Commentaire de citation sur L’Exode 17:2

ויסעו מרפידים AND THEY JOURNEYED FROM REPHIDIM — What does Scripture teach us by again expressly stating from where they set forth on the journey, for is it not already written (Exodus 17:1) that they had encamped at Rephidim and it is therefore evident that they set forth from there?! But Scripture repeats it in order to make a comparison with the character of their journey from Rephidim to that of their arrival in the wilderness of Sinai! How was it in the case of their arrival in the wilderness of Sinai? They were in a state of penitence (as shown by the unanimity with which they encamped before the mountain: cf. Rashi on the end of this verse)! Thus, too, their setting forth from Rephidim was in a state of repentance for the sin they had committed there (see Exodus 17:2) (Mekhilta).

AND THE WHOLE CONGREGATION OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL MURMURED AGAINST MOSES. Scripture should have first narrated the nature of the complaint just as it did in Marah²⁸⁴Above 15:23-24, And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter…. And the people murmured against Moses. and Rephidim,²⁸⁵Further, 17:1-2. And they encamped in Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. And the people strove with Moses. and at all other complaints — and stated here first: “and there was no flesh to eat, nor bread for them to the full, and the people were famished for bread.” Now Rashi explained that the reason Scripture specifically mentions [that the date of their arrival in the wilderness of Sin] was on the fifteenth day of the second month²⁸⁶Verse 1. is in order “to make this encampment unique. On that day, there came to an end the provision which the Israelites took along with them from Egypt, and they now needed the manna. It thus informs you that they ate sixty-one meals²⁸⁷The manna first came down on the sixteenth day of Iyar, the second month (see Verse 4), thirty-one days after the exodus. Since two meals are ordinarily eaten daily (see Verse 8), this period required sixty-two meals. The first meal, however, was taken in Egypt on the night of the fifteenth day of Nisan, thus leaving sixty-one meals, which were furnished by the provisions they brought out of Egypt. of the remains of the dough [which they had baked in Egypt on the day of the exodus].”²⁸⁸Above 12:39. [Thus far the language of Rashi.] This is a tradition received by our Rabbis,²⁸⁹Mechilta on Verse 1 here. and the reason that Scripture did not [first] explain the nature of their complaint was that it had not elaborated on this miracle which was done for them secretively, [i.e., that the remains of the dough furnished sixty-one meals]. And it is as I have already written in Seder Vayigash concerning the reason [that Scripture is disposed to be silent on hidden miracles].²⁹⁰See Vol. I, pp. 556-558.
Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra wrote that Scripture records the date on the fifteenth day of the second month in order to explain that a month’s time had already elapsed since their departure from Egypt. In the meantime, they consumed the bread they took out of Egypt as well as their cattle, since they were a great multitude of people. This was the reason for the murmuring.
In my opinion, the reason for their complaint is to be found in the Scriptural expression, and they came… unto the wilderness of Sin.²⁸⁶Verse 1. When they came to that wilderness far away from Egypt, they began saying: “What shall we eat? What will this great wilderness into which we have come supply us with?” It may be that at first they had thought that after a few days they would come to the cities round about them. Now that a month had gone by and they found no city of habitation,²⁹¹Psalms 107:4. they said, “We will all die in the great wilderness into which we have come.” This then is the meaning of the verse, And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron in the wilderness, the murmuring being because of the wilderness. And so likewise the people said, for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to put to death this whole assembly by famine.²⁹²Verse 3. Thus they mentioned “the wilderness’ and “the assembly,” therein stating that a large assembly such as this will undoubtedly die of hunger in this great wilderness. The Holy One, blessed be He, hearkened unto them, and He now began to prepare a table for them in the wilderness²⁹³Psalms 78:19. until they came to a land inhabited.²⁹⁴Further, Verse 35.

[With] ten trials did our ancestors test the Holy One, blessed be He, in the Wilderness: Two at the sea - one in going down, where it states (Exodus 14:11), "'Are there no graves in Egypt,'" and one in coming up (Exodus 15:23-24), "And they came to Marah... And they complained"; one at Refidim (Exodus 17:2), "And the people argued with Moshe"; two with the manna - [Moshe said] "do not go out" and they went out, and (Exodus 16:19-20) "no man should leave over from it... and they left over"; two with the quail - with the first [incident of quail] (Exodus 16:3), "'about our sitting over the pot of meat,'" with the second [incident of] quail (Numbers 11:4), "And the mixed multitude that was within them"; one with the [golden] calf; one with the grumblers (Numbers 11:1); and with the spies, and that is the tenth - there it states (Numbers 14:22), "and they have tried Me these ten times and they did not listen to My voice."

וללוי אמר means AND OF LEVI HE SAID (not to Levi).

תמיך ואוריך THY THUMMIM AND URIM — He is addressing God (not Levi).

אשר נסיתו במסה WHOM THOU DIDST TRY WITH TRIALS — [Since this is said in praise of the Levites] we may gather from it that they did not murmur together with the other tribes.

תריבהו וגו׳ THOU DIDST STRIVE WITH HIM [AT THE WATERS OF MERIBAH] — Understand this as the Targum has it: (“Thou didst put him to the test”). — Another explanation of תריבהו על מי מריבה: Thou didst seek an occasion against him to come with a pretext, for if Moses said, “Hear now, ye rebels”, what sin did Aaron and Miriam commit? (why were they not allowed to enter the land?) Sifrei Devarim 349:3).