The Exodus Narrative and the Four Children/2

Bondage and Exodus of the Four Sons

Exegetical Approaches

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The Wise Son: A Righteous Nation

The Israelites were righteous believers in God who had maintained a unique identity throughout their sojourn in Egypt.  They were eager to leave Egypt and follow Moshe, their spiritual leader.

Purpose of the Exile – The initial exile was aimed at preventing the assimilation of Yaakov's descendants in Canaan.  In Egypt, where the inhabitants were xenophobic and would not even eat with the Hebrews, let alone marry them,  the chances of assimilation were small.  This would allow the family to grow into a nation with its own unique identity. See Seforno and R. Hirsch in Purposes of the Egyptian Bondage.

Initial settlement in Goshen – Yaakov's family settled in Goshen so as to avoid mingling with the Egyptians and to ensure that they did not acculterate into the surrounding society.  See R. Saba, R. Hirsch, and Netziv  in Why Live in Goshen.

Did the Israelites stay in Goshen? The nation stayed in Goshen, segregated from the rest of the Egyptians, throughout their sojourn.  See the second opinion brought by R. D"Z Hoffmann in Where in Egypt Did the Israelites Live?

Purpose of the bondage – The bondage (as opposed to the exile) had an educational objective. By experiencing slavery themselves, the Children of Israel learned to feel empathy and care for the downtrodden and less fortunate members of society. The shared experience of suffering further fostered unity, strengthening them as a nation.  See Nechama Leibowitz and R. Hirsch in Purposes of the Egyptian Bondage.

Nature of the bondage – This approach can view the experience of slavery as either very harsh, with the people being slaves to both the State and individual Egyptians under severe conditions, or as a milder experience in which the people worked only in shifts and