Two Steps To Freedom

Rashi in Mishpatim (21:6) explains why an eved ivri that wishes to remain after 6 years gets his ear pierced by the doorway, רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן הָיָה דּוֹרֵשׁ מִקְרָא זֶה כְּמִין חֹמֶר: מַה נִּשְׁתַּנּוּ דֶּלֶת וּמְזוּזָה מִכָּל כֵּלִים שֶׁבַּבַּיִת? אָמַר הַקָּבָּ"ה דֶּלֶת וּמְזוּזָה שֶׁהָיוּ עֵדִים בְּמִצְרַיִם כְּשֶׁפָּסַחְתִּי עַל הַמַּשְׁקוֹף וְעַל שְׁתֵּי הַמְּזוּזוֹת וְאָמַרְתִּי כִּי לִי בְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל עֲבָדִים – עֲבָדַי הֵם וְלֹא עֲבָדִים לַעֲבָדִים – וְהָלַךְ זֶה וְקָנָה אָדוֹן לְעַצְמוֹ, יֵרָצַע בִּפְנֵיהֶם. The Chizkuni asks this was not said when Hashem skipped over the doorways of Klal Yisrael, this passuk is only said later on in parshas Behar? 

The pessukim in Yirmiyahu (34:13-14) say אָנֹכִ֗י כָּרַ֤תִּֽי בְרִית֙ אֶת־אֲב֣וֹתֵיכֶ֔ם בְּי֨וֹם הוֹצִאִ֤י אוֹתָם֙ מֵאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֔יִם מִבֵּ֥ית עֲבָדִ֖ים לֵאמֹֽר׃מִקֵּ֣ץ שֶׁ֣בַע שָׁנִ֡ים תְּֽשַׁלְּח֡וּ אִישׁ֩ אֶת־אָחִ֨יו הָעִבְרִ֜י אֲשֶֽׁר־יִמָּכֵ֣ר לְךָ֗ וַעֲבָֽדְךָ֙ שֵׁ֣שׁ שָׁנִ֔ים וְשִׁלַּחְתּ֥וֹ חׇפְשִׁ֖י מֵֽעִמָּ֑ךְ וְלֹֽא־שָׁמְע֤וּ אֲבֽוֹתֵיכֶם֙ אֵלַ֔י וְלֹ֥א הִטּ֖וּ אֶת־אׇזְנָֽם׃. We see that there is a bris forged at the time of leaving Egypt that one should send any slave that one own's to be freed in the year of shmittah. When did this bris happen? 

We see from other brisot that happened in the Torah such as bris milah and the bris at Har Sinai that it takes place with blood. The bris at yitzias mitzraim therefore, was the blood placed on the doorway. It was at this time that Hashem commanded not to keep an eved ivri forever because כי לי בני ישראל עבדים. It was at this time, at the time when G-d passed over the houses that a bris was made כי לי בני ישראל עבדים. (Based upon this article.) Why was this bris made then and what was its nature?

In the Haggadah we say a beracha at the end of Maggid על גאולתנו ועל פדיון נפשנו. What is the difference between גאולה and פדות? Rav Chayim explains that גאולה means a mere transfer of possession but פדות means an intrinsic change in the object. He says that in Egypt we were worked by the Egyptians but we also had the status of slaves. Geulah means that the bondage of slavery was broken, the servitude was negated. Yet that doesn't remove the status of slaves from Klal Yisrael. That is pedus. That is Hashem saying עבדי הם. That is what we say על גאולתנו for the negation of the actual work על פדיון נפשנו that our souls were saved, we were transferred from slaves of Pharaoh to servants of Hashem.

 

This idea of there being two types of freedom from the hands of the Egyptians in already found in the Gra. The Gra (Aderes Eliyahu Reah (13:6)) המוציא אתכם מארץ מצדים והפדך מבית עבדים. שב' גאולות היה ביציאת מצרים אחד בלילה והוא אתחלתא דגאולה שאמר משה לפרעה בלילה אם תרצה לפטור מיד מן המכות אמור להם בני חורין אתם. ולמחרת בעצם היום יצאו ממצרים ביד רמה ועל גאולת לילה היה פדיון של ישראל ממכת בכורו' כמ״ש כל בכוריהם הרגת ובכורך גאלת. וגאולה של יום הוא ביד רמה בחזקה לכך אמר המוציא אתכם ממצרים והוא ביום וזהו המוציא בעל כרחם. והפדך. הוא גאולת לילה שנתנו פדיון. וכן נאמר בישעיה הקצור קצרה ידי מפדות ואם אין בי כח להציל. ידי מפדות. הוא גאולה שע״י פדיון כמו במרדכי שניתן המן תחתיו. ובמצרים ניתנו בכוריהם תחת בכורי ישראל. לכך אמר לשון פדיון. ואם אין בו כח. הוא גאולה בלי פדיון. והוא ביד חזקה. It is clear from the Gra that the פדות took place at night, at the time of makkot bechorot. The גאולה took place during the day when Klal Yisrael actually walked out of Egypt. (The Gra is explaining the word pedus different than Rav Chayim, he is saying pedus means an exchange as opposed to geulah which means total redemption.) However, we see from the Gra that pedus is associated with the night and geulah with the day. In line with Rav Chayim that means that at night Klal Yisrael was taken out form the status of slaves to the Egyptians and entered into a bris with Hashem. The actual leaving of Egypt, the actual servitude itself only was entirely finished in the day. 

Rashi Yishayahu (43:3) supports the idea of the Gra that the pidyon took place at night. He says נתתי כפרך מצרים. והם היו לך לפדיון שבכוריהם מתו ואתה בני בכורי נצלת והייתם חייבים כליה כמו שנאמר (ביחזקאל כ׳:ח׳) ואומר לשפוך חמתי עליהם בארץ מצרים. It is during the night that the transfer from being slaves of Egypt to avadim of Hashem takes place. This is marked by the blood placed upon the doorpost which signified the bris of עבדי הם. 

That is why Klal Yisrael are given the mitzvot of milah and pesach. The Maharal explains that milah is the branding of Klal Yisrael as avadim to Hashem and pesach is the expression of that avdut by serving Hashem (see Gur Aryeh 12:6.) It was on the night of maakat bechorot that Klal Yisrael transferred from slaves of Egypt to servants of Hashem. (Mekoros from Yarech L'Moadim Pesach.)

 

It is also noteworthy that there were two steps to freedom. Everything could have taken place at night with Pharoah sending everyone out before further damage was done. However, that was not the case. Although בבהילו יצאנו ממצרים there was an order to how Klal Yisrael left. Hashem gave instructions exactly how the Pesach must be eaten with all of its laws and only the next day Klal Yisrael left during the daytime as is more apropos to travel. Everything has to be conducted כסדר. As Rav Yeruchem notes many times for anything to be successful there must be a סדר to it.