The Egyptian exile was foreshadowed during the Brit Bein Habterim—the official launch of Jewish history. During a nighttime rendezvous with Hashem, Avraham was informed that his children would be “strangers in a foreign land, be enslaved and persecuted for 400 years. Not only was the exile forecasted, but the redemption itself was announced: “After this period [your children] will emerge with great wealth.” The events of Pesach merely actualized a reality that had been embedded into history.
Yet, a well-known discrepancy exists between the foreshadowed 400 years and the actual term of 210 years during which the Jews lived and were subjugated in Egypt. Our Chazal resolved this discrepancy by calculating the 400-year sentence from the birth of Yitzchak. Indeed, after Yitzchak was born Avraham’s possessed a successor and his revolution was seen as lasting. This caused disquiet among the residents of Canaan, and certain elements of this exile process commenced. In some manner, the 400-year exile began from Yitzchak’s birth.
Additionally, the discrepancy between the originally planned 400 years and the actual 210 is resolved in a different fashion. Indeed, the original program called for 400 years, but as the process unfolded Hashem accelerated the pace and truncated the sentence by 190 years. In fact, this version is highlighted in the Haggadah: “Hakadosh Baruch Hu chishev et haketz” (Hashem calculated a [different] terminus).
This trimming is typically associated with the fallen religious state of the Jewish nation of slaves. The Jews had collapsed into a state of pagan worship and were teetering dangerously on the edge of irretrievable theological failure. Facing this prospect, Hashem fast-tracked the process to redeem us before it was “too late.”
However, several midrashim imply a very different motive for this “quickening.” A scenic pasuk in Shir Hashirim describes a gazelle flitting over mountain peaks (medaleg al heharim); this is an allusion to Hashem “passing over” the predetermined target date of redemption. Though He originally intended to liberate us after 400 years, He bounded over time schedules and hastened our exit. This midrash casts a very different light on the “quickening”; it isn’t prompted by urgency or a rushed attempt to rescue the situation before it became unmanageable. Instead, the acceleration is driven by passion and excitement. Hashem loves us so deeply that He preempts His own schedule and ignores any “time-boundaries” with the same “lightness” that a gazelle flashes from summit to summit. This image reminds us that beyond the historical implications of the Exodus and beyond the human drama of oppressed slaves being emancipated there is a deeper layer—launching the romance between Hashem and the Jewish people.
Such was His excitement to forge this bond and to revitalize the dormant covenant that had been hatched hundreds of years earlier and had outlasted the ravages of Egyptian tyranny. Contracts and time frames were suspended because of His love for His people.
This pattern repeats itself throughout redemptive history. Typical time-frames are altered when redemption nears. If redemption entails a Divine entry into natural history, it is logical that typical historical rhythms are adjusted during periods of redemption. In fact, Parshat Shemot implies quick historical shifts as geula approached. Classic monarchs typically ruled during entire lifetimes, oftentimes being coronated from a young age. Yet in Shemot we are introduced to at least three Pharaohs in very quick succession. The Pharaoh of the opening chapter is replaced by a new Pharaoh who did not remember Yosef and his service to Egypt. Within a few verses we read about yet another Pharaoh who succeeds his predecessor who dies. It is difficult to establish reliable timelines, but one thing is textually quite apparent: Pharaohs are quickly ascending the stage and just as rapidly being replaced. This period of political instability heralded the arriving redemption. The political volatility was a Divine sign that geula was “in the air.”
Interestingly enough, the same blueprint of political instability characterizes the political conditions surrounding the redemption from Bavel. Nevuchadnetzar seemed indomitable and presumed to reign over a kingdom that would last a thousand years. Yet, quickly he was deposed and in turn his empire crumbled as the Persian/Median Empire inherited his wealth and territories. Supreme rulers are replaced in rapid succession as we witness four to five different monarchs in the 20-25 years leading to the return to Zion (depending upon dating schemes). The rapidity and political fluidity was a clear sign that history was unsettled—until the Jews returned to their homeland and natural history could resume. At that point, the Persians and Greeks each establish grand and stable empires as redemptive history yields to natural history.
We have witnessed similar phenomena during our current redemption, as we have returned after 200 years of absence. The century leading to the great events of 1948 witnessed unparalleled political unsteadiness as humanity replaced ancient models of monarchy with a modernized version of government based upon democracy and nationalism. More proximate to our return, humanity engaged in two brutal world wars that altered national landscapes and ruptured human identity. No Jew welcomes any human suffering and it is inconceivable to rejoice in the modern state specifically as a product of the terrible human suffering caused by these wars. Yet, it is difficult to ignore the repeating pattern: history accelerates toward redemption. Classic timelines are disrupted as redemption evolves and overtakes natural history.
If the events preceding 1948 imply this quickening, certainly the events of the past 70 years reinforce the sense that historical timelines have been ignored as we frame the final chapters of history. In the past, generations lasted 25 years; now they barely last five to eight years. Political alignments that once seemed so firm and unchangeable quickly dissolve in what seems like a quicksand box of swirling political interests. Hopefully this is a sign of the continued momentum of our geula!
A pre-programmed term of 400 years in Egypt was commuted to 210. This reflected the eagerness and “impatience of Hashem” waiting for His bride, the Jewish people. This quickening shaped a historical blueprint that would repeat itself several times in our history. When redemption begins, natural history and its classic timelines are suspended. As history accelerates toward its conclusion it must “account” for itself. Change is rapid and the pace sometimes seems dizzying. This is our sign that our time has come!
Chag sameach!
By Rabbi Moshe Taragin
Rabbi Moshe Taragin is a rebbe at Yeshivat Har Etzion located in Gush Etzion, where he resides.
