출애굽기 24:14의 미드라쉬

6) — But let this exclude only Israel, who were not found fit to ascend Mount Sinai, but not the elders, who were found fit to do so! (viz. [Shemoth 24:1]: "And to Moses He said: Go up … and seventy of the elders of Israel.") Let it exclude the elders, who were not present at the L–rd's dibbur to Moses (on Mount Sinai after the giving of the Torah, viz. [Shemoth 24:14]: "Abide for us here," in the encampment, with the rest of the people), and not the sons of Aaron, who were present at the L–rd's dibbur to Moses. Let it exclude the sons of Aaron, who were not together with Moses for dibbur, and not Aaron, who was together with Moses for dibbur (viz.: "And the L–rd spoke to Moses and to Aaron" — and not to his sons). It is, therefore, written (Vayikra 30:6): "… where I shall be appointed for you" — For you there was appointment, but not for (any) of the others.

Why did He elevate Aaron and his sons to that holy station? R. Mani of Shaab and R. Joshua of Sikhnin said in the name of R. Levi: When the Israelites pleaded with him to erect the golden calf, they said to Aaron: Up, make us a god (Exod. 32:1). Thereupon Hur the son of Caleb arose and rebuked them. They attacked him and killed him. Aaron beheld what had happened and feared (vayir’a) for his own life, as it is said: And when Aaron saw (vaya’r) he built an altar before it (ibid., v. 5). You know that they killed Hur, for Moses told them before he ascended the mountain: Behold, Aaron and Hur are with you; whosoever hath a cause, let him come near unto them (ibid. 24:14), but after he descended, you find that he did not refer to Hur either as living or as dead. What does Scripture say: And Moses said to Aaron: “What did this people unto thee, that thou hast brought a great sin upon them?” (ibid. 32:21). Obviously they must have killed Hur.

(Exod. 32:1:) WHEN THE PEOPLE SAW THAT MOSES WAS LATE <IN COMING DOWN FROM THE MOUNTAIN >. What is the meaning of WAS LATE (boshesh)?³⁹Shab. 89a; Gen. R. 18:6; Exod. R. 41:7; cf. PR 11:12. <That> six (shesh) hours had passed (bo) without Moses having come down, for Moses had made an agreement with them and said to them: After forty days I will bring you the Law. As soon as six hours had passed and he had not come down, immediately (ibid., cont.): THE PEOPLE GATHERED TOGETHER AGAINST AARON. Our masters have said: Satan came, confounded the world,⁴⁰See also Tanh., Exod. 9:19. and showed them something like Moses suspended from the earth, i.e., in the air⁴¹Avir; cf. Gk.: aer. beneath it.⁴²Cf. the parallel in Exod. R. 41:7, which reads, “suspended between heaven and earth.” Then they pointed a finger at him and said (ibid., cont.): <ARISE AND MAKE A GOD FOR US WHO WILL GO BEFORE US, > FOR THIS IS THE MAN, MOSES.⁴³The biblical context would suggest the following translation: FOR REGARDING THIS MAN MOSES <WHO BROUGHT US UP FROM THE LAND OF EGYPT, WE DO NOT KNOW WHAT HAS BECOME OF HIM >. At that time Hur said to them: O stiff-necked < people >, do you not remember what he did for you?⁴⁴Lev. R. 10:3. According to Exod. 24:14, Moses left Aaron and Hur in charge while he was up on the mountain. They arose and killed him.⁴⁵Below, Exod. 10:4; Exod. R. 41:7; 42:1; 48:3; Numb. R. 9:45. Then they gathered together against Aaron, as stated (ibid.): THE PEOPLE GATHERED TOGETHER AGAINST AARON….⁴⁶Sanh. 7a; Exod. R. 51:8. They said to him: If you make a god for us, well and good; but if not, we will do to you just as we did to Hur. (Exod. 32:5:) WHEN AARON SAW THIS, <i.e., when> he saw what they had done to Hur, (ibid., cont.) HE BUILT (YBN) AN ALTAR (MZBH), <i.e.> he understood (HBYN) from the slaughtered (MZBWH) one.⁴⁷So also Lev. R. 10:3; cf. Gen. R. 34:9, which gives the same interpretation of BUILT, in Gen. 8:20. They wanted to build <the altar> along with him. He said to them, leave me alone, and I will make it by myself, for no one is to build it along with me. Now Aaron had a plan. <He was> saying <to himself>: While I am building it, Moses will come down.⁴⁸So also Exod. R. 37:2. Immediately (in Exod. 32:6): SO THEY ROSE EARLY THE NEXT DAY, < OFFERED BURNT OFFERINGS, AND BROUGHT PEACE OFFERINGS>; [AND THE PEOPLE SAT DOWN TO EAT AND DRINK.] In every place that you find sitting, there you find degradation.⁴⁹Exod. R. 41:7; similarly Sanh. 106a; Gen. R. 38:7; Tanh., Gen. 9:1; Sifre, Numb. 131; PRE 47. Thus it is stated (in Gen. 37:25): THEN THEY SAT DOWN TO EAT BREAD. What degradation happened there? <It was there> that they sold Joseph. It is also written (in Numb. 25:1): WHILE ISRAEL WAS STAYING (literally: SITTING) AT SHITTIM. And what was the degradation there? (Ibid., cont.:) THE PEOPLE BEGAN TO GO WHORING <WITH THE DAUGHTERS OF MOAB>. And here too (in Exod. 32:6): THEN THE PEOPLE SAT DOWN, <i.e., in> the sitting of idolatry. The Holy One said to Moses; They have risen to revel in idolatry, while you are sitting <up here>. (Exod. 32:7:) GO AND GET DOWN. At that time Moses was going to go down, but he saw the angels of destruction and was afraid to go down. Thus it is stated (in Deut. 9:19): FOR I WAS AFRAID OF ANGER AND RAGE. What did he do? He went and grasped the throne, as stated (in Job 26:9): HE (Moses) GRASPS THE FACE OF A THRONE; [HE (the Holy One) SPREAD HIS CLOUD UPON HIM]. So the Holy One protected him and spread some of the radiance of his Divine Presence over him. Come and see how many troubles they caused. Yesterday Moses had shoved them (the angels of destruction) aside,⁵⁰According to Shab. 88b-89a and Exod. R. 28:1, because the angels wanted the Torah for themselves, they tried to prevent Moses from receiving it. and now he was afraid of them. (Deut. 9:19:) FOR I WAS AFRAID OF [ANGER AND RAGE]. The five angels of destruction were Af (Anger), Qetsef (Wrath), Meshabber (Smasher), Mashhit (Destroyer), and Hemah (Rage); ⁵¹Cf. Tanh., Exod. 9:20. Moses mentioned three patriarchs, and three <angels> went away.⁵²See also Exod. R. 44:1. But ANGER AND RAGE remained behind. Moses said to the Holy One: Sovereign of the World: You stand up to one and I to one, as stated (in Ps. 7:7 [6]): RISE UP, O LORD, IN YOUR Af (ANGER).⁵³A more traditional translation would be: RISE UP, O LORD IN YOUR ANGER. The Holy One said to him (in Exod. 32:7): GO AND GET DOWN; you have a descent (i.e., degradation). He said to him: Why? HE SAID TO HIM: BECAUSE YOUR PEOPLE <WHOM YOU HAVE BROUGHT UP FROM THE LAND OF EGYPT > HAVE ACTED BASELY. Moses said to him: Now are they my people and not your people! (Exod. 32:12:) TURN BACK FROM YOUR WRATHFUL ANGER. R. Simeon ben Johay said: Moses did not move from praying until the Holy One was reconciled to them. The Holy One said: In this world you sinned against me because the evil drive was ordering you; but in the world to come I am rooting it out of you, as stated (in Ezek. 36:26): I WILL REMOVE THE HEART OF STONE FROM YOUR FLESH AND GIVE YOU A HEART OF FLESH.⁵⁴Below, Tanh. (Buber), Lev. 1:12; above, Tanh. (Buber), Gen. 1:40; Tanh., Exod. 9:19; Tanh., Lev. 1:6.

(Numb. 11:16:) “Gather Me seventy men from the elders of Israel.” But where were those former ones?⁵⁴Numb. R. 15:21. This text is related (to Job 34:24), “He shatters mighty ones without inquiry and raises up others in their stead.” When Israel was in Egypt, they had seventy elders as stated (in Exod. 3:16), “Go and gather the elders of Israel”; and with them they went out of Egypt. [Moreover] when Moses went up [on Sinai] to receive the Torah, they were [still] with him, as stated (in Exod. 24:9), “Then there went up Moses and Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel,” [and then] (in Exod. 24:14) “But unto the elders he had said, ‘Wait [for us] here […].’” When Moses had gone up, he had agreed with Israel to come down at the end of forty days. When he delayed coming down, all Israel came together to the elders. [He delayed,] even as it is stated (in Exod. 32:1), “When the people saw that Moses delayed (boshesh).”⁵⁵Cf. Shab. 89a. Now boshesh can only mean a delay since it is stated (in Judg. 5:28), “Why is his chariot late (boshesh) in coming; why are the hoof-beats of his chariots delaying?” They said to them, Moses agreed with us that he would come down in forty days. Now here it is forty days and he has not come down. And in addition, six hours more [have passed];⁵⁶Cf. Exod. R. 41:7, which derives boshesh from ba’u shesh, which means: “Six hours have come.” See Gen. R. 18:6. yet we do not know what has happened to him. So (in the words of Exod. 32:1 cont.) ‘Arise and make a god for us.’” When they heard that, they said to them, “Why are you angering Him, you for whom He performed all the miracles and wonders?” [But] they did not heed them and killed them. Then because Hur had stood ('md) up to them with harsh words, they (rt.: 'md) rose up against him and killed him [as well]. Then all of Israel gathered around Aaron with great pomp, as stated (ibid.), “and the people gathered unto Aaron...,” [saying,] “Why are you sitting?” R. Isaac said, “The holy spirit cried out (as in Psalms 26:5), ‘I detest the company of evil men, and do not consort with the wicked.’” [They said to him] (again in the words of Exod. 32:1 cont.) “’Arise and make a god for us’; and if not, ‘as (like) this,’ we will do like this to you. In the same way that we rose up against Hur and killed him, so will we do to you, if you prevent us [from our demand].” Once Aaron saw what they did to the elders and to Hur, he was very afraid, as stated (Exodus 32:5), “And Aaron saw and he built an altar (vayiven mizbeach) in front of it,” [meaning that] he built from the killing (vayiven mizvoach). Where is it shown that they killed the elders and Hur?⁵⁷On the killing of Hur, see also Tanh. Exod. 8:10; Exod. R. 42:1; 48:3; 51:8; Lev. R. 10:2; Numb. R. 9:45; PRE 45. Where Jeremiah rebuked Israel, as stated (in Jer. 2:34), “On your skirts there is found the lifeblood of the innocent poor; you did not find them breaking in; yet for of all these.” What is the significance of “for all these (elleh)?” [It is] because of (the statement in Exod. 32:4), “These (elleh) are your gods O Israel.” What [punishment] did he repay them? (As stated in Exod. 32:35), “Then the Lord sent a plague upon the people.” After a time, when the Holy One, blessed be He, had forgiven them, He said to Moses (in Numb. 11:16), “Gather Me seventy men, in place of those who were killed for the sanctification of My name.” That is what is written (in Job 34:24), “He shatters mighty ones without inquiry [and raises up others in their stead].”

21 (Numb. 11:16) “Gather Me seventy men from the elders of Israel”: But where were those former ones? This text is related (to Job 34:24), “He shatters mighty ones without inquiry and raises up others in their stead.” When Israel was in Egypt, they had seventy elders as stated (in Exod. 3:16), “Go and gather the elders of Israel”; and with them they went out of Egypt. [Moreover] when Moses went up [on Sinai] to receive the Torah, they were [still] with him, as stated (in Exod. 24:9), “Then there went up Moses and Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel,” [and then] (in Exod. 24:14) “But unto the elders he had said, ‘Wait [for us] here […].’” When Moses had gone up, he had agreed with Israel to come down at the end of forty days. When he delayed coming down, all Israel came together to the elders. [He delayed,] even as it is stated (in Exod. 32:1), “When the people saw that Moses delayed (boshesh).”⁴⁵Cf. Shab. 89a. Now boshesh can only mean a delay since it is stated (in Judg. 5:28), “Why is his chariot late (boshesh) in coming; why are the hoof-beats of his chariots delaying?” They said to them, Moses agreed with us that he would come down in forty days. Now here it is forty days and he has not come down. And in addition, six hours more [have passed];⁴⁶Cf. Exod. R. 41:7, which derives boshesh from ba’u shesh, which means: “Six hours have come.” See Gen. R. 18:6. yet we do not know what has happened to him. So (in the words of Exod. 32:1 cont.) ‘Arise and make a god for us […].’” When they heard that, they said to them, “Why are you angering Him, you for whom He performed all the miracles and wonders?” [But] they did not heed them and killed them. Then because Hur had stood ('md) up to them with harsh words, they (rt.: 'md) rose up against him and killed him [as well]. Then all of Israel gathered around Aaron with great pomp, as stated (ibid.), “and the people gathered unto Aaron...,” [saying,] “Get up! Why are you sitting? Get up!” R. Isaac said, “The holy spirit cried out (as in Psalms 26:5), ‘I detest the company of evil men.’” [They said to him] (again in the words of Exod. 32:1 cont.) “’Arise and make a god for us’; and if not, ‘as (like) this,’ we will do like this to you. In the same way that we rose up against Hur and killed him, so will we do to you, [if you prevent us from our demand].” Once Aaron saw what they did to the elders and to Hur, he was very afraid, as stated (Exodus 32:5), “And Aaron saw and he built an altar (vayiven mizbeach) in front of it,” [meaning that] he understood from the one killed before him (vayiven me’mi she’zavuach lefaniv). Where is it shown that they killed the elders and Hur?⁴⁷On the killing of Hur, see also Tanh. Exod. 8:10; Exod. R. 42:1; 48:3; 51:8; Lev. R. 10:2; Numb. R. 9:45; PRE 45. Where Jeremiah rebuked Israel, as stated (in Jer. 2:34), “On your skirts there is found the lifeblood of the innocent poor; you did not find them breaking in; yet for of all these.” What is the significance of “for all these (elleh)?” [It is] because of (the statement in Exod. 32:4), “These (elleh) are your gods O Israel.” What [punishment] did He repay them? (As stated in Exod. 32:35), “Then the Lord sent a plague upon the people.” After a time, when the Holy One, blessed be He, had forgiven them, He said to Moses (in Numb. 11:16), “Gather Me seventy men, in place of those who were killed for the sanctification of My name.” That is what is written (in Job 34:24), “He shatters mighty ones without inquiry and raises up others in their stead.”

While they were walking, they would lag behind by themselves singly and in pairs.⁹⁷Exod. R. 5:14. When they arrived at Pharaoh's palace,⁹⁸Lat.: Palatium. not even one of them was to be found with them (i.e., with Moses and Aaron). It is therefore stated (in Exod. 5:1): AFTERWARDS, MOSES AND AARON CAME <AND SAID UNTO PHARAOH>. And where were the elders? They had simply gone away. The Holy One said to them: What do you think? That I am not going to repay you? By your life, when Moses and Aaron go to receive the Torah, you are going up with them, but I am turning you back. It is so stated (in Exod. 24:14): BUT UNTO THE ELDERS HE HAD SAID: TURN BACK HERE….⁹⁹The Masoretic Text has: WAIT FOR US HERE…. The Holy one said to them: In this world you have not seen the glory of Torah, but in the world to come you shall be glorified in <the glory> of Torah.¹⁰⁰See below, 1:26. It is so stated (in Is. 24:23): THEN THE MOON SHALL BE ASHAMED, AND THE SUN SHALL BE ABASHED, FOR THE LORD OF HOSTS SHALL REIGN ON MOUNT ZION AND IN JERUSALEM. THEN <THE DIVINE> GLORY <SHALL STAND > IN THE PRESENCE OF HIS ELDERS.¹⁰¹This form, comparing this world and the world to come, is a common peroration to a parashah. It therefore seems likely that the triennial parashah ends here, even though the next section begins with Exod. 4:27, two verses before Exod. 4:29, which begins this section. See Jacob Mann, The Bible as Read and Preached in the Old Synagogue, Vol. I (Ktav, 1971), p. 372.

(Numb. 11:16:) GATHER ME <SEVENTY PEOPLE FROM THE ELDERS OF ISRAEL>…. But where were those former ones?⁸⁸Tanh. 3:14; Numb. R. 15:21. This text is related (to Job 34:24): HE SHATTERS MIGHTY ONES WITHOUT INQUIRY [AND RAISES UP OTHERS IN THEIR STEAD]. When the princes (i.e. the people of Israel) were in Egypt, they had seventy elders as stated (in Exod. 3:16): GO AND GATHER THE ELDERS OF ISRAEL; and with them they went out of Egypt. Moreover when Moses went up <on Sinai> to receive the Torah, they were <still> with him, as stated (in Exod. 24:9): THEN THERE WENT UP MOSES AND AARON, NADAB, ABIHU, AND THE SEVENTY ELDERS OF ISRAEL. (Exod. 24:14:) BUT UNTO THE ELDERS HE HAD SAID: WAIT [FOR US] HERE…. When Moses had gone up, he had agreed with Israel to come down at the end of forty days. When he delayed coming down, even as it is stated (in Exod. 32:1): WHEN THE PEOPLE SAW THAT MOSES WAS LATE (boshesh) < … >.⁸⁹Cf. Shab. 89a. Now boshesh can only mean a delay since it is stated (in Judg. 5:28): WHY IS HIS CHARIOT LATE (boshesh) IN COMING; WHY ARE THE HOOF-BEATS OF HIS CHARIOTS DELAYING? All Israel came together to the elders. They said to them: Moses agreed with us that he would come down in forty days. Now here it is forty days and he has not come down. And in addition, six hours more <have passed>;⁹⁰Cf. Exod. R. 41:7, which derives boshesh from ba’u shesh, which means: “Six hours have come.” See Gen. R. 18:6. yet we do not know what has happened to him. So (in the words of Exod. 32:1 cont.) ARISE AND MAKE A GOD FOR US. When they heard that, they said to them: Why are you making him angry, you for whom he performed all the miracles and wonders? They rose up against them and killed them. Then because Hur had stood ('MD) up to them with harsh words, they (rt.: 'MD) rose up against him and killed him. [Where is it shown that they killed the elders and Hur?]⁹¹On the killing of Hur, see also Tanh. Exod. 8:10; Exod. R. 42:1; 48:3; 51:8; Lev. R. 10:2; Numb. R. 9:45; PRE 45. Where Jeremiah has said (in Jer. 2:34-35): MOREOVER ON YOUR SKIRTS THERE IS FOUND THE LIFEBLOOD OF THE INNOCENT POOR. YOU DID NOT FIND THEM BREAKING IN; YET FOR OF ALL THESE <YOU SAY: I AM INNOCENT>. [What is the significance of FOR ALL THESE (elleh)?] <It is> because of (the statement in Exod. 32:4): THIS (elleh) IS YOUR GOD O ISRAEL. After a time, when the Holy One had forgiven them, he said to Moses (in Numb. 11:16): GATHER ME SEVENTY PEOPLE <FROM THE ELDERS OF ISRAEL> in place of those who were killed for the sanctification of my name. That is what is written (in Job 34:24): HE SHATTERS MIGHTY ONES WITHOUT INQUIRY [AND RAISES UP OTHERS IN THEIR STEAD].

What happened to the elders who had accompanied them? The Holy One, blessed be He, said to them: Because you slipped away, be assured, I will exact retribution from you. When did that occur? At the time that Moses and Aaron went up to Mount Sinai with the elders to receive the Torah. The Holy One, blessed be He, kept them away, as it is said: And unto the elders, He said: “Tarry ye here for us until we come back unto you” (ibid. 24:14). In this world, the Holy One, blessed be He, said to them, you shall not witness the glory of the Torah, but in the world-to-come, I will reveal unto you the light of the glory of the Torah, as it is said: Then the moon shall be confounded and the sun ashamed (Isa. 24:23).

(Bamidbar 11:16) "And the L-rd said to Moses: Gather unto Me seventy men from the elders of Israel, etc.": Why (is this mentioned here)? Because Moses had said "I cannot bear alone," the L-rd responded: What you have requested, I have granted. "Gather unto Me": that the Sanhedrin be in My name. Wherever "unto Me" is written, the understanding is "forever." The Cohanim — (Shemot 28:41) "that they minister unto Me." The Levites — (Bamidbar 8:14) "and the Levites shall be unto Me." Israel — (Vayikra 25:35) "For unto Me are the children of Israel servants." The first-born — (Bamidbar 8:17) "For unto Me are all the first-born of the children of Israel." The sanctuary — (Shemot 25:8) "And let them make unto Me a sanctuary." The altar — (Ibid. 20:24) "An altar of earth shall you make unto Me." The oil of anointment — (Ibid. 30:31) "Holy oil of anointment shall this be unto Me." The kings — (I Samuel 16:1) "For I have seen among his sons a king unto Me." The offerings — (Bamidbar 28:2) "to sacrifice unto Me in its appointed time." Unto Me, then, always connotes "forever." (Bamidbar, Ibid. 16) "seventy men": There must be seventy in a Sanhedrin. "seventy men": They must be wise, strong, senior, and well-versed in the magic arts. "from the elders of Israel": Not in (only) one or two places does the L-rd accord honor to the elders, but in every place that you find, He does so, viz. (Shemot 3:16) "Go and assemble the elders of Israel, etc.", (Ibid. 24:1) "And to Moses He said: Ascend to the L-rd, you and Aaron and Nadav and Avihu and seventy of the elders of Israel," (Ibid. 14) "And to the elders He said: Wait for us here until we return to you," (Vayikra 9:1) "And it was on the eighth day that Moses called to Aaron and to his sons and to the elders of Israel" — Wherever you find elders, you find the L-rd according honor to the elders. R. Shimon b. Yochai says: Whence do you derive that it will also be thus in time to come? From (Isaiah 24:23) "And the moon will be shamed and the sun abashed. For the L-rd of hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and He will accord His elders honor." Now does it not follow a fortiori, viz.: If He who spoke and brought the world into being is destined to accord honor to the elders, how much more so should creatures of flesh and blood honor them! And thus do you find that the L-rd is aggrieved over (the suffering of) one elder over and against all of Israel, viz. (Ibid. 47:6) "I have fumed against My people; I have profaned My heritage, etc." The L-rd, as it were, "pardons" everything, but (Ibid.) "You have weighed your yoke exceedingly upon the elder" (i.e., this cannot be pardoned). (Bamidbar, Ibid.) "whom you know to be the elders of the people": You must know that they are "select" men. "that they are the elders of the people": We are hereby taught that one is not elected to sit in council until people tend to speak in praise of him, viz.: "That man is upright and pious and wise and fit to sit in council." "and its officers": those of whom it is written (Shemot 5:19) "And the officers of the children of Israel saw them in their plight." Since they saw themselves as involved in their plight, let them come and share in their welfare. (Devarim, Ibid.) "And you shall take them to the tent of meeting": He said to them. "Take them" with words first, with words of praise, viz.: How fortunate you are to have been selected (for this honor) — and then "hard" words: Know that they are importunate and recalcitrant. Take them on this condition, that they will curse you and stone you. And stipulate the same to them. "And have them stand there with you": Take them in with you to the tent of meeting, and let all of Israel deport themselves to them with awe and fear and honor, as they do with you. And let them say: How beloved are these, who have entered with Moses to hear the word of the Holy One Blessed be He!