Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah

Ramban on Deuteronomy 1:4/רמב"ן על דברים א׳:ד׳

אאֲשֶׁר יוֹשֵׁב בְּחֶשְׁבּוֹן, שֶׁלֹּא הָיְתָה שֶׁלּוֹ, אֲבָל לְכָדָהּ מִמֶּלֶךְ מוֹאָב וּבְנָאָהּ לִהְיוֹת לוֹ בֵּית מַלְכוּת. וְכֵן אֲשֶׁר יוֹשֵׁב בְּעַשְׁתָּרֹת בְּאֶדְרֶעִי, שֶׁהָיְתָה אֶרֶץ רְפָאִים וְהוּא מֶלֶךְ הָאֱמֹרִי (דברים ג':ח') כַּאֲשֶׁר אֲפָרֵשׁ בעה"י (להלן ב י ג יא). וּמִפְּנֵי שֶׁאָמַר אֲשֶׁר יוֹשֵׁב בְּעַשְׁתָּרֹת בְּאֶדְרֶעִי יוֹרֶה כִּי עַשְׁתָּרוֹת שֵׁם מָקוֹם אֲשֶׁר בּוֹ אֶדְרֶעִי. וּלְשׁוֹן סִפְרֵי (דברים ד) בְּעַשְׁתָּרוֹת שֶׁהָיָה קָשֶׁה כְּעַשְׁתָּרוֹת, בְּאֶדְרֶעִי זֶה מְקוֹם מַלְכוּת. וְכָתַב רַשִׁ"י (רש"י על דברים א':ד') עַשְׁתָּרוֹת לְשׁוֹן צוּקִין וְקֹשִׁי, וְעַשְׁתָּרוֹת זֶהוּ עַשְׁתְּרוֹת קַרְנַיִם שֶׁהָיוּ בָּהּ רְפָאִים שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (בראשית יד ה) וַיַּכּוּ אֶת רְפָאִים בְּעַשְׁתְּרֹת קַרְנַיִם. בְּאֶדְרֶעִי שֵׁם מַלְכוּת, וְכֵן כָּתוּב עַשְׁתְּרוֹת צֹאנֶךָ (דברים ז':י"ג) כְּתַרְגּוּמוֹ. וְרַבּוֹתֵינוּ אָמְרוּ (חולין פד) לָמָּה נִקְרָא שְׁמָן עַשְׁתָּרוֹת, שֶׁמְּעַשְּׁרוֹת אֶת בַּעֲלֵיהֶן וּמְחַזְּקוֹת אוֹתָן, כָּעַשְׁתָּרוֹת הַלָּלוּ שֶׁהֵם סְלָעִים חֲזָקִים. וְהָרַב מַרְכִּיב בּוֹ שְׁתֵּי לְשׁוֹנוֹת, וְלֹא יָדַעְנוּ מֵאֵיזֶה מָקוֹם הוֹצִיא שֶׁיִּהְיֶה עַשְׁתָּרוֹת שֵׁם צוּקִין וּסְלָעִים. אֲבָל יִתָּכֵן שֶׁנֹּאמַר שֶׁהוּא שֵׁם עֶדְרֵי הַצֹּאן מִלְּשׁוֹן עֹשֶׁר כְּדִבְרֵי חֲכָמִים, וְעַשְׁתָּרוֹת קַרְנַיִם הָיוּ הָרִים גְּבוֹהִים שֶׁעֲלֵיהֶם מְצוּדוֹת סְלָעִים, יְדַמֶּה אוֹתָם הַכָּתוּב לְקַרְנֵי הַבְּהֵמוֹת כְּמוֹ שֶׁיְּדַמֶּה אוֹתָם לְשִׁנַּיִם, כְּעִנְיָן שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (איוב לט כח) עַל שֶׁן סֶלַע וּמְצוּדָה, וְכֵן עַל קַרְנוֹת הַמִּזְבֵּחַ (שמות כט יב), וְכֵן בְּקֶרֶן בֶּן שָׁמֶן (ישעיהו ה א), אָמַר הַתַּרְגּוּם בְּטוּר רָם בְּאַרְעָא שַׁמִּינָא. וְשָׁם יַעֲלוּ עַשְׁתְּרוֹת הַצֹּאן הַתְּיָשִׁים וְהָעִזִּים וְהַיְּעֵלִים וְכַיּוֹצֵא בָּהֶן, וּלְכָךְ יִקָּרֵא עַשְׁתְּרוֹת קַרְנַיִם. וְכֵן לַבַּעַל וְלָעַשְׁתָּרוֹת (שופטים ב יג) הע"ז הָעֲשׂוּיָה כְּצוּרַת הַצֹּאן לְהָגֵן עֲלֵיהֶם כְּפִי סִכְלוּתָם, וּבְשִׁפְלוּת הָהָר בָּנוּ עִיר וּשְׁמָהּ אֶדְרֶעִי, וְהוּא שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (דברים ג':א') וַיֵּצֵא עוֹג מֶלֶךְ הַבָּשָׁן הוּא וְכָל עַמּוֹ לַמִּלְחָמָה אֶדְרֶעִי, כִּי אָסַף אֶת כָּל חֵילוֹ אֶל הָעִיר אֲשֶׁר שָׁם אַרְמוֹן הַמֶּלֶךְ וְכִסֵּא הַמַּלְכוּת. וְעִנְיַן סִפְרֵי (שם) מִדְרָשָׁם אָמְרוּ זַ"ל אֲשֶׁר יוֹשֵׁב בְּעַשְׁתָּרֹת בְּאֶדְרֶעִי, אִלּוּ לֹא הָיָה עוֹג קָשֶׁה וְשָׁרוּי בְּעַשְׁתָּרוֹת קָשֶׁה הָיָה, שֶׁהַמְּדִינָה קָשָׁה וְכוּ', וּלְפִיכָךְ יִדְרְשׁוּ בְּעַשְׁתָּרוֹת שֶׁהָיָה קָשֶׁה כְּעַשְׁתָּרוֹת, כְּלוֹמַר שֶׁהָיָה מְקוֹם מוֹשָׁבוֹ כְּמוֹ עַשְׁתְּרוֹת קַרְנַיִם הָעִיר הַחֲזָקָה שֶׁהָיָה הוּא וּמִשְׁפַּחְתּוֹ מִשָּׁם, כִּי עַתָּה אֵינֶנּוּ יוֹשֵׁב בְּעַשְׁתָּרוֹת כִּי בְּאֶרֶץ אֱמוֹרִי הוּא יוֹשֵׁב, וּמְקוֹם מַלְכוּת כְּלוֹמַר הַמְּדִינָה שֶׁהָיָה יוֹשֵׁב בָּהּ אֶדְרֶעִי, כִּי שֵׁם אֶרֶץ מַלְכוּתוֹ הַבָּשָׁן:

1AFTER HE HAD SMITTEN SIHON, THE KING OF THE AMORITES, WHO ‘DWELT’ IN HESHBON — for Heshbon was not his, but he conquered it from the king of Moab and he built it to be his royal capital. Similarly, and Og the king of Bashan, who ‘dwelt’ in Ashtaroth, at Edrei³⁹ means that it was previously the land of Rephaim⁴⁰ [and then it was occupied by the king of the Amorites] as I will explain⁴¹, 2:10; 3:11. with the help of G-d. And because Scripture states, who dwelt in Ashtaroth, at Edrei,³⁹ it indicates that Ashtaroth is the name of a place in which Edrei is located [as will be explained further]. The text of the Sifre is as follows:⁴² 3. “‘B’ashtaroth’ — it was as hard as ashtaroth. ‘B’edrei’ — this was the seat of the government [i.e., the royal city].” Rashi wrote: “Ashtaroth — is an expression denoting rocks and hardness. Ashtaroth is Ashteroth-karnaim⁴³ where the Rephaim were, as it is said, and they smote the Rephaim in Ashteroth-karnaim.⁴³ ‘B’edrei’ — this was the name of the kingdom [indicating that the kingdom of Edrei was located in Ashteroth-karnaim]. And⁴⁴ so it is written, ‘ashteroth’ of thy sheep,⁴⁵ meaning, as Targum [Onkelos] rendered it [‘the flocks of thy sheep’]. And our Rabbis have said:⁴⁶ Why is the name ashtaroth given to them [i.e., flocks of sheep]? It is because they ‘enrich’ [from the Hebrew word ashir — rich] their owners and strengthen them like these ashtaroth which are strong rocks.” [This is Rashi’s language].Now the Rabbi [Rashi] incorporated into the word [ashtaroth] two meanings [strength and riches], but we do not know from what source the Rabbi inferred that ashtaroth is a name for rocks and stones. But it is possible for us to say that ashtaroth is a term for flocks of sheep, from the word ashir (rich) as in the words of the Sages [quoted above: “Why is their name ashtaroth? It is because they enrich their owners”]. Ashteroth-karnaim⁴³ was a place of high mountains upon which there were strongholds of stone, these being likened by Scripture to “the horns of cattle,” just as Scripture likens them to “teeth,” as it says upon ‘the crag’ [literally: “the tooth”] of the rock, and the stronghold.⁴⁷ Similarly, upon ‘the horns’ of the altar.⁴⁸ So also, ‘b’keren’ ben shamen⁴⁹ [literally: “in a fruitful ‘horn'”] which the Targum [Yonathan ben Uziel] renders: “On a high hill, in a fruitful land.” There, [upon these high hills,] the flocks of sheep ascend, the he-goats, the she-goats, and the wild-goats⁵⁰. and their like; and therefore the place is called Ashteroth-karnaim⁵¹ [because the flocks which “enrich” their owners (ashtaroth) ascend to the “horns” of the mountain (karnaim)]. So also, and they served Baal and the Ashtaroth⁵¹ — ‘Ashtaroth’ because the idol was made in the form of a sheep in order to protect them [the flocks of sheep], in accordance with their foolish belief. [This is in line with our explanation of the word ashtaroth as a synonym for sheep.] Now at the foot of the mountain they built a city whose name was Edrei, this being intimated in the verse which states, and Og the king of Bashan came out against us, he and all his people, unto battle at Edrei,⁵² denoting that he gathered his entire army to the city where the palace of the king and the throne of the kingdom were. And this is the purport of the [following] Midrashic text [which seems to agree with Rashi’s interpretation], wherein the Rabbis, of blessed memory, have stated: “Who dwelt in Ashtaroth, at Edrei. Even if Og himself had not been difficult to defeat but had resided in Ashtaroth, he would have been difficult to defeat, because the city was a difficult one to capture etc.”⁵³ Therefore they interpreted, Ashtaroth to mean that it was “as hard as Ashtaroth,”⁵⁴ here does not indicate something hard. But because Og’s royal city Edrei was well fortified, the Sifre compares it to Ashteroth-karnaim where the Rephaim lived and from where Og originated. [the phrase from which Rashi, quoted above, deduced that the word ashtaroth is defined as “hard”], as if to say that his residence was like the fortified city of Ashteroth-karnaim⁴³ from which he and his family originated; for at that time he was not residing in Ashtaroth, but was residing in the land of the Amorites. And “the place of the government” [mentioned in the Sifre above] means that the city where he lived was Edrei⁵⁵ but Bashan was the name of the land of his kingdom.