신명기 25:18의 주석

אשר קרך בדרך HOW HE MET THEE BY THE WAY — The word קרך is connected in meaning with מקרה “a sudden happening”, i.e., he came against thee by surprise. Another explanation is: it is connected in meaning with the term קרי, nocturnal pollution and uncleanness, because he polluted them by pederasty. Yet another explanation is that it is connected in meaning with the expression קור in the phrase קור וחום “cold and heat” and it means: he made you cold and lukewarm after the boiling heat you had before. For all the nations were afraid to war against you and this one came and began to point out the way to others. A parable! It may be compared to a boiling hot bath into which no living creature could descend. A good-for-nothing came, and sprang down into it; although he scalded himself he made it appear cold to others (Midrash Tanchuma, Ki Teitzei 9).

אשר קרך בדרך, "who happened to you on the way, etc." This expression may be understood on the basis of Rosh Hashanah 3 where we are told that the cloud of G'd was continuously enveloping the Israelites so that no one knew the exact whereabouts of this people until the death of Aaron when this cloud dissipated. At that time the Canaanite (Amalekites dressed up as Canaanites) attacked the Israelites. In view of this, how did the Amalekites locate the encampment of the Israelites? To answer this question the Torah writes אשר קרך בדרך, "who chanced upon you on the way." The Torah goes on with ויזנב בך, "and he struck your hindmost ones, the ones who trailed behind." The Torah means that the cloud did not permit the Amalekites to penetrate into the camp of the Israelites; however, they struck only those whom the cloud had expelled as unfit for this kind of protection. When the Torah speaks of הנחשלים אחריך, "the weaklings behind you," it refers to the spiritually weak Israelites.

אשר קרך בדרך, meaning “accidentally,” unforeseen. The construction קרך from the root קרה is parallel to the construction עשך from the root עשה, Deut. 32,6 הוא עשך ויכוננך, “He has shaped you and made you durable.”

Another interpretation: The meaning is “cold,” as opposed to heat, etc. I.e., just as everyone is afraid of a hot object, so too the nations had fear of you. But Amalek cooled you, and moderated you to tepidness (הפשירך); an expression of tepid (פושרין) water.

V. 18. מקרה ,אשר קרך בדרך ist ja das, was für den davon Betroffenen außer aller Berechnung und Erwartung geschieht (siehe Bereschit 24, 12). Du zogst deines Weges und hattest gar keine Veranlassung, einen feindlichen Überfall zu vermuten. Sein Angriff war völlig unprovoziert, war von purer Freude an Menschenschlächterei, oder von einer Ahnung der Gefahr getrieben, die aus dem mit dir in die Geschichte einziehenden Prinzipe der reinen Menschlichkeit und Pflichttreue seinem Prinzipe der Schwertgewalt zu drohen begann.

ויזנב בך כל הנחשלים, “and he (Amalek) cut down the stragglers in your rear.” They would cut of the organ that had been circumcised and threw it into the air shouting: “this is what you chose, take it!” According to our author this is what the psalmist refers to in Psalms 79,12 when he said: והשב לשכנינו שבעתים אל חיקם, pay our neighbours back sevenfold for the abuse they have flung at You o Lord. Another interpretation of that verse understands it as the Amalekites having ridiculed the Torah as per Psalms 12,7: מזקק שבעתים, “which is refined sevenfold.” [How could Amalek have ridiculed the Torah which had not been revealed yet to the Jewish people at that time? Ed.]

ויזנב בך, “and attacked the hindmost of you.” Amalek chased after the Jewish people until he caught up with the slowest moving ones. (Ibn Ezra) [The people had not yet been organised into army groups, etc., as we learned in the Book of Numbers. Ed.]

ויזנב בך means, smiting the membrum; he cut off the membra and threw them up provocatively towards Heaven (God) (Midrash Tanchuma, Ki Teitzei 10).

Although he was scalded, he cooled it for the others. I.e., he made you seem cold to others.

ואתה עיף ויגע, "and you were tired and exhausted." You were still עיף from your long and hard bondage in Egypt, and יגע exhausted from your trek through the desert.

זנב ויזנב בך der Schweif (so rabb. סניף: Anhängsel, das Nebensächliche, einem Hauptkörper Anhängende, und צנף: die Anhängsel, Enden, mit einem Hauptkörper verbinden, zusammenrollen), hier: die Nachzügler, und ונב, Piel (wie סעף entasten): die Nachzügler von dem Haupttrupp abschneiden, oder niedermachen. כל הנחשלים אחריך, חשל (verwandt mit חסל: abfressen, zu Ende bringen אזל, schwinden עצל träge) Daniel 2, 40: פרולא מהדק וחשל כלה, Eisen zerschlägt und vernichtet alles, bezeichnet jedenfalls einen Schwächezustand, ähnlich wie das versetzte חלש, also: alle, die dir nur schwach nachfolgen konnten, aus Schwäche zurückblieben. ואתה עיף ויגע, du selbst — das ganze Volk, der Hauptkörper selbst — warst matt und abgemüht. Es waren also die Schwächsten unter den Schwachen, die selbst einer langsamen Fortbewegung nicht folgen konnten, die er überfiel. Ihn lud somit nicht Schwäche zu Mitleid und Schonung, sondern zu roher, höhnender Misshandlung.

ולא ירא אלוקים, “and he did not fear G–d,” by cheating with weights. [According to this interpretation the subject in this verse is not Amalek but Israel.] The Torah had used the expression ויראת אלוקיך, “you shall fear the Lord your G–d,” when warning us not to cheat with weights and measurements] If the Israelites had heeded this warning, Amalek would not have been allowed to harm them when attacking them. Our author quotes Proverbs 11,1: מאזני מרמה תועבת ה' ואבן שלמה רצונו, “dishonest scales are an abomination to the Lord; an honest weight pleases Him,” as support for his interpretation. Solomon continues in the verse following in Proverbs, by saying: בא זדון ויבא קלון, “evil is followed by disgrace in its wake;” and the Torah, immediately before inserting the paragraph of Amalek’s attack, had written that all the people guilty of the sins listed in the previous paragraph had committed an abomination against the Lord. (Compare Tanchuma, section 8 on our portion)

הנחשלים, as if spelled הנחלשים, “the weakest of them.”

כל הנחשלים אחריך [AND HE SMOTE THE HINDMOST OF THEE] EVEN THOSE THAT WERE FEEBLE BEHIND THEE — i.e., those who were enfeebled because of their sins and whom the clouds had expelled from the protection they afforded (Midrash Tanchuma, Ki Teitzei 10).

Striking at the appendage — they severed the circumcision, [and flung it heavenward]. The organ that has the circumcision is like an appendage, and the meaning of מזנב is to cut off your appendage, i.e., your circumcisions, and fling them heavenward. I.e., they insulted Heaven [as it were] by saying, "The mitzvah You commanded Your nation, Yisroel, how did it help them?!"

ולא ירא אלוקים, "and he did not fear G'd." This fact inspired more fear in you than the combined fatigue and exhaustion you had experienced. We know from Isaiah 33,14: "the sinners in Zion are frightened," that people who are aware of having sinned will experience fear as opposed to those who are serene in their knowledge of leading a blameless life. The Torah is at pains to describe Amalek in terms which will cause us to hate him by describing his surprise attack on the Jewish people, his exploiting a time when the Israelites were tired and exhausted, pouncing upon them like an eagle. At that time they were also deprived of the power of the righteous who ensured that through their conduct G'd's cloud would completely envelop and protect them.

ולא ירא אלקים und er sah nicht Gott, der für den Schwachen eintritt gegen die Faust des Starken, und hatte keine Scheu vor Ihm.

ואתה עיף ויגע, “while you were tired and worn out.” There is no reason for your being surprised at his taken advantage of you at that time, as he exploited the fact that you were worn out from long marches. (Mechilta) Another interpretation of the words: ולא ירא אלוקים, “he displayed no fear of G-d,” these words are addressed by Moses to the Jewish people; he tells them that if they at the time had observed the commandments that they already knew about, Amalek could not have done them any harm and could not even have caught up with them.

ואתה עיף ויגע AND THOU WAST FAINT AND WEARY — faint through thirst, for it is written, (Exodus 17:3) “And the people thirsted there for water” and it is written immediately afterwards (v. 8) “Then came Amalek”.

Enfeebled. Because נחשלים is derived from the word חלש (feeble); we find many words whose letters are transposed such as כבש כשב (sheep), and אפילות, which Rashi explains at the end of parshas Va’eira (Shmos 9:32) as meaning "wonder of wonders (פלאי פלאות)," and similarly שמלה שלמה (garment).

ויגע AND WEARY — from the journey (Midrash Tanchuma, Ki Teitzei 10).

Because of their sins, as the cloud ejected them. Those who were ejected by the cloud had their circumcisions severed by Amalek.

ולא ירא AND HE FEARED NOT — Amalek feared not אלהים GOD so as to refrain from harming you (Sifrei Devarim 296:7).

Amalek, of God, so as not to harm you. [Rashi says this] so that you do not explain this as describing Yisroel, that Yisroel had no fear of Hashem, similar to "exhausted and weary" [that applies to Yisroel]. Therefore he explains, "Amalek, etc." They expound this from the punctuation that places a kamatz under the יו"ד, signifying that it is a past-tense verb similar to, "And when Yitzchok grew old (זקן)” (Bereishis 27:1). If it was an adjective [referring to Yisroel], it should have been punctuated with a sheva under the יו"ד.