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Why did men only sing at the splitting of the sea while women sang, danced, and brought drums? The shiur develops a fundamental distinction: men celebrated commitment and partnership with Hashem (ה׳), building toward a relationship through total dedication. Women immediately experienced the marriage itself—a relationship rooted in being, not doing. This yesod illuminates both our relationship with God and the male-female dynamic in marriage.
Rabbi Zweig explores a striking question from Parshas Beshalach: why did men and women respond so differently to the miracle of Kriyas Yam Suf? The men sang shirah (song/poetry), while the women sang, danced, and brought musical instruments that Rashi (רש"י) tells us they had taken from Egypt because they knew miracles would happen. This demands explanation—both groups witnessed the same extraordinary miracle and experienced the same suffering in Egypt. The shiur begins by examining a perplexing Midrash about a lion (king), fox, and donkey on a boat approaching port. When the donkey demands port taxes, explaining he'll return the money to the king's treasury, the lion kills him. The fox, upon being asked to prepare the donkey, eats its heart. When the lion asks where the heart is, the fox responds: "If he had a heart, would he have asked the king to pay taxes?" Rabbi Zweig notes this seems to contradict a Gemara (גמרא) in Sukkah where a king willingly pays taxes so people will learn from his example. The resolution lies in understanding two types of taxes: revenue taxes (like highway tolls) versus sovereignty taxes (like port duties). A king will pay revenue taxes to set an example, but sovereignty taxes exist precisely to declare who is in charge—paying them would defeat their purpose. The donkey lacked "heart" (understanding/perspective)—he saw only the mechanical detail of collecting money, missing the larger purpose of establishing authority.
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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.
Beshalach (Shemos 15:1-21)
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