Marah: A Textual Anomaly and its Message of Liberation
And he cried unto Hashem; and Hashem showed him a tree, and he cast it into the waters, and the waters were made sweet. There He made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there He proved them. (Sefer Shemot 15:25)
- Arriving at Marah and the wonder of the waters
Parshat Beshalach describes the exodus from Egypt and the events that followed that exodus. Included in the parasha is a description of the Reed Sea splitting and Bnai Yisrael passing through its suspended waters. This is followed by the collapse of the sea upon Paroh and his legions. After these events, the people travel three days in the wilderness and find no water. They arrive at Marah. There, they discover water. However, the water was so bitter that it is not potable. The people cannot understand or endure their predicament. They complain to Moshe. Moshe petitions Hashem. Hashem indicates a tree to Moshe and directs him to cast it into the water. Moshe follows Hashem’s directions. The water is sweetened and rendered potable.
The Torah tells us that after these events – while the people were still encamped at Marah – Hashem gives to them laws and statutes.
2. The mystery of Marah
The Torah provides no indication of which laws and statutes were communicated to the people at Marah. However, commenting on this passage, Rashi provides additional detail. He explains that, according to our Sages, at Marah the people received the mitzvah of Shabbat and various elements of the civil law.[1]
Rashi’s contribution only partially addresses the difficulty in these passages. He indentifies the commandments and laws that were communicated at Marah. However, the message and meaning of the above passage remains a mystery. Why does the Torah tell us that laws and statutes were communicated to the people but conceal the identity of the specific material? Furthermore, what was the purpose of this prelude to Revelation? Why were these unidentified laws and statutes communicated to the people at this time? Before considering these issues another problem must be discussed.
3. Pre-Sinai commandments
Maimonides explains that although some of the commandments of the Torah were communicated before the Revelation at Sinai, we do not observe these commandments on the basis of this pre-Sinai communication. The commandments we observe are derived from the Sinai Revelation. Those commandments that were previously communicated are observed only because they were renewed at Sinai.
Maimonides provides as an example, the commandment of milah – circumcision. This commandment was given to Avraham. Avraham was instructed in the observance of the commandment and told that the commandment must be observed also by his descendants. Maimonides explains that with revelation the commandment given to Avraham was replaced by the Sinai commandment. Today, we do not perform circumcision because of the commandment given to Avraham. We observe it because it was renewed at Sinai.[2]
It can be presumed that this principle applies to those commandments that were communicated to the nation when it was still in Egypt. Hashem communicated to Moshe the commandment establishing and regulating the Torah's lunar calendar. This commandment includes the designation of Nisan as the first month. Also, commandments regarding the observance of the Pesach festival were given in Egypt. The commandments regarding tefilin where first communicated to the nation at the time of the exodus. In all of these instances, it can be presumed that although these commandments were revealed to the people before Sinai, we observe these commandments only because they were renewed at Sinai. And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every male throughout your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any foreigner, that is not of your descendants. (Sefer Beresheit 17:12)
- Deriving laws from pre-Sinai narratives
In all of these instances the Torah includes a relatively detailed account of the initial instructions regarding the commandment. Many of the laws regarding milah are derived from the passages describing Hashem’s instructions to Avraham regarding the commandment. The same applies to the commandments given to Bnai Yisrael at the time of the exodus. The Torah provides a detailed account of Hashem’s instructions to Moshe regarding these commandments and of Moshe's instruction to the people. Many of the laws regarding these commandments are derived from these passages.
Superficially, this seems to contradict Maimonides' principle. If the commandments are binding upon us only because of their renewal at Sinai, how can we derive many of the specific laws governing these commandments from the instruction given before Sinai?
- The role of the Sinai Revelation in authenticating pre-Sinai commandments
Answering this question requires a better understanding of the reason that pre-Sinai communications are not binding. Let us consider the commandment of milah. Hashem gave this commandment to Avraham. He instructed him to observe the commandment and He directed Avraham to instruct his descendants to observe the commandment.
How do we know that Avraham had this prophecy and that he and his descendants were commanded to perform the mitzvah of milah? We know this is true only because the prophecy is recorded in the Torah. We accept the authenticity of the Sinai Revelation, the Torah, and its contents.
The same reasoning applies to the commandments given to Bnai Yisrael at the time of the exodus. We do not observe these commandments because of some tradition we have received from our ancestors. We observe these commandments because we accept the authenticity of the Sinai Revelation and the Torah. These commandments are recorded in the Torah and therefore, we observe them.
In other words, the Sinai Revelation is the source of all commandments. Only because a commandment is recorded in the Torah do we accept it as being authentic.
6. The legislative character of pre-Sinai texts
Now, our problem is resolved. Let us review the problem. Maimonides explains that we only observe the Torah's commandments based upon their inclusion in the Sinai revelation. Yet, milah and other commandments were communicated to us before Sinai. The Torah records this initial communication of the mitzvah and laws governing their observance. These laws are incorporated into halachah even though they are derived from these pre-Sinai communications. How can laws be derived from these pre-Sinai communications?
The answer is that we do not accept these laws because of, or based upon their initial communication. We do not observe milah because of some tradition that Hashem commanded Avraham to perform circumcision and to instruct his descendants in the commandment. We observe milah because the Torah of the Sinai Revelation records this ancient prophecy. The inclusion of the account in the Torah given at Revelation authenticates the pre-Sinai prophecy and endows it with halachic validity.
- Rashi’s enigmatic comments regarding the Marah anomaly Let us return to Marah. As already noted above, it is odd that the Torah conceals the identity of the commandments communicated at Marah. However, this omission is not only odd. It is an anomaly. Many commandments are primarily presented in the context of their pre-Sinai origins. For example, many of the laws governing milah are derived from the Torah’s account of Avraham’s prophecy. In fact, virtually every mitzvah that was communicated before Sinai is introduced by the Torah in the context of the original pre-Sinai communication. However, there is one substantial exception. The commandments given at Marah are not described in the narrative. The Torah tells us laws were given at Marah. Our Sages identify the commandments that were revealed. However, the actual narrative does not include any description of the commandments!In other words, according to our Sages, the people were instructed in the commandment of Shabbat at Marah. However, the Torah itself does not present the mitzvah of Shabbat in the context of its initial communication to the people. Why are the commandments communicated at Marah not discussed in the context of their initial presentation to the people?
Rashi makes an additional comment that suggests an explanation. As noted above, Rashi provides a brief summary of the commandments that were communicated at Marah. Then, Rashi addresses another issue. Why were these commandments given at this time? Rashi explains that these commandments were give at this time because Hashem wanted the people to become involved in them.[3]
Rashi’s meaning is not obvious. His phrasing is unusual. He does not say that these commandments were communicated in order to initiate their observance. He says that they were communicated in order that they should become a focus of the community’s “involvement”. What does Rashi mean? Beyond observance, what other “involvement” were the people to have with these commandments?
The apparent answer emerges from recognizing that every commandment has two aspects. A commandment is a directive that must be obeyed. A commandment is also the subject of study, analysis and contemplation. Rashi explains that the people were not expected to merely observe these commandments. They were expected to become involved in them. This suggests that they were required to study them carefully and contemplate them.
- The unique purpose of the Marah commandments
According to Rashi, the Marah commandments were different from all other commandments communicated before Sinai. These other commandments were communicated at their respective times because the moment was uniquely appropriate. Avraham was communicated the commandment of milah when the moment arrived for its observance. Hashem communicated through Moshe the laws governing the calendar because the moment had arrived for the establishment of that calendar. The laws of the Pesach festival were discussed at the time of the exodus because of the appropriateness of the moment. In each of these instances the Torah discusses the commandment in the context of its initial pre-Sinai origin. This is because the origin is relevant to the content of the commandment.
This suggests that the commandments of Marah were not communicated at that time because of the relevancy of the moment. Shabbat is not uniquely linked to the events that took place at Marah. Civil law is not intimately connected to the Marah episode. Instead, these commandments were communicated at that time for another reason. Hashem wished for the people to immerse themselves in the study and contemplation of mitzvot. For that purpose, he selected these commandments.
This explains the Torah’s concealment of the specific commandments communicated at Marah. These commandments were not selected on the basis of a specific relevance. Also, the anomalous treatment of the Marah commandments is understood. The Torah elaborates on commandments in the context of their pre-Sinai origins only when that origin is specifically relevant to the mitzvah.
Why were commandments communicated at this time? Why was it important for the people to immerse themselves in Torah mitzvot? Apparently, although the people had been physically liberated, their intellectual and emotional liberation was far from complete. This next step toward freedom could only be achieved through Torah study.
- Lessons from Marah
Our ancestors were provided with commandments at Marah in order to facilitate their liberation from the bondage they had escaped. We also are subject to the many demands placed upon us by the necessities of our livelihoods and the support our families. If we are honest, we will acknowledge that we are also driven by the demands of personal desire. These masters are our contemporary Paroh. Like our ancestors, we must strive to liberate ourselves and our minds from our many masters. Like our ancestors the study and contemplation of the Torah provides this opportunity.
[1] Rabbaynu Shlomo ben Yitzchak (Rashi), Commentary on Sefer Shemot 15:25.
[2] Rabbaynu Moshe ben Maimon (Rambam / Maimonides) Commentary on the Mishne, Mesechet Chullin 7:6.
[3] Rabbaynu Shlomo ben Yitzchak (Rashi), Commentary on Sefer Shemot 15:25.