V’et AMALaynu, And our toil: How does the Haggadah conclude that the term AMALaynu, toil, must refer to children? The verb AMAL, to toil, is the similar to the expression used in the Book of Jonah: “Do you care more about a gourd for which you did not work (amal’ta) and which you did not grow…” Rashi explains the word amal’ta implies agricultural efforts, “‘for which you did not work;’ by planting, reaping, and harvesting, and watering.” Just as a farmer must toil to raise his crops, so a parent toils in raising his children. Here the word AMAL is used with regard to raising children: one must provide for them and work hard to marry them off. The term banim in this explanation applies to both sons and daughters, as in the verse “You are children (banim) to the Lord your God.” God saw that the Israelite boys were being cast into the Nile River and that the Israelite girls were being kept alive so that they could be used for licentious activities. This is implied in the proof text which says, “Cast every boy in the river…and let every girl live,” for the purpose of sexual favors. God, who knows the secrets of human beings hearts saw this and knew what Pharaoh’s intentions were.