Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Akiva: The analyses of these rabbis are equally good! Why do they disagree? Psalms 78:49 is taken from a chapter in which the Psalmist describes the plagues in Egypt. It describes the plagues and in the midst of the description, we find this verse which talks about the plagues more generally and not about any specific plague. We must conclude, therefore, that this verse applies to all the plagues and not to any one in particular. It suggests that each of the plagues had four or five different aspects to it. The two rabbis disagree about how one should read this verse. Rabbi Eliezer understands the first phrase from the verse, charon apo, “His fierce anger,” as an expression which refers to the other four expressions in the verse, while Rabbi Akiva understands this expression as one of five rather than a general statement followed by four statements. Rabbi Eliezer would point out that the first phrase is written in the possessive form, “HIS fierce anger,” while the others are not, suggesting that it is separate from the others. According to him, the verse should be read “He sent His fierce anger, that is – wrath, fury, trouble, and a band of emissaries of evil…” ‘The word ‘wrath’ is the first in the list of qualities of the plagues. Rabbi Akiva, on the other hand, is of the opinion that “His fierce anger” is but one of the list and is not meant to be read separately from the others. The presence of the pronoun here is not out of the ordinary and does not distinguish the first of this list from the others. The Shelah offers another interpretation. Rabbi Eliezer’s statement is based on the verse: “Please make ( sh’lach na b’yad) someone else as your agent. The nun and the dalet, the first and last letters of this phrase, are multiples of 200. Rabbi Akiva’s opinion, on the other hand, is the basis of his explanation on this number plus the addition of the plague itself in each case. Rabbi Akiva’s explanation can also be explained in the following way: Even though the plagues are referred to as the “finger of God,” in the case of the fifth plague the word hand is used. The appearance of both of these words with regard to the plagues in Egypt would seem to be contradictory. The use of the word yad with regard to the plagues is a reference to the fact that each of the plagues also has five aspects to it. Rabbi Eliezer, on the other hand, would base his proof on the verse from Psalms so that each of the plagues has only four aspects to it.