What Did the Egyptians Get Out of the Exodus? | Parshat Bo

In this week’s Torah portion, Parshat Bo, the Egyptians experience the death of the firstborn. The last of the 10 plagues compels Pharaoh and the Egyptians to free the Israelites from slavery, but was that really the purpose of the plagues? Were they just meant to punish the Egyptians? Or were the Egyptians meant to get something else out of these destructive plagues?
Join Tikva Hecht and Beth Lesch as they challenge a classic answer to these questions on the 10 plagues and develop a new understanding of what it means to “know God.”
Check out Rabbi Fohrman’s course “Why Did God Choose Israel As His Chosen People?” to explore these questions further: bit.ly/3vCSLqp
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0:00 Intro
01:26 Why Did God Need 10 Plagues?
4:15 The Hole in the Classic Answer
5:52 What Does Pharaoh Want This Time?
9:00 Who Else Wants a Blessing?
10:22 Warring Nations, Fathers’ Blessings, and Deception
13:19 A Great Cry
15:25 Things Are Not Adding Up
17:36 Firstborn Drama
20:54 Things Still Are Not Adding Up
24:18 A Closer Look at the Blessings Story
28:12 What Was the Great Cry All About?
30:25 Esau Asserting His Role As Firstborn
35:19 Returning to the Exodus Story
38:38 Where the Stories Overlap: Remarkable Transitions
40:06 What Does It Mean to Know God?

[@Peter-the-Egyptian]

Amazing coincidence. I was just reading “ Exodus” by Rabbi Fohram

[@peterwillcox9429]

It’s important to understand that the God who created all things chose a man (Abraham) through whose descendants the Creator chose to reveal himself. I am not a Jew but can see Gods character as he interacts with the people group he has chosen. This is both a blessing and a curse. Live outside the Creator’s laws and the consequences are negative. Live inside His laws and the consequences are positive. For those who choose to persecute Gods people then be sure you are taking on both the Chosen and the Chooser (the Creator). The ten plagues are a message to all mankind. They are the birth pains of a nation whom God has chosen. Gods people know they are chosen and so do the Nations if they understand the story. The God of Israel rules over the gods of the nations.

[@goldengun9970]

There is no other G-d's for G-d to rule over. There is only 1 G-d

[@SeanRhoadesChristopher]

At first one might think that the Blessing should go to the one Isaac thought he was blessing namely Esau. But if we look at how blessings were given elsewhere, the right hand of the person blessing was laid on the head of one being blessed. Isaac placed both hands on who he thought was Esau, since he said there was no blessing left to give when real Esau came in. The only hope Esau had, was that the way Jacob deceived his father, would be to his advantage later, since such behavior is frowned upon by the Most High!

[@matthewmorrisdon5491]

I heard the reason is that the Holy One gave the Egyptians ten chances to makes repentance.

[@qkcmnt1242]

make, not makes. 🙄

[@qkcmnt1242]

Also, the reason for WHAT?

[@TorahisLife358]

I see Pharaoh and both experiencing the death of the first born. Esau experiences the death of his being the first born when he lost the blessing and the birthright. Farrell experiences the physical death of his first born.

[@matthewmorrisdon5491]

I would argue that Moses ask for a three day journey but Pharaoh wanted to get rid of them.

[@qkcmnt1242]

Well if Pharaoh wanted to get rid of the Israelites, he sure changed his mind in a hurry.

[@matthewmorrisdon5491]

It is called divine intervention@@qkcmnt1242

[@KateGladstone]

Technically, “Ani binkha, beknorkha, Esav” could have been punctuated so as to NOT be a lie: “Ani binkha. Bekhorkha Esav.”(I [am] your son. Your oldest son [is] Esav.”

[@lisahughes7377]

But what was the point of all Egyptians suffering? Surely they weren’t all bad.

[@robinsnestfarm7322]

I believe the point of any Egyptian 'suffering' was the Lord was trying to get the attention of the Egyptians who would surrender to HIs might and power vs the gods of Egypt whom He showed had no power. Yes, this was mainly for the children of Israel, but He gave the Egyptians an opportunity to shema as well. Before the seventh plague of Hail they were warned to bring in their livestock -- 'and the servants of Pharaoh who feared the word of the Lord' brought their livestock into their houses [Exodus 9.18-21]. Hence from all of this, we have a mixed multitude whom came out of Egypt with the children of Israel.

[@TrufflesMom-g7o]

Most were to allow such awful things

[@TrufflesMom-g7o]

Just like the atomic helped the Germans be sane today

[@qkcmnt1242]

​@@TrufflesMom-g7oMost WHAT were allowed..?

[@goldengun9970]

Would you prefer to be like the serpent who is close to the ground eating from the dust never going hungry and never having need to cry out to G-d in pain for help?

[@shilohmuse]

I'm not listening to the end, because I think that the plagues were mainly to show the Jewish People HIS power.

[@robinsnestfarm7322]

I think He wanted that-- the children of Israel to see HIS power-- but also the Egyptians and the surrounding nations. I think about Rahab and her words- a confession of faith in the one true G-d because of the Exodus: 9 And she said unto the men, I know that the LORD hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you. 10 For we have h e a r d how the LORD dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that [were] on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. 11 And as soon as we had heard [these things], our hearts did m e l t, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you: for the LORD your G-d, he [is] G-d in heaven above, and in earth beneath. 12 Now therefore, I pray you, swear unto me by the LORD, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also shew kindness unto my father's house, and give me a true token: 13 And [that] ye will save alive my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death. [Jos 2:9-13 KJV]

[@qkcmnt1242]

​@@robinsnestfarm7322I subscribed to your channel because of this comment. 😊

[@SeanRhoadesChristopher]

A request: can y’all explain the three oaths? I would like to know how the Song of Songs points to the Oaths. It isn’t obvious, and I’m guessing Hebrew is needed.

[@edsacks]

Egyptians had Multiple g-ds. Israelites have one