Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah

Ibn Ezra on Exodus 12:7/אבן עזרא על שמות י״ב:ז׳

אעל שתי המזוזות. של פתח הבית ועוד יפרש משה איך יקחו את הדם:

1ON THE TWO SIDE-POSTS. Of the door of the house. Moses will go on to explain²³⁵ how they are to take the blood.

בומלת משקוף, מגזרת חלון (ברא' ח ו) וישקף (שם כו ה), וזה המשקוף הוא על פתח הבית, וככה מנהג כל ארץ ישמעאל כי מנהג הערלים לא היה כמנהג המצריים ואפילו במאכליהן, כמו "פתות אותה פתים" (ויקרא ב ו), וככה תכשיטי הנשים לשום נזם באף ובאזן, וכל אשר הזכיר ישעיה על בנות ציון, וככה אין בית להם כי אם בחצר, האחת יקרא פתח הבית, והחיצון שער החצר, ורבים אמרו כי נתינת הדם על המשקוף ועל שתי המזוזות, להראות שישחטו תועבת מצרים בפרהסיא, כי כבר נפל פחדם עליהם, ולא יפחדו שיסקלום, ואילו היה כן, היה זה בשער החצר, והנה לא הושם הדם כי אם בסתר, שסגרו שער החצר, והם שחטו בין הערבים שלא יראה אדם שהוא סמוך ללילה, ואיש לא יצא מפתח ביתו עד בקר, שהלכו לדרכם, וסגרו כל אחד שער חצרו, כי המצריים חשבו שישובו, רק הטעם להיות הדם על המשקוף, להיות כופר בעד כל האוכל בבית ויהיה סימן למשחית שיראנו כדרך, והתוית תו (יחז' ט ד):

2[LINTEL.] The word mashkof (lintel) means a window.²³⁶ as a lintel, namely, “the upper beam against which the door strikes when one closes it.” Rashi compares mashkof to the Aramaic words shakef (struck) and mashkofe (blow). Compare, va-yashkef (looked) (Gen. 26:8).²³⁷ because one looks through it. This window was in the door.²³⁸ This is the custom in all Moslem countries. The practice of the uncircumcised²³⁹ differs from that of the Egyptians²⁴⁰ even regarding food,²⁴¹ an example being, Thou shalt break it in pieces (Lev. 2:6).²⁴². Thus pittim (pieces of pitta) shows that the bread eaten by the two cultures is different. Or, Lev. 2:6 speaks of bread baked in a pan. Europeans do not make bread in that manner. We thus see that different peoples have different food habits. Similarly with regard to women’s jewelry such as the wearing of nose rings and earrings and all that the prophet Isaiah mentioned concerning the daughters of Zion (Is. 3:18-24).²⁴³ Likewise, all of their houses²⁴⁴ without exception are built in courtyards. One entrance is called the door to the house and the other the gate of the courtyard. Many say that the purpose of placing the blood on the window and on the two side-posts was to demonstrate publicly that they slaughtered the abomination of Egypt,²⁴⁵ 6, “On the two side-posts and on the lintel. Rabbi Isaac says…on the outside, so that the Egyptians, seeing it, would be cut to the quick.” The Shulkhan Arukh uses a similar reason for Shabbat Ha-Gadol. See Orech Chayyim 430:1. since by then the fear of the Israelites had fallen on the Egyptians, and the Israelites were not afraid of being stoned.²⁴⁶ Now if this was the case then the blood should have been placed on the entrance to the courtyard.²⁴⁷ However, the blood was placed in secret, for they closed the gate of the courtyard. Furthermore, they slaughtered the lamb at dusk, which is close to night, so that no one would see them. Moreover, no man left his house until the morning when each one went on his way and each one closed the gate to his courtyard. The Egyptians thought that the Israelites would return.²⁴⁸ The reason the blood was smeared on the window was to make atonement²⁴⁹ for all those eating in the house and to serve as a mark for the destroyer²⁵⁰ to see. It is to be understood in the same way as and set a mark on the foreheads of the men (Ezek. 9:4).²⁵¹

גומלת בָּתִּים משונה בדקדוק כי יש דגש אחר קמץ גדול, ואין זה משפט הלשון, רק אם היה הקמץ חטף, כמו רָנּוּ שמים (ישעי' מד כג) אולי היה כן בעבור חסרון יו"ד בית, שלא תתערב זאת הגזרה עם גזרת עשרת הַבַּתִּים חומר (יחז' מה יד) שהוא פתח לשון רבים, מן האיפה והבת (שם שם יא), ומלת "על הבתים" יורנו כי הוא מלעיל הפך המנהג:

3[HOUSES.] The word battim (houses) is grammatically irregular, as it has a dagesh²⁵². following a long kamatz.²⁵³. This is contrary to the rule²⁵⁴ is not placed in a letter that follows a consonant vocalized with a kamatz. whereby a dagesh is only placed after a short kamatz,²⁵⁵. as in ronnu (sing)²⁵⁶ is vocalized with a kamatz katan, and a dagesh, is placed in the resh. in Sing, O ye heavens (Is. 44:23). Perhaps battim was vocalized with a kamatz ²⁵⁷ (houses) should have been vocalized with a pattach beneath the bet. Hence there is a dagesh in the tav. because of the missing yod in the word bayit.²⁵⁸ is bayit. The yod drops out in the plural. Now if the yod were retained there would be no chance of confusing our word with battim meaning baths because our word would have been pronounced beyatim. However, since the yod drops out in the plural, if both words were identically vocalized one could confuse them. This form²⁵⁹ (houses), the plural of bayit. would thus not be confused with the form battim (baths) in ten baths are a homer (Ezek. 45:14) wherein battim, the plural of bat (bath) in The ephah and the bath (Ezek. 45:11), is vocalized with a pattach in the plural.²⁶⁰, meaning houses, was changed from a pattach to a kamatz. The word battim (houses) in upon the houses is indicative,²⁶¹ is irregular (Filwarg). Or that its kamatz is not a “real” kamatz (Krinsky). Or that it indicates why in this word a dagesh follows a kamatz (Weiser). for unlike the rule it is penultimately accented.²⁶² is not a “real” kamatz. If it were, then battim would be ultimately accented (Krinsky). Or it shows that a dagesh may follow after an accented kamatz. Compare, nashattah (faileth) in Is. 41:17 (Weiser). It should be noted that battim is found penultimately accented only in our verse. Elsewhere in Scripture it is always ultimately accented.