Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah

Ibn Ezra on Genesis 4:10/אבן עזרא על בראשית ד׳:י׳

אצועקים אלי. איננו דבק עם קול. וכן "קול דודי הנה זה בא" (ש"ה ב ח), אל דודי הוא שב כאשר פירשתי בשיר השירים, והטעם כי שמע צעקת דמיו שנשפכו על האדמה והמתרגם אמר על בניו שהיה בכחו להולידם:

1CRIETH UNTO ME. Crieth unto Me is not connected to voice of (kol).¹⁹. Kol (voice) is singular, tzo’akim (crieth out) is a plural; thus tzo’akim cannot refer to kol. It is thus connected to blood of, which is a plural (Krinsky). Similarly in Hark, my beloved (kol dodi)! behold, he cometh, (Cant. 2:8), he cometh is connected to my beloved,²⁰). Cometh is connected to my beloved because it is the beloved who leaps and skips, not the voice; the voice neither leaps nor skips (Krinsky). Hinneh zeh ba can be translated as, behold, he cometh, or behold it cometh. as I have pointed out in my commentary on Canticles. The meaning of our verse is: I have heard the cry of your brother’s blood that was poured out upon the ground. However, Onkelos interprets thy brother’s blood as referring to the potential descendants of Abel.²¹ (blood of). Cf. Rashi.