Parashat Va'era – Ani Hashem: From Exile, Emunah, and the Power of Kindness

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Good morning, everyone.

I’m sending you a short message. I returned last night from Belgium, and we are in the process of resettling in Yerushalayim Ir HaKodesh. This Shabbat is Shabbat Mevorchim, as we say: Shevat an acronym — Shin for Shomrim, Bet for Barchim, and Tet for Taharem. We are now in the second week of Shovavim, continuing the process of purification that we mentioned last week.

I am sending this le’ilui nishmat Rav Shlomo ben Rav Yitzchak. This week we read Parashat Vaera.

Ani Hashem – The Opening of the Parasha

As you all know, Parashat Vaera begins with the words “Va’era” — “I appeared.” The word Va’era is composed of Vav and Aleph: Vav has the numerical value of six, and Aleph is one. Chazal teach that in this parasha we encounter the first seven makot that befall Egypt.

We usually refer to the makot as punishments, but they were not merely punishments inflicted on Egypt. Their purpose was far deeper.

The very first words of the parasha is “Ani Hashem.” Hashem represents the attribute of mercy, while Elokim represents judgment.

At the end of last week’s parasha, Moshe Rabbeinu cries out:

“Hashem, I did not want to be Your messenger. I knew how difficult this exile would be. You sent me in the hope that I would relieve their suffering — but everything has become worse lama hare’ota la’am hazeh. Babies are being killed, men are suffering, families are broken, and the labor has become harder since I started speaking with Paroh. Why must this suffering continue?”

The Midrash echoes this timeless question: Why do the righteous suffer?

Hashem responds with two words:

Ani Hashem.

You cannot comprehend the depth of Divine reality. What you see as suffering is part of My attribute of mercy. Ne’eman l’shalem sachar — I am faithful to reward every person exactly as they deserve. This is a process that comes from my attribute of mercy.

We see war, death, widows, orphans — pain that seems unbearable. Hashem tells Moshe: My love for you is greater than anything you can imagine. When Mashiach comes, the clarity will be so overwhelming that all questions will disappear. Until then, you must trust that this is a process of exile that Am Israel has to go through in order to become the Chosen Nation.

Exile as a Process of Formation

Hashem tells Moshe Rabbeinu that this is not the only exile Am Yisrael will experience. There will be four exiles in total.

Had Bnei Yisrael maintained their spiritual strength — had they not descended to the 49th level of impurity, history would have ended in Egypt. Mashiach would have arrived. But the process of spiritual education was not yet complete.

This is why there are four expressions of redemption, reflected in the four cups of wine at the Seder:

• V’hotzeiti – I will take you out

• V’hitzalti – I will save you

• V’ga’alti – I will redeem you

• V’lakachti – I will take you as My nation

Hashem is saying tell Am Israel that they have to go through this lengthy process, as Rav Hirsh explains Avraham Avinu was told by Hashem:

“Your children will become strangers in a land where they felt so comfortable but eventually they’ll be treated as strangers. Then there will be forced labor, suffering and persecution."

Why strangers? Because comfort in exile leads to forgetting who you are. If being strangers does not awaken you, there will be enslavement. If that fails in education you, there will be tremendous suffering — all for one purpose:

“V’lakachti etchem li l’am” — to draw you close to Me, I want you to be My Beloved People that I intended from the beginning of creation.

The Purpose of the Makot

The Ten Makot were not meant to punish Egypt — they were meant to educate Am Yisrael to understand the depth of the commitment of Hashem to us.

Education does not happen in one day nor two days, it takes a lifetime. In Egypt, this process took a full year. Each makah involved three weeks of warning, followed by one week of the plague itself.

As the Ramban says Hashem says: “I am going to free you. Just as I brought you into this situation of exile, I will take you out.” “Ve-hotzeiti” — I shall remove the persecution and the tremendous suffering. From the day the makot began, Bnei Yisrael were no longer enslaved. Then comes “Ve-hitzalti” — I will remove the feeling of being enslaved.And then “Ve-ga’alti” — you will no longer be pursued; you will be completely free. And finally, the whole purpose: “Ve-lakachti” — and you shall become My chosen nation.

The Ramban explains that the makot taught three foundational truths to Am Israel who had dropped to the 49th level of impurity:

1. Ani Hashem, Hashem created the world from nothing (yesh me’ayin) Therefore Hashem can do anything. Scientists can only create yesh meyesh, there has to be something existing before. 

2. Hashem is involved in every detail of existence (hashgacha pratit). Water turning to blood only in Egyptian homes, while remaining water in Jewish homes, taught that nothing is random. Even when Jewish and Egyptian cattle stood side by side, only the Egyptian cattle were struck. This is not punishment — this is Divine precision. Hashem knows exactly the extent of each person's thoughts.

3. Hashem alone can override nature. Ein Kamoni Bechol Haaret. Fire and ice descending together? No human power can do that. Only Hashem.

Only after this Veheveti Eschem I will give you the Torah and bring you to Eretz Israel,

The Mateh of Moshe Rabbeinu

All the makot were performed through Moshe Rabbeinu’s mateh — his staff.

This was no ordinary stick. It was incredibly heavy and precious, originating from Gan Eden, passed from Adam to Noach, to Avraham Avinu, and eventually to Yitro. When he fled to Midian, he planted it in his garden and said let’s see who can remove this stick. It was Moshe Rabbeinu who was able to take it out.

Engraved upon it were the initials of the ten makot inscribed in sort of diamond letters: D’tzach Adash B’achav.

It is called a mateh, not a makel, because mateh comes from the root l’hatot — to turn, to show direction. Its purpose was to turn our hearts toward Hashem that we should look upto Heaven that Hashem is constantly taking care of use, that was the purpose of the Makkot.

Faith in Darkness

When everything is good, lehagid baboker chasedecha, belief is easy. True faith — emunatcha balailot — is forged in darkness: in captivity, in tunnels, in fear.

This is why Hashem brings out in these terrible exiles — to strengthen our faith in these challenging times is the whole purpose.

A Story from Modiin

I heard last night, when I came back, about an incident that happened last week in the town of Modi’in. There were severe rains and terrible floods throughout Eretz Yisrael last week. The rain was intense, and the flooding was extremely dangerous.

Apparently, there was a very strong current — a river that overflowed — on the outskirts of the town of Modi’in. Tragically, one young boy was carried away by the waters. I don’t know if they have found him yet. There were actually two boys standing by the river. One was swept away by the current. The other was also caught in the water but somehow managed to save himself.

The father of that boy shared the following story about events that took place exactly last Friday, Erev Shabbat Shemot.

He said that on Friday afternoon, shortly before Shabbat, he went into a store to buy something — maybe some food. While he was standing there, a young man was standing next to him.

The young man moved, with no bad intention at all, and the entire jar of candies fell and scattered all over the floor. The candies rolled everywhere.

The store owner immediately became upset and was about to rebuke him and shout at him.

The father says: I saw what was about to happen, and right away I said, “I’m so sorry. It’s my fault. I dropped it. It wasn’t his fault — it was mine. Here, I’ll give you 50 shekels. Please, let it go.”

The young man quickly whispered to him, “No, no — it was my fault. I don’t want you to take responsibility.”

But the incident ended there. It was forgotten, and no one was embarrassed. The father said that he simply did not want that young man to be humiliated.

He went home before Shabbat and lay down to rest. That night, he had a very frightening dream. He saw himself being carried away in a powerful, raging river, with water gushing violently around him. He was about to drown. He screamed out and cried, “Shema Yisrael!”

Suddenly, he woke up. He felt shaken, but he also sensed that he had somehow been saved. He wondered to himself: What was this terrifying dream? It disturbed him greatly, but he didn’t connect it to anything at the time.

Then, on Tuesday, when the incident with his son occurred, he suddenly realized something. What happened to his son was exactly what he had seen in his dream that Friday afternoon.

And the father said: I believe that the only thing that saved my son was that I did not want another person to be humiliated. I made a small gesture. What did I really do? Nothing so great — just a small act of kindness.

And he concluded: You should know that every small gesture of kindness can be life-saving. You can be saving yourself, your family, and others.

So remember: Olam chesed yibaneh — the world is built on kindness.

Have a wonderful, wonderful Shabbat. May we merit a new month filled with miracles, just as our forefathers experienced in Mitzrayim. May we see nissim and niflaot, for every day we witness how Hashem is running the world. So many events take place daily, and we must recognize: Ani Hashem — Hashem says, “You should know that I am here. I am the One in charge of everything,” as we say, Ein od milvado.

Have a wonderful Shabbos, and all my love from Yerushalayim.