Tanach · Acharonim on Tanach · Or HaChaim · Torah
Or HaChaim on Deuteronomy 9:23/אור החיים על דברים ט׳:כ״ג
אוּבִשְׁלֹחַ ה׳ וְגוֹ׳. פֵּרוּשׁ, לִיהוֹשֻׁעַ וְכָלֵב לְרַגֵּל הָאָרֶץ הָיְתָה כַּוָּנָתוֹ לֵאמֹר ״עֲלוּ וּרְשׁוּ אֶת הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי נוֹתֵן״ וְגוֹ׳, וּכְאָמְרוֹ בְּפָרָשַׁת שְׁלַח לְךָ (במדבר יג:ב) ״אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי נוֹתֵן״, וְעַיֵּן מַה שֶׁפֵּרַשְׁתִּי שָׁם. וְהִפְסִיק בְּעִנְיַן הַמְּרַגְּלִים וּבְעִנְיַן תַּבְעֵרָה וּמַסָּה וְכוּ׳ בְּאֶמְצַע מַעֲשֵׂה הָעֵגֶל, נִתְכַּוֵּן לְהַסְמִיךְ כָּל הַהַקְצָפוֹת, וְאִם הָיָה נִגְמָר סֵדֶר כָּל מַעֲשֵׂה הָעֵגֶל הָיָה מַפְלִיג בֵּין הַקְצָפָה לְהַקְצָפָה, וְהַהַפְלָגָה בָּזֶה תּוֹלִיד הֶעְדֵּר הַהֶרְגֵּשׁ שֶׁאֵלָיו יְכַוֵּן.
1 ובשלוח ה׳ אתכם, "And when the Lord sent you, etc." Moses referred to Joshua and Caleb whom G'd sent to spy out the land telling them: "ascend and take possession of the land אשר אני נתתי לכם, "which I have given to you." A comparison with Numbers 13,2 shows that what G'd had said was אשר אני נתן לבני ישראל, "which I am about to give to the children of Israel." Please look at what I have written on that verse. Moses interrupted recounting what happened during the episode of the golden calf by mentioning the episode with the spies as well as the events at Kivrot Hata-avah, at Massah, and at Taverah, because he wanted to lump together all the occasions when the people had aroused G'd's anger. If he had first completed recounting what happened during the episode of the golden calf he would have created so much of a pause between one act of rebellion and the next that the psychological impact of a series of acts of disobedience which he tried to create would have been diminished.