Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah

Ibn Ezra on Genesis 49:6/אבן עזרא על בראשית מ״ט:ו׳

אבסודם אל תבוא נפשי. אמר רב אהרן שפי' אל תבוא נפשי, כמו "ובא השמש" (קהלת א ה) והטעם שלא ארצה להיות חוץ מעצתם, והנה פירושו הפך הדבר, כי מה טעם לכלי המס, והלא אמר לשניהם "עכרתם אותי" (בראשית לד, ל), ובאמת כי הסתכן יעקב וביתו על ידם, לולי חתת אלהים הי' מסבבים להשחית הכל, וכן פי' ארור אפם, וברצונם עקרו שור ארור כי אפם עז, ואלה פירושים קרים, בסודם אל תבא נפשי, אמר ר' משה הכהן ז"ל, כי כבודי כמו נפשי, ורבים בס' תהלות כמוהו, ויפה פי', כי הטעם הוא כפול כדרך הנבואות, שאל אביך (דבר' לב ז) "מה אקוב" (במדבר כג ח), והנה בסודם כמו בקהלם, ותבא כמו תחד, ונפשי כמו כבודי ויאמר רבי יהודה בן בַלעַם הספרדי שטעה ר' משה כי כבוד הנפש הוא הגוף כמו עדי בצואר כטעם המשביע בטוב עדיך (תהלים קג ה) וראייתו "וכבודי לעפר ישכן סלה" (שם ז ו), ואני אומר שר יהודה טעה כי הנה הכתוב אומר למען יזמרך כבוד (תהלים ל יג) לכן שמח לבי ויגל כבודי (שם טז ט) אף בשרי שהוא הגוף, וזה כבודי לעפר הוא על דרך משל, שיכניע נפשו עד העפר שאין למטה הימנו, והנה אתן לו עד נאמן, והוא "דבקה לעפר נפשי" (שם קיט כה):

1LET MY SOUL NOT COME INTO THEIR COUNCIL. Rabbi Aaron²⁸ explained the word tavo (come) in Let my soul not come (tavo) as having the meaning of set like the meaning of ba (goeth down, to set) in and the sun goeth down (ba) (Eccles. 1:5).²⁹ means to come. In Eccles. 1:5 the word ba means sets, i.e., when the sun goes down (sets) it is no longer in the sky. Similarly the word tavo, which comes from the same root, here means will set. Let my soul not set from their council means let my soul always be in their council. He interpreted let my soul not come into their council as meaning, I do not want to be outside of their council. However, Rabbi Aaron’s interpretation inverts the meaning of the verse.³⁰ to mean let my soul not set from their council. The verse means I do not want my soul to be in their council. Thus Rabbi Aaron’s interpretation is precisely the opposite of what the verse actually says. If Jacob praised Simeon and Levi, why did he mention weapons of violence? Furthermore, Jacob told his sons, Ye have troubled me, to make me odious unto the inhabitants of the land (Gen. 34:30).³¹ The truth of the matter is that Simeon and Levi placed Jacob and his household in great jeopardy by their actions in Shechem. Indeed, were it not for the terror of God that was upon the cities that were round about them (Gen. 35:5), they would have surrounded Jacob and his family and exterminated them all. He (Rabbi Aaron) similarly explained³²) and may they multiply in Israel (va-afitzem bi’yisra’el) (Filwarg). Cursed be their anger (v. 7) as meaning and in their self will they uprooted a cursed wall,³³ (they houghed oxen) as they uprooted a wall. for their anger was fierce. The above explanations are unpalatable.³⁴ Let my soul not come into their council.³⁵ Rabbi Moses Ha-Kohen³⁶ says that kevodi (my glory) is synonymous with nafshi (my soul). He notes that we find the two often used synonymously in the book of Psalms. Rabbi Moses’ interpretation is correct since our text repeats itself in different words,³⁷, in the second kevodi. However, both mean one and the same. as is the style of prophetic statements. We thus find, Ask thy father, and he will declare unto thee, Thine elders, and they will tell thee (Deut. 32:7), and (in Num. 23:8) How shall I curse, whom God hath not cursed? And how shall I execrate, whom the Lord hath not execrated? Thus into their council means the same as unto their assembly, come (tavoh) the same as be united (techad), and nafshi the same as kevodi. However, Rabbi Judah ben Balam the Spaniard³⁸, p. 940). says that Rabbi Moses erred. He maintains that kavod (glory) refers to the body because the body is the glory (kavod) of the soul in the same way that a necklace is the ornament to the neck,³⁹ as we find in the verse Who satisfieth thy body (edyekh) with good things (Ps. 103:5).⁴⁰ ordinarily means your ornament. J.P.S. translates it as thine old age. Rabbi Judah Balam interprets edyekh as referring to the body. However, I.E. in Psalms interprets edyekh as referring to the soul. Rabbi Judah offers as a proof text,⁴¹ refers to the body. Yea, let him lay my glory (kevodi) in the dust. Selah. (Ps. 7:6).⁴² However, I say that Rabbi Judah errs, for we find Scripture saying, So that my glory (kevodi) may sing praise to Thee (Ps. 30:13),⁴³) may sing praise to thee. We thus see that kavod refers to the soul. Rabbi Judah might retort that Ps. 30:13 should be interpreted: so that my body may sing praise to thee, or all that have a human form (kavod) may sing praise to thee. and Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory (kevodi) rejoiceth; My flesh (i.e., my body) also dwelleth in safety (Ps. 16:9).⁴⁴ must refer to the soul for otherwise body is mentioned twice in our verse. I.E. in Psalms interprets my heart as referring to man’s intelligence, my glory (kevodi) to man’s soul, and my flesh to the body. As to the proof which Rabbi Judah offered from Yea, let him lay my glory in the dust, it is figurative. What the verse means is that my soul will be lowered as low as possible, i.e., to the dust. Positive proof that my interpretation is correct comes from My soul (nafshi) cleaveth unto the dust (Ps. 119:25).⁴⁵

בתחד. מלשון יחד, ועל דעת ר' משה הכהן המדקדק ז"ל, שהנח הנעלם תחת אלף אחד, וכן אמר על "לא תֵשָם" (בראשית מז יט),

2BE UNITED. Techad (be united) is related to the word yachad (united).⁴⁶. However, according to Rabbi Moses Ha-Kohen, the grammarian of blessed memory, the tzere beneath the tav of techad takes the place of the alef of echad.⁴⁷. He similarly explains the word tesham (be desolate) in and that the land be not desolate (tesham) (Gen. 47:19).⁴⁸ is alef, shin, mem and the tav is vocalized with a tzere to make up for the dropped alef. I.E. holds that it comes from the root yod, shin, mem. Cf. I.E.’s comments on Gen. 47:19.

גוטעם בסודם כמו "בהוסדם יחד עלי" (תהלים לא יד), אחר שכליהם הם חמס, אל תבא נפשי בסודם:

3[INTO THEIR COUNCIL.] Be-sodam (into their council) is analogous to be-hivvasedam (while they took council) in while they took council (be-hivvasedam) together against me (Ps. 31:14).⁴⁹ (Krinsky) and mean secret council. The meaning of our verse is: since Simeon and Levi’s weapons are ones of violence (v. 5), Let my soul not come into their council.

דהרגו איש. שם המין, כמו "שור וחמור" (בראשית לב, ו) והרמז על אנשי עיר שכם:

4THEY SLEW MEN. Scripture employs the term ish (man) generically as it does shor (ox) and chamor (ass) for oxen and asses (Gen. 32:6). They slew men alludes to the inhabitants of the city of Shechem.

השור. חומה, וכן "צעדה עלי שור" (בראשית מט כב), וכבר ביארתי בס' מאזנים, כי החולם והשורק יתחלפו זה בזה,

5OXEN. Shor (oxen) is to be rendered as wall. We similarly read, Its branches run over the wall (shur) (v. 22). I have already explained in my work Moznayim that the cholam and shuruk interchange.⁵⁰ and verse 22 shur presents no problem.

וועקרו, כמו "סוסיהם תעקר" (יהושע יא, ו), וזה אות כי עיר שכם גדולה היתה כי היא מוקפת חומה:

6[HOUGHED.] Ikkeru (houghed) is similar to the word te’akker (hough) in thou shalt hough (te’akker) their horses (Josh. 11:6).⁵¹ is to be translated, they uprooted a wall. This verse shows that Shechem was a large city since it had a wall.