sons sold Joseph, and he went down to Egypt and was put in prison twelve years until the ancient Pharaoh dreamed his dream and brought him out of prison and made him great over all the officers of Egypt for interpreting his dreams. And when God brought famine on the land, he sent and brought his sons and his brothers to Egypt and sustained them without price, and bought us as slaves. And if it please the king, let us spill his blood upon the ground before he grows and takes the kingdom from your hand and the hope of Egypt perishes after he reigns. And God sent one of the holy angels, and his name was Gabriel, and he made himself resemble one of them, and the angel answered and said, If it please the king, let them bring an onyx stone and a coal of fire and set them before the child; and if he stretches out his hand to the onyx, know that out of wisdom he did this, and we shall kill him; and if he sets his hand upon the coal, know that not out of wisdom did he do it, and we shall let him live. And the matter pleased the king and the officers, and the king did according to the word of the angel. And they brought him the onyx and the coal, and the angel took his hand to the coal, and the coal clung to his finger, and he lifted it to his mouth and it burned part of his lips and the tip of his tongue, and he became heavy of mouth and heavy of tongue; and the king and the officers refrained from killing the child. And he was in the house of Pharaoh after this fifteen years. And it came to pass when the boy was in the house of the king, clothed in garments of purple, and he grew up among the king's sons. And it came to pass at the end of fifteen years from his coming to the king's house, which was the eighteenth year from the day of his birth, that the boy longed for his father and his mother and went to them, and went out to his brothers and saw their burdens, and saw an Egyptian man striking a Hebrew man of his brothers. And it came to pass when the smitten man saw Moses, he fled to him for help, for the man Moses was honored and great in the house of Pharaoh. And he said to him, I beg you, my lord, this Egyptian man came last night to my house and bound me, and went in to my wife before me, and now he seeks to take my life. And when Moses heard this evil thing, his anger burned greatly, and he saw that there was no man, and he struck the Egyptian and hid him in the sand, and saved the Hebrew from the hand of the one who struck him, and Moses went and sat in the house of the king, and the Hebrew man returned to his house. And when the man came home and intended to divorce his wife, for it is not fitting for the house of Jacob to go in to his wife after she has been defiled, the woman went and told her brother, and the woman's brother sought to kill him, and he fled to his house and escaped. "And Moses grew up" (Exodus 2:11): Rav Yehudah said, all children do not grow that Scripture should say "and he grew up," rather he was five years old yet appeared as one eleven years old. Why does it say "and he grew up" twice? Above in stature, and below in greatness. What was his greatness? That he went out to his brothers.

"And he saw an Egyptian man" (Exodus 2:11): he saw one of Pharaoh's taskmasters striking one of the sons of the Kehathite Levites, who were his brothers, and he began to curse him with the sword that was in his mouth and killed him and buried him within the camp of Israel, as it is said, "And he hid him in the sand" (Exodus 2:12), and it is written, "And the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea" (Hosea 2:1). He went out on the second day, and Dathan said to him, What do you seek, to kill me with the sword that is in your mouth as you killed the Egyptian yesterday? As it is said, it is not written here "Do you intend to kill me" but "Do you say" (Exodus 2:14). Three things Moses gave his soul for, and they were called by his name. He gave his soul for the Torah, and it was called by his name, as it is said, "Remember the Torah of Moses My servant" (Malachi 3:22). But is it not the Torah of God, as it is written, "The Torah of the LORD is perfect" (Psalms 19:8)? Rather, because he gave his soul for it, as it is said, "And he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights" (Exodus 34:28), and it says, "And I sat on the mountain forty days" (Deuteronomy 9:9); thus because he gave his soul for the Torah it was called by his name. He gave his soul for Israel, and they were called by his name, as it is said, "Go down, for your people have become corrupt" (Exodus 32:7). But are they not the people of the LORD, as it is said, "And they are Your people and Your inheritance" (Deuteronomy 9:29), and it says, "These are the people of the LORD, yet they went out of His land" (Ezekiel 36:20)? Rather, because he gave his soul for them, as it is said, "And Moses grew up and went out to his brothers and saw their burdens" (Exodus 2:11), they were called by his name. He gave his soul for justice, as it is said, "Judges and officers you shall appoint for yourself" (Deuteronomy 16:18). But does not justice belong to God? Rather, because he gave his soul for justice, as it is said, "And he went out on the second day" (Exodus 2:13), and it says, "Who made you a man, a prince and a judge" (Exodus 2:14), and it says, "And Moses arose and saved them" (Exodus 2:17); from justice he fled and to justice he returned, "He performed the righteousness of the LORD and His judgments with Israel" (Deuteronomy 33:21). Thus because he gave his soul for justice they were called by his name.

"He turned this way and that" (Exodus 2:12). Rabbi Chanina said: an Egyptian who struck an Israelite was liable to death, as it says, "He turned this way and that, and seeing there was no man, he struck down the Egyptian." Rabbi Chanina said: one who slaps the jaw of an Israelite is as though he slaps the jaw of the Divine Presence, as it says, "It is a snare for a man to swallow what is holy" (Proverbs 20:25) [read as: to assault what belongs to the Holy One]. Resh Lakish said: anyone who raises his hand against his fellow, even though he did not strike him, is called wicked, as it says, "And He said to the wicked one, Why do you strike your fellow?" It does not say "Why did you strike," but "Why would you strike." Ze'ira said in the name of Rabbi Chanina: he is called a sinner, as it says, "And if not, I will take it by force" (1 Samuel 2:16), and it is written, "And the sin of the young men was very great." Rav Huna said: let his hand be cut off, as it says, "And the uplifted arm shall be broken" (Job 38:15); Rav Huna would amputate the hand. Rabbi Elazar said: he has no remedy but burial, as it says, "And the man of arm, his is the earth" [read as: such a violent man belongs only in the ground]. "And behold, two Hebrew men were quarreling" (Exodus 2:13). Rabbi Abbahu said: their very heels struck out sparks. "And Moses was afraid and said, Surely the matter is known" (Exodus 2:14). Moses was saying before the Holy One, blessed be He: Master of the universe, why is this nation enslaved more than all the nations in the world? "Surely the matter is known" - this sin shows they are not enslaved for nothing.

What did Moses see that made him give his life for the cities of refuge, that he says, "Then Moses set apart three cities" (Deuteronomy 4:41)? Rabbi Levi said: the one who has tasted the dish knows its flavor. How so? When Moses killed the Egyptian and came the second day and found Dathan and Abiram quarreling, "And he said to the wicked one" - this was Dathan, who began to abuse him, saying, "Do you mean to kill me as you killed the Egyptian?" When Pharaoh heard this he said: many things I have heard and kept silent, but now that it reaches bloodshed, they seized Moses. How did he escape, since it says, "And Moses fled from before Pharaoh"? Rabbi Yannai said: the executioner came to lay the sword on his neck, and the sword was blunted against his neck, for it became as marble, and Solomon praises this: "Your neck is like a tower of ivory" (Song of Songs 7:5). Rabbi Eviatar said: more than that, the sword turned back upon the executioner, as it says, "And He delivered me from Pharaoh's sword." Moses said: me He delivered, but not the executioner. Bar Kappara said: an angel descended in the likeness of Moses and made him flee, and they thought the angel was Moses. Rabbi Yehoshua said: see the miracles the Holy One, blessed be He, did for Moses. Of Pharaoh's whole company, some were made mute, some deaf, some blind. The guards, when asked, did not see him. Know this: when the Holy One, blessed be He, sought to send him on His mission, He said, "Who gives man a mouth?" (Exodus 4:11) - in that hour I stood by you, but now I will not stand by you. Rabbi Yitzchak said: come and see, the deeds of the Holy One, blessed be He, are not like the deeds of flesh and blood. In the way of the world, a man makes himself a patron who will stand surety for him; when the man is seized and led out to be killed, where is the patron? But the Holy One, blessed be He, is not so. The ministering angels said: Moses, the member of Your household, is seized. He said to them: I stand surety for him. They said: he stands before Pharaoh, his sentence is read, he goes out to be killed. He said: I stand surety for him, as it says, "And He delivered me from Pharaoh's sword." "And he struck the Egyptian and hid him in the sand" (Exodus 2:12). When he killed him there was no Egyptian present but Israelites, and "sand" means nothing but Israel: just as sand is moved from place to place and its sound does not carry, so it is unfitting for Israel to be slanderers. Were it not for these wicked men the matter would never have come out. And who were they? Dathan and Abiram. Whatever you can lay upon the wicked, lay it: they spoke this matter, they left over the manna, they said "Let us appoint a chief" (Numbers 14:4), and they joined Korah's quarrel. "Who made you a man, a prince and a judge?" - at that time he was only twenty, for we have a tradition that twenty years he grew up in Pharaoh's palace and sixty years he was in Midian, and when the Holy One, blessed be He, was revealed to him he was eighty. They said "Who made you a man," since a person is not called "a man" before twenty-five, as if to say: you have not yet reached manhood. Then they said: are you not the son of Jochebed? Enough for you that they call you the son of Bithiah. "He turned this way and that and saw there was no man" - he saw that no convert or righteous person would arise from him.

Another interpretation: he asked the angels who surrounded him whether the man was fit to be killed, as it is written, "This one says thus and that one says thus" [the angels debating, one saying "thus" and the other "thus"].

Another interpretation: he said before the Holy One, blessed be He: if His children are killed like this, where is the "thus" that You said to Abraham, "So [thus] shall your seed be" (Genesis 15:5)?

Another interpretation: to whom will You say "thus" at Sinai - "Thus shall you say to the house of Jacob" (Exodus 19:3)? "Two Hebrew men were quarreling" - they saw sparks coming from their heels, and they laid charges before Moses so that he would be exposed through them. "Who appointed [placed] you as a man?" The Holy One, blessed be He, said: with placing they reviled you, with placing I make you a judge, as it says, "These are the ordinances that you shall place before them" (Exodus 21:1). "Do you mean to kill me?" - they prophesied against themselves that he would swallow them up by a word, as it says, "And if the LORD creates a new creation" (Numbers 16:30). "Surely the matter is known" - this teaches that Moses was pondering: why did the Holy One, blessed be He, see fit to enslave Israel more than all the nations? - until Dathan and Abiram came and informed on him. They went and said to Pharaoh: he despises your purple robe and your crown. He said: it will be sweet to him. Rav Nachman said: over everything Pharaoh found it sweet, until they said to him, he is not the son of your daughter. And the Rabbis said: over everything he was not strict until they said to him, he is a shedder of blood and killed the Egyptian. "And he saw an Egyptian man striking a Hebrew man" (Exodus 2:11). The Egyptians were taskmasters and the Israelites were officers, an Egyptian set over ten officers, and each officer set over ten Israelites, so the taskmaster was set over a hundred and ten men. One time a taskmaster called on an officer and said, Go round up your ten. He went to gather them, and the officer's wife smiled at the taskmaster, who said, This is a fine woman. The husband had hidden himself behind the ladder; when he thought the husband had gone out, the taskmaster went in and defiled himself with her. The husband turned and saw it, and when the taskmaster knew the husband had sensed it, he came out and beat the husband all that day, saying, Work well, work well. Moses our teacher saw with the holy spirit what the taskmaster had against the man and said: it is not enough that he defiled himself with the man's wife; he even seeks to kill him. At once, "He turned this way and that" - he saw what the Egyptian had done in the house and what he intended to do in the field. "And he saw there was no man." Rabbi Yehuda says: he saw there was no one who would rise and be zealous for the name of the Holy One, blessed be He, to kill him, so he rose and was zealous and killed him. Rabbi Nehemiah says: he saw there was no one who would invoke the Name over him to kill him, so he invoked it over him and killed him. And the Rabbis said: he saw there was no hope of any worthy offspring coming from him, nor from his children, nor his children's children to the end of all generations, so he rose against him and killed him. With what did he kill him? Rabbi Yitzchak said: with his fist, as you say, "to strike with the fist of wickedness." Rabbi Levi said: with the trowel of Israel; this is what is written, "And the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea."

"And Moses fled from before Pharaoh." It is written, "Go, my people, enter your chambers" (Isaiah 26:20): when you see the hour acting insolently, do not stand against it, but give it room. Look at Me, as it were: when I saw the hour acting insolently because of your sins, I gave it room, as it says, "He drew His right hand backward" (Lamentations 2:3). Everyone who stands against the hour falls into its hand, and everyone who gives room to the hour, the hour falls into his hand. Naboth stood against the hour and fell into its hand. Abraham gave room to the hour and fled from before Nimrod, and it fell into his hand. Isaac gave room to the hour and it fell into his hand, as it says, "And Abimelech went to him from Gerar" (Genesis 26:26). Moses gave room to the hour, as it says, "And Moses fled from before Pharaoh," and the hour turned and fell into his hand, as it says, "Moreover the man Moses was very great in the eyes of Pharaoh's servants." David gave room to the hour, "And David fled from Naioth" (1 Samuel 20:1), and the hour turned and fell into his hand, and Saul said to him, "I know that you shall surely reign." And likewise Jacob gave room to the hour, "And Jacob fled to the field of Aram," and the hour fell into his hand, "And Esau took his wives" (Genesis 36:6) [and departed from before him].

In those times there was a war between Kush and the children of the East. Konkos, king of Kush, went out to war against Aram and the children of the East, leaving Bilam, who is Laban the Aramean from Petor, the diviner, together with his two sons Inus and Iamberus, in charge of the city. Meanwhile Bilam spoke with the simple people of the land about rebelling against King Konkos so that he would not return to the city. The people listened to him, accepted him, swore to him, appointed Bilam king over them, and made his sons commanders of the army. They raised the walls on two sides. On the third side they dug countless pits between the city and the river that surrounded all the land of Kush, and they diverted the river to flood them. On the fourth side they gathered enchanted and poisonous serpents. There was no way to go out or come in. When the king and all his army returned from the war, they lifted their eyes and saw that the city walls were much higher. They said, "They saw that we delayed, so they raised the city walls and strengthened them in case the kings of Canaan attacked." But when they came near the gates of the city, the gates were shut. They called to the guards, saying, "Open for us so that we may come into the city," but the guards refused by order of Bilam the diviner. They declared war at the gate itself, and that day one hundred thirty of Konkos' soldiers fell. The next day they fought from the side of the river, but they sank and died. They tried to make bridges from wood, but when they crossed and reached the pits, they became trapped in the mud, and two hundred more soldiers died. On the third day they tried to enter from the side of the serpents, and one hundred seventy men died. So they stopped fighting. During the siege of Kush, Moses fled from Egypt and came to the camp of Konkos, king of Kush. Moses was eighteen years old when he fled, and Konkos had already been besieging Kush for nineteen years. The young man went in and out among them. The king, his officers, and all the soldiers of his army valued him greatly, because he was great and beloved. He was tall as a cedar, his face shone like the sun, he had the strength and courage of a lion, and he was a faithful adviser to the king. After nine years, the king became gravely ill, and on the seventh day he died. They embalmed him and buried him opposite the gate of the city that faced Mitzraim. They built over him a great mausoleum, high and beautiful, and inscribed upon it all his wars and mighty deeds. When they finished building, they said to one another, "What shall we do now? If we make war against the city, many of our soldiers will die. But if we remain in the siege, the kings of Aram will hear that our king has died, and they will suddenly attack us and kill us all. Let us appoint a king for ourselves and remain in the siege until they surrender the city to us." Quickly, each man removed his garments and piled them on the ground, and on that mound they lifted Moses. They sounded shofarot and said, "Long live the king, long live the king." All the officers and all the people swore to give him the Kushite lady, wife of Konkos, as a wife, and they appointed Moses king over them. Moses was twenty-seven years old when he became king of Kush. On the second day of his reign, they all said before Moses, "If it seems good to the king, advise us what to do, for we have spent nine years without seeing our wives and children while we besieged the city." The king answered the people, saying, "If you listen to my voice, know that the city will be given into our hands. If we wage war, we will fall as before, and the same will happen if we try to enter by our own means. "Here is the plan: go to the forest, and let each man bring a young stork." They did as the king said. When the young storks had grown, the king ordered that they be made hungry for two days, and the people did so. On the third day the king told them, "Let every soldier take his weapons, mount his horse, and take the young stork in his hand. Let us rise and make war against the city from the place where the serpents are." They did as the king said. When they reached the place of the serpents, the young storks ate the serpents and removed them from that place. When the king and the people saw that the serpents were gone, they raised a great battle cry and conquered the city. Then each man came to his house, his wife, and his possessions. When Bilam the diviner saw that the city had been conquered, he opened the gate, mounted his horse with his two sons, fled to Mitzraim, and came to Pharaoh, king of Mitzraim. He joined the magicians and diviners described in Sefer HaYashar as Pharaoh's advisers, who sought to erase the name of Jacob from the face of the earth. Moses conquered the city by his wisdom. They seated him on the royal throne, placed the royal crown on his head, and gave him the Kushite lady as a wife. But Moses was reverent and feared the God of his fathers, and he did not come near her. He remembered the oath that Abraham made Eliezer his servant swear, saying, "Do not take a wife from the daughters of Canaan." Isaac had done the same when Jacob fled from Esau, commanding him not to marry the daughters of Ham, for the children of Ham had been given as servants to the children of Shem and the children of Japheth. Therefore Moses feared HaShem his God and walked before Him in truth and with all his heart. He did not turn aside from the path walked by Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The kingdom of the children of Kush grew strong. They made war against Edom, the children of the East, and Aram, and all of them submitted before the children of Kush. The days that Moses reigned over the children of Kush were forty years. He succeeded in all his wars, because HaShem, God of his fathers, was with him. In the fortieth year of his reign, he sat on his royal throne, with his queen sitting to his right. Then the queen said to the ministers and the people, "This man has reigned over Kush for forty years, yet he has not come near me, and he has not served the gods of the children of Kush. Now listen, children of Kush, and let this man no longer reign. My son Munjam shall reign over you, for it is better for you to serve the son of your lord than a foreigner, servant of the king of Egypt." All the people debated until evening. The next morning they rose early and crowned Munjam son of Konkos as king over them. But the children of Kush were afraid to depose Moses by force, because they remembered what they had sworn. So they gave him important gifts and sent him away with great honor. Moses went out from there and ceased to reign over Kush. Moses was sixty-seven years old when he left Kush, and the matter was from God, because the appointed end, fixed from the beginning, had nearly arrived: to bring out the children of Israel.

(Exodus 2:16-18) "And the priest of Midian had seven daughters." Six names were given to him: Yeter, Yitro, Reuel, Chovav, Keini, Putiel. Some say seven names were given to him: Yeter, Yitro, Chever, Chovav, Reuel, Putiel, Keini. Yeter ["surplus"], because he added one section to the Torah. Yitro, because he abounded in good deeds. Chever, because he attached himself to the Omnipresent. Chovav, because he was beloved [chaviv] to the Omnipresent like a son. Reuel, because he was like a friend [re'a] to the Omnipresent. Putiel, because he detached himself [niftar] from idolatry. Keini, because he was zealous [kinei] for the Omnipresent and acquired [kanah] the Torah for himself.

Another interpretation: at first they called him only Yeter, as it says, "And Moses went and returned to Yeter his father-in-law" (Exodus 4:18); when he did good deeds they added one letter to him and he was called Yitro. And so you find with Abraham our father, that at first they called him only Abram, and when he did good deeds they added one letter to him and he was called Abraham. And so you find with Sarah, that at first she was Sarai and she was called Sarah. And so you find with Joshua: "And Moses called Hosea son of Nun, Joshua." And there are others from whom a letter was withheld. You may learn from Ephron, that at first they called him Ephron [with the full spelling], and once he took the price of the land they withheld one letter from him and he was called Ephron [defectively spelled], as it says, "And Abraham listened to Ephron, and Abraham weighed out for Ephron" (Genesis 23:16). And so you find with Jonadab, that at first he was called Jehonadab, and when he came to that deed they withheld one letter from him and he was called Jonadab. From here the Sages said: let a person not attach himself to a wicked man, even to bring him close to the Torah. "And the shepherds came and drove them away" (Exodus 2:17).

"And they came to Reuel their father" (Exodus 2:18). Reuel was his name. Yet when Scripture says, "And Heber the Kenite, who was of the children of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, had severed himself from the Kenites" (Judges 4:11), then Hobab was his name and not Reuel. So why does Scripture say, "And they came to Reuel their father"? This teaches that little children call their grandfather "father." Rabbi Shimon ben Menasya says: Reuel was his name, meaning "friend of God" [rei'a-El], as it is said, "And Aaron came, and all the elders of Israel" (Exodus 18:12). Rabbi Dostai says: Kenite was his name, for he had withdrawn from a deed of jealousy by which men provoke the Omnipresent to jealousy, as it is said, "They have moved Me to jealousy with that which is no god," and it says, "where was the seat of the image of jealousy" (Ezekiel 8:3). Rabbi Yose says: Kenite was his name, because he acquired [kana] the heavens and the Torah. Rabbi Ishmael son of Rabbi Yose says: Reuel was his name, for he was a friend of God [rei'a-El], as it is said, "Your own friend, and your father's friend, forsake not" (Proverbs 27:10). Rabbi Shimon ben Yohai says: He had two names, Hobab and Jethro. Jethro [Yitro], because he added [yiter] one section to the Torah, "And you shall provide out of all the people" (Exodus 18:21). But surely it had been given to Moses too from Sinai, as it is said, "If you do this thing, and God command you so"? Why was it hidden from the eyes of Moses? So that the matter might be ascribed to Jethro. Hobab, because he cherished [hibev] the Torah, for we find no convert among them all who cherished the Torah like Jethro. And just as he cherished the Torah, so did his children cherish the Torah, as it is said, "Go to the house of the Rechabites" (Jeremiah 35:2) and so forth. Now this is a matter of inference from minor to major: if these who brought themselves near were thus brought near by the Omnipresent, then Israel who fulfill the Torah, how much more so.

"And they said: An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds" (Exodus 2:19). From here we learn that the shepherds had cast the daughters into the water, as it is said, "and moreover he drew water for us." And it is written, "And Moses stood up and saved them" (Exodus 2:17), and this expression denotes nothing other than rescue from water, as it is said, "Save me, O God, for the waters are come in even unto the soul" (Psalms 69:2). "And he said to his daughters: And where is he?" (Exodus 2:20). At once Zipporah went out swift as a bird [tzippor] and brought him.

Another explanation: As she purified the entire house of her father like the blood of a bird (tzipor, used in purifying some impurities). Rabbi Yose bar Chaninah said, 'They sought to mistreat them, as it is written (Deuteronomy 22:27), 'the engaged girl cried for help, but there was no one to save her.'" (Since the same word is used for Moshe saving them here.) "He surely drew (dalah dalo) for us" - in this world and in the world to come. He drew once and gave the whole flock to drink. "He said to his daughters, 'And where is he'" - maybe he is from that seed of, "where is Sarah, your wife," through whom the whole world is blessed. And why was he called the priest (kohen) of Midian? Because the sons of his daughters would in the future be high priests. Rabbi Yehoshua says, "It was [priesthood to] idolatry, like the matter about which it is said (Judges 18:30), 'and Yehonatan the son of Gershom the son of Menashe.'" R. Elazar the Modaai says, "He was a minister, like the matter about which it is stated (II Samuel 8:18), 'and the sons of David were ministers (kohanim).'" Rabbi Yochanan said in the name of Rabbi Yose ben Kisma, "Great is a drink, as it distanced two families away from Israel, as it is stated (Deuteronomy 23:5). 'Because of the matter that they did not greet you with bread and water.'" But Rabbi Yochanan himself said, "It distances the close, etc., and it brings the distant close, as it is stated (Exodus 2:20), 'call him and let him eat bread'; it brings the Divine Presence to the prophets of Baal, as it is stated (I Kings 13:20), 'While they were sitting at the table'; and it causes the eye to avoid the wicked, [as in] Yonatan ben Gershom." Rabbi Simon said in the name of Rabbi Eliezer, "He is the one that did kindness to Moshe, as it is written, 'Why did you abandon the man? Call him and let him eat bread.'" Rabbi Simon said, "There is no kindness here, he paid him his wage, as it is written, 'He surely drew for us.'" And when did the Holy One, blessed be He, pay him back? In the days of Shaul, as it is written (I Samuel 15:6), "Shaul said to the Kenites (Yitro's descendants), 'Come, withdraw, etc.'" And did he do kindness to all of the Children of Israel; and did he not do kindness to Moshe alone? Rather it is to teach you that anyone who does kindness to one of the Children of Israel, Scripture counts it as if he did kindness to all of the Jewish people. And behold these things are a fortiori (kal vechomer): With one who does kindness for someone who he is obligated to, see what the Holy One, blessed be He, paid him back; all the more so is it with someone who does kindness for someone who he is not obligated to.

"And Moses was content to dwell with the man" (Exodus 2:21). When Moses said to Jethro, "Give me Zipporah your daughter to wife," Jethro said to him: Accept upon yourself one condition that I tell you, and I will give her to you as a wife. Moses said: What is it? He said to him: The first son you have shall be for idolatry [or: a foreign matter]; from then on, for the sake of Heaven. And Moses accepted it upon himself. Jethro said: Swear to me. And he swore to him, as it is said, "And Moses was content [vayo'el]." The term "ala" denotes nothing other than an oath, as it is said, "And Saul adjured the people," and likewise it says, "Be content [ho'el], take two talents" (II Kings 5:23). Therefore the angel hastened to slay Moses; at once, "Then Zipporah took a flint... and he let him alone" (Exodus 4:25-26). Rabbi Judah says: "Vayo'el" denotes nothing other than dwelling, as it is said, "Be content [ho'el], I pray you, and tarry," for once he took his daughter he accepted upon himself to shepherd his flock. "And God heard their groaning" (Exodus 2:24) — this is written elsewhere. "For the teraphim have spoken vanity" (Zechariah 10:2): a parable of two boys, one whose father had died and was buried, and one whose father was alive. The one whose father is alive, his father calls to him and answers him at once. But the one whose father has died goes to his grave and cries, "Father, father," until his strength fails, and there is no answer. So Israel: their Father is alive, and at once He answers them, as it is said, "And God heard their groaning." "And it shall come to pass that before they call, I will answer" (Isaiah 65:24), and it says, "He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him." But the nations, "they shall cry unto it, yet it cannot answer" (Isaiah 46:7). Rabbi Akiva says: Pharaoh's executioners would choke Israel within the walls of houses for building, and they would cry out from within the building, cry out from within the walls, and the Holy One, blessed be He, heard their groaning, as it is said, "And God heard their groaning." And further, they would burn their children in a furnace of fire as a sacrifice to their gods, as it is said, "And the LORD has taken you and brought you forth out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt" (Deuteronomy 4:20). "And God saw" (Exodus 2:25): it is written here "and He saw," and it is written there, "And all the people saw" (Exodus 20:15). Likewise it says, "When you have brought forth the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God." Rabbi Joshua ben Levi says: by the merit of the Tabernacle, as it is written, "And Moses saw all the work" (Exodus 39:43), and it is written, "that I might dwell among them" (Exodus 29:46). Rabbi Eleazar said: by the merit of Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; it is written here "And God saw," and it is written there, "When he sees his children" (Isaiah 29:23), "children in whom is no blemish."

"Now Moses was keeping the flock" (Exodus 3:1). It is written, "The LORD tries the righteous" (Psalms 11:5). Rabbi Isaac said: With what does He try the righteous? With the tending of flocks. David was tried with shepherding, as it is said, "From following the ewes that give suck He brought him, to be shepherd over Jacob His people." Amos was tried with shepherding, as it is said, "And the LORD took me from following the flock" (Amos 7:15). Moses too was tried with shepherding, as it is said, "Now Moses was keeping the flock." "And he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness" (Exodus 3:1) — to keep them far from robbery [grazing on others' land].

Another interpretation: He saw that he had taken greatness from the wilderness. Kingship and priesthood came from the wilderness. The well came from the wilderness. The manna came from the wilderness. The clouds of glory came from the wilderness. "And he came to the mountain of God, unto Horeb" (Exodus 3:1). The flock of Moses traveled forty days and tasted nothing, just as was done for Elijah, may he be remembered for good, as it is said, "And he arose, and went in the strength of that food forty days" (I Kings 19:8).

Another interpretation: "the far side of the wilderness" — it brought him tidings that his flock would be consumed in the wilderness, and he would be gathered together with them. "And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire" (Exodus 3:2). Why in a flame of fire [belabbat esh]? In order to embolden his heart [lelabevo], so that when he would come to Sinai and see the fire he would not be afraid.

Another interpretation: "in a flame of fire" [belabbat esh] — for the heart [lev] is set in two parts. Why from within the thornbush and not from within another tree? The Holy One, blessed be He, says, "I am with him in trouble" (Psalms 91:15); they are placed in bondage, and shall I reveal Myself from within another tree? Therefore from within the thornbush, which is wholly full of thorns. "And Moses said: I will turn aside now and see" (Exodus 3:3). Rabbi Yohanan said: Moses took three steps. Resh Lakish said: He did not step, but only craned his neck. The Holy One, blessed be He, said: You troubled yourself to see; by your life, I shall reveal Myself to you. At once, "And God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said: Moses, Moses, and he said: Here am I." The Holy One, blessed be He, said: You said "Here am I"; by your life, so too will I, "Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer; you shall cry, and He will say: Here am I" (Isaiah 58:9). "And he came to the mountain of God, unto Horeb" — for from there [from Horeb] those who bear swords [charavot] became liable, such as the murderer, the adulterer, and the adulteress.

Another interpretation: Why is its name called Horeb? Because from there a sword [cherev] would come upon the nations of the world who did not accept the Torah. And why is its name called Sinai? Because all who came into the world became hated [nisne'u] there [by the nations, for Israel's sake]. "And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him" (Exodus 3:2). At first He appeared only through another angel, who stood in the middle of the bush, so that Moses would not be alarmed. "And behold, the bush burned with fire." The Holy One, blessed be He, said: Because of the hatred with which his brothers hated Joseph, they went down to Egypt, and for his sake I reveal Myself in the bush and will redeem them, as it is said, "You have with Your arm redeemed Your people, the sons of Jacob and Joseph, Selah" (Psalms 77:16). What is the way of the thornbush? A person puts his hand into it and is not harmed, because its thorns are all bent downward; but when he seeks to draw his hand out, the thorns seize him and he cannot get it out. So the Egyptians: at first they received Israel with a cheerful countenance, but when Israel sought to leave they would not let them go, as it is said, "And I know that the king of Egypt will not give you leave to go" (Exodus 3:19, below). "And the bush was not consumed" — He hinted to him: though they will be enslaved under four kingdoms, they will not be consumed. "And Moses said: I will turn aside now and see" — he spoke to the shepherds who were with him, and they did not see what Moses saw. And so you find with Abraham, and with Daniel. "For the place whereon you stand is holy ground" — here you are destined to build an altar before Me. From where do we know that all the callings were "Moses, Moses"? Scripture teaches, "And God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said: Moses, Moses." And from where do we know that at every calling he said "Here am I"? Scripture teaches, "And he said: Here am I."

"Moses, Moses" (Exodus 3:4), and likewise "Abraham, Abraham," "Jacob, Jacob" (Genesis 46:2), and "Samuel, Samuel" (1 Samuel 3:10): this doubling of the name is a language of affection and a language of urging on.

Another interpretation: He was Moses before God spoke with him, and he was the same Moses after God spoke with him. By the principle of the governing case (binyan av) how so? This is the foundational instance that teaches about everything following it. And when is something called a foundation? Once it stands first. Said Rabbi Isaac: at every single utterance God would call "Moses, Moses," and he would answer "Here I am." This is the governing case for them all, as in "And God called to him from the midst of the bush" (Exodus 3:4), because this was the first instance. Similarly you say (Isaiah 10:12), "And it shall be, when the Lord has finished all His work," why? Because Assyria said (Isaiah 10:13), "By the strength of my hand I have done it." And the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, "Shall the axe boast over the one who hews with it?" (Isaiah 10:15). You are like nothing but this axe: if no one cuts with it, it accomplishes nothing on its own; and like this staff, which, if no one strikes with it, has nothing to boast of. Yet you say "By the strength of my hand I have done it." Therefore (Isaiah 10:16), "The Lord, the Lord of hosts, will send leanness among his fat ones." And all the kings of the idolatrous nations are judged on this account. And if so, why was Assyria singled out? Because it was first. "And He said, Do not draw near here" (see hint 57).