Parashat Bo 5766/2006
EJD
The weekly reading for the week of 6 Shevat, 5766 - February 4, 2006 Parashah: Bo Exodus 10:1 to 13:16; Haftarah: Jeremiah 46:13-28; Mei Kituvim: Psalm 135:1-21; Brit Chadashah: Revelation 19:6-21
Parashah Lite Edition (Focuses on one verse or idea anywhere in the readings)
The Bagel: Service or destruction?
Pharaoh's servants said: "....Let the men go, that they may serve the LORD their God. Do you not yet understand that Egypt is ruined?" (Exodus 10:7).
There are puns in this verse. It has to do with the usage of three Hebrew letters: the beginning consonant, which is neutral (filled either by an Aleph or an Ayin), the middle consonant, which is a Bet, and the ending consonant, which is a Dalet. Aleph - Bet - Dalet is the root meaning "to destroy." Ayin - Bet - Dalet is the root that means "to serve or to worship." Do you see the difference? It is the switch from an Ayin to an Aleph that changes whole meaning and creates a comedy of sorts. The pun or play on letters is Pharaoh's servants (with an Ayin) warning Pharaoh to permit them to worship (also with an Ayin) because Egypt is already destroyed (with an Aleph).
Here are servants telling their master to let other servants serve their G-d or else! Their admission that Egypt is ruined indicated a sorry state of leadership. Pharaoh as leader should have been listening. Information for wise decision making comes from below. The state of the nation was declared by the court consultants. It was already too little, too late. Yet, they advised a reversal of policy immediately. This pun by the servants became reality in the Red Sea. Pharaoh and his servants (with an Ayin) (Deuteronomy 34:11-12) were destroyed (with an Aleph) in the closing waters (Deuteronomy 11:4).
The choice is ours. Will we serve G-d or become slaves to a Pharaoh? It is a matter of time before a nation of slaves becomes a destroyed nation. The missing ingredient is the worship of the One True G-d. Better to serve G-d while you can than be ruined because you can't. This is where Yeshua comes in. None of us can serve G-d to His satisfaction. The sin factor ruins our lives, so that we cannot serve as we ought. One of the titles of Yeshua is Meshiach Ha Eved (Eved with an Ayin) - Messiah the Servant. He was the Suffering Servant who came to take away the destruction (with an Aleph) from us because of sin. It's a case of receiving Him in order to obtain the complete atonement of sin.
Cream Cheese: Destroyed or Employed (in service to Him)?
Unless noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (ESV). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.
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