The Cups and the Land
Overview
Within the sacred verses of Shemot 6:5–8 lies a cosmic ladder—four Divine utterances that echo not only through the Y’tzi’at Mitzrayim but through the entirety of human ascent.
These cups not only teach us about the process of deliverance and redemption that can be experienced here below but also the spiritual redemption every soul longs for.
Shemot 6:5-8 Furthermore, I have heard the groaning of the B’ne Yisrael, whom the Mytzrayim are enslaving, and I have remembered My covenant. (with Abraham)
6 Therefore tell the B’ne Yisrael: “I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Mytzrayim and deliver you from their bondage. I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment. 7 I will take you as My own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of Mitzrayim. 8And I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, Yitzchaq, and Ya’aqob. I will give it to you as a possession. I am the LORD!”
- “I will bring you out”
- “I will deliver you”
- “I will redeem you with an outstretched arm”
- “I will take you to myself”
To the sages of the So’od tradition, these are not merely historical promises—they are encoded invitations to spiritual evolution, reflective of the journey of the Neshamah through the four worlds: Asiyah, Yetzirah, Beriah, and Atzilut. But there is a fifth whisper, hidden like a sealed scroll behind the veil. That whisper is found in B’resheet 12:7:
- “To your seed I will give this land.”
- Gen 1:1
- The Garden
- Eretz Yisrael
- A hint, a land flowing with mily and honey.
- The Makom (B’resheet 22:4), on the third day 22:11, 16, 17, 19
Moshe begs G-d to “see His Glory”
Exodus 33:20–23 20But He said, “You cannot see My face; for no man will see Me, and live.” 21 And the Lord said, “Here is a place by Me, and you will stand on the rock. 22 So it will be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. 23 Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face will not be seen.”
- New Heavens
- Yet Even this land will not suffice as the final home.
This fifth statement is not read at the table. It is not drunk from the cup. It is the concealed covenant—the Kos shel Eliyahu, the cup that remains untouched, awaiting its time. Let us now ascend the ladder rung by rung, exploring what the mystical masters have unveiled from behind the curtain. (p. 67)
Ezekiel 36:24–29 For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. 25 Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. 28 Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God. 29 I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses. I will call for the grain and multiply it, and bring no famine upon you.
Revelation 22:1–5 And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb. 2 In the middle of its street, and on either side of the river, was the tree of life, which bore twelve fruits, each tree yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3And there will be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His servants will serve Him. 4 They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. 5 There will be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. And they will reign forever and ever.
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