HASHEM's Pesach — A Memorial

There has been much controversy over the centuries as to the length of time it took for the 10 plagues against Egypt to come about. This is easily resolved if you look at the facts. Because Moses and Aaron dared to come against Pharaoh, Pharaoh commanded that the Children of Israel make bricks without straw. Now, when is straw available to make bricks? In the month of Iyar (April-May). They left in Abib. Therefore, the Egyptians were smitten with 10 plagues during 12 months.

1. The judgments handed out at the Passover were completely within the control of those in each household.

2. The judgment that will be handed out at the end of the age is completely within the control of each person.

3. The plagues which had been executed against Egypt were actually judgments against the gods of Egypt.

    The first plague was blood (dahm) — Sh’mot 7.14-24. This was an attack on Hapi, the father of the gods, who was “god” of the Nile, the one who brings water to all Egypt for life. He was responsible for watering the meadows and bringing the dew. But most importantly he brought fertile inundation, the rising of the Nile. As a fertility god, he is associated with Osiris. The Nile was considered the link from this life to the next. The Nile was considered the blood of Osiris. The priests of Egypt held blood in abhorrence, yet they cruelly sported with blood of the captive Israelites whose children they caused to be cast into the Nile. The Egyptians worshipped the river, but when its waters turned to blood it must have excited their loathing and detestation, while the calamity would cover them with confusion and shame of their great god Hapi being defamed. Other deities connected with the Nile are Amon, and Khnum who was the guardian of the Nile.

    The second plague was frogs (tz'fahr'day-a) — Sh’mot 8.1-11. This was an attack on Heka (Heqt) the toad goddess, wife of Knepfh (Khnum) who was “goddess” of the land. Also, Heka was the goddess of the resurrection and procreative power. Frogs were so sacred in Egypt that even the involuntary slaughter of one was often punished with death. Imagine the people of the land as they went out to gather the decaying bodies of the frogs, and put them into heaps. The fact the Pharaoh entreated Moshe to intercede with HASHEM to take away the frogs was a sign the he recognized the Eloheim of Israel as being the author of the plague—Pharaoh realized this was not a natural occurrence.

 

 

 

     The third plague was lice (kinnim) — Sh’mot 8.12-15. This was an attack on Geb, “the great cackler,” who was “god” of the earth or vegetation. Egyptians gave offerings to Geb for the bounty of the soil—yet it was from “the dust of the soil” that this plague originated. The word “lice” is rendered as “sand flies” or “fleas” in some translations. The Hebrew word kinnim comes from a root word meaning “to dig”; it is probable that the insect in question would dig under the skin.

    This plague would have been especially dreadful to the priests of Egypt, for they were required to shave their hair off every day, and wear a single tunic, that no lice would be permitted on their bodies. The daily rituals of the priests were not possible because of physical impurity. The priests of Egypt could not even enter the temples to beseech their gods due to their own impurity of the flesh!

    The fourth plague was flies (arov) — Sh’mot 8.16-25. This was an attack on Khepfi, scarab, who was the “god” of insects. The plague of beetle, a scarab, was an emblem of Re (Ra), the sun god. It is very likely that the “swarms” in this passage were swarms of the scarab beetle. The scarab was actually a dung beetle—an insect that feeds on the dung in the fields. The plague of swarms of scarabs, with mandibles that could saw through wood, was destructive and worse than termites!

    Some scholars believe this “swarm” was of the blood-sucking gadfly, which was responsible for a lot of blindness in the land. Keil and Delitzsch believe this was the dog-fly, an insect described in detail by Philo. Dog-flies are more annoying than gnats, and fasten themselves to the human body.

    The fifth plague was livestock (dever) — Sh’mot 9.1-7. This was an attack on Apis, who was the bull “god.” The Apis bull was the living image of the god Ptah. His counterpart was Hathor, the cow goddess. Their place of worship was at On (Heliopolis). The Egyptians held many beasts in idolatrous veneration. The lion, wolf, dog, cat, ape, and goat were very sacred to them; but especially the ox, heifer, and ram (Khnum). The soul of their god Osiris was believed to reside in the body of the bull, Apis. Mnevis, the bull god, was symbol of fertility.

    The goddess Hathor was the symbolic mother of Pharaoh, and the king of Egypt was referred to as “the son of Hathor.” In addition to the gods already mentioned, this plague would have been a direct insult to Khnum, the ram-god, and to Bast, the cat goddess of love.

    The sixth plague was boils (sh'chir) — Sh’mot 9.8-12. This was an attack on Thoth, who the “god” of medicine and intelligence/wisdom. The Egyptians had several medical deities, to whom, on special occasions, they sacrificed humans. They were burnt alive on a high altar, and their ashes were cast into the air, that with every scattered ash a blessing might descend upon the people. Moshe took ashes from the furnace and cast them into the air. The ashes were scattered by the wind descending upon all the priests, people, and beasts as boils, thus shaming the god Thoth.

    This medical malady was also an affront to Imhotep, a real person elevated to the status of the god of medicine—this alone must have led to great despair in the land. This plague would have also been an affront to Serapis, the deity in charge of healing, and to Thoth, the ibis-headed god of intelligence and medical learning.

    The seventh plague was hail (barad) — Sh’mot 9.13-35. This was an attack on Nut, who was the sky “goddess,” for this was harvest time, the time of plenty. Like her husband Geb, HASHEM attacked and destroyed the crops. She was the mother of Osiris. Also, this was an attack on Isis, goddess of life, and Seth, protector of crops.

    Geb was the Egyptian goddess of the sky and of the heavens. Daughter of the air god Shu and Tefnut, the goddess of moisture, in the Heliopolitan genealogy. She was typically depicted as a woman with her elongated and naked. Nut was the barrier separating the forces of chaos from the ordered cosmos in this world. Isis and Seth were supposed to protect the crops, but burned fields testified to their impotence. Although this plague would have caused widespread devastation, a few trees remained for the locusts of the next plague to devour.

    The eighth plague was locust (arbeh) — Sh’mot 10.1-20. This was an attack on Anubis, who was the “god” of the fields, especially cemeteries. This plague finishes up the work that was done by the hail. They devoured every herb of the land and fruit of the trees. Also, this plague was an attack on Nepri, the god of grain; Ermutet, the goddess of childbirth and crops; Thermuthis, the goddess of fertility and the harvest; Isis, protector of against locust, and Seth, protector of crops.

 

 

 

    The ninth plague was darkness (choshekh) — Sh’mot 10.21-29. This was an attack on Ra or Amon-Re, the sun “god.” Darkness was considered a creation of Seth, evil principle destroyer of Osiris. It seemed Re (Ra), the sun god, was dead; and Seth had killed him. This plague was so terrible that it a darkness that could be felt! At the same time that the Egyptians had darkness, the Israelites had light. He is believed to be the physical father of all Pharaohs. Pharaoh was the king of all gods.

    In Egyptian mythology Horus was the god of light who personified the life-giving power of the Sun. He was usually represented as a falcon-headed man wearing a sun disk as a crown. The reigning kings of Egypt were believed to be incarnations of the god Horus. Missing in action were Ptah, the chief god of Memphis, and the one who created the moon, the sun and the earth; Atum, the sun god and creator who was worshiped at Heliopolis; Tem, the god of the sunset; and Shu, the god of sunlight and air!

The tenth plague was death of the first-born (makkat b'khorot) — Sh’mot 11,12. This was an attack on Pharaoh, who was the “god-king.” Pharaoh was considered a god, and his first-born son, who would succeed him on the throne. In fact, first-born people and animals were often worshipped. Pharaoh was considered an incarnation of Ra, the sun god, and Osiris, the giver of life. Because Pharaoh's son was consider a god, a god of Egypt actually died.

Passover has two meanings. For the unrepentant it meant death of the firstborn and judgment. For the obedient it means divine protection and life. The blood was applied to the inside of the door.

1. The Passover Seder is the retelling of the redemption and deliverance from Egypt's sin and bondage. The term Passover Hag-gadah (Haggadah shel Pesach) in its literal sense means the narration of the Exodus story as recited at the Seder Service. The Seder (Aramaic for the Hebrew Erekh, meaning "order" of service) is the festival meal and home service on the first and second night of Passover. In its wider sense the term Passover Hag-gadah refers to the manual for the Seder; this manual is comprised of selections from the Holy Scriptures, their expositions in talmudic and midrashic literature, prayers and benedictions, legends and hymns, and a guide for the ritual of the ceremony.

2. This is a perpetual ordinance. The Hebrew word is עוֹלָם- olam - which means eternal, without end.