Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah

Ibn Ezra on Genesis 46:27/אבן עזרא על בראשית מ״ו:כ״ז

איש אומר, כי מספר שבעים בעבור שהוא סך חשבון, כי ששים ותשע הי', וזה המפרש טעה, בעבור שמצאנו כל נפש בניו ובנותיו שלשים ושלש והם שלשים ושתים, ובדרש כי יוכבד נולדה בין החומות גם זה תמה, למה לא הזכיר הכתוב הפלא שנעשה עמה שהולידה משה והיא בת ק"ל שנה, ולמה הזכיר דבר שרה שהיתה בת תשעים, ולא די לנו זה הצער, עד שעשו פייטנים פיוטים ביום שמחת תורה, יוכבד אמי אחרי התנחמי והיא בת ר"נ שנה, וכי אחיה חי כך וכך שנים דרך אגדה או דברי יחיד, והנכון בעיני שיעקב בחשבון וממנו יחל, כאילו אמר כל נפש בניו ובנותיו עם נפשו שלשים ושלש, והראיה ע"ז שאמר בתחלה יעקב ובניו, ואם יטען טוען ויאמר, כי הנה כתוב, ויהי כל נפש יוצאי ירך יעקב שבעים נפש, דע כי הכתוב לא חשש להוציא אחד משבעים, כאשר אמר "אשר ילד לו בפדן ארם" (בראשית לה כו) ולא נולד לו בנימין שם, כי גם בזו הפרשה, שנים עדים, האחד שאמר "ואלה שמות בני ישראל הבאים מצרימה יעקב ובניו" (בראשית מו ח) והנה הזכיר כי יעקב מבני ישראל, כי לא הלך הכתוב כי אם אחר הרוב, והעד השני "כל הנפש לבית יעקב הבאה מצרימה שבעים" (בראשית מו כז), ומנשה ואפרים לא באו אל מצרים, כי שם הי' ושם נולדו וכתוב אחריו "בשבעים נפש ירדו אבותיך מצרימה" (דברים י כב) ואלה שניהם לא ירדו, ג"כ זה הכתוב לעד כי יעקב נכנס בחשבון כי נפש יש לו והוא העיקר:

1[ALL THE SOULS OF THE HOUSE OF JACOB, THAT CAME INTO EGYPT, WERE THREESCORE AND TEN.] An exegate says that three score and ten is a round number, since in fact they numbered sixty-nine.¹¹ However, this commentator erred, since we find Scripture stating, with regard to Leah’s offspring who numbered thirty-two, all the souls of his sons and daughters were thirty and three (v. 15). ¹² The Midrash tries to solve the problem by saying that Jochebed was born between the ramparts when they entered Egypt. ¹³ 123a-b. The point being that when Jacob was going down to Egypt, Jochebed was yet in her mother’s womb and could not be counted as a person. However, as soon as the Israelites come to Egypt she was born. Hence 70 descendants of Jacob came to Egypt. However, this, too, presents a problem, viz., why doesn’t Scripture record the great wonder of Jochebed giving birth to Moses when she was one hundred and thirty years old?¹⁴). Moses was 80 at the time of the Exodus (Ex. 7:7); thus Moses was born 130 years after the descent into Egypt. If his mother was born at the beginning of the descent then she had to be 130 years old at the time of Moses’ birth. Furthermore, why does Scripture note that Sarah was ninety when she bore a son?¹⁵ And as if we didn’t have enough problems with the above, the liturgical poets composed a hymn for Simchat Torah reading, Jochebed my mother will be comforted after me thereby indicating that Jochebed was two hundred and fifty years old at the time of Moses’ death.¹⁶ As to the Midrash which states that Ahijah the Shilonite lived for hundreds of years,¹⁷ 121b and Seder Olam 1. There it is stated that the prophet Ahijah, who prophesied during the reign of King Jeroboam, saw Amram the father of Moses. Ahijah thus lived close to 600 years. This is therefore a greater miracle than that of Jochebed, and yet Scripture doesn’t mention it. Hence this Midrash can serve as support for the liturgical poets that Scripture omits certain miracles (Cherez). Krinsky explains that the liturgical poets can argue that if Ahijah could live 600 years, why is it hard to believe that Jochebed was still alive at the time of Moses’ death? it is an aggadic statement or an individual opinion.¹⁸ I believe that the way to solve our problem is by recognizing the fact that the Bible includes Jacob among the seventy who came into Egypt and starts the count of the seventy from him. The verse (15) is to be interpreted as if it read: all the souls of his sons and his daughters plus himself were thirty-three. Proof that this is the way to interpret this verse is that Scripture previously states, And these are the names of the children of Israel, who came into Egypt, Jacob and his sons (v. 8).¹⁹ Should one argue and say, “Does not Scripture explicitly state, And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls (Ex. 1:5)?²⁰ Know that Scripture isn’t concerned with noting that one of the seventy did not come from Jacob’s loins, as it didn’t bother to leave out Benjamin when it said, These are the sons of Jacob, that were born to him in Paddan-aram (Gen. 35:26), even though Benjamin was not born there. We have two proofs in our own Torah portion that this is the style of Scripture. First, the Pentateuch states, And these are the names of the children of Israel, who came into Egypt, Jacob and his sons (v. 8). The Torah thus includes Jacob among the sons of Israel. It does so because Scripture speaks of the majority of those who came to Egypt. Secondly, Scripture states, all the souls of the house of Jacob, that came into Egypt, were three score and ten (Gen. 46:27). However, Manasseh and Ephraim did not come into Egypt, they were there to begin with, having been born in Egypt.²¹ In the same vein another verse²². 38. reads, Thy fathers went down into Egypt with three score and ten souls (Deut. 10:22).²³ has been translated as souls, in keeping with I.E.’s translation. However, as noted, Manasseh and Ephraim did not go down to Egypt. This verse²⁴ is also proof that Jacob is counted among the seventy, for he had a soul²⁵. Since Jacob had a soul he is included in the souls that came into Egypt and similarly with Deut. 10:22. and he was the most important of them all.²⁶