I was away with my family since Monday, but I did have time to read over the parsha questions I receive in email each week. Maybe you can guess some answers for these two:
- Why the Nile? Why was the first plague on the Nile?
- Why mention Elisheva’s brother? (and who is Elisheva…)
If you know any of the answers, feel free to comment. If you don’t, take a guess! I’ll post Rashi’s answers early next week.
Last year’s post: the froggy song
Click on the frog to hear the children’s song that goes with this parsha.
I remember about the Nile…I forgot the reason though. Something about it overflowing for them…
I don’t remember an Elisheva
Thanks for trying… I think I’ll write something about how the plagues were specifically for the Egyptians, and I’ll tie it into one of next week’s plagues. Some time next week…
On Shabbat, you can look for Elisheva’s name in the parsha.
ok that sounds good.
I’ll be on the lookout.
have a good shabbos!
Why was the first plague on the Nile? It was mida k’neged mida (direct retribution). The Egyptians threw newborn Jewish boys into the Nile, so now the Nile is being used to punish them in return.
Also, the Nile was considered holy by the ancient Egyptians, because it was the source of life (water and irrigation). So turning the holy water of the Nile into blood demonstrated that the God of Israel is more powerful than the gods and sacred places of Egypt. It was mant to instill fear and awe.
Raizy: that makes sense, I remember learning that.
Raizy, the first answer was not one that I had known about through Rashi, so that makes three answers to “Why the Nile?” for the 1st plague. Your second answer is similar to my first answer. My second answer is in a Rashi later in the parsha, by the plague of Arov. It is an interesting midrash, so I’ll write it up for a post tomorrow morning.
I looked out for “Elisheva” in the Chumash, and I saw that she was the wife of Aron and the sister of Nachshon Ben Aminadav.