The Ten Plagues and Free Will

Parashat Va’era opens with a striking declaration—one that marks a turning point not only in Israel’s story, but in how God reveals Himself in history.

God tells Moses:

“I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as El Shaddai, but by My Name YHVH I was not known to them” (Exodus 6:3).

This is not a denial of the Patriarchs' intimacy with God. Rashi explains that El Shaddai represents sufficiency—God who sustains, protects, and fulfills His word. For them, it was enough. Ramban deepens this insight, explaining that the Divine Name YHVH signifies God’s direct intervention in history through revealed miracles that transcend nature.

At the Burning Bush, God revealed Himself to Moses as Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh—“I will be what I will be.” This name conveys an unfolding, future realization. God is announcing that He will now act openly in history, revealing Himself not only to Israel, but to the entire world.

The first seven of the ten plagues, described in Parashat Va’era (Exodus 6:2–9:35), are therefore not merely punishments. As Sforno explains, they are revelations. Each plague demonstrates that God alone governs the physical realm, while Egypt’s gods are exposed as illusions. The Zohar hints that the plagues echo Creation in reverse: Light is disrupted. Waters corrupted. Land overrun. Order undone

Why?

Because Egypt represents a world with creation but without Creator. The Exodus is not only liberation—it is re-creation. God dismantles a false worldview to make room for a moral one.

This is why Va’era feels so cosmic. It is reality being corrected. Each strike topples a pillar of Egyptian theology—the Nile, the land, the sky, and human authority itself. God nullified Egypt's deities.

This message resonates today. God continues to expose leaders who rule through deception—those who speak of unity while creating division, who claim wisdom while rejecting the moral principles of Torah. These moments of exposure are signs that the process of redemption is underway.

Paradoxically, the plagues strengthened both Moses and Pharaoh.

Moses begins his mission hesitant and uncertain. But witnessing God’s command over nature emboldens him. As the Maharal notes, repeated exposure to divine order strengthens our purpose. Each plague confirms that Moses’ mission is divinely ordained, and he grows into his role as Israel’s leader and advocate. Pharaoh, by contrast, becomes increasingly defiant. The Torah tells us that God “strengthened” his heart. Ramban explains that this does not negate free will. Rather, Pharaoh is granted the fortitude to act according to his true nature, without fear or coercion.

God does not impose rebellion upon Pharaoh; He permits it and Free Will remains intact. Moses desires to serve God. Pharaoh descends into denial. He desires sovereignty without submission. God allows both men to pursue the sincere desires of their hearts, because they fulfill His plan.

Thus, the Exodus begins—not merely as a rescue from slavery, but something unprecedented. For the first time in history, the Creator announces that He will bring forth a nation defined not by conquest or power, but by covenant, Torah, and moral responsibility. That process is not over. God is Ehyeh, calling to Am Israel to reclaim their potential, and their destiny by accessing HaShem as "I will be what I will be." We are all invited to embrace HaShem and our potential. Expect the miraculous. Become what HaShem created us to be.