Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah

Ramban on Exodus 4:3/רמב"ן על שמות ד׳:ג׳

אוַיֹּאמֶר הַשְׁלִיכֵהוּ אַרְצָה וַיַּשְׁלִיכֵהוּ אַרְצָה לֹא הֲבִינוֹתִי לָמָּה עָשָׂה הָאֹתוֹת לְמֹשֶׁה, כִּי מַאֲמִין הָיָה מֹשֶׁה שהקב"ה מְדַבֵּר עִמּוֹ. וְהָרָאוּי שֶׁיֹּאמַר הַמַּטֶּה אֲשֶׁר בְּיָדְךָ תַּשְׁלֵךְ אַרְצָה לִפְנֵיהֶם וְהָיָה לְנָחָשׁ, וְכֵן בָּאוֹת הַשֵּׁנִי, כַּאֲשֶׁר אָמַר בַּשְּׁלִישִׁי "וְלָקַחְתָּ מִמֵּימֵי הַיְאוֹר" (שמות ד':ט'). וְלָכֵן נֶאֶמְנוּ דִּבְרֵי רַבּוֹתֵינוּ (שמו"ר ג טז) שֶׁהָיָה לוֹ הָרִאשׁוֹן רֶמֶז שֶׁסִּפֵּר עֲלֵיהֶן לָשׁוֹן הָרַע, וְהַשֵּׁנִי לְהַעֲנִישׁוֹ בּוֹ. וְזֶה טַעַם וַיָּנָס מֹשֶׁה מִפָּנָיו, כִּי פָּחַד שֶׁמָּא יֵעָנֵשׁ וִינַשְּׁכוֹ הַנָּחָשׁ, וְכָל אָדָם מִתְרַחֵק מִן הַמַּזִּיק לוֹ, אע"פ שֶׁיָּדַע שֶׁאִם יִהְיֶה כֵּן בְּחֵפֶץ הַשֵּׁם אֵין מַצִּיל מִיָּדוֹ. וְאוּלַי אע"פ שֶׁהוֹדִיעוֹ (לעיל פסוקים יד טו) הַשֵּׁם הַגָּדוֹל שֶׁבּוֹ נִבְרָא הָעוֹלָם וּבוֹ נִהְיָה כָּל דָּבָר, רָצָה לְהַרְאוֹתוֹ כִּי בּוֹ יֵעָשׂוּ אוֹתוֹת וּמוֹפְתִים בְּשִׁנּוּי הַתּוֹלָדוֹת, לְמַעַן יִתְחַזֵּק הָעִנְיָן בְּלִבּוֹ שֶׁל מֹשֶׁה וְיֵדַע בֶּאֱמֶת כִּי עַל יָדוֹ יֵעָשׂוּ בָּעוֹלָם דְּבָרִים מְחֻדָּשִׁים, וְדַי לְמֹשֶׁה בִּשְׁנֵי הָאֹתוֹת, וְלֹא הָיוּ שָׁם מַיִם, עַל כֵּן צִוָּהוּ שֶׁיַּעֲשֶׂה הָאוֹת הַשְּׁלִישִׁי לְעֵינֵי הָעָם:

1AND HE SAID: CAST IT ON THE GROUND. AND HE CAST IT ON THE GROUND. I do not understand why G-d performed the signs before Moses. Moses believed that it is the Holy One, blessed be He, Who speaks with him, and it would have been fitting for Him to say, “The staff that is in your hand you shall cast on the ground before them, and it shall become a serpent,” and the same also with respect to the second sign, [i.e., his hand becoming leprous], just as He said at the third sign, and thou shalt take of the water of the river, and pour it upon the dry land, etc.²⁵⁵ It is for this reason that the words of our Rabbis²⁵⁶ can be relied upon, namely, that the first sign, [i.e., the staff turning into a serpent], was a hint to Moses that he had slandered the Israelites [when he said that they would not believe him],²⁵⁷. Thus it suggested to her that it was not because it may bring about her death that G-d forbade it, but out of a sense of jealousy. As Rashi puts it: “Every artisan detests his fellow-artisans.” and the second sign was for the purpose of punishing him.²⁵⁸ And this is the sense of the expression, and Moses fled from before it [the serpent]. He feared lest he would be punished and the serpent would bite him, since every person naturally avoids danger, even though Moses knew that if it was indeed G-d’s desire [to punish him], there was no one that could deliver him out of His hand.²⁵⁹Perhaps even though He informed Moses of the Great Name with which the world was created and everything came into existence,²⁶⁰ He wished to show him that with this Name signs and wonders would be done, changing the natural order of things, so that the matter would be firmly established in Moses’ heart and that he should in truth know that with the Great Name he will perform new things in the world. The first two signs were sufficient for Moses, and therefore the third miracle of the water [turning into blood] was not done here. Instead, G-d commanded him to do the third sign in the sight of the people.