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Why does the Torah (תורה) tell the Jews entering Eretz Yisrael to remember Egypt rather than the recent victories over Sichon and Og? The pasuk reveals that Egypt was not a war—Hashem (ה׳) "toyed" with them ("hisalalti"). Unlike battles that instill fear, remembering Egypt meant remembering total dominance without struggle, the perfect mindset for entering the Land.
Rabbi Zweig presents a fundamental insight into the psychological preparation required for the Jewish people as they stood at the threshold of entering Eretz Yisrael. The question originates from Parshas Eikev, where the Torah (תורה) anticipates the Jews' natural fear of the powerful Canaanite nations and commands them to remember what Hashem (ה׳) did to Pharaoh and Egypt. The difficulty is glaring: this speech occurs in the fortieth year, mere weeks before entry into the Land. Anyone under forty years old was not yet born during the Exodus and has no personal memory of those events. Meanwhile, just months earlier, the entire nation witnessed and participated in the stunning defeats of Sichon and Og, described in the sources as "zro'os olam"—the Atlas-like protectors of the entire region, the most powerful kings in the world. The logical question becomes inescapable: if the purpose is to instill confidence and dispel fear, why does Hashem direct the people to recall events from four decades earlier that most of the population never experienced, rather than pointing to the overwhelming victories of just a few months prior? The recent conquest of Sichon and Og should have been the perfect memory to invoke—fresh, vivid, and universally remembered by all.
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Devarim 7:17-18 (Parshas Eikev), Shemos 10:1-2 (Parshas Bo)
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