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Ramban on Numbers 15:31/רמב"ן על במדבר ט״ו:ל״א

אוְטַעַם עֲוֹנָה בָהּ – בִּזְמַן שֶׁעֲוֹנָהּ בָּהּ, וְלֹא בִּזְמַן שֶׁעָשָׂה תְּשׁוּבָה, לְשׁוֹן רַשִׁ״י (רש״י על במדבר ט״ו:ל״א) מִדִּבְרֵי רַבּוֹתֵינוּ (שבועות יג). וְעַל דֶּרֶךְ הַפְּשָׁט הוּא כְּמוֹ ״דְּמֵיהֶם בָּם״ (ויקרא כ כז), ״חֶטְאָם יִשָּׂאוּ עֲרִירִים יָמֻתוּ״ (שם פסוק כ), ״עֶרְוַת אֲחוֹתוֹ גִּלָּה עֲוֹנוֹ יִשָּׂא״ (שם פסוק יז). וְרָאִיתִי בְּפִרְקֵי דֶּרֶךְ אֶרֶץ: מַהוּ "עֲוֹנָה בָהּ"? מְלַמֵּד שֶׁהַנֶּפֶשׁ מוּכְרֶתֶת וַעֲוֹנָהּ עִמָּהּ, כְּלוֹמַר שֶׁהֶעָוֹן דָּבֵק בָּהּ אַחֲרֵי הַכָּרֵת, לִהְיוֹת נִדּוֹנֶת בְּיִסּוּרִין לְעוֹלָם, כְּעִנְיַן ״כִּי תוֹלַעְתָּם לֹא תָמוּת וְאִשָּׁם לֹא תִכְבֶּה״ (ישעיהו סו כד):

1HIS INIQUITY SHALL BE UPON HIM. “This means only as long as his iniquity is upon him, but not after he has repented.” This is Rashi’s language, from the words of our Rabbis.²¹⁰According to the plain meaning of Scripture, this expression [his iniquity shall be upon him] is like: their blood shall be upon them;²¹¹ they shall bear their sin; they shall die childless;²¹², Verse 20. he hath uncovered his sister’s nakedness; he shall bear his iniquity,²¹³, Verse 17. [the meaning of all these verses being that the guilty have brought the punishment upon themselves]. Now I have seen in the Pirkei Derech Eretz²¹⁴ [the following text]: “What is [the meaning of the expression], his iniquity shall be upon him? It teaches us that the soul is cut off, and [yet] its iniquity is upon it.” That is to say, the sin attaches to it [the soul] even after it is cut off, and it is punished in suffering forever, similar to [the verse], for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched.²¹⁵