Parashas Vaeira
The Hidden King and His Kingdom
Rabbi David Katz
Parashas
Vaeira can quite simply be the Torah's formal introduction to kings and
non-kings. In some ways this can appear as an overt operation, while some
implications can be extremely subtle; yet with the careful eye, they are all
here. Whether we are to discuss Pharaoh, Moshiach [and who he is], Egypt,
Moses, or the Kabbalistic slant in this domain, the evil kingdom is quite clear
in the passages that lay before us, while the secrets of the eventual ultimate
redemption and her king is one of the truly most blessed aspects in the whole
Torah – the truth of the final Moshiach – Moshiach son of David. Let's examine six distinct aspects of the
Kingdom in (1) Hashem and His name, (2) Egypt, (3) Pharaoh, (4) Moses, (5) Ger
Tzedek, (6) Messiah.
"My
Name Hashem"
Perhaps
the most obvious King in our Parasha is The Creator Himself. Yet it still must
be stated, for all too often we tend to stare at the trees while losing site of
the forest! This is and shall always remain Hashem's dynamic opening moves that
will eventually be realized as an eternal bombardment. Hashem was always
working His vision into our hearts, and now has come the time to fashion the Nation
of Israel in an absolutely revealed way, one that will see Him as head of this
new Nation, one containing Jews and Gerim. As much as this week's headlines detail
Hashem and Israel-proper, the rest of the Torah, starting next week [and from
where we left off in Bereishit] will intertwine the Children of Israel who
stood at Sinai, alongside in countless ways with the Gerim, who are also
inherently bound by a Sinai in a sublime way. Suffice it to say, Hashem has made his formal
introduction with His essential name, and the buildup will culminate with a
redemption [that leaves His distinct fingerprints all over it] and Sinai
revelation. For the rest of time, no idolatry will be able to stand before
Sinai and Moses as the Prophet of God; all others fall short, and with proper
guidance in the nature of this redemption that God orchestrates, the Path of
the Ger truly does represent Sinai and redemption, for their entire tradition
rightfully so begins right at the foot of Sinai.
"Egypt"
Egypt
was the empire of its day, and history teaches that it worked in tandem with
the Land of Canaan [the future "Holy Land"]. This is "Kingdom"
[lit.] / Malchut – "Rulership" [practical usage] at its best, and serves
as the paradigm for every exile – redemption scenario. At this point in the
narrative, we understand Egypt's roots through Bereishit, and onwards into
Shemot, we see that Joseph's enactments of circumcision was now a [problematic]
custom for the locals, along with ritual bathing for the women; this is a nice
way of saying, that the future Jews were successful in the early efforts of
"Making Gerim." Out of this scenario, a slew of issues will arise,
such as Erev Rav [a mixed assembly of future Jews, Gerim, and enemies to God],
this served as the basis of identity [through Batya – daughter of Pharaoh] for
Moses, and as a symbol of the World in every empire, culminating with a similar
setting towards the End of Days. Some of
the most potent prophesies that speak about sure signs of Redemption involve
the falling of Egypt. One need not look too far in today's settings to see a
possible Divine effort in fulfilling this symbol. To reiterate in simple terms,
"we all have an Egypt to fall into, and then flee from."
"Pharaoh"
Pharaoh
is a character that changes shape practically every time we see "him"
– from Abraham and Isaac, through Joseph, and finally at the present Exodus.
Thus to focus on the most essential attributes of Pharaoh would be to look upon
him as we see him in our Parasha. Pharaoh's name in Hebrew can be split into
the two words "Peh – Rah" or, Mouth of Evil. In Kabbalistic
literature Malchut / Rulership is depicted as the Divine Mouth, as illustrated
by the two most publicized kings in Torah History – Moses and David. The
Zohar's depiction of Pharaoh is one of a perversion of the Rulership in God's
image, even as an anti-messiah. If the Messiah extends his head upwards towards
God, Pharaoh claims to be God incarnate. If Joseph [a Messiah type figure, i.e.
Messiah son of Joseph] represents the river that flows from Eden
[kabbalistically], one need not think too far back to Pharaoh's claims to stand
on the river; this is the setting of which Moses is told to happen upon Pharaoh
in the morning, as Moses is commanded to talk to Pharaoh. It is Pharaoh that
goes against God, wishes to enslave the Nation of Israel / withhold the Gerim,
and he represents the power of perversion of Rulership – a distortion of what
redemption is supposed to look like. A great mystery can be said of Pharaoh,
for at the Exodus he did not die, and for every generation that delivers a
Moses in scholarship, the power of Pharaoh still manifests to attempt to block
the will and vision of heaven [this is synonymous with Erev Rav and their
leader].
"Moses"
Moses
the eventual first King of Israel is a sublime example of Rulership. Yet as we
focus from Hashem, and onwards into the evil sectors of Rulership – those that
oppose Hashem as King, we come upon Moses as he is at the time of redemption. The
Zohar illustrates that Moses' mouth is not totally operative [as evidenced by
his "uncircumcised lips"; the verse 6:12 hints through beginning and
end letters with a spelling of the words, "Circumcision", "and
bounty", and "crying out"] and explains that his mouth is still
in exile - EXCEPT FOR AT SINAI. Moses
has almost the whole package of redemption, even the Shechinah unites with his
mouth, however there is still an aspect missing from this redemption and Moses,
and that are his mouth and its Rulership that will manifest in the End of Days
through Messiah. King David in psalms expresses this final level of Rulership
[such that David is the promised Messiah] within the Mouth, and it is found in
the sanctification within one's own mind. He says that all day man makes vows
in the depths of his own mind, should he bring to light that higher voice, all
of God's enemies will cease to exist. Ironically Moses could hear the voice of
God, yet ironically his own voice went unrecognized…"From the mouth of God
I heard two, will become the salvation of Sinai.
"Ger
Tzedek"
The
Ger might be the most invisible character to our Parasha on a revealed level;
however the Zohar again illustrates that the manner of the redemption very much
so involves the Ger on an ultra-dynamic scale. The Ger Tzedek [here explained explicitly NOT
as a convert, but as a proper Ger] is involved at removing stern judgments on the
Creation, by working alongside Israel, and thus perforce can't be a Jew in this
sense [although at times a Ger Tzedek can be referred to a full convert]. The
task of the Ger is to return to his root of soul, and refine his character. The
Ger exists in a world of Derech Eretz [good character traits] and thus has a
natural tendency to gravitate towards his good inclination and to avoid any
negative animalistic pull [Which every human being obviously has; the nature of
Jews and Gerim are their functions of how to deal with good and bad. In their equality, we can look at this in
terms of right and left, male and female], or his evil inclination- to
accentuate his good. The Ger Tzedek is
unique [and thus a proper Chasid by definition – going beyond the letter of the
law; pursuing more than "7"] and wishes to purify and refine the
areas of his soul that he is not naturally expected to, and by doing so he
confronts his natural evil, and as he succeeds, this removes judgments from
Mankind. The Jewish people in general are involved with this task, and thus a
Jewish "Chasid" [in the literal sense] should then be one who
involves himself with the work of the Ger [non-Chasid], or more explicitly,
involving himself with the Noahide Laws. In the end, both the Jews and Gerim
will work both sides together, and this will constitute a repair of the
Rulership, and as King David prophesies, will bring in Redemption.
"Messiah"
…And
finally the Messiah's Rulership, otherwise known as Pinchas, he who came of the
"Daughters of Putiel." Pinchas the son of Elazer, came of the
mysterious Daughters of Putiel, to which the Midrash, Talmud, and Kabbalah,
have all identified as a double entendre representing Joseph and Jethro. To
make this easier to understand on the Joseph side, we need to recall that Jacob
told Joseph "Ephraim and Menasha are to Jacob" but any other progeny
afterwards would belong to Joseph himself. This fact coupled with Elazar's
Daughter of Putiel, reveals that likely Pinchas descended from one of Joseph's
future daughters! That
would make her a prototype Ger Tzedek [Messianic type] of woman. This is not
foreign to Pinchas, for he married a daughter of Rachav [and Joshua – he who
personifies Moshiach ben Joseph] the Ger Tzedek! The Messiah lineage seems to
travel alongside the Ger Tzedek and their women, to which the Torah says,
"Daughter of Putiel" rather than daughter in the singular. Jethro is
the other reference to Putiel [for this is a hint of his idolatrous days, as
opposed to the Joseph hint that he defeated his evil inclination – another Ger
Tzedek hint as we listed above], and Jethro is likened to a father of Ger
Tzedek women! Just as his daughter married Moses and was an exemplary Ger
Tzedek woman, and the Midrash calls Moses' Batyah her twin sister [in concept,
relating to Jethro as the consummate Ger Tzedek], we see that the Davidic line
flourishes with these women, from Tamar, to Ruth, and onwards until Moshiach is
revealed and performs the redemption of the Ger. It should be noted that
Pinchas is said to have received both roles of the Moshiach sons of Joseph and
David, through the Brit Shalom [with the slaying of Zimri and Cozbi] – which was
his own performance of the Redemption of the Ger, in keeping it in sanctity. Pinchas
and the Priesthood became bonded to the Ger Tzedek woman through the enigmatic
mitzvah known as the Yafa Toar – captured women of war, of which Pinchas is on
record of having been present at the time of the command. For support, our
Parasha has the same Gematria as Pinchas [208] and this is our first
introduction to his character.
We
live in a World that has never beheld true Rulership, a King, or in other words
God revealed on Earth. The six listed archetypes of Kingdom listed in the
Parasha [there are sure to be more, the more one delves within the micro, and
perhaps can show there are less by illuminating the macro] show a range of the
issues that manifest in every society at every time. We all know a Pharaoh in
our Egypt, as we wish for God and a Messiah to end our problems, as we study
every year about Moses while ignoring the Righteous Ger as if he does not
exist. The irony is, every year we read about Pinchas, and overlook his future
commitment in ushering in the redemption; whether it is through his soul, or
the announcement that we have arrived through God's messenger Elijah, to whom
we say, "Pinchas is Elijah." Parashas Vaeira is special, for it
contains all of the necessary ingredients for a proper redemption; if we just
knew that it is the Ger who lurks behind every type of Rulership, perhaps the
shofar blast would erupt suddenly in our day. Only we do know, but if a tree
falls in a forest with nobody there to listen, did it make a noise? [Hint; a
word to the wise is sufficient]
Audio Class on Parasha Tuesday 11 P.M.
Wed 11 P.M. - We are introducing a new series along side the "Thinking Shabbos" classes;
Now launching "The Tehillim In-Depth - Universal Torah Series!"
Look for announcements each week for updates on schedule!
***Please Note Class Times and Their Amendments!
I have an erratic schedule with house guests until February; Please God February will arrive soon :)
