Commento su Esodo 16:14

ותעל שכבת הטל וגו׳ AND WHEN THE LAYER OF DEW WENT UP etc. — When the sun rose the dew which was lying upon the Manna ascended sunward, as is the manner of dew — that it ascends sunward; even if you were to fill an egg-shell with dew and close up its opening and place it in the sun, it (the egg-shell with the dew in it) will rise of its own accord into the air, (in consequence of the tendency of the dew to rise upwards). — But our Rabbis explained that these words imply that the dew rose from the ground into the air. — When the layer of dew went up the Manna became visible, and they looked, (cf. Midrash Tanchuma, Beshalach 20; Shemot Rabbah 38:4) והנה על המדבר דק AND BEHOLD, UPON THE SURFACE OF THE DESERT there was etc.

DAK’ (A FINE) ‘MECHUSPAS’ (PEELED THING). In the opinion of Onkelos, [who translated the word mechuspas as meaning “peeled,” the word] is associated with the expressions: ‘machsoph’ (streaks making bare) the white;³⁸¹Genesis 30:37. ‘chasaph has hem’ (the Eternal hath made bare) His holy arm.³⁸²Isaiah 52:10. The letter sin [in the words machsoph and chasaph] is interchanged for the letter samach [in the word mechuspas], and the second root-letter of the verb [chasaph]³⁸³“The second root-letter of the verb.” Literally: “the ayin of the verb.” Following the theory of Dunash ben Labrat, the great Hebrew grammarian of the tenth century, we call the three letters of the root of any verb by the names of the three letters of the Hebrew ‘po’al’ (verb) [which is spelled pei, ayin and lamed]. Thus the first letter of any verb is called the pei of the verb, the second is called the ayin, the third is called the lamed. In the verb chasaph before us, the second root-letter is the sin or its interchange, the samach, as explained in the text. In the word mechuspas, the samach appears twice. This then is the meaning of Ramban’s saying, “and the ayin (second letter) of the verb is doubled.” is doubled, [thus making it mechuspas].

והנה על פני המדבר, kernels in the shape and texture of very fine crystals as described in Numbers 11,7 כזרע גז הוא, similar to the seeds of Gad.

ותעל שכבת הטל, which covered the manna from above. It is in the nature of dew to rise toward the atmosphere as the air gets thinner after sunrise.

Thin uncovered matter, thin like frost: It is fitting to know that one should wonder about the picking up of the manna - as there descended an omer quantity for an adult and [also] an omer for a child of three - how is it possible that their eating would be the same? And if we say that this too is miraculous, that the child should eat like the adult - if so, how does the bareita in Eruvin 83b prove that the measurement of a meal is an omer - and is it not that here it was not like the way of eating other things? And also there is an objection [from] the expression later, "a man according to his eating" - which implies that according to his ability did it descend, [according to] how [much] he needed, if it were little or much; and [yet] behold, the same [amount] descended for everyone. But rather the answer for all of this is that the manna 'was like a gad seed' - which is a flax seed - the crust of which is above, and within it, it is full of granules. And like this did the manna descend, but some of them were empty and only the very thin upper crust was eaten. And this is what was said, "thin uncovered matter (mechuspas)" - that the thin crust was like a box and like the expression, "chafisa (small container)," like the explanation of Rashi. And some of them are "thin like frost," which is empty inside and it is possible to make with much frost one handful. And it was through providence that there descended for each one according to his eating; and [so] for the child they were completely empty. Yet according to the size of the picking, there was an omer for everyone. And [so] it [comes out] fine that the gemara proves [the amount of a meal] from that the measurement was an omer, and [even] for the most, there was only this measurement; we understand from this that this was the measurement required for an average man [for a meal].

ותעל שכבת הטל, “a layer of dew ascended;” Ibn Ezra explains that the word means (here) that the dew while dissolving into the atmosphere, revealed what was below it, i.e. a layer of manna. The word תעלני appears in a similar context when David asks not to die before his time, i.e. Psalms 102,25, אל תעלני בחצי ימי, “do not let me ascend to the celestial regions prematurely.”

The dew rose from the earth into the air. . . Meaning: The world’s natural order is that bread comes up from the earth, and water descends from the heavens. But here it was the opposite. The manna — bread — descended from heaven, and the dew came up from the earth, as it says in Midrash Tanchuma.

(Exodus 16:13) "and in the morning there was a layer of dew": Scripture comes to apprise us how the manna descended for Israel: A north wind would come and "sweep" the desert. Then rain would come and clean the ground, and the dew would rise and the wind would blow on it and make it like golden tables, on which the manna descended. (Ibid. 14) "and, behold, on the face of the desert": Not on the whole desert, but on part of it. (Ibid.) "thin as hoarfrost": We are hereby apprised that it descended like ice on the ground. These are the words of R. Yehoshua. R. Eliezer Hamodai says: "And the dew layer ascended": (homiletically) there arose the prayers of our forefathers who were buried in the earth, on the face of the ground. "and, behold, on the face of the desert": Not on the whole desert, but on part of it. "dak like hoarfrost": It descended from the firmament, as it is written (Isaiah 40:22) "… who stretches out the heavens like dak." Since it descended from the firmament, I might think it descended cold. It is, therefore, written "cham" ("warm" [i.e., the samech in mechuspas looks very much like a mem]). I might think it descended with a great din. Whence is it derived that it descended silently? It is, therefore, written "hass" ("hush" [i.e., the cheth in mechuspas reads very much like a heh]). I might think that it descended on vessels. Whence do I derive that it descended only on the ground? From "as hoarfrost upon the ground." R. Tarfon says: It descended, as it were, on the palms of the L rd ("pas" in "mechuspas" is a palm). The Holy One Blessed be He stretched out His hand took the prayers of our forefathers buried in the earth and brought down the manna which is like the dew for Israel, viz. (Iyyov 33:24) "Then He will be gracious to him and will say: 'Redeem him from descending to the pit, for I have found his ransom ("kofer," as in the description of the dew, "dak kakfor.") Once, R. Tarfon and the elders were sitting, and R. Elazar Hamodai was sitting before them, when he said to them: The height of the manna was sixty cubits. R. Tarfon: "Modai, until when will you continue to confound us with your wonders?" R. Elazar: "It is a verse in the Torah! Which 'measure' (of the Holy One Blessed be He) is greater? That for evil (i.e., punishment) or that for good (i.e., reward)? That of good. It is written (re the flood, Genesis 7:11 and 7:20) "And the windows of the heavens were opened … Fifteen cubits did the waters increase" (above the mountains). And of the measure of good, what is written? (Psalms 78:23-24) 'And He commanded the skies above, and He opened the doors of heaven, and He rained upon them manna for food, and the grain of heaven did He give them.' As it relates to our subject, the windows in a door being four, then two doors give us eight windows, (so that if two windows provide fifteen cubits,) then the height of the manna must have been (at least) sixty cubits." Issi b. Yehudah says: When the manna descended for Israel, all of the peoples saw it, as it is written (Psalms 23:5) "You spread a table before me in full view of my foes."

V. 14. והנה, weist darauf hin, dass vor der Verdunstung des Taues das Manna nicht sichtbar war. Es muss somit entweder überhaupt durchsichtig gewesen, oder, wie manche Körper, durch Benetzung durchsichtig geworden und so von den Tautropfen nicht unterscheidbar gewesen sein. Darauf weist auch die Beschreibung Bamidbar 11, 7 hin: ועינו כעין הבדלח, das, nach Raschi, Kristall bedeutet. — מחספס, Wurzel von חסף, gleichbedeutend mit חשׂף, entblößen, enthüllen, also: von aller Hülle oder Hülse befreit. Es war durch den doppelten Tauniederschlag von allem fremdartigen Ansatz frei. Da חשף nicht nur: von einer festen, ansitzenden Hülle frei machen, sondern auch: aus einer Flüssigkeit herausschöpfen heißt, לחשוף מים מגבא (Jesaias 30, 14), so ist es möglich, dass es auch hier in dieser Bedeutung stehe. Nach der Verdunstung des Taus lag das Manna als etwas feines "aus der Flüssigkeit Abgeschöpftes" da. Möglich, dass das Manna spezifisch leichter als die Flüssigkeit des Taus war und daher in dieser Flüssigkeit gleichsam schwamm. Die Mannakörner wären dann durch die doppelten Niederschläge des Taus von dem Boden abgehoben und vor Berührung des Bodens geschützt gewesen. כפר, Reif, von כפר, schützend decken, wovon כפרת, der Deckel.

ותעל שכבת טל, “when the daily layer of dew lifted, there was left a flaky substance on the surface of the desert.” The words: ותעל שכבת הטל, are interrupted here to prepare us for what follows. We encounter a similar construction in Psalms 102,25: אל תעלני בחצי ימי, “Do not take me away in the midst of my days.”

דק, a THIN object,

DAK’ (FINE) ‘KAK’PHOR’ (AS THE HOAR-FROST). K’phor is the covering [of minute ice-particles] upon the ground in cold weather. It is similar in usage to the expression, He scattered ‘k’phor’ (hoar-frost) like ashes.³⁸⁴Psalms 147:16. Now Onkelos rendered [the Hebrew dak kak’phor al ha’aretz] into Aramaic thus: da’adak k’gir kig’lida al ar’a. On this, Rashi wrote [as an interpretation of Onkelos, that the word gir occurs in the expression], “as stones of ‘gir,’³⁸⁵Isaiah 27:9. Translated: “chalkstones.” which is a kind of black color. This is just as we say in connection with the covering of the blood [of a slaughtered wild animal or fowl, which the Torah specified must be done with earth.³⁸⁶Leviticus 17:13. The Rabbis enumerate amongst the kinds of earth that can be used]:³⁸⁷Chullin 88b. See further my Hebrew commentary, p. 367, Note 7. ‘gir (powdered chalk) and arsenic (or orpiment).’ [Onkelos’ Aramaic rendition da’adak k’gir kig’lida al ar’a thus means:] ‘thin [and brittle] like powdered chalk, and lying congealed as frost on the ground.’ And this is the meaning of the Hebrew dak kak’phor: spread out fine and connected like hoar-frost. Dak means that there was a thin incrustation on top. And that which Onkelos translated, k’gir (as powdered chalk), is an addition to the Hebrew text, there being no word corresponding to it in the verse.” [These are the words of Rashi.]
But all this is not correct. Gir [is not a kind of black color, as Rashi wrote, but instead it] is a white earth which sticks to stone, and when crushed, it is used as plaster upon walls. It is very white and is better for the plastering of walls than lime, [which does not have the admixture of that white earth]. And so it is written, upon the ‘gira’ (plaster) of the wall of the king’s palace.³⁸⁸Daniel 5:5. This is why the manna which was white and spread out upon the earth could be associated with that crushed white earth.
Onkelos then translated the Hebrew word k’phor in two ways. First, he derived it from the expression, and thou shalt pitch it within and without ‘bakopher’ (with pitch).³⁸⁹Genesis 5:14. Hence, he said k’gir (as the white earth) with which [the stones] are fastened and covered. Then he derived it also from the expression, He scattered ‘k’phor’ like ashes,³⁸⁴Psalms 147:16. which is the covering of minute ice needles which form in a cold atmosphere, just as he translated [the Hebrew] ‘v’kerach’ (and the frost) by night,³⁹⁰Ibid., 31:40. “ug’lida (and frost) came down upon me at night.”³⁹¹Thus it is not necessary to say, as Rashi did, that the Aramaic word k’gir in Onkelos’ translation has no corresponding word in the Hebrew text. According to Ramban, both Aramaic words, k’gir and kig’lida (“as powdered white earth” and “as frost”), are two renditions of the one Hebrew word kak’phor. Such was Onkelos’ style, to give two translations of one Hebrew word. The word can be used in the plural [g’lidin],³⁹²Shabbath 152 a: sacharuni g’lidin (ices have sorrounded me), a metaphoric expression of a person describing that the hairs of his mustache and beard have turned gray (Rashi, ibid.) while the singular is called g’lid (ice), just as we have been taught in the Mishnah in Mikvaoth:³⁹³Mikvaoth 7:1. “These are the things which only serve to fill up the immersion-pool [to its prescribed measure of forty s’ah] and do not render it invalid: snow, hail, hoar-frost, v’hag’lid (and ice).” And so indeed does Onkelos translate many Scriptural texts in two ways. But in carefully-edited texts of Targum Onkelos, it is written, da’adak d’gir³⁹⁴And not k’gir, as we have assumed the reading in Onkelos to be until now. The reading of k’gir had forced Ramban to interpret that Onkelos simultaneously used two different translations of the Hebrew word kak’phor, namely, “as powdered white earth” and “as frost,” as explained above. This is clearly a difficult position. But with this present reading in Onkelos — d’gir, which means a heap — the Aramaic text leads to one unified thought: the manna was piled up in heaps as ice upon the earth. kig’lida al ar’a, and the meaning thereof is that the manna was piled up in heaps as ice upon the earth. This is the truth, for if [the word k’gir in the Targum] were of the root gir (powdered white earth or plaster), as we assumed at first], the Aramaic translation should have been: k’gira d’g'lida (as the powdered flakes of the ice), [and not, as we have it, k’gira ‘kig’lida], for such is the style of the Aramaic language.³⁹⁵In other words, since all readings in the Targum have kig’lida (“as” ice), and not d’g'lida (“of” the ice), it shows that the antecedent word is d’gir (a heap) and not k’gir (as powdered white earth). Thus the thought conveyed by the Targum is that the manna lay powdered in heaps as ice upon the ground.

מחספס, a word appearing only here. It has to be understood in its context, “tiny crystals like hoary frost.”

דק מחוספס, “something thin, exposed;” some commen-tators explain the word מחוספס as something globular, however there is no similar word in Scriptures to which we could compare this expression. Onkelos translates it as something visible through exposure. It would be similar to Genesis 30,37 מחשף הלבן, “exposing the white beneath.”

And when the layer of dew rose up, the manna appeared and they saw. . . Rashi explained before: “When the sun shone then the dew which was on the manna rose.” Accordingly, he now explains that the verse is saying that when the dew rose, the manna was revealed and they saw it — not that it came into existence when the dew rose. However, according to the Sages’ explanation that the dew came up from the earth, “Behold on the surface of the desert” means that the manna actually came into existence, i.e., when the dew rose from the earth, the manna descended onto the surface of the desert.

The words: שכבת הטל, (especially with the prefix ה indicating that the dew was a well known phenomenon,) refer to the daily descent previously of that layer of dew; we have a similar construction in Job 38,37: ונבלי שמים מי ישכיב, “who can tilt the “bottles” of the sky?” (a hint at the phenomenon of dew) The root שכב, “to come to rest in a prone condition,” is used in both these verses. (Ibn Era)

מחספס uncovered — and there is no other example of this word in the Scriptures. One may also explain מחספס as having the same meaning as המיסה in (Mishna Bava Metzia 1:8) חפיסה ודלוסקמא, “a valise and chest”, in Mishnaic Heberw, and the meaning would be, that when it became uncovered from the layer of dew they saw that there had been a thin object enclosed in it i. e. enclosed between the two layers of dew. Onkelos tranlates it by מקלף peeled (flaky), taking מחספס in the sense of, and from a similar root as, (Genesis 30:37) “peeling off (מחשף) the white”.

דק ככפור על הארץ, “thin as the frost on the ground.” Onkelos translates it as above. Rashi claims that when Onkelos adds the word גיר this is not a translation of a word that appears in the text, but a word used to illustrate the meaning of כפור. In Isaiah 27,9 we find the expression אבני גיר, the prophet describing the black colour of those stones Nachmanides writes that גיר, “chalk,” in Hebrew, is not black but white, and that the Torah describes this white colour as sticking to the white limestone, the ones use to grind into what is used in whitewash, but that this exterior is even whiter than the whiteness of the chalk stones themselves. This thin layer appeared to stick to the manna in the manner of a layer of frost. He goes on to draw a comparison between the word כפור, hoary frost, and the word כופר, the insulating, waterproofing material G’d told Noach to employ both on the outside and the inside of the ark. (Genesis 6,14) The common denominator between both words would be that they describe material that is pasted on to seal something off and protect it against harmful substances penetrating it. The word כפור is also understood as being analogous to כאפר, “like ash,” i.e. extremely small particles such as the particles of ash. [the smaller each particle, the more easy it is to create a waterproof and even airproof protective layer made from that substance. Ed.] Hoary frost found on the ground in the early mornings is such an impenetrable substance until it melts. There are some other versions where the word דק does not appear but the word is כעדק דגיר, when the connection to the word גלידא as חמרים, small little heaps of frozen water or snow is so much more obvious. This is probably a truer version of Onkelos.

Comes from the phrase “a box and a chest.” חפיסה ודלוסקמא are various jugs and flasks.

ככפר AS HOAR FORST — כפר is old French gelide. The Targum renders דק by דעדק כגיר, the word גיר occurring in (Isaiah 27:9) “גיר-stones” — this is a kind of black colour — just as we enumerate amongst the kinds of earth which may be used for covering the blood of a wild animal or bird after it has been slaughtered “powdered chalk (גיר) and orpiment” (Chullin 88b). Onkelos renders the entire phrase by “powdered like גיר, like hoar-frost upon the ground”, meaning that it was as fine as גיר and lay congealed as frost in the ground. This is therefore the meaning of דק ככפור: “spread out fine but yet one atom hanging to another like hoar-frost”. דק is old French tenuis — meaning that it formed a thin incrustation on top. The word וכגיר which Onkelos has in his translation is an addition to the Hebrew text, there being no word corresponding to it in the verse.

It was as fine as גיר and lay. . . I.e., the manna did not look like גיר , for גיר is black while the manna was white. Rather, it means the manna was as fine as גיר .