Le Deutéronome 31:15 Commentaire : Ramban, Ibn Ezra, Tur HaArokh & Rabbeinu Bahya

AND THE ETERNAL APPEARED IN THE TENT IN A PILLAR OF CLOUD. The purport thereof is that the pillar of cloud was over the entrance [of the Tent] and G-d appeared in the Tent — this being the Glory, according to Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra. In my opinion, this verse is like And the Eternal came down in a pillar of cloud, and stood at the door of the Tent;¹⁹Ibid., 12:5. and, behold, the Glory of the Eternal appeared in the cloud.²⁰Exodus 16:10. And the meaning [of the verse here] is that He wanted to speak with Moses so that Joshua would hear, and He would also charge Joshua there. Now, to Moses it was said, And there I will meet with thee, and I will speak with thee from above the ark-cover²¹Ibid., 25:22. but Joshua was not of that exalted status [in prophecy] and he was forbidden to enter the Tent altogether. Thus the phrase, and the pillar of cloud stood over the entrance of the Tent²²In Verse 15 before us. reverts to explain that the cloud, in which was the Glory, was above the door of the Tent covering it, and accordingly He was in the Tent [as the verse states, And the Eternal appeared in the Tent in a pillar of cloud].

The Hebrew word in the Tent contains the definite article. God appeared in the Tent The column of cloud was upon the entrance, to be distinguished from the epiphany of God , which took place within the Tent. The latter is what is meant by the term “the Glory” [e.g., Exodus 16: 10]. All apparent references here to God ’s speaking to Joshua — e.g., “I will charge him” [: 14] — actually denote Moshe’s charging Joshua with God ’s commandments [: 23] (this is why Moshe says there, speaking in God ’s name, “which I promised them” [: 23]). Only afterwards did the passage of You are about to lie with your forefathers take place, since the Torah does not always record events in strict chronological order. Similarly, the passage “when Moshe completed writing” [: 24] occurred immediately after the passage “Moshe wrote down this Torah” [: 9].

ויעמוד עמוד הענן על פתח האהל, “the pillar of cloud stood by the entrance to the Tent.” Nachmanides writes that the reason for this was that G’d wanted to speak to Moses in such a way that Joshua would be able to hear the voice of G’d. G’d wanted Joshua to hear, but He also wanted him to know that he had not attained the stature of Moses. Only Moses had ever been told (Exodus 25,22) ונועדתי לך שם ואדבר אתך מעל הכפורת, “I will set My meetings with you there, and I will speak with you from above the lid of the Holy Ark.” Joshua did not have permission to enter the Tabernacle. This is why the Torah writes that on this occasion, in order for Joshua to hear G’d’s voice, the pillar of cloud, signifying the cover within which G’d’s glory was situated, moved from the inner Sanctum where the Holy Ark was located, to the eastern entrance of the Tabernacle.