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Why does the Midrash link Pharaoh's drowning at the Red Sea to the mitzvah (מצוה) of shiluach hakan? The analysis explores whether Pharaoh was actually hostile to the Jews or valued them deeply, arguing that his expulsion (not just enslavement) was the real crime—forcing them out after killing their children, violating the Torah (תורה)'s principle of sensitivity to parents even when taking what belongs to them.
This shiur analyzes a cryptic Midrash on Parshas Beshalach that connects Pharaoh's drowning at the Red Sea to the mitzvah (מצוה) of shiluach hakan (sending away the mother bird). The Midrash states that the Torah (תורה) commands sending away the mother so one can take the children, but Pharaoh sent away the fathers (the Jewish people) and drowned the children. Therefore, God says, "I will send you (Pharaoh) to the sea and take your daughter (either Batya or Klal Yisrael) to Gan Eden." The shiur raises fundamental questions about this Midrash. Why connect Pharaoh's punishment to shiluach hakan rather than simply stating measure-for-measure: you drowned our children, so you get drowned? Why focus on the act of "sending away" (beshalach) when the real crime was killing the children? The Midrash seems to suggest that Pharaoh's expulsion of the Jews—the act of throwing them out of Egypt—was itself a grave sin, separate from the drowning of their children.
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Why does the Midrash connect Pharaoh's expulsion of the Jews to the mitzvah of shiluach hakan? The shiur develops a chiddush that Pharaoh's sin wasn't only drowning the children, but the insensitivity of expelling the parents afterward. The deeper analysis reveals that Pharaoh may have valued the Jews greatly and wanted to control them—making his expulsion an act of tremendous cruelty, not liberation.
Why does Moshe respond to the splitting of the sea with shirah rather than praise or thanksgiving? Rashi's use of "al libo" reveals that shirah is an emotional expression—a response of love to love. When Hashem shows personal care, the only adequate response is "I love You too," not mere gratitude or praise, and this principle applies to all relationships.
Parshas Beshalach
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