Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah

Ramban on Genesis 30:27/רמב"ן על בראשית ל׳:כ״ז

אנִחַשְׁתִּי וַיְבָרֲכֵנִי ה' בִּגְלָלֶךָ בַּעֲבוּרְךָ וּבִזְכוּתְךָ כִּי אִישׁ צַדִּיק אַתָּה. וּלְשׁוֹן "נִחַשְׁתִּי" – נִסִּיתִי, וְכָל נַחַשׁ נִסָּיוֹן. וְיֵשׁ אוֹמְרִים (ראב"ע) שֶׁהָיָה מְנַחֵשׁ בִּתְרָפִים. וְיַעֲקֹב אָמַר "וַיְבָרֶךְ ה' אֹתְךָ לְרַגְלִי", לֹא רָצָה לוֹמַר "בִּגְלָלִי" דֶּרֶךְ עֲנָוָה, וְאָמַר לְרַגְלִי כִּי מֵעֵת שֶׁבָּא רַגְלִי בְּבֵיתְךָ הָיִיתָ מִתְבָּרֵךְ:

1‘NICHASHTI’ I HAVE OBSERVED THE SIGNS AND THE ETERNAL HATH BLESSED ME FOR THY SAKE. That is, “on account of you and your merit for you are a righteous man.” The word nichashti means “I have tested,” and every form of nichesh connotes testing. And some say¹⁵² that Laban was a diviner with teraphim.¹⁵³Jacob, however, said, And the Eternal hath blessed thee ‘leragli’ (since my coming),¹⁵⁴ but, in a humble manner, he did not want to say “for my sake.” Thus, he said leragli, meaning that “from the time I set my foot in your house, you have been blessed.”