Insight 5773-18: The Pattern of the Makkot

For Bo
Not yet available on the Nishma website.

Study Question

1) One question is the one mentioned in the footnote: why would hatra'ah apply here in the case of Divine punishment? A warning ensures the court that the sinner knew that his/her activity was against the Torah law, i.e. a sin. God would know this in any event, so why the warning in this case? A possibility is that a warning also informs the individual that the intended behaviour is a sin -- thus the warning before sin actually is intended also to possibly prevent the sin. Was that the case here? Or could we say, in this case, it was simply intended to inform Pharaoh of the law, one of which he may not have known?

2) We postulated a possible sin for Pharaoh in rejecting "specific aspects of the knowledge of God." Can there be a sin in not knowing something?