ופרעה הקריב וישאו בני ישראל את עיניהם והנה מצרים נסע אחריהם וייראו מאד ויצעקו בני ישראל אל ה'. (שמות יד:י)

And Pharaoh drew near and Bnei Yisrael lifted up their eyes and behold the Egyptians were marching after them, and they were very much afraid, and Bnei Yisrael cried out to God. (Shemot 14:10)

They turned as well to complain to Moshe. Moshe responded:

ויאמר משה אל העם אל תיראו התיצבו וראו את ישועת ה' אשר יעשה לכם היום כי אשר ראיתם את מצרים היום לא תוסיפו לראותם עוד עד עולם. ה' ילחם לכם ואתם תחרישון. (שמות יד:יג-יד)

And Moshe said to the people: ‘Fear not, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord, that He will perform for you today; for as you have seen the Egyptians today, you will never see them again. God will fight for you and you shall hold your peace.’ (Shemot 14:13-14)

Moshe’s message was clear – that Bnei Yisrael need not pray nor act, for they were about to witness God’s ultimate act of salvation. Yet, the next verse seems to contradict this assumption:

ויאמר ה' אל משה מה תצעק אלי דבר אל בני ישראל וישאו (שמות יד:טו)

And God said to Moshe: ‘Why are you crying out to me? Speak to Bnei Yisrael that they should go forward. (Shemot 14:15)

Moshe’s Prayer

This verse seems to imply that, after his response to Bnei Yisrael, Moshe himself turned in prayer to God. This is, in fact, the interpretation of the Mechilta as quoted by Rashi:

מה תצעק אלי - למדנו שהיה משה עומד ומתפלל. אמר לו הקב"ה לא עת עתה להאריך בתפילה שישראל נתונים בצרה .

Why are you crying out to me - This teaches us that Moshe was standing in prayer. God said to him: “This is not the time to prolong in prayer, when Israel is in distress.”

Yet, the Torah does not record Moshe’s prayer. Ibn Ezra points out that it would have been inappropriate for Moshe to pray at that point since God had already prepared Moshe for this scenario:

מה תצעק - יש אומרים כי משה היה צועק אל ה' וזה איננו נכון, כי כבר דבר לו ואכבדה בפרעה. רק נאמר למשה שהוא כנגד כל ישראל בעבור שצעקו בני ישראל אל ה'.

Why are you crying out - There are those who say that Moshe was crying out to God, but this is not correct, for God had already informed him that he would harden Pharaoh’s heart. Rather, this was said to Moshe in place of all of Israel, for Bnei Yisrael had cried out to God.

Ibn Ezra claims that the reference is actually to the previous cries of Bnei Yisrael. Haketav Vehakabbalah suggest a similar interpretation:

יתכן לומר שהוא חוזר על צעקת בני ישראל שהזכיר למעלה לפירוש תצעק – תעזור ותניח להם לצעוק … אמר כאן מה תצעק אלי – מה תתן מקום אל הצעקה שיצעקו ישראל אלי.

For the explanation of the word “titzak”, it is appropriate to say that it Refers back to the cries of Bnei Yisrael that were mentioned above – that you allowed them and helped them to cry out…. He said here: “Why are you crying out to me?” – “Why are you allowing Yisrael to cry out to me?”

According to Haketav Vehakabbalah, the fact that God addresses Moshe regarding the cries of Bnei Yisrael implies that Moshe bears some responsibility for their cries in that he did not do enough to prevent them.

Sforno offers a different perspective on Moshe’s prayer. He claims that Moshe was frustrated by the reaction of Bnei Yisrael and their continuous inability to have faith in God’s salvation.

אמנם צעקת משה לא היתה מיראת פרעה וחילו כי כבר הגיד לישראל את מפלת המצרים ומתתם כאמרו לא תוסיפו לראותם עוד עד עולם ה' ילחם לכם. אבל היה צעקתו על מרי ישראל שהעיזו פניהם באמרם המבלי אין קברים, וחשב בשביל זה שלא ישמעו לו להכנס בים.

In reality, the cry of Moshe was not out of fear of Pharaoh and his army, for he had already told Yisrael about the downfall of Egypt and their death when he said: “You will never see them again, God will fight for you.” Rather, his cry related to the rebelliousness of Bnei Yisrael who brazenly said: “Are there no graves in Egypt?” Because of this he thought that they would not listen to him to enter the water.

Thus, according to Sforno, Moshe’s prayer was not to save them from Pharaoh, but to help him deal with the people.

Speak To Bnei Yisrael That They Should Go Forward

God’s response to Moshe (“speak to Bnei Yisrael that they should go forward”) is understood according to all of the commentators in accordance with their previously cited explanations:

רש"י : דבר אל בני ישראל ויסעו: אין להם אלא ליסע שאין הים עומד בפניהם כדאי זכות אבותיהם והאמונה שהאמינו בי ויצאו לקרוע להם הים.

אבן עזרא : ויסעו: מעט מעט עד שיגיעו לשפת הים.

ספורנו : כי אמנם אתה חושד בכשרים. דבר אל בני ישראל ויסעו: ולא ימרו את פיך.

Rashi : Speak to Bnei Yisrael that they travel forward: They have only to go forward, for the sea does not stand in their way. The merit of their fathers and the faith with which they believed in me when they left Egypt is sufficient to split the sea for them.

Ibn Ezra : And they should travel forward: Very slowly until they reach the edge of the sea.

Sforno : Because you actually are suspicious of those who are proper. Speak to Bnei Yisrael that they should travel forward: and they will not rebel against your words.

According to each of these commentators, God’s response to Moshe negated his initial reaction to the people. In the case of Sforno, his assessment of the people’s level of faith was incorrect. As a leader, he should have had faith in the worthiness of his people. In His response, God assured him that the people would indeed follow his directives. Ibn Ezra and Rashi both see God’s answer as a refutation of Moshe’s declaration to the people that they should stand silent and observe God’s salvation. On the contrary, they should move forward. These commentaries imply that Bnei Yisrael had to act in order for the sea to split. This is consistent with a number of midRashim that indicate that the sea did not split until a representative or representatives of Bnei Yisrael entered the water.[1] According to Siftei Chachamim, a commentary on Rashi, this idea is reflected, as well, in the subsequent verse:

ואתה הרם את מטך ונטה את ידך על הים ובקעהו ויבאו בני ישראל בתוך הים ביבשה. (שמות יד:טז)

שפתי חכמים - הכי פירושו [של רש"י] שעל ידי שיסעו יועיל הרמת מטך שיבקע הים מה שאין כן אם לא יסעו לא יבקע הים אף על פי שתרים מטך על הים … ולפי זה יהיה הפירוש מה תצעק אלי סבור אתה להועיל בתפילתך אין הדבר כן אלא ויסעו.

And lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, and Bnei Yisrael shall go into the midst of the sea on dry ground. (Shemot 14:16)

Siftei Chachamim - This is the interpretation [of Rashi]: By virtue of the fact that they travel, your staff will be effective in splitting the sea. On the contrary, if they do not travel, the sea will not split even if you raise your staff over the sea …. And according to this, this is the explanation of the verse: “Why are you crying out to me? Do you think that your prayer will help? It is not so – rather, they should travel forward.”

Lift Up Your Staff and Stretch Out Your Hand

Siftei Chachamim’s interpretation is supported as well by a peculiarity in verse 14:16. Moshe was told to raise his staff, but he was not to use the staff to split the sea. Rather, he was to spread out his hands over the sea. The midrash (ShemotRabbah 21:9) indicates that at the sea, Moshe was commanded to publicly cast aside the staff:

כך אמרו המצרים: לא היה יכול משה לעשות כלום אלא במטה, בו הכה היאור, בו הביא כל המכות. כיון שבאו ישראל לתוך הים והמצריים עומדים מאחריהם אמר

הקדוש ברוך הוא למשה: השלך את מטך, שלא יאמרו אלולי המטה לא היה יכול לקרע

את הים, שנאמר הרם את מטך.

The Egyptians said: “Moshe could not do anything without the staff with which he smote the river and brought all of the plagues.” When Israel came to the sea, God said to Moshe: “Cast aside your staff so that they not say that you could not split the sea without the staff.” As it says: “lift up (cast aside) your staff.”

The midrash claims that God told Moshe to cast aside the staff in order to raise his status in the eyes of the Egyptians. Certainly, the staff was also viewed by Bnei Yisrael as the instrument for God’s performance of miracles. As such, the assertion of the midrash that Moshe was ordered to cast aside the staff and raise only his hands, would serve as well to wean Bnei Yisrael from their dependency on the signs and wonders represented by the staff.

At the end of Parashat Beshallach, Moshe again raises his hands to aid the people in a particularly difficult time, the war with Amalek:

ויאמר משה אל יהושע בחר לנו אנשים וצא הלחם בעמלק מחר אנכי נצב על ראש הגבעה ומטה האלקים בידי … . והיה כאשר ירים משה ידו וגבר ישראל וכאשר יניח ידו וגבר עמלק. (שמות יז:ט,יא)

And Moshe said to Yehoshua: ‘Choose for us men and go out to fight Amalek; tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.’ … And it came to pass, when Moshe held up his hand, Yisrael prevailed, and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. (Shemot 17:9,11)

Once again, Moshe went up with the staff, but the Torah emphasizes that it was the raising of his hands that turned the tide of the battle.[2] In this instance, Bnei Yisrael were fully activated to defend themselves against Amalek by going out to war. The Gemara (Rosh Hashana 29a), referred to by Rashi, indicates that Moshe’s raising his hands in the war with Amalek had no miraculous effect:

והיה כי ירים משה את ידו וגבר ישראל: וכי ידיו של משה עושות מלחמה או שוברות מלחמה? אלא לומר כל זמן שהיו ישראל מסתכלין כלפי מעלה ומשעבדין את לבם לאביהן שבשמים היו מתגברין, ואם לאו היו נופלים.

“And it happened that when Moshe raised his hand, Yisrael prevailed.” Do the hands of Moshe make or break the war? Rather, it implies that any time that Yisrael would look upward and dedicate their hearts to their Father in Heaven, they would prevail, and if not, they would fall.

Thus, according to the Gemara, the raised hands of Moshe simply gave Bnei Yisrael the inspiration that they needed to prevail in the war with Amalek.

Conclusion

The period of time between their actual departure from Egypt and the war with Amalek at Refidim served as a transitional period for Bnei Yisrael with regard to their reliance on God as opposed to their self-reliance. In Egypt, they relied solely on supernatural events to effect their salvation. This was, in fact, itself a vehicle to develop their faith in God. At the sea, Bnei Yisrael were unable to rely exclusively on God’s intervention. They had to act in order for God to effect the miraculous splitting of the sea. At Refidim, Bnei Yisrael achieved a greater level of independence. They had to fight for themselves against Amalek, with their eyes turned heavenward for inspiration.

In Egypt, their complete faith in God was the instrument of their salvation. At Refidim, their faith in God was a means toward enabling them to effect their own salvation.

[1] For a full treatment of this subject, see Nechama Leibowitz’s iyun entitled “Rebellious at the Sea, the Red Sea” in Studies in Shemot, World Zionist Organization, 1976, pg. 256.

[2] The Rashbam indicates that Moshe raised the staff as well, but a close reading of the text could indicate that he raised his hands without the staff.