Ezras Avoseinu #6: Redeemed and Liberated

ממצרים גאלתנו ה' אלקינו, ומבית עבדים פדיתנו

From Egypt You redeemed us, Hashem, our G-d, and from the house of slavery You liberated us.

What is the difference between pidyon and g’ulah, and what is the difference between Hashem taking us out of the exile (galus) of Mitzrayim (“MiMitzrayim g’altanu”) and Hashem redeeming us from the house of slavery (“u’mi’beis avadim p’disanu”)?

When we redeem a captive (pidyon), it implies agreement and acquiescence by the captors.  When one is redeemed, he is physically released from captivity.  Upon receipt of the ransom or the prisoner in a prisoner exchange, the captive is released by the captor.

The Talmud Yerushalmi (P’sachim 5:5) says that Hashem gave Par’oh’s voice the power to be heard across the entire land of Mitzrayim.  What did Par’oh say?  “Get up and go out from amongst my people.  In the past, you were my slaves, but from now and forward you will be servants of Hashem.”  Our redemption from the house of slavery was therefore with Par’oh’s agreement and acquiescence.

On the other hand, g’ulah is against the will of those wishing to keep us in exile.  Here,“MiMitzrayim g’altanu” refers to our spiritual redemption from the spiritual impurity of Mitzrayim.  Despite their wisdom, the Egyptians were steeped in avodah zarah and immorality.  Even without the physical slavery, this was a very difficult exile, as we were firmly in the clutches of tum’ah.  It was a great challenge to detach from the spiritual exile of Mitzrayim.  Here, Hashem took us out forcefully, and He took the “Mitzrayim” – the negative spiritual forces – out of us.

Integrating Mitzvos into Our Daily Lives

Each Yom Tov is not merely a commemoration of a past event, but rather living through that period again.  Just a few days ago, we proclaimed“Naaseh v’nishma” and received the Torah.  Chazal teach us that when we perform mitzvos, we are to perform them simply because Hashem commanded us to do so.  In this respect, we are servants of Hashem.  A servant does whatever the Master asks of him.  He does not need to understand why he is doing this particular task.  He does not question why he needs to perform the task.  Proclaiming “naaseh” first, before “nishma,” meant we will do whatever is written in the Torah.  Only after we make that commitment do we try to understand the depths of Torah wisdom.  This proclamation we made was so great that a Heavenly Voice (bas kol) said to us, “My child, who revealed to you this secret that the Heavenly Angels utilize?”

Of course, we certainly want to also performmitzvos from the vantage point of our other relationship to Hashem, that of a child to a parent.  A child desires to please his parents.  We perform the mitzvos purely because Hashem said so, whether or not we are in the mood, and whether or not we enjoy performing the mitzvah physically.  However, HOW we perform our mitzvos should be as children, with desire, love, and enthusiasm, knowing we are coming closer to Hashem by fulfilling His will and knowing that each mitzvah impacts the world and impacts our eternal world.