Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah
Ramban on Numbers 11:12/רמב"ן על במדבר י״א:י״ב
אהֶאָנֹכִי הָרִיתִי אֶת כָּל הָעָם הַזֶּה – עַל דַּעַת אוּנְקְלוֹס (תרגום אונקלוס על במדבר י״א:י״ב), כְּמוֹ ״עַל בִּרְכוֹת הוֹרַי״ (בראשית מט כו), כִּי הָאָב יִקָּרֵא הוֹרֶה מִפְּנֵי שֶׁנּוֹתֵן וּמַזְמִין הַהֵרָיוֹן. יֹאמַר: אִם אֲנִי אֲבִיהֶם אוֹ אִמָּם שֶׁיָּלַדְתִּי אוֹתָם. וּבַעֲלֵי הַפְּשָׁט אָמְרוּ בְּהֵפֶךְ: הֶאָנֹכִי אִמָּם שֶׁהָיִיתִי הָרָה בָהֶם וְיוֹלֶדֶת, וְכֵן ״וַתַּהַר אֶת מִרְיָם וְאֶת שַׁמַּי״ (דברי הימים א ד יז) שֶׁהָרְתָה וְיָלְדָה אוֹתָם. אוֹ אָנֹכִי אֲבִיהֶם שֶׁיְּלִדְתִּיהוּ, כְּמוֹ ״וַיּוֹלֶד נֹחַ״ (בראשית ו י), ״לְאָבִיךָ זֶה יְלָדֶךָ״ (משלי כג כב) וְזוּלָתָם. וְאָמַר כַּאֲשֶׁר יִשָּׂא הָאוֹמֵן אֶת הַיּוֹנֵק - הָאָב אוֹ הָאֵם. וְעַל דַּעְתִּי הַכֹּל מְלִיצָה בָּאֵם, וְטַעְמוֹ כְּמוֹ הֶאָנֹכִי הָרִיתִי אֶת כָּל הָעָם הַזֶּה וְאָנֹכִי יְלִדְתִּיהוּ. וְהִזְכִּיר כֵּן כִּי הָאִשָּׁה תִּסְבֹּל צַעַר גָּדוֹל הַבָּנִים בְּזָכְרָהּ מַה שֶׁסָּבְלָה בָּהֶם מִלֵּדָה וּמִבֶּטֶן וּמֵהֵרָיוֹן. וְאָמַר אוֹמֵן כִּי הוּא אוֹמֵן לֹא אוֹמֶנֶת:
1DID I ‘HARITHI’ ALL THIS PEOPLE? In the opinion of Onkelos [who rendered it: “Am I ‘the father’ of all this people?” the word harithi] is like [the expression] beyond the blessing of ‘horai’ (my progenitors),170 for a father is called horeh [of the root haroh, “to conceive” or “become pregnant”] because it is he who causes conception and brings about the pregnancy [of the mother]. Thus Moses is saying: “Am I their father [who has caused their conception], or am I their mother who has given birth to them?”171 — is thus explained as referring to the separate functions of father and mother. But the masters of the plain meaning of Scripture172. interpreted the verse in the opposite manner: “Am I their mother who was pregnant with them and gave birth to them?” Similarly, ‘Vatahar’ eth Miriam v’eth Shammai173 means “she was pregnant with them and gave birth to them.” “Or am I their father who begot them?” [the word y’lidetihu being] like: ‘vayoled Noach’ (and Noah begot);174 thy father that ‘y’ladecha’ (begot thee),175 and other similar expressions. And Moses said, as ‘ha’omein’ carrieth the sucking child, [the word ha’omein] being a reference to the [nursing-] father or mother. In my opinion the whole verse is a figurative reference to the mother, and the meaning thereof is as follows: “Have I conceived all this people and have I given birth to them?”176 Moses mentioned it in this way [speaking as the mother] because it is the woman who suffers the pain of raising children, remembering what she suffered for them from birth, pregnancy, and conception.177 But Moses said omein [in the masculine] since he is speaking of himself as a nursing-father, since he is not an omeneth (a nursing-mother).