"When Pa'aroh sent out the [Jewish] people, who screamed 'woe'? Pa'aroh!
A parable: A prince traveled abroad and resided by a certain wealthy man who received him most generously. When the king found out exactly where and with who his son was, he sent the wealthy man letters requesting him to send his son back home. He sent a letter once, twice, thrice, until he finally went personally to fetch his son. Thereafter, the wealthy man started screaming and bemoaning the fact that the king's son had left his home. His neighbors asked him "why do you scream?"
He replied "As long as the king's son was with me, I was honored by regularly receiving letters from the king and by the mere fact that I was needed by the king; now that he is gone, the king needs me no more; I am nothing!"
So did Pa'aroh say "So long the Jews were with me, G-d needed me and regularly sent me letters, as it says 'So did G-d say send my people;'" Pa'aroh would hear these words from Moshe and did not want to send them. When G-d descended upon Egypt to redeem His children as it says "and I descended to save them from the hands of Egypt," Pa'aroh started to scream "Woe that I sent out the Jews!"
מדרש רבה (וילנא) שמות כ, ז
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