Va'era

After the disappointment experienced at the end of Parshas Shmos with the intensification of slavery and persecution in Egypt, Parshas Va'era begins with signs of hope. Moshe Rabbeinu is told to convey to Bnei Yisrael that the redemption is upon them. Unfortunately, his message falls on deaf ears. Vayedaber Moshe ken el Bnei Yisrael velo shamu el  Moshe mikotzer ruach u'me'avodah kashah. Moshe delivers his message but Bnei Yisrael are unable to listen to it due to their intense labor. Previously, Moshe is told to go to Egypt and redeem Bnei Yisrael. Moshe's response is one of hesitation. V'hein lo ya'aminu li velo yishma'u bekoli - Bnei Yisrael will not believe me and will not listen to me. Hashem's response is to give Moshe signs to show Bnei Yisrael in order to get them to believe. Moshe delivers a similar hesitant response here again in Parshas Va'era, but there are no signs given to help him. Why not?

Additionally, there are two phrases repeated by Moshe. The first is va'ani aral sefasayim and the second is aich yishma'eni Pharoh. Moshe has already employed the argument of his speech impediment during his first encounter with Hashem. It was answered then. Why is he reiterating this fear? In addition, why is Moshe so concerned about Paroh listening to his plea on behalf of Bnei Yisrael? Hashem has assured redemption so why is he so concerned with Paroh listening to his message?

Finally, the episode of Moshe's entreaty to Paroh is broken up in the Parsha by the description of the lineage of Moshe and Aharon. Moshe and Aharon have already been introduced to us. Why is their lineage first described here?

When Moshe is first informed of his assignment to be the messenger of redemption for Bnei Yisrael he hesitates to accept. Two words are used to describe his dual hesitation: shmiyah (listening) and emunah (believing). V'hein lo ya'aminu li velo yishma'u bekoli. Shmiyah - listening - does not necessarily lead to believing. Similarly, emunah - believing - does not require listening. Listening gives another the opportunity to speak their piece. It involves a willingness to listen but not necessarily accept, believe or take to heart what was said. Similarly, a person can refuse to listen but, nonetheless, accept and believe the other's concept (through seeing or signs, for instance).

Moshe is originally told veshamu lekolecha - and they (Bnei Yisrael) will listen to your voice. How is it possible that he doesn't believe this Divine promise and states ve'hein lo ya'amini li? The Ibn Ezra explains that Moshe trusted that Bnei Yisrael would listen to him - veshamu  lekolecha. His doubt regarded whether or not they would believe him - v'haim lo ya'aminu. The signs were given lema'an ya'aminu - to get Bnei Yisrael to believe.

Was Moshe right? Would Bnei Yisrael not have believed him without the signs? Although the pasuk states: vaya'as es ha'osos - Moshe performed the signs - the next pasuk immediately states: vaya'amen ha'am vayishma'u ki pakad Hashem es Bnei Yisrael. Rashi tells us that once Bnei Yisrael HEARD the words of pakad, they immediately believed. They had a mesorah that the redeemer would use these words and, therefore, did not need signs. They just needed to hear the words of the mesorah.

Moshe learned this lesson well. Therefore, in Parshas Va'era when he is asked again to speak to Bnei Yisrael he no longer requests signs.Moshe realizes that all Bnei Yisrael need is shmiya - they need to listen. Once they've given Moshe a chance to speak then they will once again accpet the mesorah. Moshe realizes that shmiyah - listening - is the key ingredient. If this is the case then, Moshe assumes, he needs to truly be concerned about his speech impediment. If listening is the key to success then an accomplished orator is essential. Hence, his repetition of his concern over his speech impediment.

In reality, an accomplished orator was unnecessary. Bnei Yisrael merely needed to give Moshe a chance to deliver the mesorah. It was all about the mesorah. It is for this reason that the lineage of Moshe and Aharon is described specifically at this moment. The Sforno explains that the reason why only the ages of Levi, Kehas, and Amram are stated in the parsha is to emphasize that their long lives enabled them to have a greater influence on succeeding generations. They were able to solidify the mesorah in succeeding generations as witnesses of the previous ones. This delivery of the mesorah is a key component of the parsha and is emphasized through the description of the lineage of Moshe and Aharon. The mesorah is the element that will assure the redemption.

The tragedy of the Parsha is described early on: velo SHAMU el Moshe mikotzer ruach u'meavodah kashah. Bnei Yisrael wouldn't listen. Bnei Yisrael didn't even give Moshe the chance to deliver the mesorah message. In this instance, their problem was not refusing to believe - v'hein lo ya'aminu li - but rather it was shmiya - velo shamu el Moshe. Moshe is then instructed to turn his efforts towards Paroh. The pasuk emphasizes this change of focus through its repetition of Moshe's doubt - v'aich yishma'eni Pharoh. Redemtion that occurs due to the worthiness of Bnei Yisrael can be an eternal and everlasting one. Redemption through Paroh can only be a transient one. Bnei Yisrael had an opportunity to listen to Moshe again and internalize the mesorah message, thereby facilitating the redemption and assuring that it would be an eternal one. The tragedy of the parsha is that this opportunity was squandered. The consequence of missing this opportunity is that the redemption comes through Paroh and is, thereby, only a transient one. From this point foward, for the remainder of Parshas Va'era, there is no interaction with Bnei Yisrael. The interaction is with Paroh. Interaction with Bnei Yisrael only returns in Parshas Bo: u'lema'an tesapeir b'aznei bincha uven bincha. Interaction and intimacy with Hashem is only restored by the promise of a renewed commitment to the mesorah by assuring that its message will be delivered to succeeding generations.