Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah
Ibn Ezra on Genesis 9:2/אבן עזרא על בראשית ט׳:ב׳
אוחתכם. מפעלי הכפל מגזרת "תראו חתת" (איוב ו כא) כמו חתתכם:
1AND THE DREAD OF YOU. The root of ve-chittechem (and the dread of you) is chet, tav, tav. It comes from the same root as chatat (terror) in Ye, see a terror (chatat) (Job 6:21). Chittechem is synonymous with chatattekhem.1 (terror or dread) with the pronominal suffix would read chatattekhem (your dread). In chittekhem a tav is missing; in chatattechem the whole root is present.
בבכל אשר תרמש האדמה. הטעם על האדמה או תהיה האדמה פועלת:
2AND UPON ALL WHEREWITH THE GROUND TEEMETH. It means everything which creeps upon the ground.2 as tirmos al ha’adamah. Or, ha’adamah (the ground) is the subject.3 means, upon all creeping things which the ground will bring forth (Weiser). In the former, ground (adamah) is the object, in the latter the subject. According to the second interpretation, tirmos means will give birth to creeping things.
גבידכם נתנו. כי בידכם
3INTO YOUR HAND ARE THEY DELIVERED. This is to be read as if written, “because” into your hand are they delivered.
דוי"א כי בי"ת בְכֹל ובְכָל מקום ווי"ן, והקרוב שהוא דבק עם מוראכם:
4[AND UPON ALL.] Some say that the bet of be-khol (and upon all) and of u-ve-khol (and upon all) are in place of a vav.4, and u-ve-khol should be read as if written ve-khol (and all). According to this interpretation the second half of our verse is an independent clause stating: and all wherewith the ground teemeth and all the fish of the sea; into your hand are delivered. According to this interpretation we do not have to add the word “because” before into your hand are they delivered. However, it should be noted that this comment is difficult. U-ve-khol has a vav. Weiser suggests interpreting I.E.: and the bet of u-ve-khol is superfluous. Cf. Weiser and Cherez. However, it is more likely that this clause is connected to And the fear of you.5 has the meaning of on; be-khol thus means upon all rather than and all as in the former interpretation. The same is true for u-ve-khol (Weiser). According to this explanation the second half of the verse is a continuation of the first half. The entire verse should be read as follows: And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast of the earth… and upon all (be-khol) wherewith the ground teemeth, and upon all (u-ve-khol) the fish of the sea; because into your hand are they delivered. According to this interpretation “because” has to be added to the text (Cherez).