פרשת בא
ויהי בעצם היום הזה יצאו כל צבאות ה' מארץ מצרים | שמות י"ב, מ"א
It was on that very day that all the legions of Hashem left the land of Egypt
The term ‘the legions of Hashem’ connotes the group of Yidden who were on a lofty spiritual level. It is therefore appropriate to use the active form of the verb יצאו - they departed, since this group left of their own volition to escape the spiritual pollution of Egypt.
However, in possuk נ"א, the Torah writes הוציא ה' את בני ישראל מארץ מצרים.
Rav Yechezkel Abramski remarks that this group is not referred to as ‘the legions of Hashem’ but rather as a group of Yidden who considered remaining in Egypt, rationalizing that the surviving Egyptians would have improved their ways as a result of the plagues. Hashem had to forcibly extricate this group from Egypt, as indicated from the word הוציא - He took out.
We have students that are from both groups. It is our charge to distinguish between each and to address them accordingly.
About the Author: Rabbi Yisroel Meir Rubinfeld
Rabbi Rubinfeld has been in the field of Torah education for over 3 decades and serves as an Executive School Consultant for Torah Umesorah. He provides an array of services to schools across North America, including teacher and principal mentorship, school and curricula evaluations, professional development and parent education.
Rabbi Rubinfeld's expertise includes classroom management and discipline, effective instruction, bullying, cultivating sensitivity in the classroom, impulse disorders (such as ADHD and ODD), and balancing the educational needs of mainstream and special needs children in the classroom.
Rabbi Rubinfeld is the also the founder and director of Torah Umesorah's Lilmod U'Lilamed department which provides professional development for teachers and principals throughout the year.
Rabbi Rubinfeld is a talmid of the distinguished Yeshivos of Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin, the Mirrer Yeshiva in Yerushalayim and Bais Medrash Govoha in Lakewood.