Commentaire de citation sur Le Deutéronome 27:13

מה אקב ולא קבה אל HOW SHALL I CURSE WHOM GOD HATH NOT CURSED — Even when they deserved to be cursed, they were not cursed. When their ancestor, Jacob, made mention of their sin — (Genesis 49:6) “For in their anger they slew a man” — he cursed their anger only, as it is said, (Genesis 49:7) “Cursed be their anger”. When their ancestor, Jacob, went to his father with deceit he deserved to be cursed, but what is stated there (Genesis 27:33)? “Yea, he shall be blessed”. In the case of those tribes who had to recite the blessings it is said, (Deuteronomy 27:12) “These shall stand to bless the people”, but in the case of those who had to pronounce the curses it does not state, “And these shall stand to curse the people”, but, “And these shall stand for the curse”, — it does not wish to mention the term “cursing” in direct reference to them (the people) (Midrash Tanchuma, Vayechi 1; Midrash Tanchuma, Balak 12).

The Levites these are the “Levitical kohanim” mentioned earlier [: 9]; their job was to recite “Cursed be he …” et cetera. They recited the blessing toward the children of Jacob’s full wives, and they recited the curse toward the children of the maidservants. The latter group, however, was two tribes short, because Leah had had so many sons; so the oldest and the youngest of Leah’s sons were chosen to join the sons of the maidservants.