Exodus and Destiny
Each book of the Torah tells a story, and as Sefer Shemot, the Book of Exodus, comes to a close this week, it is worth considering the trajectory and meaning of its narrative.
My teacher, Reb Mimi Feigelson, introduced me to the concept of “bracketed reading,” in which we look at the opening and closing verses or passages of a given work in order to understand not only the contents, but also the frame in which they are held. If we apply this technique to Sefer Shemot, we immediately see that it is a book directly focused on the Israelites:
My teacher, Reb Mimi Feigelson, introduced me to the concept of “bracketed reading,” in which we look at the opening and closing verses or passages of a given work in order to understand not only the contents, but also the frame in which they are held. If we apply this technique to Sefer Shemot, we immediately see that it is a book directly focused on the Israelites:
o These are the names of the children of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob, each with his household (Ex. 1:1);
o For the cloud of the LORD was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys (Ex. 40:38).
At the same time, we notice a subtle shift in language: from the children of Israel in the first verse, to the house of Israel in the last.
While this may not seem like a significant difference, I believe it points us toward a profound change in the Jewish People – a change directly caused by the events of the Book of Exodus (all that stuff in between these verses). Sefer Shemot begins with the names of the children of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob, and indeed lists all twelve of Jacob’s sons. Although belonging to a single family, they are nevertheless distinct individuals, the actual children of Israel/Jacob. United by a common past, these children of Israel come down to Egypt individually, each on his own terms.
By the end of Sefer Shemot, however, we have a different reference point: the final verse now refers to the house of Israel, a collective entity – comprised of many individuals, to be sure, but now defined as a collective whole. Whereas, at the beginning of our story, the children of Israel were united by a shared past – their family relationships and childhood in the Land of Israel – now, at the end of Sefer Shemot, our attention looks ahead, toward all their journeys to come. The house of Israel is not merely a group of disparate individuals linked by a shared past; we have become a unified whole, bound together by our shared destiny, throughout all their journeys.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Abe Friedman
