Questions tagged [yetziat-mitzrayim]
The redemption of the Jewish People from slavery in Egypt; performed by G-d through Moses.
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Is it possible we didn’t speak Egyptian while in Egypt?
Our sages say that we didn’t change our language, clothes, and names and in that merit we were redeemed. However didn’t we have to communicate with the Egyptians in their language?
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Why the need for "haste" at the original Passover, if leaving the house was forbidden before morning?
Exodus 12
English
Complete Jewish Bible
10
And you shall not leave over any of it until morning, and whatever is left over of it until morning, you shall burn in fire.
יוְלֹֽא־תוֹתִ֥ירוּ מִמֶּנּוּ ...
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How did the Jewish people have livestock when leaving Egypt?
Exodus 12:38
Moreover, a mixed multitude went up with them, and very much
livestock, both flocks and herds.
How can it be that the Israelites left Egypt with much livestock after they were slaves in ...
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Who was first to show that the first nine of the ten plagues could be grouped into three groups of three?
Who was first to show that the first nine of the ten plagues could be grouped into three groups of three?
The First Plague: Water Turned to Blood דָּם (7:17-24; 7:17-24)
Go to Pharoah – לֵ֣ךְ אֶל־...
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Why did the last plague target only the firstborn?
There must be a reason that the firstborn were targeted in the last of the 10 plagues before the Israelites escaped from Egypt. Were the other Egyptians more righteous? Why did the 10th plague target ...
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When was the first Jewish leap year?
What number year within the 19-year cycle was the year of Yetziyat Mitzrayim -- if that was the mechanism used in the midbar to keep Pesach in the Spring
and alternatively, if the cycle wasn't what ...
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Were Bene-Israel more numerous than the Egyptians according to Exodus 1:9?
Exodus 1:9 He said to his people, “Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and more powerful than we. 10 Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase and, in the event of war, join ...
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Did the Jews speak Lashon Hara while in Egypt
In Vayikra Rabbah 32:5 the Midrash Rabbah is explicit that one of the reasons the Jews were redeemed from exile is because the did not speak Lashon Harah (slander) about each other while they were in ...
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Source that we were enslaved in Egypt to bring national unity
I heard in a Shiur that the Medresh says that the reason we were enslaved in Egypt was to bring national unity. Does anyone know where the Medresh says that? Thanks.
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Were the original tablets brought down by Moses the same as the second set?
We're taught that when Moses brought down the tablets, he shattered the first set in a rage after witnessing his people worshipping the golden calf.
As soon as Moses came near the camp and saw the ...
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Why does "like the days you went out of Egypt" deal with plural "days"?
In the verse, Michah 7:15, it says "Like the days you went out of Egypt, I'll show them {lit. "him"} wonders", which simply implies that the future redemption will be similar to ...
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What day of the week was Yeziyat Mizrayim?
Do we have a tradition what day of the week Yeziayit Mizrayim was? I seem to recall seeing it stated somewhere, but a quick search didn't find any sources.
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Midrash on commandments for non-Jews
Note: I had recalled seeing this or a similar question somewhere on the site but couldn't find it.
There's a midrash that appears in two versions (that I know of), one in Midrash Tehillim 21:1:
"...
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טט בכתפי שתים - is Katfi Coptic?
The gemara in Menachos 34b learns the number of parshiyos in tefillin in various ways. One is
ר"ע אומר אינו צריך טט בכתפי שתים פת באפריקי שתים
Rabbi Akiva says: ... four compartments can be ...
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Why did God want the Israelites to take riches from Egypt before the Exodus?
In parshat Bo, we read:
And the Lord said to Moses... Speak, please, in the ears of the people, and let them ask every man of his neighbor, and every woman of her neighbor, jewels of silver, and ...
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How populated was Egypt in the times of the patriarchs and by whom?
I start with the assumption that since no miracle is mentioned regarding the Egyptians, they reproduced naturally, having on average 4-5 kids.
If we assume that Mitzrayim, the son of Ham, was the ...
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Did the Jews know that Moshe was the future redeemer and being raised in the palace?
It's quite plausible to suggest that Moshe's birth which lit up the room was known to more than just the family. Also, the fact that Yocheved weaned him for 2 years then sent him to the palace could ...
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How to understand Yoseph's seemingly cruel actions?
It seems that Yoseph completely changed the system of government from one where citizens had land rights and minimal taxes to one where the right to property was taken away and 20% tax.
He basically ...
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Do we ignore the language differences interpreting Moses being not a man of words (לֹא֩ אִ֨ישׁ דְּבָרִ֜ים אָנֹ֗כִי)?
Do we ignore the language differences interpreting Moses being not a man of words (לֹא֩ אִ֨ישׁ דְּבָרִ֜ים אָנֹ֗כִי)?
וַיֹּ֨אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֣ה אֶל־יְהוָה֮ בִּ֣י אֲדֹנָי֒ לֹא֩ אִ֨ישׁ דְּבָרִ֜ים אָנֹ֗כִי ...
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Are there Orthodox sources on alternative estimations of the Exodus?
When discussing the Exodus, some academic scholars try to reconcile the Biblical narrative with empirical findings by lowering the estimates for the number of people involved and the grandiosity of ...
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How did the Israelites borrow garments from the Egyptians?
It is written1 that the Israelites kept their uniqueness by keeping their language, names and their dress. Why then did the Bnei Yisrael borrow from the Egyptians their clothes if they kept their ...
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Is there a midrash that says all of the water in the world split at the time of the splitting of the reed sea?
Is there a midrash that states that all the bodies of water split during the splitting of the reed sea? If yes, I would think that such an event would be recorded in some secular history book? Are ...
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Why did Pharaoh let the Jews out if he thought they were leaving for 3 days in order to serve hashem when they were alreadys serving hashem there?
It is my understanding that Pharaoh truly believed that he was allowing the Jews out (even towards the very end) for a 3 day journey and the reason behind this journey was to go to Sinai in order that ...
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How does one calculate from pesach to the keriat yam suf?
Quote“We are all familiar with the historical reason for celebrating the ‘seventh day of Passover’ – for (according to the Midrash) the miracle of the splitting of the Red Sea took place seven days ...
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Were there really 5x as many makkos at yam suf?
Towards the end of the haggadah, there is a paragraph discussing how many makkos there were at yam suf:
רבי יוסי הגלילי אומר- מנין אתה אומר שלקו המצרים במצרים עשר מכות ועל הים לקו חמישים מכות? ...
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Looking for midrash source
A couple of years ago I heard a vort based on a midrash. The midrash apparently stated that when Yisrael were enslaved in Egypt, the Egyptians made them work very hard at building magnificent ...
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Eggs in Salt Water at the Seder
Minhagei Yeshurun (119) writes
היה אסור לכהני מצרים עפ"י דתם לאכול מלח לזה צוו חז"ל לאכלו בפסח בסעודה
זו למען עשות נגד חקיהם טעם אכילת תחלה בצים מבושלות הוא גם כן למען
עשות נגד חוקי המצרים כי ...
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Did the Israelites erase their tracks from Egypt to Eretz Yisrael?
I remember reading that Moses gave one tribe of Israel the task of erasing every trace of the Israelites' journey from Egypt to the Promised Land. Is this accurate, what is the source, and what would ...
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Why were the plagues necessary if God hardened Pharaoh's heart?
The Torah tells us that God hardened Pharaoh's heart so that he would not let the Israelites go. [Ex. Ch. 4-14] Some commentators [e.g., Sforno] explain that this was in order to allow Pharaoh to ...
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Why does the Torah repeat 20 times that God hardened Pharaoh's heart?
The Torah tells us twenty times, in the space of just a few pages [Ex. Ch. 4-14], that God hardened Pharaoh's heart so that he would not let the Israelites go. Why this emphatic insistence on this ...
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Why does Pharaoh put Joseph in charge of Egypt?
Pharaoh hears that Joseph successfully interprets dreams. He summons him, and Joseph tells him that his dream means 7 years of plenty followed by 7 years of famine. So Pharaoh orders that food be ...
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Why is the narrative of Moses growing up in Pharaoh's house important?
I begin with the assertion that nothing is arbitrary in the Torah and the history followed the big plan as envisioned by the Creator.
The narrative of Moses' origin is fascinating but its necessity ...
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Why aren't the walls also made of Schach?
The Gemmorah learns the obligation of Succah from the Clouds of Glory that surrounded the Jewish people on Exodus (and later).
It also learns (at least one opinion) that the Schach must resemble a ...
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Why don't we say "this is a Succah our forefathers used in Exodus"
On the Seder Night, we say הא לחמא עניא - this is the bread our ancestors ate in Egypt.
The Torah says we should sit in Succos as G-d made Succos in Exodus (Lev 23.43).
לְמַעַן יֵדְעוּ דֹרֹתֵיכֶם ...
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Does Torah mention actual living in Sukkot?
IIRC, R' Akiva's view is that the Jews lived in actual Succot when exiting Egypt (Sukkah 11b "ענני כבוד היו דברי רבי אליעזר, רבי עקיבא אומר: סוכות ממש עשו להם"). But I only remember that the Torah ...
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Why was Pharaoh spared? [duplicate]
Pharaoh & many Egyptians were obviously evil men who enslaved our ancestors & foolishly refused to let them go free. Why was Pharaoh spared? As the main villain in this tragedy you’d think he ...
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What were the Hebrews' tents made out of?
There are multiple clear references to the Hebrews sleeping in tents during the Exodus. But what were they made of?
Keeping in mind that they did not have lots of time to prepare for the journey (...
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Did Israelites who stayed in Egypt become halachically Jewish?
Some sources indicate that not all of the Israelites left Egypt during the Exodus. On the other hand, the initial "conversion" of the Israelites to Judaism occurred at Matan Torah at Mt. Sinai during ...
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Population of Jews at exodus seems unrealistically large [duplicate]
I am a preacher. Today I was talking with some Jews who talked about the 2.5 -3.0 million people who witnessed the miracles of the exodus.
But according to my knowledge, the population of Africa at ...
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Why were the 42 journeys needed to cross the desert?
Seemingly, the travel to the promised land could necessitate only one two stops - Crossing the Red Sea and at Mt Sinai to receive the Torah. Theoretically, the next stop would be Arvot Moab, before ...
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What did the Jews do all day in the desert for 40 years?
They had food prepared for them.
Rashi says that during the first and last years they had a lot of journeys. But in the middle 38 years, there were only 20 journeys. Even though that doesn't tell us ...
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Did any 100 y.o. Exodus survivors enter the Promised Land?
IIRC the decree of dying in the desert was limited for those aged 20-60 at the Exodus. Of those who were 60 at that time and 100 at the entering of the Land, did they all die in the decree, or did ...
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What about Yetziat Mitzrayim should I remember?
One of the שש זכירות requires that I remember the Exodus from Egypt (זכירת יציאת מצרים). According to the linked Wiki document, in an effort to fulfill
(לְמַעַן תִּזְכֹּר אֶת יוֹם צֵאתְךָ מֵאֶרֶץ ...
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Is there a source that says only 1/5th of the Jews will make it past the messiah?
I have heard an explanation, that since only 1/5th of the Jews were liberated from Egypt in the Bible, so too only 1/5th of us Jews will survive the eventual redemption. Is this true, and if it is, ...
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How many Jews were in Egypt before the Exodus?
In Sanhedrin 111a, we read:
It is taught in a baraita with regard to the few that are destined to be redeemed: Rav Simai says that it is stated: “And I will take you to Me as a people” (Exodus 6:7),...
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How many erev rav people were there?
How many erev rav people came out with Moshe from Egypt (Ex. 12:38)? Was it a few thousand only or more?
Please source.
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Question about Shemot, locusts
I have a question that I've asked to multiple rabbis but that remains unanswered:
Dear Rabbi:
Question about Parasha. In Exodus 10:19 the locusts enter the Red Sea. What is the connection ...
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After the Exodus was Egypt totally ruined or not?
We had the 10 plagues, we had the Egyptians drowned in the sea, but what's the bottom-line - was Egypt at Egyptians totally ruined and the end of the story or despite the fact that some died, Egypt ...
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Expel them or kill them?
In some places the Torah tells the Israelites about to enter the Land of Israel to expel all its inhabitants. For example, in Numbers 33:52-33:55:
You shall drive out all the inhabitants of the ...
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Melachot on the original Shabbat Hagadol
I have been informed, this morning, from two different sources, that the original Shabbat Hagadol was the Shabbat on the 10th of Nissan when the Children of Israel were preparing for the Exodus. They ...
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