Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah

Ibn Ezra on Exodus 21:19/אבן עזרא על שמות כ״א:י״ט

אאם יקום. על חז"ל נסמוך שפי' על משענתו שלא ישען על אחר כמשפט החולים רק על עצמו:

1IF HE RISE AGAIN. We will rely on our sages of blessed memory who said that al mishanto (upon his staff) means that he supports himself and does not lean on others as sick people do.¹⁹⁸. 78b. Also see Rashi.

בונקה המכה. שיוציאוהו מבית הסהר:

2THEN SHALL HE THAT SMOTE HIM BE QUIT. They shall release him from prison.

גופי' שבתו. מגזרת שביתה ששבתה מלאכתו ונכון הוא, והוא על משקל שברו (ברא' מד ב) כי התי"ו שרש, ויתכן להיותו כמו זה, שבתה הבית מעט (רות ב ז) שהוא מגזרת ישב והטעם זמן ישיבה בבית שובת בלי מלאכתו, והעד על זה הפירוש, שהוא הפך והתהלך בחוץ:

3[LOSS OF HIS TIME.] Shivto (loss of his time) comes from the same root as shevitah (rest),¹⁹⁹. for his work stopped.²⁰⁰ means his work stoppage; i.e., he must reimburse him for his work stoppage. This interpretation is correct.²⁰¹, I.E. must mean that this interpretation is grammatically defensible. Shivto follows the paradigm of shivro (his corn money) (Gen. 44:2), for the tav is a root letter. It is possible that shivto comes from the same root as shivtah (tarried) in save that she tarried a little in the house (Ruth 2:7). Shivtah comes from the same root as the word yashav (sat).²⁰². Shivto refers to the time that the one who was struck sat at home resting, without work. What proves that this interpretation is correct is that it is the reverse of and walk abroad.²⁰³

דורפא ירפא. לאות שנתן רשות לרופאים לרפא המכות והפצעים שיראו בחוץ רק כל חלי שהוא בפנים בגוף ביד השם לרפאתו, וכן כתוב כי הוא יכאיב ויחבש (איוב ה יח) וכתוב באסא גם בחליו לא דרש את ה' כי אם ברופאים (דה"ב טז יב) והנה הכתוב הפריש, כי לא אמר ורפא ירפא מן הבנין הקל רק ורפא ירפא שהוא מהבנין הכבד ועוד אפרש זה היטב בפרשה הזאת, וחכמינו קבלו דברים אחרים עם אלה שניהם כאשר קבלו בשמים עם קטורת סמים ואינם כתובים:

4AND SHALL CAUSE HIM TO BE THOROUGHLY HEALED. This is a sign that permission has been granted to physicians to heal blows and wounds that are visible on the surface.²⁰⁴ However, it is in God’s hand to heal any illness which strikes inside of the body. It is thus written, For He maketh sore, and bindeth up (Job 5:18). Furthermore, Scripture tells us concerning King Asa, yet in his disease he sought not to the Lord, but to the physicians (II Chron. 16:12).²⁰⁵ Now Scripture distinguished between them.²⁰⁶ It does not state, verafo yirpe (and he shall surely heal), which is in the kal.²⁰⁷ form. Cf. refa (heal) in Num. 12:13 and erpa (I will heal) in Deut. 32:39. The kal is employed because, when contrasted to the pi’el (see next note), it implies ease of effort (Weiser). It rather reads, ve-rappo yerappe (and shall cause him to be thoroughly healed). The latter is in the pi’el.²⁰⁸ implies an expenditure of effort. Hence it is used when man does the healing. I will explain this very well later on in this portion.²⁰⁹ The rabbis received a tradition concerning other payments²¹⁰ 83b. in addition to the two²¹¹ mentioned in our verse. They similarly received a tradition to include spices which are not stated in the Torah among the incense spices.²¹² 6a, the incense consisted of 11 spices. However, only five spices are listed in Ex. 30:34.