Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah

Ibn Ezra on Genesis 28/אבן עזרא על בראשית כ״ח

אוכאשר שמע עשו שבירך יצחק עוד את אחיו, וצוה שלא יקח אשה מבנות כנען הלך אל דודו ולקח בתו ושמה בשמת גם מחלת כמו יתרו שהוא על דעתי חובב:

1[SO ESAU WENT UNTO ISHMAEL.] When Esau learned that Isaac blessed Jacob a second time and charged him not to take a wife of the daughters of Canaan,¹ he went unto his uncle Ishmael and married his daughter Basemath, who was also called Mahalath.². However, Gen. 36:3 tells us that Esau married Basemath, Ishmael’s daughter. I.E. solves the discrepancy by explaining that the daughter of Ishmael whom Esau married had two names. She, like Jethro, had two names, for I believe that Jethro and Hobab are one and the same person.³

באחות נביות. נכבד היה מכל אחיו או שהי' לישמעאל נשים רבות וזאת היתה אחות נביות:

2THE SISTER OF NEBAIOTH. He was the most important of all his brothers.⁴ It is also possible that Ishmael had many wives and that Mahalath was Nabaioth’s sister from the same mother.⁵

אאמר הגאון, כי וילך חרנה. ללכת, ואיננו רק כמשמעו ושב לבאר מה שפגע בדרך, ולא הלך ביום אחד, כי בדרך לן:

1[AND JACOB WENT OUT FROM BEER-SHEBA.] Saadiah Gaon is of the opinion that va-yelekh charanah (and went toward Haran) is to be interpreted as, to go to Haran.⁶) in place of an infinitive (la-lekhet), with the perfect having the meaning of an infinitive. Saadiah thus translates our verse: Jacob went out of Beersheba to go to Haran. However, this is not so. Va-yelekh charanah is to be interpreted literally.⁷ After telling us that Jacob left Beersheba and went to Haran, Scripture returns and tells us what he encountered on the way to Haran.⁸ Jacob did not arrive in Haran on the day he left Beersheba,⁹ 68:9 which states that Jacob arrived in Haran on the same day that he left Beersheba. because Scripture explicitly tells us that he spent a night on the way.

אוטעם פתחות בי"ת במקום. דברי משה, והטעם במקום הידוע היום, וכן אמר הושע "ושם ידבר עמנו" (הושע יב ה) כי הוא התנבא על ירבעם בן יואש, והוא היה בבית אל ואמר לשון רבים בעדו ובעד עמוס, ובספר עמוס מבואר ועל דרך הפשט לא יתכן להיות ויפגע, כמו "אל תפגע בי" (ירמיה ז טז) כי לא מצאנו במקרא שנקרא השם מקום ואל תשים לבך לדרש ממקום אחר (אסתר ד יד) כי איננו כלל על השם ומלת אחר לעד:

1[AND HE LIGHTED UPON THE PLACE.] The reason the bet of ba-makom (the place)¹⁰ and ba-makom. The former means in a place, the latter, in the place. “The place” implies a specific, well known place. When Jacob came to Beth-el there was as yet nothing significant about the place. Why then does Scripture say that Jacob alighted upon the place? is vocalized with a pattach is that Moses in writing the Torah did so in order to indicate the place that was well known in his time.¹¹ Similarly the prophet Hosea said, And there (at Beth-el) he would speak with us (Hos. 12:5).¹² Hosea said this because he prophesied in Beth-el concerning Jeroboam the son of Joash.¹³. Hosea used the term “with us” because Amos, too, prophesied in Bethel.¹⁴ It is clear from the Book of Amos that Beth-el was a holy place. According to the plain meaning of the text, va-yifga (and he lighted) is not to be translated as, and he prayed, as in neither make intercession (tifga) to Me (Jer. 7:16),¹⁵ (and he lighted upon the place). The Talmud states that va-yifga means, and he prayed (Berakhot. 26b; Ta’anit 7b; Sotah 14a; Sanhedrin 95b). According to I.E., if va-yifga is interpreted as, and he prayed, ba-makom must be interpreted to mean God. However, this is not necessarily so. Indeed, the Talmud interprets va-yifga ba-makom to mean, he prayed in the place. because we never find in the entire Bible the word makom (place) meaning God.¹⁶. I.E. points out that this a Rabbinic not a Biblical term for God. Hence va-yifga ba-makom cannot be translated as, and he prayed to God, and va-yifga cannot be rendered, and he prayed. Do not pay any attention to the Midrashic interpretation that explains makom, in makom acher (Es. 4:14), as referring to God,¹⁷ because it most certainly does not. Proof of this is found in the word acher (another) which follows makom.¹⁸), an impossible rendition.

במאבני המקום. טעמו אחת מאבני המקום:

2OF THE STONES OF THE PLACE. Its meaning is: one of the stones of the place.¹⁹

גמראשותיו. לשון רבים כמו "מרגלותיו" (רות ג ד ויד), והתימא מרב שמואל שערב חלומות בני אדם עם חלום הנבואה:

3UNDER HIS HEAD. Me-ra’ashotav (under his head) is a plural.²⁰ It is similar to margelotav (his feet) (Ruth 3:4; 14).²¹ It is surprising that Rabbi Samuel Ben Hofni confused the dreams of common men with prophetic dreams.²²

אודרך סלם להיות סמל, או על מספר מיני דרש הוא, וה"ר שלמה הספרדי אמר כי סלם רמז לנשמה העליונה, ומלאכי אלהים מחשבות החכמה, ויאמר ר"י כי טעם סולם שעלתה בו תפלתו, וירדה ישועתו מן השמים, ואלה המפרשים לא ראו נבואת זכריה ועמוס וירמיה, והטעם דרך משל, כי כל דבר לא יכחד מן השם, ודברי מטה תלוים בעליונים, וכאלו סלם ביניהן שיעלו המלאכים בו להודיע הדברים אחר שהתהלכו בארץ, ג"כ כתוב ומלאכים אחרים יורדים למלאות שליחות השם כדרך מלך עם משרתיו:

1[AND HE DREAMED, AND BEHOLD A LADDER SET UP ON THE EARTH.] Those who say that the ladder seen by Jacob refers to a statue,²³ (ladder) gives us semel (statue). According to the Midrash God showed Jacob the statue that Nebuchadnezzar would erect and the statue that King Manasseh would erect and place in the Temple. Cf. Bereshit Rabbah 68: 19-21. or that it refers to Sinai because it is numerically equivalent to it,²⁴ and Sinai are numerically equivalent to 130. According to this interpretation it was prophetically shown that Jacob’s descendants would receive the Torah at Sinai. Cf. Bereshit Rabbah 68:16. are indulging in Midrash. Rabbi Solomon ibn Gabirol, the Spaniard, says that Jacob’s “ladder” alludes to man’s heavenly soul,²⁵, p. 39. and that “the angels of God” signify thoughts of wisdom.²⁶ Rabbi Joshua²⁷. 38 does not have the title rabbi prefixed to Joshua. It appears that Vat. Ebr. 38 is correct, as it is highly unlikely that I.E. would call a Karaite scholar rabbi. The title rabbi was probably inserted by a scribe who was unaware that the reference is to a Karaite. Some of the editions omit Joshua’s interpretation in totto. explains the dream of the ladder to mean that Jacob’s prayers ascended the Heavens via the ladder and in response to his supplications salvation was sent down to him. These commentators have apparently not studied²⁸ the prophecies of Zechariah, Amos and Jeremiah.²⁹ The way to interpret Jacob’s dream is to view it as a parable. It teaches that nothing is hidden from God and that what happens below is contingent on the decree from above.³⁰ There is thus, as it were, a ladder linking heaven and earth by which angels ascend to inform God what they have seen on earth after going over it. Scripture also states that other angels come down to fulfill God’s commands. The imagery presented is that of a king and his servants.³¹

אופרצת. כמו ורבית וכן "ויפרוץ האיש" (בראשית ל מג):

1AND THOU SHALT SPREAD ABROAD. U-faratzta (and thou shalt spread abroad) is to be rendered: and thou shalt multiply. Va-yifrotz ha-ish (and the man increased) is similar (Gen. 30:43).

אאכן יש ד'. הטעם בעבור שימצאו מקומות יראו שם נסים ולא אוכל לפרש למה זה כי סוד מופלא הוא:

1SURELY THE LORD IS IN THIS PLACE. The meaning of Jacob’s statement is that there are places where miracles are seen.³² I cannot explain why this is so because it is a deep mystery.³³. 38) suggests that when I.E. says, I cannot explain, he means, I am not permitted to explain.

אכי אם בית אלהים. שיתפלל אדם בו בשעת צרכו ותשמע תפלתו כי המקום נבחר, ורבים יתמהו איך הקים יעקב מצבה והנה שכחו כי י"ב מצבות הקים משה והכתוב לא אסר לשום מצבה לשם, רק אמר "לא תקים לך מצבה אשר שנא" (דבר' טז כב), ובגעתי אל מקומו אפרשנו:

1THIS IS NONE OTHER THAN THE HOUSE OF GOD. This is a chosen place where a man in time of need will pray and his supplications will be accepted. Many ask, how could Jacob set up a pillar?³⁴ However, they have forgotten that Moses set up twelve pillars.³⁵ Scripture does not prohibit a pillar set up to honor the Lord. Scripture merely states, Neither shalt thou set thee up a pillar, which the Lord thy God hateth (Deut. 16:22). I will explain the latter verse when I come to it.³⁶, i.e., a pillar set up to an idol.

אויצק שמן על ראשה. להכירה בשובו:

1AND POURED OIL UPON THE TOP OF IT. So that he would recognize it when he returned.

אוטעם והיה ד' לי לאלהים. זה השם הנכבד כי כן כתוב "והנה ד' נצב עליו" (בראשית כח יג) ובפ' אלה שמות תמצאנו:

1[THEN SHALL THE LORD BE MY GOD.] The Lord that shall be my God is the One known by the Tetragrammaton. Scripture clearly states, And, behold the Lord (spelled with the tetragramaton) stood beside him (v. 13). You will find an explanation of this name of God in my comments on the first Torah portion of Exodus.³⁷

אוטעם יהיה בית אלהים. מקום קבוע לתפלתי ולהוציא שם מעשר מכל אשר תתן לי ממון לתתו למי שהוא ראוי לקחתו לכבוד ד', ולהיות לוי עשירי דרך דרש כי אין בתורה שיתן האדם מעשר בניו רק מעשר בקר וצאן ותבואה:

1[GOD’S HOUSE.] The meaning of shall be God’s House is: it will be a fixed place for my prayers and for my tithing; for out of all the money that thou shalt give me, I will give a tithe out of respect for God to one who is fit to receive it.³⁸ Those who say that the tithe refers to Levi³⁹ 70:7 and Pirke de-Rabbi Eliezer, Chap. 37. are indulging in Midrash. This is so because we do not find anywhere in the Torah that a man shall tithe his children. The only tithes that we find in the Pentateuch are cattle, sheep and produce.