Entitlement Reform

THE FIRST-BORN OF PHARAOH THAT SITTETH UPON HIS THRONE. Who is fit to sit upon Pharaoh’s throne after him. [Pharaoh’s first-born did not sit on the throne of Egypt, hence I.E.’s comment.] Moses mentioned the most honored of all the Egyptians, namely, the son of their lord whom all of them serve and also the meanest of them all, namely, the first-born of the maid-servant, who is himself a slave.

(29) In the middle of the night ה' struck down all the [male] first-born in the land of Egypt, from the first-born of Pharaoh who sat on the throne to the first-born of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the first-born of the cattle. (30) And Pharaoh arose in the night, with all his courtiers and all the Egyptians—because there was a loud cry in Egypt; for there was no house where there was not someone dead.

וכל בכור בהמה “and every firstborn of the domestic animals.” According to Rashi, G-d first punishes a people’s deities and then the people themselves. We see this from Exodus 7,17, where the river Nile, a major deity of the Egyptians was struck before the people suffered as a result of this.

(18) You shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread—eating unleavened bread for seven days, as I have commanded you—at the set time of the month*of the month See note at 13.4. of Abib, for in the month of Abib you went forth from Egypt. (19) Every first issue of the womb is Mine, from all your livestock that drop a male*male Heb. tizzakhar, form uncertain. as firstling, whether cattle or sheep. (20) But the firstling of an ass you shall redeem with a sheep; if you do not redeem it, you must break its neck. And you must redeem every male first-born among your children. None shall appear before Me empty-handed.

קדש לי כל בכור פטר כל רחם, “sanctify for Me every firstborn, the first issue of every womb.” The wording we would have expected here is קדש לי כל בכור בבני ישראל באדם ובבהמה, “sanctify for Me every Jewish firstborn amongst humans and domestic beast,” seeing this would be the logical way of thanking G’d for sparing the firstborn Jews and their livestock. After all, the Egyptian firstborn killed included firstborn of father and mother. Why then does the Torah restrict this legislation to the first issue of a womb, i.e. the firstborn of the mother? In fact, in Egypt not only biological firstborns were smitten but, in the absence of an actual firstborn, the oldest in the house. Why else would there not have been a single house without a dead body on that night?
The reason the Torah did not command sanctification of the firstborn of the father is simply that there always exists some slight degree of doubt about the paternity of a child whereas no such doubt exists concerning its maternity. The same rule applies to the firstborn of the livestock as we read in verse 12: “you shall set apart every first issue of the womb to G’d and of every first issue that is dropped by the livestock that belong to you, the males to Hashem.” As a result of this legislation we find that Isaiah 49,15 draws a comparison between G’d’s love for Israel to a father’s love for his son when he said: “can a woman forget her baby or disown the child in her womb?” The prophet suggests that it is impossible for a mother not to have pity on her child. He did not say: “can a father forget his son?”...

Our sages in the Midrash (Shemot Rabbah 18,3) confirmed this sentiment when they stated that the plague of the killing of the firstborn in Egypt included the females from the palace of Pharaoh with the exception of Pharaoh’s firstborn daughter Batya, the one who had saved Moses at the time. Moses himself had acted as her counsel of defense at the heavenly court. This is one of the meanings of: “she saw him that he was good” (Exodus 2,2). Solomon (Proverbs 31,18) said concerning this Batya that what made her “good” was ”she sees her business thrive, her light never goes out at night.” The “light” of which Solomon spoke was Batya’s soul, and the “night” was the night during which G’d smote the firstborn.

(28) I will send a plague*plague Others “hornet”; meaning of Heb. ṣir‘ah uncertain. Cf. Deut. 7.20. ahead of you, and it shall drive out before you the Hivites, the Canaanites, and the Hittites. (29) I will not drive them out before you in a single year, lest the land become desolate and the wild beasts multiply to your hurt. (30) I will drive them out before you little by little, until you have increased and possess the land. (31) I will set your borders from the Sea of Reeds to the Sea of Philistia, and from the wilderness to the Euphrates; for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hands, and you will drive them out before you.