Comentario sobre Exodo 3:5

של means DRAW OFF and take off. It is of the same root as, (Numbers 19:5) “and the iron-head slippeth off (נשל) from the handle”; (Deuteronomy 28:40) “for thine olives shall drop off (ישל)‎”.

APPROACH NOT HITHER. Moses had not yet reached the highest degree of prophecy, for at Mount Sinai he drew near unto the thick darkness where G-d was.¹⁴⁸Further, 20:18. This also accounts for the hiding of his face [in this instance], for he had not yet reached that high [degree of prophecy of] which it was said of Moses, and the similitude of the Eternal doth he behold.¹⁴⁹Numbers 12:8.

של!, throw off!. The word is from the root נשל, meaning a form of removal, as in Deuteronomy 7,1 ונשל גוים רבים, “He dislodges many nations, etc.”

של נעליך, even on the spot you are standing on now.

אל תקרב הלום, של נעליך, "Do not come closer; remove your shoes, etc." G'd gave two instructions. 1) not to come closer. 2) to remove his shoes because even the site on which Moses was standing at that moment was already holy ground. Why did G'd not instruct Moses to remove his shoes before he had accidentally stepped on holy ground wearing shoes? At that time G'd could have warned Moses not to step on holy ground (even without shoes).

אל תקרב הלום, “do not come any closer.” This was a warning to Moses that he had not yet attained the degree of holiness permitting him unrestricted entry to holy sites. We know that prior to the revelation at Mount Sinai, Moses entered the thick cloud in which the holy mountain was enveloped at the time without hindrance or harm befalling him. (Exodus 20,18) The Torah describes G’d there as being behind this thick cloud. Moses having turned aside his face when coming face to face with a supernatural spectacle, was prompted by the same consideration of his inadequacy in matters spiritual, which at that time were still very strong within him.

The place. Rashi is answering the question: אדמת (ground) is feminine, but הוּא [the pronoun ostensibly referring to it] is masculine. Therefore Rashi explains that הוּא refers to המקום (the place).

V. 5. "Tritt nicht hierher, vielmehr ziehe die Schuhe von deinen Füßen, denn die Stätte, auf welcher du bereits stehst, ist ein heiliger Ort, ist ein Boden heiliger Bestimmung", ist von Gott erwählt worden, dass von ihm aus die Erlösung der Menschheit durch Erlösung und Erwählung eines Volkes ausgehe. Statt die außerhalb deiner Stätte liegende Erscheinung erkennen zu wollen, begreife die hohe Bestimmung des Bodens, auf dem du dich bereits befindest, und gib dich ganz an ihn hin. Ausziehen der Schuhe drückt die gänzliche Hingebung an die Bedeutung einer Stätte aus, seine Persönlichkeit ganz und unvermittelt auf ihr und in ihr Stand und Stellung gewinnen lassen. So hatten die כהנים im מקדש nur barfuß zu gehen und es durfte zwischen dem Boden und ihren Füßen ebensowenig etwas Scheidendes, חוצץ, sich befinden, wie bei Handhabung der Geräte zwischen diesen und ihren Händen, oder zwischen den Priestergewändern und deren Leib. Alles Heilige ist kein menschenkünstliches, nach außen wirkendes Schaugepränge. Zurück auf die Persönlichkeit wirkt alles, und unmittelbar sie muss sich mit dem Heiligen vereinigen und durch es geheiligt werden, wenn sie in seinem Dienste wirken will. הרצפה מקדשת, der Boden heiligt den Priester. (Sebachim 24.2.)

!של, “remove!” the reason why the Torah had to write: מעל רגליך, “from your feet,” when we all know that he was not asked to remove his sandals from his hands, is that there are two kinds of sandals. There is a kind worn on one’s hands. [In fact, in German, the word for gloves is: handschuhe, “shoes worn on one’s hands.” Ed.] This was the נעל that Boaz gave to the redeemer who was first in line to perform a levirate marriage ceremony with Ruth, the daughter-in-law of Naomi. (Ruth, 4,7) As far as the question why Moses had to remove both his sandals, whereas Joshua had to remove only a single sandal (Joshua 5,15), the reason is that in this instance the Presence of the Spirit of G–d preceded the arrival of Moses on that site, whereas in the Book of Joshua, Joshua had already been on holy soil (the land of Israel) before the appearance to him of the angel, i.e. the Spirit of G–d.

של נעליך, “throw off your shoes.” The expression של is from the root נשל, “to disengage;” we find it both in Deuteronomy 28,40, כי ישל זיתך, “for your olives will fall off,” and in Deuteronomy 7,1, ונשל גוים רבים, “and He will dislodge many nations.”

אדמת קדש הוא the place IS HOLY GROUND (i. e. the masculine pronoun הוא refers to the word המקום and not to אדמת, which is feminine).

FOR THE PLACE WHEREON THOU STANDEST IS HOLY GROUND. Even though Moses was far from the bush, the angel warned him [not to approach], for the whole mountain became sanctified when the Divine Presence came down upon the mountain—top, just as it did at the time of the Giving of the Torah.¹⁵⁰Further, 19:20. Now Moses was on the mountain for he had ascended thereto, as it is said, and he came to the mountain of G-d, unto Horeb,¹⁵¹Verse 1. and the bush was on the top of the mountain.¹⁵²Accordingly we must understand that before the burning of the bush began, Moses had already gone up on the mountain but not to its top. It was later when he desired to approach the top of the mountain to see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt, that he was warned not “to approach.” Had he not been on the mountain at all, the warning should have been not “to come up.” Thus the entire site became holy and therefore the wearing of sandals was forbidden. A similar case is found in Joshua.¹⁵³Joshua 5:15. Likewise, the priests ministered in the Sanctuary only while barefoot.

של נעליך!, “remove your shoes!” It is noteworthy that whereas when Moses and Ezekiel were commanded to remove their shoes, they were told to remove both shoes, or in the case of Ezekiel, not to remove them, whereas Joshua was commanded to remove only one shoe, נעלך, (compare Joshua 5,15) The reason may have been that Moses being a shepherd by vocation, wore big boots in the manner of the shepherds. Ezekiel, who was also a farmer, may similarly have worn big boots. Joshua being a highly placed officer, almost a crowned head, wore only light shoes in the manner of all the kings. Both of his shoes, נעליך, would have been equivalent to only one of Moses’ shoes in size and weight. Furthermore, the angel speaking to Joshua described only the immediate site on which Joshua was standing as a holy site, אדמת קודש, whereas in the case of Moses the entire mountain was holy ground. It is also interesting that whereas Joshua is reported as having complied with the command to remove his shoes, no such thing is reported of Moses. Perhaps, Moses not having entered holy ground before being told to take off his shoes, preferred not to come closer so that he would not have to remove his shoes, whereas Joshua was told to do so only after he had already been standing on holy ground, so that he had no other option.

We observe throughout the Torah that G'd's principal concern is with the negative commandments, since failure to observe them is injurious to the soul of the person who violates them. This is what Solomon referred to in Kohelet 12,7 when he spoke about the importance of the spirit G'd has given man returning to G'd after man dies. Shabbat 152 understand the word נתנה as if it it were written אשר נתנה לך, "which has been given to you," meaning that just as a pure soul was given to man so a pure soul has to be returned to G'd. On the other hand, positive commandments are designed to enable man to achieve the "good" G'd has made available to man. As a rule, failure to observe the positive commandments does not result in penalties with the exception of certain basic commandments such as Passover and circumcision [without which a Jew cannot demonstrate his Jewish identity, Ed.].

מעל רגלך, “from your feet.” The reason is that you might have stepped on something unfit to be found in a holy place. The reason why the Torah added: “from your feet,” seeing we normally wear shoes on our feet, is that the word נעל also occurs for gloves, as in Ruth 4,7: שלף איש נעלו “where the translation is: נרתק יד ימינה, “sleeve of the right hand/arm.”Our sages in B’rachot 54 have ruled that no one may ascend the Temple Mount while wearing (leather) shoes. [The reason is that at a place where the reverence for the Temple prevails, it would like a lack of faith if one had to rely on shoes to be protected against snake bites, etc., instead of trusting in G-d to be protected. [I have seen this in commentary by Bartenura on Megillat Ruth. Ed.]

In this instance G'd commanded Moses both something negative, i.e. "do not come closer!" as well as something positive, i.e. "remove your shoes!" Our sages in Eyruvin 96 state that wherever the Torah uses the expression פן or אל such as here, what follows is a negative commandment. The words "remove your shoes," are a positive commandment, however. If Moses were to cross the invisible dividing line by approaching closer to the burning bush (as he had intended to) he would be violating a negative commandment. Were he to fail to remove his shoes, however, this would imply a lack of respect for G'd but it would not constitute transgression of a negative commandment because the commandment had been phrased positively, though it implied that no shoes were to be worn there. The Torah always speaks about שמירה, i.e. care not to violate a negative commandment, before demanding עשיה, performance of a related positive commandment (compare Deuteronomy 4,6; 15,5, Genesis 26,5 et al). This is why the sequence in which G'd commanded Moses at this point is no departure from the Torah's norm.

'כי המקום אשר אתה עומד וגו, “for the place that you are standing on is sacred.” Wherever we find that the Shechinah opens a dialogue with man, be it here, or with Joshua 5,14-19, or the revelation of the Torah in Exodus 19,21-27, the location is a sacred location. In other instances where G-d addressed prophets, the place is not automatically holy.

אדמת קודש הוא, “it is holy ground.” The word אדמת is in the construct form of the word קדש, i.e. Mount Sinai is holy ground. Compare Psalms 68,18 אדנ-י בם סיני בקודש, “the Lord is among them as in Sinai in holiness.” Now that Moses was only at the very beginning of his career as a prophet he was not yet allowed to step on this holy ground. The word הלום is itself a reference to the שכינה, as it is a word describing Majesty, Royalty (Shemot Rabbah 2,6). This is based on Samuel I 10,22: הבא עוד הלום איש?, “has anyone else come here?” [Samuel referred to Saul who was to be king, Ed.]. The word is again used in that sense in Samuel II 7,18: כי הביאותני עד הלום, “for He has brought me thus far?” [David acknowledging his position of King over Israel by grace of the Lord. Ed.] Seeing that the שכינה is emanated from a holy source, Moses was given his first inkling of the meaning of holiness in terms of “holy ground.”

We still have to answer what G'd had in mind when He did not call out to Moses before the latter had a chance to stand on holy ground clad in shoes. Perhaps Moses did not qualify for an address by G'd unless He had been told not to come still closer. Perhaps the site on which Moses stood at that time became sanctified only by reason of G'd having revealed Himself to Moses there. Perhaps the reason G'd wanted to speak with Moses at that site was in order to have an excuse to sanctify that spot. Perhaps this was the reason for the extra word הוא in the expression אדמת קודש הוא. That word was not really necessary.