The Shabbat Before Pesach

Shabbat HaGadol

שַׁבַּת הַגָּדוֹל

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Hebrew

צֵא וּלְמַד מַה בִּקֵּשׁ לָבָן
הָאֲרַמִּי לַעֲשׂוֹת לְיַעֲקֹב
אָבִינוּ, שֶׁפַּרְעֹה לֹא גָזַר אֶלָּא
עַל הַזְּכָרִים, וְלָבָן בִּקֵּשׁ
לַעֲקוֹר אֶת הַכֹּל, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר:
אֲרַמִּי אֹבֵד אָבִי, וַיֵּרֶד
מִצְרָיְמָה וַיָּגָר שָׁם בִּמְתֵי
מְעָט, וַיְהִי שָׁם לְגוֹי גָּדוֹל
עָצוּם וָרָב. "וַיֵּרֶד מִצְרָיְמָה,"
אָנוּס עַל פִּי הַדִּבּוּר. "וַיָּגָר
שָׁם," מְלַמֵּד שֶׁלֹּא יָרַד יַעֲקֹב
אָבִינוּ לְהִשְׁתַּקֵּעַ בְּמִצְרָיִם
אֶלָּא לָגוּר שָׁם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר:
וַיֹּאמְרוּ אֶל פַּרְעֹה לָגוּר בָּאָרֶץ
בָּאנוּ, כִּי אֵין מִרְעֶה לַצֹּאן
אֲשֶׁר לַעֲבָדֶיךָ, כִּי כָבֵד הָרָעָב
בְּאֶרֶץ כְּנָעַן, וְעַתָּה יֵשְׁבוּ נָא
עֲבָדֶיךָ בְּאֶרֶץ גֹּשֶׁן. "בִּמְתֵי
מְעָט," כְּמָה שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר:
בְּשִׁבְעִים נֶפֶשׁ יָרְדוּ אֲבֹתֶיךָ
מִצְרָיְמָה, וְעַתָּה שָׂמְךָ יְיָ
אֱלֹהֶיךָ כְּכוֹכְבֵי הַשָּׁמַיִם לָרֹב.
"וַיְהִי שָׁם לְגוֹי," מְלַמֵּד שֶׁהָיוּ
יִשְׂרָאֵל מְצֻיָּנִים שָׁם.1 "גָּדוֹל
עָצוּם," כְּמָה שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וּבְנֵי
יִשְׂרָאֵל פָּרוּ וַיִּשְׁרְצוּ וַיִּרְבּוּ

Sephardi

Tzei ulemad mah bikesh Lavan
haArami la'asot leYaakov
Avinu, shePar'oh lo gazar ela
al hazekharim, veLavan bikesh
laakor et hakol, shene'emar:
Arami oved avi, vayered
Mitzraymah vayagar sham bimtei
me'at, vayehi sham legoi gadol
otzum varav. "Vayered Mitzraymah,"
anus al pi hadibur. "Vayagar
sham," melamed shelo yarad Ya'akov
Avinu lehishtakea beMitzrayim
ela lagur sham, shene'emar:
Vayomru el Par'oh lagur ba'aretz
banu, ki ein mir'eh latzon
asher laavodekha, ki khaved hara'av
be'eretz Kena'an, ve'atah yeshvu na
avadecha be'eretz Goshen. "Bimtei
me'at," kemah shene'emar:
Beshiv'im nefesh yardu avotecha
Mitzraymah, ve'atah samkha Adonai
Elohecha k'chochvei hashamayim larov.
"Vayehi sham legoi," melamed shehayu
Yisrael metzuyanim sham.1 "Gadol
otzum," kemah shene'emar: Uvnei
Yisrael paru vayishretzu vayirbu

English

Leave the story of the Exodus from Egypt and learn how God saves us in every generation, for example, how God saved us from what Laban the Aramean wanted to do to Jacob, our forefather. Pharaoh only decreed to drown the male babies in the Nile River, but Laban wanted to ruin Jacob's entire family, as it says in the Torah: Laban the Aramean wanted to destroy my forefather, Jacob, and his family after they ran away from him. Jacob then went down to Egypt and stayed-over there with his family, who were few in number, and he became a nation there—great, mighty, and numerous. "He went down to Egypt." The only reason Jacob went down to Egypt was because he was forced by God's decree to Abraham that his descendants would be strangers in a foreign land. "And stayed-over there." These words teach us that Jacob, our forefather, did not go down to Egypt to settle, but only to live there temporarily. As it says in the Torah: Joseph's brothers said to Pharaoh, "We have come to stay-over in the land until the hunger passes, because there is no pasture for your servants' sheep in the land of Canaan since the famine is severe there. Now, please, let your servants dwell in the land of Goshen." "Few in number." As it says in the Torah: When your fathers went down to Egypt, they were seventy people, and now, the Lord, your God, has made you as many as the stars of the heavens. "And he became a nation there." This teaches us that the Children of Israel stood out in Egypt as a different nation.1 "Great, mighty." As it says in the Torah: the Children of Israel were fruitful because their babies did not die; they increased greatly because they had six children from one pregnancy; they multiplied and became very, very mighty, and the land

Hebrew

וַיֶּעֶצְמוּ בִּמְאֹד מְאֹד וַתִּמָּלֵא
הָאָרֶץ אֹתָם. "וָרָב," כְּמָה
שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וָאֶעֱבֹר עָלַיִךְ וָאֶרְאֵךְ
מִתְבּוֹסֶסֶת בְּדָמָיִךְ, וָאֹמַר לָךְ
בְּדָמַיִךְ חֲיִי, וָאֹמַר לָךְ בְּדָמַיִךְ
חֲיִי. רְבָבָה כְּצֶמַח הַשָּׂדֶה נְתַתִּיךְ,
וַתִּרְבִּי וַתִּגְדְּלִי וַתָּבֹאִי בַּעֲדִי
עֲדָיִים, שָׁדַיִם נָכֹנוּ וּשְׂעָרֵךְ צִמֵּחַ,
וְאַתְּ עֵרֹם וְעֶרְיָה.

Sephardi

Vaye'etzmu bime'od me'od vatimale
ha'aretz otam. "Varav," kemah
shene'emar: Va'e'evor alayikh va'ereikh
mitboseset bedamayikh, va'omar lach
bedamayikh hayi, va'omar lach bedamayikh
hayi. Revavah ketzemah hasadeh netatikh,
vatirbi vatigdeli vatavo'i ba'adei
adayim, shadayim nakhnu use'arekh tzimeah,
ve'at eirom ve'eryah.

English

became filled with them. "And numerous." As the prophet Ezekiel said in the name of God: I passed over you and saw you lying in your blood, and I said to you, "As much as they torture you and make you bleed, that's how much you will live and multiply," and I said to you, "As much as they torture you and make you bleed, that's how much you will live and multiply." And indeed, I caused you to flourish and multiply like the plants of the field, and you increased and grew and became very beautiful; your body matured, your hair grew long, and you became a strong nation. The time came to redeem you, but you were naked and bare of any mitzvot.

Hebrew

וַיָּרֵעוּ אֹתָנוּ הַמִּצְרִים וַיְעַנּוּנוּ,
וַיִּתְּנוּ עָלֵינוּ עֲבֹדָה קָשָׁה.
"וַיָּרֵעוּ אֹתָנוּ הַמִּצְרִים," כְּמָה
שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: הָבָה נִתְחַכְּמָה לוֹ, פֶּן
יִרְבֶּה, וְהָיָה כִּי תִקְרֶאנָה מִלְחָמָה,
וְנוֹסַף גַּם הוּא עַל שֹׂנְאֵינוּ, וְנִלְחַם
בָּנוּ וְעָלָה מִן הָאָרֶץ. "וַיְעַנּוּנוּ,"
כְּמָה שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וַיָּשִׂימוּ עָלָיו שָׂרֵי
מִסִּים לְמַעַן עַנֹּתוֹ בְּסִבְלֹתָם, וַיִּבֶן
עָרֵי מִסְכְּנוֹת לְפַרְעֹה, אֶת פִּתֹם
וְאֶת רַעַמְסֵס. "וַיִּתְּנוּ עָלֵינוּ
עֲבֹדָה קָשָׁה," כְּמָה שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר:
וַיַּעֲבִדוּ מִצְרַיִם אֶת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל

Sephardi

Vayare'u otanu haMitzrim vaye'anunu,
vayitenu aleinu avodah kashah.
"Vayare'u otanu haMitzrim," kemah
shene'emar: Havah nithakkemah lo, pen
yirbeh, vehayah ki tikrenah milchamah,
venosaf gam hu al soneinu, venilham
banu ve'alah min ha'aretz. "Vaye'anunu,"
kemah shene'emar: Vayasimu alav sarei
missim lema'an anoto besivlotam, vayiven
arei miskenot leFar'oh, et Pitom
ve'et Raamses. "Vayitenu aleinu
avodah kashah," kemah shene'emar:
Vaya'avidu Mitzrayim et B'nei Yisrael

English

The Torah continues in the following verse: The Egyptians treated us badly, they made us suffer, and they made us do hard work. "The Egyptians treated us badly." Not only did they make them suffer, but they made a point of looking for ways to harm the Jewish Nation. As it says in the Torah: Pharaoh said to the Egyptians, "Come, let us deal with the Jewish Nation in a sly way so that they will not multiply. Because if a war were to break out, they would join our enemies, fight against us and conquer us, and then leave the land." "They made us suffer." As it says in the Torah: The Egyptians appointed supervisors over the Jewish Nation to make them suffer by making them do the hard work the Egyptians needed, and they built