Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah
Ibn Ezra on Leviticus 21:7/אבן עזרא על ויקרא כ״א:ז׳
אאשה זונה. לא מצאנו על דרך הפשט בכל המקרא זונה כי אם כמשמעה גם כן ויתנו את הילד בזונה כאשר פירשתיו:
1WOMAN THAT IS A HARLOT. If we follow the plain meaning of the text then we do not find in all of Scripture the word zonah (harlot) to have any but its literal meaning.26 is a woman who sells her body. According to the rabbis a zonah is a woman who had intercourse with an individual whom she is not permitted to marry, i.e., a woman who has relations with a close relative or with a non-Jew. Such a woman is considered a zonah even if the intercourse was not with her consent. Hence I.E.’s comment. The meaning of and have given a boy for a harlot (zonah) (Joel 4:3) is also as I have explained.27 in Joel 4:3 refers to a harlot. It means that they gave a young man in payment for sexual favors.
בוחללה. שאינה מפורסמת כזונה ולפי הפשט היה נראה מדברי יחזקאל כי אלמנות כהן מותרות לכהנים לכן דברי הקבלה הוא הנכון:
2OR PROFANED. A woman who is not known as a harlot.28. It is also possible that I.E. refers to a woman who is promiscuous but not a prostitute. It should be noted that according to the rabbis the reference is to a woman born of a marriage between a kohen and a woman prohibited to him (Kiddushin 77a). According to the plain meaning, it would appear from the words of Ezekiel29 that the widow of a kohen30. is permitted to marry other kohanim.31 may marry is the widow of another kohen, for Ezekiel states, Neither shall they take for their wives a widow…but they shall take…a widow that is the widow of a priest. The words of tradition32 may marry any widow. See Kiddushin 78b. are thus true.33 from marrying any widow. We thus must interpret Ezek. 44:22 as follows: Neither shall a kohen gadol take for their wives a widow…but some of the kohanim, that is, a common kohen, may take a widow (any widow, not only the widow of a kohen). See Kiddushin 78b.