Immediately after the report of the devastation wrought by the first nine plagues, the Torah interrupts the dramatic narrative of Egypt’s destruction with Perek 12. The perek begins with describing the instructions to Bnei Yisrael concerning the Korban Pesach; it records the final plague – the death of all the first born throughout Egypt; and then concludes with the exodus of Bnei Yisrael from Egypt.

This perek is neatly divided into five distinct sections (each separated by a parsha stumah):

1. Instructions to Moshe and Aharon regarding the Korban Pesach and Pesach in Egypt; the commandments concerning chametz and matzah, and the holiday of Pesach in the future (1-20)
2. Moshe tells the Elders how to prepare for ‘Exodus night’, and how to answer future questions that may arise concerning the practices of this special night (21-28)
3. The implementation of Makot Bekhorot (29-36)
4. Bnei Yisrael leave Egypt (37-42)
5. Instructions to Moshe and Aharon concerning the Korban Pesach. (43-49)

This final section then concludes with two narrative pesukim, which bring the perek – and the entire episode – to a close:

1. “And Bnei Yisrael did exactly what God commanded Moshe and Aharon…” (50)
2. “And on that day, God took Bnei Yisrael out of Egypt” (51)

 

Here is the complete text of that final, fifth section listed above:

שמות יב מג וַיֹּ֤אמֶר ה’ אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֣ה וְאַֽהֲרֹ֔ן זֹ֖את חֻקַּ֣ת הַפָּ֑סַח כָּל־בֶּן־נֵכָ֖ר לֹא־יֹ֥אכַל בּֽוֹ:

מד וְכָל־עֶ֥בֶד אִ֖ישׁ מִקְנַת־כָּ֑סֶף וּמַלְתָּ֣ה אֹת֔וֹ אָ֖ז יֹ֥אכַל בּֽוֹ:

מה תּוֹשָׁ֥ב וְשָׂכִ֖יר לֹא־יֹ֥אכַל בּֽוֹ:

מו בְּבַ֤יִת אֶחָד֙ יֵֽאָכֵ֔ל לֹֽא־תוֹצִ֧יא מִן־הַבַּ֛יִת מִן־הַבָּשָׂ֖ר ח֑וּצָה וְעֶ֖צֶם לֹ֥א תִשְׁבְּרוּ־בֽוֹ:

מז כָּל־עֲדַ֥ת יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל יַֽעֲשׂ֥וּ אֹתֽוֹ:

מח וְכִֽי־יָג֨וּר אִתְּךָ֜ גֵּ֗ר וְעָ֣שָׂה פֶ֘סַח֘ לַֽה’ הִמּ֧וֹל ל֣וֹ כָל־זָכָ֗ר וְאָז֙ יִקְרַ֣ב לַֽעֲשֹׂת֔וֹ וְהָיָ֖ה כְּאֶזְרַ֣ח הָאָ֑רֶץ וְכָל־עָרֵ֖ל לֹא־יֹ֥אכַל בּֽוֹ:

מט תּוֹרָ֣ה אַחַ֔ת יִֽהְיֶ֖ה לָֽאֶזְרָ֑ח וְלַגֵּ֖ר הַגָּ֥ר בְּתֽוֹכְכֶֽם:

נ וַֽיַּֽעֲשׂ֖וּ כָּל־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֨ר צִוָּ֧ה ה‘ אֶת־מֹשֶׁ֥ה וְאֶֽת־אַֽהֲרֹ֖ן כֵּ֥ן עָשֽׂוּ:  

נא וַיְהִ֕י בְּעֶ֖צֶם הַיּ֣וֹם הַזֶּ֑ה הוֹצִ֨יא ה‘ אֶת־בְּנֵ֧י יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל מֵאֶ֥רֶץ מִצְרַ֖יִם עַל־צִבְאֹתָֽם:  

Shemot 12 43 “God said to Moshe and Aharon: ‘this is the law of the Pesach offering: No foreigner shall eat of it.

44 But any slave a man has bought may eat of it once he has been circumcised.

45 No bound or hired laborer shall eat of it.

46 It shall be eaten in one house: you shall not take any of the meat outside the house; nor shall you break any of its bones.

47 The whole community of Israel shall offer it.

48 If a stranger who dwells with you would offer the Pesach to God, all his males must be circumcised; then he shall be admitted to offer it; he shall then be as a citizen of the country. But no uncircumcised person may eat of it.

49 There shall be one law for the citizen and for the stranger who dwells among you.’

50 And all Bnei Yisrael did so; as God had commanded Moshe and Aharon, so they did.

51 That very day God freed the Israelites from the land of Egypt, troop by troop.

Upon a closer read of this fifth section, several difficulties arise[1]:

It would have made much more sense to have placed this entire section as part of the first section, or at the very least, as its own section immediately following the first one. This entire fifth section talks about the instructions for the Korban Pesach: who can and can’t eat it; that the meat of the Pesach may not be removed from the house, and its bones may not be broken. Why wouldn’t this section follow section one, in which all the other laws concerning the eating of the Korban Pesach are found?! The second, third and fourth sections all describe the continued narrative history of the Jews in Egypt – the instructions to the Elders, the final plague, and their exit – so why was this section, which is composed almost entirely of additional instructions, separated from the other ‘instructions section’?

A second, but related, question: pasuk 50 – the penultimate pasuk of this fifth section – was already said, almost verbatim, in pasuk 28 right after they received their initial instructions for the Korban Pesach, at the end of the first section:

First section

כח וַיֵּלְכ֥וּ וַיַּֽעֲשׂ֖וּ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל כַּאֲשֶׁ֨ר צִוָּ֧ה ה‘ אֶת־מֹשֶׁ֥ה וְאַהֲרֹ֖ן כֵּ֥ן עָשֽׂוּ׃

Fifth section

נ וַֽיַּֽעֲשׂ֖וּ כָּל־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל כַּֽאֲשֶׁ֨ר צִוָּ֧ה ה‘ אֶת־מֹשֶׁ֥ה וְאֶֽת־אַֽהֲרֹ֖ן כֵּ֥ן עָשֽׂוּ:

And lastly, and on a similar note, pasuk 51 – the final pasuk in this fifth section – was already said, almost verbatim, in pasuk 41, immediately after they actually left Egypt, at the end of the fourth section:

Fourth section

מא וַיְהִ֗י מִקֵּץ֙ שְׁלֹשִׁ֣ים שָׁנָ֔ה וְאַרְבַּ֥ע מֵא֖וֹת שָׁנָ֑ה וַיְהִ֗י בְּעֶ֙צֶם֙ הַיּ֣וֹם הַזֶּ֔ה יָֽצְא֛וּ כָּל־צִבְא֥וֹת ה‘ מֵאֶ֥רֶץ מִצְרָֽיִם׃

Fifth section

נא וַיְהִ֕י בְּעֶ֖צֶם הַיּ֣וֹם הַזֶּ֑ה הוֹצִ֨יא ה‘ אֶת־בְּנֵ֧י יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל מֵאֶ֥רֶץ מִצְרַ֖יִם עַל־צִבְאֹתָֽם:

To begin to answer these questions, we must first mark the distinct theme that pervades throughout the entire fifth section. It is reflected in the plethora of different terms which the Torah mentions in its list of types of citizens and their levels of nationality: שכיר ותושב, גר, אזרח (הארץ), בן נכר, איש מקנת כסף, ערל/נמול, עדת בני ישראל – bound or hired laborer, convert, citizen of the land, foreigner, purchased slave, circumcised/uncircumcised, and community of Yisrael.  This collection of terms creates a tone of an established national existence. A society can only formally label a שכיר, a foreigner, a citizen, or a community, for example, when there already exists a defined national construct. Section five’s specific context therefore is one of a future existence, as an established national entity, in an established national land.

Similarly, pasuk 46 specifically details two laws which reflect this theme of national unification and solidity: 1) the meat may not be taken out of the house it is eaten within, i.e. the ‘defined borders’ of the house must be appreciated as a unifying, solidifying unit of existence; 2) the bones of the Korban may not be broken, i.e. no piece of the animal may be separated from its whole, once again demanding an appreciation of a unifying existence. The demands in this pasuk along with the surrounding ‘nationality’ terms mentioned above allow us to understand that this fifth section is specifically about the future celebration of the Korban Pesach, the one to be performed and upheld when the nation ultimately reaches its final stage – the entering and ultimate settling as a unified nation in its national homeland of Eretz Yisrael.

The penultimate pasuk of this section – pasuk 50, the instructions for Bnei Yisrael concerning the Korban Pesach in Eretz Yisrael – is a direct repetition of the final pasuk of the first section – pasuk 28 – the original instructions for Bnei Yisrael concerning the Korban Pesach in Egypt. Similarly, the final pasuk of this section – pasuk 51, which recounts the moment in history when Bnei Yisrael exited from Egypt – is a direct repetition of the final pasuk of the fourth section – pasuk 41 – the pasuk that records the actual moment Bnei Yisrael left Egypt! We can easily infer, therefore, that these two pesukim are recorded to ensure that even the future reality – the one marked and celebrated by the nation in Eretz Yisrael – is to be specifically understood as a direct extension, or intrinsic continuation, of the past. In other words, the significance of the first stage is defined most deeply by the actualization of the last stage it directly enabled. For, even from the moment of the original Exodus, the future reality was already set up as the direct and intended result of the past[2].

But this is not the first time we’ve seen this uniquely and purposefully formulated plan: the essential, established connection between the past and the future it would ultimately enable. At the burning bush, when God first introduces His pan to Moshe, He states: 

שמות ג: ז וַיֹּ֣אמֶר ה’ רָאֹ֥ה רָאִ֛יתִי אֶת־עֳנִ֥י עַמִּ֖י אֲשֶׁ֣ר בְּמִצְרָ֑יִם וְאֶת־צַעֲקָתָ֤ם שָׁמַ֙עְתִּי֙ מִפְּנֵ֣י נֹֽגְשָׂ֔יו כִּ֥י יָדַ֖עְתִּי אֶת־מַכְאֹבָֽיו׃

ח וָאֵרֵ֞ד לְהַצִּיל֣וֹ ׀ מִיַּ֣ד מִצְרַ֗יִם וּֽלְהַעֲלֹתוֹ֮ מִן־הָאָ֣רֶץ הַהִוא֒ אֶל־אֶ֤רֶץ טוֹבָה֙ וּרְחָבָ֔ה אֶל־אֶ֛רֶץ זָבַ֥ת חָלָ֖ב וּדְבָ֑שׁ אֶל־מְק֤וֹם הַֽכְּנַעֲנִי֙ וְהַ֣חִתִּ֔י וְהָֽאֱמֹרִי֙ וְהַפְּרִזִּ֔י וְהַחִוִּ֖י וְהַיְבוּסִֽי׃

Shemot 3:7-8 “And God said ‘I have completely seen the oppression of My nation in Egypt, and I have heard their cries from their taskmasters, and I know their pains. And I will descend to save [the nation] from the hands of Egypt, and bring [the nation] from that land, to a land that is good and expansive, flowing with milk and honey…’

And this same formula was once again iterated to Moshe to relay to Bnei Yisrael, immediately before the initiation of the plagues, the first stage in the process of the ultimate Exodus:

שמות ו ו לָכֵ֞ן אֱמֹ֥ר לִבְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֘ל אֲנִ֣י ה’ וְהוֹצֵאתִ֣י אֶתְכֶ֗ם מִתַּ֙חַת֙ סִבְלֹ֣ת מִצְרַ֔יִם וְהִצַּלְתִּ֥י אֶתְכֶ֖ם מֵעֲבֹדָתָ֑ם וְגָאַלְתִּ֤י אֶתְכֶם֙ בִּזְר֣וֹעַ נְטוּיָ֔ה וּבִשְׁפָטִ֖ים גְּדֹלִֽים׃

ז וְלָקַחְתִּ֨י אֶתְכֶ֥ם לִי֙ לְעָ֔ם וְהָיִ֥יתִי לָכֶ֖ם לֵֽאלֹהִ֑ים וִֽידַעְתֶּ֗ם כִּ֣י אֲנִ֤י ה’ אֱלֹ֣קיכֶ֔ם הַמּוֹצִ֣יא אֶתְכֶ֔ם מִתַּ֖חַת סִבְל֥וֹת מִצְרָֽיִם׃

ח וְהֵבֵאתִ֤י אֶתְכֶם֙ אֶל־הָאָ֔רֶץ אֲשֶׁ֤ר נָשָׂ֙אתִי֙ אֶת־יָדִ֔י לָתֵ֣ת אֹתָ֔הּ לְאַבְרָהָ֥ם לְיִצְחָ֖ק וּֽלְיַעֲקֹ֑ב וְנָתַתִּ֨י אֹתָ֥הּ לָכֶ֛ם מוֹרָשָׁ֖ה אֲנִ֥י ה’׃

Shemot 6: 6-7 “Therefore say to the Bnei Yisrael: ‘I am the LORD. I will remove you from the labors of the Egyptians, and save you from their enslavement. I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and through extraordinary miracles.  And I will take you to be My nation, and I will be your God. And you shall know that I, the LORD, am your God who freed you from the labors of the Egyptians. I will bring you into the land which I swore to give to Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov, and I will give it to you for a possession, I am the LORD’.”

From the moment God introduced His intentions for His future nation to Moshe at the burning bush, to when He gave Moshe the message to relay to His people in Egypt before the plagues began, to the days before the Exodus was to be finally actualized – the intended significance of God’s plan never changed. The exit from Egypt was decisively instituted as the first step which would then consequently lead to the essential concluding step – entering Eretz Yisrael.

 

[1] The following idea was inspired by a question posed to me by Michaela Kavalsky

[2] Interesting to note, even within the ‘here and now’ narratives of the first two sections there is an element of future included. The first section also includes instructions for the future celebration of the holiday of Pesach, and the second section describes the proper response to children who will ask about Pesach in the future.