A Line on the Wall

In the days of old, there were those people whose lives were devoted to one area of Jewish expression. Today, as we prepare for the dynamic period of the future Messianic Age, we must all become eclectic. While we must resist dilettantism, we must learn to combine the best of all the worlds of goodness, because we are closer to the time when the name of G-d—Havaye— will become completely revealed, in the light of which, we can all combine opposites.

The Seventh Plague

At the end of this week’s parsha, we read of the seventh plague administered to Egypt; the plague of hail.

There is something peculiar about the way this seventh plague was introduced to Pharaoh. This is how the Torah describes the way G-d asked Moses to warn Pharaoh:

“If you still tread upon My people, not sending them out, then I am going to rain down a very heavy hail at this time tomorrow, the likes of which has never occurred in Egypt from the day it was founded until now.”

What did G-d mean when He said: “At this time?”

Rashi explains that Moses scratched a line on the wall for Pharaoh, and said, “Tomorrow, when the sun reaches this point, the hail will come down.”

The question has been asked, why was it necessary for Moses to scratch a line on the wall? Would it make that much of a difference if Moses had simply told Pharaoh that tomorrow the hail will fall? Why did he have to be so precise?

Combining Opposites

The answer to this question lies in the uniqueness of the seventh plague, the last one mentioned in this week’s parsha (the remaining three are discussed in next week’s parsha).

This plague expressed the ultimate power of G-d to combine opposites. This expressed itself in several ways:

First, the hail consisted of both ice and fire!

Second, this plague of hail was the harshest of all the six preceding plagues and was a dramatic expression of G-d’s attribute of justice. Yet, simultaneously, this is the only plague in which G-d provided a way for people to escape. Immediately after G-d asks Moses to tell the Egyptians that this hail will be unprecedented, He continues:

“Now send, gather in your livestock and all that you have in the field.”

This plague of hail was simultaneously an expression of G-d’s harshest judgment and G-d’s attribute of mercy.

Past, Present and Future Wrapped in One

This explains why there was a need to indicate the precise time of the plague. The name of G-d that is used throughout the Ten Plagues is the most essential name, known as the Tetragrammaton (The Four Lettered Name), or Havaye in Hebrew (the letters of the name rearranged so as not to unlawfully pronounce the name).

This is the name Moses used in introducing the G-d of Israel to Pharaoh, and this is the name about which Pharaoh declared “I do not know G-d;” referring to the name Havaye.

This four lettered name is an anagram for the Hebrew words that represent all the three tenses: haya (was), hoveh (is) and yihye (will be).

In other words, this name of G-d represents the aspect of G-d that transcends the parameters of time and was the dynamic force behind this plague as well as all the others. And yet, this plague occurred at a precise time. It combined G-d’s timelessness and time.

Kabbalistic and Chassidic teaching maintains that the plagues were not just punishment for the Egyptians. They were also spiritual energies that conditioned the Israelites to get out of their own spiritual bondage as a prelude to their physical liberation.

Slavery and Loss of Humanity

One of the conditions associated with slavery is the drudgery and single dimension of life.

One of the things that distinguish a human being from an animal is that a human being is, by nature, a multidimensional and multi-faceted creature. An animal is incapable of changing and altering its focus and direction. It is, in a sense, a slave to its one directional instinct of survival. A human being, by contrast, can break out of its mold and transform itself from a judgmental authority figure into a benevolent individual.

Thus a person who is incapable of changing his or her routine—emotionally, mentally, spiritually or physically— loses a chunk of their humanity and reduced to the level of an animal in one important respect.

Part of the liberation process required that the Israelites be exposed to the Divine energy that combines two opposites and when revealed transforms the enslaved individual into a truly free soul.

Hailing the “Plague” of Hail Today

Living today on the threshold of the Redemption through Moshiach, we must reintroduce the positive spiritual dynamics of the Ten Plagues as a way of preparing ourselves for the imminent Redemption.

Translated the plague of hail into practical terms, we must learn to become multi-dimensional in our human and spiritual endeavors. We must combine intense intellectual study of Torah with practical deeds suffused with heartfelt emotion.

Whereas in the days of old, there were those people whose lives were devoted to one area of Jewish expression, today, as we prepare for the dynamic period of the future Messianic Age, we must all become eclectic. While we must resist dilettantism, we must learn to combine the best of all the worlds of goodness, because we are closer to the time when the name of G-d—Havaye—will become completely revealed, in the light of which, we can all combine opposites.

From the book Light from the Future: Parshas Voeira by Rabbi Heschel Greenberg, published by the Jewish Discovery Center.