Kommentar zu Schemot 15:16

תפל עליהם אימתה THERE SHALL FALL UPON THEM DREAD — upon those of them who are far away (Mekhilta d'Rabbi Yishmael 15:16:1),

תפול עליהם אימתה ופחד בגדול זרועך, may it be Your will that fear will overcome them in a manner which will make them flee because they are afraid of Your arm. Moses refers to what the Torah described in 14,25 when the Egyptians announced that they would flee as they realised that G’d was fighting on behalf of Israel.

הפול עליהם אימתה ופחד, "Terror and dread will fall upon them, etc." Both this verse and the one following it refer to two separate conquests of the Holy Land, one during the period of Moses/Joshua and the other at the time when the Messiah will arrive. This is the reason the author of the song appears to repeat what he says.

עד יעבור, the reason this is repeated is because it refers not only to the crossing of the Sea of Reeds but also to the crossing of the Jordan. This could also be considered as the reason for the repetition of the words עד יעבור.

תפול עליהם אימתה ופחד, “fear and trembling gripped hold of them.” According to Ibn Ezra the words תפול עליהם do no refer to the Canaanites, even though they were relatively close to the Israelites, but they refer to the Edomites. Ibn Ezra’s argument is supported from the verse following where the leaders of the Kingdom of Edom are described as confused, frightened. Moses tells us this so that we should know that when the Israelites did not engage in battle with Edom when that kingdom refused the Israelites passage trough its territory, the reason was not that the Israelites were afraid, they knew well that the Edomites’. posture was only for show. The reason the Israelites detoured around the territory of Edom was that G’d had commanded them to. (Numbers Numbers 20,14-21) The Edomites had legitimate reason to fear the Israelites, as their land lay squarely on the route the Israelites now set out to travel.

On those who are nearby. . . [Rashi knows this] because otherwise, why are both terms necessary?

V. 16. אימה ist überall der Schreckeindruck einer gegenwärtigen zu fürchtenden überlegenen Größe und Macht. So ואימתו אל תבעתני ,(Job 9, 34) ואימות מות נפלו עלי (Ps. 55, 5) u.f. פחד, der Eindruck einer drohenden Gefahr. Also: Schrecken und Furcht. Also: Schreck über die Nahen, Furcht über die Fernen. Oder: über alle Schreck wegen der ihnen plötzlich gegenwärtig gewordenen Macht und Größe Gottes, und Furcht wegen alles dessen, was sie von einer solchen zu erwarten haben. — בגדול ist wohl Infinitiv: indem dein Arm sich groß zeigt, d. h. während die Größe deiner Macht sich vor ihren Augen immer mehr entfaltet, erstarren sie wie Stein. Es erfüllt sie dies alles mit einer erstarrenden Bewunderung. ידמו von דמס wie ויתמו ימי בכי.(Dewarim 34, 8) von תמס .תמם: Aufhören des Seins; דמם: Aufhören der Tätigkeit, ohne Tätigkeit, ohne Bewegung werden, oder sein. קנית, darin liegt Israels ganze Bestimmung. Durch alles, was du für dieses Volk getan, gehört es mit jeder Faser seines Daseins und jedem Fünkchen seiner Kraft dir, hat keine andere Bestimmung, als die treueste Erfüllung deines Willens, als dein "Diener" zu sein.

תפול עליהם אימה ופחד, “may fear and terror descend upon them;” this is a prayer by Moses. He prays that they should continue to remain in this state of terror. The root נפל is used here in the same sense as when the Torah described the death of Yishmael in Genesis 25,18 with the words: על פני כל אחיו נפל, “he had fallen in the presence of all his brothers.” [If I understand our author correctly, he interprets Yishmael’s death as not that of a mighty hunter or hero, but as a person who was desperately afraid of death at the time. Ed.]

ופחד AND HORROR — shall fall upon those of them who are near by; and all this really happened just as the matter is stated, (Joshua 2:10) “For we have heard how the Lord dried up [the waters of the Red Sea]” (Mekhilta d'Rabbi Yishmael 15:16:1).

ידמו כאבן עד יעבור עמך הן, may it also be Your will that they will not launch an attack against us until we have crossed the rivers still in front of us, i.e. the Arnon and the Jordan, seeing that the battles are always more difficult at river crossings, and we would need greater miracles in order to become victorious. We might not be deserving of such miracles.

בגדול זרועך, as if the Torah had written: בזרוע גדלך, “with the arm of Your Greatness.” We encounter a similar formulation in Psalms 65,5 קדוש היכלך where it means the same as היכל קדשך, “the Sanctuary of Your Holiness.”

Than other nations. . . Rashi is answering the question: Does not Hashem possess the entire world [and everything in it], as it says: “To the supreme God, Possessor of heavens and earth” (Bereishis 14:19)? Perforce [it means, “You hold it dearer. . ..”]

בגדול זרועך, “through the might of Your arm;” this means the same as if the Torah had written: בזרוע גדלך, “with the arm of Your greatness.” We find a similar inverted expression of adjective and noun in Psalms 65,5: קדוש היכלך, which normally would be expressed as היכלך הקדוש, “Your holy Temple.”

עד יעבר ... עד יעבר TILL THY PEOPLE PASS … TILL THE PEOPLE PASS — The repetition must be explained as the Targum takes it (until they pass over the Arnon, until they pass over the Jordan).

עד יעבור עמך ה', “until Your people O Hashem cross over.” Moses refers here to the Israelites crossing the river Arnon (Deut. 2,24). When he continued עד יעבור עם זו קנית, “until this nation whom You have acquired will cross,” he referred to the Israelites crossing the river Jordan (compare Pessikta Zutrata) This is why we are told specifically that when the Ark entered the waters of the Jordan, that the water piled up north of the river to afford the Israelites passage on a dry river bed (Joshua 3,16 and 17).

עד יעבור עם זו קנית, “until this people which You acquired as Your own through having taken them out of bondage from Egypt,” in order to bring them and implant them firmly in the mountain of Your heritage.”

קנית denotes [THE PEOPLE] WHICH THOU HOLDEST DEAR above all peoples — like an article purchased (קנוי) at a high price and which is therefore held in affection by the man who bought it.