Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah

Ramban on Leviticus 7:38/רמב"ן על ויקרא ז׳:ל״ח

אאֲשֶׁר צִוָּה ה' אֶת מֹשֶׁה בְּהַר סִינָי עַל דֶּרֶךְ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ (תורת כהנים בהר פרשה א א) כִּי כָל הַמִּצְוֹת נֶאֶמְרוּ לְמֹשֶׁה בְּהַר סִינַי כְּלָלוֹתֵיהֶן וּפְרָטֵיהֶן וְדִקְדּוּקֵיהֶן, וְנִשְׁנוּ מֵהֶן בְּאֹהֶל מוֹעֵד, וְהִנֵּה מִצְוֹת וַיִּקְרָא שְׁנוּיוֹת. וְעַל דֶּרֶךְ הַפְּשָׁט שִׁעוּרוֹ אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה ה' אֶת מֹשֶׁה בְּהַר סִינָי וּבְיוֹם צַוֹּתוֹ אֶת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּמִדְבַּר סִינָי לְהַקְרִיב אֶת קָרְבְּנֵיהֶם לַה', כִּי צִוָּה בַּמִּלּוּאִים בְּהַר סִינַי וְכֵן בְּעוֹלָה וְחַטָּאת, וְצִוָּה בְּמִנְחָה וְאָשָׁם וּבְזִבְחֵי הַשְּׁלָמִים בְּמִדְבַּר סִינַי בְּאֹהֶל מוֹעֵד. וְיִתָּכֵן כִּי טַעַם "בְּהַר סִינַי" בַּמָּקוֹם הַזֶּה - לִפְנֵי הַר סִינַי, וְהוּא בְּאֹהֶל מוֹעֵד. וְכֵן "עֹלַת תָּמִיד הָעֲשֻׂיָה בְּהַר סִינַי" (במדבר כח ו), כִּי אֵינֶנּוּ בָּהָר מַמָּשׁ, כִּי עוֹלַת תָּמִיד לֹא הִתְחִילוּ בָּהּ רַק בְּאֹהֶל מוֹעֵד, דִּכְתִיב "וְזֶה אֲשֶׁר תַּעֲשֶׂה עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ" וְגוֹ' (שמות כט לח), וְכֵן "וַיִּסְעוּ מֵהַר ה'" (במדבר י לג), וְכֵן "רַב לָכֶם שֶׁבֶת בָּהָר הַזֶּה" (דברים א ו), וְהַטַּעַם בְּכָל אֵלֶּה כִּי יִשְׂרָאֵל חָנוּ לִפְנֵי הַר סִינַי בְּקָרוֹב לוֹ, דִּכְתִיב (שמות יט ב) "וַיִּחַן שָׁם יִשְׂרָאֵל נֶגֶד הָהָר", וְשָׁם עָמְדוּ עַד נָסְעָם מִשָּׁם לְמִדְבַּר פָּארָן, וְהִנֵּה עָשׂוּ אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וְהֵקִימוּ אוֹתוֹ לִפְנֵי הָהָר בְּמִזְרָחוֹ, וְשָׁם הִתְחִילוּ בְּעוֹלַת הַתָּמִיד, וּבַשָּׁנָה הַשֵּׁנִית נִצְטַוּוּ עַל הַדְּגָלִים, וְהֶעֱמִידוּ הָאֹהֶל בְּתוֹךְ הַמַּחֲנוֹת בְּנָסְעָם. וּלְפִיכָךְ אָמַר הַכָּתוּב בְּכָאן כִּי זֹאת הַתּוֹרָה לָעוֹלָה וּלְכָל הַקָּרְבָּנוֹת שֶׁצִּוָּה הַשֵּׁם בְּהַר סִינָי בְּיוֹם צַוֹּתוֹ בְּמִדְבַּר סִינַי, יַגִּיד כִּי הָיָה בְּהַר סִינַי וּבְמִדְבַּר סִינַי, לְהוֹדִיעַ שֶׁלֹּא הָיְתָה בָּהָר מַמָּשׁ בִּמְקוֹם הַכָּבוֹד שֶׁשָּׁם דִּבֵּר עִמּוֹ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדִּבְּרוֹת, וְלֹא בְּמִדְבַּר סִינַי אַחֲרֵי שֶׁנָּסְעוּ מִלִּפְנֵי הָהָר, אֲבָל הָיָה בְּמִדְבַּר סִינַי מִלִּפְנֵי הָהָר בְּתִחוּמוֹ וְקָרוֹב לוֹ, וְשָׁם אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד, כְּמוֹ שֶׁאָמַר בִּתְחִלַּת הָעִנְיָן (ויקרא א':א') "וַיִּקְרָא אֶל מֹשֶׁה וַיְדַבֵּר ה' אֵלָיו מֵאֹהֶל מוֹעֵד", הוֹדִיעַ אוֹתָנוּ עַתָּה מְקוֹם אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד:

1WHICH THE ETERNAL COMMANDED MOSES IN MOUNT SINAI. According to our Rabbis¹⁵⁴ all the commandments were expressly told to Moses on Mount Sinai, in their general rules, their specific regulations and their minute details, and some of them were repeated in the Tent of Meeting. Thus [all] the commandments in the Book of Vayikra (Leviticus) [which is prefaced by the verse stating it was made known in the Tent of Meeting], are repetitions [of those said on Sinai, which is the sense of the verse before us]. By way of the plain meaning of Scripture, the meaning of the verse is:¹⁵⁵. Now according to the interpretation of the Rabbis mentioned above, the sense of the verse is that the laws of the offerings were commanded to Moses “in Mount Sinai,” and were repeated to him in the Tent of Meeting “in the wilderness of Sinai.” Ramban will now explain that according to the plain meaning of Scripture this verse speaks of two separate occasions: the offerings of the seven-day consecration of the priests were commanded to Moses “in Mount Sinai,” whilst the laws of the other offerings were given to Moses “in the wilderness of Sinai,” that is, in the Tabernacle. “Which the Eternal commanded Moses in Mount Sinai, and in the day that he commanded the children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai to present their offerings unto the Eternal,” for He gave the commandment about the consecration-offerings [of the priests] in Mount Sinai, as also in the case of the burnt-offering and sin-offering [which were part of the consecration], and He commanded concerning the meal-offering, guilt-offering, and peace-offerings, in the wilderness of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting.It is possible that the expression in Mount Sinai means “in this place in front of Mount Sinai,” which is in the Tent of Meeting. Similarly, It is a continual burnt-offering, which was offered in Mount Sinai,¹⁵⁶ does not mean on the mountain itself, for the continual burnt-offering [i.e., the Daily Whole-offering brought for all Israel] began only in the Tent of Meeting, as it is written, Now this is that which thou shalt offer upon the altar: two lambs of the first year day by day continually.¹⁵⁷ So also: And they set forward from the Mount of the Eternal¹⁵⁸ [which means “from before the Mount of the Eternal”]; ye have dwelt long enough in this mountain¹⁵⁹ [which means “in front of this mountain”]. The sense of all these verses is that Israel had encamped before Mount Sinai nearby, as it is written, and there Israel encamped before the Mount.¹⁶⁰ There [in the wilderness of Sinai] they stayed until they journeyed from there to the wilderness of Paran.¹⁶¹. Thus they made the Tent of Meeting and erected it before the Mount on its east side, and it was there that they began offering the Daily Whole-offering. In the second year [after the exodus] they were commanded concerning the standards,¹⁶², 1:1; 2:1-31. and they set the Tent of Meeting in the midst of the camps¹⁶³, 2:17. when they journeyed. It is for this reason that Scripture says here that this is the law of the burnt-offering¹⁶⁴ and of all the offerings which G-d commanded [Moses] in Mount Sinai, in the day that he commanded [the children of Israel] … in the wilderness of Sinai.¹⁶⁵ Scripture thus states that it was in Mount Sinai and in the desert of Sinai, in order to inform us that it was not on the mountain itself, in the place of the Glory where G-d told to Moses the Ten Commandments, nor in the desert of Sinai after they had journeyed from before the Mount. Rather, it was in the wilderness of Sinai, in front of the mountain within its environs and nearby, and there was the Tent of Meeting, as He said at the beginning of the subject of the offerings, And He called unto Moses, and the Eternal spoke unto him out of the Tent of Meeting,¹⁶⁶ and now He informed us of the place of the Tent of Meeting.