Passover Messages for Rockville Centre residents

A Passover message: There’s a time to scream

The Jewish people were multiplying greatly. Pharaoh was afraid that this large group might side with his enemies in a time of war. He enslaved the Jews as a sensible oppression from which Egypt could benefit. He hoped that this hardship would curb Israel’s birthrate. It did not work. What was Pharaoh to do? He feared and hated Israel, but they were valuable labor. What was the best way to handle this problem? Should he destroy the Israelites or not?

The Hagada (our home service that recounts the Passover story) tells us, “The Egyptians treated us badly, afflicted us, and placed upon us hard labor.” The Hagada connects “they treated us badly” with the advice given to Pharaoh about enslaving the Jews. The Talmud (Sotah 11a) tells us that Pharaoh had three advisors on the matter of drowning baby boys in the Nile. These were the biblical personalities Bilam, Job and Yitro. Bilam who devised this plan, was slain. Job who silently acquiesced, was afflicted with sufferings. Yitro would not agree to it and fled; he merited descendants who would be members of the Great Sanhedrin.

The Talmudic text instructs us that God punishes and rewards in kind. The consequences for the guidance each advisor gives Pharaoh is telling. Bilam suggested that Pharaoh kill all the boys, so death was his reward. The behavior and the punishment are directly linked, measure for measure. On the other hand, Yitro, who fled the palace in protest, was rewarded; his daughter, Tzipora, marries Moses and his descendants serve in the Great Sanhedrin.

Although this is not a theology of reward and punishment to which I ascribe, this approach seems fairly straightforward. What about Job? Job kept quiet and was afflicted with boils. What is the connection? Rabbi Y. Z. Soloveitchik answers that Job was silent because he thought Pharaoh would not listen to any protest he might voice. His protest would not help and he would fall out of favor. This may have been the case, but still Job had a responsibility to protest against this evil plan. He did not, and he was punished with suffering; as much as he cries out, Job knows that his cries will not remove the suffering.