Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah
Ibn Ezra on Deuteronomy 32:13/אבן עזרא על דברים ל״ב:י״ג
אירכיבהו על במתי ארץ. ארץ כנען שהיא אמצעית כל הישוב וירכיבהו לשון צחות:
1HE MADE HIM RIDE ON THE HIGH PLACES OF THE EARTH. The land of Canaan, which is in the center of the inhabited world. He made him ride is metaphorical.
בבמותי. בוי״ו לא ישתנה מגזרת על במותימו תדרוך ואין כמוהו ואת (רשעים) (במ״ח גרס עשיר) במותיו:
2The reading of the word bamote (high places) does not change because of the vav.134 is silent, for the vowel is beneath the mem which precedes it. It is related to the word bamotemo135 serves as a cholam. (their high places) (Deut. 33:29). The word bemotav136 is connected to the word mavet (death). Its bet is a preposition. It has nothing to do with the word bamot, which means a high place. (with…his tomb) in the wicked137. I.E. apparently quoted from memory.…with…his tomb (Is. 53:9) is not related to our word.
גתנובות. כמו פרי מגזרת חיל כי ינוב:
3FRUITAGE. The word tenuvot (fruitage) means fruit. It is related to the word yanuv (increase) in If riches increase (Ps. 62:11).
דשדי. תאר השם על משקל חכם והיו״ד תחת ה״א כוי״ו שלו הייתי והעד יעלוז שדי שהוא לשון יחיד:
4FIELD. Sadai (field) is an adjective.138 (fruitage). The ending ai usually indicates a plural. Compare, nashai (my wives); benotai (my daughters); banai (my sons). Hence I.E.’s comments. It follows the paradigm of chakham (wise).139. The yod of sadai is in place of a heh.140 is spelled with a heh. Hence I.E.’s comment. It is similar to the vav of shalev141 is in place of a vav, for the root of shalev is shin, lamed, heh. (at ease) in I was at ease (Job 16:12). The clause ya’aloz sadai (let the field exult) (Ps. 96:12) wherein ya’aloz is in the singular proves this.142 is singular, not plural.
הוינקהו דבש מסלע. דרך משל כמו יעטפו ההרים עסים והטעם רוב הדבש והשמן. כי מארץ כנען יובלו כי כן כתוב:
5AND HE MADE HIM TO SUCK HONEY OUT OF THE CRAG. This is a metaphor. It is like That the mountains shall drop down sweet wine143 (Joel 4:18). The reference is to the abundance of honey and oil which, as is clearly stated in Scripture,144 were exported from the land of Canaan
ומחלמיש צור. רפה הלמ״ד כי הוא דבק והנה הוא הפך מצור החלמיש וכן חרבו' צורים עם צור חרבו:
6OUT OF THE FLINTY ROCK. The lamed in chalmish (flinty) has no dagesh145. Compare the word challamish (flint). because the word is in the construct. Me-chalmish tzur (out of the flinty rock) is the reverse of mi-tzur ha-challamish (out of the rock of flint) (Deut. 8:15).146 and challamish changes. However, the import of the phrase remains the same. The same is true of charvot tzurim (knives of flint) and tzur charbo (his sword of flint)147 (Ps. 89:44).