Immediately following the tremendous miracle of the splitting of the Red Sea, when, in the eyes of all the world, Israel appeared unstoppable, Amalek ambushes us, slaughtering the old and the defenseless until being finally defeated by the warriors of Israel under the leadership of Yehoshua. There is commentary on the portion of Devarim that we read before Purim as Parshat Zachor to the effect that Amalek couldn’t stand to see Israel ascendant. Therefore, even though they knew they couldn’t win the war, they sacrificed the lives of their young men and attacked just to show the other nations of the world that we were vulnerable.
In our parsha this week, we learn that Yehoshua “weakened” Amalek (“vayachalosh”) (Shemot 17:13). Maharal in Gevurot Hashem explains that Israel was not yet ready to destroy Amalek completely, so this was the best we could do. We will have more to say on this in a moment. However, understanding the broader context is key to making sense of this episode, which forms the basis for Maharal’s discussion. That in turn is part of his wider discussion of the Exodus from Mitzrayim and the mitzvot of Pesach.
Maharal explains that the war with Amalek is an essential link connecting the Exodus with the giving of the Torah. He bases this on the Gemara in Zevachim concerning “What Yitro heard” (116a). The splitting of the sea is of course the climax of the Exodus; it is followed immediately by the war with Amalek, after which Yitro arrives, presaging the assembly at Har Sinai. The Gemara relates three theories as to what Yitro heard to draw him to Israel. The opinion of Rabbi Yehoshua is that he heard of the war with Amalek. The other two opinions are that he heard of the giving of the Torah (following the theory that the Torah isn’t strictly chronological), or that he heard of the splitting of the sea. Maharal explains that there is a succession in all these events, expanding on the election of Israel as set apart from the other nations of the world as emissaries of the Creator.
At the splitting of the sea, we learn that Hashem is willing and able to overturn the laws of nature as He sees fit to intervene on behalf of His chosen people. Amalek objects to this and attacks us savagely and mercilessly – because it isn’t Israel they are challenging but the will of the Creator in setting Israel apart from the nations. Israel’s victory over Amalek (and our continued existence in the face of persecution) demonstrates that we aren’t only intellectually and spiritually distinct, but that we are truly a nation apart from all other races and nations. Finally, the giving of the Torah establishes the reason that validates and justifies Hashem’s decision to choose Israel and set us on our unique journey and destiny to transform humanity and set the stage for Redemption.
Maharal explains, as noted above, that the ultimate victory over Amalek will be the harbinger of the final redemption. It is only when the nations of the world accept the Divine decree and not take it upon themselves to war against Israel that they, and we, can achieve the purpose for which humanity was created. This is why Chazal teach (also on Parshat Zachor) that “the throne” of G-d and His Name cannot truly be one as long as the war against Amalek is unresolved and they have not been destroyed.
But Yehoshua was not given the power to destroy Amalek, as Israel and the rest of the human race were not ready for this. The same thing was true in the time of Shaul when he failed to destroy Amalek, and again with Mordechai and Esther, and again and again throughout history until the present day. The victory over Amalek is synonymous with the victory over evil in the world. Amalek seeks to destroy Israel because they oppose the ascendance of good as well as the imposition of absolute morality which distinguishes between good and evil. Israel can only win this war when we are prepared to lean into this dichotomy and to understand which side we serve.
The Ben Ish Chai in Ben Yehoyada, on the aforementioned passage in Zevachim, has another interesting insight into what drew Yitro to Israel at precisely this time. He notes many of the same connections as Maharal, and talks about the different stages in the development of the Jewish nation and our destiny. But he emphasizes Yitro’s decision to draw near, and in the words of the Gemara there, “to convert” to Judaism (an idea that we don’t encounter in too many other places and doesn’t seem to conform to the literal reading of the text).
The Ben Ish Chai explains that Yitro understood that from the time of the redemption, Israel would no longer accept converts. Thus, Yitro’s radical decision was not his acknowledgment of the election of Israel per se – according to which the Exodus ought to have been sufficient – but his recognition that he himself might have a part in that destiny. According to the Ben Ish Chai, the war with Amalek – the fact that they had the audacity to attack, and the fact that they were not utterly obliterated – demonstrated that the process of redemption was still underway. Accordingly, the time was auspicious for Yitro to become a part of this process and share in Israel’s destiny. Because the work was not finished, Yitro was, in effect, signing up to advance the project.