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Shemos 1:21 · unit 1

Parashas Shemos · Passuk 1:21

The Complete Passuk

וַיְהִ֕י כִּֽי־יָרְא֥וּ הַֽמְיַלְּדֹ֖ת אֶת־הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים וַיַּ֥עַשׂ לָהֶ֖ם בָּתִּֽים׃

And it was, because the midwives feared God, that He made them houses.

Chabad.org — 1:21

Source Citation

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

Sefaria — Sotah 11b

Core Text of Chazal

Core Text — Sotah 11b

ויעש להם בתים — פליגי בה רב ושמואל, חד אמר בתי כהונה ולויה – אהרן ומשה, וחד אמר בתי מלכות, משום דדוד המלך נמי ממרים קאתי.

English: “And He made them houses” — Rav and Shmuel disagree. One said houses of kehunah and leviyah — Aharon and Moshe; the other said houses of kingship, because David the king also descended from Miriam.

On the daf / in context: The reward for the midwives’ fear of God is read as dynastic continuity: either the priestly/Levitical line through Moshe and Aharon, or the royal line through David (via Miriam). Both outcomes are historically true; the Amoraim differ on which the verse primarily intends.

Type of Learning

Custom — dual identification of the “houses.”

What Is Learned

Chazal teach that the midwives’ courage was rewarded with lasting “houses” — either the priestly and Levitical leadership or the Davidic monarchy that sprang from their line.

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