Bamidbar
Book 4: Numbers
BEHA'ALOSCHA - RASHI COMMENTARY
Chapter 08 - Rashi
Verse 2: When you light.
Why is the parshah of the Menorah adjacent
to the parshah of the leaders?1
Because when Aharon saw
the leaders' dedication (offerings)
he was humiliated,
since he did not join them in the dedication,
neither he nor his tribe.
The Holy One, Blessed is He, said to him,
"By your life,
yours is greater than theirs!
For you will light and cleanse the lamps."2
When you light (lit. cause to rise)
Because the flame rises,
igniting is described in terms of "rising."3
He is required to ignite [the lamp]
until the flame rises by itself.4
In addition, the Rabbis derive from here5
that there was a platform
before the Menorah,
upon which the kohein stood when he lit [the lamps].6
Toward the face of the Menorah.
Toward the middle lamp
which was not on one of the branches,
but on the Menorah itself.7
Shall the seven lamps cast [their] light.
The six [lamps] that were on the six branches
[and one on its stem].
The three eastern ones
turned toward the middle [by] their wicks.
Similarly, the three western ones---
the heads of their wicks [were] towards the middle.8
Why? So that it whould not be said
that He (G-d) needs9 the light.10
Verse 3: Aharon did so.
This11 indicates Aharon's virtue---he did not digress.12 13
Verse 4: This is how the Menorah was made.
The Holy One, Blessed is He, showed him (Moshe)
by pointing [as one would point] with the finger,14
since he had difficulty with it.15
This is why it says {Hebrew Ref} ("This").16
Beaten.
Batedic (hammered) in Old French,
meaning the same as {Hebrew Ref} ,
("they struck one another").17
There was a lump of gold, [weighing] a kikar,
[which] he beat with a hammer and cut with shears
to extend its (the Menorah's) limbs properly;
but it was not made limb by limb and [then] connected.
From its base until its flowers.
Its base was the hollow box over the legs,
hollowed like the silver candelabras before princes.
From its base until its flowers.18
As if to say, "The Menorah proper, in its entirety,
and all its dependent parts."19
From its base.
Which was a large limb.
Until its flowers.
Its most delicate work---it was all one piece.
{Hebrew Ref} ("until"), is customarily used in this sense,
like "From the harvested crop,
until the standing grain,
and until the olive grove."20
According to the vision which [Ad-noy] showed ...
According to the form21
which He showed him22 on the mountain (Sinai),
as it is said:
"Observe and make them according to the form...etc."23
So he made the Menorah.
The one24 who made it. But Midrash Aggadah [states25]
by the Holy One, Blessed is He,
it was made spontaneously.26
Verse 6: Take the Levites.
Take them with words of persuasion,27
"you are fortunate
to merit becoming servants of the Omnipresent."
Verse 7: Sprinkle them with the sin-offering waters.
Of the ashes of the red cow,28
for some of them were defiled by contact with the dead.29
And cause a razor to pass.
I found in R' Moshe Hadarshan's remarks:
"Because they were given in atonement for the firstborn
who practiced idolatry,30
which is referred to as 'sacrificing to the dead,'
and since the leper is considered dead,
they required shaving like lepers."31
Verse 8: They should take a young bullock.
This was a burnt-offering, as it is written,32
"he should make ... one a burnt-offering."
This is the communal sacrifice for idolatry.33
And a second bullock.
What does the Torah teach [by specifying] 'a second'?
To inform you that,
just as the burnt-offering was not eaten,
so was the sin-offering not eaten.
This supports his remarks,34 from Toras Kohanim.35
Now I say that this was a temporary ruling,
as they should have brought a goat36
as a sin-offering for idolatry
with the burnt-offering bull.37
Verse 9: And you shall gather
the entire congregation
Since the Levites are given
as an atonement-offering in their place,38
let them come and stand near their offering
and rest their hands39 on them.
Verse 11: Aharon shall wave the Levites
as a wave-offering
Just as the leper's guilt-offering requires
waving when it is still alive.40
Three wavings were stated in this chapter:
The first, of the sons of Kehos.
Therefore it is stated of them:
"They will be [entrusted] to do the worship of Ad-noy,"
since the work of the holiest is upon them---
the Ark and the Table etc.
The second, of the sons of Gershon.
It is therefore stated of them:
"A wave-offering to Ad-noy,"41
for even they were entrusted with holy work---
tapestries and the hooks
which were seen in the Holy of Holies.
And the third, of the sons of Merori.42
Verse 16: They are given; they are given.
Given for carrying, given for singing.
{Hebrew Ref}
The opening of.
Verse 17: For every first born is Mine.
The first born were Mine43 by the rules of justice,
since I protected them among the Egyptian firstborn.44
So I took45 them for Myself---until they strayed
with the [golden] calf.
Now I have taken the Levites.
Verse 19: I have given the Levites, etc.
Bnei Yisroel are mentioned five times,
in this passage,
to make their preciousness known.46
They are remembered repeatedly in a single passage
to correspond with the number of the
five books of the Torah.47
I saw this in Bereishis Rabbah.48
So that there will not be
a plague among Bnei Yisroel.
So that they will not need to approach the Holy,49
for if they approach, there will be a plague.
Verse 20: Moshe, Aharon,
and the entire congregation did, etc.
Moshe placed them, Aharon waved them,
and the Israelites rested their hands.50
Verse 22: Just as Ad-noy commanded, etc.
so they did.
This indicates the praiseworthiness51 of those who did,
and those with whom it was done---no one objected.52
Verse 24: This concerns the Levites.
Age disqualifies them,
but physical deformity does not disqualify them.53
From the age of twenty-five.
But elsewhere it says, "From the age of thirty."54
How is this reconciled?
From the age of twenty-five he begins to
study of the laws of the service.
He studies for five years, and serves at the age of thirty.
From here [we derive] that a pupil who does not see
favorable indications in his studies for five years
will never see (them).55
Verse 25: And shall no longer work.
At the task of carrying on the shoulder,
but he returns to lock the gates,
to 56sing, and to load the wagons.
This is [the meaning of]57
"But he shall serve his brethren,"
'with his brethren', as Targum [Onkelos] renders.
Verse 26: To keep the watch.
To camp around the Tent,
and erect and dismantle [it] during the journeys.
Chapter 09 - Rashi
Verse 1: In the first month.
The chapter at the beginning of this book58
was not said until Iyar.59
You learn, that there is no order
of precedence or succession in the Torah.60
But why did He not begin with this [chapter]?
Because it is to Yisroel's discredit,61
that throughout the forty years
that Yisroel was in the wilderness
they offered no other Pesach-offering but this.62 63
Verse 2: In its proper time.
Even64 on Shabbos65;
even66 during ritual uncleanliness .67
Verse 3: According to all its statutes.
These are the commandments
pertaining to its body [i.e., the animal itself]
a lamb; unblemished; male; a yearling.68
And according to all its laws.
These are commandments having a bearing on the animal
but originate from another place (i.e., outside the animal)
For example, the seven days of eating matzoh
and of eliminating chometz.
([An alternate text69:] The commandments
pertaining to its body---
a lamb; unblemished; male; a yearling.
Having a bearing on the animal; roasted over fire,
its head with its knees and its inner organs.
Outside its body---matzoh and eliminating chometz.)
Verse 4: Moshe spoke, etc.
What does the Torah teach? Does it not say,
"Moshe spoke of G-d's holidays"?70
Evidently,71 when he heard the parshah
of the holidays at Sinai, he told it to them,
and then he reviewed it and exhorted them
at the time it was to be performed.72
Verse 6: Before Moshe and before Aharon.
When both were seated in the study hall,
they approached them and asked.
But it is untenable to say [that they asked them]
one after the other,73
for if Moshe did not know,
how would Aharon [know]?74
Verse 7: Why should we be excluded.
He (Moshe) told them:
"The sacred offerings cannot be brought
during ritual impurity."
They said to him75: "[But] let the blood be sprinkled on us
by ritually pure kohanim and the flesh eaten
by those who are pure."76
He said to them: "Wait, while I listen,"
like a disciple assured of hearing
from his master's mouth.
Fortunate is the mortal thus assured,
for whenever he wished,
he could speak with the Divine Presence.
Now this chapter should appropriately
have been said through Moshe,
as is all the rest of the Torah.
But these [people] gained the merit of
having it said through them,
because Providence brings about merit
through the meritorious.77
Verse 10: Or on a distant road.
There is a dot over this,78 as if to say:
Not that it was definitely distant,
but that he was outside the threshold
of the [Temple] courtyard79
thoughout the time for slaughtering [the Pesach].80
[At] the second Pesach, matzoh and chometz81
may be with him at home;
it is not considered 'yom tov';
and chometz is not prohibited except
while he eats [the korbon].
Verse 14: If a proselyte dwells among you,
and brings the Pesach-offering.
Perhaps everyone who converts
must immediately bring the Pesach-offering?82
The Torah therefore teaches, "One statute, etc ..
."83
Rather, this is its meaning:
"If a proselyte dwells among you,
and he comes to bring the Pesach-offering with his
fellows,
according to the statutes of the Pesach-offering
and its laws
shall he do."
Verse 15: The Mishkon [which served]
as the Tent of Testimony.
The Mishkon which was made to be a tent84
for the tablets85 of testimony.
There was over the Mishkon.
Similar to, "would constantly be" over the Mishkon.86
Similarly, all the usages in the parshah.
Verse 17: The Cloud was lifted.
As Targum [Onkelos] renders, {Hebrew Ref} , ("was
lifted").
Similarly, "the Cloud was lifted."87
But it would be improper to write
"According to when the Cloud rose," "the Cloud rose,"
because the connotation is not rising,
but flowering and ascending,88
as in, "behold, a tiny cloud, like a man's palm,
rises from the sea."89
Verse 18: On the word of Ad-noy did they travel.
We learned in [the Beraysa describing]
the work of the Mishkon;
When the Israelites were departing
the Cloud column would fold,
and extend over the tribe of Yehudah
like a type of beam.
They sounded the tekiah, teruah, and tekiah.
But it did not proceed until Moshe intoned,
90"Rise, Ad-noy ..."
Then the banner of the camp of Yehudah departed.
This is in Sifri.91
On the word of Ad-noy did they camp.
When the Israelites were camping,
the Cloud column would mushroom upward
and extend over the tribe of Yehudah
like a type of protective covering.
It did not separate until Moshe said,
92"Come to rest, Ad-noy, among the myriads and
thousands of Israel."
Thus you say, "on the order of Ad-noy, through Moshe."93
Verse 20: Sometimes (lit. there is).
As if to say, "sometimes."
A number of days.
"a few days."94
Verse 22: Or a year. (lit. days).
A year,95 as in "[ {Hebrew Ref} ], a year shall be
its redemption [period]."96
Chapter 10 - Rashi
Verse 2: (Make for yourself.
So that they they may sound the trumpet before you
like a king, as it is said,
"There was a king among the righteous."97
Make for yourself.
From your own resources.
Make for yourself.
You shall make them and use them, but no one else.98)
To summon the congregation.
When you want to speak with the Sanhedrin
or the rest of the people,
and you summon them to gather before you,
summon them with the trumpets.
And to initiate the departure of the camps.
At the time99 of the camps' departure,
sound them as a signal.100
Consequently, you say that
they departed on the basis of three [initiatives].
By the word of the Holy One, Blessed is He;
by the word of Moshe; and by the trumpets.101
Beaten.
From a [single] ingot you should make it,
by beating [it] with a hammer.102
Verse 3: When they will blow them.
Both of them.103 This is the signal
for summoning the community, as it is said,
"The entire community shall present itself to you
at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting."
Verse 4: But if they blow one of them.
This is the signal for summoning the leaders,
as it is said, "The leaders shall present themselves to you."
They, too, meet at the entrance
to the Tent of Meeting.
This is derived by Scriptural comparison in Sifri.104
Verse 5: When you blow a teruah.
The signal for the camps to depart;
tekiah, teruah105 tekiah.106
This is how it is extrapolated by Sifri107
from the redundant passages.
Verse 7: But when gathering the congregation, etc.
Since it says, "they shall be used by you,
to summon the congregation
and to initiate departure of the camps"---[we derive that]
just as, when summoning the community,
the trumpeting is by two kohanim
with both [trumpets], as it is said,
"they shall trumpet with them, etc ..."
so, when initiating the camps' departure, with both.
Perhaps, just as, when initiating the camps' departure,
they sound the tekiah, teruah, and tekiah,
so, too, when summoning the community,
they sound the tekiah, teruah, and tekiah,
thus leaving no differentiation between
summoning the community and initiating
the camps' departure?108
The Torah therefore teaches,
"But when gathering the congregation, etc..."109
to say that there is no teruah
for gathering the community.
The same rule applies for the leaders.
Here is a synopsis for all three:
summoning the community with two,
that of the leaders with one.
Each of these has no teruah.
Initiating the camps' departure with two,
through the teruah and tekiah.110
Verse 8: The sons of Aharon ... shall sound.
For those summonings and departures.111
Verse 10: For your burnt---offerings.
Scripture speaks of the communal offerings.112
I am Ad-noy your G-d.
From here we learn [that we combine
Ad-noy's] Majesty, remembrance, and the shofar,
as it is said, "You shall blow"---hence the shofar,
"as a remembrance"---this is remembrance,
"I am Ad-noy your G-d"---this is Majesty, etc.113
Verse 11: In the second month.
Thus you say that they spent twelve months
minus ten days at Chorev,114
since on the first of the month of Sivan115
they encamped there and did not depart
until the twentieth of Iyar116 the following year.117
Verse 12: On their journeys.
According to the rules specified for the journeying
of their banners---who was first, and who last.118
In the desert of Paran.
Kivros Hataavoh was in the desert of Paran.
That is where they camped after this journey.119
Verse 17: The Mishkon was dismantled.
When the banner of Yehudah was departing,
Aharon and his sons entered, dismantled the paroches,
and covered the Ark with it, as it says,
"Aharon and his sons
shall enter when the camp is about to travel."120
The sons of Gershon
and the sons of Merori dismantled the Mishkon
and loaded it onto the wagons [and traveled].
The Ark and the sacred vessels
carried by the sons of Kehos
remain covered, placed on poles,
until the banner of the camp of Reuven departed.
Afterward, "The Kehos family traveled."121
Verse 21: Carriers of the sacred.
Carriers of the sacred objects.
They erected the Mishkon.
The sons of Gershon and the sons of Merori,122
who were preceded by the departure of two banners,123
would erect the Mishkon when the Cloud rested.
The signal for making camp was observed
by the banner of the camp of Yehudah.124
They camped while the sons of Kehos still traveled
behind with the two final banners.
The sons of Gershon and the sons of Merori
would erect the Sanctuary,
so that when the sons of Kehos arrived,
they found it set in place,
and brought in the Ark, Table, Menorah, and Altars.
This is the sense of the passage:
"They---the Mishkon's erectors---erected it
before the arrival of the sons of Kehos."
Verse 25: The gatherer for all the camps.
Talmud Yerushalmi125 [teaches]:
Because the tribe of Don was heavily populated,
they traveled last.126
If anyone lost property, it would return it to them.
There is an opinion
that they traveled in the shape of a box,
derived from, "Just as they camped,
so they traveled."127
Another opinion is
that they traveled in the shape of a beam,
derived from "The gatherer for all the camps."128
Verse 28: These are the journeys.
This is the order of their journeys.129
They journeyed.
On that day,130 they journeyed.
Verse 29: Chovav.
This was Yisro,131 as it is said,
"Of the children of Chovav,
the father-in-law of Moshe."132
Then why does the Torah say,
"They came to their father, Reuel"?133
This teaches that children call their grandfather "father."
He had many names.
"Yisro" [lit. "additional"]
because he added a chapter to the Torah;134
"Chovav" [lit. "one who cherishes"]
because he cherished the Torah, etc ... 135
We are journeying to the place.
Immediately. Within three days,136
we enter the [holy] land.
Because at this first journey,
they traveled
with the intention of entering Eretz Yisroel,
but they sinned with the complainers.137
But why did Moshe include himself with them?
Because the decree was not yet issued against him,138
and he thought he would enter.139
Verse 30: To my land and to my birthplace.
Whether for the sake of my properties,
or for the sake of my family.140
Verse 31: Please do not forsake.
{Hebrew Ref} is a term indicating nothing but request,
so that they will not say
Yisro did not convert out of devotion.141
He thought that proselytes receive a portion of the land
[but] now that he saw
that they do not receive a portion,
he left them and went on his way.
For, because you know
of our encampment in the desert.
For it is appropriate for you to do this,142
because you know of our encampment in the desert,
and you saw the miracles and mightiness done for us.143
For, because you know.
Like {Hebrew Ref} , "because" you know,
as in {Hebrew Ref} , for, "because" I did not give her
to my son Shelah,144
{Hebrew Ref} , for, "because" you passed by,145
{Hebrew Ref} , for, "because" they came,146
{Hebrew Ref} , for, "because" I saw your face.147
You will be our eyes.
Past tense, as Targum [Onkelos] renders.148
Another interpretation: Future tense.
[Should] anything [be] concealed from our eyes,
you shall enlighten our eyes.
Another interpretation:
You shall be as precious to us as the pupils of our eyes,
as it is said, "You shall love the proselyte."149
Verse 32: It shall be that the very good (lit. that good).
What good did they bestow upon him?
They said: "When the Israelites divided the land,
there was a fertile area of Yericho,
five hundred amos by five hundred amos,
which they left undivided."
They said:
"The one in whose portion the Temple would be built
would take it."150
In the interim, they gave it to the children of Yisro,
to Yonadav, the son of Rechav, as it is said,
"The sons of Keini, Moshe's father-in-law,
went up from the city of the dates,151 etc ... "152
153
Verse 33: A journey of three days.
Three days' traveling distance,
they traveled in one day,154
because the Holy One, Blessed is He,
wanted to bring them into the land immediately.155
The Ark of the Covenant of Ad-noy
traveled in front of them
a journey of three days.
This was the Ark which went with them to war,
in which the broken Tablets were placed.156
It preceded them by three days' travel
to prepare a camping place for them.157
Verse 34: The Cloud of Ad-noy
was above them.
Seven Clouds are recorded during their journeys;158
Four on four sides, one above, one below,
and one preceding them,
to lower the highlands, raise the lowlands,
and to kill snakes and scorpions.159
From the camp.
From their camping place.
Verse 35: Whenever the Ark departed.
Scripture placed symbols160
before and after this [chapter]
to teach that this is not its place.
Why, then, was it written here?
In order to intervene
between one punishment and the next...etc.,161
as stated in "all the sacred scriptures."162
Rise, Ad-noy.
Because He (Ad-noy) preceded them
by three days' travel,
Moshe would say, 'Rise and wait for us,
do not go further away.' Midrash Tanchuma, Vayakhel.
May Your enemies disperse.
Those gathered together.163
Those who hate You flee.
These are the pursuers.164
Those who hate You.
These are the haters of Yisroel,
since all those who hate Yisroel
hate the One who spoke,
and the world came into being,
as it is said,165
"those who hate You have raised [their] heads"---
who are they?---
"Against Your people they counsel cunningly."166
Verse 36: Come to rest, Ad-noy.
Menachem interprets this as a term meaning rest.
Similarly, "with rest and calm you will be saved."167
[Among] the myriads
and thousands of Israel.
This informs us that the Divine Presence
does not rest among the Israelites
when there are fewer than168 twenty-two thousand.169
Chapter 11 - Rashi
Verse 1: The people were like complainers.
"The people" refers only to the wicked.170
Similarly, it says, "what shall I do for this people,"171
and it says, "this evil people."172
But when they are righteous,
they are called "My people,"173
as it says, "send out My people,"174
"My people, what have I done to you"175 176
Like complainers.
{Hebrew Ref} is strictly a term referring to a pretext.
They seek a pretext in order to turn away
from [following] after the Omnipresent.
Similarly, it says about Shimshon,
"for he seeks a pretext."177 178
Wicked in the ears of Ad-noy.
A complaint which is wicked in the ears of G-d,
for they intended it to reach His ears and anger Him.
They said, "Woe to us,
how we have toiled on this journey.
Three days [have passed] that we have not rested
from the fatigue of travel."179
And His anger flared.
I meant for your benefit,
so that you would enter the land immediately.
The outcasts of the camp.
Those among them who were outcasts, of low status,
they were the great mixture.180
R' Shimon ben Menasya says,
the distinguished among them, and the great ones.181
Verse 2: The people cried out to Moshe.
This is compared to a mortal king
who was angry with his son.
The son went to his father's intimate friend,182
and said to him,
'Go, ask [for forgiveness] for me from father.'183
And the fire subsided.
It subsided into its place,
for if it had turned to any one direction,
it would have gathered itself and proceeded
in that entire direction.184
Verse 4: The collection [of nationalities].
These were [members of] the "great mixture"185
which gathered with them when they left Egypt.186
And [Bnei Yisroel] turned.
Bnei Yisroel, also, and wept with them.187
Who will feed us meat?
Did they not have meat? Did it not say previously,
"A great mixture also went up with them,
with sheep and cattle, etc."?188
Perhaps you will say they ate them,
but does it not say, when they came into the land,
"Much cattle belonged to the sons of Reuven, etc."189
Evidently, they sought a pretext.190
Verse 5: Which we ate in Egypt freely.
Perhaps you will say
that the Egyptians gave them fish freely.
But did it not already say,
"straw will not be given to you"?191
If they did not give them straw freely,192
would they have given them fish freely?193
Then what is meant by "freely"? Free of mitzvos.194
The cucumbers.
R' Shimon said: Why was the manna transformed
into everything but these?195
Because they are harmful to nursing mothers.
We tell a woman:
"Do not eat garlic or onion for the baby's sake."
This is compared to a king, etc., as stated by Sifri.196
The cucumbers.
They are "cocombres" in Old French.
Melons.
"Borekes" [in Old French].
The leeks.
Leeks, "porels" [in Old French].
(Targum [Onkelos] renders "the leeks, etc.")
Verse 6: The manna before our eyes.
Manna in the morning, manna in the evening.197
Verse 7: The manna is like coriander seed.
The one who said this [verse]
did not say the other.
The Israelites said, 'Nothing but the manna
before our eyes.'
while the Holy One, Blessed is He,
inscribed in the Torah,
"But the manna was like coriander seed, etc.,"
as if to say, 'Look, those who walk the earth
at the subject of My children's complaint---
the manna was precious for such and such a reason'.198
Like coriander seed.
Round199 like coriander. "Aliendre" seed in Old
French.
Crystal
The name of a precious stone, "cristal" [in Old French].
Verse 8: Strolled about.
{Hebrew Ref} is interpreted strictly as strolling,
"esbaneier" [in Old French], without exertion.
They ground [it] with a millstone, etc.
It never descended into the millstone,
or the pot, or the mortar;
rather, its taste changed
to ground, crushed, or cooked [foods].200
{Hebrew Ref} .
Pot.
{Hebrew Ref} .
The moisture of oil.
This is how Donash explained it.
Similar to this,
" {Hebrew Ref} was overturned by the heat of summer."201
The "lamed" is part of the root,
"My moisture was overturned
by the heat of summer."
The Rabbis,202 however, explain it as a term
meaning {Hebrew Ref} , "breasts."
But {Hebrew Ref} have no relation to oil.203
One cannot say that {Hebrew Ref} is translated like
{Hebrew Ref} , "The righteous were fattened,"204
for, if so, the " {Hebrew Ref} " would be vocalized
with a minor "kametz" ("tzeirei")
and the emphasis below, under the " {Hebrew Ref} ."
Now that the " {Hebrew Ref} " is vocalized
with a minor "patach" ("segol")
and the emphasis is below the " {Hebrew Ref} ,"
it is translated as "oil."
The " {Hebrew Ref} " is vocalized
with a major "kametz" ("kametz"),
but not with a minor "patach" ("segol"),
because it closes the passge.
Another interpretation:
{Hebrew Ref} is an acronym, [spelling]
{Hebrew Ref} , kneaded, oil, honey.
[It was] like a loaf kneaded with oil
and coated with honey.205
Onkelos' translation, rendered
"kneaded with oil,"
leans toward Donash's interpretation,206
since a loaf kneaded with oil
contains the moisture of oil.
Verse 10: Weep according to their families.
Every family gathered together and wept,
to publicize their complaints openly.
The Rabbis remark that {Hebrew Ref} means
"concerning family matters"---
concerning the intimate relations
forbidden to them.207 208
Verse 12: That You say [lit. will say].
That You say 209to me, 'carry it in your lap.'
Where did He say this to him?
"Go, lead the people."210 And it says,
"He commanded them (Moshe and Aharon)
to [lead] Bnei Yisroel"211
[even] on condition that they stone you and insult you.212
To the land which You swore to their forefathers.
You tell me to carry them in my lap.213
Verse 15: If this is the way You treat me.
Moshe's strength weakened214 like a female's215
when the Holy One, Blessed is He, showed him
the punishment He would visit upon them for this.
He said before Him: 'If so, kill me first.'216
So that I will not see my evil.
It should have written "their evil,"
but Scripture euphemizes.
This is one of the "scribes' adjustments" to the Torah,
for the sake of euphemistic language adjustment.217
Verse 16: Gather for Me.
Here is the reply to your complaint218
when you said, "I am unable, alone ..."
But where were the original elders?
Had they not sat with them219 even in Egypt, as it says:
"Go, gather the elders of Israel"?220
Evidently, they died at the fire of "Tav'erah."221
They deserved this at Sinai, as it is written,
"they gazed at G-d."222 Because they acted frivolously,
like someone munching his loaf
while speaking before the king.
And this is [the meaning of] "They ate and drank."223
But the Holy One, Blessed is He, did not want
to cause grief during the giving of the Torah,
so he punished them here.224
Whom you know to be, etc.
Those whom you recognize,
as they were appointed officers over them in Egypt225
for the body breaking labor.
They took pity on them,
and were beaten for their sake,
as it says, "The Israelite officers were beaten."226
Let them be appointed now, in their greatness,
just as they suffered when they were oppressed.227
You shall take them.
Take them verbally.228 "How fortunate you are
to have been appointed as leaders
over the Omnipresent's children."229
And they shall stand there with you.
So that the Israelites will see,
and treat them as great men, reverently,
saying:
'How precious are those who entered with Moshe
to hear the word
from the mouth of the Holy One, Blessed is He.'230
Verse 17: I will descend.
This is one of the ten descents inscribed in the Torah.231
And I will speak with you.
But not with them.
I will make greater.
As Targum [Onkelos] renders,
{Hebrew Ref} , "I will make greater,"
like, "But to the great men of Bnei Yisroel."232
And place it on them.
To what was Moshe compared at that time?
To a lamp set in a candelabra.
Everyone lights from it, but none of its own brightness
is diminished.233
They will bear, along with you.
Stipulate with them,
on condition that they accept upon themselves
the toil of my children,
as they are troublesome and recalcitrant.234
So that you need not bear it alone.
Here is the reply to your statement,
"I am unable, alone ..."235
Verse 18: Prepare yourselves.
Prepare yourselves for punishment.236
Similarly, it says,237
"Prepare them for the day of killing."238
Verse 20: For a month of days.
This was with the [comparatively] virtuous ones,
who fell ill in their beds and afterwards expired.
But with the wicked ones it says,
"the meat was still between their teeth."239
This is how it is taught by Sifri.240
Mechilta, however, teaches the reverse.
The wicked ones ate and suffered for thirty days,
but with the decent ones---
the meat was still between their teeth.
Until it comes out of your nostrils.
As Targum [Onkelos] translates,
"you are disgusted by it."
It will seem to you
as if you gorged on it
until it is expelled through the nose.241
It will be repulsive to you.
You will cast it away
more readily than you welcomed.242
In R' Moshe Hadarshan's commentary I saw that,
in a certain language, the sword is called "zara."
Ad-noy Who is among you.
If I had not planted My Presence among you,243
you would not have had the arrogance
to enter into all these affairs.244
Verse 21: Six hundred thousand on foot.
He was not concerned with counting in detail
the remaining three thousand.245
R' Moshe Hadarshan explains
that only those who went out of Egypt, wept.246
Verse 22: Will sheep and cattle be slaughtered.
This is one of four instances
expounded upon by R' Akiva,
which R' Shimon did not expound as he did.
R' Akiva said, "Six hundred thousand on foot, etc.
and You say
'I will give them meat to eat for a month of days'?
Will sheep and cattle ... ?"
Everything
according to the straightforward interpretation,
who will satisfy them?247
This is similar to what is said,
"And he has sufficient means for its redemption."248
Now which is worse, this, or, "listen, here, rebels!"?249
Yet, since he did not say it publicly, Scripture spared him
and did not punish him; but the one during the dispute
was public---Scripture, therefore, did not spare him.
R' Shimon said, Heaven forbid!
Such a thought never occurred to that righteous man.
Someone of whom it is written,
"In all My houshold he is [most] faithful"250
would say, 'The Omnipresent cannot satisfy us'?
Rather, this is what he said:
Six hundred thousand on foot, etc.,
and You said, 'I will give them meat for a month,'
and then you will kill a nation as great as this?
Will sheep and cattle be slaughered for them
so that they should be killed,
and this meal will [thus] satisfy them forever?
Does this bring you praise, telling a donkey,
'Eat a ton of barley
and then we will chop your head off'?
The Holy One, Blessed is He, answered him:
But if I do not give it to them,
they will say My power [lit. hand] is limited.
Is it favorable, in your eyes,
that G-d's power be limited in their eyes?
Let them, and a hundred like them, perish,
but My power cannot seem limited to them
even for a moment.
Verse 23: Now you will see if My words will occur.
Raban Gamliel, son of R' Yehudah Hanasi said:251
(Moshe said:) "It is impossible to maintain one's position
in [such] a dispute.
Since they only seek a pretext,
You cannot satisfy them,
in the end they will judge You critically.
If You give them beef,
they will say 'we wanted mutton,'
if You give them mutton,
they will say 'we wanted beef,
we wanted wild game or fowl,
we wanted fish or locusts.'
He (G-d) said to him: 'If so, they will say
My power is limited.'
He (Moshe) said before Him:
'Here, I will go and appease them.'
He (G-d) said: 'Now you will see if My word occurs---
they will not listen to you.'
Moshe went to appease them.
He said to them: 'Is G-d's power limited?
Behold, He struck the rock and water flowed, etc.,
then He can also provide bread.'252
They said: 'This is a compromise---
He does not have the power to fulfill our request.' "
This is what is meant when it says,
"Moshe went out and spoke to the people."
When they didn't listen to him---
"He gathered seventy men, etc."253
Verse 25: And did not cease.
They did not prophesy, except for that day alone---
this is clearly stated by Sifri.254
But Onkelos renders "and did not cease"---
prophesy did not cease from them.255
Verse 26: Two people remained.
Of those chosen. They said,
'We are not worthy of such greatness.'256
They were among those inscribed.
Among those chosen for the Sanhedrin.257
They were all inscribed specifically by names,258
and by drawing lots.
Since the appropriate amount for twelve tribes
was six for each tribe, except for two tribes,
each of whom received only five,
Moshe said: No tribe will listen to me
to subtract one elder from its tribe.
What did he do? He took seventy two notes,
wrote "elder" on seventy and left two blank.
He then chose six from each tribe,
totaling seventy two.
He told them, 'Take your notes from the container.'
Whoever chose "elder" was sanctified;
to those who chose the empty ones, he said,
"The Omnipresent does not want you."259
Verse 27: The youth ran.
Some say this was Gershom,260 the son of Moshe.261
Verse 28: Destroy them.
Burden them with communal responsibility,
and they will destroy themselves.262
Another interpretation: Detain them in prison,263
because they prophesied that Moshe would die
and Yehoshua would bring the Israelites
into the land.264
Verse 29: Are you vengeful for me?
Are you my avenger?
Do you take my vengeance for me?
{Hebrew Ref} meaning the same as {Hebrew Ref} , "for my
sake."
{Hebrew Ref} always denotes a person
who takes something to heart,
whether to avenge or to assist.
"enprenment" in Old French,
one who grasps the bulk of the burden.
Verse 30: Moshe entered
From the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.
Into the camp.
Everyone entered his [own] tent.265
Entered.
The connotation is to enter a house, as in,
"Bring it into your house."266
The source for this general connotation is,
"He gathers, but does not know who will bring it in."267
This teaches that He did not visit punishment upon them
until each of the righteous had entered his tent.268
Verse 31: And He caused to fly.
Caused to fly. Similarly, "for it flies by quickly,"269
Also, "they flew by and passed through."270
And spread them.
It spread, as in,
"Behold, they are spread
over the face of all the land,"271
"I will spread you into the wilderness."272
About two amos.
They flew to a height which corresponded
with a person's heart,273
so that it would not be tedious to gather them,
neither to rise nor to bend.274
Verse 32: He who gathered the least.
The one who gathered least of all---
the lazy and the lame---gathered ten heaps.275
They spread them.
They spread them into numerous piles.276
Verse 33: Before it was finished.
As Targum [Onkelos] renders, {Hebrew Ref} ,
(before it was finished).
Another interpretation: There was no opportunity
to cut it with his teeth,
when he expired.277
Chapter 12 - Rashi
Verse 1: [Miriam] spoke.
{Hebrew Ref} always connotes harshness,278
as it says, "The man who rules the land spoke
harshly with us."279
But {Hebrew Ref} always connotes pleading,280
as it says,
"He said, please, my brothers, do not be wicked,"281
"He said, please hear my words."282
{Hebrew Ref} always connotes a request.283
Miriam and Aharon spoke.
She opened the discussion first,
so Scripture gives her precedence.
How did Miriam know
that Moshe separated from his wife?284 285
R' Noson says: Miriam was at Tziporah's side
when Moshe was told
that Eldad and Meidad were prophesying in the camp.286
When Tziporah heard, she said,
'Woe to their wives
if they become attached to prophecy,
because they will separate from their wives
the way my husband separated from me.'
Miriam knew from there, and she told Aharon.
Now if Miriam, who did not intend to slander him,
was punished this way, certainly
someone who relates slander about his fellow.287
The Cushite woman.
This teaches that everyone agreed to her beauty,
just as everyone agrees
to the blackness of the Cushite.288
Cushite.
[ {Hebrew Ref} is] numerically equivalent to {Hebrew Ref} ,289
("beautiful in appearance.")
Concerning the woman.
Concerning her divorce.290
For, he married a Cushite woman.
What does the Torah teach?
You find a woman beautiful in appearance
but not beautiful in deed;
in deed, but not in appearance.
But this one was beautiful in everything.291
The Cushite woman.
Because of her beauty, she was called "Cushite,"
like a man who calls his attractive son "Cushite"
to ward off the power of the evil eye over him.292
For, he married a Cushite woman.
And now divorced her.293
Verse 2: Is it only.
With him294 alone that G-d spoke.
Did He not also [speak] with us.
Yet we did not abstain from marital relations.295
Verse 3: Humble.
Bent low and forbearing.
Verse 4: Suddenly.
He revealed Himself to them suddenly,
when they were ritually unclean
because of marital relations,
and they cried, "Water! Water!"
To inform them that Moshe acted properly
in separating from his wife,
since the Divine Presence
revealed Itself to him constantly,
with no designated time for the Word.296
Come out, all three of you.
This teaches that all three were summoned
with a single word,
which is impossible for the mouth to say297
and the ear to hear.298
Verse 5: In a pillar of cloud.
He went alone, unlike the custom of mortals.
When a mortal king goes to war,
he goes out with a large retinue,
when he goes in peace, he goes with only a few.
But the custom of the Holy One, Blessed is He,
is to go to war alone,299 as it is said,
"[G-d is] a warrior,"300
and goes in peace with a large retinue,
as is said,301
"G-d rides with twenty two thousand angels."302
He called [to] Aharon and Miriam.
So that they would be drawn away
and leave the courtyard towards the Word.
Both of them went out.
Why did He draw them away
and separate them from Moshe?
Because we recite some of a person's qualities
in his presence,
and all of them when he is not present.
We find this about Noach.
When he was not present it is said,
"A righteous man, flawless,"303
but in his presence it is said,
"For I have seen that you are righteous before Me."304
Another interpretation:
So that he should not hear Aharon's rebuke.305
Verse 6: Please listen to my words.
{Hebrew Ref} is interpreted strictly as a request.
If there will be your prophet.
If you will have prophets.306
[I,] Ad-noy
will make Myself known to him in a vision.
The Divine Presence of My Name
will not be revealed to him
in the illuminated reflection,307
but in a dream and vision.308
Verse 8: Mouth to mouth.
I told him to separate from his wife.309
Where did I tell him? At Sinai,
"Go tell them 'Return to your tents,'
but you remain with Me here."310
In a vision, and not in riddles.
"In a vision"---this is the vision of the word,
for I explain My word to him in the clearest form,
I do not conceal it in riddles
the way it was said to Yechezkel,
"Present a riddle, etc."311
Perhaps [this refers to] the vision
of the Divine Presence?
The Torah teaches,312 "you cannot see My Presence."313
He gazes at the likeness of Ad-noy.
This is the vision of the back,
according to what is said,314
"But you may see what is behind Me."315
About My servant, about Moshe.
It does not say, 'about My servant Moshe,'
but 'about My servant, about Moshe'---
about My servant, even if he were not Moshe,
about Moshe, even if he were not My servant,316
It would have been appropriate for you to have been
in awe of him.
Certainly since he is My servant,
and the king's servant is [as] the king.
You should have said,
'The king does not love him gratuitously.'
And if you say that I am not aware of his actions,
then this (statement) is worse than the first!317
Verse 9: Ad-noy's anger flared against them
and He left.
After He informed them of their reprehensible behavior,
He decreed excommunication against them.
Certainly a mortal, then,
should not be angry with his fellow
until he informs him of his reprehensible behavior.318
Verse 10: The cloud departed.
Afterward, "Behold, Miriam was leprous, like snow."
This is compared to a king who said to a pedagogue,
'Punish my son, but do not punish him until I leave,
as I pity him.'319
Verse 11: We have foolishly done.
As Targum [Onkelos] translates,
from the word {Hebrew Ref} , "fool."
Verse 12: Please, let her not be,
this our sister.320
Like the dead.
Since the leper is considered dead.
Just as the dead cause ritual defilement
when entering [a room],321
so does the leper
cause ritual defilement when entering.322 323
That, since he came from his mother's womb.
"Our mother" should have been said,
but Scripture euphemises.324
Similarly, "half his flesh"---
"half our flesh" should have been said,
but Scripture euphemises.
That, 325since 326she came from our mother's womb,
[what] she [suffers] is ours,
as if half our flesh were eaten away.
This is similar to what is said,
"for he is our brother, our flesh."327
The simple interpretation also appears the same---328
It is unconscionable for a brother to allow his sister
to remain as if dead.
That, since he came.
Since he [also] came from the mother's womb of this one
who has the power to help but does not,
then half his own flesh is eaten away,
as his brother, is his flesh.
Another interpretation [of]
"Please, let her not be like the dead."329
If you do not heal her through prayer,
who will confine her, and who will purify her?330
I can not possibly examine her, as I am related,
and a relative cannot examine the symptoms of leprosy.
And there is no other kohein in the world.
This is [what is meant by]
"that, since he came from his mother's womb."331
Verse 13: Please, G-d, please heal her.
Scripture comes to teach proper behavior---
that one who requests something from his fellow
must say two or three words of supplication,
then, afterward, make his requests.332
Saying.
What does the Torah teach?333
He (Moshe) said to Him,
'Answer me, [as to] whether or not You will cure her'---
until He did answer, "If her father were to spit, etc."
R' Elazar son of Azariah said,
in four places,
Moshe asked
the Holy One, Blessed is He,
that He answer him [as to]
whether or not He would grant his requests.334
Similarly, "Moshe spoke before G-d, saying, etc."335
What does the Torah teach by writing "saying"?
'Answer me [as to]
whether or not You will redeem them'---
until He did answer him, "Now you will see, etc."336
Similarly, "Moshe spoke to G-d, saying, 'let G-d,
the G-d of the spirit of all flesh, appoint'."337
He answered:
"Take for you."
Similarly, "I pleaded with G-d at that time, saying."338
He answered him, "Enough, for you."339 340
Please heal her.
Why did not Moshe pray at length?
So that the Israelites should not say,
"His sister is suffering, and he stands
and prolongs his prayer."
(Another interpretation:
So that the Israelites should not say,
For his sister he prays at length,
but for us he does not pray at length).341
Verse 14: If (lit. "and") her father
were to spit in her face.
If342 her father were to display, to her, an angry face,
would she not be humiliated for seven days?
Certainly, then, in the case of the Divine Presence,
[she should be humiliated] for fourteen days.343
However, it is sufficient that the derivative344
equal the source345 of its derivation.
Therefore, even with My rebuke,
let her be confined for seven days.346
And after that, she may join again.
I say that all {Hebrew Ref} mentioned regarding lepers
are related to his expulsion from the camp.347
When he is cured, he is brought into the camp.
Thus, {Hebrew Ref} is written concerning him,
meaning bringing in.
Verse 15: The people did not depart.
This honor was accorded her by the Omnipresent
for the one hour 348she remained with Moshe
when he was cast into the river, as it is said,349
"his sister stood from afar, etc.
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