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When the Egyptians were chasing the Israelites, Rashi says they did so "with one heart as one man" (Shemot 14:10):

נסע אחריהם: בלב אחד כאיש אחד

When the Israelites stood at the foot of Har Sinai, he uses a similar language (Shemot 19:2) except that the language is switched to "as one man with one heart":

ויחן שם ישראל: כאיש אחד בלב אחד

Why the difference?

Lee
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SimchasTorah
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1 Answers1

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The Egyptians had such a united purpose ("b'lev echad"), namely to attack the Jews, that it was as if they were one unit ("k'ish echad.")

The Jews don't always agree with each other, but respected one another as parts of a greater whole ("k'ish echad"), it's as if they had a common purpose ("b'lev echad.")

Shalom
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