Beshalach: Who is in Charge

Beshalach opens with a shocking perspective: Pharaoh evicts the Children of Israel.  I expected the Torah to say that Gd took Israel out of Egypt. The last 2 chapters have emphasized that Divine intervention brought Israel to its liberation; now it has become a royal edict, a human decision. 

The tension between Divine and human action is an important theme in Beshalach.  At the beginning of the parsha, there is the battle with Egypt, Gd is the general and protagonist.  In this battle we have Israel leaving Egypt in a high handed manner ( b'yad ramah ( Exodus 14;8) ).  At the end of the parsha, the battle with Amalek requires an exhausted Moshe to have Aaron and Hur support is arms, so that they are lifted, because it is only when they are lifted ( yarim) that Israel prevails in the battle.  The interaction with Omnipotent had become more complex. 

The parsha is filled with confusion about the chain of command.  When the Isaelites come to the desperate position, between the Army of Egypt and the sea, they cry out to Moshe that he should never have taken them out of Egypt to die in the desert.  Moshe answers: Be quiet, the Lrd will do battle for you.  Then Gd says to Moshe : 

מַה־תִּצְעַ֖ק אֵלָ֑י דַּבֵּ֥ר אֶל־בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל וְיִסָּֽעוּ  Why do you cry out to Me? Tell the Israelites to go forward.. Onkelos softens this to:  קַבֵּלִית צְלוֹתָךְ מַלֵיל עִם בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְיִטְלוּן:Your prayers have been answered, speak to  the Israelites and  proceed.Moses deflects the responsibility to Gd, and Gd tells the people to go drown themselves. But Moshe is told to lift up הָרֵ֣ם your rod and hold out your arm over the sea and split it. 

The strategy that will destroy the Egyptian army  requires brave faith, to go forward into the sea, to defy drowning.  Desperation may be a requirement for that level of audacity.  I imagine that great military feats often seem nonsensical to the soldiers  carrying them out.

After this great victory, the problems of survival return to the fore. The water in Marah is not potable.  The people complain to Moshe: What shall we drink?  Gd shows Moshe  a log that sweetens the water.  This problem has a technical solution

Then there is the problem of food. When there is no visible source of nourishment, the people complain to Moshe and Aaron. Gd has heard the complaints and a miraculous, inexhaustible source of food is provided: Mannah.  No identifiable technology here. Pure miracle. 

Once again, there is no water and the people now fight with Moshe.   Moshe protests: Why do you cry to me? Moshe fears for his life and cries out to Gd .  This time he needs the staff, the transducer of the power, to bring water from the rock


When the leader is powerful, the people seek his guidance.
Even the greatest of leaders answers to Highest of Authorities