When the Plague actually occurred, (Exodus 12:29), the Torah tells us, And it was [exactly] at midnight . . .

When Moshe warned Pharaoh about the upcoming Makas B’choros, (Plauge of the Firstborn), he was very careful to tell Pharaoh that God would come AROUND midnight and not AT midnight because he felt that if the Mitriiyim (Egyptians) miscalculated the exact moment of midnight, even by a minute or a few seconds, and if Moshe had told them that Hashem would arrive exactly at midnight, they would say “Ah! Moshe is a Liar!” (11:4 – Rashi)

Hashem doesn’t need a watch to know exactly when midnight is, and that is exactly when He came to carry out the Makah (Plague).

Moshe was very protective of Hashem’s, and Moshe’s own reputation.

But this flies in the face of what happened at the first Makah (Plague).

“So says Hashem, ‘Through this you shall know that I am Hashem:

“HInei Anochi Makeh, bamateh asher b’yadi, ahl hamayim asher bay’or, v’nehefchu l’dahm -

‘Behold I will strike, with the staff that is in my hand, the waters that are in the River, and they shall change to blood. (Exodus 7:17)

Notice two things. First notice the change in speaker and then notice the change in who is directed to use the staff.

Hashem tells Moshe to quote Hashem directly with the words, “Through this you shall know that I am Hashem.”

Then Hashem tells Moshe to say to Pharaoh, in the first person, “I [Moshe] will strike the waters, with the staff that is in my hand . . .”

Then “Hashem says to Moshe, “Say to Aaron, ‘Take your staff and stretch out your hand

over the waters of Egypt . . . and they shall become blood. (7:19).

Ok. We have a problem. Hashem first tells Moshe to tell Pharaoh that he, Moshe, is going to strike the waters with his staff. Then Hashem tells Moshe to tell Aaron to take his staff and stretch out his hand over the waters.

So what is Pharaoh going to think? Let’s see, this Moses guy tells me that God told him to tell me that he, Moses, is going to strike the waters. OK, so now I’m waiting by the waters to watch Moses in action, and Instead of Moses striking the waters, I see his brother Aaron striking the water.

Pharaoh will tell Moshe, “Moshe, get out of here. You are a liar, and you and your God are a bunch of clowns. You can’t get your story straight!”

Moshe was so medakdeik (careful) by Makas B’Choros (the Plague of the Firstborn) to tell Pharaoh that God would come AROUND midnight, so that he and God would not be off by a few seconds, so that Pharaoh would not call him a liar! How could Hashem tell Moshe say to Pharaoh that I, Moshe, will strike the waters, and then tell Moshe to tell Aaron to take his staff and stretch out his hand over the waters?!

Pharaoh was no dummy. He would see that glaring discrepancy immediately and tell them both off – Moshe and Hashem!

What is going on here?! How could God tell Moshe to blatantly contradict himself like that to Pharaoh?!

To understand what’s happening here, we have to read the pasuk (verse) carefully, and pay attention to the trop (cantillation marks).

“So says Hashem, ‘Through this you shall know that I am Hashem: ‘Behold I will strike, with the staff that is in my hand, the waters that are in the River, and they shall change to blood. (Exodus 7:17)

In the Hebrew text, there is a vertical line, a cantillation mark (which I will demonstrate here by a semicolon;) with the staff that is in my hand, between the words “Hinei Anochi makeh “ and “Bamateh asher b’yadi” – “Behold I will strike; with the staff that is in my hand . . .”

That vertical line in the Hebrew (here represented by “;”) is called a “P’sik”, which tells the reader to pause . . . before reading the next word. And in doing so, that P’sik clarifies the entire matter . . . revealing the hidden meaning . . . revealing what’s behind the curtain.

With that pause, the pasuk (verse) is saying is as follows:

First Hashem is speaking, and He tells Moshe to say to Pharaoh,

“Through this you shall know that I am Hashem: Behold I will strike;

Who is going to strike you?

(Anochi) [meaning “I”] is going to strike you! The same Anochi or “I” as in

“Anochi ( I) am the Lord they God who took you out of the land of Egypt.” (Exodus 20:2)

How will He strike you?

With the staff that is in my [Moshe’s] hand.” Hashem is going to bring the makos on you, Pharaoh, thru the staff that is in my hand.

Then, later on, when Aaron strikes the water, Pharaoh has no way of knowing whose staff Aaron is using. All he knows is that the staff is the vehicle that Hashem’s agents, Moshes and Aaron, are using to bring the makos (plagues) on him and his people. And he was duly warned.

Now we also understand, that Hashem, as the attribute of Anochi ( I ) , bookends then entire chapter in Mitzrayim (Egypt) by being there to bring the makos on Pharaoh and Mitzrayim (Egypt) , and then to give the Torah to the B’nei Yisroel at Har Sinai (Mt. Sinai). “Anochi makeh” and “Anochi Hashem Elokecha”

And as a final note, when Hashem tells Moshe to tell Pharaoh, “B’zos teidah” - through this you shall know,” that was the answer to Avraham’s question, “Bamaw Eidah?“ -

“Whereby shall I know (that I will inherit it)?” at the Bris Bein HaB’Sarim (The Covenant Between the Parts). (Genesis 15:8) . There was a tremendous amount of symbolism there referring to the Makos (the Ten Plagues).

Bamaw eidah à B’Zos teidah.

Shabbat Shalom.

Copyright© 2010, Heshie Klein, MD

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