Weekly Dvar Torah: Why have You intensified the pain of this nation?

After G-d sent Moshe (Moses) to talk to Pharaoh to convince him to free the Jewish people from slavery, instead of complying, Pharaoh made life even more miserable for the Jews.

Moshe came back and complained to G-d; “why have You intensified the pain of this nation, why did you send me? From when I came to talk to Pharaoh in your name, he inflated the pain for this people, and You didn’t save this nation”.

G-d responded, until now I was only known as the provider to this world, but out of this exile you will discover G-d the omnipresent.

How did G-d address Moshe’s complaint?

Moshe knew that slavery in Egypt is there to serve a purpose, after all G-d did tell Abraham when He made the covenant, that his descendants will be in exile for 400 years, and this will serve a prerequisite for future reward, so clearly there is a plan.

But Moshe asks why? Why is this inferiority necessary? How will this reward compensate for all this suffering?

G-d responds, until now your forefathers had Me, G-d, as the provider alone, I provided the world with all its needs, but they did not see Me as the Omnipresent.

But, as a result of this exile, which is a descend to the lowest of levels, beneath any normal existence, the redemption will cause you to break out of worldly limitations and benefit from ultimate G-dliness.

How will this happen?

Pay attention to a Mitzvah, when we take money, coins, bills, or any form of value for which we worked and earned, and we donate to someone in need, we performed a Mitzvah, we connected to G-d.

How is this possible? What does a hundred-dollar bill got to do with G-d? Isn’t G-d a spiritual being? Shouldn’t we connect with G-d by way of meditation and perhaps prayer? How is my physical act connecting me with G-d?

To which G-d says, as long as you know me as something different and separate from the physical and materialistic world, you may be right, but it’s time for you to know that I’m G-d, and G-d is the creator of all creation, I am not constrained by worldly limitations which is the domain of the created alone, I combine and connect and blend the physical and the spiritual, to me they’re one and the same.

This revelation will happen when you will discover in Egypt, the place of slave-masters, and the most un-G-dly place, that I am the omnipresent, I will show you that I’m superior even in Egypt, and the Jews will experience being slaves as long as I deem necessary, but as soon as the time is up, I will whisk them out in an instant, and nobody will get in the way, then all will realize that I’m G-d the omnipresent, and I manifest myself even in the lowest of low, you will now be able to worship Me by using the physical and mundane, and make it G-dly and holy.

The highest of high, and the lowest of low, will come together as one.

This was the answer to Moshe, when all is naturally normal, one fails to see G-d, but when seriously challenged and you must dig deeper, then you discover your G-dly potential, as the saying goes where there’s pain there’s gain.

Have discoverable Shabbos, find G-d in your joyous tasty Shabbos,
Gut Shabbos

Rabbi Yosef Katzman