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Shemos 1:8 · unit 1

Parashas Shemos · Passuk 1:8

The Complete Passuk

וַיָּ֥קָם מֶֽלֶךְ־חָדָ֖שׁ עַל־מִצְרָ֑יִם אֲשֶׁ֥ר לֹֽא־יָדַ֖ע אֶת־יוֹסֵֽף׃

A new king arose over Egypt who did not know Yosef.

Chabad.org — 1:8

Source Citation

Torah Temimah points to Rav and Shmuel — Sotah 11a (verified).

Sefaria — Sotah 11a

Core Text of Chazal

Core Text — Sotah 11a

פליגי רב ושמואל, חד אמר חדש ממש, וחד אמר שנתחדשו גזירותיו.

English: Rav and Shmuel disagree. One said [it was] a new [king] in the literal sense; the other said that his decrees were renewed.

On the daf / in context: The disagreement turns on the absence of the usual formula “and he died and X reigned.” One Amora takes “new” at face value; the other reads it as a renewal of policy by the same monarch. The page continues with the practical consequences for Bnei Yisrael.

Type of Learning

Custom — dispute over the plain sense of “new” versus a midrashic reading of renewed decrees.

What Is Learned

Chazal leave open whether a literally new Pharaoh arose or whether the existing ruler adopted a new, hostile policy. Either reading explains the sudden oppression.

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