
Bo - בֹּא, Come
Whose fault is it???
The fifteenth reading from the Torah is named Bo, which means “come.” The title comes from the first words of the first verse of the reading which says, “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘[Come] to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart’” (Shemot 10:1). Why would G-d harden Pharoah’s heart? Is that fair? G-d gives us free will to love Him as He loves us, and to follow His instructions (Torah). Any loving father or parent would give their children instructions to keep them safe so that they will have a good prosperous life. Pharaoh too is a child of G-d and received instructions. Yet the Pharoah chose to hinder G-d’s chosen people to come to Him. This disrupted G-d’s plan of redeeming the world through the Jewish people.
G-d works within our free will. His instructions should make sense to us through our experiences, choices, and application thereof. There are consequences to our actions. If a parent tells a small child not to touch a stove or to cross a busy street, and they refuse to listen, there could be dire consequences. If the child doesn’t listen the parent may choose to reprimand or punished the child out of love. This is a much better than the alternative of being burned or being hit by a car. Like so G-d rebuked and punished Pharoah for his stubbornness through the ten plagues. By doing so G-d made pharoah an example for the world to follow. But by G-d hardening Pharoah’s heart doesn’t that suggest that Pharaoh was not at fault? Was it unfair for G-d to punish hm? How can it be Pharoah’s fault that he did not let the Hebrews go worship their G-d? The truth is that Pharoah’s heart was already hardened!
Pharaoh's hardened this own heart In the prior parasha Va’era. In the first seven plagues Pharoah had hardened his own heart. After the first plague when the Nile turned to blood Pharaoh hardened his heart. "Pharaoh's heart became hard" (Shemot 7:22). Shemot 9:12 is the first time that the Torah mentions that G-d had hardened Pharaoh’s heart. Five times prior to this we see evidence of Pharaoh darkening his own heart against G-d. Twice in Shemot 7:13, then in Exodus 7:22 in response to Moshes requests. Then three more times afterwords in Shemot 8:11, Shemot 8:15, Shemot 8:28. Pharaoh “made his heart heavy” it reads. That’s equals five times that Pharaoh had made his own heart harder and harder! Perhaps we can recall when the Grinch’s heart when was displayed on an x-ray screen shrinking and hardening 2 times smaller than a typical heart? Not to invoke a Christmas carol into the drash, but if it helps us brings an image to mind, then “all things work together for good)” (Romans 8:28).
Early Middle Age Rabbi and Scholar Simon ben Lakish remarks in Exodus Rabbah “Since G-d sent [the opportunity for repentance and doing the right thing] five times to him and he sent no notice, G-d then said, ‘You have stiffened your neck and hardened your heart on your own.... So it was that the heart of Pharaoh did not receive the words of G-d.’”
Pharaoh did not repent, so only then did G-d harden Pharoah’s heart. Eventually Pharaoh started wavering between letting them go or not. He questioned his decision when his servants impressed upon him that Egypt was being destroyed as a result of there not being able to worship their G-d. And suggested that the Pharaoh should let the Hebrews go! Pharaoh relented, but only partially. He conceded to let them go and worship their G-d, but only the men! That was not satisfactory as G-d does not work with the double minded.
James 1:6-8 CJB - But let him ask in trust, doubting nothing; for the doubter is like a wave in the sea being tossed and driven by the wind. 7 Indeed that person should not think that he will receive anything from the Lord, 8 because he is double-minded, unstable in all his ways.
As a result G-d then struck Egypt with the plague of Locust. G-d knew that Pharoah was not convinced and he would continue to waver. Therefore G-d hardened Pharaoh’s heart further which resulted in the plague of choshek (darkness). Again Pharoah only partially conceded to let them go by saying that the livestock could not go up with them. Moshe would not settle for this, and said that not one hoof would stay behind as they did not know what animals would be used for the sacrifices to G-d. But how could they not know? Was Moshe being deceptive? Couldn’t they determine prior which animals were un blemished and proper for an offering? Moshe was not being deceptive but very rational. There was a considerable distance before them in traveling across the midbar (desert). The animals could be injured, eaten by wild animals, or become sick along the way. The wisdom of G-d fell on Moshe in his response that not one hoof would be left behind.
Just as the Pharoah’s hardened his heart towards G-d and refused to repent, many in the Temple leadership in Yeshua’s day also hardened their hearts towards G-d and His son.
Yochanan 12:37-44, Even though he had performed so many miracles in their presence, they still did not put their trust in him, 38 in order that what Yesha‘yahu the prophet had said might be fulfilled, 39 The reason they could not believe was — as Yesha‘yahu said elsewhere — “Adonai, who has believed our report? To whom has the arm of Adonai been revealed?” 40 “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, so that they do not see with their eyes, understand with their hearts, and do t’shuvah, so that I could heal them.” 41 (Yesha‘yahu said these things because he saw the Sh’khinah of Yeshua and spoke about him.) 42 Nevertheless, many of the leaders did trust in him; but because of the P’rushim they did not say so openly, out of fear of being banned from the synagogue; 43 for they loved praise from other people more than praise from G-d. 44 Yeshua declared publicly, “Those who put their trust in me are trusting not merely in me, but in the One who sent me.
18th century Italian philosopher Rabbi Moshe Chaim Luzzatto wrote, “Our external actions have an effect on our inner feelings. We have more control over our actions than our emotions, and if we utilize what is in our power, we will eventually acquire what is not as much in our power.” (My Jewish Learning)
In essence when we act out G-d’s mitzvot in the natural, it impact’s our spiritual being in a very positive way. When we focus on our obedience to G-d’s instructions, we in a sense deliver ourselves from the bondage of the slavery. We see in the Exodus account that we were slaves in the natural. HaShem freed us from the enemy of our flesh through G-d’s servant Moshe. Later on we were delivered by the ultimate redeemer Yeshua, one like Moshe. (Devarim 18:15-19). Like the Pharaoh, G-d hardened the hearts of the Temple leadership. How then can the Pharaoh and the Jewish leadership be at fault for not believing G-d? G-d does not harden ones heart unless their is a stubborn propensity to harden our own hearts. That said we can ask us one very important question? If we have an all knowing, loving, and caring G-d how can this happen. One very plausible answer is that if G-d could have chosen a people that would have responded to his instructions better than the Jews, then He most certainly would have. This is why in Romans 11 G-d says not to be arrogant to the Jew.
Romans 11:8 just as the Tanakh says, “G-d has given them a spirit of dullness —eyes that do not seeand ears that do not hear,right down to the present day.”
Romans 11:11-12 CJB - “In that case, I say, isn’t it that they have stumbled with the result that they have permanently fallen away?” Heaven forbid! Quite the contrary, it is by means of their stumbling that the deliverance has come to the Gentiles, in order to provoke them to jealousy. 12 Moreover, if their stumbling is bringing riches to the world — that is, if Isra’el’s being placed temporarily in a condition less favored than that of the Gentiles is bringing riches to the latter — how much greater riches will Isra’el in its fullness bring them!
We are all in this together, Jew and Gentile. As the Israelites were delivered out of the oppressive hand of the Pharoah, Yeshua delivers us out of the oppressive hand of the evil one. As followers of Yeshua we can look to the Exodus story as a picture of our and Israel’s deliverance from evil. The truth is that when you follow G-d’s instructions (Torah), we have hope and deliverance in this world and the next. G-d continually reminds us of our Deliverance throughout the Brit Hadasha. This is tied to the deliverance and saving of Israel. As we look at the biblical wars and troubles of our day, may we never forget the unfailing love of G-d who delivers and sustains His people.
Exodus 6:5 CJB - Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the people of Isra’el, whom the Egyptians are keeping in slavery; and I have remembered my covenant.
2 Corinthians 1:10 CJB - He rescued us from such deadly peril, and he will rescue us again! The one in whom we have placed our hope will indeed continue to rescue us.
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