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Adapted from Sh'nei Luchot Habrit by Eliyahu Munk
And the Elo-him spoke to Moses and He said to
him, "I am Havayah!"
(Ex. 6:29)
All the miracles performed by G-d in Egypt which
defied all known laws of nature, were invoked by the Ineffable Four-lettered
Name, known as Havayah, which symbolizes G-d as a composite of the
Hebrew words for "He was, He is, He will be", the One who created the world
ex nihilo and Who is eternal. The name "Elo-him", on the other hand,
symbolizes nature, i.e. the laws of nature; we have repeatedly mentioned that
the Hebrew word for "the nature", "ha'teva", has the same numerical value
as the word "Elo-him". According to the Zohar, that name
represents a line, the rule of law and order, i.e. justice. The characteristics
of all living creatures were determined by G-d invoking His attribute Elo-him.
[In the words of the Arizal: "After G-d had created
the "place" for a universe, He created all that was to fill that "place". This
was accomplished by means of a "line" (a sort of pipeline). The light G-d
created entered and dissipated within the "place" designated for the universe by
means of the "line". Ed.]  | | " Havayah is greater than Elo-him..." | | |
The fact that Havayah is a "higher" attribute
than that of Elo-him is documented in the verse "That Havayah is
greater than [any] Elo-him " (Ex. 18:11), when Jethro acknowledges the
superiority of that attribute of G-d over all others. All other attributes
(names) of G-d are derived from the name Havayah. One of the allusions to
this is found in Psalms 136, in which the Psalmist commences by calling upon us
to praise: (1) Praise Havayah because He is good, because His kindness is
eternal; (2) Praise Elo-him of all lords, because His kindness is
eternal; (3) Praise Ado-nai (Master) of all masters, because His kindness
is eternal. G-d created the system of planets, which are referred to as "ad-anim"
("masters"). Every Shabbat we read in a liturgical poem "G-d equipped them with
might and power to rule in the midst of the world."
G-d, nonetheless, remains
Master of all masters. On a higher level than the planets are the Celestial
Forces who are in charge of these various planets and basic forces of nature.
They are known as Elo-him (Lords). Above those celestial forces is the
attribute known to us as Lord of lords. The name Havayah towers above the
aforementioned three names for deity-like powers that operate in the universe.
It was the name Havayah and what it implies
that G-d employed when performing supernatural miracles in Egypt. Whenever Moses
appeared before Pharaoh he appeared as a messenger of that attribute. Pharaoh's
reaction (Ex. 5:2) was that he had certainly never heard of such an attribute of
any deity: "Who is Havayah that I should heed Him"? Pharaoh had no
difficulty in accepting G-d in His attribute as Elo-him, as we know from
Gen. 41:38.
The Zohar (Sullam edition, Miketz page
13) comments on the episode where Joseph says "G-d will provide a reply for the
welfare of Pharaoh." (Gen. 41:16)
Rabbi Abba said: "Observe the wickedness of Pharaoh
who claimed not to have heard of G-d. He was extremely clever and exploited the
fact that Moses had not presented himself as a messenger of Elo-him -
whom he could not have denied - but as a messenger of Havayah. He found
it puzzling that Moses did not come in the name of the "same" G-d as the G-d of
Joseph, whom he recognized. He could not come to terms with that name of G-d.
When the Torah writes "And Havayah hardened
Pharaoh's heart", the meaning is that it was the use of that name that made
Pharaoh's heart become obstinate. This is the reason that Moses never used a
different name for G-d when confronting Pharaoh.
When we follow the approach taken by the Zohar we
realize that G-d never interfered with Pharaoh's decision-making process at all.
Pharaoh duped himself. | | " ...that I am Havayah will harden his heart..." | | |
The cause of his obstinacy was G-d saying "I am
Havayah ". When G-d said to Moses early on the verse "I shall make
the heart of Pharaoh obstinate" (Ex. 7:3), the implied meaning is: "My
revelation to him that I am Havayah will harden his heart."
When the magicians acknowledged that the plague of
lice was not the result of superior magic by Moses or Aaron (Ex. 8:15), they
limited their acknowledgment of its origin to Elo-him, thereby excluding
the name Havayah.
Pharaoh had learned the meaning of Elo-him from
Joseph; he acknowledged this deity as superior to other deities. His
acknowledgment did not extend to such a deity's control of what he considered
the laws of nature. We have a rule in Berachot 48: "Since G-d has
assigned sovereignty to a certain king, or kingdom, another king or kingdom must
not infringe on the sovereignty of such." [The Talmud illustrates this principle
by pointing out Saul's artificially delayed arrival in order that the
commencement of his kingdom should not shorten by as much as a minute the period
G-d had designated for the leadership of the prophet Samuel. Ed.]
Pharaoh understood that the existence of the kingdom
of Elo-him, though presumably greater than that of his own or other
kings, would not interfere with the sovereignty of other kingdoms. There are
many kingdoms in this world which co-exist although some are more powerful than
others. | | " ...philosophers conceive of G-d as inseparable from the world..." | | |
It is also possible that Pharaoh acknowledged G-d as
the Master of the Universe, but did not consider the Universe as G-d's creation,
but rather considered Him part of the Universe. Other philosophers conceive of
G-d as inseparable from the world, much as they view light as inseparable from
the sun. Pharaoh was angered when Moses pointed out that there was an added
dimension to G-d. Pharaoh reacted by increasing the workload of his Jewish
slaves (Ex. 5:9).
When Moses observed this result of his first mission,
he called out: "Ever since I have come to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, i.e.
Havayah, he has made the burdens of the Jewish people even harder to bear"
(Ex. 5:23). This was something like a challenge to G-d to demonstrate the full
impact of His Four-lettered Ineffable Name.
At the beginning of parashat Vayera (see Ex. 6:2),
G-d therefore responds to Moses by saying that what He will do will prove that "I am
Havayah". When Hillel coined the phrase "If I do not do for me who will do
for me? And if I do only for myself what good am I?" (Avot l: 14), this
was a rhetorical question posed to describe man's inadequacy in this world when
he acts only as an individual. G-d posed a similar question concerning His
position in the universe, by indicating that if He did not now demonstrate the
true meaning of having described Himself as "I", then who else would do
so on His behalf? Pharaoh's comment "Who is Havayah?" would then be
justified! On the other hand, if I do reveal My Essence ("myself"), then "what
good am I" - I can demonstrate the greatness of G-d's works, how
they were all initiated with profound wisdom, a reference to creation ex
nihilo.
Visitor Comments: 1
Gequaxe Finumbul Feoghte, from Jakarta, Indonesia, 10/11/2006
Cool!!!
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