Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah
Ramban on Deuteronomy 3:13/רמב"ן על דברים ג׳:י״ג
אכֹּל חֶבֶל הָאַרְגֹּב לְכָל הַבָּשָׁן הַהוּא יִקָּרֵא אֶרֶץ רְפָאִים, פֵּרוּשׁ וְכֹל חֶבֶל הָאַרְגֹּב לְכָל הַבָּשָׁן אֲשֶׁר הוּא נִקְרָא אֶרֶץ רְפָאִים, כִּלְשׁוֹן וְכֹל הַהִקְדִּישׁ שְׁמוּאֵל הָרֹאֶה וְשָׁאוּל בֶּן קִישׁ (דהי"א כו כח), הַהוֹשִׁיבוּ נָשִׁים נָכְרִיּוֹת (עזרא י יז), שֶׁהַהֵ"א בָּהֶם בִּמְקוֹם אֲשֶׁר, וְכֵן רַבִּים. וְהָיָה נִקְרָא מִכְּלַל אֶרֶץ רְפָאִים עַל שֵׁם עוֹג הַמּוֹלֵךְ בָּהּ אוֹ מִפְּנֵי שֶׁהָיְתָה מִתְּחִלָּה לָרְפָאִים וְנִשְׁאֲרָה לְעוֹג, כִּי הוּא וְהָעָם הַיּוֹשֵׁב בָּהּ מִיֶּתֶר הָרְפָאִים:
1ALL THE REGION OF THE ARGOB — ALL ‘HAHU’ (THAT) BASHAN IS CALLED THE LAND OF REPHAIM. The meaning thereof is: “and all the region of the Argob — all ‘the’ Bashan ‘asher’ (which)276 in hahu [habashan ‘hahu’ — “that” Bashan] as meaning asher (which): “the Bashan ‘which’” is called the land of Rephaim. is called the land of Rephaim” [I also gave to the half-tribe of Menasheh]. This usage [a letter hei meaning asher (which) or (who)] is also found in the following verses: And all ‘hahikdish’ Samuel the Seer, and Saul the son of Kish,277 in hahikdish means asher hikdish (“which” he dedicated). [meaning: asher hikdish — “‘which’ he dedicated”]; ‘hahoshivu’ foreign women278 [meaning: asher hoshivu — “‘who’ had married”]. In all these cases the letter hei is in the place of asher (which or who). There are many similar examples. Now [Argob] was considered part of the land of Rephaim because of Og who ruled over it, or because it originally belonged to the Rephaim and was left to Og because he and the people that dwelled in it were of the remnant of the Rephaim.279Va’ethchanan