Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, Rabbi of the Western Wall and Holy Sites
The Jewish people are currently marking one of the defining events in their history – the miracle of the Exodus from Egypt. It is the story of a nation of slaves that emerges into freedom from the most powerful empire of its time – a place no one had ever escaped.
Only a few days later, Pharaoh regrets his decision and sends his army in pursuit. The dramatic encounter takes place on the seventh day after the Exodus, at the shore of the Red Sea: the sea before them, the Egyptian army behind them, and the desert enclosing them from both sides. Fear intensifies, and some of the people want to return to Egypt.
At this moment of crisis, an act of extraordinary courage occurs: Nachshon son of Amminadav leaps into the turbulent waters with complete self-sacrifice. At the same time, Moses raises his staff and the sea splits in two. The children of Israel pass through the sea on dry land, while the Egyptians pursuing them drown in the waters.
Only then is the redemption complete – not only in reality, but also in their hearts. The danger has entirely passed, and fear is replaced by faith and joy. The children of Israel break into song – the “Song at the Sea” – a profound expression of recognition of the miracle and divine providence.
At this point, a fundamental question arises: why was the redemption not completed already at the moment of leaving Egypt? Could the Holy One, blessed be He, not have removed the danger entirely and prevented the Egyptians from pursuing the Israelites? Why was this additional stage of the splitting of the sea necessary?
The answer lies in a deep and foundational principle in Jewish thought: “measure for measure” – the idea that a person’s actions return to them in the same form. In modern language, this is sometimes called the “mirror effect”: reality reflects a person’s deeds back to them. In Eastern terminology, it is referred to as “karma” – what you do returns to you precisely.
The Egyptian injustice began with the cruel decree: “Every newborn boy shall be cast into the Nile.” The Egyptians sought to destroy the future of the Jewish people through water. Yet in the end, those very waters became the instrument of their downfall. The Egyptians themselves perished through the very means by which they had sought to destroy others.
This principle is sharpened particularly in the story of Jethro, Moses’ father-in-law, who comes to join the people of Israel after the Exodus. The Torah describes his words:
“And Jethro said: Blessed is the Lord, who has delivered you from the hand of Egypt and from the hand of Pharaoh, who has delivered the people from under the hand of Egypt. Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods, for in the very matter in which they acted maliciously against them…”
(Exodus 18:10)
Rashi, in his commentary on the Torah, writes:
“And Jethro heard – what report did he hear that he came? The splitting of the Red Sea and the war with Amalek…
For in the matter in which they acted maliciously – with water they sought to destroy them, and with water they themselves were destroyed. And our sages also interpreted it as the expression ‘Jacob cooked a stew’ (Genesis 25:29): in the very pot in which they cooked, they themselves were cooked.”
Jethro, a distinguished leader of high standing, was not impressed primarily by the plagues, but by the splitting of the Red Sea. There he clearly saw the principle of “measure for measure” operating in full force, and understood that there was deliberate divine guidance at work.
This idea gains further depth in the words of Rabbi Moshe Alsheikh, who explains that this is not only a matter of punishment, but also an opportunity for repair: a person can recognize the connection between their actions and their outcomes, and return to the proper path. Likewise, the principle operates on the positive side, as Rabbeinu Nissim ben Reuven wrote:
“The Blessed One desired this so that the concept of providence would be firmly established in the hearts of people; for if the good reward does not come in the same manner as the good deed, one might attribute it to chance or the natural order. But when the reward comes in the very same manner as the good deed, one knows that it is through divine providence and intention, to bestow good upon the righteous.”
(Drashot HaRan, Discourse Three)
In a modern and individualistic world, in which many feel that actions carry no broad consequences, it is easy to be drawn into the “rat race” – an unceasing pursuit of personal success, sometimes at the expense of others. Yet the story of the splitting of the Red Sea places a clear signpost: no action disappears.
Our sages expressed this simply: “With the measure a person measures – so it is measured to them.” A person shapes their own reality. Good begets good, generosity returns as generosity, and compassion creates a brighter world. When a person lives this way, they too merit moments of “splitting of the sea” in their lives – moments when the path opens before them, and obstacles fall away and disappear forever.
The eternal message of the Seventh Day of Passover is not only a story of the past, but a living mirror for the present: what we do returns to us. Let us think carefully before every action, and through this, attain our own personal redemption.
