An Epic Family

Parashat Shemot – Podcast D’var Torah

Within the relatively brief yet concise narrative of Parashat Shemot (Ex. 1:1–6:1), Israel’s two-hundred-ten-year exile in Egypt unfolds as Jacob’s family of seventy souls blossoms into a thriving proto-nation of twelve tribes—eventually trapped in harsh bondage.

Only twenty-three years after the death of Joseph, his brother Levi—the last surviving son of Jacob—also died. That same year, a “king arose who knew not Joseph.”

In a recent episode of our Jerusalem Lights podcast, I shared how Fifth Dynasty Pharaoh Unas may have been the last pharaoh whom Joseph served as prime minister of Egypt. During my early research trips for my documentary Riddle of the Exodus, I visited the tomb of Pharaoh Unas. Beneath the crumbling exterior of his small, pyramid-shaped tomb, the walls are covered with elegantly carved hieroglyphs describing how Unas would spend his days in the afterlife. The inscriptions recount how he would pursue specific tasks alongside named gods.

On the eastern wall of his burial vault appears an arresting inscription stating:
“Unas will judge with Him whose name is hidden on the day of the slaying of the eldest.”

From an Egyptian point of view, this is a startlingly prophetic phrase. It sounds very much as though Unas expected to be present when the firstborn of Egypt would be struck down by an unknown god. It is as if Joseph shared these details with the pharaoh, yet withheld the sacred Name—because he was forbidden to utter it aloud.

Unas was succeeded by Pharaoh Teti. One Egyptologist famously remarked of Teti, “We don’t know where he came from, but he seized the throne by force.”

This reinforces an aspect of the new king of Egypt, one that Chazal offer. The pharaoh was a foreign ruler who led an invasion that replaced the previous dynasty. With this new pharaoh’s disregard for Joseph, the Egyptians quickly forgot how he had saved them from famine and transformed Egypt into a powerful empire.

Following Levi’s passing, the Egyptians began to enslave Israel in hopes of diminishing their numbers. Instead, Israel flourished—so much so that the Egyptians came to loathe them.

The birth of Moses was foretold by his sister Miriam, but it was also anticipated by Egypt’s court astrologers, who warned Pharaoh that Israel’s redeemer would arise and advised him to cast all Hebrew male infants into the Nile. These seers perceived that Israel’s savior would somehow be undone by water—hinting at Moses’ later experience at the waters of Meribah.

A Levite couple, Amram and Yocheved, gave birth to Moses. Yet the prediction of the astrologers led to what appears to be a strange decision: placing Moses into a basket and setting him adrift on the treacherous waters of the Nile. In doing so, his parents cleverly deceived the astrologers into “seeing” that Israel’s redeemer had already been cast into the river. This act of faith placed the infant Moses into the arms of Pharaoh’s daughter, Bityah—whose name means “Daughter of God.”

Raised in the royal palace, Moses’ rescue demonstrates God’s ability to transform apparent weakness into a powerful instrument of redemption.

Thus, Moses was raised within Pharaoh’s household and cherished by the princess as her own son. Yet he was imbued with love for his people and a sense of destiny by a Hebrew wet nurse—his true mother, Yocheved. This remarkable woman likely taught Moses about his connection to the very beginnings of the world. That chain of transmission began with Levi, who learned from Jacob; Jacob learned from Shem; Shem lived before the Flood and knew Methuselah; and Methuselah learned from Adam himself.

This sacred lineage was never forgotten by the tribe of Levi—nor were God’s promises. As a result, the tribe of Levi remained free from slavery.

Sparing the life of Moses was the first ripple that would lead to Israel’s redemption, during which the Creator would repeatedly demonstrate His power over the gods of Egypt and his control of the natural world.

It is no wonder that Moses was initially overwhelmed by his monumental task as he departed from the Burning Bush—grasping the staff handed down from Adam, with the words of the Creator still ringing in his ears:

"Go tell Pharaoh, 'So says God: Israel is My firstborn son.
 Send out My son that he may serve Me.
But you have refused to send him out—
behold, I will kill your firstborn son.”
 (Ex. 4:22–23)

Truly, epic.