Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah
Ibn Ezra on Genesis 38:1/אבן עזרא על בראשית ל״ח:א׳
אויהי בעת ההוא. אין זה העת כאשר נמכר יוסף רק קודם המכרו, וכמוהו "משם נסעו הגדגדה" (דבר' יוד ז), "בעת ההיא הבדיל ד' את שבט הלוי" (שם שם ח), ושבט הלוי נבחר בשנה השנית, ונסעו אל גדגד בשנת הארבעים, ובמקומו אפרשנו ולמה הזכיר הכתוב זאת הפרשה במקום הזה והיה ראוי להיות אחר והמדנים מכרו אותו פרשת "ויוסף הורד מצרימה", להפריש בין מעשה יוסף בדבר אשת אדוניו, למעשה אחיו, והוצרכתי לפי' הזה, בעבור שאין מיום שנמכר יוסף עד יום רדת אבותינו במצרים רק כ"ב שנה והנה נולד אונן שהוא שני לבני יהודה, וגדל עד שהיה לו זרע וזה לא ימצא פחות מי"ב שנה, ועוד וירבו הימים, גם הרתה תמר והולידה פרץ והוא בא אל מצרים ויש לו שני בנים, ואל יקשה עליך דבר בצלאל כי בגעתי אל מקומו אפרשנו:
1AND IT CAME TO PASS AT THAT TIME. This does not refer to the time that Joseph was sold.1 It refers to the events that happened prior to that time. From thence they journeyed unto Gudgod…At that time the Lord separated the tribe of Levi, to bear the ark of the covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to minister unto Him, and to bless in His name, unto this day (Deut. 10:7, 8) is similar.2. The tribe of Levi was chosen to minister unto the Lord in the second year while Israel journeyed to Gudgod in the fortieth year.3 I will explain the latter verses in their proper place. Why, then, did Scripture insert this chapter (Chap. 38) at this point when logic dictates that And Joseph was brought down to Egypt (Gen. 39:1) should follow And the Midianites sold him (Joseph) into Egypt (Gen. 37:36)?4 The Bible placed this chapter (38) here to contrast the behavior of Joseph vis-a-vis his master’s wife with that of Judah toward his daughter-in-law.5 (Gen. 39:7) he refused. On the other hand when Judah saw the harlot in the entrance to Enaim he said to her, Come, I pray thee, let me come in unto thee (Gen. 38:16). What forced me to offer this interpretation is the fact that only twenty-two years passed between the sale of Joseph and the descent of our ancestors into Egypt.6 Now we learn in this chapter of the birth of Onan, Judah’s second son,7 and his reaching the age of procreation, which at the very earliest starts at the age of 12. Scripture goes on to state, And in the process of time (v. 12).8. That is, following Onan’s death Tamar, his widow, dwelt in her father’s house for a long time. The chapter then tells us that Tamar conceived and gave birth to Perez. This same Perez came to Egypt with two sons of his own (Gen. 46:12).9 Do not be disturbed by the question of Bezalel,10 69b: “Whence do we know that the first generations produced children at eight years? This is to be inferred from the following: Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah (Ex. 35:30), and it is written:..And Caleb (the son of Hezron) took unto him Ephrath, who bore him Hur. And Hur begot Uri, and Uri begot Bezalel (I Chron. 2:19, 20). When Bezalel was engaged in building the Tabernacle he was at least 13 years old as it is written, came every man from his work which they wrought (Ex. 36:4) and one is not called a man before the age of 13. And there is a Baraitha which states: The first year Moses prepared all that was necessary for the Tabernacle, and in the second year he erected it and sent the spies. And it is written: And Caleb the son of Jephunneh said…Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh-barnea (Josh. 14:6, 7) Now deduct 14, the age of Bezalel, from the age of Caleb when he was sent as a spy and there remains 26. Deduct two years for the three pregnancies with Uri and Hur and Bezalel, and there remains 24. Hence each of them produced children at the age of 8.” It should be noted that the above is based on identifying Caleb ben Hezron (I Chron. 2:18-20) as Caleb ben Jephunneh (Josh. 14:6, 7). However, according to I.E. these two Calebs were not the same. Hence, the entire Talmudic passage quoted above is Aggadic and not in keeping with the plain meaning of the text. for I will explain it when I come to it.