Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah
Ibn Ezra on Numbers 11:8/אבן עזרא על במדבר י״א:ח׳
אשטו העם. מגזרת משוט בארץ וזה יורה כי לא היה נופל זה עם זה רק מפוזר ומפורד:
1THE PEOPLE WENT ABOUT. The word shatu (went about) is related to the word shut35. (going to and fro) in From going to and fro (mi-shut) in the earth (Job 1:7). This shows that the individual pieces of manna did not fall in one place36 but were spread and scattered.
בברחים. של היד ולא יתכן להפריד זה השם כי משנים יהיו הרחים:
2IN MILLS. Operated by hand. The word rechayim (mills) does not come in the singular,37 is in the plural. However, it also refers to the singular, that is, to a mill as in our verse, for rechayim (mills) is parallel to medochah (mortar), which is singular. for a mill consists of two parts.38
גבמדוכה. עץ או אבן שידוכו בה גם יתכן שיעשו עוגות מאשר ידוכו:
3IN MORTARS. A vessel made out of wood or stone. It is called a medocha (mortars)39 because they pound in it.40 comes from the root dalet, caf, heh, which means to crush. It was also possible to make cakes from what they pounded.41. I.E. notes that this should be interpreted, and seethed it in pots, or made cakes of it.
דעוגות. כמו ועשי עוגות:
4AND MADE CAKES. Compare, and make cakes (Gen. 18:6).42
הלשד. י"א כי הלמ"ד נוסף כלמ"ד שלאנן ושלו והיה ראוי להיות השמן מלרע בעבור שהוא תאר השם והנכון בעיני שהלמ"ד לשד שורש כמו נהפך לשדי והוא הפך בחרבוני קיץ והיא הלחה הנכבדת העולה למעלה מכל שמן ויהיה השמן מלעיל כמשמעו:
5A CAKE. Some say that the lamed of leshad (cake) is superfluous.43 (breast). According to this interpretation, leshad ha-shamen means breast of the oil. See Sifre on Num. 11:8. “Just as the suckling imbibes, so to speak, every possible flavor with the mother-milk, so the Israelites found all flavors in the manna” (translated by Rosenbaum & Silbermann, Num. p. 54). So too Rashi, “Our Rabbis explained it as meaning breasts.” It is similar to the lamed of shalanan (at ease)44. in at ease and quiet (Job 21:23). The word ha-shamen (with oil) should have been ultimately accented45 is ultimately accented. When the word shemen or shamen is a noun, it is penultimately accented; when an adjective, it is ultimately accented. because46 the word shamen (oil) is an adjective.47. However, I believe that the lamed of leshad is a root letter. The word leshad is similar to the word leshadi (my sap) in My sap was turned (Ps. 32:4). My (leshadi) sap stands in contrast to the droughts (charvone) in the droughts of summer (Ibid.). Leshad refers to the finest part of the oil that floats on top of all oil. In this case, the word ha-shamen is penultimately vocalized in accordance with the meaning of the word.48