[Avodah] free will

[Micha Berger]

On Thu, Jan 21, 2010 at 08:29:47AM +0200, Eli Turkel wrote:
: I understand Pharoh in that he had a chance to repent until now and so
: he has "gone over the edge"
: However, it is harder to say that the all the servants of Pharoh were on
: such a low level with no exceptions

Which is why I like the Seforno's (on Shemos 9:35) answer.

Having one's mind made up by nissim would be tampering with their
bechirah. What HQBH did was include in the neis an element that it
wouldn't pursuade them.

In http://www.aishdas.org/mesukim/5764/bo.pdf pp 1-2 I contrasted this
with R' Chanina ben Dosa, for whom Hashem did numerous nissim. But he
had a "He who ordered oil to burn can order vinegar to burn" attitude.
The nissim didn't prove anything to RCBD any more than teva -- he already
firmly viewed reality that way.

(I also discuss the difference in stubbornness implied by vayechezaq vs
vayachbeid, and why this happens specifically at shechin, when the
magicians are stumped.)

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

-- 
Micha Berger             I long to accomplish a great and noble task,
micha at aishdas.org        but it is my chief duty to accomplish small
http://www.aishdas.org   tasks as if they were great and noble.
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