Remember what Amalek did to you, on your way out of Egypt. When they that happened upon you on the way, they cut off those lagging to your rear, and you were tired and exhausted...

It would appear from the simple reading of the verse that Amalek just ‘happened’ to encounter the Jews on their exit from Egypt and on the spur of the moment decided to take take advantage of the situation to slaughter a few Jews. But that certainly wasn’t the case. They clearly calculated this surprise attack in order to quash any notion of the Jew’s invincibility. So why does the Torah describe it as a ‘chance’ encounter?

The Torah also seems to be taking the Amalekites to task for preying on the Jewish nation while they were ‘tired and exhausted’. Did the Torah actually expect this enemy to have waited until the Jew’s restored their strength and would be able to fight ‘fair and square’, before taking them on? Is that the whole problem with Amalek that they didn’t give us a ‘fighting chance’?

How were the Amalekites able to penetrate the miraculous protective Clouds of Glory, that completely surrounded the Jewish nation from all sides, to attack these poor souls?

A fascinating Midrash reveals a most intriguing tactic the Amalekites utilized in luring their unsuspecting victims.

This phrase אשר 'קרך' , which is translated as indicating an unexpected encounter, ‘that happened to you’, is rendered by Rabbi Nechemya to mean: that ‘summoned’ you. The word קרך is read as if an alef was inserted, thus קראוך, with the root word, קרא, meaning to call or summon, inferring Amalek having ‘called’ them out to them from beneath the protective cloud.

What ‘bait’ did they employ to entice them out to leave the safety of the Clouds of Glory?

Rabbi Nechemya reveals that these clever Amalekites had plumbed the archives in Egypt, researching the papyrus scrolls the Egyptians had meticulously kept during the early years of the slavery, when monetary incentives were still given to those who would produce bricks most proficiently. They apparently recorded each Jew by name with their respective grades in brick production.

These Amalekites would stand outside the protective cloud, equipped with the privileged information they possessed, calling out people by their specific name telling them, ‘we are your brothers, we want to engage in lucrative commerce with you’, as the Jews were obviously very industrious and talented, as evidenced in their recorded successes. They fell for the bait leaving the security of the clouds and were quickly dispatched by this vile and conniving enemy.

מדרש תנחומא כי תצא ט, מדרש מכתב יד הובא בתורה שלמה שמות א אות צט)

Was the mere temptation of financial success all it took for the Amalekites to dupe these innocent victims?

This play on words, transforming the word קרך; that happened, into קראוך; that called you, seems strange. Is it merely the sharing of two letters in their respective roots, קרה, happening, and קרא, calling, enough to invite this novel interpretation? Or might there be a deeper connection between these two words?

Man naturally pines for prominence and purpose. Were we fully cognizant of the relationship we are privileged to have with G-d every moment of our life, in every facet of our life, we would react exuberantly to that reality. Every breath we inhale is a direct gift from G-d. Our ability to think, see, smell, hear, feel and taste is laden with the same excitement and thrill we experience when observing the marvel of a newborn infant taking its first breath and uttering that joyous cry of life from its healthy lungs. If only we could actually see G-d’s hand orchestrating every detail in our life, we would need nothing more to feel worthy about ourselves. We would eagerly and lovingly devote our lives to absorbing with ever greater anticipation the happiness that stems from delving into the endless brilliance of Torah and the warmth that emanates from being embraced by His presence when standing in prayer before Him.

But that requires extraordinary consciousness to be able to remain inspired by that notion. Because we are beasts of habit and wane in that awareness, we instead seek out fresh and exciting experiences, events and opportunities in life, that provide us with the goals for achievement and singularity that we need to soothe these instincts that exist within our craving souls.

The great 18th century German Dayan and scholar, Rav Shlomo Papenheim in his famous work Yerios Shlomo, a study of Hebrew synonyms, that is quoted by the great Gaonim, Rav Yaakov Zvi Mecklenberg and the Malbim, makes a fascinating observation regarding many words that possess the root קר.

Whenever one experiences a direct and mighty encounter with an event, circumstance or situation that leaves a strong impression on the one involved, the Torah employs the root קר.

An accident, where one suddenly encounters the reality of the unexpected and its consequences, leaving one in shock is called a מקרה, for this very reason.

מים קרים על נפש עיפה (משלי כה כה), As cold water on a tired soul. The encounter of cold water upon a hot and weary body startles the senses refreshingly. The concept of ‘cold’ is thus expressed with the word קר.

When one comes upon something very rare, leaving one impressed by its exquisiteness, we refer to that item as something יקר, precious.

The words one calls out to grab the attention of another in prodding a reaction is called קרא, to call and summon.

The horn an animal uses to protect itself by forcefully presenting it against its target so it will react by retreating is therefore called a קרן.

We can to choose to be conscious of the privilege we have to encounter excitement with; every breath that we take; every word of Torah we absorb; every face to face encounter with G-d we have when we stand before Him, literally, in prayer; every act of kindness we are fortunate to be involved in, and be stirred by that notion to nourish our soul’s thirst for genuine stimulation.

Or we can become habitual in our service, doing things by rote, neglecting to pay attention to the excitement we are afforded every living moment. We then seek out opportunities that will satiate our need for identity and accomplishment. So often we will turn to those circumstances that can only give temporal happiness and achievement leaving us bankrupt in our spiritual bank accounts.

The דור הדעה, the Generation of Knowledge, those who travelled in the course of forty years in the desert in the absolute presence of G-d, were able to remain cognizant of that relationship and find purpose and excitement in constantly elevating that awareness.

But there were those who became tired and exhausted and couldn’t maintain that focus on a constant basis. It takes much effort. These succumbed to the enticements of the crafty Amalekim who knew too well how to play on their weakness, seeking to excite them with success, stature and a sense of accomplishment within a material and very limited world. They aroused within these weakened and vulnerable souls a drive to utilize their natural talents in arenas far removed from any spiritual values or noble goals.

The Chasam Sofer says this is exactly what the earlier verse is revealing to us:

אשר קרך בדרך, they ‘called’ out to you seducing you with opportunities for happiness and excitement in venues foreign to our values.

ואתה עיף ויגע, and they were able to succeed because you became tired and exhausted of the thrill in connecting to G-d with every breath that you take, and you sought rather to sate your soul’s instinctive craving for G-d among fields filled with poisonous and vacuous opportunity.

Even within our world of Torah and mitzvos we can often become ‘bored’ in our daily devotions, seeking other more ‘exciting’ opportunities in our service to G-d. This too is an element of Amalek that begins to seep in the cracks eventually eroding our satisfaction with the wealth of encounters we have each day with our Creator.

The Torah contrasts the call to Moshe, ויקרא אל משה (ויקרא א א), He called to Moshe, with that to Bilaam,  ויקר אלקים אל בלעם (במדבר כג ד), G-d happened upon Bilaam.

Bilaam had evidently reached heights of spiritual attainment but it was never viewed as more than an opportunity, a מקרה, a happening. Moshe on the other hand heard the calling at all the times, he sensed קרא, the constant call to him. The Sifrei states that one of the differences between Moshe’s prophecy and that of Bilaam was that Moshe was approached at any time and became aware only when G-d appeared to him, whereas Bilaam was notified that G-d was calling him and Bilaam knew He wanted to communicate with him.

There are those who are perhaps motivated spiritually but wait calmly for opportunity to come knocking on their door. The inspired however are waiting at the door, eager and cherishing every moment they exist.

May we certainly not seek our happiness in those foreign fields of endeavor. May we not wait for opportunity to come knocking at our door and may we rediscover once again the excitement every morsel of existence gives us in connecting to the Almighty at any given moment.

באהבה,

צבי טייכמאן