Commento su Deuteronomio 32:21

קנאוני means, they made My anger glow (cf. Rashi on v. 16).

THEY HAVE ROUSED ME TO JEALOUSY WITH A NO-GOD — “with something that is not a god.” This is Rashi’s language. And if so, He alludes to the demons mentioned earlier.⁶⁷Ibid., Verse 17. The correct interpretation is that He is stating: “They have roused Me to jealousy with an untrue god, for there is no G-d save the Eternal,⁸²See Psalms 18:32. and beside Him there is no savior,”⁸³Hosea 13:4. similar to what is stated, Now for long seasons Israel was without the true G-d.⁸⁴II Chronicles 15:3.

הם קנאוני בלא אל, the generations during the first Temple aroused My jealousy because they practiced idolatry, i.e. they worshipped “non-gods,”

הם קנאוני בלא א-ל, “They have aroused My jealousy by means of a non-deity, etc.” Seeing that they chose to exchange Me for something which has no power to save anyone, (compare Ezekiel 8,3 that the סמל הקנאה המקנה, it is the image of jealousy which provokes jealousy. Seeing that G’d is a jealous G’d, such symbols provoke His latent jealousy.)

V. 21. הם קנאוני וגו׳. Sie haben wesenlosen, von jeder selbst vermeintlichen Göttermacht fernen Dingen eine nur mir gebührende Huldigung erwiesen, haben selbst mit Dingen, deren zweck- und zukunftlose Nichtigkeit auf Händen lag, mir zuwider gehandelt: ich lasse sie durch Bevölkerungen rechtsberaubt werden, die selbst schon im eigenen sozialen Zusammenhang alle ein Volksdasein bedingende Rechtsachtung verloren haben — sie drückten und beraubten sich unter einander, und folgerichtig die Juden umsomehr, — בגוי נבל אכעיסם, gebe ihnen Kummer durch Völker, die keineswegs besser sind als sie, die selbst schon ihre völkersittliche Blüte hinter sich haben und an aller ausschweifenden und grausamen Entartung ihre Weide finden.

ואני אקניאם בלא עם, ”I will rouse them to jealousy with a no-people;” G–d retaliates by making the punishment fit the crime. It seems as if G–d is referring to bands of terrorists who will invade their land temporarily before leaving destruction in their wake. These terrorists are called “no-people,” as they are hated universally, seeing they do not only single out the land of Israel for their activities.

בלא עם, “with a vile nation.” (literally, a nonation). Compare Isaiah 23,13: "זה העם לא היה" “this nation never existed.”

בלא אל means, with something that is not a god.

whereas the generations during the second Temple made Me angry with their reliance of various vain phenomena. As a fitting punishment

ואני אקניאם בלא-עם, “so I will (retaliate) by provoking them by a non-people.” [A group of human beings claiming to be a nation and having the rights of a nation although they do not share the ingredients which make a people into a nation. Compare the Palestinians in our days. Ed.] Moses referred to the Jews being exiled by the Babylonians (compare Isaiah 23,13 who ridicules the Babylonians’ claim to nationhood, seeing the Assyrians had annihilated that people.)
בגוי נבל אכעיסם, “I will make them angry by means of a vile nation.” This is an allusion to the exile under the Edomites (Romans). The reason the Torah refers in such demeaning terms to the Edomites is because the founders of this nation denied the genetic bond which existed between their common ancestor Yitzchok. Instead of assisting his kin, that nation watched gloatingly when the first Temple was being destroyed (Ovadiah 11). You will also find that Assaph referred to Edom as נבל, vile, in psalm 74,18 where we read: ”be mindful of how the enemy blasphemes the Lord, how base people revile the Lord;” he continues in verse 22 of the same psalm: “rise O G’d, champion Your cause; be mindful that You are blasphemed by base men all day long.” In verse 19 of that psalm the author writes: “do not deliver Your dove to the wild beast; do not ignore forever the band of Your lowly ones.” All of this is meant to make plain that the base people, עם נבל, he referred to was the חיה הרביעית, the “fourth beast” in Daniel’s vision, a reference to the kingdom of Edom. (Our author elaborated on this in connection with Bileam’s prophecies Numbers 24,28). (Compare also Psalms 68,31 where the “beast of the marsh” is a reference to Edom.)

THEY HAVE PROVOKED ME WITH THEIR VANITIES — [their vain belief in] the demons. AND I WILL ROUSE THEM TO JEALOUSY WITH A NO-PEOPLE — the Chaldeans, of whom it is said, Behold, the land of the Chaldeans, this is the people that was not,⁸⁵Isaiah 23:13. meaning the people that were not esteemed as a nation, and the Holy One, blessed be He, raised them to subjugate His world through them, as He said, Thou art My maul and weapons of war.⁸⁶Jeremiah 51:20. I WILL PROVOKE THEM WITH A ‘NAVAL’ (VILE) NATION — with Esau who is vile, and he remembered not the brotherly covenant.⁸⁷Amos 1:9. He thus alludes to both exiles [by the hands of the Chaldeans, i.e., the Babylonians; and by the Edomites, the Romans].

בלא עם [I WILL MOVE THEM TO JEALOUSY] WITH THOSE WHO ARE NOT A PEOPLE — i.e. with a nation that has no reputation, as it states e.g. of the Chaldeans (Isaiah 23:13), “Behold, the land of the Chaldeans, this people was not; [the Assyrians founded it …]”, and of Esau it states (Obadia 1:2) “Thou art greatly despicable”.

אקניאם בלא עם, during the first Temple I will arouse their jealousy by the “non-people,” the Babylonians, destroying the Temple and taking them captive, (compare Isaiah 23,13 and how he describes the Chaldaens), whereas the second Temple will be destroyed through a thoroughly wicked nation

בגוי נבל אכעיסם I WILL PROVOKE THEM TO ANGER WITH A DEBASED NATION — these are the “Minim”, the heretics. So indeed, it states, (Psalms 14:1) “The heretic (נבל) hath said in his heart “There is no God” (Sifrei Devarim 320:10; Yevamot 63b).

,בגוי נבל אכעיסם, possessing neither their own language nor alphabet. (Gittin 80).