Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah
Ibn Ezra on Deuteronomy 28:27/אבן עזרא על דברים כ״ח:כ״ז
אוהנשארים יוכו בשחין מצרים:
1[THE BOIL OF EGYPT.] Those who remain will be struck with the boil of Egypt.
בובטחורים. הם היוצאים במקום הנסתר על כן כתוב ובעפולים והוא מגזרת ויבא אל העופל:
2AND WITH THE EMERODS. They appear in the hidden places.42 Scripture therefore reads u-vafolim43. The keri reads u-vatchorim. (and with the emerods). The latter is related to the world ofel (hill) in And when he came to the hill (II Kings 5:24).44 because they are hill-like; i.e., they consist of swellings. According to Weiser its meaning is, hemorrhoids are called ofalim because hills are used for hiding and hemorrhoids appear in hidden places.
גובגרב. כן בלשון ישמעאל:
3AND WITH THE SCAB.45. The same is true in Arabic.46.
דובחרס. י״א שיצטרך אל חרס כאיוב ואם הוא בסמ״ך וי״א במכת השמש. והנכון שהוא שם חולי כנזכרי' ואין לו חבר:
4AND WITH THE ITCH.47. Some say that he will need a potsherd48. He will need a potsherd (cheres) to scratch himself to relieve his itching. as Job did.49 This is so50 because one employs a potsherd for relief if struck by this illness. even though the word cheres (itch) is spelled with a samekh.51. Others say u-ve-chares (and with the itch) means: and with a blow from the sun.52 is the sun. See Jud. 14:18. Hence this interpretation renders u-ver-chares, and with sunstroke. However, the correct interpretation is that cheres (itch) refers to the name of a disease like the ones mentioned previously. The word has no neighbor.53