תהלים, פרק ק״ה, פסוק כ״ד

God's care for the Israelites during their time in Egypt took the form of an extraordinary population boom, transforming a small family into a powerful nation. God took direct and active steps to multiply His people to a remarkable degree [אבן עזרא, מלבי״ם]. The primary approach among commentators is that God strengthened the Israelites until they became vastly more numerous and powerful than the Egyptians themselves. The Egyptians are described as enemies based on their ultimate future, as they only turned into hostile oppressors at a later stage [רד״ק, מאירי].

Offering a different perspective, this dynamic was not merely a numerical comparison between the two nations, but rather the actual cause of the Israelites' growth. The strength of the people blossomed precisely out of the suffering inflicted by their oppressors. The more they were tortured, the more they multiplied, reflecting a unique blessing of growth granted by God exclusively to the Israelites and withheld from the Egyptians [אלשיך].

This incredible surge in population carried direct historical consequences. The reality of the Israelites becoming stronger than their host country is exactly what eventually caused the Egyptians to turn against them with hatred and deceit. This hostility was driven by two parallel motives: a deep national fear of a massive, powerful population, and a calculated desire to uproot their faith, preventing them from living as servants of God [מלבי״ם].