Kommentar zu Bamidbar 14:21

ואולם BUT, means , (I will not slay them), but this will I do unto them (what is mentioned in v. 22 ff.).

AS I LIVE. “This is an expression of an oath. AND ALL THE EARTH SHALL BE FILLED WITH THE GLORY OF THE ETERNAL. 23. IF THEY SHALL SEE THE LAND. This is an inverted verse [and the sense of it is as follows:] As I live, says the Eternal, [I swear] that all those [that have seen My Glory … and did not listen to My voice — Verse 22], if they shall see the Land [Verse 23], and My Glory shall fill [all] the earth [Verse 21], so that My Name will not become profaned through this plague, [by the nations] saying: Because the Eternal was not able to bring them [into the Land],¹¹⁰Verse 16. since I shall not kill them suddenly as one man,¹²⁸Verse 15. but over a delayed period of forty years, little by little.” This is Rashi’s language. But it is not correct at all.¹³⁹Rashi’s interpretation requires the rearrangement of the second half of Verse 21 [and all the earth shall be filled with the Glory of the Eternal] after Verse 23, since this second part of Verse 21 is not part of the oath of the Eternal. Ramban, however, does interpret it as part of the oath, which [as he continues to explain], starts at the beginning of Verse 21, and hence there is no need to rearrange the second half of that verse and to place it after Verse 23. See also Note 147. Rather, these verses omit the oath [itself] out of respect to Him Who is on high, [and the meaning thereof is as follows]: “As I live and all the earth shall be filled with My Glory — if all these men who have tested Me shall see the Land, this matter shall not be so!” Similarly, As I live, saith the Eternal … If ye come into the Land¹⁴⁰Further, Verses 28-30. omits the [Divine] oath [meaning: “If they shall come into the Land, it shall not be so!”] Similarly we find verses speaking of a human being which shorten the oath: G-d do so unto me and more also,¹⁴¹II Samuel 3:35. See also Vol. I, pp. 273-274, where Ramban discusses this theme briefly. where Scripture did not want to set forth the imprecation. G-d do so unto the enemies of David, and more also¹⁴²I Samuel 25:22. — here the verse omits the blessing.¹⁴³That is to say, David pronounced a curse against himself, but did not wish to use an actual curse; therefore he blessed his enemies, so that he would be cursed. Nonetheless he only alluded to it, but did not actually express the blessing. Similarly we find that Caleb said to Joshua, Thou knowest the thing that the Eternal spoke unto Moses the man of G-d concerning me and thee,¹⁴⁴Joshua 14:6. and it is written there, And Moses swore on that day, saying: Surely the land whereon thy foot hath trodden shall be an inheritance to thee and to thy children forever, because thou hast wholly followed the Eternal my G-d.¹⁴⁵Ibid., Verse 9. This refers to that which is written here, But My servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed Me fully, him will I bring into the Land wherein he went, and his seed shall possess it.¹⁴⁶Verse 24 here. And Caleb [in the Book of Joshua, quoted above] mentioned an oath [and Moses ‘swore’] in connection with this promise, because it is all joined to the verse, But in very deed as I live,¹⁴⁷Verse 21. According to Rashi, however, [see Note 139 above] the oath is completed at the end of Verse 23. Verse 24 promising a reward to Caleb is therefore not part of the oath. But according to Ramban, the Divine oath continues up to the end of Verse 24, and Caleb could therefore properly refer to this promised reward of his as one given by oath. Ramban continues to explain why Caleb mentioned that Moses swore. which is an oath, as I have explained [above]. Caleb said, and Moses swore¹⁴⁵Ibid., Verse 9. because Moses mentioned the oath.¹⁴⁸Further, Verse 39: And Moses told these words unto all the children of Israel. And by way of the Truth, [the mystic teachings of the Cabala], But in very deed as I live — and all the earth shall be filled with the Glory of the Eternal constitutes a promise to Moses about forgiveness, the verse stating that all the earth shall be filled with His Glory through the seed of these people, but not through them [the generation of the exodus].

ואולם חי אני וימלא כבוד ה' את כל הארץ, “I swear that just as I am the G’d Wo Am alive and Whose glory fills the whole earth, etc.” כי כל האנשים, the ones who are twenty years and over אם יראו את הארץ, that they will not get to see the land. This is one of the examples where the word אם is not followed by a תנאי כפול, i.e. spelling out both what will happen if the conditions of an agreement are met and what will happen if the conditions are not met. Other examples are found in Genesis 14,23 when Avraham refuses to allow the King of Sodom to “give” him the victor any of the spoils of war. Samuel I 19,6 also has such an unaccompanied word אם, letting the reader arrive at his own conclusions.