Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah
Ibn Ezra on Exodus 27:12/אבן עזרא על שמות כ״ז:י״ב
אורחב. הנה הרוחב חצי האורך, והמפרשים אמרו כי המשכן הושם במרחק חמשים במערב והנה רחבו חמשים, וזהו ורחב חמשים בחמשים, ולפי דעתי כי הטעם שהוא מרוב אורך זויותיו נצבות, כי רחבו בכל צד חמשים ואין טעם להיות פי' חמשים בחמשים מצד החצר, כי לא כפל האורך על הרוחב כמשפט:
1AND FOR THE BREADTH…FIFTY CUBITS. The width of the courtyard was thus half of its length.40 The commentaries tell us that the tabernacle was placed fifty cubits westward.41 23b. “He placed the tabernacle (which measured 30 by 20 cubits) at the edge of fifty cubits (i.e., 50 cubits inwards) so that there was fifty cubits in front of the tabernacle and twenty cubits around the sides.” Now its width was fifty cubits. This is what and the breadth fifty every where (v. 18) means. However, I believe that the meaning of the breadth fifty every where is that the courtyard was a right-angled parallelogram,42. Literally, because of its many long right angles. In other words, the courtyard was a parallelogram that measured 50 cubits in width. Such a structure is 50 cubits in breadth every where, i.e., all along its width. Meijler suggests emending me-rov orekh zavyotav nitzavot (because of the length of its many angles) to meruva orekh zavyotav nitzavot (a right-angled parallelogram). Vat. Ebr. 38 reads: merchav arokh zeviyot, which means a right-angled parallelogram. This reading seems to be the most correct. Be that as it may, according to I.E. the import of our verse is that the tabernacle courtyard was not tapered but measured 100 by 50 cubits. and its width was fifty cubits on all sides.43 is that its width did not vary. There is no necessity to explain the breadth fifty every where as referring to the side of the courtyard,44 as Scripture does not repeat the dimensions length by width as it normally does.45 (fifty every where). If Scripture were speaking of a square it would read, chamishim al chamishim (fifty by fifty) (Filwarg). Also see Weiser.