In the third month after the children of Israel were gone forth out of the land of Egypt, the same day came they into the wilderness of Sinai.
verse value 3264
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 49 letters. The shortest word is "this" (הַזֶּ֔ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "Israelites" (בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל, 8 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "of·the·going·out" (לְצֵ֥את). 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Israelites" (root בן, 189x in Exodus); "the·wilderness·of" (root דבר, 158x in Exodus); "Egypt" (root מצרי, 145x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Egypt', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: בַּחֹ֙דֶשׁ֙ [in·the·month] (314) + הַשְּׁלִישִׁ֔י [third] (655) + לְצֵ֥את [of·the·going·out] (521) + בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל [Israelites] (603) + מֵאֶ֣רֶץ [from·the·land] (331) + מִצְרָ֑יִם [Egypt] (380) + בַּיּ֣וֹם [on·the·day] (58) + הַזֶּ֔ה [this] (17) + בָּ֖אוּ [they·entered] (9) + מִדְבַּ֥ר [the·wilderness·of] (246) + סִינָֽי [Sinai] (130) = 3264.
Onkelos
In the third month after the going out of the children of Israel from the land of Egypt, on this very day, they came to the wilderness of Sinai.
Rashi
ביום הזה THE SAME (lit., this) DAY — on the day of the New Moon. (Mekhilta; Shabbat 86b). It ought not to write ביום הזה, but ביום ההוא, “on that day”; what, then, is the force of the words “on this day”? Since they refer to the day when the Israelites came to Sinai to receive the Torah they imply that the commands of the Torah should be to you each day as something new (not antiquated and something of which you have become tired), as though He had only given them to you for the first time on the day in question (Yalkut Shimoni on Torah 273; cf. Berakhot 63b).
Ramban
IN THE THIRD MONTH. Scripture should have said, “And they journeyed from Rephidim and they encamped in the wilderness of Sinai, in the third month after their going forth from the land of Egypt,” just as it said above concerning the wilderness of Sin. But [Scripture’s manner of expression here is] due to the fact that their coming into the wilderness of Sinai was an occasion for joy and a festival to them, and that since they left Egypt they had been yearning for it. They knew that they would receive the Torah there, for Moses had told them what was said to him, Ye shall serve G-d upon the mountain. And to Pharaoh also he said, Let us go, we pray thee, three days’ journey, into the wilderness and sacrifice unto the Eternal our G-d. For this reason, Scripture begins the section with the statement that in the third month… the same day that the month began, they came there [as they had eagerly anticipated]. Following this opening, Scripture reverts [to the usual style] as in the other journeys: And they journeyed from Rephidim. Now here too Scripture should have said “and they journeyed from Rephidim and encamped in the wilderness of Sinai.” Instead it writes, and they came to the wilderness of Sinai. This is because Scripture’s intent is to state that as soon as they came to the wilderness of Sinai and saw the mountain in front of them, they encamped in the wilderness and did not wait until they would enter a spot better for encampment. Instead, they camped in the wilderness or in Horeb, which was a waste land before the mountain. This is the purport of the verse; and they encamped in the wilderness, and there Israel encamped before the mount. It is possible that they separated from their midst all the mixed multitude that was among them, and the children of Israel alone camped before the mountain while the mixed multitude was behind them. For the Torah was given to Israel, as He said, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel, and this is the meaning of the expression, and there Israel encamped. It may be that [the name “Israel”] is mentioned as a mark of honor at the time of their acceptance of the Torah. Now Rashi wrote: “And they journeyed from Rephidim. What need was there for Scripture to state again expressly from where they set forth on the journey? Is it not already stated that they were encamped in Rephidim and it is thus evident that they journeyed from there? It [i.e., the intent of the verse] is to declare that their departure from Rephidim was like their encampment in the wilderness of Sinai. Just as their encampment [in the wilderness of Sinai] was with repentance, so also was their departure [from Rephidim] with repentance.” Thus Rashi’s language. But I have not understood this. It says in connection with all journeys: and they pitched [camp] in Elim; And they took their journey from Elim… and they came unto the wilderness of Sin; And they journeyed from the wilderness of Sin… and encamped in Reph...
Ibn Ezra
"In the third month" — we do not know the meaning of "on this day" unless the interpretation of R. Moses is correct: that it was the New Moon, as in "tomorrow is the new moon" (I Sam. 20:18). The verse mentions this because only a few days after their encampment did the Giving of the Torah occur. Perhaps on one day Moses went up to Hashem and came down and spoke with Israel, and on the third day of the month he went up again to bring Hashem the people's reply; and there he was told that on the third day the Torah would be given. All of this is by way of reasoning, for in terms of tradition we rely on the fact that the Torah was given on the sixth of Sivan. According to the calendar reckoning, that would have been a Friday — unless the month of Iyyar was intercalated. Perhaps the meaning of "on this day" is that the distance from Rephidim to Mount Sinai was far greater than a single day's journey.
Sforno
ביום הזה, on the first day of the month.
Or HaChaim
בחדש השלישי לצאת בני ישראל, In the third month after the Exodus of the children of Israel, etc. Considering G'd's love for Israel and His urgent desire to give them their fiancee (the Torah), it is difficult to understand why G'd waited until the third month after the Exodus. One of the signs of fondness for one's counterpart is that one does not allow obstacles to stand in the way of one's joining the beloved. We have instances in the Torah when G'd even accelerated the union of lover and beloved such as when Eliezer traversed the distance from the Holy Land (Hebron) to Aram Naharayim in a single day (G'd having telescoped the earth under his feet) only in order to bring about the union of Isaac and Rebeccah even more speedily than was possible without this miracle (compare Sanhedrin 95). In view of this, we could have expected G'd to at least do the same for the Israelites and ensure their arrival at Mount Sinai immediately after they had crossed the Sea of Reeds. G'd therefore felt called upon to explain that the fact that מתן תורה was delayed somewhat was not to be interpreted as a lack of ardour of the bride for the groom but was due to the groom not being properly prepared before that date. Having spent so many years in a country full of all kinds of abominations, the Israelites had absorbed much of the spiritual pollution prevailing in Egypt and they required 49 days during which they progressively cleansed themselves of these pollutants and readied themselves for their bride. According to the Zohar third volume page 97 the seven weeks that we count between Passover and Shavuot are to be viewed as seven times the 7 day purification rite that a זבה, a woman suffering from a vaginal discharge, has to undergo before she is ritually pure. When the Torah speaks of לצאת בני ישראל ממצרים, this is not to be understood as a date as much as a cause. Seeing the point of departure of the Israelites was Egypt (and not some other place), it required a certain number of days before the groom could ready himself spiritually for union with a bride such as the Torah. As soon as the Israelites were close to regaining their spiritual purity, i.e. on the first of the third month, they immediately arrived at their destination at Mount Sinai. The Torah describes arrival in the desert of Sinai and arrival opposite the Mountain as occurring practically simultaneously. We find confirmation of this in Shabbat 87 where the Talmud states: "on the day they travelled they arrived." Reviewing all these events I have asked myself that if our perception is correct, why did G'd not telescope the earth underneath the Israelites and bring them to Mount Sinai immediately? They could then have awaited the proper moment for מתן תורה at the end of seven weeks while encamped at Mount Sinai However, I have concluded that G'd demonstrated His love for the people by the manner in which He did things. Had He allowed the Israelites to encamp at Mount Sinai immediately and had then m...
Chizkuni
בחדש, “on the first of the (third month);” the word חדש is used here as in Samuel I 20,18: מחר חדש, “tomorrow is new moon.” השלישי, it is called thus because it was when the Israelites were enslaved, נשבו, when they were liberated, נשתחחרו, and when they converted to Judaism, נתגגיירו. The latter word is the reflexive mode of גר, alien, stranger. Our sages in the Talmud Ketuvot 37 taught us: different categories of female converts, including those who were prisoners and have been released and converted have to wait three months before they can marry a Jew, to eliminate the suspicion than a child born to them was sired by a gentile before they had converted. ביום הזה, ”on this day;” the day referred to is the day they broke camp in Refidim. It was the first day of Sivan which occurred on a Monday, according to the opinion of the majority of the scholars. There was unanimity among the scholars that the day of the revelation was Sabbath. (Shabbat 86) According to the majority of the Rabbis who hold that that the revelation occurred on the sixth day of the month of Sivan, the first day of that month had to have been on a Monday. This is based on the month of Iyar during that year having had 30 days. If you were to argue that if this is so then 50 days as opposed to 49 days, i.e. seven weeks, had elapsed since the Exodus, the answer is that the commandment regarding when the omer is to be offered was not given to the people (or obviously could not apply) until they had taken possession of the land and planted a crop. ביום הזה באו מדבר סיני, “on this day they arrived at the desert of Sinai.” Rabbi Levi in Pessikta de Rav Kahane Mandelbaum edition page 205), relates a parable [to explain that the Torah describing this detail conveyed a lesson worth taking to heart, Ed.] A king had a son who had recovered from a serious illness. He was told by a pedagogue that the son should go an elementary school forthwith. The father protested by saying to the pedagogue that his son was still too frail to go to school and be subjected to a strict regimen. He agreed to send him to school after a recovery period of three months. He intended to pamper him during these three so that he would recuperate faster.
Rabbeinu Bahya
בחודש השלישי, “in the third month.” This was the month of Sivan. The words ביום הזה mean that it was the first day of the month. This is the day normally called חדש, such as in Samuel I 20,24 ויהי החדש וישב המלך אל הלחם לאכול, “It was on חדש and the King sat down to eat.” Another example of the word חדש referring to New Moon is found in the same chapter of the Book of Samuel three verses later: We read ויהי ממחרת החדש השני ויפקד מקום דוד, “It was on the second day of the New Moon celebration that David’s seat remained empty.” The verse teaches you amongst other things that they observed two days of New Moon. This is what King Saul referred to when he inquired speaking to his son Yonathan: “why did the son of Yishai not appear either yesterday or today for the meal?” Our sages in Shabbat 86 also state that the words ביום הזה mean that the Israelites arrived in the desert of Sinai on the first day of the month. They base this on the use of the word הזה in our verse here and the expression החדש הזה לכם in Exodus 12,2. באו מדבר סיני, “they arrived in the desert Sinai.” This is another word for חורב of which we heard in Exodus 3,1 that Moses came to the mountain of G’d, to Chorev. Concerning this mountain G’d had told Moses at the time: “when I make you take the people out of Egypt you will serve G’d at this mountain.” (Exodus 3,12).
Tur HaArokh
בחודש השלישי, “in the third month;” actually we would have expected the chapter to begin with the words: “they journeyed from Refidim and came to the desert of Sinai, where they encamped on the first day of the third month after having departed from the land of Egypt.” The reason why the syntax of the Torah was changed in this instance is the fact that arrival at the desert of Sinai, where the Torah was to be given, was a joyous occasion for the people. The manner of reporting this arrival reflects that it was something the people had been looking forward to. ביום הזה, “on this day, etc.” The day referred to was the first of the month. Ibn Ezra suggests that possibly the distance between Mount Sinai and Refidim was greater than the distance covered in all their combined journeys up to that time, so that there was a need to report precisely when the people arrived at this otherwise unremarkable spot.
And when they were departed from Rephidim, and were come to the wilderness of Sinai, they encamped in the wilderness; and there Israel encamped before the mount.
verse value 2487
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 52 letters. Verse gematria: 2487 = 3 × 829. The shortest word is "in·front·of" (נֶ֥גֶד, 3 letters) and the longest is "from·Rephidim" (מֵרְפִידִ֗ים, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "from·Rephidim" (מֵרְפִידִ֗ים), "and·encamped·there" (וַיִּֽחַן־שָׁ֥ם). The root חנה appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "the·wilderness·of" (root דבר, 158x in Exodus); "and·they·came" (root בוא, 124x in Exodus); "Israel" (root ישראל, 64x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·the·wilderness', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיִּסְע֣וּ [and·they·journeyed] (152) + מֵרְפִידִ֗ים [from·Rephidim] (384) + וַיָּבֹ֙אוּ֙ [and·they·came] (25) + מִדְבַּ֣ר [the·wilderness·of] (246) + סִינַ֔י [Sinai] (130) + וַֽיַּחֲנ֖וּ [and·they·encamped] (80) + בַּמִּדְבָּ֑ר [in·the·wilderness] (248) + וַיִּֽחַן־שָׁ֥ם [and·encamped·there] (414) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל [Israel] (541) + נֶ֥גֶד [in·front·of] (57) + הָהָֽר [the·mountain] (210) = 2487.
Onkelos
They journeyed from Rephidim and came to the wilderness of Sinai, and they encamped in the wilderness; and Israel encamped there opposite the mountain.
Rashi
ויסעו מרפידים AND THEY JOURNEYED FROM REPHIDIM — What does Scripture teach us by again expressly stating from where they set forth on the journey, for is it not already written (Exodus 17:1) that they had encamped at Rephidim and it is therefore evident that they set forth from there?! But Scripture repeats it in order to make a comparison with the character of their journey from Rephidim to that of their arrival in the wilderness of Sinai! How was it in the case of their arrival in the wilderness of Sinai? They were in a state of penitence (as shown by the unanimity with which they encamped before the mountain: cf. Rashi on the end of this verse)! Thus, too, their setting forth from Rephidim was in a state of repentance for the sin they had committed there (see Exodus 17:2) (Mekhilta). ויחן שם ישראל AND THERE ISRAEL ENCAMPED as one man and with one mind — but all their other encampments were made in a murmuring spirit and in a spirit of dissension (Mekhilta). נגד ההר BEFORE THE MOUNTAIN — i. e. at its east side (Mekhilta), for wherever you find the word נגד referring to a locality it signifies with the face towards the east of the place mentioned.
Ibn Ezra
"And they journeyed" — they had already departed from Rephidim, as I have shown you many similar constructions. "And they encamped in the wilderness" — that is, the wilderness of Sinai mentioned here. The reason the verse says "and Israel encamped there" after already saying "and they encamped in the wilderness" is that the tribal heads and elders encamped opposite the mountain on account of their honor; the singular form "encamped" (וַיִּחַן) is therefore used because they were few, for according to their rank they stood on the day of the Giving of the Torah around Mount Sinai, as I shall explain. Rashi said that "opposite the mountain" means to its east; but it is written, "opposite, round about the Tent of Meeting, shall they encamp" (Num. 2:2), which means from all four sides, for the tribes camped in the same formation as they marched.
Sforno
ויסעו מרפידים ויבאו מדבר סיני. The departure from Refidim was for the express purpose of getting to the desert of Sinai where the mountain of G’d (Chorev) was located. The people knew that once they would arrive there they would worship the Lord there (Exodus 3,12).
Or HaChaim
ויסעו מרפידים ויבאו מדבר סיני, They journeyed from Refidim and arrived in the desert of Sinai, etc. The position of the verse is peculiar. We have already heard in verse one that the Israelites arrived in the desert of Sinai. Why did the Torah repeat it again? Perhaps we can explain this in terms of a statement in Sanhedrin 105 that "love has a tendency to disregard normal rules." As a result of love, what took place later may be reported earlier. Inasmuch as the day the Israelites accepted the Torah was the day that G'd had been waiting for ever since He created the universe, it is understandable that the Torah reported the arrival of this day at the earliest possible moment. This explains the emphasis of the Torah on ביום הזה באו, "on this day they arrived." The arrival describes the meeting of the lover and his beloved. Heaven and earth both rejoiced that this day had arrived at last. Since the Torah repeated the arrival of the Israelites in the desert of Sinai, what does the word ויבאו add to our understanding? Why did the Torah have to add that they camped there? What else were they supposed to do there? I believe the Torah wanted to acquaint us with three steps which were essential in the preparation to receive the Torah. G'd became willing to entrust the Torah to the Jewish people as an eternal inheritance after they had taken these three steps.. The first step was for the Israelites to get a grip on themselves and to study the Torah diligently. Laziness is like a weed which leads one to forfeit whatever achievements in Torah insights one has acquired. You will observe that whenever G'd mentions the Torah He is careful to use such attributes as חוזק, strength, intensity as well as אמץ, fortitude and vigour. Numbers 19,14 אדם כי ימות באהל is one such example. Our sages in Shabbat 83 explain that Torah study must be such that a person is prepared to endure death in order to acquire its insights. He is to study Torah even when at the point of death. The author refers to a book he wrote in his youth called Chefetz Hashem where he commented on Shabbat 88. The Talmud there describes Torah as the elixir of life to those who treat it as if it were on their right side, whereas to those who treat Torah as if it were on their left side it will prove to be a fatal dose of poison. He explained that Rava (the author of that statement) meant that Torah proves an elixir of life only to those who invest all their vigour in studying it. In our verse, the Torah alludes to this by saying that the Israelites "moved away from Refidim." If the Torah had wanted us to know from which location the Israelites journeyed towards the desert of Sinai, this would have had to be stated at the beginning of verse one. The Torah meant that the Israelites put some spiritual distance between their neglect of Torah as demonstrated at a place called Refidim, and their renewed progress towards receiving the Torah. We have explained in 17,8 that the reason Amalek attacked the I...
Chizkuni
ויסעו מרפידים, “they journeyed on from Refidim, etc.” according to Rashi, these words mean that the people moved forward spiritually, i.e. that they had repented their conduct once they moved on. All the time they were at Refidim they had not yet repented. [The reader is referred to chapter 17 where upon questioning whether the Lord was in their midst, and the subsequent attack by Amalek when they encamped at Refidim as His way of showing them what would happen if He were not in their midst. Ed.] Rabbi Yoshua in the Talmud Sanhedrin, folio 106, understood the word Refidim as an allusion to the people’s having become very weak in their Torah orientation, as a result of which G-d had showed them that His protection of them would weaken accordingly. ויחנו במדבר, “they encamped in the desert;” the desert is no man’s land, open to all and sundry to make their home there without being legally challenged. נגד ההר, “facing the Mountain.” (Mount Sinai, also known as Mount Chorev). According to Rashi, the reason for the Torah adding this detail is that it tells us that the Israelites faced East. It is noteworthy that Rashi does not say; במזרחו, “on its eastern side,” but: למזרחו, “facing its eastern side.” Had he written במזרחו, this would have meant that the people had already passed the Mountain. We would have wondered how it was possible that the people had passed the Mountain before receiving the Torah, something G-d had told Moses they would do in Exodus 3,12, in answer to his query why the time for redemption had been advanced so many years over what G-d had said to Avraham at the covenant between the pieces in Genesis chapter 15. We must therefore understand Rashi here as meaning “the people encamped facing theMountain, looking eastward, as they had been doing every time they had made camp, every time since they made camp for the first time at Eytam after they had previously converged together at a place named Sukkot, (Exodus 13,20) They continued facing east when encamping until they came to the steppes of Moav, prior to crossing the Jordan river in a westerly direction. (Compare Rashi on Numbers 34,3) This is what prompted Rashi, based on the Mechilta, that the word נגד when used by the Torah in connection with the Israelites’ journeys always means “eastward.” The only exception is when the people are described in Numbers 2,2, as encamping מנגד סביב לאהל מועד, where it means “opposite,” i.e. the Tabernacle was in the middle of the camp, the tribes camping around it, each group from a different direction.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ויסעו מרפידים, “they journeyed from Refidim.” This means that on the day they journeyed from Refidim it was New Moon and they arrived later that day at the desert of Sinai. The words ויבואו מדבר סיני ויחנו במדבר, mean that they arrived in the desert on that day, resting, but on the second of the month they made camp facing the mountain. This is why the Torah writes ויחן שם ישראל ההר, “Israel encamped facing the mountain.” The reason the word ויחן is in the singular here whereas at all other reports of the Israelites making camp it is in the plural, i.e. ויחנו, is the Torah’s way of complimenting the people for their unity of purpose when preparing to receive the Torah. A Midrash (mentioned in Torah Shleimah note 28) claims that the reason for the singular of ויחן is that the word ישראל in our verse is a reference to ישראל סבא, the concept of the people of Israel as envisaged in the name Israel the patriarch. The author of that Midrash clearly distinguishes between the Torah speaking of בני ישראל traveling or camping respectively, and ישראל or מחנה ישראל in 12,37 and here. When the word בני in front of ישראל is absent, he understands the reference to be not to the physical people of Israel but to the spiritual entity it or they represent. The words נגד ההר, a slightly unusual expression, is to be understood as if the Torah had written כנגד ההר, “opposite the mountain.” According to the plain meaning of the text the words נגד ההר mean “to the east of the mountain” (compare Pessikta Zutrata). Moses was told on that very day (second of the month) “so you shall say to the House of Yaakov and relate to Children of Israel” (verse 3). The Torah mentioned women and men separately as there are many commandments which apply equally to both men and women. G’d continued with: “you have seen what I did to Egypt,” and continued in verse 5 with: “and now, if you will hearken well and observe My covenant, etc.” The people responded to the above (verse 8) “all that the Lord has said we will do. On the third day of the month Moses ascended the mountain again and informed G’d of the people’s response (end of verse 8). On the fourth of the month G’d told Moses: “go to the people and sanctify them today and tomorrow” (verse 10). G’d referred to the fourth and fifth of the month. The words: “be ready for the third day” refer to the sixth of the month, i.e. the third day of their sanctification. From the above you observe that the Torah was given on the sixth day of Sivan. Our sages (Rabbi Akiva) say in Shabbat 86 that the Torah was given on the Sabbath. Rabbi Yossi held that the Torah (Ten Commandments) was given on the seventh of the month. Rava added that both scholars are in agreement that the Torah was given on the Sabbath. When the Torah writes in 20,8 זכור את יום השבת, and the same words are used in 13,3 זכור את היום הזה אשר יצאתם ממצרים, (the word זכור being in the infinitive both times) this serves as the reason for both scholars agreeing that both events occurred on the same day of the week, i.e. on the Sabbath. The matter under dispute between these two scholars was only the day of the week on which the first day of Sivan occurred. Rabbi Yossi held that New Moon was on the preceding Sunday, whereas Rabbi Akiva (and the other scholars) held that New Moon in that year occurred on the Monday. Although there is a rule in the Talmud that when Rabbi Yossi’s opinion differs from his peers his opinion is preferred because he always supplied a good reason for his opinion (compare Gittin 67), in this instance the halachah was fixed according to the opinion of the other scholars, the majority. Accordingly, our tradition is that the Israelites arrived in the desert of Sinai on Monday and encamped in front of Mount Sinai on the second of the month, i.e. on Tuesday after having left their initial resting place in that desert. The fact that the Torah was given on the Sabbath is recorded in our עמידה prayer every Sabbath morning when we say ישמח משה במתנת חלקו “Moses was full of joy with the portion allotted to him.” He rejoiced that it had been his good fortune to hand over G’d’s Torah to the Jewish people on that memorable Sabbath.
Kli Yakar
“And they journeyed from Rephidim and came to the desert of Sinai, and they camped in the desert; and Israel camped there opposite the mountain.” See how many repetitions are written here, and what would the verse have lacked if it had said, “And they journeyed from Rephidim and camped in the desert of Sinai opposite the mountain”? And why did it first say they camped [plural] and afterwards he camped [singular]? First it mentions desert of Sinai, and afterwards it simply says in the desert; first it called the mountain by the name Sinai and afterwards simply called it the mountain. It appears that all this is evidence that Israel was not worthy of receiving the Torah until there was peace among them, words of the wise given from one shepherd (Ecclesiastes 12:11). The Torah’s paths are all peace, because through division of hearts, one forbids and another permits, and thus the Torah becomes like two Torahs. This is what is meant by In the third month… on this day they came to the desert of Sinai. It indicates that this month, whose zodiac sign is Gemini [Twins], signifies attachment and love, that together they would be perfect like twins to each other, and then there would be abundant peace for those who love the Torah. This also alludes to the two tablets that were like twins together, five opposite five. And afterwards it says “They traveled from Rephidim.” This refers to the place where there was quarreling and division, for that place was called Massah and Meribah. The word Rephidim contains the letters of “peridim” [separated ones], similar to [the interchangeable words] “kesev”/“keves” [lamb], named for the separation that existed among them. Our Sages (Sanhedrin 106a) interpreted it as “rafu yadayim” [weakening of hands], because one thing depends on the other. Through the division that existed among them, their hands were weakened from Torah study. Now they traveled from Rephidim, from that place — meaning they removed themselves from division — and they came to the Sinai desert. For this place caused them to become one unified group, since the pursuit of honor and authority is the cause of all quarrels and afflictions. When they saw that Mount Sinai, the lowest of the mountains, was the mountain God desired for His dwelling, they realized that the Holy One, blessed be He, chooses the humble, and thereby they chose the attribute of humility, which is the cause of peace. Therefore, the verse mentions them in plural form: They came to the Sinai desert and they encamped in the desert, indicating that from the perspective of the desert, they were still divided in their opinions and were not yet of one heart as one person. But when they came before the mountain and were told that God would descend on this mountain, then Israel encamped [in singular form] — they were of one heart as one person. Initially, however, before they came to this mountain, both when they entered the desert and when they encamped in the desert, they had not yet abandoned their division until they came before the mountain as mentioned. This is because the name [Sinai] indicates the opposite, namely hatred, as our Sages said (Shabbat 89b): “Sinai, from which hatred [sin’ah] descended to the nations, etc.” Therefore it says, Israel encamped there before the mountain, because it was the essence of the mountain that caused peace, not its name.
Tur HaArokh
ויסעו מרפידים ויבואו מדבר סיני, “they journeyed from Refidim, and they arrived at the desert of Sinai.” According to the Torah’s syntax which we have grown accustomed to, the Torah should have written: “they journeyed from Refidim and they encamped at the desert of Sinai.” The reason why the Torah chose to write ויבואו instead of ויחנו, is to convey to the reader that as soon as the people saw Mount Sinai they were so happy that they decided to encamp forthwith instead of scouting around for what they considered a suitable area for putting up their camp. This is why the Torah adds the words ויחנו במדבר, ”they made camp in the desert, normally not an appropriate site for making camp. ויחן שם ישראל נגד ההר, “Israel encamped there facing the Mountain.” The people are here referred to as “Israel,” (in the singular mode) instead of as plain “the people,” to tell us that when the riffraff and the fellow travelers, the ערב רב, had chosen to locate some short distance away, the elite, the main body of Israelites, chose to encamp facing the Mountain. [we need to remember that until the building of the Tabernacle, the signal for breaking camp and making camp was not the overhead cloud of G’d’s glory that the Torah describes in Numbers Ed.] It is possible that not the entire people positioned their tents facing the Mountain but only the elders and most distinguished members of the people. This may be the reason why the Torah wrote ויחן, singular mode, instead of ויחנו, in the plural mode. Nachmanides questions what Rashi wrote as the reason for the Torah having written ויסעו מרפידים, i.e. we needed to know from where the Israelites arrived at the desert of Sinai. He draws our attention to the fact that the Torah normally reports the Israelites’ departure from a certain location prior to reporting their arrival at a new location; so what is so special here? (compare: the pattern of ויסעו מ...ויחנו ב... in dozens of examples in Numbers chapter 33) In answering his query, Nachmanides suggests that what Rashi had in mind was, that seeing that all the other journeys mentioned here have been repeated in the list in Numbers 33, something new occurred at each location, whereas both here and in Massey this journey is described with identical words, without any change in nuance even, Rashi felt impelled make the comment he did, i.e. that just as the people were in a mood of penitence when they departed from Refidim, they were still in that mood when they arrived at the desert of Sinai.
Rashbam
נגד ההר, the same mountain that had been mentioned in Exodus 3,12 as the one where the Israelites would worship.
And Moses went up before God, and Hashem called to him out of the mountain, saying: "Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel:
verse value 3885 — יְהֹוָה֙ = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 65 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "thus" (כֹּ֤ה, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·God" (אֶל־הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים, 8 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "and·declare" (וְתַגֵּ֖יד). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 396x in Exodus); "saying" (root אמר, 297x in Exodus); "and·Moses" (root משה, 277x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·God', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 12 words.
Onkelos
And Moses went up before Hashem, and Hashem called to him from the mountain, saying: Thus shall you say to the house of Jacob, and declare to the children of Israel.
Rashi
ומשה עלה AND MOSES WENT UP on the second day of the month (Mekhilta); for all his ascents to the mountain were made early in the morning, as it is stated (Exodus 34:4) “And Moses rose up early in the morning [and went up unto mount Sinai]” (Shabbat 86b). כה תאמר THUS SHALT THOU SAY — Thus, i. e. in this (the Hebrew) language (cf. Mekhilta) and in this form of words. לבית יעקב TO THE HOUSE OF JACOB — This denotes the women — to them you shall speak in gentle language (Mekhilta). ותגיד לבני ישראל AND TELL THE CHILDREN (lit., the sons) OF ISRAEL — explain to the men the punishments and the details of the commandments in words that are as hard (distasteful) as wormwood (גידין) (cf. Shabbat 87a; Midrash לקח טוב).
Ramban
AND MOSES WENT UP UNTO G-D. From the day they arrived at Mount Sinai, the cloud covered the mountain and the Glory of G-d was there. It is with reference to this that Scripture says, And the Glory of the Eternal abode upon Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days, i.e., before the Giving of the Torah. It is for this reason that Scripture says here, And Moses went up unto G-d, meaning that he went up to the edge of the mountain to be ready for Him, but he did not penetrate the thick darkness where G-d was. And the Eternal called unto him from the top of the mountain, saying: Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob. And Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra wrote that the expression, and He called unto him, is an antecedent, meaning that He had called him [to come up to the mountain] and he went up to Him. But this does not appear to me to be correct, for the calling [mentioned in Scripture after Moses ascended the mountain] was: Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob. Now Ibn Ezra explains the verse to mean as follows: “And the Eternal called unto him to say to him, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob.” But this is not correct. The meaning of the expression, he went up unto G-d, and the Eternal called unto him, is that Moses went up towards the Glory of G-d, which was abiding on the mountain to declare the Ten Commandments to Israel, and with His Great Name [the Tetragrammaton] He would speak with Moses, as is the meaning of the verse, If there be a prophet among you, etc.
Ibn Ezra
"And Moses went up" — the verse already mentioned "opposite the mountain," so the meaning here is that Moses went up to the mount of God. "And Hashem called to him" — Hashem had called him, for he would not have ascended without permission. The verse specifies "from the mountain" because he did not ascend above the mountain; that is where Hashem spoke with him. Do not be troubled by what is later said, "and Hashem descended upon Mount Sinai" (below, v. 20), for that is stated in relation to all Israel — that they might see the cloud and the fire — as it is written, "and His words you heard from within the fire" (Deut. 4:36). "Saying" — He called him so that the people might say: "Thus shall you say to the house" — meaning the word encompasses the house of Jacob, those present now and their descendants after them. "And tell the children of Israel" — these are the elders, who would then tell all the people. So it is written, "And Moses came and called for the elders of the people" (v. 7), and afterward, "And all the people answered together" (v. 8). The word "house" I have explained elsewhere.
Or HaChaim
ומשה עלה אל האלוקים, "and Moses went up unto G'd." Why did Moses go up before G'd had asked him to come up? Where to exactly did Moses go up? If he ascended the Mountain, why did the Torah not say so? Shemot Rabbah 28, bases itself on Psalms 68,19: עלית למרום, "you went up to celestial regions." If we accept this Midrash at face value, why did G'd afterwards have to call upon Moses from the Mountain if he was already in the celestial regions? Besides, why does the Torah describe Moses as going up to האלוקים instead of to השם seeing that when G'd called to him from the Mountain G'd is described as השם? We have to understand what transpired in conjunction with G'd having told Moses already at the burning bush (3,12) that when the Israelites would arrive at this Mountain they would serve the Lord there. The term used there was את האלוקים. Moses, ever the faithful servant of the Lord, did not wait until he would be commanded to ascend the mountain but did so on his own initiative. There was no need to identify where Moses ascended to since the Torah had last spoken about the Mountain. The reason the Torah mentions Moses' destination as being אל האלוקים is precisely because it was the reason for his ascent. Moses felt that if he waited until he would be asked to ascend this would demonstrate both lethargy on his part, perhaps even unwillingness. This clears up all the apparent peculiarities in this verse. We do not believe that our approach contradicts the explanation offered by the Midrash as we view G'd's presence on the Mountain as including the Mountain in the celestial regions. ויקרא אליו השם. G'd called out to him. As soon as G'd noticed that Moses was ascending, G'd called out to him. You have to remember that it is in the nature of קדושה, sanctity, not to make the first move towards a person until that person has made active preparations to welcome such sanctity. The Zohar third volume page 92 phrases it is as "invitations from the terrestrial regions being followed by invitations from the celestial regions." This is the mystical dimension of Genesis 2,6: "and a vapour rose from the earth and it irrigated (from above) the whole surface of the earth." When the Torah uses the term ויקרא for G'd calling to Moses it alludes to יקר, precious, (which is part of the word ויקרא. מן ההר לאמור, from the Mountain, saying: Seeing that the word of G'd originates in the upper regions of the Heavens, for G'd had not yet descended on the Mountain, the Torah had to tell us that G'd commanded His voice to travel via the Mountain. Moses would hear G'd's instructions from there. The voice would travel in a straight line, in a very narrow channel and Moses would not hear it until he arrived on the Mountain. The two statements 1) ויקרא אליו השם, followed by מן ההר לאמור are to tell us that the word of G'd became audible only once it had "arrived" on the Mountain. Had the Torah not added the word לאמור, I would have thought that G'd's presence had already descend...
Chizkuni
ומשה עלה, “and Moses had ascended;” he ascended the Mountain on the second day of the month, i.e. on a Tuesday. He had not done so spontaneously but in response to an invitation by G-d, Who had called to him from the Mountain to address the whole nation, i.e. כה תאמר לבית יעקב וגו', “thus you shall say to the house of Yaakov, etc.”Some commentators believe that Moses did ascend the Mountain without having asked for permission in order to enquire how precisely to serve G-d there. He did so as G-d had told him in Exodus 3,12 in response to his enquiry why the Jews were going to be redeemed long before the 400 years of which G-d had spoken to Avraham in Genesis chapter 15 had been concluded. At that time G-d had told him that the people would accept the Torah at this mountain, and that in anticipation of that they were being redeemed ahead of time, “on credit,” so to speak. Actually, we find that the Israelites offered sacrifices near the Mountain prior to the revelation as reported in chapter 24,4-6. ותגיד לבני ישראל, “and explain in detail to the Children of Israel!” According to Rashi, the reason for the apparent repetition, the first part of the verse is addressed to the women who will be told in a brief outline, whereas the second part is addressed to the men in far greater detail emphasizing reward and punishment for observance or non observance of the Torah commandments. He derives the word ותגיד which is uncharacteristically spelled with the letter י in the middle as derived from the word גיד, meaning “a tough sinew,” as a hint that some of the commandments will be found to present a real challenge for those willing to observe them. According to the plain meaning of the text, however, the words: ותגד לבני ישראל, refer to verse 4 where G-d tells Moses: אתם ראיתם, ”you have seen, etc.” The reason why this is the preferable version is that homiletic explanations never speak in terms of the future, but always in terms of the past. Here G-d instructs Moses concerning what he is to do in the future when he addresses the people.
Rabbeinu Bahya
כה תאמר לבית יעקב, “So you shall say to the House of Yaakov.” Moses was to address the women. The word כה means he was to speak to them in Hebrew. The word תאמר means he was to speak to them kindly. The reason G’d told Moses to address the women first was to teach them ethics and general rules of behavior. Furthermore, in order to make the women receptive for further Torah legislation, Moses gave them an overview of the headings and subject matters that the Torah contains. They needed special preparation for all this as their minds function differently from the minds of men, seeing that their daily tasks did not allow them so much free time to think about their spiritual needs as did the minds of the men. Moreover, a good woman is the main reason Torah has a future. The mother encourages her young son to attend a Torah-academy; seeing she is at home throughout the day she is the one who responds to the various needs, both real and imagined, of her children. She protects them against all kinds of dangers. She does all this so that he will cleave to the path of Torah also when he becomes old (Proverbs 22,6). This is why it is incumbent upon a woman to pray to G’d at the time she lights the Sabbath candles, a commandment which is especially addressed to her, that He may grant her children who will learn Torah and observe its precepts. Any prayer is more likely to evoke a positive response when it is offered at a time when one performs a commandment. The merit acquired by lighting the Sabbath candles which provide physical light helps her children to become Torah scholars. This is alluded to by Solomon in Proverbs 6,23 כי נר מצוה ותורה אור, that by lighting a candle to provide physical light when one is performing a מצוה, the result will be the spiritual light dispensed by her children who have studied Torah. ותגיד לבני ישראל, “and tell the Children of Israel.” He commanded them to both instruct and warn them to observe the commandments as well as to acquaint them with the penalties in store if they would fail to observe G’d’s laws. This is implied in the word תגיד, i.e. the word is derived from גידין, “wormwood,” an extremely bitter vegetable. The word is spelled with the letter י in the middle to remind us of the connection with גידין. There is no other occasion in the whole Bible where the word הגדה, telling, informing, is spelled with the letter י such as here. Compare Joshua 7,19 and Isaiah 58,1 where the word הגד refers to revealing one’s sins. Even in those instances we do not find the letter י. This explains why our sages (Shabbat 87) have seen fit to interpret the word here as they did.
Tur HaArokh
ומשה עלה אל האלוקים, “and Moses had ascended to G’d,” this means he had proceeded to the edge of the Mountain. Clearly, there had been evidence that G’d’s presence was resting above the top of that Mountain ever since the day that the Israelites had arrived at that location. Moses’ purpose was to keep in readiness to enter the ערפל, the thick cloud, behind which a manifestation of G’d could be found. (compare 20,18) ויקרא אליו ה' מן ההר לאמור, “Hashem called out to him from the Mountain, saying:” According to Ibn Ezra G’d had called to Moses already before he ascended, but had not given him any specific instructions. Nachmanides writes that Moses did not receive any call until after he had ascended, at which time G’d told him:כה תאמר לבית יעקב,”you shall say to the house of Yaakov, using precisely these words, etc.” לבית יעקב, “to the house of Yaakov.” This was a reference to the Jewish women. ולבני ישראל, “and to the Children of Israel.” This was a reference to the men. The reason why the women, in this case, have been mentioned first, is that at the dawn of history, Chavah, the first woman, who had not personally been warned by G’d not to eat from the tree of knowledge, not only ate from it but also gave her husband to eat from it. By telling Moses now to address the legislation to the women first, G’d wanted to ensure that the communication failure in Gan Eden would not be repeated. Seeing that the women had been honored to receive their share of the information before their husbands, this would make them more fiercely loyal to observe the commandments in every detail. The fact that this psychology worked was demonstrated about 43 days later when the women refused to hand over their gold jewelry to help in making the golden calf. Another possible way of explaining the difference in meaning between the expression בית יעקב and בני ישראל is that the former refers to the people presently at Mount Sinai, whereas the latter refers to as yet unborn generations of Jews.
You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings, and brought you to Myself.
verse value 4934
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 52 letters. Verse gematria: 4934 = 2 × 2467. The shortest word is "you" (אַתֶּ֣ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·the·Egyptians" (לְמִצְרָ֑יִם, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 461: you, you. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "I·did" (עָשִׂ֖יתִי), "to·the·Egyptians" (לְמִצְרָ֑יִם), "and·I·bore" (וָאֶשָּׂ֤א). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "I·did" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "what" (root אשר, 245x in Exodus); "to·the·Egyptians" (root מצרי, 145x in Exodus). First appearance of the root כנף ("on·the·wings·of") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·the·Egyptians', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 7 words. Full calculation: אַתֶּ֣ם [you] (441) + רְאִיתֶ֔ם [you·have·seen] (651) + אֲשֶׁ֥ר [what] (501) + עָשִׂ֖יתִי [I·did] (790) + לְמִצְרָ֑יִם [to·the·Egyptians] (410) + וָאֶשָּׂ֤א [and·I·bore] (308) + אֶתְכֶם֙ [you] (461) + עַל־כַּנְפֵ֣י [on·the·wings·of] (260) + נְשָׁרִ֔ים [eagles] (600) + וָאָבִ֥א [and·I·brought] (10) + אֶתְכֶ֖ם [you] (461) + אֵלָֽי [to·me] (41) = 4934.
Onkelos
You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I carried you as if on the wings of eagles, and brought you near to my service.
Rashi
אתם ראיתם YE HAVE SEEN — It is not a tradition in your possession, not in written words do I send a message to you, not by means of eye-witnesses do I attest this to you, but you yourselves have seen אשר עשיתי למצרים WHAT I DID UNTO EGYPT — on account of many sins were they liable to Me for punishment before they came into contact with you, but I did not exact punishment from them except on your account (cf. Mekhilta). ואשא אתכם AND I BARE YOU [ON EAGLES’ WINGS] — This happened on that day when the Israelites came to Rameses (the place where they all assembled on the night when they left Egypt) (Mekhilta), because the Israelites were living dispersed throughout the whole district of Goshen and in one brief moment — when they came there to set out and to leave Egypt — they all gathered together at Rameses. Onkelos translates ואשא as though it were [וְאַסִּיעַ [אתכם — viz., ואטלית יתכון “and I made you travel” (cf. the Targum on וַיַּסַע Exodus 15:22); he adapted the expression in a manner that is consonant with the respect due to the Most High God. על כנפי נשרים UPON EAGLES’ WINGS — as an eagle which bears its fledglings upon its wings. Scripture uses this metaphor because all other birds place their young between their feet since they are afraid of another bird that flies above them, but the eagle fears none except man — apprehending that perhaps he may cast an arrow at it — since no bird can fly above it; therefore he places it (its young) upon its wings, saying, “Better that the arrow should pierce me than my young!” (Mekhilta). — “I, too”, said God, “did thus”: (Exodus 14:19, 20) “And the angel of God … journeyed etc…. And he came between the camp of Egypt etc.” … and the Egyptians were casting arrows and stone missiles and the cloud caught these (cf. Rashi on these verses). ואבא אתכם אלי AND I BROUGHT YOU UNTO MYSELF — Explain this as the Targum does: “and I have brought you near to My service”.
Ramban
AND I BROUGHT YOU UNTO MYSELF. I.e., “to the place of My Glory, namely, this mountain where My Presence abides there with you.” Now Onkelos translated: “and I brought you near to My service.” [To avoid a literal translation], Onkelos adapted an expression of respect towards Him Who is on high.
Ibn Ezra
"You yourselves have seen" — the vengeance I wrought in Egypt on your behalf; and I carried you out of Egypt as though you were borne on eagles' wings, for the eagle soars higher than any bird, and all fear it, while it fears nothing. This follows the verse, "as an eagle rouses its nest" (Deut. 32:11), carrying its fledglings gently. The cloud, too, is like this — "He spread His wings" (ibid.). "And I brought you to Myself" — for My glory descended on this mountain, which is the holy mount. Moses said, "you shall serve God upon this mountain" (above, 3:12), and it is "the habitation of Your holiness."
Sforno
And how I bore you on eagles' wings - a novel way, that no one had gone through before, just like the eagle that takes care of its young in the height of the sky, where there is no other type of bird, and this is to distinguish you from all the other peoples and their pursuits, to be for Me.
Or HaChaim
אתם ראיתם אשר עשיתי למצרים "You have seen what I have done to Egypt, etc." Why did G'd stress what He had done to Egypt rather than what He had done for the Israelites, i.e. that He had taken them out of bondage in Egypt? After all, it was the latter which obligated the Israelites to accept the Torah and to accept G'd's words gladly as a gesture of gratitude. If G'd only intended to stress the miracles He had performed this would have been included in a statement such as: "I took Israel out of Egypt." According to our explanation that G'd operated on two levels when He informed the Israelites of His commandments, we find that He did so also in our verse. When G'd spoke about what He had done to Egypt, He reminded the people of what would happen to anyone who does not observe His commandments. By reminding the people of how He had carried them on the wings of eagles, G'd reminded the people of the loving kindness they could expect in return for observing the Torah's laws meticulously. G'd hinted that should the Jews refuse to observe the commandments He would consider them as in the same class as the Egyptians who had refused to listen to Him and who had paid the price. The words אשר עשיתי also have an additional connotation, namely that having witnessed the great miracles G'd had performed, surely the people would stand in awe of such a G'd. The plagues G'd brought upon the Egyptians by changing the laws of nature were a simultaneous demonstration of G'd's love for the Israelites for whose sake He had gone to such lengths as to re-enact מעשה בראשית. How could someone who reminded himself of having observed G'd manifest Himself in such a manner not develop a love for G'd? The above considerations were both incorporated in the introduction כה תאמר לבית יעקב ותגיד לבני ישראל. ואשא אתכם על כנפי נשרים, "I carried you on eagles' wings." G'd went on at length about the feats of love He had performed for the Jewish people. He wanted to show how great was the reward when one performs His commandments because of a feeling of love for G'd. Of course, it requires a great deal of emotional fortitude to always relate to G'd from feelings of love. G'd wanted to encourage such feelings in the Jewish people by reminding them that He had already demonstrated that He treated them as a father treats his son. The "wings of eagles" are a reference to the ענני הכבוד, the clouds of G'd's glory, which were spread beneath the feet of the people so that they did not have to step on obstacles. Moses reminded the people of that in Deut. 8,4: "your feet never swelled during these forty years." Whereas a mere hint such as אשר עשיתי is sufficient to awaken fear of retribution, more words of endearment are required in order to induce love in people. Hence G'd had to be more eloquent about the acts of love He had performed. ואבא אתכם אלי, "and I brought you close to Me." In this verse G'd reminded the Jewish people that He had taken the first step to bring them close to Him. T...
Chizkuni
ואשא אתכם על כנפי נשרים, “I have carried you on eagles’ wings;” Rashi comments on this that this refers to the day on which the people came to Raamses. If you were to counter that in chapter 12,37 this magic carpet referred to the day G-d transported the people from Raamses to Sukkot, we must answer that G-d referred to both these days according to Rashi. על כנפי נשרים, over the sea, like a bird that carries its young across a river by means of flying across it.
Rabbeinu Bahya
אתם ראיתם את אשר עשיתי למצרים, “You have seen what I have done to Egypt.” At the outset G’d explains to the Jewish people that the matter of His personal benevolent supervision of their fate is the basic tenet of Judaism and the Torah. When G’d sets out to punish one nation for their sins and to save another nation from them on account of its merits, this is one of the miracles which is part of G’d’s special supervision and of the whole concept of reward and punishment. In order to underline this G’d reminded the Israelites by saying: “Look at what I have done to Egypt.” G’d performed all this in front of the eyes of the Israelites so that they would have visual evidence of His personal involvement in their fate. G’d contrasted what He had done to the Egyptians with what He had done for the Israelites when He continued with: “I have carried you on eagles’ wings and brought You to Me (to this Mountain).” The simile was meant to describe how G’d had protected the Israelites, just as an eagle protects its young. Mechilta (Bachodesh item 2) describes the simile of the eagle in these words: an eagle, the king of the birds, is not afraid of another bird attacking it from above but is afraid of an arrow from below; therefore the eagle carries its young on its wings whereas other birds carry their young in their claws below their wings as they fear that an eagle might swoop down upon them from above. The eagle’s reason for carrying its young on its wings is documented in Deut. 32,11 when Moses extols what G’d had done in these words: “He was like an eagle arousing its nest, hovering over its young.” The eagle reasons that it is better for an arrow to pierce it than to pierce its young. When the Israelites departed from Egypt and entered the Sea of Reeds the Egyptians were pursuing them; at that time G’d arranged for two pillars one of fire and one of cloud to separate them from the Egyptians who were behind. The Egyptians were shooting arrows in the general direction of the camp of the Israelites. These arrows were absorbed by the pillar of cloud not causing any harm to their targets. If, according to this Midrash, the Torah meant to describe G’d’s love for the Israelites as similar to the love of the eagle for its young, the Torah should have written: here: “I have carried you on the wings of an eagle (sing.).” Why the word נשרים in the plural? Perhaps the reason the Torah writes נשרים, “eagles,” is to allude to the fact that G’d did not only interpose Himself between the Israelites and the Egyptians as a single pillar but as two pillars, one of cloud and one of fire. The fact is that the Torah reported as soon as the Israelites had journeyed from Raamses (Exodus 12,37), that there traveled with them both a pillar of cloud by day to show them the way and a pillar of fire to light up the night for them. These two pillars took up positions behind the Israelites only after the Egyptians had mounted a pursuit and were in a threatening position (14,19).
Kli Yakar
And I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. Here, three ascending levels are mentioned. First, He said, And I carried you on eagles’ wings, which is like a caretaker carrying an infant. At this stage, the Holy One, Blessed be He, is at the level of a father, and Israel at the level of a son. Afterward, He said, And I brought you to Myself, implying that you would be equal to Me, like two brothers of equal standing. Then He said, And you shall be to Me a kingdom, meaning, as it were, kings to Me, as it is written, The righteous ruler in the fear of God (2 Samuel 23:3). This is explained according to the Midrash Chazit, which Ramban cites in Parashat Chayei Sarah (24:1), which states: Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai asked Rabbi Elazar bar Yossi, “Is it possible that you heard from your father the meaning of with the crown with which his mother crowned him” (Song of Songs 3:11)? He replied, “This is comparable to a king who had an only daughter whom he cherished greatly. At first, he called her ‘my daughter.’ His love for her grew until he called her ‘my sister.’ His love continued to grow until he called her ‘my mother.’ Similarly, the Holy One, Blessed be He, cherishes Israel and called them ‘my daughter,’ as it is said, Listen, daughter, and see (Psalms 45:11). His love for them grew until He called them ‘my sister,’ as it is said, Open for me, my sister, my beloved (Song of Songs 5:2). His love for them continued to grow until He called them ‘my mother,’ as it is said, Listen to Me, My people, and My nation [le’umi] (Isaiah 51:4), which is written as ‘le’imi’ [to my mother].” And it appears that this midrash did not state the order of the levels, because first [it mentions] “daughter,” and afterward [God] increased His love for her and called her “my sister,” and this addition is actually a reduction, because without doubt a person cherishes his daughter more than his sister. And without doubt this midrash speaks of the levels of authority that one has over another, because a father rules over his daughter, and so does a mother, but a brother and sister are equal. Similarly, at first the Holy One, blessed be He, called Israel “daughter” due to His love for Israel, as only He, may He be blessed, has the sovereignty to rule over Israel like the authority of a father over his daughter. And this was in the days of Abraham, because the verse Listen, daughter, and see is interpreted as referring to Abraham (Genesis Rabbah 39:1), and this is the first level mentioned here: I carried you on eagles’ wings, and this carrying is like when a caretaker carries a nursing child. Afterward, the Holy One, blessed be He, elevated them to a greater level by calling them “my sister,” suggesting that they are equal to Him, may He be blessed. The Holy One, blessed be He, equated His honor and awe, may He be blessed, with their honor, as our Sages of blessed memory said that the righteous are considered as if they became partners with the Blessed One. This was in the days of Isaac, to whom the Holy One, blessed be He, said, Dwell in this land, and I will be with you (Genesis 26:3) — meaning, equal to you, because his own merit was added to the merit of Abraham his father. Therefore, the expression “I will be with you” was not said to Abraham as it was to Isaac. This is the second level mentioned here: and I brought you to Me, which is similar to the statement I will be with you. Afterward, when Jacob came — God’s portion, the threefold cord — the Lord elevated him to an even greater level, calling him “mother,” just as a mother rules over a daughter. Similarly, a righteous person rules over the fear of God, as our Sages of blessed memory expounded (Moed Katan 16b). This is what is said about Jacob: For you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed. Although to Jacob it was also said (Genesis 31:3), And I will be with you, nevertheless, he was later elevated to a third level when he struggled with God and prevailed. And this is what [the Sages] said (Megillah 18a): “The Holy One, blessed be He, called Jacob ‘God’” — meaning that he rules over Him, as it were. And this is what is stated here: And you shall be for Me a kingdom of kings — for Me, as it were. I decree a decree, and the righteous person nullifies it. And they merited this level by virtue of being the children of Israel, as the passage begins: Thus shall you say to the house of Jacob and tell the children of Israel, etc. And we can interpret the verse “and you shall be for Me a kingdom of priests.” Kings over the priests, because through receiving the Torah, those who study it have an advantage over the priests, for even a Torah scholar of illegitimate birth takes precedence over an ignorant High Priest (Horayot 13). And some say, You have seen what I did to Egypt refers to the plagues, because when the plagues came from the earth — blood, lice, and similar ones — then I bore you on eagles’ wings, so that you would not be harmed by them, as if I had lifted you above the earth. And afterward, when the plagues came from the heavens — fire and hail — then I brought you to Me, to elevate you above the cosmic order. And some say that He elevated them above the angels who are called “winged beings,” and about this He said, I bore you on eagles’ wings, meaning, I lifted you to a level that is higher than the wings of eagles.
Tur HaArokh
ואביא אתכם אלי, “I have brought you to Me.” To the location where My glory its manifest, this Mountain where My presence is presently in residence.
Rashbam
על כנפי נשרים, for I have brought you across the Sea on dry land just like eagles which cross the seas in their flight. They had also not suffered any harm during this crossing, just as the eagle transports his young on its wings protecting them against harm from below. (Deuteronomy 32,11). (2) I BROUGHT YOU TO ME. For Me to be to you as a God.
Now therefore, if you will heed My voice indeed, and keep My covenant, then you shall be My treasured possession from among all peoples; for all the earth is Mine;
verse value 5185
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 62 letters. The shortest word is "to·me" (לִ֤י, 2 letters) and the longest is "from·all·the·peoples" (מִכׇּל־הָ֣עַמִּ֔ים, 8 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "you·shall·obey" (תִּשְׁמְעוּ֙), "and·you·shall·be" (וִהְיִ֨יתֶם), "treasured·possession" (סְגֻלָּה֙). The root שמע appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·you·shall·be" (root היה, 235x in Exodus); "all·the·earth" (root ארץ, 133x in Exodus); "from·all·the·peoples" (root כל, 121x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'my·covenant', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְעַתָּ֗ה [and·now] (481) + אִם־שָׁמ֤וֹעַ [if·surely] (457) + תִּשְׁמְעוּ֙ [you·shall·obey] (816) + בְּקֹלִ֔י [to·my·voice] (142) + וּשְׁמַרְתֶּ֖ם [and·you·shall·keep] (986) + אֶת־בְּרִיתִ֑י [my·covenant] (1023) + וִהְיִ֨יתֶם [and·you·shall·be] (471) + לִ֤י [to·me] (40) + סְגֻלָּה֙ [treasured·possession] (98) + מִכׇּל־הָ֣עַמִּ֔ים [from·all·the·peoples] (255) + כִּי־לִ֖י [for·Mine·is] (70) + כׇּל־הָאָֽרֶץ [all·the·earth] (346) = 5185.
Onkelos
And now, if you will truly hearken to my Word and keep my covenant, you shall be beloved before me above all peoples, for all the earth is mine.
Rashi
ועתה AND NOW — if you will now take upon yourselves the observance of My commandments, it will be pleasant (easy) to you from now and henceforth, for every beginning is difficult (Mekhilta). ושמרתם את בריתי AND KEEP MY COVENANT which I shall make with you regarding the observance of the Torah (cf. (Mekhilta). סגלה means a cherished treasure, the same as (Ecclesiastes 2:8) “and treasures (וסגלת) of kings” — costly vessels and precious stones which kings store up. In the same manner shall ye be unto Me a cherished treasure more than other peoples (Mekhilta) . Now do not say that ye alone belong to Me and that I have no other peoples together with (besides) you, and what else, therefore, have I by which the special love I bear you can be made evident; this is not so, כי לי כל הארץ FOR ALL THE EARTH IS MINE, but in My eyes and before Me they are as nought.
Ramban
AND YE WILL KEEP MY COVENANT. I.e., “the covenant which I have made with your fathers to be a G-d unto them and to their seed after them.” Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra explained it as referring to the covenant which Moses was to make with Israel after the Giving of the Torah, as he said, Behold, the blood of the covenant, which the Eternal hath made with you in agreement with all these words. By way of the Truth, [that is, the mystic lore of the Cabala, the verse is to be understood as meaning] that “you should keep My covenant to cleave unto Me, for if thou shalt indeed hearken unto My voice and do all that I speak, then ye shalt be Mine own ‘s’gulah’ (treasure) from among all peoples.” This means that “you will be a treasure ‘in My hand,’” for a king does not hand over a precious object into the hand of another [for permanent possession]. The word s’gulah here is similar in meaning to the expression: ‘us’gulath’ (and treasure) such as kings and the provinces have as their own. FOR ALL THE EARTH IS MINE. This is similar in meaning to the verses: Which the Eternal thy G-d hath allotted unto all the peoples… But you hath the Eternal taken. And thus He said, “And I have set you apart from the peoples, that ye should be Mine [own] treasure.” It may be that the word s’gulah connotes “attachment.” [The sense of the verse would then be: “and you shall be attached to Me from among all peoples], for unto Me is the earth called kol (all),” as I have explained on the verse, And the Eternal had blessed Abraham ‘bakol’ (in all things). The student learned [in the mystic lore of the Cabala] will understand. Similarly, And ye shall be unto me means that “you will be Mine in a special sense, and not as the rest of the peoples.” And so did the Rabbis interpret it in the Mechilta: “And ye shall be unto Me. As though it were possible to say it, [He is stating], ‘I shall neither appoint nor delegate [any power] to rule over you, but I Myself will rule over you.’ And thus it says, Behold He that keepeth Israel doth neither slumber nor sleep.”.
Ibn Ezra
"And now, if you will hearken diligently to My voice" — to perform My commandments — "and keep My covenant" that I will make with you, that is, the covenant Moses made with Israel after the Giving of the Torah when he built the altar, as I shall explain in its place with full proof. The word סְגֻלָּה ("treasured possession") denotes something precious and cherished, the like of which is found nowhere else. "For all the earth is Mine" — this is linked to "above all peoples," as though to say: all the peoples of the earth are Mine; yet this is why "I have set you apart from all the peoples to be Mine." R. Marinus said that the meaning of "for all the earth is Mine" is: even though all the earth is Mine — serving as an adversative concessive. In my view similar to this are: "for it is a stiff-necked people" (below, 32:9), and "heal my soul, for I have sinned against You" (Ps. 41:5).
Sforno
And you will be a treasure among all peoples - even though all types of humans are important to me above all the lower beings, since He is represented only in them, as say Hazal (Avot): 'Humans are beloved because they were created in the Image' - still, you will be treasured among them ... Because Mine is all the earth - and the difference between you exists in smaller or bigger amounts, despite the fact that the whole earth is Mine, and the Righteous of the Nations are important to Me without a doubt.
Or HaChaim
ועתה אם שמוע תשמעו, And now, "if you will hearken carefully, etc." The word ועתה must be understood in accordance with what Bereshit Rabbah 21,6 teaches, in connection with Genesis 3,22 when Adam was being expelled from Gan Eden. The Midrash says there that this word always introduces the element of repentance. Inasmuch as the Israelites were still tainted by the many sins they had committed in the past as well as sins they had committed quite recently, such as when they rebelled against G'd's command in connection with the manna and the Sabbath, G'd warned them that in order to qualify for the gift of the Torah they had to undergo spiritual cleansing, a process of repentance. There is an interesting ruling in Kiddushin 49 that when a man betrothes a woman on the condition that he is righteous and it is found that he had been guilty of a number of sins this fact does not invalidate the bethrothal as it is presumed that he had confessed and repented his sins prior to the betrothal. His repentance entitled him to describe himself as righteous. אם שמוע תשמעו, If you will surely hearken. Why did the Torah have to repeat the expression שמוע? Perhaps the Torah referred to the two Torahs, the written as well as the oral Torah and the various rabbinic edicts promulgated throughout the ages. The people had to be told that both were equally valid. We are told this more explicitly in Deut. 17,11: "do not depart from any word they tell you either to the right or to the left. The Torah uses the word שמוע as a reference to the written Torah inasmuch as it will be revealed immediately, ועתה, whereas the word תשמעו i.e. you will hear (future) is reserved for the oral Torah and the rabbinic decrees, much of which will be formulated in the future. The expression ועתה, "and now," as a reference to what the children of Israel would be given now is quite appropriate then. By writing בקולי, to My voice, the Torah emphasises that listening to the instructions of Torah scholars is equivalent to listening to G'd's voice Himself (compare Bamidbar Rabbah 14). Acceptance of rules introduced by the Torah scholars is mandatory. Perhaps we can explain a difficult passage in Shabbat 88 according to which the words in 19,17: "they stood at the bottom of the Mountain" mean that G'd placed the Mountain in a threatening position, saying to the Israelites: "if you accept My Torah all well and good, if not, this site will be your burial place." This threat makes little sense in view of the fact that the Israelites had already declared their willingness to accept the Torah by saying in 24,7: "whatever G'd has said we shall do and listen (learn)." Tossaphot hold that the Israelites might have become so frightened at the spectacle of the burning Mountain, etc., that their souls departed from them (so that G'd had to revive them). This seems an unlikely explanation; if this perception would be correct, the very fright of the Jewish people would prevent them from reneging. We feel that...
Chizkuni
ושמרתם את בריתי, “you are to observe My covenant;” this refers to the covenant of blood discussed in Exodus 24,8, that Moses took the blood of the different types of offerings presented on the altar he had built and divided it in half, as a sign of a covenant between G-d and Israel. סגולה מכל העמים, “more treasured than all the other nations.” Seeing that the entire earth belongs to Me, I am able to raise your stature above that of all the other nations. The word כי in this verse is to be understood as meaning: in spite of, just as it means this in Genesis 48,14: כי מנשה הבכור, “although Menashe is the firstborn,” or the word כי in Exodus 13,17, כי_קרוב הוא, “although it is near.”
Rabbeinu Bahya
והייתם לי סגולה, “you shall be My treasured possession;” any treasure which is hidden is called סגולה, it is the kind of treasure which is most dear and beloved to a king and something which he constantly keeps under his personal control. They are matters which the king does not entrust even to his closest ministers or officials. Kohelet 2,8 speaks of such a situation, i.e. “and the treasure of kings and the provinces.” The reason G’d said מכל העמים in our verse is to contrast the other nations whose entire fate is being monitored by G’d’s agents rather than by G’d Himself with the Jewish people whose fate is monitored by G’d Himself. The Torah is even more outspoken about the fact that the fate of the 70 nations has been delegated to His agents in Deut. 4,19-20 “which Hashem has apportioned to all the peoples,....but Hashem has taken you and withdrawn you from the crucible of Egypt to be a nation of heritage to Him.” כי לי כל הארץ, “for the whole earth is Mine,” and I have not chosen any other nation except you. A kabbalistic approach: I have already discussed that the word כל is reference to an attribute of G’d in Genesis 1,1 where the terms השמים and הארץ have been discussed.
Tur HaArokh
ושמרתם את בריתי, “you are to observe My covenant.” According to Ibn Ezra this is a reference to the covenant that would be concluded right after the revelation at the Mountain, as we read in 24,8 [part of the description of Moses spending 40 days on the Mountain. Ed.] הנה דם הברית אשר כרת ה' עמכם על כל הדברים האלה, “here is the blood of the covenant which the Lord sealed with you concerning all these matters”. (Ten Commandments) Nachmanides understands the word בריתי as referring to an existing covenant, the one entered into by G’d with the patriarchs that He was to be not only their G’d, but also the G’d of their descendants. והייתם לי סגולה מכל העמים כי לי כל הארץ, “you will be for Me a most beloved treasure, more than any other nation, for the whole earth belongs to Me.” Although the entire earth belongs to me, I have chosen you alone to relate to as exclusively Mine, i.e. I personally supervise your fates, and I have not delegated this task to various natural forces at My command, such as constellations of stars, etc. The Torah refers to the latter point in greater detail in Deuteronomy 4,19 אשר חלק ה' אלוקיך אותם לכל העמים תחת כל השמים, “which the Lord your G’d assigned to all the other nations under the entire heaven.”
Rashbam
כי לי כל הארץ, all the nations are Mine, but I have only chosen you.
and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation. These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel."
verse value 4036 — אֵ֚לֶּה = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 54 letters. Notable word values: "these" (אֵ֚לֶּה) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "these" (אֵ֚לֶּה, 3 letters) and the longest is "shall·be·to·Me" (תִּהְיוּ־לִ֛י, 6 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "shall·be·to·Me" (תִּהְיוּ־לִ֛י), "a·kingdom·of" (מַמְלֶ֥כֶת), "priests" (כֹּהֲנִ֖ים). The root דבר appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 245x in Exodus); "shall·be·to·Me" (root היה, 235x in Exodus); "to·the·sons·of" (root בן, 189x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'holy', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְאַתֶּ֧ם [you] (447) + תִּהְיוּ־לִ֛י [shall·be·to·Me] (461) + מַמְלֶ֥כֶת [a·kingdom·of] (530) + כֹּהֲנִ֖ים [priests] (125) + וְג֣וֹי [and·a·nation] (25) + קָד֑וֹשׁ [holy] (410) + אֵ֚לֶּה [these] (36) + הַדְּבָרִ֔ים [the·words] (261) + אֲשֶׁ֥ר [that] (501) + תְּדַבֵּ֖ר [you·shall·speak] (606) + אֶל־בְּנֵ֥י [to·the·sons·of] (93) + יִשְׂרָאֵֽל [Israel] (541) = 4036.
Onkelos
And you shall be before me kings and priests and a holy people. These are the words that you shall speak to the children of Israel.
Rashi
ואתם תהיו לי ממלכת כהנים AND YE SHALL BE UNTO ME A KINGDOM OF כהנים — i. e. princes, just as you say, (II Samuel 8:18) “And the sons of David were princes (כהנים)”, which cannot denote priests since his sons were of the tribe of Judah and not of Levi, the priestly tribe. אלה הדברים THESE ARE THE WORDS — these neither fewer nor more (Mekhilta).
Ramban
A KINGDOM OF PRIESTS. This means that you shall be a kingdom of My servants. AND A HOLY NATION. I.e., to cleave unto the Holy G-d, just as He said, Ye shall be holy, for I the Eternal your G-d am Holy. Thus He has assured them [of life] in this world and in the World to Come.
Sforno
ואתם תהיו לי ממלכת כהנים, this will make you special for only you will be a kingdom of priests, by teaching and instructing all of mankind to call out in the name of G’d and for all to serve him together. This was to be a forerunner of what will happen in the distant future as predicted by the prophet Isaiah 61,6 “and you will be proclaimed ‘priests’ of the Lord.” This is also the true meaning of כי מציון תצא תורה, “the Torah emanates from Zion.” (Isaiah 2,3) [This statement is attributed to the nations of the world at that time. וגוי קדוש, never to disappear from the stage of history. You will continue forever to exist as one man, as it will be in the distant future of which the prophet Isaiah 4,3 said “those who survive in Zion and those who will be left over in Jerusalem, all those who are inscribed for life in Jerusalem- shall be called ‘holy’.” [the author is making the point that somebody called קדוש is by definition immortal. Ed.] Our sages in Sanhedrin 92 describe this concept in the following words: “just as He, the Holy One, is forever, so the Jewish people are forever.” It had been G’d’s intention to make the Jewish people immortal at the time of the revelation at Mount Sinai, giving them the status that Adam had enjoyed before he sinned. Alas, just as Adam had sinned and had become mortal in Gan Eden, the Jewish people sinned with the golden calf and suffered the same fate as first man. The disaster is documented in Exodus 33,6 “the Children of Israel had to divest themselves of their jewelry which had been given them at Mount Chorev.”
Or HaChaim
ואתם תהיו לי ממלכת כהנים "And you shall be unto Me a nation of priests, etc." Why did the Torah have to write the word ואתם, seeing that it addresses the same people it has addressed in the preceding verse? Perhaps the Torah now addresses Moses and Aaron; whereas up to this point G'd spoke to the entire nation and made them into an עם סגולה, Moses and Aaron might well wonder how they themselves would be special after all of Israel had been elevated spiritually to such a high level. G'd tells them, therefore, i.e. ואתם, that Aaron and his sons would be a kingdom of priests, whereas Moses and his family would be גוי קדוש, a holy nation. The Torah has used similar language in Numbers 8,17-18. Another way of explaining this word is that it introduces a new reality; from this moment on Israel would be included in G'd's celestial retinue. In the celestial regions G'd has many servants who are all known as כהנים, priests. He also has a host which is described as קדוש, holy, as we know from Daniel 8,13. G'd is telling the Israelites that as of now He is substituting the Jewish people for these celestial servants known as ממלכת כהנים וגוי קדוש. We find proof of this when G'd instructs the Jewish people to build a terrestrial Sanctuary for Him in their midst. We find that G'd repeated this concept when He said to the Jewish people in Leviticus 11,44: "you will become holy." The word ואתם was designed to convince the Israelites that G'd did not speak about something which would occur at some time in the future when soul and body would be separated after death, but it would occur right now, i.e. ואתם, "to you" who are still body and soul combined. We have found that the righteous amongst Israel actually achieved this level, that they are called both "angels, and holy." Sanhedrin 93 teaches that man's ability to rise to lofty spiritual levels by means of the Torah is such that he can attain levels even superior to that of the celestial angels. There is another aspect to the meaning of being a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. We have explained in connection with the meaning of סגולה that there are sparks of holiness scattered throughout the globe and that it is the task of the Jewish people to attract these sparks and fuse them into a solid body of holiness. The Jewish people themselves have also been described as עם סגולה. The Torah wanted to be sure that we understand that the סגולה represented by the Jewish people, the "collectors of holy sparks" is greater than the סגולה of the sparks, i.e. the items to be collected. The Torah does this by conferring on the Jewish people the additional title "kingdom of priests and holy nation." Priesthood and Holiness are different degrees of sanctity; this is why the Torah refers to both these phenomena separately. The people who "collect" the sparks of sanctity which are scattered all over the earth qualify for the title "kingdom" just as Moses qualified for the title "king" as a result of his leading the people...
Chizkuni
ואתם תהיו לי ממלכת כהנים “You are to become for Me, a kingdom of priests.” All this is the result of My fondness for you and My authority to do so since I own the universe.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ואתם תהיו לי ממלכת כהנים וגוי קדוש, “and you are to be for Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” The plain meaning of these words is that “you will be My share.” G’d calls the Jewish people “kings, priests, and holy nation,” at the time they received the Torah in order to make clear that he who wears the כתר תורה, the crown of Torah, also has attained the stature of the other two crowns i.e. priesthood and Royalty. This is the meaning of the statement by the sages in Horiot 13 that the meaning of Proverbs 3,15: “she (wisdom, read Torah) is more precious than rubies.” Seeing that the “crown” of Torah includes the two other crowns it is more precious than rubies. Although the High Priest (crown of priesthood) may enter the Holy of Holies, a great distinction, the crown of Torah is superior even to that distinction. A kabbalistic approach: the meaning of the words ממלכת כהנים is equivalent to writing ממלכת משרתים, “a kingdom of servants of the Lord.” This definition of the Jewish people applies to their role in the terrestrial world. The definition גוי קדוש applies to the function of the Jewish people in the hereafter. Grammatically speaking, the word גוי is a possessive, i.e. “nation of.” This means גוי קדוש should be translated as “a nation belonging to The Holy One.” We have a similar construction in Isaiah 26,2 ויבא גוי צדיק, “the nation belonging to the Righteous One came.” Basically, our verse assures the Jewish people of a dominant role both on earth and beyond.
Tur HaArokh
ממלכת כהנים וגוי קדוש, “a Kingdom of Priests, a holy nation.” Nachmanides understands the term ממלכת כהנים as a kingdom that takes care and preserves intact My statutes, A nation that cleaves to the Holy G’d, as stipulated in Leviticus 19,2 “be holy, for I, the Lord, your G’d am holy.” This implies a promise by G’d to His people covering its existence both on earth and beyond.
Rashbam
ממלכת כהנים, princes; we find this term used in a similar sense when applied to the children of David who were not priests in the hereditary sense such as the sons of Aaron. Compare Samuel II 8,18 ובני דוד כהנים היו, “and the sons of David were ‘priests.’”
And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and set before them all these words which Hashem commanded him.
verse value 2951 — יְהֹוָֽה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 55 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָֽה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 2951 = 13 × 227. The shortest word is "Moses" (מֹשֶׁ֔ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "all·the·words" (אֵ֚ת כׇּל־הַדְּבָרִ֣ים, 10 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "the·elders·of" (לְזִקְנֵ֣י). 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 396x in Exodus); "Moses" (root משה, 277x in Exodus); "that" (root אשר, 245x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·people', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 7 words. Full calculation: וַיָּבֹ֣א [and·came] (19) + מֹשֶׁ֔ה [Moses] (345) + וַיִּקְרָ֖א [and·summoned] (317) + לְזִקְנֵ֣י [the·elders·of] (197) + הָעָ֑ם [the·people] (115) + וַיָּ֣שֶׂם [and·put] (356) + לִפְנֵיהֶ֗ם [before·them] (215) + אֵ֚ת כׇּל־הַדְּבָרִ֣ים [all·the·words] (712) + הָאֵ֔לֶּה [these] (41) + אֲשֶׁ֥ר [that] (501) + צִוָּ֖הוּ [commanded·him] (107) + יְהֹוָֽה [Hashem] (26) = 2951.
Onkelos
And Moses came and called the elders of the people, and set before them all these words that Hashem had commanded him.
Ramban
AND MOSES CAME AND CALLED FOR THE ELDERS OF THE PEOPLE, AND SET BEFORE THEM ALL THESE WORDS. This means that he said to them: “Behold, I have presented before you the words [of G-d]. Choose you this day if you will do so.” Therefore, they answered him, All that the Eternal hath spoken we will do. This is similar in meaning to the verse: See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil, and also: And these are the ordinances which thou shalt set before them, meaning that they are to say if they choose to observe them and accept [them] upon themselves. It is for this reason that it says there, And Moses came and told the people all the words of the Eternal, and all the ordinances; and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Eternal hath spoken will we do. Similarly, And this is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel means that Moses asked the generation that was to come into the Land whether they would accept the Torah upon themselves, for he was about to make a covenant with them in the plains of Moab, just as he had done with their fathers in Horeb. And the Gaon Rav Saadia said that the expression, and he set before them, is similar in meaning to the expression, put it in their mouth, [this being a reference to the Oral Law, which is the commentary to the Written Law]. But the correct interpretation is only as I have explained. And all the people answered together. This also means that Moses called together the elders of the people, who are their wise men and their judges, for theirs is [the power of] choice. And he set before them all these words in the presence of the whole congregation, since it was with reference to all the people that G-d had commanded, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel. But they did not wait for the counsel and decision [of the elders, but readily], all the people answered together — both small and great — and said, All that the Eternal hath spoken will we do. And so it says again, and all the people answered with one voice, and said: All the words which the Eternal hath spoken will we do.
Ibn Ezra
"And Moses came" — to the camp of Israel; there is no need to state that he descended. "And set before them" — as in, "this is the Torah which Moses set (שָׂם) before them" (Deut. 4:44). The Gaon [Saadia] said that it follows the pattern of "put it in their mouth" (Deut. 31:19), meaning the Oral Torah, which is the explanation of the Written Torah.
Or HaChaim
ויקרא לזקני העם, He called for the elders of the people, etc. In the two verses commencing with verse 7, we observe a remarkable phenomenon. The reason that Moses assembled the elders first was in order to inform them of the need to accept the Torah, and in order to blunt any opposition should these elders have any misgivings. Moses was certain that any doubts the elders might express would be expressed in a manner which was quite unobjectionable to G'd. He was worried that if he were to address the people as a whole without first having secured the assent of the elders some of the people might raise objections in a form which would be offensive to G'd. Once he had secured the assent of the elders, Moses planned to address the whole people showing them that their elders had already agreed. What happened, however, was that all the people simultaneously declared their readiness to accept the Torah before either they or the elders had a chance to hear what was written in it. 600,000 people accepted the Torah unconditionally and simultaneously. This is why the prophet Jeremiah 2,2 paid Israel the great compliment in the name of the Lord: "Thus says the Lord, I remember the kindness you have displayed for Me in your youth, your love for Me as a young bride, etc." The prophet used the word כלולתיך, as a double entendre, referring to the fact that כלל ישראל, the entire Jewish nation, had simultaneously displayed this love for G'd and His Torah. The word alludes to a double כלל, 1) all of them responded favourably without a single exception; 2) they did so simultaneously in the same tone of voice sounding like a choir. את כל הדברים, all the words, etc. The Torah emphasises that Moses said exactly what he had been instructed to say, no more, no less. We have mentioned this in verse 6.
Chizkuni
ויבא משה, “Moses came;” on the same day, and called the elders of the people to accompany him.
Tur HaArokh
וישם לפניהם. “He presented it before them in clear terms, etc.” According to Ibn Ezra, Moses did this verbally. Some people claim that Moses presented all this to the people in book form. Rabbeinu Saadyah gaon, says that the meaning is similar to שימו בפיהם, (Deut 31,19) where it means that G’d had asked Moses to make the people thoroughly familiar with His admonitions. Nachmanides says that G’d (Moses) told the people: “I have set out all these precepts for you to choose if you undertake to take these obligations upon yourselves.” The people responded by saying that everything G’d had said they were willing to carry out, just as is reported in Exodus.
And all the people answered together, and said: "All that Hashem has spoken we will do." And Moses reported the words of the people to Hashem.
verse value 3258 — יְהֹוָ֖ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 58 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "all" (כֹּ֛ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·they·said" (וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "and·answered" (וַיַּעֲנ֨וּ), "together" (יַחְדָּו֙). The root כל appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 396x in Exodus); "we·will·do" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "and·they·said" (root אמר, 297x in Exodus). First appearance of the root יחד ("together") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'we·will·do', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 5 words. Full calculation: וַיַּעֲנ֨וּ [and·answered] (142) + כׇל־הָעָ֤ם [all·the·people] (165) + יַחְדָּו֙ [together] (28) + וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ [and·they·said] (263) + כֹּ֛ל [all] (50) + אֲשֶׁר־דִּבֶּ֥ר [has·spoken] (707) + יְהֹוָ֖ה [Hashem] (26) + נַעֲשֶׂ֑ה [we·will·do] (425) + וַיָּ֧שֶׁב [and·brought·back] (318) + מֹשֶׁ֛ה [Moses] (345) + אֶת־דִּבְרֵ֥י [words·of] (617) + הָעָ֖ם [the·people] (115) + אֶל־יְהֹוָֽה [to·Hashem] (57) = 3258.
Onkelos
And all the people answered together and said: All that Hashem has spoken we will do. And Moses brought back the words of the people before Hashem.
Rashi
וישב משה את דברי העם וגו׳ AND MOSES RETURNED THE WORDS OF THE PEOPLE [UNTO THE LORD] on the next day, which was the third of the month, for he never ascended the mountain to God except early in the morning (Shabbat 86a). But was it really necessary for Moses to deliver the reply to God; God is Omniscient! — But the explanation is that Scripture intends to teach you good manners from the example of Moses: for he did not say, “Since He who sent me knows the reply there is no need for me to report it” (Mekhilta).
Ramban
VAYASHEV MOSHEH’ THE WORDS OF THE PEOPLE UNTO THE ETERNAL. This means that Moses returned before Him to the mountain with the people’s answer. Now everything is revealed to Him, and He did not inquire of him, “What did this people answer you?” It is similar in meaning to the verse: And the Eternal heard the voice of your words, when ye spoke unto me. And when Moses came before Him, the Holy One, blessed be He, said, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and may also believe thee forever. Then Moses said before Him, “Master of the universe, your children are people of faith, and they accept upon themselves whatever You will speak.”The above usage [of the word vayashev as meaning “returning” or “coming back”] is also found in the verse, ‘vayashivu’ unto them word… and they showed them the fruit of the Land, which means: “They [i.e., the spies] came back to them with the things which they saw.” [It cannot mean that “they reported” to them], for afterwards Scripture says there, And they told him, and said. [Hence, vayashivu in the preceding verse must mean that “they came back” with the things they had seen.] There is thus no need for Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra’s interpretation on this point.
Ibn Ezra
"Together (יַחְדָּו)" — this word is unique in Scripture in its vocalization, owing to the added vav. Yefet said it means as a single individual alone, so that the word shall not recur. The verse mentions "and he returned," with no need to state "and he ascended," for Scripture follows the shorter path.
Sforno
וישב משה את דברי העם, Moses relayed to G’d what he had understood as being the people’s reactions. What he had understood was that they did not doubt his status as a prophet at all.
Or HaChaim
וישב משה את דברי העם, Moses reported the words of the people, etc. Although G'd was in no need of this report by Moses seeing He knew what the people had said and how they said it, the Torah, i.e. Moses, reports this as a compliment to the people. I will further elaborate on this in due course. Alternatively, Moses reported the people's answer after being asked by G'd to do so (Mechilta.) According to this view the word וישב, he replied, means that Moses complied with G'd's request to report to Him on the people's answer. If G'd had not specifically asked him he would not have dared tell G'd the answer as it would have looked like an insult, as if G'd did not already know. את דברי העם, the words of the people. This does not mean that Moses told G'd what the people had said; rather Moses told G'd how they had said it. Moses used the opportunity to praise the Jewish people by pointing out their many virtues. He referred to the uniqueness of the Jewish people as described by King David in Chronicles I 17,21: "who is comparable to Your people Israel a unique nation on earth?"
Chizkuni
וישב משה, “Moses brought back, etc;” this was on the following day, the third day of the month, the fourth day of the week. On the next day, the fourth day of the month: G-d, as stated in chapter 24,verse 1, G-d said to Moses in verse 2 that Moses was to proceed further, alone. He immediately said to Moses that He would appear to him screened by a thick cloud, etc.; the purpose was that the people would be able to hear G-d speak to Moses and believe that he was truly the messenger of Hashem and that they would believe in his conveying truly what G-d said to him. If they had not been able to actually hear G-d speak to Moses, they would later on claim that G-d had not appeared to him. This is why He told Moses that as a result of what He was commanding him now the people would believe in him and never doubt him again. The words written in chapter 24 were spoken on this day, the fourth day of the month of Sivan, even though they appear only in Parshat Mishpatim. Moses related all these words to the people as stated in verse 9 in our chapter. They concluded with: וגם בך יאמינו לעולם, “and they will also believe in you forthwith.” He also related to them at that time all the laws that he had been taught by G-d at Marah, (Exodus 15,28) and committed them to parchment. Immediately thereafter the people responded in verse 3 by agreeing to carry out all the instructions they had received from G-d via Moses. Upon hearing this, Moses immediately conveyed the people’s response to G-d, as stated here in our chapter in verse 9, quoting what is reported in chapter 24, verse 3. Rashi, in our verse here, comments that the people in addition requested to hear all this from G-d personally, claiming that hearing matters directly from the source is always even more effective than hearing the same words from the messenger. (based on the Mechilta here) The source for all this which has not been spelled out in the text of the Torah is verse 11, where G-d tells him the on the third (after this) He will personally let them hear the Ten Commandments from His own mouth. G-d uses the expression: לעיני העם, that His words will be perceived by the “eyes” of the people. From this we deduce that people had asked for a visual revelation of G-d. [At the end of the Ten commandments in chapter 20,15, the Torah reports that G-d’s words were indeed a visual appearance for them when the Torah writes that all the people “saw” the “sounds.” Ed.] On this same day, the fourth of the month, G-d told the people to sanctify themselves in preparation for the revelation on Mount Sinai. By refraining from engaging in marital intercourse for three days, they would be sufficiently sanctified by the 6th day of the month to merit this revelation. That day would again be the Sabbath. Sanctification included immersing their clothing in a ritual bath as commanded in verse 10, and carried out in verse 14. We know that the root כבס includes such sanctification through a ritual bath from Leviticus 17,1516 that failure to do so will result in ritual contamination of a person that had eaten either animals that had died without undergoing ritual slaughter first, or parts of an animal which was found as having been diseased internally after being examined subsequent to ritual slaughter. Another example of the process of sanctification of human beings is found in Samuel II 11,4 where David is reported as not sleeping with Bat Sheva until after she had sanctified her body in a ritual bath. [She had been invited to his house by the King’s messengers. Ed.] The Israelites, both male and female, who at this point were undergoing similar immersion in a ritual bath, would then qualify for taking part in the revelation.
Rabbeinu Bahya
כל אשר דבר ה’ נעשה, “all that Hashem has said we shall do.” They gave thanks and accepted for themselves the yoke of Torah and the commandments, doing so willingly [under no physical or psychological pressure. Ed.] Seeing that our sages said (Shabbat 88) that G’d threatened to bring the mountain down on them if they did not accept the Torah, and that they would be buried on the spot, how do we reconcile this verse here which clearly indicates voluntary acceptance of the Torah? Answer: our verse refers to acceptance of the written Torah. The subject discussed in the Talmud Shabbat was the oral Torah. G’d put the Israelites under psychological pressure to accept the oral Torah as well. Seeing that the oral Torah includes the thousands of Rabbinic decrees (by reason of the authority vested by the written Torah in the Rabbis) there was a need to apply such pressure. The written Torah, however was accepted joyfully without the need for any coercion whatsoever. וישב משה, “Moses brought back, etc.” There are commentators who claim that the word וישב does not mean that Moses actually presented G’d with the people’s acceptance of the written Torah. The word וישב means that when Moses set out to inform G’d, G’d already continued to give him new instructions telling him: “Here I will come to you within a thick cloud, etc.” At that point we are to understand the word in verse 10 ויגד משה את דברי העם אל ה’. “Moses informed G’d of the words the people had said.” It is possible to interpret the words וישב משה, as referring to the people saying נעשה, and the words ויגד משה as meaning that Moses conveyed the people’s demand to hear the words in question from G’d directly instead of merely through Moses as an intermediary. (Mechilta baChodesh end of section 2). If we follow this approach then the word יחדו in our verse does not mean that the people responded “in unison,” but that they said two things at one and the same time. 1) They expressed joyful acceptance of the written Torah. 2) They asked to be addressed by G’d directly. G’d had provided them with an opening for such a request when He had said in verse 5 (condensed) “if you will hearken to MY VOICE, etc. you will be something special.” This is why Moses told G’d, ויגד, that the people wanted to hear His voice, i.e. as a substitute for seeing Him.
Tur HaArokh
ויענו כל העם יחדו, “all the people answered simultaneously, etc.“ Moses had called all the leaders, the judges, the law enforcers, etc., in the presence of all the people and had submitted to them all that G’d had told him, and had offered them the choice whether to accept all these commandments. Seeing the commandments concerned the entire nation, acceptance was also required by the entire nation. The people did not even wait until Moses had posed the question to them if they were willing to accept all this, but the Torah testifies that they interrupted Moses to indicate their ready acceptance.
Rashbam
AND MOSHE BROUGHT BACK THE PEOPLE’S WORDS TO ADONAI. On the next day, as it explains (v.9), "And Adonai said to Moshe, 'I will come to you in a thick cloud, etc.'" And then (ibid.) "Then Moshe reported the people’s words to Adonai"; that is "And Moshe brought back, etc." It states the general and then goes back and supplies details.... This is what Moshe said to the Holy One, blessed be He: "Already from yesterday, they took it upon themselves to do what You would command them." Similarly (Lev. 9:24 - 10:2), "Fire came forth from before Adonai and consumed the burnt offering" and meanwhile, "Now Aharon’s sons Nadav and Avihu each took, etc." "And fire came forth from Adonai" and reached Nadav and Avihu before the gold altar, which was in the sanctuary, when they brought alien fire on it, and it burned them, and went outside and consumed the burnt offering on the brass altar, which was in the courtyard outside the sanctuary. And similarly in in the Book of Judges in the section about Michah (Jud. 17:3-4): "He returned the eleven hundred shekels of silver to his mother; but his mother said, 'I herewith consecrate the silver to Adonai, etc.' He gave the silver back to his mother." In the beginning, the verse says, "He returned the... silver to his mother," and afterwards it explains how, "but his mother said, etc. He gave the silver back to his mother."
Daat Zkenim
וישב משה, “Moses brought back the reply, etc.” the reason why in verse eight the Torah uses the term וישב, for Moses bringing back the people’s answer, whereas in verse nine the word ויגד, “he told,” was chosen by the Torah is that when Moses began to tell G–d the people’s reaction, G–d interrupted him by saying that He wanted him to wait as He wished to speak to him some more. When G–d had completed speaking with Moses, Moses resumed telling Him about the people’s reaction. In the tractate Shabbat, on folio 87, Rabbi Akiva is quoted saying that the word above refers to the limitations imposed on the people, their being warned not to approach the mountain too closely as well as Rabbi Yoseph son of Rabbi Yehudah, according to whom G–d told the people first about the reward in store for people observing the Torah. Different scholars argue about whether Moses told the people first about the punishment for not observing the Torah, or whether he told them first about the reward in store for the people if they observed the laws of the Torah. The Ten Commandments were given on the Sabbath, as Rabbi Akiva said, the verse supporting being Isaiah 30,15: בשובה ונחת תושעון, “your salvation will come about by quiet and stillness.” The first time we hear about the concept as of stillness and quiet is when G–d rested on the seventh day of Creation. The second set of Tablets was also given to the people on a Sabbath, i.e. the Day of Atonement, also known as שבת שבתון, the “ultimate” Sabbath.
And Hashem said to Moses: "Lo, I come to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you for ever." And Moses told the words of the people to Hashem.
verse value 3797 — יְהֹוָ֜ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 22 words, 92 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֜ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 3797 is prime. The shortest word is "come" (בָּ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "they·will·trust" (יַאֲמִ֣ינוּ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 115: the·people, the·people. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "in·thick·cloud" (בְּעַ֣ב), "when·I·speak" (בְּדַבְּרִ֣י), "and·also·in·you" (וְגַם־בְּךָ֖). The root עם appears 3 times in this verse. 17 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 396x in Exodus); "and·said" (root אמר, 297x in Exodus); "to·Moses" (root משה, 277x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'forever', dividing the verse into phrases of 17 and 5 words.
Onkelos
And Hashem said to Moses: Behold, I am revealing myself to you in the thickness of the cloud, so that the people may hear when I speak with you, and they will also believe in you forever. And Moses reported the words of the people before Hashem.
Rashi
בעב הענן signifies in the thickness of the cloud, and this is the ערפל, the thick darkness mentioned in Exodus 20:18 “And Moses stepped near unto the thick darkness where God was” (Mekhilta). וגם בך AND IN THEE ALSO [WILL THEY BELIEVE] — The word “also” implies that they will believe also in the prophets who will come after thee (Mekhilta). ויגד משה את דברי וגו׳ AND MOSES TOLD THE WORDS OF [THE PEOPLE UNTO THE LORD] on the following day which was the fourth of the month. את דברי העם וגו׳ THE WORDS OF THE PEOPLE etc. — He said to God: “I have heard from them a reply to this statement — that their desire is to hear the commandments from You and not from me. One who hears from the mouth of a messenger is not the same (in the same position) as one who hears directly from the mouth of the King himself. It is our wish to see our King (cf. Mekhilta).
Ramban
IN A THICK CLOUD. This is the thick darkness where G-d was, and all the people saw it and recognized it as such, as it is said, And the appearance of the Glory of the Eternal was like devouring fire on the top of the mount in the eyes of the children of Israel. IN ORDER THAT THE PEOPLE MAY HEAR WHEN I SPEAK WITH THEE. Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra commented that there were among the Israelites people who doubted the existence of prophecy. And even though it is written, and they believed in the Eternal, and in His servant Moses, it is said there, and ‘Israel’ saw, but not “all Israel.” It is this which they said to him [after the Giving of the Torah], This day we have seen that G-d doth speak with man, and he liveth, for at first they did not believe so. This is the meaning of the verse here, in order that the people may hear when I speak with thee, the Ten Commandments, and also believe in thee forever, i.e., “that you are My prophet,” for henceforth the matter of prophecy will be confirmed to them. [Thus far the words of Ibn Ezra.]This is not correct. The children of Abraham never doubted prophecy, as they had always believed in it since the time of their forefathers. Scripture already has stated so: And the people believed, and they heard that the Eternal hath remembered the children of Israel; and they believed in the Eternal, and in His servant Moses. Even though it does not say there, “and all the people [believed]” or “all Israel believed,” neither does it say here “that ‘all the people’ may hear.”The correct interpretation appears to me to be that G-d said to Moses: “I come to thee in a thick cloud, so that you should draw near to the thick darkness in order that the people may hear when I speak. They themselves will be prophets when I speak, not [necessitating] that it should be confirmed to them through others,” just as it is said, When the Eternal said unto me: Assemble Me the people, and I will make them hear My words, that they may learn to fear Me all the days.“And they may also believe in thee forever, i.e., through all the generations. And if there will arise among them a prophet or dreamer of dreams to refute your words, they will deny him at once, for they have already seen with their own eyes and heard with their own ears that you have reached the highest stage in prophecy. Through you, will become clear to them that which is written: If there be a prophet among you, I the Eternal make Myself known unto him in a vision, I do speak with him in a dream. My servant Moses is not so; he is trusted in all My house; with him do I speak mouth to mouth.” It is for this reason that He said, “in order that the people may hear when I speak with thee, for they will hear when I speak out of the midst of the fire, and they will know that it is I the Eternal Who speaks to you. They will believe in My words and also in you forever.” Similarly, that which the people said, This day we have seen that G-d doth speak with man, and he liveth, was to state...
Ibn Ezra
"And He said" — since the verse already said "and Moses returned," what is the point of saying "and Moses told Hashem the words of the people"? Know that many verses in the Torah ought, by their order, to come earlier; their meaning is "and such-and-such had already happened," as in: "And Hashem God formed" (Gen. 2:7) — He had already formed; "And Hashem God caused to grow" (Gen. 2:9) — He had already caused to grow; "And he said, whose daughter are you?" (Gen. 24:23) — he had already said it; and it is written "And I asked her and said" and then "and I put the ring on her nose" (Gen. 24:47), and "and she said to the servant" (Gen. 24:65) — she had already said it to the servant; then "and she fell off the camel" (Gen. 24:64). There is no need to multiply examples. So too here, "and Moses told" — he had already told, and the text does not specify what he said; the word "told" (הִגִּיד) always refers to something new that had not yet been mentioned. This verse therefore does not connect directly to "and Moses returned." From Hashem's reply — "Behold, I come to you in a thick cloud" — we learn what Moses had reported. Moreover, we find this matter stated explicitly in Moses' words, as I shall explain. Know that Egypt and India are both among the sons of Ham, and they cleave to one another. The people of India do not eat meat, and the Egyptians were likewise; they changed this custom only because the kingdom of Ishmael overpowered them and they adopted its practice. The sages of India adduce proofs, as they see it, that it is impossible for God to speak with a human being and the person remain alive. Israel had been in Egypt, and there were people among them who held this belief, so that Moses' prophecy was in doubt for them. There is no counter-argument from the verse "and they believed in Hashem and in Moses His servant" (above, 14:31), for it is written "and Israel saw" — not all Israel; and even if "all Israel" were written, it would speak of the majority, as is the way of language, as in "and all the livestock of Egypt died" (above, 9:6), yet afterward it says "send and bring in your livestock" (9:19). The meaning of "Behold, I come to you" is therefore the answer to what Moses had reported. "In a thick cloud" — when Hashem descends upon the mountain. "And when I speak with you" — the Ten Commandments; then they will believe that it is indeed possible for God to speak with a person and the person live. "And also in you they shall believe" — that you are a prophet; the doubt will be removed from their minds. This is stated explicitly: "Today we have seen that God speaks with a human being and he lives" (Deut. 5:21), and further, "For who is there of all flesh that has heard the voice of the living God speaking from within the fire as we have, and lived?" (Deut. 5:23), and there it says "Come near and hear" (Deut. 5:24) — this is "and also in you they shall believe forever."
Sforno
בעב הענן, even though all of Moses’ prophetic stature underwent a drastic change on the occasion of the revelation at Mount Sinai, and he now received “clear” messages, something described in Numbers 12,8 as ותמונת ה' יביט, “he sees the message from G’d as a clear picture” (not merely as a reflection by a mirror) he was not to behold the Shechinah, but it was shrouded in thick cloud. The present communication with G’d which Moses used was not of the אספקלריא מאירה, “clear view” type. בעבור ישמע העם וגם בך יאמינו לעולם, they will believe in the possibility of this “face to face” communication between man and G’d, and the fact that you have been granted this level of prophecy by Me. (compare Deut.5,4 concerning the expression “face to face.”) One of the principal ingredients of this level of prophecy is that the prophet remains in full control of all his faculties including all parts of his body, something no one had been able to credit until they saw that Moses possessed such a capability. The Israelites commented on this in Deuteronomy 5,21 when Moses quoted them as having said: “this day we have seen that G’d can speak directly to man and man can survive such an encounter.” [In other words, it took the revelation at Mount Sinai, experienced by all the people, to teach them that Moses could enjoy such a relationship with G’d on an ongoing basis. Ed.] It is not that the people needed convincing that there were people who enjoyed prophetic stature and communicated with G’d and He with them. After all, they knew about all the patriarchs, Aaron and Miriam as well as Moses being prophets. However, up until this time all prophetic messages from G’d had been communicated either in a dream or in a vision involving the prophet losing touch with his surroundings at the time of such communication by G’d. [at the very least, if such a communication had been received while the recipient was awake he would have to sit down, as he would be unable to stand. [Avraham’s being able to run to welcome the angels, (his vision) was a sign of a higher than usual level of prophecy. Ed.] Now, for the first time, did the people witness that the recipient of such communications need not necessarily have to temporarily forego being in touch with all that goes on in our terrestrial world. You will understand this better in light of how G’d Himself explained to Miriam and Aaron in Numbers 12,7 the difference between their level of communication with G’d and that of their brother Moses, whom G’d described as thoroughly “at home” in all sections of “His house.” Only after having themselves experienced what this kind of prophetic level meant could they credit Moses as possessing it. Now they also understood that no other prophet, even a legitimate one, could challenge Moses, seeing that his stature as prophet was so superior to any other prophet. 'ויגד משה את דברי העם אל ה, when he heard that his Creator had told him that G’d wanted the people to have absolute faith in the supr...
Or HaChaim
הנה אנכי בא אליך "Here I am about to come to you, etc." Seeing that G'd was in the habit of speaking to Moses on a "mouth to mouth" basis, He may have announced to him that in this instance He would depart from that method. In this instance G'd would speak out of the thick cloud; this meant that His speech would not be as totally spiritual in nature as usual. G'd told Moses that the reason for this was not that Moses was not worthy of the usual mode of communication, but that G'd wanted the people to be able to hear that G'd spoke with Moses. Seeing the people were not on the level on which G'd usually communicated with Moses, He had to lower the level of His communication with Moses in order for them to become aware of what was happening. G'd added that the reason He wanted the people to hear that He, G'd, spoke with Moses was in order for the people to strengthen their belief in the level of Moses' prophetic powers. As a result of that experience their faith in Moses would become enduring. G'd hoped that this explanation would put Moses' mind at rest over the reduced level of communication between G'd and himself. יאמינו לעולם, "they will believe forever." What is meant by "forever" are the subsequent generations. If people would have faith in future prophets it would be based on the father of all prophets, on Moses. Maimonides has explained this in detail in his Yesodey Hatorah chapter 8. This is what he wrote: "Any prophet who arose after Moses is credible not because of any miracles he may perform but because Moses commanded us in the Torah that if the prophet performs a miracle we are to consider this as confirmation that he is a prophet and we should obey him." Maimonides also wrote that the credibility of Moses as a prophet was not based on the miracles he performed but on the fact that the whole nation heard that G'd spoke to him. As a result the people became witnesses of his being a true prophet. Keeping these statements of Maimonides in mind, we can interpret the words: "they will also believe in you forever" as a reference to prophets who would arise in future generations. Any prophet who would arise in the future would bear further witness to the credibility of Moses as a prophet. G'd hinted here that when a future prophet would be sent by Him to the Jewish people, such prophets would be further proof of the credibility of Moses as a true prophet. None of the miracles such prophets would perform would in themselves establish their credibility. The only thing which would do this is the fact that G'd commanded in His Torah that we should obey such prophets. If not for the people witnessing that G'd spoke to Moses, all the miracles he had performed would not totally eliminate doubt in the minds of the people as to Moses' stature as a true prophet. We must pay careful attention to what Maimonides writes about any doubt the people might have entertained about Moses being a true prophet, seeing that the Torah has already told us in Exo...
Chizkuni
ויגד משה, Moses told G-d what the people had said in detail. When we encountered a similar phrase previously in verse 8, it was appropriate for the Torah to use the expression: וישב, “he brought back a reply,” as at that point he brought back a reply to something that had been requested from them, i.e. “if you will surely listen to Me.” Now there was no need to phrase their comments in this mode, as their willingness to obey G-d’s wishes had been established already. As Rashi noted, “It is our wish to see our King.”
Rabbeinu Bahya
בעב הענן, “in the thickness of the cloud.” This is the cloud called ערפל, (20,18, Deut. 4,11). In the former verse the Torah says specifically: אשר שם האלו-הים “in which the attribute אלו-הים was (hidden).” Everybody present could not fail to recognize this as we know from 24,17: “the appearance of the glory of G’d was like consuming fire at the top of the mountain.” The instructions G’d gave to Moses in our verse were: ”I come to you in the thickness of the cloud so that the people will hear (My words) when I speak with you” (so that they themselves will attain the spiritual stature of prophets). Their belief in you will not be predicated on what they hear from others but on what they hear from Me directly. Compare Deut. 4,10: “when G’d said to me: ‘assemble the people to Me and I will let them hear My words so that they will learn to fear Me, etc.’” Here too, G’d added that the people would forever more believe in Moses. The meaning of these words is that if there were to arise in Moses’ life time a false prophet opposing Moses, the people would not even listen to what he had to say but would deny his legitimacy at once. They would do so because they themselves had attained sufficient prophetic stature to know that everything Moses did or said was divinely inspired. G’d reconfirmed all this to Aaron and Miriam when they dared to compare their level of prophecy and intimacy with G’d to that of Moses (Compare Numbers 12,6-8). When the people are quoted in Deut. 5,21 as having said at Mount Sinai: “this day we have seen that Hashem will speak to a person and he can live,” they referred to this experience of theirs that if G’d wants it this is possible.” From this experience they drew the conviction that Moses had attained the highest level of prophecy possible.
Kli Yakar
“And Moses told the words of the people to the Lord.” This entire verse seems superfluous because it was already stated and Moses brought back the words of the people to the Lord. Rashi explained that Moses told the Holy One, blessed be He, how Israel said “we want to see our King,” but this is not explicitly stated in the Scripture. Perhaps Rashi found it difficult that the words to the Lord seem redundant, as it should have said “And Moses told the words of the people to Him,” since he was already speaking with the Lord. However, this is a response to what the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him: so that the people will hear when I speak with you, and they will also believe in you forever. But they said, We will listen to the Lord and not to Moses. That is why it says, And Moses told the words of the people, and what were their words? About this it says to the Lord, meaning they said “we will listen to the Lord” and not to you. Still, it is not explained in the Scripture where Moses heard from them that they said this. And there is another difficulty: why does it say above and Moses responded while here it says and Moses told. But this is its explanation, according to what is said, And Moses came and called the elders of the people, etc. and All the people answered, ‘All that the Lord has spoken we will do’ (Exodus 19:7-8). But the elders had not yet told them anything, so how did they answer immediately? Rather, certainly as soon as they saw that Moses spoke his words to the elders, they immediately understood that all the words would come through intermediaries — that the Holy One, blessed be He, would speak to Moses, and Moses to the elders, and the elders to Israel. Immediately, Israel jumped to answer Moses, indicating by this that they had no desire for the intermediation of the elders. And by saying All that the Lord has spoken we will do, they showed that they did not want Moses’s intermediation either. They said that they would do all that the Lord would speak to them, not what Moses would speak to them. They had [good] reason and rationale, as they wanted to see their King. They could have simply said, “We will do it,” but they specifically said, All that the Lord has spoken we will do to exclude Moses’s words. They also alluded [to this] in saying, All that the Lord has spoken we will do. And the Holy One, blessed be He, said, Now if you will surely listen to My voice (Exodus 19:5). This implies that the Lord wanted them to hear the voice of the Lord speaking to them directly, not through intermediaries. And the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, These are the words that you shall speak to the children of Israel (Exodus 19:6) — you yourself, not through any intermediation. Moses went and told the elders first, and Israel was very angry that the Lord would speak to them through two intermediaries. Therefore, they said, All that the Lord has spoken we will do — to hear the voice of the Lord directly. Therefore, the first time, Moses responded to the Lord only the matter on which the main mission depended, which is what they said, We will do all the words of the Lord, and the term responded is appropriate here. Moses had not yet told the Lord anything about what he understood from them — that they wanted to see their King — because Moses thought that surely God understood their ways and their thoughts, and would do according to their will. When God said to him again, Behold, I come to you in a thick cloud, etc., and they will also believe in you forever (Exodus 19:9), then he understood that the Holy One, blessed be He, still wanted to speak to them through intermediation. Then Moses told the words of the people to the Lord — he told Him what they said: All that the Lord has spoken we will doThe term told is appropriate here, not the term “responded,” because this matter is not a response to the main mission but merely a telling of what had happened with them. And the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “If so, do this: Go to the people and sanctify them today and tomorrow” (Exodus 19:10) — because to see the face of their King, they need to be holy, for I am holy — and on the third day, the Lord will descend before the eyes of all the people (Exodus 19:11). Then they will see the face of their King. And indeed, He began to speak to them Himself, for they heard the first two commandments from the mouth of the Almighty, until they were afraid of the fire and the sounds. Then they retreated from their request and said, Speak you with us, and we will hear (Exodus 20:16). And regarding what is written, “Behold, I come to you in the thickness of the cloud.” Because a person can never use two senses equally at once, to see and hear simultaneously, therefore the Holy One, Blessed be He, said: “If I appear to them openly, they will direct their heart and mind to the sight, to see their King, and will not pay attention to the hearing. Therefore, I will come in the thickness of the cloud so that they will not be able to see, in order to strengthen the sense of hearing.” This is what is meant by so that the people may hear.
Tur HaArokh
הנה אנכי בא אליך בעב הענן, “Here, I am about to come to you, within a thick layer of cloud.” Ibn Ezra writes that among the Israelites there were some who had ambiguous feelings about the existence of prophecy and the extent of it, or if indeed some people had been endowed with such powers. This was in spite of the Torah itself having testified that when at the edge of the Sea of Reeds the people appear to have been described as believers, i.e. ויאמינו בה' ובמשה עבדו, “they believed in G’d and in His servant Moses.” (Exodus 14,31) The Torah had refrained from describing all of the people as sharing this absolute faith. Even after the crossing of the sea when the bodies of the dead Egyptians had become visible, the Torah does write “the Israelites saw Egypt dead on the edge of the sea,” (Exodus 14,30) again the Torah had omitted the crucial word כל, “all”, when describing who saw what. This is what is meant when after the revelation at Mount Sinai (Deut. 5,21) the people acknowledge היום ראינו, “on this day we have seen that the Lord has spoken to man and yet man has remained alive.” The fact that they had originally not believed completely in G’d, according to Ibn Ezra, is supported in that G’d had told Moses that as the result of His miracles not only would they have faith in Him but in Moses also. (compare וגם בך יאמינו, “they will also believe in you forever (our verse).” Nachmanides disagrees, saying that the Israelites never doubted either the existence of prophetic powers, as they had the tradition that their patriarchs had all been endowed with such powers. When G’d told Moses to approach him into the thick cloud, this was designed to reinforce the people’s belief in Moses’ superior prophetic powers, a level of prophecy never before attained by any human being. Exodus 4,31 is already testimony that the people had complete faith in G’d. In fact, to a certain degree, all the Israelites had been endowed with some prophetic powers as proven by the fact that they were bidden by G’d to approach as testified by Moses in Deuteronomy 4,10, i.e. that instead of having to depend on hearing G’d’s words through the mouth of a prophet they themselves would hear it directly. This would teach them to relate to G’d with the appropriate degree of awe, as is spelled out there. Once they would do this it would be easy for them to have full confidence in everything Moses would tell them in the name of the Lord. The words וגם בך יאמינו לעולם, mean that not only the present generation would have full faith in what Moses had related in the name of the Lord, but all future generations who had not known Moses personally, would have a similar degree of faith in the words Moses had handed down. This would have the effect that if there were to arise in the future someone claiming that G’d had appeared to him in a dream, or spoken to him while he was fully awake and that the message he had received would contradict the teachings handed down in the name of Moses, such a person would have proven himself to be a liar, a fake, someone totally fraudulent. The people’s experience of Moses’ superiority as a confidant of G’d would guarantee that they would not lend credence to anyone who would attempt to countermand G’d’s orders as conveyed by Moses. The people, because they had prophetic powers themselves, would know for a fact that Gd had spoken directly to Moses. At the conclusion of the revelation, as recorded by Moses to the next generation in Deuteronomy 4, they are quoted as having said that as of that day they had seen with their own eyes that G’d had communicated directly with Moses, and that just as they themselves had survived their own experience during the revelation, they had no longer any doubt that Moses had survived many such direct communications from G’d during his waking hours. Once this degree of trust in Moses had been established, they asked him to approach G’d on their behalf and to relate His words to them as they had become overawed by their own experience, and were afraid that they could not endure any more such experiences and remain alive. (compare Deut. 5,24 where they told Moses to become their intermediary.) ויגד משה את דברי העם אל ה', “Moses told G’d what the people had said.” Ibn Ezra feels that this is one of many verses in the Torah that should have been written previously but have not, and we must understand them as referring to events which had already occurred and which the reader may already know about. Nachmanides does not agree that we are dealing with such a verse here, as he does not understand the line (verse 8) וישב משה את דברי העם אל ה' as referring to Moses having reported the people’s words to G’d immediately, but that Moses had to return first to the Mountain taking the people’s reply with him, so to speak. We must remember that G’d is omniscient, and He did not need Moses to tell Him how the people had reacted to what He had bidden Moses to tell them. On the contrary, as soon as G’d had become aware of the people’s reaction, He immediately told Moses to enter the thick cloud surrounding the Mountain, etc. Upon setting out, Moses told G’d what the people had said to him, assuring G’d that His children had perfect faith in Him and welcomed all the instructions He either had issued already or would issue in the future. Our sages interpret these verses as dealing with the boundaries erected around the Mountain, to protect overenthusiastic Israelites in their desire to come close to G’d from becoming victims instead. Moses had ascended on the third of the month, and reported the famous נעשה ונשמע, “we will do as soon as we will know what to do,” to G’d. G’d immediately instructed him to draw boundaries around the Mountain beyond which the people were not to approach. Moses descended on the same day and relayed this information. He ascended again on the fourth, informing G’d of the people’s reaction in response to the boundaries. Even though the Torah reports this only later, the fact is that the Torah is under no obligation to narrate events in their chronological order. Some commentators say that initially, Moses told G’d that the people had said to him that whatever G’d would say they would do. G’d, Who can read between the lines, i.e. knows how to interpret what had not been spelled out. He realised that Moses was under the impression that the people referred only to what G’d Himself would say to them, but that they had not obligated themselves to carry out automatically everything they would only hear through Moses. He told Moses of the nature of the revelation, which would have as a by-product that henceforth the people would relate with the same degree of faith and trust to what they would hear from Moses’ lips, as they related to what they would hear from G’d directly. Subsequently, Moses confirmed to G’d that the people had indeed made such a commitment, i.e. that this had been their intention already when they had said that all G’d had commanded they would do.
Rashbam
בעב הענן, a thick darkness to prevent him from seeing the presence of G’d with his eyes. [the people were to hear, not see. Ed.]
And Hashem said to Moses: "Go to the people, and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments,
verse value 2924 — יְהֹוָ֤ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 45 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֤ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 2924 = 86 × 34; 86 is the value of Elohim. The shortest word is "go" (לֵ֣ךְ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·purify·them" (וְקִדַּשְׁתָּ֥ם, 6 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "and·purify·them" (וְקִדַּשְׁתָּ֥ם), "and·tomorrow" (וּמָחָ֑ר), "and·let·them·wash" (וְכִבְּס֖וּ). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 396x in Exodus); "and·said" (root אמר, 297x in Exodus); "to·Moses" (root משה, 277x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·tomorrow', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 2 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֨אמֶר [and·said] (257) + יְהֹוָ֤ה [Hashem] (26) + אֶל־מֹשֶׁה֙ [to·Moses] (376) + לֵ֣ךְ [go] (50) + אֶל־הָעָ֔ם [to·the·people] (146) + וְקִדַּשְׁתָּ֥ם [and·purify·them] (850) + הַיּ֖וֹם [today] (61) + וּמָחָ֑ר [and·tomorrow] (254) + וְכִבְּס֖וּ [and·let·them·wash] (94) + שִׂמְלֹתָֽם [their·clothes] (810) = 2924.
Onkelos
And Hashem said to Moses: Go to the people and prepare them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments.
Rashi
Adonoy said to Moshe. If that be so — that they make it necessary to speak to them [directly] — go to the people — וקדשתם means AND THOU SHALT PREPARE THEM; i. e. tell them that they shall prepare themselves to-day and to-morrow (Mekhilta; cf. Onkelos).
Ramban
V’KIDASHTAM’ TODAY AND TOMORROW. Rashi explained: “V’kidashtam means ‘and thou shalt prepare them.’” And so is the opinion of Onkelos. A similar usage is found in the verse: I have commanded ‘lim’kudashai’ (“those who are prepared for Me” or “My consecrated ones”), and also in the following verse: ‘hithkadshu’ (prepare yourselves) for tomorrow. Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra explained it as meaning that they should bathe themselves in water. But if so, what is the sense of today and tomorrow when bathing was required only once? The correct interpretation is that they should sanctify themselves by separating from their wives, and from all uncleanness, for he who guards [himself] from being defiled by uncleanness is called ‘m’kudash’ (consecrated), just as it is said with reference to the priests, There shall none defile himself for the dead; They shall be holy unto their G-d. And it is further written, because the priests had not sanctified themselves, that is to say, they had not purified themselves. Similarly, And David answered the priest, and said unto him: To a certainty women have been kept from us about these three days; when I came out, the vessels of the young men were holy. And it is known that [before the Giving of the Torah the people] bathed themselves in water, this being derived logically from the required washing of garments. And so did the Rabbis say in the Mechilta: “There is no case where washing of garments is required in the Torah without the requirement of immersion [of one’s body].”
Ibn Ezra
"And He said: sanctify them today and tomorrow" — He gave them time to sanctify themselves for the rest of that day and the next. "And sanctify them" means that they should wash in water; this is indicated by "and they shall wash their garments," following the pattern of "and if he does not wash and does not bathe his flesh" (Lev. 17:16). This is also why Moses said, "Do not approach a woman," so that they would be holy and not impure; for one who has approached a woman must sanctify himself, as in the pattern of "and she was sanctifying herself from her impurity" (II Sam. 11:4).
Rabbeinu Bahya
וקדשתם היום ומחר, “sanctify them today and tomorrow.” The meaning of the “sanctity” is that they were not to indulge in sexual relations with their wives (Pessikta Zutrata). They were also to avoid contact with any ritually impure object or creature. Anyone who consciously refrains from such contact is referred to as קודש, holy. וכבסו שמלותם, “and that they wash their garments.” From the instruction that they were to wash their clothing we derive that they were also to immerse their bodies in a ritual bath. Compare Mechilta (bachodesh section 3) that wherever the Torah mentions the requirement to wash one’s clothing, the need to immerse one’s body in a ritual bath is an automatic corollary.
Tur HaArokh
וקדשתם, “you will sanctify, etc.” according to Rashi the word here means: “you will make preparations.” According to Ibn Ezra the meaning is that the people are to wash themselves with water. According to Nachmanides the meaning is that the men should refrain from sexual intercourse with their wives, and should also refrain from contact with anything else that confers ritual impurity upon them. Any person who makes a point of refraining from contact with ritual impurity is described as “holy.”
Rashbam
וקדשתם, a way of saying “prepare them.” You have the same word in the sense of preparing for an event which did not require ritual purity as prerequisite in Numbers 11,18 before the people would receive meat.
Cross-references: Numbers 12:4; Deuteronomy 9:21; Joshua 3:5; Joel 2:16
and be ready against the third day; for the third day Hashem will come down in the sight of all the people upon mount Sinai.
verse value 2681 — לַיּ֣וֹם = 86 (Elohim)
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 55 letters. Notable word values: "for·the·day" (לַיּ֣וֹם) = 86, equal to Elohim. Verse gematria: 2681 = 7 × 383. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֣י, 2 letters) and the longest is "the·third" (הַשְּׁלִישִׁ֑י, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 170: ready, in·the·sight·of. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "the·third" (הַשְּׁלִשִׁ֗י). The root יום appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 396x in Exodus); "and·let·them·be" (root היה, 235x in Exodus); "all·the·people" (root כל, 121x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·third', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 9 words. Full calculation: וְהָי֥וּ [and·let·them·be] (27) + נְכֹנִ֖ים [ready] (170) + לַיּ֣וֹם [for·the·day] (86) + הַשְּׁלִישִׁ֑י [the·third] (655) + כִּ֣י [for] (30) + בַּיּ֣וֹם [on·the·day] (58) + הַשְּׁלִשִׁ֗י [the·third] (645) + יֵרֵ֧ד [will·come·down] (214) + יְהֹוָ֛ה [Hashem] (26) + לְעֵינֵ֥י [in·the·sight·of] (170) + כׇל־הָעָ֖ם [all·the·people] (165) + עַל־הַ֥ר [upon·Mount] (305) + סִינָֽי [Sinai] (130) = 2681.
Onkelos
And let them be ready for the third day, for on the third day Hashem will be revealed before the eyes of all the people upon Mount Sinai.
Rashi
והיו נכנים AND LET THEM BE PREPARED — separated from their wives (Mekhilta; cf. Rashi on Shabbat 87a). ליום השלישי AGAINST THE THIRD DAY, which is the sixth of the month. On the fifth Moses built the altar under the mountain and the twelve monuments — the whole narrative as is stated later on in the Sidra ואלה המשפטים (Exodus 24:4), for there is neither “earlier” nor “later” (there is no chronological order) in the Torah (Mekhilta-2). לעיני כל העם BEFORE THE EYES (in the sight) OF ALL THE PEOPLE — This tells us that there was not a blind person amongst them — that they had all been healed of their blindness (Mekhilta).
Ramban
THE ETERNAL WILL COME DOWN IN THE SIGHT OF ALL THE PEOPLE. I.e., so that all the people will behold His coming down, meaning that they will see the appearance of the Glory of the Eternal like devouring fire on the top of the mount, but they will not see G-d, for it is written, for man shall not see Me and live.
Ibn Ezra
"And they shall be ready" — perhaps no one was to sleep on those nights, so that they might hear the voice of Hashem in the morning, in the manner of the High Priest on Yom Kippur.
Sforno
והיו נכונים, that not only the mind, the spirit, be in readiness for the revelation but also the body that houses the spirit. This was necessary because the level of prophecy they would experience at the revelation would far surpass anything an ordinary prophet experiences, something for which he does not have to prepare his body by ritual immersion, and loss of any residue of seminal fluids the body ejaculated during the days immediately preceding the prophetic vision. Moses was not forbidden physical contact with his own wife until he had attained this level of prophetic stature. This would commence from the time of the revelation and onwards. At that time he released the other Israelites from the restriction of carrying on marital relations with their wives by saying to them: “return to your tents” (Deuteronomy 5,27-28). Moses himself had been told by G’d at that time: “you remain standing here with Me.” This is what our sages explained in Shabbat 87.
Chizkuni
ליום השלישי, “for the third day.” This was the Sabbath on which the Torah would be given, the third day after Moses had been commanded to prepare the people for that day on the fourth of the month, a Thursday. On that day G-d would descend to the Mountain. Seeing that at this point the Torah did not spell out a specific time or date, this had to be done on another occasion, i.e. in Deuteronomy 5,27 where Moses is to tell the people to return to their daily routine, whereas he is to ascend Mount Sinai and receive the whole Torah there during the next 40 days, as detailed at the beginning of chapter 24 in Exodus. Some commentators accept neither the opinion of the majority of the scholars nor that of Rabbi Yossi, both of whom held differing views as to the precise sequence and timing of the days of the week and days of the month on which events commencing with the Israelites encamping in the desert of Sinai and the conclusion of the revelation have been reported in the Torah.
Tur HaArokh
ירד ה' לעיני כל העם, “Hashem will descend in full view of all the people.” This means that the fiery spectacle of G’d’s descent to the top of the Mountain will be perceived as a spectacle of consuming fire. The people will obviously not see the essence of G’d, as we have been told in Exodus 33,20 כי לא יראני האדם וחי, “it is inherently impossible for a living human being to see Me.”
Rashbam
ירד ה' לעיני כל העם, one probably has to understand the beginning of verse 10 ויאמר ה', as referring to an angel who said what follows. Therefore he could say the words ירד ה' in the third person. G’d, personally, had not said verse 10 as otherwise here it should say ארד “I will descend.” I have already explained a similar construction in Genesis 19,24 in connection with who made it rain on Sodom, and the meaning of the words מן השמים “from the heaven,” in that verse. Bereshit Rabbah 51,3 describes the first half of the verse as having been spoken by the angel Gavriel, whereas the second half was spoken by G’d Himself.
And you shall set bounds to the people round about, saying: Take heed to yourselves, that you do not go up into the mount, or touch the border of it; whoever touches the mount shall be surely put to death;
verse value 4280
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 59 letters. The shortest word is "to·you" (לָכֶ֛ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·set·bounds·for" (וְהִגְבַּלְתָּ֤, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 446: and·set·bounds·for, die. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "and·set·bounds·for" (וְהִגְבַּלְתָּ֤), "beware" (הִשָּׁמְר֥וּ), "going·up" (עֲל֥וֹת). The root הר appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "saying" (root אמר, 297x in Exodus); "the·people" (root עם, 190x in Exodus); "going·up" (root עלה, 78x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'at·its·edge', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְהִגְבַּלְתָּ֤ [and·set·bounds·for] (446) + אֶת־הָעָם֙ [the·people] (516) + סָבִ֣יב [around] (74) + לֵאמֹ֔ר [saying] (271) + הִשָּׁמְר֥וּ [beware] (551) + לָכֶ֛ם [to·you] (90) + עֲל֥וֹת [going·up] (506) + בָּהָ֖ר [in·the·mountain] (207) + וּנְגֹ֣עַ [or·touching] (129) + בְּקָצֵ֑הוּ [at·its·edge] (203) + כׇּל־הַנֹּגֵ֥עַ [all·who·touch] (178) + בָּהָ֖ר [in·the·mountain] (207) + מ֥וֹת [die] (446) + יוּמָֽת [shall·be·put·to·death] (456) = 4280.
Onkelos
And you shall set bounds for the people all around, saying: Take heed to yourselves against going up the mountain or touching its edge; whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death.
Rashi
והגבלת AND THOU SHALT SET BOUNDS — set boundary marks for them as a sign that they should not approach the mountain from the boundary and beyond. לאמר SAYING — The boundary says to them, “Take care not to ascend from here and further on” and you, too, admonish them regarding this. ונגע בקצהו OR TOUCH THE EXTREMITY THEREOF — i. e. even the extremity thereof.
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall set bounds" — set a boundary around the mountain; and similarly, "Set bounds around the mountain and sanctify it" (below, v. 23) means to place a boundary around the mountain. I have gone on at such length because of what that madman who distorted the words of the living God wrote: he claimed that Moses meant to say "set bounds for the people" and that "the mountain" slipped out instead of "the people." "Whoever touches the mountain" — with his body.
Sforno
כל הנוגע בהר מות ימות, a warning to deter the people from being harmed in the event they would trample the boundary markers around the mountain in their eagerness to catch a glimpse of G’d. Such people, if they were to become victims of their own folly, would mar the entire joyful experience of the giving of the Torah by defiling the earth around them with their carcasses. They would cause their relatives to become mourners on what should have been the most auspicious experience of their lives. The presence of G’d, the Shechinah, does not manifest itself to people in mourning.
Or HaChaim
והגבלת את העם סביב, "set a boundary for the people all around." It appears that the instructions to set up this fence applied only for what would take place on the third day; it was meant so that the Israelites would get used to the fact that the Mountain was out of bounds and as a measure of respect for what would happen. It does not mean that touching the Mountain or its edge was forbidden already on the two days preceding the revelation. Mechilta 24 confirms that the obligatory nature of this prohibition applied only on the third day.
Chizkuni
והגבלת את ההר, “you are to “fence in“ the mountain; actually the Torah writes: “you shall set boundaries for the people,” את העם. Our author understands this as fencing off the east side of the camp from the mountain. This is the direction from which the glory of G-d would appear, as we know from what Moses described in Deuteronomy 33,2 when he spoke about G-d having first offered His Torah to the gentile nations, who, upon enquiring what it contained decided to decline acceptance. He said then: ,וזרח משעיר למו הופיע מהר פרן, “He shone forth from the land of Seir (in the east) and He appeared from Mount Paran.” [But the Torah wrote סביב – fence the mountain roundabout; Cf. Mekhilta ad loc.] לאמר, “to tell as a warning so that each Israelite would warn his neighbour.”
Rashbam
והגבלת, mark the border up to which the people are allowed to approach by clearly visible signs.
no hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live; when the shofar blast grows prolonged, they may go up the mountain.
verse value 2690
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 63 letters. The shortest word is "in·it" (בּ֜וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "for·surely" (כִּֽי־סָק֤וֹל, 6 letters). 9 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "shall·not·touch" (לֹא־תִגַּ֨ע), "for·surely" (כִּֽי־סָק֤וֹל), "or·shot" (אוֹ־יָרֹ֣ה). The root סקל appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 139x in Exodus); "hand" (root יד, 100x in Exodus); "whether·man" (root איש, 90x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'shall·live', dividing the verse into phrases of 11 and 5 words.
Onkelos
No hand shall touch it, for he shall surely be stoned or surely be cast down; whether beast or man, he shall not live. When the sound of the shofar is prolonged, they are permitted to go up the mountain.
Rashi
ירה יירה HE SHALL SURELY BE CAST DOWN — From this we derive the law regarding those who are sentenced to be stoned that they have to be thrown down from the place of stoning, which was a spot of the height of twice a man’s stature (Sanhedrin 45a). יירה means HE SHALL BE THROWN BELOW to the ground, the word being similar to, (Exodus 15:4) “He hath cast down (ירה) into the sea”. במשך היבל WHEN THE RAM’S HORN SOUNDETH LONG — when the ram’s horn draws out a long sound that is a sign of the departure of the Shechina and that the Divine voice is about to cease, and as soon as “I” shall depart they shall be permitted to ascend [i. e. המה יעלו בהר is not obligatory, signifying, “they shall go up”, but it is permissive] (Mekhilta). היבל — This denotes a ram’s horn, for so do they term, a ram in Arabia — יובלא (corresponding to the Hebrew יובל) (Rosh Hashanah 26a). The horn used here was that of Isaac’s ram (Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 31).
Ramban
WHEN ‘HAYOVEIL’ (THE RAM’S HORN) SOUNDETH LONG, THEY SHALL COME UP TO THE MOUNT. “The Hebrew word hayoveil denotes a ram’s horn, and the horn used here was that of Isaac’s ram.” Thus Rashi’s language. But I have not understood this, for Isaac’s ram was burnt as a whole-offering, and horns and hoofs were completely burnt in whole-offerings. Perhaps the Holy One, blessed be He, shaped the ashes of the horn [of Isaac’s ram] and restored it to what it was originally. But in my opinion, this Agadah (homily) contains a secret. Thus they have said that this Voice [heard on Mount Sinai, as stated in Verse 16], was that of Pachad Yitzchak (the Fear of Isaac). It is for this reason that Scripture says, and all the people that were in the camp trembled. At this manifestation of G’vurah they did not grasp the commandment itself but only a voice.
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall set bounds" — set a boundary around the mountain; and similarly, "Set bounds around the mountain and sanctify it" (below, v. 23) means to place a boundary around the mountain. I have gone on at such length because of what that madman who distorted the words of the living God wrote: he claimed that Moses meant to say "set bounds for the people" and that "the mountain" slipped out instead of "the people." "Whoever touches the mountain" — with his body. "No hand shall touch him (בוֹ)" — the word "him" refers to the person who touches the mountain; the meaning is that no one shall enter after him to seize him, but rather those who see him shall stone him immediately from where they stand, and if he is far away they shall shoot him with arrows. The word יִירֶה ("shall be shot") is irregular among its kindred forms, for verbs with yod as a root letter typically substitute vav in the future tense of the nif'al, as in "and the plenty shall not be known" (Gen. 41:31), "You disciplined me and I was disciplined" (Jer. 31:18). Perhaps this substitution was made to avoid confusion with the root of "so that You may be feared" (Ps. 130:4), since alef and he are quiescent at the end of a word and are indistinguishable in pronunciation. "Whether beast or man, he shall not live" — but not the bird, for they could not catch it since it would fly away at once. "When the ram's horn is sounded (בִּמְשֹׁךְ הַיּוֹבֵל)" — the meaning of יוֹבֵל is a lamb; it is called this because of "you shall cause a horn of jubilee to sound a blast" (Lev. 25:9), for the shofar is made from the horns of a lamb. Similarly, "when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, when you hear the sound of the shofar" (Josh. 6:5). I am astonished at those who say that "Moses shall speak" refers to when the shofar sound is long and strong; for the sound of the shofar is itself a great wonder — there is nothing greater at the Revelation at Sinai — while the thunder, lightning, and thick cloud are things also seen in the world. The sound of a shofar such as this had never been heard until the day of the Ten Commandments, and it was not made from the horn of a lamb. The Gaon [Saadia] said that when Moses sounded the shofar, permission was then granted to ascend; this was after Moses descended on Yom Kippur and commanded the making of the Tabernacle. "They may ascend the mountain (הֵמָּה)" — R. Samuel ben Hofni said that "they" refers to Aaron and his sons and the seventy elders, as it is written concerning them: "And to Moses He said: Come up to Hashem, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel" (24:1); to the rest of Israel no permission was given to ascend Mount Sinai, hence it says "they" and not others. His words seem good to me, for the Glory rested upon the mountain continuously until the Tabernacle was made, as it is written, "and the glory of Hashem filled the Tabernacle" (40:34); only then did He speak with Moses in the Tent of Meeting. Perhaps then Moses sounded the shofar and was given permission to ascend when the Glory departed.
Chizkuni
לא תגע בו יד, “you must not touch him;” (the offender in order to pull him back) rather he shall be killed by stoning or by shooting arrows at him, but he must not be touched by human hand in order to be brought before a court of law to be dealt with. The Torah adds therefore that his death should occur without humans touching him. This prohibition applies equally to the Israelites’ beasts. If you were to ask why ascending the mountain is a worse offense than killing such a person by stoning him while ascending? The reason is that if the offender were to be killed through human action, the party touching that body, dead or alive, would also be considered as having personally touched that Mountain, whose holiness is such that it must not be touched by human bodies. Seeing that the Torah did not even allow a beast to touch that mountain, and a beast is not ritually impure while alive, how much more would the Torah not allow a human being to touch it, seeing that a living human being is subject to being ritually defiled while alive as well as when dead; so why did the Torah have to spell out this regulation as applying also to the people? The answer to this question can be learned from matters involving a high level of sanctity, such as the Tabernacle which was completely out of bounds to non priests. As soon as Nadav and Avihu approached to offer incense not prepared in accordance with the regulations pertaining to it, they were killed by lightning descending from G-d. They were not convicted after trial by a human court. Their corpses defiled the Tabernacle, although if they had been jailed and executed after a trial, the sanctity of the Tabernacle would not have been defiled. The same thing happened when Uzziah, King of Yehudah, not a priest, ascended the altar in the Temple of Solomon, planning to offer incense; after having been warned and having ignored the warning, he was struck by the dreaded skin disease of tzoraat on his forehead, something which defiled his entire body even though he was standing on the holiest place on earth. (Chronicles II 26,16) A different interpretation of the words: כי סקול יסקל, “for he will be stoned to death;” either with stones only, or with hail (stones). The words או ירה יירה, referring to the kind of hail that was a plague in Egypt would symbolise death both by stoning and by burning. Rashi claims that we would have expected the Torah to decree death by either drowning in water, i.e. ירה יירה, as in Exodus 15,4 when the Egyptian army was tossed into the sea to drown, or if not then by stoning. He bases this on the principle stated in Sanhedrin 45, that prior to stoning, the victim is pushed down by one of the witnesses who had testified against him from a wall two stories high into a pit, and if that did not kill him the others stone him by throwing stones at him. Alternately, the word או in our verse here does not mean: “or,” but means the same as אשר, “which,” as it does in Exodus 21,6, והגישו אל הדלת או אל המזוזה, “to the door, i.e. the door post;” this line has been translated by Yonatan ben Uzziel Targum as ויקריבנו לות דשא דלוח מזוזתא “he will bring him close to the entrance which is the doorpost.” The meaning of the line accordingly, is: “for the person violating this commandment will eventually be stoned to death after first having been thrown down into the pit.” אם בהמה אם איש, “regardless if man or domestic fourlegged animal; the category “bird” is not mentioned seeing that the messengers of the court would have no means of bringing it to justice. It would escape by flying away as soon as chased. במשוך היובל, “after the ram’s horn emits a long blast, etc.” actually, the reference is to the horn of the ram, קרן היובל, not the ram, יובל, as written here. It is not equivalent to the shofar used during the yovel year. That shofar was not used until after the Tabernacle had been built during the second year of the Israelites’ wanderings. On this occasion, Moses used a ram’s horn to signal to the people that the Revelation and all this entailed had been concluded. Based on the interpretation by Rabbi Saadyah gaon. Still another interpretation: the words: במשוך היובל, mean: “when the sound of the celestial shofar the people had been hearing during the revelation had come to end.” We find the word משך used in this context also in Hoshea 7,5: משך ידו את לוצצים, “he extended his hand to scorners (instead of protecting the king).” The expression here signals that the presence of the glory of Hashem above the Mountain had come to an end.
Rabbeinu Bahya
אם בהמה אם איש לא יחיה, “whether animal or beast he shall not live.” The word בהמה in our verse does not refer to four-legged animals; it refers to the wicked people who are deemed no better than animals. The Torah tells the Jewish people that regardless of whether the person touching the mountain is an otherwise righteous person or whether he is a wicked person he will not survive touching even the edge (beyond what was fenced off) of the mountain. When Solomon in Kohelet 3,21 wrote: מי יודע רוח בני האדם העולה היא למעלה ורוח הבהמה היורדת היא למטה לארץ, “who knows the spirit of man which ascends on high or the spirit of the animal which descends downwards, to earth,” he did not refer to actual animals. He referred to the soul of the sinner which descends just as the “soul” (abstract life-force) of an animal perishes with the body it inhabits, to the soul of the righteous which ascends when the body it had inhabited dies. Solomon’s question (rhetorical if you will) was “while both people are alive on this earth, the sinner and the righteous, how can we know what is in store for a certain person? Do we humans know who is a צדיק and who is a רשע, i.e. a בהמה?” Solomon teaches that while we are in this world מקרה אחד לכל לצדיק ולרשע כמות זה כן מות זה, “while on earth both the righteous and the wicked appear to share the same fate, i.e. death of the body.” (Kohelet 3,19-20). Verse 21 refers to verse 20 preceding it where death for every creature made of dust is described, thus placing different people on the same level. However, this changes the moment these differing personalities no longer have a body. The same is true in our verse. In this life it makes no difference whether a person is wicked or righteous, לא יחיה, he will not live forever. The very fact that the comparison between the wicked and the just is limited to לא יחיה, neither of them escaping physical death, is what makes it plain that as soon as death of the body has occurred the fate of the righteous and that of the wicked will become radically different from one another. Whereas the words לא יחיה apply to the wicked both in this world and in the next, the same words when applied to the righteous refer only to his life on earth, not to his life after the death of his body. Proof is found in the fact that Nadav and Avihu who died for transgressing the commandment not to touch the mountain were nevertheless accorded life in the hereafter. This is why we read about their death on Yom Kippur. [This presupposes, as has been mentioned in several Midrashim, that they had been guilty of death before the day they died but that their death and the manner of their death had been delayed due to a variety of considerations culminating in their bringing incense into the Sanctuary. The words בקרבתם לפני ה’, וימותו “due to their coming close to the presence of G’d they died” (Leviticus 16,1) refer to their touching the mountain. Ed.] במשך היובל, “during the long blast of the shofar.” The plain meaning of the verse is that when a long blast of the shofar would be heard this would signal the departure of the Shechinah from Mount Sinai. At that time the rule restricting the Israelites from touching or ascending the mountain would be relaxed. The word היובל is a reference to the ram’s horn, according to Rashi the horn of the ram Avraham had sacrificed instead of Yitzchak. What Rashi meant was that although that ram had been burned up as an עולה, a burnt-offering which is completely burned up including its horns, G’d had resurrected it to its original condition. In Pirke de Rabbi Eliezer chapter 31 we read the view of Rabbi Chanina ben Dotha who held that the ram in question had been created at dusk of the sixth day of creation (Avot 5,6) and that none of its parts went to waste. The ash of the flesh was used in constructing the golden altar inside the Sanctuary. The tendons became the ten strings of David’s harp. The skin became the belt used by the prophet Elijah to gird his loins. He bases this on Kings II 1,8: ”a hairy man with a leather belt around his waist.” “That is Elijah the Tishbite, he said.” The right horn of that ram served as the horn which will announce his coming in the future as we know from Isaiah 27,13 ”and in that day a great ram’s horn will be sounded and the strayed who are in the land of Assyria and the expelled who are in the land of Egypt will come and worship the Lord in Jerusalem on the holy mount.” The left horn was the one used at the revelation of Mount Sinai in our verse. Thus far Rabbi Chanina ben Dotha. Our sages in the beginning of the first chapter of Masechet Yom Tov use this verse to prove that anything which had been forbidden by a court comprised of a certain number of judges cannot be permitted again by another court unless it comprises a greater number of judges than the previous court (Megillah 2). This is also what is meant in Beitzah 5: “seeing the Torah had already written that ‘also sheep and cattle shall not graze facing the mountain’ (34,3), why was it necessary to write that when a long blast would be sounded on the ram’s horn this would signal the “all clear?” [We have a principle מתוך לאו אתה שומע הן, “from the conditions attached to a prohibition, you can judge when such a prohibition does no longer apply.” Ed] The Torah wrote the verse only to teach us that unless specifically permitted by a competent authority even a temporary prohibition unless it had a specific time limit to start with needs to be specifically permitted again.” A Kabbalistic approach: The words במשוך היובל, “at the long blast of the horn,” are actually an allusion to פחד יצחק, the attribute which distinguished Yitzchak, especially when he was bound on the altar ready to give his life for G’d. This attribute also known as גבורה was attained by the entire Jewish nation at the time of the revelation at Mount Sinai. They did not reach the level of verbalizing anything. They heard a (sound) voice [at that point], that was all. This is what ויחרד כל העם, “all the people trembled in awe (without verbalizing any response)” is all about, just as we read in connection with Yitzchak ויחרד יצחק חרדה גדולה that “Yitzchak was seized by great trembling,” when he found out that the person he had given the blessing to was Yaakov (Genesis 27,33). I have already dealt with this subject in Genesis 22,13 on the words והנה איל אחר נאחז בסך בקרניו. [page 341-342 in my translation. Ed.] והגבלת את ההר, “and you shall fence off the mountain.” The idea is to set a boundary approximately 2000 cubits distant from the mountain to prevent accidental infraction of G’d’s command. כל הנוגע בהר מות יומת, “whoever touches the mountain shall be executed.” Anyone actually guilty of ascending the mountain would most certainly also die. לא תגע בו יד, “you are not to touch it by hand.” Seeing that the Torah had already said: “anyone touching it will be executed,” why did the Torah have to write these words? The meaning is that the death penalty to be administered to someone violating the commandment does not involve touching the convicted person by hand such as death administered by the sword or by strangulation as opposed to shooting arrows, but the penalty is stoning which occurs at a distance from the victim. This is why the Torah elaborates כי סקול יסקל או ירה ייראה, “he shall be stoned or thrown down.”
Tur HaArokh
לא תגע בו יד, “a hand shall not touch it” (the fence) some commentators believe that the word בו in our verse refers to the Mountain itself; and that a person doing this is liable to the death penalty, but that the execution must not involve that the person being executed be touched by a human hand in the process. Rather he should be stoned to death, by throwing the stones at him. If the victim escapes the stones by running away, he is to be shot dead by arrows. במשוך היובל, “upon a prolonged blast of the shofar, etc.” Ibn Ezra says that the word יובל is another word for the horn we know as shofar. It is the horn being blown in the Jubilee year, the שנת היובל. Translators generally [Bible scholars viewed as heretics by Ibn Ezra in his introduction to the Book of Genesis. Ed.] refer to יובל as a sheep, כבש. As to the allegorical explanation offered by Rashi, according to which the sound of the shofar at the revelation was the horn which had been part of the ram which Avraham had offered on the altar after G’d had stopped him from slaughtering Yitzchok, Nachmanides writes [as the plain meaning of the text. Ed.] that he does not understand that commentary, seeing that the entire ram had been offered as a burnt offering, i.e. including the horns which were burnt up at that time. He speculates that possibly Avraham or G’d had gathered up the ash from that horn and it had been resurrected to its former condition. [these speculations are pursued already in commentaries on the oldest text of Pirke de Rabbi Eliezer. Ed.] המה יעלו בהר,”they may ascend the Mountain.” According to Ibn Ezra permission to ascend the Mountain after the revelation was granted only to the elders but not to the people at large. Personally, I do not understand why the ordinary people should not have been allowed to ascend the Mountain after G’d’s glory had departed from it. [I do not understand the author’s reservations, as in my edition of Ibn Ezra a very plausible case is made for the word המה being restrictive, and referring only to Aaron and the elders who already prior to the revelation had been permitted to approach more closely than the ordinary people. Ed.]
Rashbam
לא תגע בו יד, anyone touching the mountain with his hands would be subject to immediate death as spelled out in verse 12. Moses was to execute people like that from a distance so that the executioner himself would not erroneously approach too closely to the mountain. This is why the Torah wrote the words לא תגע בו יד, meaning “do not lay a hand on him,” the one who ignored My command. Such violators of G’d’s command, if any, were to be shot by arrows. במשוך היובל, once the presence of G’d would withdraw and the sound of the shofars and the lightning would cease.
Daat Zkenim
לא תגע בו יד, “do not touch it with your hand;” Why did this have to be repeated when we had heard already in the preceding verse that anyone touching the mountain would be subject to the death penalty? The two verses have to be understood as follows: “when you are about to execute a person guilty of having touched the mountain, do not do so by using your hands against him but stone him to death.” The stones are to be thrown from some distance away from the culprit. If you were to approach the area where the sin was committed you would be in danger of committing the same offence, even though unintentionally. Our author thinks that the repetition was to make clear which method of execution was to be applied to the offender, as the usual method, strangulation involves touching the victim. או ירה יירה, “or shot through with arrows;” according to our author as distinct from Ibn Ezra and Rashbam, the meaning of the word או here is not “or,” but “if” is that the guilty party must be thrown from a height after having been pushed. Alternately, “if throwing the victim down from a height has not killed him he must be shot subsequently to insure that he does not have to die a slow death. [Seeing that this commandment will never be applied again, assuming it even had been necessary to apply it then, it does not really matter which interpretation is the correct one. Ed.]
And Moses went down from the mount to the people, and sanctified the people; and they washed their garments.
verse value 2861
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 38 letters. Verse gematria: 2861 is prime. The shortest word is "Moses" (מֹשֶׁ֛ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·washed" (וַֽיְכַבְּס֖וּ, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "and·sanctified" (וַיְקַדֵּשׁ֙), "and·washed" (וַֽיְכַבְּס֖וּ). The root עם appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Moses" (root משה, 277x in Exodus); "to·the·people" (root עם, 190x in Exodus); "and·sanctified" (root קדש, 82x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·the·people', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַיֵּ֧רֶד [and·went·down] (220) + מֹשֶׁ֛ה [Moses] (345) + מִן־הָהָ֖ר [from·the·mountain] (300) + אֶל־הָעָ֑ם [to·the·people] (146) + וַיְקַדֵּשׁ֙ [and·sanctified] (420) + אֶת־הָעָ֔ם [the·people] (516) + וַֽיְכַבְּס֖וּ [and·washed] (104) + שִׂמְלֹתָֽם [their·clothes] (810) = 2861.
Onkelos
And Moses descended from the mountain to the people, and he prepared the people, and they washed their garments.
Rashi
מן ההר אל העם [AND MOSES WENT DOWN] FROM THE MOUNTAIN UNTO THE PEOPLE —This tells us that Moses did not betake himself first to his personal concerns but went direct from the mountain to the people (Mekhilta).
Ramban
AND MOSES WENT DOWN FROM THE MOUNT UNTO THE PEOPLE, AND SANCTIFIED THE PEOPLE. This verse teaches that the command expressed in the [above] verse, And the Eternal said unto Moses: Go unto the people and sanctify them, was also given to him on the mountain which Moses ascended everytime that he was about to speak to Him. In the Mechilta, the Rabbis have explained: “This teaches that Moses did not turn to his personal affairs nor go to his house at all, but he went directly from the mount unto the people.”
Ibn Ezra
"And he descended and sanctified" — as I have explained.
Chizkuni
וירד משה, “Moses descended;” on this same day, the fourth of the month, a Thursday. ויקדש את העם, “he sanctified the people.” The three days of sanctification commence on this day and concluded on the morning of the third day, although technically they could have immersed themselves in a ritual bath already after nightfall of the previous day, seeing that there were so many foreigners (ערב רב see Ex 12.38) among the people, Moses extended the period for ritual immersion until the morning of the third day, thus giving them additional time. [“days” here are parts of days, according to the halachic principle of מקצת היו ככולו, any portion of a “day” is considered as if it had been a full day.” Ed.]
Tur HaArokh
וירד משה מן ההר, “Moses descended from the Mountain, etc.” This is mentioned so that we the readers will know that even the instruction to Moses to ensure that the people sanctify themselves on that day and the following day were issued to Moses while he was on the Mountain. Moses ascended the Mountain every time that G’d spoke to him.
And he said to the people: "Be ready against the third day; do not draw near to a woman."
verse value 2831
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 38 letters. Verse gematria: 2831 = 19 × 149. The shortest word is "be" (הֱי֥וּ, 3 letters) and the longest is "do·not·approach" (אַֽל־תִּגְּשׁ֖וּ, 6 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "for·three" (לִשְׁלֹ֣שֶׁת), "do·not·approach" (אַֽל־תִּגְּשׁ֖וּ), "near·a·woman" (אֶל־אִשָּֽׁה). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 297x in Exodus); "be" (root היה, 235x in Exodus); "to·the·people" (root עם, 190x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'days', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 2 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ [and·said] (257) + אֶל־הָעָ֔ם [to·the·people] (146) + הֱי֥וּ [be] (21) + נְכֹנִ֖ים [ready] (170) + לִשְׁלֹ֣שֶׁת [for·three] (1060) + יָמִ֑ים [days] (100) + אַֽל־תִּגְּשׁ֖וּ [do·not·approach] (740) + אֶל־אִשָּֽׁה [near·a·woman] (337) = 2831.
Onkelos
And he said to the people: Be ready for three days; do not draw near to a woman.
Rashi
היו נכנים לשלשת ימים means be ready by the end of three days, that is, by the fourth day — for Moses added a day of his own accord to the time appointed by God. This is the opinion of Rabbi José. But according to the opinion of him who says that the Ten Commandments were given on the sixth of the month Moses did not add anything, and the words לשלשת ימים do not signify after three days but mean the same as ליום השלישי (v. 11), i. e. by three days (cf. Shabbat 86b-87a). אל תגשו אל אשה DO NOT GO NEAR A WOMAN during the whole of these three days, this was in order that the women may immerse themselves on the third day and be pure to receive the Torah. If they have relations within the three days, the woman could [involuntarily] expel semen after her immersion and become unclean again. After three days have elapsed, however, the semen has already become putrid and is no longer capable of fertilization, so it is pure from contaminating the woman who expels it. (cf. Shabbat 86a)
Ibn Ezra
"Be ready by the third day" — its meaning is: for the third day. According to the plain sense, Moses did not add a day on his own authority. I offer you two reliable witnesses, both from this book: it is written, "And he gathered them into custody for three days" (Gen. 42:17), and there it says, "And Joseph said to them on the third day" (Gen. 42:18); and it is written, "Within three more days Pharaoh will lift" (Gen. 40:19), and there, "And it came to pass on the third day, his birthday" (Gen. 40:20). So too, "be ready by the third day."
Chizkuni
ויאמר אל העם, “he said to the people;” on the same day when he issued the instructions he told the people to be ready for the needs of what was going to occur at the end of this period of consecutive three days of sanctifying themselves, (by not having marital relations). לשלשת ימים, according to the plain meaning of these words the meaning is: “in anticipation of the third day.” According to the plain meaning, Moses did not add an additional day of preparation (sanctification) as suggested by some scholars. Other examples of a similar formulation in the Bible as here are Genesis 42,17: ויאסוף אותם אל משמר שלשת ימים, “Joseph put them in jail for three days.” Or, in the verse following: ויאמר אליהם יוסף ביום השלישי, “Joseph said to them on the third day;” or Genesis 40,19: בעוד שלשת ימים, “within another three days;” and in the verse following: ויהי ביום השלישי, “it was on the third day;” or Exodus 19,16: ויהי ביום השלישי, “it was on the third day;” there are numerous other examples.
And it came to pass on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of a horn exceeding loud; and all the people that were in the camp trembled.
verse value 4774 — כָּבֵד֙ = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 77 letters. Notable word values: "dense" (כָּבֵד֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "thunder" (קֹלֹ֨ת, 3 letters) and the longest is "third" (הַשְּׁלִישִׁ֜י, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 31: and·it·was, and·it·was. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "when·it·was" (בִּֽהְיֹ֣ת), "and·lightning" (וּבְרָקִ֜ים), "on·the·mountain" (עַל־הָהָ֔ר). The root היה appears 3 times in this verse. 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "who" (root אשר, 245x in Exodus); "and·it·was" (root היה, 235x in Exodus); "all·the·people" (root כל, 121x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'very', dividing the verse into phrases of 15 and 4 words.
Onkelos
And it came to pass on the third day, when morning came, that there were thunders and lightning and a heavy cloud upon the mountain, and the sound of the shofar was exceedingly loud, and all the people who were in the camp trembled.
Rashi
בהיות הבקר lit., WHEN IT WAS BEING MORNING — This phrase tells us that He was there before them at the place of the Divine Revelation, something which it is not customary for human beings to do — that the teacher should await the arrival of his disciple. A similar instance we find in Scripture (Ezekiel 3:22, 23): “[God said unto me]. Arise, go forth into the plain, [and I will there speak with thee]. Then I arose, and went forth into the plain; and, behold the glory of the Lord stood there already” (Midrash Tanchuma, Ki Tisa 15; cf. Nedarim 8a).
Ibn Ezra
"And a thick cloud upon the mountain" — it was by itself, as were the thunder and lightning. "Very loud" — louder than any shofar blast they had heard. "And all the people in the camp trembled" — because of the sound of the shofar.
Sforno
ויהי קולות וברקים. The spectacle was similar to that experienced by the prophet Elijah at the same mountain in Kings I 19,11-12. David, in Psalms 68,9, also describes what happened at Sinai in similar terms.
Chizkuni
ויהי ביום השלישי, “It was on the third day;” this was the Sabbath on which the Torah was given to the Jewish people, the third day of the preparatory ritual of sanctification. It was the third day after the fourth day of the month when these preparations had commenced. You have a total of six days from the day when the people made camp in the desert of Sinai, as stated in the first verse of our chapter. This is the interpretation of these verses according to the majority opinion of the scholars of the Talmud who held that the revelation took place on the sixth day of the month of Sivan. I shall now proceed to explain the view of Rabbi Yossi according to which the Torah was given to the people on the seventh day of Sivan. The words: ביום הזה, “on this day” in verse 1 of our chapter, which was the first day of the month as well as the first day of the week, is based on the tradition that the day of the Exodus was on a Thursday. Accordingly, the first day of Sivan of that year would have been on a Sunday. On that day the people arrived at the desert of Sinai, and on that day Moses did not tell them anything as they were tired and were required to pitch their tents, etc. On the second day, i.e. on Monday, Moses ascended the Mountain. This is followed by: “He called to him, etc.” until verse 8 where the people express their willingness to carry out any instructions they would receive from G-d. On the day following, on Tuesday, Moses conveyed the people’s answer to G-d. On the same day G-d told Moses in verse 9 that He would appear to Him screened by a thick cloud, up to and including the words: “they will believe in you forthwith.” The day after, on the Wednesday, Moses relayed the people’s answer to G-d, i.e. ויגד משה את דברי העם. On the same day G-d says to Moses that the people should sanctify themselves on that day and the day following including their garments by immersing them in a ritual bath, activities performed on Wednesday and Thursday so that they would be ready for the revelation on the day following, (the third day of the preparations (verse 11) On the day following that day on the seventh day of the week, on the Sabbath, the Torah was given to them as agreed by all the scholars seeing that on that day G-d would descend onto to Mount Sinai, the day when it was forbidden to ascend the Mountain as the people had been warned in verse 13. In verse 14, we read about Moses descending from the Mountain and carrying out G-d’s instructions. That day was Wednesday He told them to be ready on the third day (verse 15) by the end of the first 12 hours [the day is divided into two periods of 12 hours each. Ed.] on the fourth day as he had been on the Mountain until daybreak on that Sabbath. It emerges from this that Moses had added an additional day for the people to prepare themselves for the revelation, seeing that G-d had only spoken of היום ומחר, “today and tomorrow.” (verse 10). G-d had referred to the Wednesday and Thursday, whereas Moses added Friday. According to the opinion that the letter ל in the word: לשלושת in verse 15 is superfluous, just as the letter ל in Exodus 14,28 is superfluous in the phrase: לכל חיל פרעה, and just as the letter ל is superfluous in Exodus 27,3 in the phrase לכל כליו תעשה נחושת, G-d ordered the people to prepare for three whole days as explained by Rashi. When Rashi wrote: “at the end of three days, i.e. the fourth day,” this refers to Wednesday when Moses still stood on Mount Sinai. בהיות הבקר, “during the early hours of the morning;” according to Rashi, G-d put in an appearance before the Israelites did, although, normally, the students assemble before the teacher arrives, in this instance G-d did so for their sake. ויחרד כל העם, in this instance the root חרד does not mean that the people were afraid, but the meaning is similar to Samuel I 14,15: המצב והמשחית חרדו, “the garrison and the spoilers also made a commotion.” See also Samuel I 13,7: וכל העם חרדו אחריו, “and all the people rallied to him.” When they heard the voices, even though they were still in their beds, they rallied to their appointed positions near the mountain.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ויהי ביום השלישי בהיות הבקר, “it was on the third day, during the morning,” the third day after they started sanctifying themselves, the sixth day of the month. ויהי קולות וברקים, “and there was thunder and lightning.” The “voices” which we translated as “thunder” were those of the angels praising the Lord each and every morning, as we know from Job 38,7: “when the morning stars sang together and all the divine beings shouted for joy.” The “lightning” also referred to angels, a different group. We know that angels are described as lightning from Psalms 104,4: “He makes the winds His messengers, fiery flames His servants.” We also find this thought reflected in Ezekiel 1,13: “this fire, suggestive of torches, kept moving among the creatures; the fire had a radiance, and lightning issued from the fire.” וענן כבד, and “heavy cloud.” The purpose of that was to separate between the angels and the people. If the Israelites had seen the angels they would have become frightened. We have a verse describing something similar occurring in Ezekiel’s vision (Ezekiel 1,4) ”a huge cloud and flashing fire, surrounded by a radiance;” this was followed (verse 5) by: “in the center of it were also the figures of four creatures.” The foregoing is a relatively new interpretation of this verse by Rabbeinu Chananel. It does not contradict, and must not be understood as contradicting the plain meaning of the words, i.e. that it was a cloudy day, that the קולות וברקים were thunder and lightning accompanied by some rain. This is in line with the plain meaning of Judges 5,4 where Devorah describes the weather on the day of the battle against Siserah, saying: “the earth trembled; the heavens dripped; yea the clouds dripped water. Mountains quaked, etc.” Rabbeinu Chananel’s explanation may be viewed as perhaps the foremost amongst the proverbial 70 facets according to which the written Torah may be explained. The cloud came first, followed by lightning and thunder, as is usual on such days. The reason the Torah does not report events in that order may have been to give prominence to the sound of the shofar. Had the Torah described events in their chronological order then the reader would have made a conceptual linkage between the words קולות and קול שופר, something which would have been wrong. By mentioning the thunder first, the Torah made certain that we would not associate the blast of the shofar with ordinary thunder experienced on that day. The difference between the sound of the thunder and the sound of the blast of the shofar may be described as similar to the difference between physical and spiritual sensations man experiences.
Kli Yakar
And there were voices and lightning. Some Torah commentators wanted to give a reason for why there were these voices and the sound of the shofar, and each one makes allusions in the manner of derash [homiletic interpretation] according to his understanding. What seems closest to me is to add a comparison to this, since we see that the sounds of thunder and lightning are opposite to the sound of the shofar. For the sounds of thunder coming from within the cloud cease quickly, and lightning’s arrow emerges, appears for a moment, and is immediately gone and finished. But the sound of the shofar was continually increasing in strength. Therefore, it is reasonable to say that this is a hint to the two groups who received the Torah: the elder Torah scholars and the elder common people. For the former increase in wisdom while the latter grow more foolish over time. Similarly, this shofar, which was from the ram of Isaac and is associated with the righteous, its sound grows stronger and stronger, for elder Torah scholars continually increase in wisdom. But the thick, heavy cloud, which is associated with the elder common people, those of material nature — their voice and the spark of their light is only momentary. And the word shofar they interpreted (Vayikra Rabbah 29:6) from the language of “improve [shapru] your deeds,” which agrees with our explanation. It also alludes to the merit of Isaac, which continues to grow stronger, and its voice is heard in every generation, growing ever stronger. And it also hints to what is written (in Pirkei Rabbi Eliezer 31) that nothing of Isaac’s ram was wasted; its left horn was blown at Mount Sinai, and its right horn will be blown in the future [Messianic era], as it is said And on that day, a great shofar will be blown (Isaiah 27:13). The reason it is called great is because in this world, the voice of the Torah is not heard in our land except through promises of reward in this world, such as wealth and honor which are in its left hand. The Torah did not want to explain the spiritual reward to those lacking comprehension, because while a person is entangled in physicality, they lack the ability to understand the nature of spiritual reward. But in the future, the earth will be filled with knowledge, and then God will announce to the redeemed of God the spiritual reward and length of days in its right hand in the world that is entirely long [eternal]. This is an additional and stronger voice than the voice at the giving of the Torah. Therefore it says, The sound of the shofar grew increasingly stronger.
And Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet God; and they stood beneath the mountain.
verse value 3948
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 47 letters. The shortest word is "Moses" (מֹשֶׁ֧ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "from·the·camp" (מִן־הַֽמַּחֲנֶ֑ה, 7 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "and·led·out" (וַיּוֹצֵ֨א), "and·stood" (וַיִּֽתְיַצְּב֖וּ), "beneath" (בְּתַחְתִּ֥ית). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Moses" (root משה, 277x in Exodus); "the·people" (root עם, 190x in Exodus); "God" (root אלהים, 133x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·the·camp', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 3 words. Full calculation: וַיּוֹצֵ֨א [and·led·out] (113) + מֹשֶׁ֧ה [Moses] (345) + אֶת־הָעָ֛ם [the·people] (516) + לִקְרַ֥את [to·meet] (731) + הָֽאֱלֹהִ֖ים [God] (91) + מִן־הַֽמַּחֲנֶ֑ה [from·the·camp] (198) + וַיִּֽתְיַצְּב֖וּ [and·stood] (524) + בְּתַחְתִּ֥ית [beneath] (1220) + הָהָֽר [the·mountain] (210) = 3948.
Onkelos
And Moses brought the people out to meet the Word of Hashem from the camp, and they took their stand at the foot of the mountain.
Rashi
לקראת האלהים [AND MOSES BROUGHT FORTH THE PEOPLE …] TO MEET GOD — This (the word לקראת, “to meet”, which is used when two persons are approaching one another) tells us that the Shechina was going forth to meet them, as a bridegroom who goes forth to meet his bride. This is what Scripture means when it says, (Deuteronomy 33:2) “The Lord came from Sinai”, and it is not said, “[The Lord came to Sinai” (Mekhilta). בתחתית ההר AT THE NETHER PART OF THE MOUNTAIN — According to its literal meaning this signifies “at the foot of the mountain”. But a Midrashic explanation is, that the mountain was plucked up from its place and was arched over them as a cask, so that they were standing בתחתית beneath (under) the mountain itself (Mekhilta; Shabbat 88a).
Ibn Ezra
"And Moses brought out" — the meaning of "brought them out from their tents to meet God" is that they had accepted Hashem, Who descended on Mount Sinai, to be their God. "And they stood at the foot of the mountain" — outside the boundary Moses had set for them. At the Revelation at Sinai they were arranged in order, as Moses later arranged them in the fortieth year when he made a covenant with them: first came the firstborn who draw near to Hashem, after them the tribal heads who are the princes, after them the elders, after them the officers, after them all the men of Israel, after them the children, after them the women, and after them the proselytes. Moses and Aaron crossed the boundary and were on the mountain, near the priests — even though the verse does not state this explicitly, for Scripture follows the shorter path. We know they did not defy Hashem's command, for it is written, "Go down, then come up, you and Aaron with you" (below, v. 24), and Moses said, "I was standing between Hashem and you" (Deut. 5:5).
Sforno
לקראת האלוקים, toward the army of angels forming the entourage of the Divine presence, in anticipation of the descent of the Shechinah on the mountain in verse 20.
Or HaChaim
ויוצא משה את העם, Moses lead out the people, etc. Perhaps this was necessary because the people had become afraid of the Mountain by now. Moses took them to the edge of the Mountain so that they would accept the Torah while standing there.
Chizkuni
.ויוצא משה את העם, “Moses brought forth the people;” some commentators claim that Moses brought them forth because without his urging they were too scared to come forward. ויתיצבו בתחתית ההר, “they took up a position at the base of the Mountain” due to the lightning and thunder. Rashi here writes that G-d threatened to bring down the Mountain upon them. This sounds strange, as they had already expressed their willingness to accept the Torah without examining what is written therein. [Exodus 24,7, that whole chapter describes events prior to the revelation Ed.] We would have to understand this Rashi as referring to the Israelites accepting the oral Torah which they had not yet accepted.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ויוצא משה את העם לקראת האלו-הים מן המחנה, “Moses took the people toward G’d out of the camp.“ The “camp” mentioned here was the camp of the 600,000 Israelites. The words לקראת האלו-הים mean toward the “camp of G’d”, i.e. the area where the ministering angels who had descended from heaven had made their camp. According to Tanchuma Tetzaveh 11 the number of ministering angels who had assembled there matched the number of male adult Israelites. When Yaakov (Genesis 32,3) “saw the camp of G’d” this is what he saw already at the time. He named the camp מחנים, “two camps,” as he envisaged a “return trip” by these angels to earth on the occasion of the revelation at Mount Sinai. Alternately, he envisaged the two camps, the Israelites and the angels taking up position, one opposite the other. In Song of Songs 7,1 Solomon referred to these two camps when he said: כמחולות המחנים, “as a dance by angels.” Solomon mentions the word שובי, “turn back,” four times in that verse in Song of Songs as the Jewish people experienced four periods of exile during each of which they were urged by their host countries to abandon their religion in favour of the local religions. We, nowadays, who are in the fourth of these exiles are the subject of the last of these four שובי, i.e. to us applies the author’s paraphrasing שובי ונחזה בך, “return so that we may make out of you rulers, people in authority.” based on Yitro’s use of the words ואתה תחזה מכל העם, “and you appoint from among all the people, etc.” (Exodus 18,21). In Shir Hashirim Rabbah our sages interpret the word שולמית [a word occurring in lieu of the name Israel, Ed.] as a composite of אומה אשר שלום העולמים דר בתוכה“a nation in whose midst dwells the One Who represents eternal peace.” That nation is perceived as responding: מה תחזו בשולמית, “what authority can you possibly offer to a nation such as me?” Israel shuns all that the nations of the world have to offer as they cannot match what we have already experienced at Mount Sinai when we were chosen by G’d as His people. This is the meaning of the words כמחולות מחנים, it is impossible to duplicate the joy that pervaded the Jewish people when they saw themselves as paired with 600,000 angels, their equal, at least. Our sages in Taanit 31 have elaborated on this theme when they said that in the future G’d will arrange dances for the righteous in Gan Eden. In view of all this the “Shulamit” spurned all the offers from the Gentile nations to accord them honour and distinction. Our sages in Shemot Rabbah 29,2 have further stated that 22,000 angels participated at that sacred site. They were the angels closest to the Shechinah, closer than the 600,000 angels we mentioned already They are referred to in Psalms 68,18 as רכב אלו-הים רבותם אלפי שנאן, “G’d’s chariots are myriads upon myriads, thousands upon thousands.” The number of these angels corresponded to the number of 22,000 Levites who had taken up position around the Holy Ark which was within the Tabernacle. Psalms 144,15 proclaims “hail to the people who have experienced this.” At the time the people saw the 4 figures Ezekiel had seen surrounding the throne of G‘d. This is alluded to in the word שנאן which is an acrostic for the creatures supporting the throne of G’d in Ezekiel’s vision i.e. שור, אריה, נשר, plus the letter ן which symbolizes אדם. Five major angels named אוריאל, רפאל, גבריאל, מיכאל, (נוריאל) were seen by the Israelites at that time, the first four representing whole encampments surrounding the Shechinah and presided over by the fifth angel נוריאל who “rode” above the others. This concept has been called ארגמן by Solomon when he wrote in Song of Songs that G’d’s chariot is Argaman (Song of Songs 3,10). The idea described at length in Bamidbar Rabbah 2,2 of the reason for the Jewish camp being provided with flags also goes back to what they experienced a few months earlier when they saw the flags held by the angels. This evoked in them a desire to be given flags also, a request which G’d honored at the time the Tabernacle was erected. According to another Midrash the experience of listening to G’d’s voice at Mount Sinai was of such overwhelming proportions that each time the people heard a word (commandment) their soul escaped their bodies. They were revived immediately, i.e. they experienced multiple resurrections on that day. This is also alluded to in Song of Songs 5,6 when Israel is quoted as recalling: נפשי יצאה בדברו, “my soul departed when He spoke.” A similar Midrash is found in Devarim Rabbah according to which the sun stood still five times for the sake of Moses; they were the day of the Exodus, the day the Israelites had crossed the Sea of Reeds; the day of the battle against Amalek; the day on which the Torah was given, and on the day the Israelites observed the rivers of blood in the river Arnon (Numbers 21,14-15). ויתיצבו בתחתית ההר, “they stood at attention at the bottom of the mountain,” below the mountain, beyond the area of approx. 2,000 cubits which Moses had fenced off. The glory of G’d was on the top of the mountain. We know this because the Torah writes in 19,20 that “G’d descended onto the top of the mountain.” We also have a verse in Exodus 24,17 that “the appearance of G’d was like consuming fire on top of the mountain.” All of the Israelites stood at the farthest end of the mountain. Moses was allowed to enter into the cloud and ascend the mountain, as we know from 24,18 as well as from 19,9. The expression עב הענן refers to a dark cloud within which the Presence of G’d was concealed. The word חשך in our context means a type of fire (compare our comments on Genesis 1,2, page 5 my translation). The whole verse in Deut 4,11 must be understood as the following sequence: “and the mountain was burning with fire until the heart of the heaven; חשך, ענן, וערפל. The word חשך refers to a fire as we explained on Genesis 1,2; this was followed by ענן, which in turn was followed by ערפל, also described as עב הענן. In other words, there were 4 separate stages, each one on a higher level than the previous one, each higher level being “inside” the previous one, closer to the core. The lowest and outermost level was that described as תחתית ההר. This was followed by the region called ראש ההר. The next higher region to that was called ענן, whereas the highest region was called עב הענן. We find something parallel to these regions of relatively higher levels of sanctity when comparing the way the Israelite nation organised itself on earth when it erected the Holy Temple. The level of the relatively minimal decree of sanctity, corresponding to the תחתית ההר, was the שער העזרה, the entrance gate to the courtyard of the Temple. The next higher level of sanctity i.e. corresponding to ראש ההר, was the עזרה, the holy courtyard. This was followed by the היכל, the Sanctuary, which corresponded to the level of ענן when compared to what occurred at מתן תורה. Finally, the Holy of Holies, קדשי קדשים, the innermost sanctum of the Holy Temple was what corresponded to what the Torah described as עב הענן at Mount Sinai. This was equivalent to ערפל, the region where G’d concealed Himself.
Kli Yakar
And Moses brought forth the people towards God. This implies that the Divine Presence went forth first to meet them, and this is how Rashi explains it, which agrees with what is concluded in the Yalkut on Jeremiah (30:12) regarding the verse Who is he who would engage [his heart] to approach [Me]? Rabbi Rabba bar Rav Huna said: This indicates a special distinction for Israel compared to converts, for regarding Israel it is written (Jeremiah 31:32), I will be their God and afterward they shall be My people. However, regarding converts it is written (Jeremiah 30:21), Who is he who would engage his heart to approach Me? and afterward You shall be My people, and I will be your God. And Rashi explained it as a groom going out to meet his bride, etc., for who seeks after whom? The owner of a lost item seeks after his lost possession. Similarly, the Holy One, blessed be He, seeks after Israel who were like lost sheep among the nations, as it is written (Hosea 9:10), Like grapes in the desert I found your forefathers, etc. “And they stood at the foot of the mountain.” From here, our Sages learned (Shabbat 88) that He held the mountain over them like a barrel, saying, “If you do not accept the Torah, there will be your burial place.” And Rav Acha bar Yaakov said: “From here is a great protest against the Torah, for Israel could say, ‘We were coerced.’”The explanation is not that God wanted to force them so they would have an excuse, because if so, when He offered the Torah to all the nations and they refused to accept it, why didn’t He compel them? Furthermore, Israel had already willingly accepted it, saying, All that God has spoken, we will do. Additionally, in the days of Ezekiel, when they wanted to cast off the yoke of the Kingdom of Heaven and said, “Let us be like all the nations,” God responded to them, With outpoured wrath will I reign over you (Ezekiel 20:32–33). If they had been coerced into accepting the Torah, how could He have forced them? Rather, certainly for their benefit He held the mountain over them, saying, “See that as long as you do not accept the Torah, you are considered as dead even in your lifetime, and in your death you have no continuity — there will be your burial place, and the dead will not live, the departed will not rise.” And through the Torah, your lives will be life in this world and the next. And Rav Acha bar Yaakov said: Although He did not want to force them to accept the Torah, nevertheless, a detriment resulted from this for future generations who might mistakenly say, “We were coerced.” This was their argument in the days of Ezekiel, but in the days of Ahasuerus, “they confirmed what they had already undertaken” — meaning they accepted upon themselves not to claim coercion anymore, for it was a mistaken argument. And it can be further explained that “there shall be your burial,” that you will not merit to enter the Land of Israel, because they were promised the inheritance of the nations on the condition that they observe His statutes. And it specifically mentions burial because the dead of the Land of Israel will be resurrected first, and He told them that if they do not accept the Torah, then certainly they have no share in the resurrection of the dead for the World to Come. Thus, there is no difference between burial in the Land of Israel and burial outside the Land. Therefore, in the desert you shall die and there you shall be buried, for what purpose would there be in carrying your bones to be buried there if you have no share in the World to Come.
Tur HaArokh
ויתיצבו בתחתית ההר, “they positioned themselves (beneath), at the base of the Mountain.” This teaches-as our sages have taught us- that G’d had made the Mountain assume a threatening posture, such as an inverted bucket above one’s head. This exerted psychological pressure on the people to declare their willingness to accept the Torah, as they felt that unless they did so the Mountain would crush them. There are sages who feel that in spite of the previously expressed willingness of the people to accept the Torah, this referred only to the written Torah and not to the oral Torah. The threatening posture of the Mountain persuaded the people to also accept the oral Torah. The background to that interpretation is the wording of the people who had said כל אשר דבר ה' נעשה ונשמע, “everything that Hashem has said we will do and learn to do.” They had not said: “everything G’d is going to say we will do, etc.” Rabbi Joseph Kimchi disagrees, claiming that the people’s acceptance had been comprehensive. The posture of the Mountain is to be understood as something after the event, G’d hinting that the people had done well to accept the Torah already, as a refusal might have had dire consequences, to wit the mountain collapsing upon them. G’d hinted that although He could put up with the refusal of the other nations to accept His Torah, He would not have come to terms with the Israelites’ refusal.
Daat Zkenim
ויתיצבו, “they stood at attention;” the expression ויתיצבו, as opposed to the normal ויעמדו, for “they stood,” is the reason why our sages said that the mountain had assumed a threatening posture, i.e. they felt that unless they agreed in advance to accept the Torah, they were doomed to die there. (Compare Talmud, tractate Shabbat folio 88). How can we reconcile this with the statement on the same folio that the people by saying: נעשה ונשמע, (Exodus 24,7) “we are ready to accept the laws of the Torah before we have even heard any details” had paid G–d the greatest possible compliment? We need to say that when G–d wanted to give the Torah to Israel, they asked Him how many different Torahs He had at His disposal? He told them that He had both a written and an oral Torah at His disposal. They answered that they were willing to accept the written Torah, but could not promise to accept the oral Torah. As soon as G–d heard this, the mountain began to assume a threatening posture, and they became frightened. (Tanchuma on the portion section 58, paragraph 3) This is what caused the Talmud on folio 88 in Shabbat, to coin the expression that at Mount Sinai the Jewish people accepted the Torah under great moral/psychologial pressure, whereas during the period of Achashverosh, in exile, they accepted it wholeheartedly without any external pressure. (Yalkut Shimoni, Isaiah, second section item 389). G–d is supposed to have wrapped a sword inside the Torah, implying that unless they accepted the Torah they would die by the sword. This is also supposed to be the reason why the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 1,19, wrote: אם תאבו ושמעתם טוב הארץ תאכלו ואם תמאנו ומריתם, חרב תאכלו כי פי ה' דבר, “if you agree and give heed, you will eat the good things of the earth; but if you refuse and disobey, you will be devoured by the sword.” What occasion did the prophet have in mind when he wrote these words? None other than when the people stood at attention at Mount Sinai. This is also the meaning of a famous liturgical poem in the prayers recited on Shavuot which begin with the words: ראשית עטיפת הזיין צהלה ורנה, [none of these liturgical poems are found in the machzorim in use in eretz yisrael. Ed.]
Now mount Sinai was altogether on smoke, because Hashem descended upon it in fire; and the smoke of it ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly.
verse value 4049 — יְהֹוָ֖ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 64 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 4049 is prime. The shortest word is "and·Mount" (וְהַ֤ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·kiln" (הַכִּבְשָׁ֔ן, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 116: upon·it, and·went·up. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "and·Mount" (וְהַ֤ר), "its·smoke" (עֲשָׁנוֹ֙), "like·the·smoke·of" (כְּעֶ֣שֶׁן). The root עשן appears 3 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 396x in Exodus); "which" (root אשר, 245x in Exodus); "all·of·it" (root כל, 121x in Exodus). First appearance of the root עשן ("smoked") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·fire', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 7 words.
Onkelos
And all of Mount Sinai was smoking, because Hashem was revealed upon it in fire; and its smoke went up like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled greatly.
Rashi
עשן כלו WAS ALTOGETHER ON A SMOKE — This word עָשַׁן is not a noun, because the ש is punctuated with Patach, but it has the meaning of “it was doing something”, similar to and אָמַר and שָׁמַר and שָׁמַע. On this account, its translation in the Targum is תָּנֵן כֻּלֵּהּ “it was altogether giving forth smoke” (תָּנֵן is a verb corresponding with the Hebrew עָשַׁן). and it does not translate it by תְּנָנָא (a noun denoting smoke, corresponding to Hebrew עָשָׁן). But wherever else the word עשן occurs in Scripture it is punctuated with Kametz because it is a noun. הכבשן A FURNACE of lime (i. e. in which lime is burnt and which emits vast quantities of smoke). One might think that the mountain emitted smoke only like such a furnace and not to a greater degree! Scripture therefore states in another passage, (Deuteronomy 4:11) “[And the mountain] burned with fire unto the very midst of the heavens”. Then what reason is there for stating that it smoked only like a furnace? This is said in order to make intelligible to the human ear as much as it can understand: Scripture gives human beings an example (a comparison) which is well-known to them. A similar case is, (Hosea 11:10) “As a lion does He (God) roar”. But who gave the lion power if not He, and yet Scripture compares him only to a lion! But the reason is that we describe Him by comparing Him to His creatures in order to make intelligible to the human ear as much as it can understand. A similar example is: (Ezekiel 43:2) “And His voice was like the sound of many waters”. But who gave the waters a thunderous sound except He, and yet you describe Him by comparing Him to His handiwork — it is to make it intelligible to the human ear (Mekhilta).
Ibn Ezra
"And Mount Sinai smoked (עָשַׁן) entirely" — the shin of עָשַׁן has a patah gadol (a full patah) because it is a past-tense verb. Do not be troubled by the word עָשָׁן in "like the smoke (כְּעֶשֶׁן) of a furnace," for the verse says "its smoke (עֲשָׁנוֹ) went up" — which follows the pattern of שְׁלָלוֹ ("its spoil"), זְהָבוֹ ("its gold"), since noun patterns change. Similarly, שְׁגַר אַלָּפֶיךָ (Deut. 7:13) and כָּל פֶּטֶר שֶׁגֶר (above, 13:12); and the text says הַבֹּשֶׂם (below, 35:28) and קִנְּמָן בֶּשֶׂם (below, 30:23), yet also אָרִיתִי מוֹרִי עִם בְּשָׂמִי (Song of Songs 5:1). Had it derived from בֹּשֶׂם it should rightly have a hataf-qamatz under the bet — בָשְׂמִי, as מִקֹּדֶשׁ, קָדְשִׁי; had it derived from קִנְּמָן בֶּשֶׂם it should have a patah under the bet as in מִשֶּׁמֶן, שַׁמְנִי (Ezek. 16:18), or a hiriq as in מִצֶּדֶק, צִדְקִי. Thus עִם בְּשָׂמִי without the added yod represents the base form בָשָׂם with two qamatsim, like שָׁלָל, זָהָב. "And all the mountain trembled greatly" — contrary to nature, for mountains do not shake; this is only by way of metaphor, as in "and the mountains quaked" (Isa. 5:25).
Or HaChaim
והר סיני עשן כלו, and Mount Sinai was completely wrapped in smoke, etc. Fire dominated the Mountain itself and burned its stones so that they turned into limestone, just as in a furnace where stones are burned to make lime. The stones of Sinai became lime. When the Torah says: "the whole Mountain trembled," this is a description of the reaction of the stones when fire dominates them just as the stones in a furnace. The sounds that the stones give off are similar to the sound of someone trembling.
Rabbeinu Bahya
והר סיני עשן כלו, “and the entire mountain of Sinai was smoking.” The mountain was smoke, not the fire; for the fire which sort of separated between the people and G’d had no smoke. If the Torah nonetheless speaks of כעשן הכבשן “like the smoke of a furnace,” we know that in a parable the comparisons do not have to be accurate This is especially so when physical concepts are being compared to meta-physical phenomena. Seeing that we are terrestrial human beings, bound to concepts which we can visualise, the Torah cannot describe matters of a spiritual nature except by using terms familiar to us from our daily experience on earth. Similarly, we find that Scripture compares even the brilliance of the sun to the beauty of human beings, and the sun’s orbit to the runner circling a certain prescribed route in the stadium in which he races. This is the meaning of Psalms 19,6: “who is like a groom coming forth from his chamber, like a hero, eager to run his course.” Everybody knows that such a comparison between sun and a human runner is not even remotely similar. Nonetheless, the psalmist chose to make this comparison to give us an inkling of what he had in mind. The same thing applies to the prophet Amos 3,8 comparing G’d to a lion when he writes: “a lion has roared, who can but fear? My Lord G’d has spoken, who can but prophesy?” The reason that the prophet arrogated to himself the right to make such blatantly inaccurate comparisons is simply that he wanted to compare the most powerful and fear-inspiring phenomenon amongst earth’s inhabitants to G’d in order to give man the feeling that he must relate with at least as much fear to G’d as he does to a lion. Our sages have termed all these so-called comparisons as דברה תורה כלשון בני אדם, “the Torah having adopted a style of expression with which human beings are familiar” (Berachot 31).
Rashbam
עשן כולו, the word עשן here is neither a proper construct mode, in which case it should have two vowels patach, nor is it completely “unattached,” as it would then have to have two vowels kametz. In other words, it is not a noun “smoke,” and not an adjective, “smoking.” It therefore must be a verbal mode. If it would be a noun it should follow the pattern of davar, devar, word, word of, or bakar, bekar, cattle, cattle of. (compare Numbers 7,88 בקר זבח השלמים).
And when the voice of the horn grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by a voice.
verse value 1961
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 45 letters. Verse gematria: 1961 = 37 × 53. The shortest word is "voice" (ק֣וֹל, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·God" (וְהָאֱלֹהִ֖ים, 7 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "going" (הוֹלֵ֖ךְ), "and·growing·stronger" (וְחָזֵ֣ק), "would·answer·him" (יַעֲנֶ֥נּוּ). The root קול appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Moses" (root משה, 277x in Exodus); "and·it·was" (root היה, 235x in Exodus); "would·speak" (root דבר, 158x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'very', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: וַֽיְהִי֙ [and·it·was] (31) + ק֣וֹל [voice] (136) + הַשֹּׁפָ֔ר [the·horn] (585) + הוֹלֵ֖ךְ [going] (61) + וְחָזֵ֣ק [and·growing·stronger] (121) + מְאֹ֑ד [very] (45) + מֹשֶׁ֣ה [Moses] (345) + יְדַבֵּ֔ר [would·speak] (216) + וְהָאֱלֹהִ֖ים [and·God] (97) + יַעֲנֶ֥נּוּ [would·answer·him] (186) + בְקֽוֹל [in·a·voice] (138) = 1961.
Onkelos
And the sound of the shofar grew continually louder and louder; Moses spoke, and from before Hashem he was answered with a voice.
Rashi
הולך וחזק מאד WAXED LOUDER AND LOUDER — The manner of an ordinary person is that the longer he continues to blow a trumpet the sound he produces becomes weaker and fainter; but in this instance it went on getting stronger. And why was it thus (i. e. not so loud) at first? To make their ears receptive to as much as they were able to hear (Mekhilta). משה ידבר MOSES SPAKE — When Moses was speaking and proclaiming the Commandments to Israel — for they heard from the Almighty’s mouth only the Commandments אנכי and לא יהיה לך, whilst the others were promulgated by Moses — then the Holy One, blessed be He, assisted him by giving him strength so that his voice might be powerful and so become audible (Mekhilta). יעננו בקול signifies He answered him in respect to (ב) the voice, just as (1 Kings 18:24) “He that answereth באש” — “in respect to the fire” — i. e. by causing fire to descend. (So here: God answered Moses’ petition that his voice might become audible to the vast concourse of people).
Ramban
MOSES SPOKE, AND G-D ANSWERED HIM BY A VOICE. In the Mechilta, the Rabbis have said that this verse refers to the time of the Giving of the Torah, when Moses was proclaiming the commandments to Israel, as Rashi has written. By way of the plain meaning of Scripture, the verse here does not yet speak of this. It is rather [to be explained as follows]: The Glorious Name came down upon the mountain on the third day, and Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet the Glory which appeared to them, and they stood at the nether part of the mount. Moses went up near to the head of the mountain, where the Glory was, in a place designated for himself, and he spoke with Israel, teaching them what to do. The Israelites heard the Voice of G-d answering Moses and commanding him, but they did not understand what He said to him. Thus He commanded Moses the precepts mentioned further on in this section: Go down, charge the people; Go, get thee down, and thou shalt come up, thou, and Aaron with thee, etc. This happened before the Giving of the Torah and also during the time when the Ten Commandments were given, for Moses did not go up to the top of the mount unto the thick darkness where G-d was until after the Giving of the Torah. And so he said, “I stood between the Eternal and you at that time, to declare unto you the word of the Eternal; for you were afraid because of the fire, and went not up into the mount, saying [that you will not ascend] as I did go up.” Some scholars explain that the Israelites were very much afraid of the voice of the horn which waxed louder and louder, and Moses would say to them at first: “Direct your thoughts, for now you will hear the Voice in such a manner,” and immediately G-d answered him by a voice.
Ibn Ezra
"And the voice of the shofar" — it is customary for a shofar blast to be strongest at the start; here the reverse was true. Perhaps Hashem arranged it this way so that it would not be loud at the beginning and cause their hearts to fail from fright. "Moses would speak" — in the Gaon's [Saadia's] view: whenever Hashem caused the shofar voice to cease, Moses would speak aloud and Hashem would answer him in a voice, as in "and he heard the Voice speaking to him" (Num. 7:89); and this corresponds to "in order that the people may hear when I speak with you" — as I have already told you, "when I speak with you" refers, in my view, to the Ten Commandments. The meaning of "Moses would speak" is linked to "the voice of the shofar," for Moses' soul was cleaving to Hashem: Moses was speaking at the foot of the mountain with Hashem to ask of Him, and the text does not reveal what he was asking; Hashem would answer him in a voice that Moses could hear. Even though the shofar's sound was exceedingly loud, it did not prevent him from hearing that voice. This is why it then says that Hashem called Moses by voice to ascend to the top of the mountain, where the glory of Hashem had descended.
Or HaChaim
משה ידבר והאלוקים יעננו בקול, Moses would speak and G'd answered him by voice. Moses may have uttered words of song and praise before G'd, much as someone who is received in an audience by a king praises the ruler who has granted him the audience. The קול with which G'd answered may have been the sound of the shofar mentioned in the next verse. This sound was an indication that G'd approved of what Moses told him. The word בקול means "in a loud voice," so that all the people could hear G'd speak with Moses and accept him as a true prophet. I believe that the Torah mentions this to tell us that Moses experienced a promotion when G'd answered him thus although G'd had also answered Moses previously. Our sages in the Mechilta understand the answer the Torah speaks of as the Ten Commandments which G'd was about to address to the people. They say that G'd increased the power of Moses' voice so that he could be heard by the whole nation. I believe that this is a homiletical approach to our verse.
Chizkuni
משה ידבר, “Moses would be speaking,” he would be speaking with G-d, but his voice could not be heard except by G-d. This is why the Torah writes that G-d answered him in a loud voice. This was also because the sound of the blasts from the shofar which are described as loud, would have to be overpowered by G-d’s voice.
Rabbeinu Bahya
משה ידבר והאלו-הים יעננו בקול, “Moses would speak and G’d would respond to him with a voice.” The fact that the Israelites could hear both Moses and G’d’s response at a distance of 12-13 miles away where the Israelites had their camp was in itself already a miracle. Every Israelite was able to hear Moses clearly. Seeing that simultaneously the blast of the shofar is reported to have been constant though intermittent but did not interfere with Moses’ voice being heard, this clearly added to the magnitude of the miracle. This is why the Torah considered it as appropriate to mention this miracle along with other miraculous happenings on that occasion. The word יעננו, is similar to the verse in Hoseah 2,23 אענה נאם ה’, אענה את השמים, “In that day I will respond declares the Lord; I will respond to the sky.” The word reflects someone’s preparedness to extend assistance.
Tur HaArokh
משה ידבר והאלוקים יעננו בקול, “whenever Moses would speak, G’d would answer in an audible voice.” Rashi understands this line as referring to the Ten Commandments, the ones inscribed subsequently on the Tablets. G’d lent extra power to Moses’ voice [who proclaimed the last eight of these Commandments. Ed.] so that all the people could hear it. Other commentators understand the words יעננו בקול to mean that Moses had prepared the people beforehand that they should concentrate, as they were about to hear the sound of G’d’s voice. Immediately thereafter Moses concluded saying this, G’d would intone the Ten Commandments. Nachmanides does not consider our verse as referring to the Ten Commandments, but to the message that G’d would descend onto the Mountain on the third day (6th of Sivan) at which time the people were to be positioned at the bottom of the Mountain, whereas Moses would have ascended close to the summit of the Mountain and would speak to the Israelites from that position to instruct them what to do next. The Israelites would hear the sound of G’d’s voice as He answered Moses and instructed him in what is recorded later in the Torah commencing with the words רד העד בעם, in verse 21. Whereas the people hear G’d speaking to Moses, they did not understand what G’d was saying to him. This is why Moses explained to them what he had been told. All of this took place before the giving of the Torah. At the time the Ten Commandments were being given, things were not materially different, as Moses had entered the thick cloud behind which G’d’s glory was hidden, only after the conclusion of the giving of the Ten Commandments. In the interval he had been standing within full view of the people, though partly up the Mountain. Ibn Ezra writes that although the sound of the blast of the shofar was overpoweringly strong, so much so that all who heard it were trembling, at the time when G’d spoke to Moses and the people, he alone could hear [understand] the voice of G’d and was not distracted by the sound of the shofar blasts.
Rashbam
משה ידבר, to G’d, but his voice was not audible to any human being, only G’d Himself could hear him. However, when it came to G’d’s reply, יעננו בקול, G’d responded in a loud voice audible to all. This was necessary as otherwise the sound of the shofar which was ongoing and getting stronger all the time would have drowned out G’d’s voice and Moses could not have heard G’d’s responses.
And Hashem came down upon mount Sinai, to the top of the mount; and Hashem called Moses to the top of the mount; and Moses went up.
verse value 3344 — יְהֹוָ֛ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 52 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֛ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "the·mountain" (הָהָ֑ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·the·top·of" (אֶל־רֹ֣אשׁ, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 532: to·the·top·of, to·the·top·of. The root הר appears 3 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 396x in Exodus); "to·Moses" (root משה, 277x in Exodus); "and·went·up" (root עלה, 78x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·mountain', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 7 words. Full calculation: וַיֵּ֧רֶד [and·went·down] (220) + יְהֹוָ֛ה [Hashem] (26) + עַל־הַ֥ר [upon·Mount] (305) + סִינַ֖י [Sinai] (130) + אֶל־רֹ֣אשׁ [to·the·top·of] (532) + הָהָ֑ר [the·mountain] (210) + וַיִּקְרָ֨א [and·called] (317) + יְהֹוָ֧ה [Hashem] (26) + לְמֹשֶׁ֛ה [to·Moses] (375) + אֶל־רֹ֥אשׁ [to·the·top·of] (532) + הָהָ֖ר [the·mountain] (210) + וַיַּ֥עַל [and·went·up] (116) + מֹשֶֽׁה [Moses] (345) = 3344.
Onkelos
And Hashem was revealed upon Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain; and Hashem called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.
Rashi
וירד ה׳ על הר סיני AND THE LORD CAME DOWN UPON MOUNT SINAI — One might think, then, that He actually came down upon it! Therefore it states, (Exodus 20:19) “Ye have seen that I have spoken to you from heaven”. These two texts together teach us that He bent down the upper and lower heavens and spread them out over the top of the mountain like a bed-spread over a bed and the throne of Glory descended upon it (Mekhilta).
Ramban
AND THE ETERNAL CAME DOWN UPON MOUNT SINAI. If you will succeed in having insight into this section [of the Torah], you will understand that His Great Name, [i.e., the Tetragrammaton], came down upon Mount Sinai, and that He abode thereon in fire and spoke to Moses. The communication to Moses in the entire section was by this Proper Name of the Eternal. However, the ascent [of Moses — as mentioned in Verse 3: And Moses went up unto G-d] — and his bringing forth [the people out of the camp — as mentioned in Verse 17] — were towards the place of the Glory, as I have explained. And He warned, lest they break through unto the Eternal to gaze, because even the nobles of the children of Israel did not see Him, and all Israel heard the Voice of G-d out of the midst of the fire. It is this which Scripture says, And ‘Elokim’ (G-d) spoke all these words, just as our Rabbis have said: “Elokim designates the Judge.” And they have also said [with reference to the first two commandments]: “We have heard them from Hagvurah (the Almighty Himself).” In Deuteronomy it is written: These words the Eternal spoke unto all your assembly. That is because Scripture explains there [in the same verse] that He spoke out of the midst of the fire. And this is the sense of the verse, The Eternal spoke with you face to face in the mount out of the midst of the fire. And this is why it is said, I am the Eternal thy G-d. Now do not find a difficulty in what the people said to Moses, For who is there of all living flesh, that hath heard the Voice of the living G-d speaking out of the midst of the fire? They did not say “that they heard G-d speaking out of the midst of the fire,” but they said the Voice of G-d, referring to what they perceived. This is why they said, Go thou near, and hear all that the Eternal our G-d may say. And so did Moses say to them, Did ever a people hear the Voice of G-d speaking out of the midst of the fire? The word “speaking” here is referring to “the Voice,” something like the verse, and he heard the Voice speaking unto him. From this you will understand what the Rabbis have always said in Midrashic homilies, i.e., that the Torah was given in seven voices. They are the ones to which David alluded in the psalm: Ascribe unto the Eternal, O ye sons of might. This is also the number of times [that the Voice] is alluded to in this section of the Torah. The verse, And there were ‘koloth’ and lightnings, is written defectively and therefore counted as one; likewise, the verse, And all the people perceived ‘hakoloth,’ is missing the vav which signifies the plural, [and thus refers to only one voice]. Thus there are six [‘voices’ mentioned here in the section], and [in addition] it clearly says, And G-d spoke. In Deuteronomy, Scripture likewise mentions seven ‘voices’ in connection with the Giving of the Torah. In Tractate Berachoth, however, the Rabbis have said in the Gemara that the Torah was given in five ‘voices.’ That is because they counted only the vo...
Ibn Ezra
"And Hashem descended" — I will now state a general principle on which you may rely until I reach, God willing, the portion Ki Tissa, where I shall explain deep matters to you very thoroughly. Know that the human soul is lofty and honored, belonging to the intermediate world, while the body belongs to the lower world. Only the human being speaks in the lower world, and only a human being hears — for the one who speaks to another wishes to convey what is in his heart. An intelligent person can create no language other than one already known. All languages are built on the likeness and form of the human being, who is composed of a soul that has no body, and a body composed of four elements. When a person speaks to another person in human speech, in a language both know, the listener understands; the likenesses are proportional. If one wishes to speak of things lower than human beings, one must elevate their status and portray them in human likeness so the listener will understand; thus they speak of "the head of the earth" and "the head of the dust of the world" (Prov. 8:26), and "the earth opened its mouth" (Num. 16:32), and "flanks," as in "the flanks of the earth" (Jer. 6:22), and "the hand of the Jordan" (Num. 13:29), "the heart of the sea" (above, 15:8), and many like these. All of these are figurative speech, for the sea has no heart. Moreover, a single limb of the body is used as though it stood for the whole body: "Death and life are in the hand of the tongue" (Prov. 18:21), and many others. When one wishes to speak of beings more exalted than oneself — beings from the upper world — one lowers their status to resemble a human being, so that the listener may understand: "And the man Gabriel" (Dan. 9:21), with his arms and feet and "the sound of his words like the sound of a multitude" (Dan. 10:6). This same manner is applied even to the most exalted: "And the helmet of salvation upon His head" (Isa. 59:17); "for the mouth of Hashem has spoken" (Isa. 1:20); "the eyes of Hashem are toward the righteous and His ears toward their cry; the face of Hashem is against evildoers" (Ps. 34:16–17); "and under His feet" (below, 24:10). In this same manner: "and Hashem descended," "and God went up" (Gen. 17:22) — for all is filled with His glory. In the portion Ki Tissa I shall give you an analogy by which you may understand the meaning of descent and ascent. The meaning of "and He called" — Hashem called him so that Israel might see the greatness of Moses' rank: that he ascended to the summit of the mountain where the Glory was, and that His words would be heard from within the fire that was there.
Or HaChaim
וירד ה׳ על הר סיני, G'd descended on Mount Sinai, etc. According to Sukkah 5 G'd never came closer to earth than ten handbreadths above the Mountain. We therefore have to understand why the Torah uses the expression "on top of the Mountain" when He did not actually descend all the way to the Mountain. Perhaps the Torah wanted to inform us that the שכינה did not descend on the sides of the Mountain although this would have been more than 10 handbreadths above the ground. We had to be told because on other occasions the שכינה descended to other locations on earth which are lower than the top of Mount Sinai. The essential point the sages make is that in keeping with the principle that whereas the Heavens belong to G'd He assigned earth as an exclusive domain for man. We can deduce from the report of the Torah about the wanderings of the Israelites through the desert when the שכינה was present wherever the Israelites made camp, i.e. in places much lower than the top of Mount Sinai, that G'd's presence descends to lower regions above the earth. We still need to understand why the Torah did not write: "G'd descended on the top of Mount Sinai?" although we find such an expression immediately following the statement that He descended on the Mountain;" Perhaps G'd thought that if He described the descent of the שכינה in these words they could be misunderstood. In order to avoid misunderstandings, G'd is first described as descending on the Mountain, i.e. to within ten handbreadths of the top, whereas later on the exact part of the Mountain G'd's presence descended on is described as "the top of the Mountain." Another version of what happened is expressed in the Mechilta according to which G'd lowered the upper heavens on to the top of the Mountain. According to this explanation G'd Himself did not descend at all. The word על would refer only to the fact that G'd's position on top of these upper heavens would be lower than it had been previously when speaking in terms of the distance of the heavens from earth. Another meaning of the verse is that as G'd began to lower His presence onto the Mountain, the Mountain began to shake and rise towards G'd much as a servant runs toward his master when the master approaches. The Torah here did not really tell us to what place exactly G'd descended; the verse was more concerned with informing us that though the Mountain is basically inert matter, in this instance it was transformed into a living creature so that it could rise before G'd would descend to what used to be its top. Afterwards the Torah describes the target of G'd's descent as "the top of the Mountain." The major message of the verse is that the Mountain rose towards G'd before G'd had reached the top of the Mountain during His descent.
Chizkuni
על הר סיני, “on Mount Sinai.” The reason why the Torah was not given to the people in the land of Israel was so as not to give us a pretext to claim that since this law was given in the land of Israel, gentiles had no share in it [refusal to accept converts. Based on Yalkut Shimoni Yitro paragraph 275. The edition I own was printed over 300 years ago in Amsterdam. Our author quotes the same Yalkut as saying almost the reverse, i.e. that if the Torah had been given in the land of Israel, they could claim that this was the reason that it was not addressed to them and they were not morally bound by it. Ed.] An alternate explanation: If the Torah had been given to the Israelites when they were in the land of Israel, this would have resulted in jealousy between the different tribes. Each one would have claimed that it had been given in his part of the country. It is significant that the word: סין, when it appears in Scripture (16,1) was changed to סיני, Sinai, The implication is that something that had been the cause of strife, negatively, was changed after the Ten Commandments, had been given, i.e. “My strife,” constructive competition, (in fulfilling My commandments.)
Rabbeinu Bahya
וירד ה’ על הר סיני, “G’d descended on Mount Sinai.” Whenever the Torah mentions the term “descent or descending” in connection with G’d, the meaning is that He revealed Himself in some form which could be assimilated by one’s mind. The term is similar to וירא אליו ה’ which the Torah (Genesis 18,1) writes when it describes G’d revealing Himself to Avraham. This is also the way Onkelos translates the words וירד ה’ here; in Genesis 18,1 Onkelos uses the very same words for וירא אליו ה’ i.e. ואתגלי השם, “G’d revealed Himself,” except that he uses a different attribute for G’d. Why then did the Torah choose to express a form of גלוי שכינה here as a “descent” instead of as a “vision?” The reason the Torah used the term “descent” here is to remind us that whenever G’d makes Himself perceivable by any of the 5 senses we have been equipped with this could only have been preceded by His “lowering” Himself to the parameters of the terrestrial part of the universe. In this instance, He became “visible” to the entire nation. It had already been announced in verse 11 that on the third day G’d would “descend” before the eyes of the whole people. They had been made aware that when they would observe the glory of G’d in the form of a consuming fire, that behind that “consuming fire” there would be G’d Himself. It did not mean that human eyes would behold an image purporting to be G’d. G’d had told Moses clearly that even he could not have a visual perception of the Essence of G’d while alive (compare Exodus 33,20). What is meant here is simply that the manifestations that the Israelites would experience at the Mountain would convince them that none other than G’d Himself had orchestrated all these phenomena, i.e. that they had “seen” G’d (at work). What happened to the individual Avraham in Genesis 18,1 was similar. Moreover, it is well known that the level of revelation which the patriarchs experienced was not that of the attribute represented by the tetragram but that of שדי, a level which may be compared to שער לה’, the gateway to the attribute י-ה-ו-ה. This is why the Torah added there “he was sitting at the entrance to he tent;” these words were an amplification of the words וירא אליו, “He appeared to him.” The Torah teaches that the level of revelation Avraham enjoyed at the time was one that emanated from the “entrance of the gate,” not from the innermost part of the Sanctuary of G’d. The Torah was at pains to alert us to the fact that the level of revelation the Israelites had at מתן תורה was superior to the revelation Avraham enjoyed in Parshat Vayera.
And Hashem said to Moses: "Go down, charge the people, lest they break through to Hashem to gaze, and many of them perish.
verse value 2663 — יְהֹוָה֙ = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 50 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 2663 is prime. The shortest word is "go·down" (רֵ֖ד, 2 letters) and the longest is "lest·they·break·through" (פֶּן־יֶהֶרְס֤וּ, 7 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "go·down" (רֵ֖ד), "warn" (הָעֵ֣ד), "lest·they·break·through" (פֶּן־יֶהֶרְס֤וּ). The root יהוה appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 396x in Exodus); "and·said" (root אמר, 297x in Exodus); "to·Moses" (root משה, 277x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'among·the·people', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 6 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֤אמֶר [and·said] (257) + יְהֹוָה֙ [Hashem] (26) + אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֔ה [to·Moses] (376) + רֵ֖ד [go·down] (204) + הָעֵ֣ד [warn] (79) + בָּעָ֑ם [among·the·people] (112) + פֶּן־יֶהֶרְס֤וּ [lest·they·break·through] (411) + אֶל־יְהֹוָה֙ [to·Hashem] (57) + לִרְא֔וֹת [to·gaze] (637) + וְנָפַ֥ל [and·fall] (166) + מִמֶּ֖נּוּ [from·it] (136) + רָֽב [many] (202) = 2663.
Onkelos
And Hashem said to Moses: Go down, warn the people, lest they press forward before Hashem to behold, and many of them fall.
Rashi
העד בעם signifies, WARN THEM not to ascend the mountain. פן יהרסו lit., LEST THEY BREAK DOWN — warn them that they shall not break down their post because that their longing is אל ה׳ TO THE LORD לראות TO SEE Him and they therefore would approach nearer towards the mountain, ונפל ממנו רב AND MANY OF THEM FALL — whatever of them it may be that falls, even though it be a single person only, will be regarded by Me as רב, many (cf. Mekhilta). פן יהרסו — The term הרס, “breaking down”, always denotes the separation of the collection of parts that constitute the edifice. Similarly those who depart from the position which people have taken up break down that position.
Ibn Ezra
"Go down, warn the people, lest they break through" — each one breaking through from his place, thinking that by doing so they honor Me because of their great desire to see My glory. This is why Moses says "to see." The word "the people (בָּעָם)" draws another occurrence of itself and must be understood twice, as in "and many people will fall from it."
Sforno
רד העד בעם פן יהרסו, when I will be speaking to them. Perhaps they will think that because they have been found worthy to have prophetic insights that they have attained the level of “face to face” prophecy as had Moses their leader. This could prove fatal if they tried to cross the boundary separating Me from them. Your presence down below will act as additional safeguard.
Or HaChaim
פן יהרסו אל ה׳ לראות, "lest they break through unto the Lord to gaze;" The Torah means that people should not think that they would catch a glimpse of G'd though they would die in the process; Psalms 63,4 expresses this thought succinctly when David says: "it is better to experience Your faithfulness than life itself." The people would consider their death under such circumstances as the beginning of their true life. The expression פן יהרסו is to be understood as the people's willingness to lose their lives in order to become part of such an experience as gazing at the glory of G'd. ונפל ממנו רב, "and many of them woul fall;" G'd warns that in such a scenario the people would experience a much greater "fall" than they had bargained for. Alternatively, G'd merely warns that if the people would approach to an area out of bounds to them, He would have to reduce the blinding light accompanying the revelation as otherwise they would die from exposure to this light. This then would be the meaning of פן יהרסו אל השם, they would break through towards His light in order to gain a glimpse. This also tells us that the people would not achieve their aim to gaze upon G'd even if they would break through the barrier. It is part of the meaning of the word פן in our verse. In the event that we would have thought that the people's endeavour to gaze upon something they could not see anyway would have neither positive nor negative consequences, the Torah writes ונפל ממנו רב, that it would have very negative consequences for those concerned. The word רב may refer to the leading members of the people. The Torah would then tell us that even the most spiritually advanced of the people would not be allowed to gaze upon the spectacle but they would be punished severely if they tried.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ונפל ממנו רב, “and many of them would fall.” The choice by the Torah of the word נפל, singular, in connection with רב, many, teaches that even if a single Israelite were to “fall,” i.e. to die or be executed, it would be equivalent to a whole world dying.
Tur HaArokh
רד, “descend!” this happened prior to the giving of the Torah, and also when the Torah was given Moses did not ascend into the thick cloud where G’d was manifest. He did so only after the conclusion of the Ten Commandments having been given. This is why he refers to himself as אנכי עומד בין ה' ובינכם, “I was standing between you and Hashem.” (Deut. 5.5)
Rashbam
פן יהרסו, so they would not cause destruction by leaving their positions and coming too close in their eagerness to see.
Daat Zkenim
'ויאמר ה' אל משה לך רד העד וגו, “the Lord said to Moses: “go on down and warn the people, etc.;” ויאמר משה אל ה' לא יוכל העם לעלות אל ההר, Moses said to the Lord: “the people cannot ascend the mountain;” ויאמר אליו ה' לך רד ועלית אתה ואהרן עמך, “the Lord said to him: “go down and you and Aaron with you will ascend towards the mountain.” G–d’s answer to Moses claiming that the people could not ascend the mountain (as they had been warned not to) is difficult to understand. Neither for that matter, was Moses’ answer. Do we not have numerous laws in the Torah which have been repeated several times? Furthermore, why did G–d tell Moses to descend and to subsequently ascend again? We need to understand the plain meaning of these verses as follows: Moses had warned the people not to ascend the mountain and violate the fenced off area, but he had not spelled out that to do so would result in the person doing so being executed. (Compare verse 15) G–d had spelled out the penalty for violation to him in verse 12, but he is not on record as having included this in his asking the people to prepare for the revelation. This is why G–d had to tell him to first descend and remedy this omission. [Moses, being who he was, had thought that his fencing off the area was sufficient. The idea that anyone would dare disobey had not occurred to him. Ed.] He was told that this warning not to breach the fence was a greater violation than the disobedience of many other commandments, which do not carry the death penalty. Moses’ reply that the people could not try and ascend the mountain was based on the assumption that seeing that both he and Aaron would be there, they would surely be able to prevent this. They too had been included in the warning not to try and ascend or even touch the mountain. G–d responded that not as he thought that he too could not ascend the mountain, he would be asked to do so, and even Aaron would be able to approach closer than the people. This is why he had to warn the people once more not to violate the prohibition on pain of death. Thereupon Moses immediately descended and carried out G–d’s command.
And let the priests also, who come near to Hashem, sanctify themselves, lest Hashem break forth upon them."
verse value 2047 — יְהֹוָֽה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 40 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָֽה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 2047 = 23 × 89. The shortest word is "and·even" (וְגַ֧ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·priests" (הַכֹּהֲנִ֛ים, 6 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "the·priests" (הַכֹּהֲנִ֛ים), "who·come·near" (הַנִּגָּשִׁ֥ים), "must·sanctify·themselves" (יִתְקַדָּ֑שׁוּ). The root יהוה appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·Hashem" (root יהוה, 396x in Exodus); "must·sanctify·themselves" (root קדש, 82x in Exodus); "against·them" (root הם, 49x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'must·sanctify·themselves', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְגַ֧ם [and·even] (49) + הַכֹּהֲנִ֛ים [the·priests] (130) + הַנִּגָּשִׁ֥ים [who·come·near] (408) + אֶל־יְהֹוָ֖ה [to·Hashem] (57) + יִתְקַדָּ֑שׁוּ [must·sanctify·themselves] (820) + פֶּן־יִפְרֹ֥ץ [lest·he·break·out] (510) + בָּהֶ֖ם [against·them] (47) + יְהֹוָֽה [Hashem] (26) = 2047.
Onkelos
And also the priests who draw near to minister before Hashem shall consecrate themselves, lest Hashem strike them down.
Rashi
וגם הכהנים AND THE PRIESTS ALSO — the first born sons also, through whom the sacrificial service was carried out (Zevachim 115b), ‘הנגשים אל ה WHO MAY DRAW NIGH UNTO THE LORD to offer sacrifices — let them also not rely upon their rank and ascend the mountain, but יתקדשו LET THEM BE PREPARED to remain at their post, פן יפרץ LEST [THE LORD] BURST FORTH — The word פרץ is of the same root and meaning as פרצה “a breach”; the sense is: He may slay some of them and thus cause a breach in their ranks.
Ramban
AND THE PRIESTS ALSO, THAT COME NEAR TO THE ETERNAL. I.e., who offer the sacrifices to the Glorious Name and who come near to Him with them. [They also must sanctify themselves and not go outside of their designated place.]
Ibn Ezra
"And also" — these are the firstborn; even though they are holy, as it is written, "Sanctify to Me every firstborn" (above, 13:2), they shall add further to their sanctification in their own minds. The meaning of "those who draw near to Hashem" — they are the ones at the front of the boundary; or their meaning is those who offered burnt-offerings at the altar Moses built at the defeat of Amalek, and they will likewise offer at the altar of the covenant that Moses built and prepared at the foot of the mountain, where all Israel stood to hear the voice of Hashem.
Or HaChaim
וגם הכהנים הנגשים אל ה׳ יתקדשו, "And also the priests who approach G'd have to sanctify themselves, etc." Although the priests (the firstborn in the main) are closer to G'd than the people at large, being allowed to perform sacrificial service in sacred locations, they too have to undergo a special sanctification process prior to the revelation. The fact that they normally adhered to strict standards of purity was not enough in this instance. They had to consider themselves as no better than the people at large. The meaning of the word יתקדשו is similar to the meaning of the word ודשנו in Numbers 4,13 where the priests are described as removing the ashes from the altar. The priests too had to remove themselves from the Mountain.
Chizkuni
וגם הכהנים וגו׳, “and also the priests, etc.” who were these “priests?” They were the seventy elders who are all firstborns at the same time. (compare Mechilta on בחדש הזה Exodus chapter 12). [Seeing that at this time the tribe of Levi had not yet been chosen to replace the functions of the firstborns. Ed.] יתקדשו, “shall become sanctified;” they shall be warned to be prepared for this, and shall not say: “seeing that we are already appointed to perform the priestly functions, we do not need to undergo an additional process of sanctification.” They shall not presume on their familiarity with Hashem. An alternate explanation of this verse: Who is meant by the word: הכהנים, the people’s elite, the nobility, and the judges. הנגשים אל ה׳, the Torah underlines that precisely the people appointed as priests need to be the first to sanctify themselves instead of presuming on their superiority. Based on the verse in Deuteronomy 1,17, כי המשפט לאלוקים הוא, “that ultimately true justice is reserved for G-d,” i.e. that if the judges err, justice will still be done, these judges are not ever to lose sight of this by acting superior. In this instance, they might have argued that they are busy studying the halachot Moses had taught them in order to carry out the judicial duties, i.e. being busy with one commandment frees you from the need to perform another commandment at that time; [that argument is true only when due to time limitations on the performance of both commandment they conflict with one another. Ed.] It is impossible to accept the word: כהנים in the accepted meaning as there were not yet any kohanim at that time.
Rabbeinu Bahya
וגם הכהנים הנגשים אל ה’, “and also the priests who approach G’d.” The “priests” mentioned here are either the firstborn who would perform the priestly functions in those days, i.e. offer the sacrifices, or it may refer to the sons of Aaron who would be consecrated as priests some time later. This is not so strange as in Genesis 2,14 we read about a river flowing from Gan Eden in the direction of Ashur, a city that would not exist until some 1700 years later. יתקדשו, “they will be sanctified.” This verse helps us understand Leviticus 10,3 where the two sons of Aaron who died performing a priestly function are described by Moses as בקרובי אקדש, G’d saying: “I will be sanctified by those who are near to Me.” The word קרובי matches נגשים, and the word אקדש corresponds to יתקדשו in our verses here. פן יפרוץ בהם ה’, “lest the Lord make a breach amongst them.” This was an allusion to their death, for G’d פרץ בהם, “killed them.” G’d did not want to punish them now at the time when the Torah was being given so as not to disturb the communal joy. He waited until the eighth day of the consecration rites to carry out the decree against them (Tanchuma Acharei Mot 6). The word וגם is a reference to the seventy elders.
Rashbam
הכהנים, the firstborns of each tribe. יתקדשו, by occupying their proper positions.
And Moses said to Hashem: "The people cannot come up to mount Sinai; for you did charge us, saying: Set bounds about the mount, and sanctify it."
verse value 4483
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 67 letters. Verse gematria: 4483 is prime. The shortest word is "Moses" (מֹשֶׁה֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·Hashem" (אֶל־יְהֹוָ֔ה, 6 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "not·be·able" (לֹא־יוּכַ֣ל), "that·you" (כִּֽי־אַתָּ֞ה), "warned" (הַעֵדֹ֤תָה). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·Hashem" (root יהוה, 396x in Exodus); "and·said" (root אמר, 297x in Exodus); "Moses" (root משה, 277x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Sinai', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 7 words.
Onkelos
And Moses said before Hashem: The people are not able to go up to Mount Sinai, for you yourself have warned us, saying: Set bounds about the mountain and sanctify it.
Rashi
לא יוכל העם THE PEOPLE CANNOT [COME UP TO MOUNT SINAI] — There is no need for me to warn them, for they have been standing under such a warning these three days, and they cannot go up for they have no permission so to do.
Ibn Ezra
"And Moses said: The people cannot come up" — the Gaon [Saadia] said that he pondered this verse for many years and did not understand its meaning until he read in a book of Persian royal protocol that a messenger has no permission to tell the king "I have carried out your mission" until the king commands him to do something else; only then may he say it. In my view, since Hashem had told him "lest they break through to Hashem to see," Moses did not know whether he was required to warn them not to see, for he had already warned them about the boundary not to cross it. Then Hashem said to him: Go, go down as I commanded you, to bear witness among them, for Israel needed to be warned a second time.
Sforno
וקדשתו, the term is used here as in Exodus 3,5 when Moses was warned not to step on “holy” ground with his sandals as this might prove fatal. Similarly, here; the people had been told that neither man nor beast would survive touching the mountain. [during this period. Ed.]
Or HaChaim
ויאמר משה…לא יוכל העם, Moses said…"the people are unable, etc." What exactly was the distance between Moses and G'd so that G'd had to tell Moses again in verse 24 to descend and warn the people? Why was G'd's previous directive in verse 21 not sufficient? Moses himself tells G'd that there is no need for any new directive, the previous directive having been sufficient to ensure the people would not breach G'd's warning to establish a fence around the Mountain and to sanctify the people. It would appear that originally G'd ordered the people in a general directive neither to ascend nor to touch the Mountain. The Torah also stated in verse 22 that the priests who are normally allowed closer to sacred sites must not approach the Mountain. Subsequently, in verse 24 G'd told Moses that the priests should sanctify themselves. G'd was afraid that the Israelites would apply a method known as דבר שהיה בכלל ויצא מן הכלל ללמד על הכלל יצא, that if something had previously been part of a general rule and was singled out by the Torah by name, the reason is that the special rule now applied to this "something" will also be applied generally forthwith. Initially, both the priests, the people, and even Aaron were included in the prohibition to ascend the Mountain or to touch it. As soon as the priests were mentioned separately such as in 19,22 as being normally permitted to approach G'd, this implied they could at least touch it also in this case. In view of the rule cited above about כל היוצא מן הכלל, the people would now also be allowed to touch the base of the Mountain. While it is true that since the Torah had not been given yet, the rule we quoted was not yet in effect, the fact remains that since the rule is based on logic, some intelligent Jew might have figured it out already before the Torah was actually handed down to the people. Even assuming that no one could have figured out this rule, G'd desires justice and righteousness and He would not apply the death penalty to a person who touched the lower part of the Mountain when his counterpart the priest would not be punished for doing the same thing by reason of his being a priest. In order to prevent such a potential miscarriage of justice, G'd told Moses to descend from the Mountain and warn the people (the non-priests) not to touch any part of the Mountain. The effect of this warning was to invalidate the rule about כל היוצא מן הכלל which we explained earlier. Moses had not understood this immediately because G'd had not yet revealed to him the rule about כל היוצא מן הכלל as well as the other principles which guide us when interpreting the written Torah. Moses thought that the partial relaxation of the prohibition applied only to Aaron and the priests whereas the people were forbidden to touch even the base of the Mountain. He could not understand why such a repeated warning was necessary, seeing G'd had already warned the people not to ascend the Mountain or to touch it. G'd therefore told him tha...
Tur HaArokh
לא יוכל העם לעלות, “the people are unable to ascend, etc.” Some people have trouble understanding the words of Moses here, for who prevented the people from ascending if they wanted to? We must understand the words of Moses as being the words of a messenger who reports back to the sender that he had carried out his mission, in this instance, that as a result of Moses having carried out his mission to warn the people not to ascend the Mountain, they were as of that point in time unable to ascend the Mountain. Ibn Ezra explains that G’d told Moses to descend and to warn the people, but that Moses did not see the need to warn them about anything, seeing that he had already done so. This is why he said to G’d that the people are unable to ascend the Mountain. In response to Moses’ [naïve belief?. Ed.] ] that the warning received was sufficient, G’d told him that the warning had to be repeated. It was only G’d Who knew if the first warning had been sufficient. Some commentators feel that the warning at this time included an additional warning not even to approach the forbidden area too closely. This is the reason for the additional words פן יהרסו אל ה' לראות, “they shall not break through to behold, etc.” I do not believe that this interpretation is acceptable, seeing that the Torah writes later in verse 24 specifically אל יהרסו לעלות אל ה' פן יפרץ בם, “the people must not break trough in order to ascend, lest G’d in His turn will burst forth against them.” The last mentioned interpretation is tenable only if we assume that Moses had told G’d on his most recent ascent that he had warned the people not only not to ascend, but also not to behold what they thought was the manifestation of Hashem. Seeing that it is impossible for Moses to enforce a ban on looking at something from a distance, G’d would then have amended His command and told Moses to warn them only against ascending. An approach to these verses by my sainted father the רא'ש. The words פן יהרסו אל ה' לראות, (verse 21) are problematic, for how could G’d issue a decree that the people would in the main be unable to honour? Such a prohibition was also not included in the warning in verse 12 not to ascend the mountain or to touch its edge. The only thing which had been forbidden then was the ascent and the touching of the Mountain. We find the warning not to ascend the Mountain repeated once more in verse 24. G’d told Moses in addition that the people were not to look at the Mountain. Concerning the second prohibition not to ascend the Mountain, Moses said to G’d that this was impossible as the people had already been warned concerning this. To this G’d replied to Moses that it was necessary to warn them again so that in their understandable enthusiasm to get a glimpse of the revelation, they would not expose themselves to mortal danger. G’d told Moses to descend and to ensure this together with Aaron. When the people would see that Aaron had also descended before the revelation, even though he had previously been allowed to approach more closely to the Mountain, they would realise that if a closer approach spelled danger even for Aaron and the priests, it would certainly be very dangerous for them to expose themselves to G’d’s anger if they were to ignore the warning.
Rashbam
'ויאמר משה אל ה' לא יוכל העם וגו, the one who interprets the Torah as quoting Moses saying these words, i.e. “You have already told us to fence off the mountain etc. (verse 12) so how could anyone ascend it?” is in error. [a rejection of Rashi’s commentary who understands the word יוכל as “having permission.” Ed.] There is nothing wrong with repeating warnings to people when the time of paying with their lives for warnings which they have ignored draws near. G’d Himself repeated instructions to Moses in verse 24 when He told him to descend and to allow only Aaron to approach a little closer to the mountain. What news did this verse contain? The point is that Moses’ remarks were a question. He asked if G’d had added an additional restriction to what He had issued on the previous two days when He had said in verse 12 that touching the mountain would prove lethal?שלא יוכל העם לעלות אל הר סיני, Moses wanted clarification of the expression פן יהרסו ממנו רב, as opposed to השמרו לכם עלות בהר. He wanted to know if not only touching the mountain was forbidden on pain of death but even approaching it from a relative distance. G’d told him that while it was all right for Aaron to approach a little closer, neither the priests nor the people at large were allowed to come within a certain distance of the base of the mountain. They would ignore such warnings at their peril. He added that even Moses himself would not be granted a visual revelation, he had only been commanded to ascend the mountain in the thick cloud.
And Hashem said to him: "Go, get yourself down, and you shall come up, you, and Aaron with you; but let not the priests and the people break through to come up to Hashem, lest He break forth upon them."
verse value 3606 — יְהֹוָה֙ = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 69 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "you" (אַתָּ֖ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "lest·he·break·out·against·them" (פֶּן־יִפְרׇץ־בָּֽם, 8 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "but·the·priests" (וְהַכֹּהֲנִ֣ים), "let·them·not·break·through" (אַל־יֶֽהֶרְס֛וּ), "lest·he·break·out·against·them" (פֶּן־יִפְרׇץ־בָּֽם). The root איל appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 396x in Exodus); "and·said" (root אמר, 297x in Exodus); "with·you" (root עם, 190x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'with·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 6 words. Full calculation: וַיֹּ֨אמֶר [and·said] (257) + אֵלָ֤יו [to·him] (47) + יְהֹוָה֙ [Hashem] (26) + לֶךְ־רֵ֔ד [go·down] (254) + וְעָלִ֥יתָ [and·come·up] (516) + אַתָּ֖ה [you] (406) + וְאַהֲרֹ֣ן [and·Aaron] (262) + עִמָּ֑ךְ [with·you] (130) + וְהַכֹּהֲנִ֣ים [but·the·priests] (136) + וְהָעָ֗ם [and·the·people] (121) + אַל־יֶֽהֶרְס֛וּ [let·them·not·break·through] (312) + לַעֲלֹ֥ת [to·come·up] (530) + אֶל־יְהֹוָ֖ה [to·Hashem] (57) + פֶּן־יִפְרׇץ־בָּֽם [lest·he·break·out·against·them] (552) = 3606.
Onkelos
And Hashem said to him: Go, descend, and then come up — you and Aaron with you — but the priests and the people shall not press forward to go up before Hashem, lest he strike them down.
Rashi
לך רד GO, GO DOWN and warn them a second time. God said this, because the rule is that one admonishes a person before an action is to be done and then one again admonishes him at the very moment when the action is to be done (cf. (Mekhilta). ועלית אתה ואהרן עמך והכהנים AND THOU SHALT COME UP, THOU AND AARON WITH THEE AND THE PRIESTS — One might think that they (the priests) shall also be with thee! Therefore it states “and thou shalt come up”. Consequently you must now admit that this is what God spake to him: thou hast a designated place for thyself, and Aaron a designated place for himself and they a designated place for themselves — Moses approached closer than Aaron and Aaron closer than the priests — but let the people under no circumstances break down their position to go up to the Lord (Mekhilta). פן יפרץ בם LEST HE BURST FORTH UPON THEM — Although it (the word יִפְרָץ) is punctuated with a Chataf Kametz (our Kamets Chataf — short Kametz), it has not departed from its normal grammatical form, for thus is the way of every word which has the vowel Melopum (our חולם) in its hit syllable, that being a closed syllable: when it comes with a Makkef (a hyphen) after it the vowelling is changed to a Chataf Kametz (our short Kametz).
Ibn Ezra
"And He said: Go up, you and Aaron with you" — a little above the boundary, so as not to be far from Israel, for they were going to say to you after Hashem finished speaking the Ten Commandments: "You speak to us and we will hear" (below, 20:16). I am answering his question: Hashem did not tell him to warn them not to see Him, but only not to cross the boundary, for they needed him to warn them at the moment of the event so that they would hear and guard themselves.
Sforno
לך רד, now, when I am speaking with you, be with them at the bottom of the mountain. ועלית אתה ואהרן, at the conclusion of the Ten Commandments and the portion Mishpatim as we read in Exodus 24,1. The Torah writes there: עלה אל ה' אתה ואהרן “ascend to G’d, you and Aaron.” [the elders and Aaron there are bidden to prostrate themselves from a distance. Ed.]
Or HaChaim
רד ועלית אתה ואהרון, "descend and then ascend, you and Aaron." Why did G'd say both לך and רד? The word לך meant that Moses was to move, the word רד that he was to descend; perhaps he had to descend as he had previously not stood on a place assigned to him on the Mountain but had stood on the peak. When Moses refused to move G'd may have told him to descend (from that peak) but to ascend again with Aaron. He should know that just as there was a limit to how far Aaron could ascend there would also be a limit to how far he, Moses, could ascend. This is implied when the Torah describes Aaron as ascending עמך"with you."
Chizkuni
ויאמר אליו ה' לך רד, Hashem said to him: “go and descend, etc.” If you were to ask why was there any need for three separate warnings (verse 12, verse 21 and this verse)? The warning in verse 23 refers to the warning in verse 21 where G-d had warned the people not to approach the mountain in order not to become a victim of destruction by trying to have a visual image of G-d. Moses had assumed that the very fact that they had been warned would be equivalent to the people’s inability to violate G-d’s commandment. G-d had already said in verse 12 that the people would be immediately killed if they were to try and ascend the Mountain or even its lower edge. Surely they could exercise control over their feet! Concerning their having control over their eyes, not to try and see the glory of G-d was a much more difficult task. This is why the warning had to be repeated. They would think that it was a good deed to try and catch a glimpse of their King! Moses had misinterpreted the prohibition as applying only to a physical ascent of the Mountain. This is why G-d had to add that not only ascent was potentially fatal, but even touching the base of the Mountain and even trying to catch a glimpse of G-d’s Majesty. ואהרן עמך, “and Aaron with you;” he was allowed to accompany Moses part of the way to the base of the Mountain. Moses was going to explain to the people the last nine of the Ten Commandments, starting with the words: לא יהיה לך, “You must not have, etc.” which the people had not heard or understood clearly from G-d’s mouth. Another way of interpreting G-d’s instructions here: G-d told Moses to descend in order that the people and the priests would not be under the mistaken impression that Aaron was no better than they as they had all been forbidden to ascend or even begin to ascend the Mountain. By being allowed to accompany Moses far closer to the Mountain than they had been, it became clear to them that Aaron was on a higher spiritual level than they. To prevent the people from thinking that Aaron could ascend all the way G-d told Moses to descend before Aaron could do so.
Rabbeinu Bahya
והכהנים והעם, “and the priests and the people, etc.” The order of things preceding the giving of the Torah (Ten Commandments) was as follows: First G’d commanded Moses “to fence off the people,” i.e. to establish visible boundaries around the mountain which the people were not to breach. This is what Moses referred to in verse 23 when he said to G’d: “the people cannot ascend the mountain for You have warned us “bound the mountain and sanctify it.” What was meant by “bound the people” was the boundary of the mountain. After that G’d told Moses that the people should sanctify themselves and abstain from everything impure for three days including their immersion in a ritual bath and the washing of their garments. Following this procedure, on the morning of the third day, the sixth of Sivan, there was thunder and lightning, a heavy cloud enveloping the mountain, and the blast of the shofar emanating from that direction. At this point G’d’s Shechinah had not yet descended on to the top of the mountain. This is something we learned from Kings I 19,11: when G’d taught Elijah that His manifestation does not occur amidst thunder and lightning, etc. The prophet writes describing that scene: “there was a great and mighty wind splitting mountain and shattering the rocks by the power of the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind, etc.” At that point the Israelites were in the grip of tremors due to the overpowering sound of the thunder (and the chorus of the angels we have described earlier). This is the meaning of verse 16. Moses reassured the people in order to lead them out of the camp toward the manifestation of the Shechinah. Once the people were lined up at the base of the mountain G’d descended on the mountain within the fire, and the smoke rose to the heart of the heaven, dark impenetrable cloud. The mountain itself trembled. This trembling of the mountain intensified causing David to say in Psalms 68,9: “the earth trembled, the sky rained because of G’d, yon Sinai, because of G’d, the G’d of Israel.” The meaning of this verse is that the sky rained fire. The word זה in that verse refers to Mount Sinai burning (the word זה in its aramaic meaning). The prophetic words of Devorah (Judges 5,4) contain similar phraseology i.e. ”the earth trembled, the heavens dripped; Yea the clouds dripped water; the mountains quaked before the Lord, Him of Sinai, before the Lord G’d of Israel.” Another verse describing the mountains as “dancing” like rams is found in Psalms 114,6 These various verses are not to be understood allegorically, just as the line “the sea saw and fled” in the same Psalm is not to be understood as a simile but describes an actual event. Our sages (Megillah 29) state that at the time G’d gave the Ten Commandments these mountains were transferred to the land of Israel and Mount Carmel crossed the sea. When that had happened the blast of the shofar became very strong. When the people observed all this (20,15-18) “the people saw the sounds and the lightning and the sound of the shofar blast.....the people saw and trembled...and stood from afar.” This all took place prior to the giving of the Torah because the people said to Moses: “you speak to us and we will hear (19,19). Their experience up until that point had already left them enfeebled (compare Daniel 10,16).”my joints shattered and I could retain no strength.” The words: “from afar” mean further away than the fenced off area. Moses told the people that they had nothing to fear, that G’d wanted merely to test them (20,20). At that point they “stood” from afar, i.e. they did not become calm and refused to go up to the boundary set around the mountain. Moses, however, went close to the ערפל without entering that thick cloud. At that point G’d spoke the Ten Commandments. והכהנים והעם אל יהרסו לעלות אל ה’, “but the priests and the people shall not break through to ascend toward G’d.” Why was this repeated? Had G’d not already issued these instructions in verse 21? It seems that at that point Moses had understood the warning to extend not only to people who were actually going to ascend the mountain, but also to those who would approach the boundary in order to have a visual experience. Concerning this Moses had said to G’d (verse 23) that he had already warned the people that even touching the mountain would carry the death penalty (verses 12-13). Moses had referred to five expressions G’d had used as a form of warning. This was the reason of the otherwise unnecessary letter ה at the end of the word העדותה. Seeing that Moses had misunderstood the extent of the prohibition, G’d made it clear that there was no prohibition to approach the fence, as they had already been warned sufficiently not to go beyond. There was however, a prohibition not to intensify visual appreciation of the spectacle. This was the gist of the instruction: “descend; you and Aaron may ascend” (a certain distance); but the other priests as well as the people must not break through “in order to make a spiritual ascent.” The word לעלות here describes an attempt by people to comprehend by means other than those intended for the acquisition of such comprehension matters which their intellect fails to grasp. Priests and common people are considered on the same level; neither group was to attempt to comprehend what was incomprehensible. Hence the emphasis on the word לראות, “to see,” at the end of the warning in verse 21. It is worthwhile to examine why the Torah did not add the words את ה’ after the word לראות in that verse. After all, the Torah had written the word אל ה’ in connection with לעלות אל ה’ in our verse here! Perhaps the reason that the Torah did not add these words in verse 21 was so as not to create the impression that it was possible to see G’d although it was forbidden. This is why the word “not to see” was placed at the end of the verse to describe the futility to even attempt to see something which could not be seen. They were to suppress any thought of gaining any visual experience beyond what had already been provided. In other words, verse 21 contains a message similar to that of G’d to Moses in Exodus 33,20: “for no human being can see Me while alive.”
Verse structure: 5 words, 21 letters. The shortest word is "Moses" (מֹשֶׁ֖ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·the·people" (אֶל־הָעָ֑ם, 5 letters). 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·said" (root אמר, 297x in Exodus); "Moses" (root משה, 277x in Exodus); "to·the·people" (root עם, 190x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·the·people', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 2 words. Full calculation: וַיֵּ֥רֶד [and·went·down] (220) + מֹשֶׁ֖ה [Moses] (345) + אֶל־הָעָ֑ם [to·the·people] (146) + וַיֹּ֖אמֶר [and·said] (257) + אֲלֵהֶֽם [to·them] (76) = 1044.
Onkelos
And Moses descended to the people and spoke to them.
Rashi
ויאמר אליהם AND HE SPOKE UNTO THEM this warning.
Ibn Ezra
"And Moses went down to the people and spoke to them" — and when he finished speaking to them, he and Aaron ascended beyond the boundary to the mountain; whereupon Hashem immediately spoke.
Sforno
ויאמר אלהם, he conveyed G’d’s warning to them as well as the penalty for violating G’d’s command. (verse 21)
Chizkuni
.ויאמר אליהם, “he (Moses) said to them,” that only he and Aaron had been given permission to proceed further.
Rashbam
ויאמר אליהם, he told them of the commandment to fence off the mountain as of immediately.
Onkelos
Rashi
Ramban
Ibn Ezra
Sforno
Or HaChaim
Chizkuni
Rabbeinu Bahya
Tur HaArokh