תהלים, פרק פ״א, פסוק ז׳

God's voice rings out, declaring a historic moment of liberation from crushing slavery to freedom. The primary approach among commentators is that this announcement points to the redemption of the Israelites from Egyptian bondage. According to tradition, the backbreaking labor of the slaves ceased exactly on the holiday of the New Year. Because of this timing, the blowing of the ram's horn on the holiday serves to recall this very event [תורה תמימה, מצודת דוד, רד״ק]. Alternatively, some scholars suggest the focus is specifically on Joseph. Both his release from the dungeon and the gradual easing of his harsh prison conditions also took place on the New Year [אלשיך, ביאור שטיינזלץ].

The promise of lifting the burden refers to the physical removal of heavy loads from tired shoulders [מצודת ציון]. For the Israelites, this meant they no longer had to haul clay and heavy bricks [רד״ק, אבן עזרא, מאירי]. For Joseph, it represented his ultimate freedom from the dungeon or the removal of the heavy iron chains that tortured him during his early days in captivity [אלשיך, ביאור שטיינזלץ].

The imagery of hands moving away from their tasks captures the exact moment the exhausting labor finally came to an end [אבן עזרא, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Commentators offer three distinct ways to understand the specific objects the hands were freed from, each reflecting a different aspect of the enslavement. One perspective views these objects as cooking pots [מצודת ציון]. In this light, the liberation was from domestic servitude, where slaves were forced to cook for their Egyptian masters [רש״י, מצודת דוד, מאירי], or, in Joseph's case, for the prison guards [אלשיך]. A second approach suggests the slaves were tasked with manufacturing the clay vessels themselves, as their labor extended beyond making bricks to include crafting all types of pottery and kettles [רד״ק, מאירי]. Finally, a third view understands these objects as the heavy baskets the slaves used to load and transport clay and bricks across the vast construction sites [אבן עזרא, ביאור שטיינזלץ].