Miracles as creation's true purpose

והנה באמת כל הנסים והנפלאות ושינוי הטבע שנעשה אח"כ לא הי' במקרה ובהשתנות ח"ו.

Now, in truth, all the miracles and wonders and changes of nature that occurred afterward were not by chance or by a change [in Hashem's plan], chas v'shalom.

The Sefas Emes stresses that the miracles of the Exodus were not a deviation from the natural order, God forbid, as if Hashem had to alter His original design.

רק אדרבא זה עיקר סדר העולם שרצה הוא ית' לברוא באופן זה.

Rather, on the contrary, this is the very order of the world that He, may He be blessed, willed to create in this manner.

The capacity for miracles was built into creation from the start; the nes is part of the world's deepest design, not an exception to it.

אבל רצה הקב"ה לזכות את בני ישראל ושהמה יהיו שלוחים להוציא מכח אל הפועל רצונו יתברך בעולם.

But the Holy One wished to grant merit to Bnei Yisrael, that they should be the shluchim (agents) to bring His blessed will from potential into actuality in the world.

Hashem chose to give Bnei Yisrael the privilege of being His emissaries, the ones through whom His hidden will is actualized in the world.

א"כ נמצא שתכלית הבריאה הי' זה הביטול של הטבע והוא גמר הבריאה כמו שבת.

If so, it emerges that the purpose of creation was this nullification of nature, and it is the completion of creation, like Shabbos.

The whole goal of creation was that nature itself be nullified before Hashem's will — and this bittul of the natural order is creation's fulfillment, just as Shabbos completes the week.

ולכן נק' פסח שבת.

Therefore Pesach is called "Shabbos."

Because the Exodus brought creation to its purpose, Pesach bears the name Shabbos — both mark the completion of Hashem's work.

וז"ש חז"ל שהתחיל בבראשית משום כח מעשיו הגיד לעמו כו'.

This is what Chazal said, that [the Torah] began with Bereishis because of "the power of His deeds He told to His people…"

Rashi's question of why the Torah opens with creation is answered: it is to reveal that Hashem, as Creator, has the power to give the world to His people — the same power displayed in the Exodus.

וכבר כתבנו מזה במ"א.

And we have already written of this elsewhere.

He notes that he has discussed this idea in another place.

וכמ"ש חז"ל בפסוק אתם ראיתם אשר עשיתי למצרים.

And as Chazal said on the verse, "You have seen what I did to Mitzrayim."

He brings a teaching of Chazal on this verse to support his point.

שלא נפרעתי מהם כי אם על ידכם.

"That I exacted punishment from them only through you."

Hashem says the retribution against Mitzrayim was carried out specifically by means of Bnei Yisrael — they were the agents of the judgment.

וכן יש לדייק בלשון שנאמר וים סוף להם בקעת.

And likewise one may note the precise wording, "and the Sea of Reeds You split for them."

He draws attention to the exact phrasing of the verse describing the splitting of the Yam Suf.

ולפי דקדוק הלשון הי' צריך לומר וים סוף בקעת להם.

According to the grammar, it should have said, "and the Sea of Reeds You split for them" [in the other order].

The word order is unusual — "for them" precedes "You split" — which calls for explanation.

אך הרמז כי מעולם הי' מוכן לבקוע הים.

But the hint is that the sea was prepared to split from the very beginning of the world.

The unusual order teaches that the sea's splitting was latent in creation from the outset — it was always ready to happen.

אבל רצה הקב"ה שיהי' בקיעת הים לישראל לזכותם.

But the Holy One wished that the splitting of the sea should be "for Yisrael," to grant them merit.

Although the sea was always prepared to split, Hashem arranged for it to split through and for Bnei Yisrael, so the merit would be theirs.

וז"ש להם בקעת שאותו תיקון העולם והים עשית על ידיהם כמ"ש:

This is the meaning of "for them You split" — that this rectification of the world and the sea You accomplished through them, as stated.

The phrase "for them You split" teaches that the tikkun of the world, embodied in the sea's splitting, was brought about specifically through Bnei Yisrael as Hashem's agents.

Summary: The miracles of the Exodus were no deviation from nature but the very purpose for which Hashem created the world — the bittul of nature before His will, the "completion" that makes Pesach a kind of Shabbos. Hashem chose to grant Bnei Yisrael the merit of being His shluchim, actualizing His hidden will: both the punishment of Mitzrayim and the splitting of the sea (latent in creation from the start) were accomplished specifically "through them" and "for them," so that the world's rectification would be credited to Bnei Yisrael.