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What does "lo hodatani" mean when Moshe tells Hashem (ה׳) "You didn't inform me"—even though Hashem clearly had? The pasuk uses "nasan einav v'libo," placing eyes and heart, which Rashi (רש"י) invokes both by Moshe viewing Jewish suffering and by Moshe's claim to Hashem. Real communication requires looking into the other person's face, sensing how they receive your words, not just delivering information—a principle Rabbi Zweig illustrates applies equally to marriage, employees, and even waiters.
Rabbi Zweig explores the dialogue between Moshe and Hashem (ה׳) in the aftermath of the Golden Calf, where the Jewish people's destruction has been averted and they will proceed to the Land of Israel. Moshe says to Hashem (Ki Sisa, page 466 in the text): "Re'eh—You say to me to take up the people, but You did not inform me (lo hodatani) whom You will send with me." Rashi (רש"י) notes that Moshe admits Hashem *did* say He would send an angel—so how can Moshe claim "You didn't tell me"? Rashi explains: saying something the listener doesn't accept is not real "telling." The key lies in Rashi's language. Rashi interprets "Re'eh" (literally "see") as "put your eyes and your heart" on what you are saying—an expression urging Hashem to focus on how His words land with Moshe. This same phrase appears earlier (page 16), when Moshe goes out to see the suffering of the Jewish people in Egypt. The pasuk says "vayar b'sivlosam"—he saw their burdens. Rashi says Moshe "placed his eyes and his heart to be distressed over them." Rabbi Zweig asks: what does this poetic phrase mean? Why isn't simple seeing enough?
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Ki Sisa 33:12; Shemos 2:11
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