Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah
Ibn Ezra on Numbers 23:8/אבן עזרא על במדבר כ״ג:ח׳
אמה אקוב לא קבה אל. כטעם קללה והה"א תחת וי"ו כה"א אהלה וכן ה"א כי פרעה אהרן והמלה מפעלי הכפל והשלמה קבבו כמו סבבו ואם היא מלה זרה:
1HOW SHALL I CURSE, WHOM GOD HATH NOT CURSED. The word kabboh means to curse. Its heh is in place of a vav.39 rather than kabbo. The latter is the usual form. Hence I.E.’s comment. It is like the heh in oholoh40 rather than the more usual oholo. (his tent) (Gen. 12:8) and the heh in fera’oh41. (let them loose) in for Aaron had let them loose (Ex. 32:25). Kabboh comes from a double root.42. Its full form43 is kavevo (they curse him). Compare, savevo44. Both double root letters are present in savevu. (they surrounded him) although it is irregular.45 is not found in Scripture (Krinsky). The form used is sevavuhu (I Kings 5:17). For other interpretations see Filwarg and Meijler.
בומה אזעם לא זעם ה'. מגזרת זעם והטעם כפול:
2AND HOW SHALL I EXECRATE, WHOM GOD HATH NOT EXECRATED. The words ezam (shall I execrate) and za’am (execrate) come from the root, zayin, ayin, mem (anger). Scripture repeats itself.46