Three Approaches to Understanding the Exodus Story
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ShareWhy did the Hebrews settle/stay in Goshen?
(45:9) "'Hasten ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him: Thus saith thy son Joseph: God hath made me Lord of all Egypt; come down unto me, tarry not. (10) And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children's children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast.'"
Ramban and Abarbanel emphasize the Israelites' desire to distance themselves from the royal court and its negative influence as a motivation for dwelling in Goshen. Simply stated, the Israelites hoped to separate themselves from Egypt and its people.
Ralbag understands "מֵיטַב הָאָרֶץ" to mean the best of the land of Goshen, rather than the best of Egypt. The brothers had no special need for quality agricultural land, merely the best of the grazing area, and that is what Paroh granted them.
The painting above is one of Wilhelm Hensel's, and it portrays an Israelite shepherdess in Goshen. In the background of the artwork, illustrated are several pyramids as a means to accentuate the Israelites' longing to isolate themselves from the land of Egypt.
Why did Moses request only a 3-day leave?
Ramban suggests that the Children of Israel were not yet prepared to leave Egypt permanently and would not have agreed to enter and conquer the Land of Israel. This indicates that the Jewish people were an assimilated nation and that they themselves needed to be deceived into fleeing Egypt.
Paroh's refusal of the three-day request demonstrates his intransigence more so than if he had been asked to free the Israelites permanently – an opinion cited by the Ran, Akeidat Yitzchak, Abarbanel. The Israelites were prepared to leave, but it was the Egyptians that needed to be misled. Thus, we were the righteous ones.
R. Bachya suggests that the Children of Israel had to gradually become accustomed to Hashem's commandments. We had to ease into the idea of following God's direction and adapt to a new form of adherence.
Chagall's drawing features a mass of Israelites following an ecstatic Moses. In the artwork, the Israelites are depicted as in the midst of their departure and frightened as a result of their fleeing Egypt and deluding its leaders.