Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah

Ramban on Genesis 37:10/רמב"ן על בראשית ל״ז:י׳

אוַיְסַפֵּר אֶל אָבִיו סִפֵּר הַחֲלוֹם הַזֶּה לְאָבִיו וְלֹא הָרִאשׁוֹן, כִּי הוּא עַצְמוֹ הַמַּכִּיר בְּפִתְרוֹנוֹ כִּי הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ יִרְמֹז לְאָבִיו, וְהוּא גָּעַר בּוֹ. וְטַעַם "וְאֶל אֶחָיו" פַּעַם שֵׁנִית, כִּי יְסַפֵּר אוֹתוֹ לְאָבִיו בִּפְנֵי אֶחָיו, וְהוּא גָּעַר אוֹתוֹ לְשַׁכֵּךְ חֲמָתָם מֵעָלָיו. וְטַעַם "מָה הַחֲלוֹם הַזֶּה אֲשֶׁר חָלָמְתָּ", כְּמוֹ "מָה אָדָם וַתֵּדָעֵהוּ" (תהלים קמד ג), כְּלוֹמַר מָה הַחֲלוֹם הַזֶּה אֵינוֹ כְּלוּם שֶׁתַּגִּידֶנּוּ כִּי אֵינָם אֶלָּא דְּבָרִים בְּטֵלִים. אוֹ טַעַם הַגְּעָרָה לוֹמַר, אֵיךְ נְשָׂאֲךָ לִבְּךָ לַחְלֹם הַחֲלוֹם הַזֶּה, אֵין זֶה כִּי אִם גֹּבַהּ לֵב וְנַעֲרוּת שֶׁיַּעֲלוּ דְּבָרִים כְּאִלּוּ עַל לְבָבְךָ, כְּעִנְיָן שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר בַּחֲלוֹמוֹת (דניאל ב כט) "רַעְיוֹנָךְ עַל מִשְׁכְּבָךְ סְלִקוּ" וְכָתוּב (שם ד ב) "וְהַרְהֹרִין עַל מִשְׁכְּבִי":

1AND HE RELATED IT TO HIS FATHER. He told his father of this dream concerning the sun, moon and stars, but not of the first one concerning the sheaves because he himself recognized its interpretation and knew that the sun alluded to his father, and his father rebuked him.⁴⁵The meaning of the expression, And he related it to his father and to his brothers, is that he related it to them a second time,⁴⁶ as he told it to his father in their presence, and his father rebuked him in order to dissipate their anger towards him.The meaning of the expression, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? is the same as, What is man that Thou shouldst take cognizance of him?⁴⁷ That is to say, “What is this dream? It is nothing that you should relate for it is nothing but idle talk.” Alternatively, the meaning of the rebuke may be: “How dare you dream such a dream? It is but your conceit and youth that bring up such matters in your heart,” just as it says concerning dreams, Thy thoughts came upon thy bed;⁴⁸ And imaginings upon my bed.⁴⁹, 4:2. Understood in the same sense as above.

בהֲבוֹא נָבוֹא אֲנִי וְאִמְּךָ וַהֲלֹא אִמְּךָ כְּבָר מֵתָה, וְהוּא לֹא הָיָה יוֹדֵעַ שֶׁהַדְּבָרִים מַגִּיעִים לְבִלְהָה שֶׁגִּדְּלַתּוּ כְּאִמּוֹ. וְרַבּוֹתֵינוּ (ברכות נה) לָמְדוּ מִכָּאן שֶׁאֵין חֲלוֹם בְּלֹא דְּבָרִים בְּטֵלִים. וְיַעֲקֹב נִתְכַּוֵּן לְהוֹצִיא הַדָּבָר מִלֵּב בָּנָיו שֶׁלֹּא יְקַנְאוּהוּ בְּכָךְ, אָמַר לוֹ, כְּשֵׁם שֶׁאִי אֶפְשָׁר בְּאִמְּךָ כָּךְ הַכֹּל בָּטֵל, לְשׁוֹן רַשִׁ"י (רש"י על בראשית ל"ז:י'). וּלְפִי דַּעְתִּי כִּי בְּעֵת שֶׁיָּרַד יַעֲקֹב לְמִצְרַיִם כְּבָר מֵתָה בִּלְהָה גַּם זִלְפָּה, כִּי הַכָּתוּב אָמַר בְּסִפּוּר שִׁבְעִים נֶפֶשׁ (בראשית מ"ו:כ"ו) "מִלְּבַד נְשֵׁי בְנֵי יַעֲקֹב", וְלֹא הִזְכִּיר "מִלְּבַד נָשָׁיו וּנְשֵׁי בָּנָיו". וְאִם תֹּאמַר כִּי בַּעֲבוּר הֱיוֹתָם פִּילַגְשִׁים לֹא רָצָה לוֹמַר "לְבַד מִנְּשֵׁי בְּנֵי יַעֲקֹב וּפִילַגְשָׁיו", הִנֵּה כָּתוּב "נְשֵׁי אָבִיו". וְרָחוֹק הוּא שֶׁיִּהְיֶה הַיָּרֵחַ רֶמֶז לְפִילַגְשׁוֹ. אֲבָל עִנְיַן הַחֲלוֹם כִּי הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ רֶמֶז לְיַעֲקֹב וְהַיָּרֵחַ רֶמֶז לִבְנֵי בֵּיתוֹ וְכָל נָשָׁיו שֶׁבָּהֶן הָיוּ תּוֹלְדוֹתָיו, וְיִרְמֹז כִּי כָל תּוֹלְדוֹתָיו יִשְׁתַּחֲווּ לוֹ וְהֵם כָּל שִׁבְעִים נֶפֶשׁ יוֹצְאֵי יְרֵכוֹ, כִּי כֻלָּם הִשְׁתַּחֲווּ בְּבוֹאָם אֵלָיו, וְאַחַד עָשָׂר כּוֹכָבִים אֵלּוּ אֶחָיו אֲשֶׁר הִשְׁתַּחֲווּ לוֹ בִּפְנֵי עַצְמָן טֶרֶם בֹּא אֲבִיהֶם, כְּדִכְתִיב (בראשית מ"ג:כ"ו) "וַיָּבֹא יוֹסֵף הַבַּיְתָה וַיָּבִיאּוּ לוֹ אֶת הַמִּנְחָה אֲשֶׁר בְּיָדָם הַבָּיְתָה וַיִּשְׁתַּחֲווּ לוֹ אַפַּיִם אָרְצָה":

2SHALL I AND THY MOTHER AND THY BRETHREN INDEED COME TO PROSTRATE OURSELVES TO THEE TO THE EARTH? “Is not your mother long since dead?” Jacob, however, was not aware that the matter alluded to Bilhah who had raised him as if she were his mother. From here, our Rabbis derived the principle that there is no dream that does not contain invalid matters. Jacob’s intention in pointing out the invalidity of the dream was to cause his sons to forget the matter so that they should not be envious of him because of it. Jacob said to Joseph: “Just as it is impossible for the dream to be fulfilled with respect to your mother, so is the remainder invalid.” Thus the language of Rashi.In my opinion, at the time when Jacob went down to Egypt, Bilhah and Zilpah had already died⁵⁰ since, in enumerating the seventy souls that went down to Egypt, Scripture states, Besides Jacob’s sons’ wives,⁵¹ and it does not say “besides Jacob’s wives and his sons’ wives.”⁵² And if you say that because they were concubines Scripture does not want to say “besides Jacob’s sons’ wives and his concubines,” yet we find that they are referred to as his father’s wives.⁵³ Besides, it is unlikely that “the moon” in the dream alludes to his concubine. Instead, my opinion concerning the matter of the dream is that the sun is an allusion to Jacob, and the moon alludes to the children of his household and all his wives, which comprised Jacob’s seed. Thus, the moon alludes to the fact that all his seed will prostrate themselves to Joseph, these being all the seventy souls that issued from his loins, since they all prostrated themselves when they came before him. The eleven stars represent the brothers who bowed down before him separately,⁵⁴ before their father arrived, as it is written, And when Joseph came into the house, they brought him the present which was in their hand into the house, and prostrated themselves to him to the earth.⁵⁵