Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah
Ramban on Numbers 22:32/רמב"ן על במדבר כ״ב:ל״ב
אכִּי יָרַט הַדֶּרֶךְ לְנֶגְדִּי – כִּי הַהוֹלֵךְ יָרַט דַּרְכּוֹ וְעִוֵּת אוֹתָהּ לְנֶגֶד עֵינַי, כִּי אָנֹכִי הַיּוֹדֵעַ וָעֵד. אוֹ לְנֶגְדִּי – שֶׁיָּרַט הַדֶּרֶךְ לַעֲשׂוֹת כְּנֶגֶד רְצוֹנִי, כְּדִבְרֵי אוּנְקְלוֹס (תרגום אונקלוס על במדבר כ״ב:ל״ב), כְּמוֹ ״כִּי הִכְעִיסוּ לְנֶגֶד הַבּוֹנִים״ (נחמיה ג לז). יָרַט לְשׁוֹן עִוּוּת, וְכֵן ״וְעַל יְדֵי רְשָׁעִים יִרְטֵנִי״ (איוב טז יא) - יְעַוֵּת אוֹתִי. וְהָעִנְיָן כַּאֲשֶׁר פֵּרַשְׁתִּי (רמב״ן על במדבר כ״ב:כ׳), כִּי הַהֲלִיכָה הָיָה בָּהּ רְשׁוּת מֵאֵת ה' הַנִּכְבָּד, אֲבָל בִּלְעָם עִוֵּת אוֹתָהּ בְּלֶכְתּוֹ עִמָּהֶם עַל דַּעְתָּם שֶׁיְּקַלֵּל אֶת הָעָם:
1FOR THE WAY ‘YARAT L’NEGDI’ — for he who is going [on this journey, i.e., Balaam], has distorted his way and perverted it in front of my eyes, for I am He that knoweth, and am witness.83 Or [the word] l’negdi [may not mean “in My presence”, but] that he perverted the way [i.e., the journey] to act “against My Will,” as Onkelos rendered it, [“because you wanted to go on the journey against My Will”], as in [the verse]: for they have vexed ‘l’neged’ (before) the builders.84 does not mean “in the presence of,” but means that they have vexed the builders by speaking “against” them. The word yarat is an expression of “perverting.” Similarly, through the hands of the wicked ‘yirteini’85 which means “He warps me.” And the meaning of our verse is as I have explained,86 namely that the [actual] journey had the permission of the Glorious Name,57 but Balaam perverted it by going with them and apparently having them believe that he would curse the people [since he had not informed them of the conditions under which G-d had allowed him to go].