[Avodah] Pesel Micah

[Yitzhak Grossman]

On Fri, 25 Jan 2008 01:17:25 -0500
Celejar <celejar at gmail.com> wrote:

> On Wed, 23 Jan 2008 21:39:49 -0500
> Micha Berger <micha at aishdas.org> wrote:
> 
> > On Mon, Jan 21, 2008 at 07:25:16AM -0800, Mordechai Goldstein wrote:
> > : Can someone tell me, the Pesel Micah, that went over by Krias Yam Suf,
> > : is this the same Pesel Micah in Shoftim?  In Shoftim it seems like a 
> > : new thing.
> > 
> > According to Medrash Rabba, this Mikhah was saved by Moshe Rabbeinu from
> > being used as a brick in Pitom or Raamseis, when the Mitzriyim started
> > using infants to replace bricks when the Jews didn't make quota.
> > 
> > He then stole the parchment containing the words "alei shur" which Moshe
> > put into the river to make Yoseif's aron rise to the service. (According
> > to another MR, this river was NOT the Ye'or. The Mitzriyim hid the aron
> > in another river, a tributary to the main Nile, to try to keep us from
> > leaving -- since we would never break our promise to Yoseif. Mazal,
> > a/k/a Serach bas Asher, told Moshe where he could find the aron.)
> > 
> > In the days of the Eigel, he took out the klaf and threw it into the
> > fire with the gold, which is how the eigel was na'asah on its own.
> > 
> > He was the same Mikhah as Pesel Mikhah in Shofetim.
> > 
> > So, it's not a "new thing", but rather a new instance of an old thing.
> > But I never heard of an actual pesel crossing the Yam Suf.

v'ha'ya zalmo shel Michah over imachem bayam -- Sh. Rabbah, beginning
of Ch. 24.  v'kaspo shel pessel Michah over bayam -- ibid. beginning of
Ch. 41.  The Bavli (San. 103b) contains an ambiguous passage, which
refers to the crossing of the Pessel according to one interpretation
offered by Rash.  The notes to the standard Medrash Rabbah cross
reference some other (presumably relevant) statements of Hazal.

> > Tir'u baTov!
> > -Micha

Yitzhak
--
Bein Din Ledin - bdl.freehostia.com
An advanced discussion of Hoshen Mishpat