Parshat Acharei Mot: Redemption of the Past
by Rabbi Lobel

(Exodus; Chapter 6, Verse 6-7) “Therefore, say to the Children of Israel, 'I am G-d, and I shall take you from under the burdens of Egypt, I shall rescue you from their service, I shall redeem you with an outstretched hand and with great Judgments. I shall take you to Me for a nation and I shall be a G-d to you.”

G-d is promising the Jewish nation salvation from Egypt. According to the Sforno (6:6), a commentary on the Torah, the actual redemption did not happen until the splitting of the Sea of Reeds. The Torah testifies, “On that day, Hashem saved Israel from the hand of Egypt, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore (Exodus 14-30).” The Sforno explains that, only after witnessing their slave masters dead, did the Jewish people feel redeemed and free from the Egyptian bondage. Till that point, they felt like runaway slaves.

It was not enough for G-d to create the miracles of the ten plagues and the splitting of the sea for Israel to feel as an independent people. G-d had to kill their masters, eradicate all of their past, in order for the Jewish nation to not just be free, but to feel free. The Jewish people needed a mentality change.

It is extremely difficult for an individual to change his attributes and way of thinking once he is accustomed and set in his ways. Israel still thought of themselves as slaves even when they were actually free. Like the Israelites, we all face an uphill battle when trying to change and improve ourselves.