Fighting Quietly
Sometimes, you’re in between a rock and a hard place.
We’ve all been there before, though not literally (except Moshe will have that happen to him in about five weeks at HaShem’s request [Exodus:33:21]).
There, we are encamped in front of Pi haChirot between Migdol and the Red Sea.
Quite a bit is happening: HaShem relays to Moshe what Pharaoh will say– that Bnei Yisrael are trapped (from the root vowel bet-vav-chuf, ב-ו-ך, which appears to more times in Tanach, in Joel:1:18 and in Esther:3:15).
HaShem also informs Moshe that He will harden Pharaoh’s heart so that he will chase Bnei Yisrael, and that He, HaShem Will be honored through Pharaoh. ( I do love Rav Yosef Bechor Shor’s understanding that the root chuf-vet-daled means heavy, meaning that HaShem will deal a heavy blow to Pharaoh.)
When it is told to Pharaoh that Bnei Yisrael escaped, his heart changes for the final time, and he decides to chase after them; he takes his chariot, 600 elite chariots, and the rest of the chariots of Egypt. (Exodus: 14:6-7)
The Lekach Tov, who is quoted by the Torah Shlomo, states that from the verse above, we learn that though love is an over encompassing feeling, hate is a feeling that is capable of encompassing a person even more, since Pharaoh harnessed his own chariot. Rashi simply says that he harnessed his own chariot.
Bnei Yisrael see that Pharaoh and the Egyptians are after them with chariots, and they are terrified.
Moshe tells them “al tirau, hityatzvu u’re’oo’ et yeshuat HaShem asher ya’aseh lachem hayom ki asher re’item et Mitzrayim hayom lo toseefu lirotam od ad olam HaShem yilachaim lachem vi’atem ta’charishun’ ֿ(Exodus 14:13-14)
Moshe said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Station yourselves and see HaShem‘s salvation that He will do for you today, for as you have seen Egypt today, you shall not see them ever again. HaShem will fight for you, and you shall be silent.
Moshe tells them not to worry because they are about to witness a miracle from HaShem, to be quiet, without knowing the next part of the game plan…
HaShem then tells Moshe ‘lamah titzak ey-lie dabear el bnei Yisrael vi’yi’saoo’ (Exodus 14:15). HaShem is essentially saying, don’t cry out to Me– move forward.
Moshe is supposed to pick up his staff, hold it over the Sea, split it, and Bnei Yisrael will come into the Sea on dry land. (Exodus: 14:16)
I can’t imagine being in that situation…
Being told to trust that everything is going to work out alright, that there is a plan that you know *nothing* about.
Even if you knew about it, you wouldn’t believe it.
Bneii Yisrael is in between the Egyptian army with over 600 chariots and the Red Sea.
Moshe lifts his staff, and HaShem leads the sea out with a ‘ruach kadim aza’, (Exodus:14:21), a mighty wind from the East, and HaShem places a dry path before bnei Yisrael in the middle of the Sea.
Bnei Yisrael walks through the Sea with walls of water to the right and left (Exodus:14:22), but the Egyptian army follows with its chariots and horses. That’s over 603,000 people walking not too quickly.
Imagine a fire drill at your shul… unfortunately, people don’t move quickly, and I imagine that though the element was the opposite, the speed at which the people moved was probably not.
HaShem then tells Moshe to raise up his hand, and the water of the sea returns to its place, on top of the Egyptians, on the chariots, and on the horseman.
Only after this is Bnei Yisrael’s awe and fear directed toward HaShem and they finally believe in Moshe.
I am in no means in mortal danger as our ancestors were (though I was one time in my life, but that’s a story for a different time).
The feeling of being stuck, however, the feeling of not knowing where to turn, or what to do next is a feeling with which I am quite familiar.
Knowing that something was wrong with my body’s muscles, but not getting an answer until many years later, absolutely left me feeling confused and stuck.
Now that I know what the condition is, my Juvenile Onset ALS, it’s not an easy path to go down… When I look to my right and my left, at my arms, at my legs… I wonder how long the strength will hold out.
The water didn’t stay in choma, wall form forever.
I try to take the approach of “lamah titzak ey-lie dabear el bnei Yisrael vi’yi’saoo’- to not only cry out and daven to HaShem, but also go forward.
I see a physical therapist who has been excellent in becoming informed, and helping me to the best of his ability.
I have a motorized wheelchair that is a wonderful tool that I have to maintain my independence.
And especially this week, i’m thinking of the “ruach kadim aza”, in two ways that I understand to be reflected in my life: firstly, that we need to go forward with strength.
Secondly, because Ron Gvili was finally brought home this week from Azza. Our Brothers in Arms brought him back to where he was mi’kedem, before.
At the end of the Book of Lamentations, we beseech HaShem to bring things back to the way that they were. Chadesh yameinu k’kedem…
I know that functionally, that can’t happen for my muscles…
But I can get the help that I need… with your help.
If you want to help us with combating our problem, you can.