“Honor/Kavod” – the narcotic of little men. (Bo-Beshalah)
Parshiot Va’era, Bo and Beshalah are a triad, a single symphony with well defined movements.
The conundrum regarding God’s ‘hardening’ Pharaoh’s heart, and yet making him take the rap for a recalcitrance that is then not his fault has been much debated. Yet, a careful reading of the text, in particular this aspect of God’s ostensibly heavy hand, as well as Pharaoh’s general behavior pattern, can lead one to a far more nuanced and infinitely more interesting perspective regarding both the contemporary Egyptian monarch of the Exodus saga and God’s role in his decision-making process.
Hence it is necessary to integrate last week’s thoughts into this week’s wrap-up. To those for whom this will be déjà-Jew, I beg your indulgence.
It is difficult for us to shake loose from the Bible story images imprinted on our minds as children – the one-dimensional cartoon characters that rivet an infant’s imagination but insult the adult intelligence. The very term “Pharaoh” becomes a synonym for a wicked “frogs here, frogs there” monarch even though there were many Pharaohs each surely as unique as a fingerprint and often – as exemplified by the Pharaoh of Yosef versus the Pharaoh of our current triad of parshiot – polar opposites.
In Parshat Shemot we read that “There arose a new king over Egypt who knew not Yosef” וַיָּקָם מֶלֶךְ חָדָשׁ עַל מִצְרָיִם אֲשֶׁר לֹא יָדַע אֶת יוֹסֵף. (Shemot/Exodus1:5). The second half of this verse seems superfluous. After all, the old generation had passed on. It was not only the new king who knew not Yosef, it was the progeny of Yosef and his brothers who knew not Yosef as well.
I would suggest that these words “who knew not Yosef” refer to a different kind of knowledge. They refer to an awareness, a discernment. In other words, a new king arose who would not be capable of recognizing a Yosef were he standing in front of him. A new king who lacked the strength of character, the intelligence, the intuition and above all the self-confidence to ‘know’ a Yosef when he sees one. A king who is so weak, he does not know how to delegate, is indecisive in extremis. Yet, despite – or more likely because of – this insecurity he trusts no one, hence becoming a micromanager who makes every decision himself. Inevitably, of course, these are the wrong decisions.
Indeed, Exodus seems to usher in a precipitous drop in the quality of the Pharaohs, and in these opening parshiot the Egyptian monarchy moves from poor to dismal.
Yosef’s Pharaoh comes off as an enlightened monarch, one who solicits opinions, and who is a master delegator. Disturbed by a double dream that appears predictive,“he calls all the wizards and wise men of Egypt” וַיִּשְׁלַ֗ח וַיִּקְרָ֛א אֶת־כּל־חַרְטֻמֵּ֥י מִצְרַ֖יִם וְאֶת־כּל־חֲכָמֶ֑יהָ (Bereishit/Genesis 41:8) to seek their input. When they are unable to decode his dream, this Pharaoh is not beyond taking the advice of his cup-bearer, a former jailbird, and yanks Yosef out of the dungeon.
When Yosef clarifies the dream, Pharaoh is instantly ready to elevate this alien to the second most prestigious position in Egypt, and entrust him with the management of the entire economy.
Who can fail to be impressed by such a Pharaoh who has both strength of character and humility — who immediately acknowledges Elohim’s decisive role in the events that are about to unfold? “And Pharaoh said to his servants,‘Is there (another) man like this in whom there is the spirit of Elohim?’” וַיֹּ֥אמֶר פַּרְעֹ֖ה אֶל־עֲבָדָ֑יו הֲנִמְצָ֣א כָזֶ֔ה אִ֕ישׁ אֲשֶׁ֛ר ר֥וּחַ אֱלֹהִ֖ים בּֽוֹ (]41:38).
By contrast, when the Exodus Pharaoh is confronted by Moshe and Aharon we read (7:11) “And Pharaoh also called for wise men and magicians” וַיִּקְרָא֙ גַּם־פַּרְעֹ֔ה לַֽחֲכָמִ֖ים וְלַֽמְכַשְּׁפִ֑ים . It appears as if he sent a messenger out to the street to pick up a few freelance snake charmers. He was not responding to the purpose of Moshes’ mission, simply attempting to blow him off with a similar feat of prestidigitation. Clearly, he had no advisors of his own, as he did not rely on anyone else to influence his policy decisions, such as they were.
Parenthetically, it is also evident that the Exodus Pharaoh has an open door, anyone can waltz into his chambers. He does not discriminate. His insecurity is such that there is no select cohort of advisors. Everyone is welcome to put in their two cents – not that he ever listens. At the same time, he is also loath to punish or eliminate those who challenge him whether it is Shifra and Puah, Moshe and Aharon, or the vagrant snake charmers who eventually would tell him to get a grip. This is evidence of the fact that he is afraid of his own shadow and dares not silence dissenters and opponents. All this is characteristic of a very small, vain man obsessed with his title and starved for kavod (honor) which a man like this confuses with genuine respect.
As we proceed in Va’erah and Bo, Pharaoh’s supercilious and vapid personality – and its attendant insecurity and desperate need for ‘kavod’ become his undoing. The plague of lice makes it clear to all the that “This is the finger of God” אֶצְבַּ֥ע אֱלֹהִ֖ים הִ֑וא , yet Pharaoh’s insecurity-based hubris causes him to remain adamant.
The root KBD כבד that is used in the opening of Parshat Bo to describe the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart is just one of the terms the Torah deploys to describe this phenomenon of Pharaoh changing his mind. In this context it is normally understood as meaning “heavy” כִּֽי־אֲנִ֞י הִכְבַּ֤דְתִּי אֶת־לִבּוֹ֙– for I have heavied his heart – Exodus (10:1)
The KBD word appears earlier in Parshat Vaera as well: וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יְהֹוָה֙ אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֔ה כָּבֵ֖ד לֵ֣ב פַּרְעֹ֑ה מֵאֵ֖ן לְשַׁלַּ֥ח הָעָֽם And God said Pharaoh’s heart is KBD, he refuses to send the People (7:14);
וַיַּ֣רְא פַּרְעֹ֗ה כִּ֤י הָֽיְתָה֙ הָֽרְוָחָ֔ה וְהַכְבֵּד֙ אֶת־לִבּ֔וֹ וְלֹ֥א שָׁמַ֖ע אֲלֵהֶ֑ם – And Pharaoh saw there was a respite and his heart was KBD and he did not listen to them( 8:11)
וַיַּכְבֵּ֤ד פַּרְעֹה֙ אֶת־לִבּ֔וֹ גַּ֖ם בַּפַּ֣עַם הַזֹּ֑את – And Pharaoh KBD his heart this time as well (8:28)
וַיִּכְבַּד֙ לֵ֣ב פַּרְעֹ֔ה וְלֹ֥א שִׁלַּ֖ח אֶת־הָעָֽם – And Pharaoh’s heart was KBD (9:7)
and finally
וַיַּכְבֵּ֥ד לִבּ֖וֹ ה֥וּא וַעֲבָדָֽיו׃ – And his heart was KBD, he and his servants(9:34)
In Parshat Va-era the other term used is ChZK חזק, which is understood to mean strong or strentghtened:
e.g. פ וַיֶּֽחֱזַק֙ לֵ֣ב פַּרְעֹ֔ה וְלֹ֥א שָׁמַ֖ע אֲלֵהֶ֑ם ( 7:13); וַיֶּֽחֱזַק֙ לֵ֣ב פַּרְעֹ֔ה וְלֹ֥א שִׁלַּ֖ח אֶת־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל (9:35).
Another term used but only once is KASHEH קשה to harden; e.g. וַאֲנִ֥י אַקְשֶׁ֖ה אֶת־לֵ֣ב פַּרְעֹ֑ה – And I shall KSHEH the heart of Pharaoh (7:3)
Interestingly, when the words kasheh and chazak are used it is clearly God who is making this happen. By contrast, until the opening of Parshat Bo the term KBD seems to imply something that occurs naturally to Pharaoh or something he does to himself. It is not something that God implants in him.
I would like to suggest that KBD does not mean heavy, and ChZK does not mean strong. After all, what exactly is a heavy heart? In our parlance a heavy heart signifies remorse, sadness, sensitivity. This is hardly the case here.
Rather I suggest the root KBD here refers to ‘honor’, as in kavod, while CHZK means ‘reinforced’, as in God (merely) reinforces Pharaoh’s natural inclination.
Unlike the Pharaoh of Yosef’s time – a great and mighty king who is strong enough and smart enough to acknowledge the wisdom of others and the existence of God, this Pharaoh is a weak, insecure personality. Hence his diminished self-confidence makes him crave kavod, honor – and as we know, people who seek kavod are attempting to fill a gaping hole in their self-esteem because, indeed, they do not merit esteem. This is true for kings It is true for dinner honorees, It is true, perhaps especially, for the sort of rabbis who hunger for recognition and power.
When Pharaoh reneges on his agreements to allow the Israelites to leave, it is God’s doing insofar as he is reinforcing who Pharaoh is to begin with. At other times it is Pharaoh’s puny ego only, desperate for kavod, that gets in his way.
Indeed, at the very end of Parshat Vaera, in two sequential verses, we have וַיַּכְבֵּ֥ד לִבּ֖וֹ (passive) – and his heart was in need of kavod, followed immediately by וַיֶּֽחֱזַק֙ לֵ֣ב פַּרְעֹ֔ה, (active) And He (God) reinforced Pharaoh’s heart.
Until now Pharaoh has amply demonstrated his hunger for kavod, so now God plays Pharaoh’s game and ups the ante – by getting directly involved in this little man’s lust for honor, now that the king is no longer able even to listen to his own people who pretty much have told him that the jig is up
Now let us focus on the word “בא–BO”. This is unusual – God tells Moshe for the second time to “come” to Pharaoh. The proper term should be “לך – LEKH”– go.
I would suggest that BO is a sign of disrespect, it is informal. “Come to Pharaoh” drips with contempt. And indeed, when Moshe leaves Pharaoh’s presence in this instance it says; וַיִּ֥פֶן וַיֵּצֵ֖א מֵעִ֥ם פַּרְעֹֽה (10:6) Moses turns his back to Pharaoh and makes his exit – a total sign of contempt to any monarch, and proof that Moshe knows he has nothing to fear from this royal midget.
(Interestingly this precise term was used to show Pharaoh’s earlier contempt for Moshe in Parshat Va-era: וַיִּ֣פֶן פַּרְעֹ֔ה וַיָּבֹ֖א אֶל־בֵּית֑וֹ (7:23), and Pharaoh turned his back and came to his house. (Curiously, here too the word “BO” is used; “va-yavo” – the same juxtaposition of BO and Vayifen as we have in Parshat Bo.)
Clearly the onset of Parshat Bo marks a turning point. It is the start of the end game. By now even Pharaoh’s servants know it’s over and have no fear of disrespecting him by saying so; שַׁלַּח֙ אֶת־הָ֣אֲנָשִׁ֔ים וְיַֽעַבְד֖וּ אֶת־יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵיהֶ֑ם הֲטֶ֣רֶם תֵּדַ֔ע כִּ֥י אָבְדָ֖ה מִצְרָֽיִם׃ “… Let the people go and they will worship their God. Don’t you yet know that Egypt is lost?” ( 10:7). But Pharaoh holds out stubbornly on account of his pathetic ego. Yet, despite his hanging on to his vestigial kavod, Pharaoh is licked. Moshe can now treat him with utter contempt, without any fear of retribution. Pharaoh’s days are numbered, and everyone knows at this point that the emperor is naked.
From here on, God simply plays with Pharaoh. We no longer see the word KBD in reference to the Egyptian monarch, merely God doing his ChZK number. He does this both to humiliate Pharaoh and – in so doing – to aggrandize Himself to an Israelite nation sorely in need of spiritual re-tooling before their redemption.
Pharaoh makes an utter fool of himself and demonstrates the pinnacle of his vacillating, indecisive personality – just as his servants have read him the riot act – in four sequential verses (10:8-1l)
וַיּוּשַׁ֞ב אֶת־מֹשֶׁ֤ה וְאֶֽת־אַהֲרֹן֙ אֶל־פַּרְעֹ֔ה וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֲלֵהֶ֔ם לְכ֥וּ עִבְד֖וּ אֶת־יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֑ם מִ֥י וָמִ֖י הַהֹלְכִֽים׃
So Moshe and Aharon were brought back to Pharaoh and he said to them, “Go, worship your God יהוה ! Who are the ones to go?”
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֔ה בִּנְעָרֵ֥ינוּ וּבִזְקֵנֵ֖ינוּ נֵלֵ֑ךְ בְּבָנֵ֨ינוּ וּבִבְנוֹתֵ֜נוּ בְּצֹאנֵ֤נוּ וּבִבְקָרֵ֙נוּ֙ נֵלֵ֔ךְ כִּ֥י חַג־יְהֹוָ֖ה לָֽנוּ׃
Moshe replied, “We will all go, we will go with our sons and daughters, our flocks and herds; for we must observe יהוה’s festival.”
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֲלֵהֶ֗ם יְהִ֨י כֵ֤ן יְהֹוָה֙ עִמָּכֶ֔ם כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר אֲשַׁלַּ֥ח אֶתְכֶ֖ם וְאֶֽת־טַפְּכֶ֑ם רְא֕וּ כִּ֥י רָעָ֖ה נֶ֥גֶד פְּנֵיכֶֽם׃
But he said to them, “יהוה be with you—the same as I mean to let your dependents go with you! Clearly, you are bent on mischief”.
לֹ֣א כֵ֗ן לְכֽוּ־נָ֤א הַגְּבָרִים֙ וְעִבְד֣וּ אֶת־יְהֹוָ֔ה כִּ֥י אֹתָ֖הּ אַתֶּ֣ם מְבַקְשִׁ֑ים וַיְגָ֣רֶשׁ אֹתָ֔ם מֵאֵ֖ת פְּנֵ֥י פַרְעֹֽה׃
No! You men go and worship יהוה, since that is what you want.” And they were expelled from Pharaoh’s presence.
Notice the flip-flopping – hardly the mark of real confidence and power.
What is emerging from the text is that Pharaoh is arrogating for himself the characteristics and entitlements that belong only to the Almighty. God indeed has the right to demand KBD from humankind, because God is beyond ego and hubris. By honoring God we acknowledge our own diminutiveness. In fact, the only other party we are told to honor is our parents, and for similar reasons. They, too, are our creators, hence, ultimately, they are entitled to kavod. As we are instructed in the Ten Commandments to “honor (KBD) your father and your mother …” כַּבֵּד אֶת אָבִיךָ וְאֶת אִמֶּךָ לְמַעַן יַאֲרִכוּן יָמֶיךָ.
Pharaoh further arrogates the right to behave like Elohim when he says to Moshe after the plague of darkness; וַיֹּֽאמֶר־ל֥וֹ פַרְעֹ֖ה לֵ֣ךְ מֵעָלָ֑י הִשָּׁ֣מֶר לְךָ֗ אַל־תֹּ֙סֶף֙ רְא֣וֹת פָּנַ֔י כִּ֗י בְּי֛וֹם רְאֹתְךָ֥ פָנַ֖י תָּמֽוּת “Go away from me! Beware! You shall no longer see my face, for on the day that you see my face, you shall die!” (10:28). These sentiments are virtually identical to what God later says to Moshe; “You cannot see my face: for no man shall see me and live” וַיֹּאמֶר, לֹא תוּכַל לִרְאֹת אֶת-פָּנָי: כִּי לֹא-יִרְאַנִי הָאָדָם, וָחָי. (33:20)
Once the plagues are over and the Israelites have left the borders of Egypt, the KBD reappears. Only this time it is God who uses the term in self-reference;
חילו ובכל בפרעה ואכבדה – And I will be honored (KBD) in Pharaoh and his entire army (14:4, 17,18) ]
וְאִכָּבְדָ֤ה בְּפַרְעֹה֙ וּבְכל־חֵיל֔וֹ בְּרִכְבּ֖וֹ וּבְפָרָשָֽׁיו׃ – I will be honored (KBD) through Pharaoh, through his chariots, and through his horsemen.
בְּהִכָּבְדִ֣י בְּפַרְעֹ֔ה בְּרִכְבּ֖וֹ וּבְפָרָשָֽׁיו׃ when I gain honor (KBD) through Pharaoh, his chariots, and his riders.
We have come full circle. The supercilious king who attempts to camouflage his insecurity and weakness with tough words and recalcitrance has his ultimate degradation, while God the Almighty rightfully claims the KBD – the glory and respect to which no human being is entitled.
Perhaps this should serve as a lesson to the legions of kavod-seekers (honor seekers) for whom their names cannot appear often enough or large enough; who cannot be honored at enough dinners, feted at enough testimonials, showered with enough glorious adjectives by fawning fund raisers, blizzarded with enough blessings by greedy religious ‘leaders’, or those heading ever-larger yeshivas filled with wastrels who contribute nothing to the security of the greater society and nothing for the support of their families.. Do they realize how silly they look? How the whole world knows they are merely buying the sanctimonious encomiums of sycophants?
