Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah

Ramban on Exodus 1:1/רמב"ן על שמות א׳:א׳

אטַעַם וְאֵלֶּה שְׁמוֹת כִּי הַכָּתוּב יִרְצֶה לִמְנוֹת עִנְיַן הַגָּלוּת מֵעֵת רִדְתָּם לְמִצְרַיִם, כִּי אָז גָּלוּ בְּרֹאשׁ גּוֹלִים, כַּאֲשֶׁר פֵּרַשְׁתִּי, וּלְפִיכָךְ יַחְזֹר אֶל תְּחִלַּת הָעִנְיָן שֶׁהוּא מִפָּסוּק "וְכָל זַרְעוֹ הֵבִיא אִתּוֹ מִצְרָיְמָה" (בראשית מו ז), וְשָׁם כָּתוּב אַחֲרָיו "וְאֵלֶּה שְׁמוֹת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הַבָּאִים מִצְרַיְמָה" וְגוֹ', וְאוֹתוֹ הַפָּסוּק בְּעַצְמוֹ הוּא שֶׁהֶחְזִיר בְּכָאן, כִּי אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁהֵם שְׁנֵי סְפָרִים, הַסִּפּוּר מְחֻבָּר בִּדְבָרִים בָּאִים זֶה אַחַר זֶה, וְכַאֲשֶׁר הִזְכִּיר בְּנֵי יַעֲקֹב קִצֵּר בִּבְנֵי בָּנָיו וְכָל זַרְעוֹ, וְהֶחְזִיר הַכְּלָל כַּאֲשֶׁר אָמַר שָׁם (שם מ"ו כ"ז) כָּל הַנֶּפֶשׁ לְבֵית יַעֲקֹב הַבָּאָה מִצְרַיְמָה שִׁבְעִים. וְכָעִנְיָן הַזֶּה בְּסֵפֶר דִּבְרֵי הַיָּמִים וְסֵפֶר עֶזְרָא, שֶׁהִשְׁלִים דִּבְרֵי הַיָּמִים (דה"ב ל"ו כ"ב כ"ג), "וּבִשְׁנַת אַחַת לְכוֹרֶשׁ מֶלֶךְ פָּרַס לִכְלוֹת דְּבַר ה' בְּפִי יִרְמְיָהוּ הֵעִיר ה' אֶת רוּחַ כּוֹרֶשׁ וְגוֹ', כֹּה אָמַר כֹּרֶשׁ מֶלֶךְ פָּרַס" וְגוֹ', וְאוֹתָם שְׁנֵי פְּסוּקִים בִּלְשׁוֹנָם הֶחְזִיר בְּרֹאשׁ סֵפֶר עֶזְרָא (עזרא א א' ב') לְחַבֵּר הַסִּפּוּר, אֶלָּא שֶׁהָיוּ שְׁנֵי סְפָרִים, הִשְׁלִים הָרִאשׁוֹן בְּמָה שֶׁהָיָה קֹדֶם בִּנְיַן הַבַּיִת וְהַסֵּפֶר הַשֵּׁנִי מֵעֵת הַבִּנְיָן וְכֵן הַדָּבָר בִּשְׁנֵי הַסְּפָרִים הָאֵלֶּה בְּרֵאשִׁית וְאֵלֶּה שְׁמוֹת:

1AND THESE ARE THE NAMES OF …. The meaning [of the connective vav — v’eileh, (‘and’ these are) — when it would have sufficed to say, “These are the names of …,”] is that Scripture desires to reckon the subject of the exile from the time they went down to Egypt. It was then that they were the first of the exiles to go into exile,¹⁶ as I have explained.¹⁷ It is for this reason that He returns to the beginning of the subject [stated in the Book of Genesis], which is the verse, And all his seed he [Jacob] brought with him into Egypt.¹⁸ There it is written afterward, And these are the names of the children of Israel, who came into Egypt, etc.¹⁹, Verse 8. This is the very same verse that He repeats here. Even though they are two separate books, the narrative is connected with subjects which follow one another successively. Here, once He mentioned the children of Jacob, He adopted a concise approach to his children’s children and all of his seed [and did not mention them by name as He had done in the Book of Genesis]. Rather, He alluded to them only generally, just as He had said there, All the souls of the house of Jacob, that came into Egypt, were threescore and ten.²⁰, Verse 27. In the same way He said here in Verse 5: And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls.A similar case is found in the Book of Chronicles and the Book of Ezra. The Book of Chronicles finishes with the verse: Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Eternal by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished, the Eternal stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying: Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, etc.²¹ The author repeated the very language of these two verses at the beginning of the Book of Ezra in order to connect the narrative. However, since they were indeed two books, he completed the first book, [i.e., the Book of Chronicles], with the events that transpired before the building of the Second Sanctuary, and he devoted the second book, [i.e., the Book of Ezra], to the events that happened from the time of the building [of that Sanctuary].²² The same thing occurs in these two books, Bereshith and V’eileh Shemoth.

בוְרַבִּי אַבְרָהָם אָמַר (אבן עזרא על שמות א':א') כִּי בַּעֲבוּר שֶׁהִזְכִּיר בְּסוֹף הַסֵּפֶר הָרִאשׁוֹן כִּי רָאָה יוֹסֵף לְבָנָיו בְּנֵי שִׁלֵּשִׁים, הִזְכִּיר כִּי גַּם אֶחָיו בְּרִדְתָּם הָיוּ מְעַטִּים וּפָרוּ וְרָבוּ, וְאֵינֶנּוּ נָכוֹן. וְרַשִׁ"י כָּתַב (רש"י על שמות א':א') אע"פ שֶׁמְּנָאָן בְּחַיֵּיהֶם חָזַר וּמְנָאָן אַחַר מִיתָתָן בִּשְׁמוֹתָם לְהוֹדִיעַ חִבָּתָם שֶׁנִּמְשְׁלוּ כַּכּוֹכָבִים שֶׁמּוֹצִיאָן בְּמִסְפָּר וּמַכְנִיסָן בְּמִסְפָּר, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר הַמּוֹצִיא בְמִסְפָּר צְבָאָם לְכֻלָּם בְּשֵׁם יִקְרָא (ישעיה מ כו). וְאֵלּוּ דִּבְרֵי אַגָּדָה (שמו"ר א' ג'), וְהֵם דְּבָרִים שֶׁל אֱמֶת בְּעִנְיַן הַחִבּוּב שהקב"ה מְחַבְּבָן וְכוֹפֵל שְׁמוֹתָם תָּדִיר, אֲבָל קִשּׁוּר הַפְּסוּקִים וְחִבּוּרָם בְּוָא"ו הוּא כְּמוֹ שֶׁפֵּרַשְׁתִּי:

2Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra said that because He mentioned at the end of Bereshith [50:23] that Joseph saw children of the third generation to his children, this is why He mentioned [here in the second book] that his brethren likewise were at first few and then were fruitful and multiplied. But this is not correct.²³, thus informing us of their great increase, and not just mentioning the names of the tribes. Moreover, in my opinion, if Ibn Ezra’s interpretation be correct, it would not have been necessary here to include Joseph as it did in Verse 5, since he had been mentioned already at the beginning of this topic, [i.e., at the end of the Book of Genesis]. Moreover, the division of the chapters refutes Ibn Ezra’s opinion.”Rashi wrote: “Although Scripture had already enumerated them whilst they were living, it again enumerates them by name, following their death, in order to show how they were beloved by G-d. They are compared to the stars which G-d also brings out by number and brings in by number,²⁴ as it is said, He bringeth out their host by number, He calleth them all by name.”²⁵ These are words of homiletic exposition,²⁶ and insofar as they indicate the love of G-d for the tribes — how the Holy One, blessed be He, loves them and repeats their names always — they are words of truth. But the matters of the connection of the verses and how they are joined by the vav — [v’eileh shemoth — (‘And’ these are the names of…)] — is as I have explained.