Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah
Ramban on Leviticus 8:7/רמב"ן על ויקרא ח׳:ז׳
אוַיִּתֵּן עָלָיו אֶת הַכֻּתֹּנֶת וַיַּחְגֹּר אֹתוֹ בָּאַבְנֵט זֶה הָיָה הַסֵּדֶר שֶׁעָשָׂה בּוֹ מֹשֶׁה, אֲבָל בַּצַּוָּאָה אָמַר (שמות כט ה) "וְהִלְבַּשְׁתָּ אֶת אַהֲרֹן אֶת הַכֻּתֹּנֶת וְאֵת מְעִיל הָאֵפֹד", כִּי רָצָה לִכְלֹל אֶת הָאַבְנֵט בְּכֻלָּם בְּצַוָּאָה אַחַת, וְאָמַר (שם פסוק ט) "וְחָגַרְתָּ אֹתָם אַבְנֵט אַהֲרֹן וּבָנָיו", וְהִנֵּה הִלְבִּישׁוֹ הַכֻּתֹּנֶת עִם הָאַבְנֵט וְאַחַר כֵּן הַמְּעִיל וְהָאֵפוֹד כַּסֵּדֶר הָאָמוּר שָׁם. וְהִקְדִּים בְּכָאן "וַיַּחְגֹּר אֹתוֹ בְּחֵשֶׁב הָאֵפֹד" קֹדֶם שֶׁיָּשִׂים עָלָיו הַחֹשֶׁן, כִּי מֹשֶׁה יָדַע בְּדֶרֶךְ הַלְּבִישָׁה כִּי לְעוֹלָם תֵּכֶף לִלְבִישַׁת הַבֶּגֶד יַחְגֹּר אוֹתוֹ בַּחֲגוֹרָה הָעֲשׂוּיָה לוֹ בָּאַבְנֵט תֵּכֶף לַכֻּתֹּנֶת וּבַחֵשֶׁב תֵּכֶף לָאֵפוֹד, וְאֵין רָאוּי שֶׁתִּהְיֶה לְבִישַׁת הָאֵפוֹד בְּהַפְסָקוֹת, אֲבָל שָׁם נֶאֱמַר "וְאֶת הָאֵפֹד וְאֶת הַחֹשֶׁן וְאָפַדְתָּ לוֹ בְּחֵשֶׁב הָאֵפֹד" לְפִי שֶׁקִּצֵּר שָׁם בְּעִנְיַן הַחֹשֶׁן וְלֹא אָמַר שֶׁיִּתֵּן אוֹתוֹ בָּאֵפוֹד וְלֹא שֶׁיָּשִׂים שָׁם הָאוּרִים וְהַתֻּמִּים, שֶׁכְּבָר צִוָּה כָּל זֶה בְּמַעֲשֵׂה הָאֵפוֹד וְהַחֹשֶׁן (שם כח):
1AND HE PUT UPON HIM THE TUNIC AND HE GIRDED HIM WITH THE BELT. This was the order in which Moses did it. But in the section containing the command, He said, and thou shalt put upon Aaron the tunic, and the robe of the ephod181 [and mentioned the belt only later on in the section, and not right after the tunic, as here], because there He wanted to mention the belt for Aaron and his sons in one command, saying, And thou shalt gird them with belts, Aaron and his sons.182, Verse 9. Thus the command for the belt, referring as it did to both Aaron as High Priest and his sons as common priests, is mentioned there once in connection with both, in order to save repeating it; but here where the actual fulfillment of the command is narrated, Scripture mentions all the garments that Aaron was clothed in together, separate from those of his sons. Thus Moses clothed Aaron with the tunic and the belt, and afterwards with the robe and the ephod, in the order mentioned there.183, Verse 5. Here [when performing the command] he girded him with the skilfully-woven band of the ephod184 before he placed the breastplate upon him,185 [while in the section containing the command the breastplate is mentioned before the skilfully-woven band of the ephod], for Moses knew that the usual way of dressing is that immediately after putting on a garment, one girds it with the belt made for it. Therefore, he girded him with the belt immediately after the tunic, and with the skilfully-woven band [of the ephod] immediately after the ephod, it being improper that the putting on of the ephod should be done with intermissions. But there [in the section containing the command] it is said, and the ephod, and the breastplate, and gird him with the skilfully-woven band of the ephod,183, Verse 5. because He dealt briefly there with the subject of the breastplate, and did not say that it be placed on the ephod, nor that he should put in it the Urim and the Thummim,186 since He had already commanded all this in explaining the work of the ephod and the breastplate.