You have seen what I did to Egypt": I am not speaking to you from tradition. They (i.e., their punishment) is not written down for you. I am not sending you missives. I am not producing witnesses. But you yourselves have seen what they were guilty of — idolatry, illicit relations, and the spilling of blood. In the past, I did not exact punishment of them. (I did so) only for your sakes. "and I bore you on eagles' wings": R. Eliezer says: This refers to the day of the exodus, when all of them were gathered together and came to Ramses in an instant [in the twinkling of an eye]. "and I brought you to Me": before Mount Sinai.⁠a R. Akiva says: It refers to the day of the giving of the Torah, when Israel recoiled twelve mil and returned twelve mil — so that they "traveled" twenty-four mil for each pronouncement. "and I will bring you" — to the Temple. Variantly: "and I bore you on eagles' wings": How is the eagle different from all other birds? All other birds keep their young under their feet, fearing other birds that fly above them — unlike the eagle, who fears man alone, that he not shoot an arrow at him. Better that it strike it and not its young. An analogy: A man was walking on the road leading his son before him, when robbers came to snatch his son — whereupon he placed him behind him — whereupon a wolf came to snatch him from behind — whereupon he placed him before him. Robbers before him and a wolf behind him, he took his son and placed him on his shoulder, viz.: (Devarim 1:31) "… and in the desert, where you saw how the L rd your G d bore you, as a man bears his son.