Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah

Ibn Ezra on Exodus 20:12/אבן עזרא על שמות כ׳:י״ב

אכבד את אביך. כבר הזכרתי כי בחמשה דברים הראשונים זכר הַשֵם, וְשִׁם עם כולם "ה' אלהיך":

1HONOR THY FATHER AND THY MOTHER, AS THE LORD THY GOD COMMANDED THEE. I have already noted that the Lord’s name is mentioned in the first five statements. In all of these statements we find the form, the Lord thy God.

בומלת יאריכון. פועל יוצא כי הן יהיו סבה, והעד "ולמען תאריכו ימים" (דברי' יא ט) והארכת ימים (שם כב ז) בעבור המצוה שתעשה נמצאת אתה מאריך ימיך:

2[THAT THY DAYS MAY BE LONG.] The word ya’arikhun (may be long) is a transitive verb. Its meaning is that one’s parents will be the cause of one’s days being long.²⁵⁰ (may be long) is to be rendered, they (your parents) will lengthen. The term ta’arikhu (ye may prolong) in and that ye may prolong your days (Deut. 11:9) and ve-ha’arakhta (that thou mayest prolong) in and that thou mayest prolong thy days (Deut. 22:7) are proof of this.²⁵¹ and ve-ha’arakhta are transitive. Similarly, ya’arikhun. You will find that because of the commandment which you observe, you lengthen your days.²⁵²

גואמר על האדמה, כי כאשר ישמרו ישראל זאת המצוה לא יגלו ממנה וכתוב אב ואם הקלו בך (יחז' כב ז) והנה במצות כבוד אב שלא יעשה ההפוך שיהיה מקלל או מקלה, וחייב מיתה על המקלל כי השומעים ישמעו הקללה מפיו, ולא חייב כן על המקלה, כי המקלה יוכל לעשות ג"כ בסתר ע"כ צוה הכתוב שיהיה במלת ארור ככל הכתובים שהם בסתר:

3[UPON THE LAND.] Scripture reads, upon the land because if Israel observes this commandment they will not be exiled from the land. The prophet Ezekiel similarly states, In thee²⁵³ have they made light of father and mother (Ezek. 22:7). The commandment Honor thy father and thy mother means that we should not do the opposite; that is, we should not curse or make light of our parents. Now one who curses his parents incurs the death penalty because people hear the curse come out of his mouth.²⁵⁴ However, this penalty does not apply to one who disrespects his parents, for one can do so in secret. Therefore the one who is disrespectful to his parents falls under a curse like all those who are listed as cursed,²⁵⁵ for their deeds were done in secret.