Loneliness can be more painful than any physical suffering. Yet it’s a challenge we often overlook—both in ourselves and in recognizing it in others. Even in a world more connected than ever, many people feel isolated—unseen, unheard, and alone.
As we read about the Ten Plagues, many commentators note a clear progression: each plague intensifies the suffering of the Egyptians. In this week’s Parshas Bo, we encounter the final three, culminating in the devastating death of the Egyptian firstborns. Yet one of the plagues—Choshech, darkness—seems almost out of place. It does not inflict physical pain to people or damage to the land. Even according to the Midrash, which describes three days of thick darkness during which the Egyptians were immobilized, it still seems less severe than the plagues that caused widespread destruction and suffering.
Rav Shabsi Yudelevitz offers a profound insight. Throughout the first eight plagues, the Egyptians could find some measure of comfort in each other’s presence. Despite the pain and hardship, families and friends could gather together, share the burden, and face suffering as a group. They were not alone.
That changed with Choshech. The darkness isolated each person completely—frozen in place, unable to move, unable to see, and cut off from everyone else. The experience of total isolation, of being utterly alone, was far more devastating than the physical hardships of the previous plagues.
Loneliness is one of the deepest forms of suffering, even when no physical harm exists. Conversely, simple presence can be an extraordinary source of comfort. Being available, reaching out, or offering a listening ear can mean far more than we realize. The plague of darkness reminds us that while we cannot always remove hardship from others’ lives, we can often ease it by ensuring that no one faces it alone. Sometimes, the most powerful response is simply refusing to let someone sit in the dark by themselves.
Good Shabbos,
Rabbi Shaps and the JET Team
Adapted from a Dvar Torah by Rabbi Yitzchak Kaminetsky of the Greater Washington Community Kollel
