Leaving Mitzrayim from the Inside

Dvar Torah for Shabbos Parshos Vaera

HaRav Dovid Sochet, shlit''a

The Chidushei HaRim, Rabbi Yitzchak Meir Alter of Gur, teaches that the redemption from Mitzrayim was not merely an escape from physical bondage. It was, first and foremost, a redemption of the inner soul.

Mitzrayim was not only a place of suffering—it was a place that could become bearable. Over time, the Jewish soul learned how to endure it, adjust to it, and carry on within it. This inner accommodation—the ability to tolerate exile—became the deepest form of enslavement.

This is why the Torah introduces the four expressions of redemption with the words:

וְהוֹצֵאתִי אֶתְכֶם מִתַּחַת סִבְלוֹת מִצְרָיִם

(שמות ו:ו)

The Chidushei HaRim explains that the word סִבְלוֹת—“burdens”—does not refer only to hard labor. Its root also means to bear, to endure, to tolerate.

Hashem was saying:

“I will take you out from the state of being able to live with Mitzrayim.”

As long as a person can still emotionally settle into exile, find comfort within it, or make peace with it, he is not yet free—even if the chains are gone. True redemption begins at the moment when exile becomes unbearable from within.

Maggid's Understanding of Redemption

This inner understanding of redemption already appears in the teachings of the Maggid of Mezritch. In Or Torah (Parshas Shemos), he explains that exile is a state of inner constriction (מיצר), and that as long as the soul can still contain its vitality within that constriction, it remains there.

Only when the soul can no longer tolerate its confinement does expansion begin—and that inner pressure itself draws redemption.

In the language of later Chassidic seforim: “As long as the soul finds rest in galus, it remains there.”

The Chidushei HaRim gives this principle sharp expression through his precise reading of the pasuk סִבְלוֹת מִצְרָיִם.

According to this Chassidic understanding, the four expressions of redemption are not repetitions of the same act. They are four stages in the healing and rebuilding of the Jewish soul: Four Inner Stages of Freedom.

1. וְהוֹצֵאתִי אֶתְכֶם מִתַּחַת סִבְלוֹת מִצְרָיִם

Breaking the Tolerance for Exile

This is the beginning of geulah. Before Hashem removes the Jew from Mitzrayim, He removes Mitzrayim from the Jew’s heart. The soul can no longer say, “This is manageable.”

There is a holy restlessness, a sacred discomfort. This is not yet freedom—it is awakening. The heart begins to feel that spiritual compromise is no longer possible.

Inner avodah: Developing a holy intolerance for spiritual stagnation.

2. וְהִצַּלְתִּי אֶתְכֶם מֵעֲבֹדָתָם

Release from Active Enslavement

Even after a person no longer wants exile, he may still be trapped in its habits and patterns. Here, Hashem rescues the Jew from the grip of forced behaviors—routines formed under pressure, fear, and survival.

This stage is not yet transformation; it is rescue.

Inner avodah: Breaking destructive habits, even before clarity or inspiration arrives.

3. וְגָאַלְתִּי אֶתְכֶם בִּזְרוֹעַ נְטוּיָה וּבִשְׁפָטִים גְּדֹלִים

Restoring Dignity and Identity

Redemption means reclaiming what was lost. Exile damages a person’s sense of self, spiritual confidence, and inner dignity. At this stage, Hashem declares:

“You belong to Me.”

Here, the true essence of Jewish identity is restored—not as a survivor of exile, but as an עֶבֶד ה׳.

Inner avodah: Learning to see oneself as an eved Hashem, with dignity and purpose.

4. וְלָקַחְתִּי אֶתְכֶם לִי לְעָם וְהָיִיתִי לָכֶם לֵאלֹקִים

True Connection and Devekut

Only now can true closeness exist. As long as Mitzrayim still lived inside the Jew—even as memory—there could be no full relationship.

At this stage, the bond with Hashem is no longer about escape or survival. It is about choice, love, and attachment. Not running from exile—but being drawn toward Hashem.

Inner avodah: Serving Hashem with joy, desire, and closeness.

This is the deeper meaning of Chazal’s teaching:

אין בן חורין אלא מי שעוסק בתור

True freedom is not merely intellectual study. It is total immersion and attachment to Torah, a life lived in constant connection with the Shechinah. One who is fully davuk in Torah has passed through all four inner stages of redemption and has truly left galus behind.

So too in our current state of galus: we have, in many ways, learned how to tolerate exile. We have adapted to distance, concealment, and spiritual compromise.

Leaving the Inner Mitzrayim

If we seek true closeness with Hashem, each of us must pass through these four stages within our personal galus—breaking our tolerance for distance, freeing ourselves from enslaving habits, restoring our inner dignity, and ultimately allowing ourselves to be drawn into a living relationship with Hashem.

May we merit that Hashem remove us from under the סִבְלוֹת מִצְרָיִם of our inner exile.

May He free us from every habit and attachment that binds us.

May He restore our dignity as His servants,

and take us close to Him with love, joy, and true דביקות.

And may we soon merit the complete geulah,

בִּמְהֵרָה בְיָמֵינוּ אָמֵן.