The Torah isn't always explicit about timing, and sometimes, a seemingly simple phrase can unlock a whole world of debate. Take Exodus 7:25: "Seven days were completed, after the Lord had struck the Nile." Seems straightforward, right? But what exactly does it mean?
That's where the Rabbis come in. In Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, we find a fascinating discussion between Rabbi Yehuda and Rabbi Neḥemya, wrestling with this very verse.
The question they grapple with is this: how long did God warn the Egyptians before unleashing each plague? And how long did the plague itself last?
Rabbi Yehuda offers one perspective: God gave the Egyptians a twenty-four day heads-up before each plague hit, followed by seven days of the plague itself. Twenty-four days to repent, to change their ways, to let the Israelites go. Then, boom. Seven days of frogs, or locusts, or darkness.
Rabbi Neḥemya flips the script. He suggests it was the other way around: seven days of warning, followed by twenty-four days of plague.
So, which is it?
Well, the text itself doesn't say definitively. But their interpretations reveal something deeper about the nature of divine justice and the opportunities for repentance.
Think about it. According to Rabbi Yehuda, the phrase "seven days were completed" refers to the seven days of the plague itself, after a longer period of warning. But Rabbi Nehemya understands "seven days were completed after the Lord had struck" as the completion of a seven-day warning period before the next plague arrived. Meaning, even amidst the chaos and suffering of a plague, God was already offering a chance to avoid the next one!
What does this tell us? Perhaps that even in the midst of hardship, there's always a chance for change, a window for repentance. That divine justice isn't just about punishment, but also about offering opportunities to choose a different path. God, in this view, is constantly extending a hand.
And isn't that a powerful idea? It's a reminder that even when things seem bleak, there's always hope, always a chance to turn things around. And maybe, just maybe, that's the most important lesson we can take away from the plagues of Egypt.