Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah

Ibn Ezra on Genesis 33:14/אבן עזרא על בראשית ל״ג:י״ד

אאתנהלה. כמו אתנהל עמם:

1AND I WILL JOURNEY ON. This is to be understood as, and I will journey on with them.

בלאטי. היו"ד נוסף או יהי לשון יחיד מדבר:

2GENTLY. The yod of le’itti (gently) is either superfluous³¹. Hence the yod of le’itti is superfluous. or is a first person pronominal suffix.³²

גלרגל המלאכה. בעבור המקנה שהוא מלאכתי והקרוב אלי כי פי' המלאכה מה שיוכל אדם לעשות בכחו וברשותו, גם הממון יקרא כך כמו "אם לא שלח ידו במלאכת רעהו" (שמות כב ז), ומזאת הגזרה מלת "מלאך", בעבור שהוא תחת רשות השולח, ויהיה לרגל כמו "ויברך ד' אותך לרגלי" (בראשית ל, ל) ויתכן להיות לרגל כמשמעו שהוליכם על רגליהם:

3ACCORDING TO THE PACE OF THE CATTLE. Because of the cattle, whose care is my work.³³ usually means work. I.E. explains why it refers to cattle here. I believe that the meaning of melakhah is what a person can do by himself or through his agent.³⁴ here refers to cattle. He now expands on the meaning of the word (Filwarg). According to the first interpretation “work” refers to cattle because Jacob’s work was taking care of cattle. According to the second interpretation “work” can refer directly to cattle, for one’s possessions are one’s work. Also, one’s property is called melakhah, as in whether he have not put his hand unto his neighbor’s goods (melekhet) (Ex. 22:7). The word messenger (malakh) comes from the same root. A malakh (messenger) is so called because he is under the control of the one who sends him. The meaning of the word regel (the pace) is the same as le-ragli (because of me),³⁵ (according to the pace) means because. Although the basic meaning of melachah is changed in the second interpretation, the meaning of le-regel (because) remains unchanged. as in and the Lord hath blessed thee because of me (le-ragli) (Gen. 30:30).³⁶ However, it is possible that le-regel should be taken literally, since Jacob led the animals on foot.³⁷ means cattle, why not interpret regel literally as meaning feet, since the animals walked, viz., according to the pace (foot) of the cattle.