שמות, פרק י׳, פסוק י״א

At the climax of the tense negotiations between the Israelite leaders and the Egyptian ruler, the dialogue completely breaks down. Attempting to dictate the terms of the Israelites' worship, the king refuses to release the entire nation and ultimately ends the encounter with a sudden expulsion. Responding to the demand to take everyone, the ruler rejects the inclusion of the children and permits only the adult males to leave.

The primary approach among commentators is that this limitation stems from several distinct motivations. Politically, keeping the women and children in Egypt serves as collateral, ensuring that the men will return rather than escape entirely [בכור שור, חזקוני]. Additionally, the king clings to the previous counsel of his advisors, who had suggested sending the men, and he chooses to interpret their advice in the narrowest, most literal sense [קאסוטו]. On a conceptual level, the ruler's response exposes a profound ideological divide. He believed that religious life and spiritual service were the exclusive domain of adult men, making them the only ones fit to offer sacrifices. This stands in stark contrast to the Jewish perspective, which views women and children as an inseparable part of religious practice and experience [העמק דבר, חומש קה״ת]. However, from a strictly ritual standpoint, some commentators note that during that era, only men were indeed ritually qualified to perform the specific sacrificial service at an altar [צפנת פענח].

The monarch justifies his restriction by claiming he is merely granting what the leaders originally requested. Commentators explain his reasoning in three main ways. The most common approach suggests that the king is referring directly to the act of serving God and offering sacrifices. He argues that since Moses and Aaron previously declared their sole purpose was to sacrifice, and since women and children do not typically perform these rites, there is no need for them to go. If the request to sacrifice is genuine and not a cover for escape, the men alone are sufficient [רש״י, רשב״ם, ביאור שטיינזלץ, הכתב והקבלה]. Another perspective interprets the king's words as a reference to a looming disaster or punishment he had mentioned earlier. According to this view, he assumes the Israelites are going to pray for mercy to avert an impending catastrophe, making it illogical to endanger the children by bringing them into a hazardous environment [אבן עזרא, מלבי״ם]. A third approach frames the ruler's statement as an analysis of negotiation tactics. He accuses Moses and Aaron of bargaining like marketplace merchants, demanding the exorbitant price of taking the entire nation and all their property just to force a compromise. In his eyes, their true goal from the very beginning was simply the release of the men [תולדות יצחק, בכור שור, פרדס יוסף].

The encounter concludes in a blunt and humiliating manner as the Israelite leaders are driven from the royal presence. Commentators ask why Moses and Aaron waited to be expelled rather than leaving on their own accord. The explanation lies in royal protocol. Because the king had previously sent a special messenger to summon them back, court etiquette strictly forbade them from departing without explicit permission [ריב״א, הדר זקנים]. Regarding the actual expulsion, there is broad agreement that the king did not physically rise and push them out himself. Instead, the forceful removal was carried out by his bodyguards or palace servants, as was customary in royal courts [רש״י, מזרחי, שפתי חכמים, קאסוטו]. This sudden, violent act occurred because God strengthened the ruler's resolve. Operating under the illusion that the danger of the plagues had passed and that he would suffer no further harm, the king acted with renewed audacity [ביאור יש״ר, חזקוני].