Moshe's Diplomatic Silence Before Edom

וְהָיָה֩ לְךָ֨ לְא֜וֹת עַל־יָדְךָ֗ וּלְזִכָּרוֹן֙ בֵּ֣ין עֵינֶ֔יךָ לְמַ֗עַן תִּהְיֶ֛ה תּוֹרַ֥ת יְהֹוָ֖ה בְּפִ֑יךָ כִּ֚י בְּיָ֣ד חֲזָקָ֔ה הוֹצִֽאֲךָ֥ יְהֹוָ֖ה מִמִּצְרָֽיִם׃

“And this shall serve you as a sign on your hand and as a reminder on your forehead—in order that GOD’s Teaching may be in your mouth—that with a mighty hand GOD freed you from Egypt.

וַיּוֹצִאֵ֤נוּ יְהֹוָה֙ מִמִּצְרַ֔יִם בְּיָ֤ד חֲזָקָה֙ וּבִזְרֹ֣עַ נְטוּיָ֔ה וּבְמֹרָ֖א גָּדֹ֑ל וּבְאֹת֖וֹת וּבְמֹפְתִֽים׃

GOD freed us from Egypt by a mighty hand, by an outstretched arm and awesome power, and by signs and portents,

וַיִּשְׁלַ֨ח מֹשֶׁ֧ה מַלְאָכִ֛ים מִקָּדֵ֖שׁ אֶל־מֶ֣לֶךְ אֱד֑וֹם כֹּ֤ה אָמַר֙ אָחִ֣יךָ יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל אַתָּ֣ה יָדַ֔עְתָּ אֵ֥ת כׇּל־הַתְּלָאָ֖ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר מְצָאָֽתְנוּ׃ וַיֵּרְד֤וּ אֲבֹתֵ֙ינוּ֙ מִצְרַ֔יְמָה וַנֵּ֥שֶׁב בְּמִצְרַ֖יִם יָמִ֣ים רַבִּ֑ים וַיָּרֵ֥עוּ לָ֛נוּ מִצְרַ֖יִם וְלַאֲבֹתֵֽינוּ׃ וַנִּצְעַ֤ק אֶל־יְהֹוָה֙ וַיִּשְׁמַ֣ע קֹלֵ֔נוּ וַיִּשְׁלַ֣ח מַלְאָ֔ךְ וַיֹּצִאֵ֖נוּ מִמִּצְרָ֑יִם וְהִנֵּה֙ אֲנַ֣חְנוּ בְקָדֵ֔שׁ עִ֖יר קְצֵ֥ה גְבוּלֶֽךָ׃

From Kadesh, Moses sent messengers to the king of Edom: “Thus says your brother Israel: You know all the hardships that have befallen us; that our ancestors went down to Egypt, that we dwelt in Egypt a long time, and that the Egyptians dealt harshly with us and our ancestors. We cried to GOD—who, upon hearing our plea, sent a messenger who freed us from Egypt. Now we are in Kadesh, the town on the border of your territory.

אַרְצָה שֵׂעִיר שְׂדֵה אֱדוֹם. גִּבּוֹרָיו אֲדֻמִּים (נחום ב, ד): אַנְשֵׁי חַיִל מְתֻלָּעִים וגו'. וּפוֹרֵעַ מִמֶּנּוּ אָדֹם (שיר השירים ה, י): דּוֹדִי צַח וְאָדוֹם, בִּלְבוּשׁ אָדֹם (ישעיה סג, ב): מַדּוּעַ אָדֹם לִלְבוּשֶׁךָ.

He said to him: ‘Two starlings cannot sleep on one board.’ “To Esau his brother” – although he is Esau, he is his brother. “To the land of Se’ir, the field of Edom” – he is ruddy, his cooked food is red, his land is red, his mighty are red, his garment is red, and a red one will exact retribution from him in red garments. He is ruddy – “the first emerged ruddy” (Genesis 25:25); “his cooked food is red” – “feed me please from that red, red dish” (Genesis 25:30); “his land is red” – “to the land of Se’ir the field of Edom”; “his mighty are red” – “mighty ones are colored scarlet…” (Nahum 2:4); and a red [adom] one will exact retribution from him – “my beloved is clear and ruddy [adom]” (Song of Songs 5:10); in red garments – “why is there red on your garments?” (Isaiah 63:2).

אתה ידעת את כל התלאה. היו ישראל מפתים אותם בדברים כאדם שמספר לפני אהבו וקרובו תלאותיו ומספר לו מאורעיו לפי שישים אל לבו וירחם עליו:

They were hoping for a little compassion from Edom, their brother.

כה אמר אחיך ישראל. כלומר אחים היינו בני אברהם שנאמר לו (בראשית ט״ו:י״ג) כי גר יהיה זרעך, ועל שנינו היה החוב מוטל לפרוע. אתה ידעת את כל התלאה אשר מצאתנו. לפיכך פירש אביכם מעל אבינו, שנאמר (שם לו) וילך אל ארץ מפני יעקב אחיו, מפני שטר חוב המוטל עליו והטילו על יעקב לבדו לפיכך סבלנו רעות רבות.

כה אמר אחיך ישראל, “thus said your brother Israel, etc.” Moses referred to the time when Esau and Yaakov were brothers, described as the sons of Avraham. Seeing that in Genesis 15,13 G’d had told Avraham: “your descendants will be strangers, etc.,” it is clear that Esau too was included in that prediction. It had therefore been Esau’s fate to share this status of being strangers and being enslaved. אתה ידעת את כל התלאה אשר מצאתנו “You know of all the hardship that has befallen us” This is why Esau parted ways with his brother Jacob, so as to avoid sharing in the predicted difficulties. The least he could do to help his erstwhile brother complete his redemption was to allow the Israelites passage. Moses’ argument was that seeing that the Israelites, i.e. a single member of Avraham’s offspring had paid the whole price of the prediction at the covenant of the pieces, the least the Edomites could do was to let them pass through their land.

וישלח משה מלאכים פירש כאן השליחות שחסר בפ׳‎ דברים ויש כאן כמה דברים עניינים שהם עניים כאן והם עשירים בפרשת דברים.

וישלח משה מלאכים, “Moses dispatched messengers;” the Torah here explains in detail what Moses refers to in Deuteronomy at the beginning of chapter two there. Some details missing there have been supplied here, whereas others have been augmented there but omitted here.