אַשְׁרֵ֣י הָ֭עָם שֶׁכָּ֣כָה לּ֑וֹ אַֽשְׁרֵ֥י הָ֝עָ֗ם שֶׁיֲהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהָֽיו׃
이러한 백성은 복이 있나니 여호와를 자기 하나님으로 삼는 백성은 복이 있도다
Rabbeinu Bahya
ויוצא משה את העם לקראת האלו-הים מן המחנה, “Moses took the people toward G’d out of the camp.“ The “camp” mentioned here was the camp of the 600,000 Israelites. The words לקראת האלו-הים mean toward the “camp of G’d”, i.e. the area where the ministering angels who had descended from heaven had made their camp. According to Tanchuma Tetzaveh 11 the number of ministering angels who had assembled there matched the number of male adult Israelites. When Yaakov (Genesis 32,3) “saw the camp of G’d” this is what he saw already at the time. He named the camp מחנים, “two camps,” as he envisaged a “return trip” by these angels to earth on the occasion of the revelation at Mount Sinai. Alternately, he envisaged the two camps, the Israelites and the angels taking up position, one opposite the other.
In Song of Songs 7,1 Solomon referred to these two camps when he said: כמחולות המחנים, “as a dance by angels.” Solomon mentions the word שובי, “turn back,” four times in that verse in Song of Songs as the Jewish people experienced four periods of exile during each of which they were urged by their host countries to abandon their religion in favour of the local religions. We, nowadays, who are in the fourth of these exiles are the subject of the last of these four שובי, i.e. to us applies the author’s paraphrasing שובי ונחזה בך, “return so that we may make out of you rulers, people in authority.” based on Yitro’s use of the words ואתה תחזה מכל העם, “and you appoint from among all the people, etc.” (Exodus 18,21).
In Shir Hashirim Rabbah our sages interpret the word שולמית [a word occurring in lieu of the name Israel, Ed.] as a composite of אומה אשר שלום העולמים דר בתוכה“a nation in whose midst dwells the One Who represents eternal peace.” That nation is perceived as responding: מה תחזו בשולמית, “what authority can you possibly offer to a nation such as me?” Israel shuns all that the nations of the world have to offer as they cannot match what we have already experienced at Mount Sinai when we were chosen by G’d as His people. This is the meaning of the words כמחולות מחנים, it is impossible to duplicate the joy that pervaded the Jewish people when they saw themselves as paired with 600,000 angels, their equal, at least. Our sages in Taanit 31 have elaborated on this theme when they said that in the future G’d will arrange dances for the righteous in Gan Eden. In view of all this the “Shulamit” spurned all the offers from the Gentile nations to accord them honour and distinction. Our sages in Shemot Rabbah 29,2 have further stated that 22,000 angels participated at that sacred site. They were the angels closest to the Shechinah, closer than the 600,000 angels we mentioned already They are referred to in Psalms 68,18 as רכב אלו-הים רבותם אלפי שנאן, “G’d’s chariots are myriads upon myriads, thousands upon thousands.” The number of these angels corresponded to the number of 22,000 Levites who had taken up position around the Holy Ark which was within the Tabernacle. Psalms 144,15 proclaims “hail to the people who have experienced this.” At the time the people saw the 4 figures Ezekiel had seen surrounding the throne of G‘d. This is alluded to in the word שנאן which is an acrostic for the creatures supporting the throne of G’d in Ezekiel’s vision i.e. שור, אריה, נשר, plus the letter ן which symbolizes אדם. Five major angels named אוריאל, רפאל, גבריאל, מיכאל, (נוריאל) were seen by the Israelites at that time, the first four representing whole encampments surrounding the Shechinah and presided over by the fifth angel נוריאל who “rode” above the others. This concept has been called ארגמן by Solomon when he wrote in Song of Songs that G’d’s chariot is Argaman (Song of Songs 3,10). The idea described at length in Bamidbar Rabbah 2,2 of the reason for the Jewish camp being provided with flags also goes back to what they experienced a few months earlier when they saw the flags held by the angels. This evoked in them a desire to be given flags also, a request which G’d honored at the time the Tabernacle was erected. According to another Midrash the experience of listening to G’d’s voice at Mount Sinai was of such overwhelming proportions that each time the people heard a word (commandment) their soul escaped their bodies. They were revived immediately, i.e. they experienced multiple resurrections on that day. This is also alluded to in Song of Songs 5,6 when Israel is quoted as recalling: נפשי יצאה בדברו, “my soul departed when He spoke.” A similar Midrash is found in Devarim Rabbah according to which the sun stood still five times for the sake of Moses; they were the day of the Exodus, the day the Israelites had crossed the Sea of Reeds; the day of the battle against Amalek; the day on which the Torah was given, and on the day the Israelites observed the rivers of blood in the river Arnon (Numbers 21,14-15).
In Song of Songs 7,1 Solomon referred to these two camps when he said: כמחולות המחנים, “as a dance by angels.” Solomon mentions the word שובי, “turn back,” four times in that verse in Song of Songs as the Jewish people experienced four periods of exile during each of which they were urged by their host countries to abandon their religion in favour of the local religions. We, nowadays, who are in the fourth of these exiles are the subject of the last of these four שובי, i.e. to us applies the author’s paraphrasing שובי ונחזה בך, “return so that we may make out of you rulers, people in authority.” based on Yitro’s use of the words ואתה תחזה מכל העם, “and you appoint from among all the people, etc.” (Exodus 18,21).
In Shir Hashirim Rabbah our sages interpret the word שולמית [a word occurring in lieu of the name Israel, Ed.] as a composite of אומה אשר שלום העולמים דר בתוכה“a nation in whose midst dwells the One Who represents eternal peace.” That nation is perceived as responding: מה תחזו בשולמית, “what authority can you possibly offer to a nation such as me?” Israel shuns all that the nations of the world have to offer as they cannot match what we have already experienced at Mount Sinai when we were chosen by G’d as His people. This is the meaning of the words כמחולות מחנים, it is impossible to duplicate the joy that pervaded the Jewish people when they saw themselves as paired with 600,000 angels, their equal, at least. Our sages in Taanit 31 have elaborated on this theme when they said that in the future G’d will arrange dances for the righteous in Gan Eden. In view of all this the “Shulamit” spurned all the offers from the Gentile nations to accord them honour and distinction. Our sages in Shemot Rabbah 29,2 have further stated that 22,000 angels participated at that sacred site. They were the angels closest to the Shechinah, closer than the 600,000 angels we mentioned already They are referred to in Psalms 68,18 as רכב אלו-הים רבותם אלפי שנאן, “G’d’s chariots are myriads upon myriads, thousands upon thousands.” The number of these angels corresponded to the number of 22,000 Levites who had taken up position around the Holy Ark which was within the Tabernacle. Psalms 144,15 proclaims “hail to the people who have experienced this.” At the time the people saw the 4 figures Ezekiel had seen surrounding the throne of G‘d. This is alluded to in the word שנאן which is an acrostic for the creatures supporting the throne of G’d in Ezekiel’s vision i.e. שור, אריה, נשר, plus the letter ן which symbolizes אדם. Five major angels named אוריאל, רפאל, גבריאל, מיכאל, (נוריאל) were seen by the Israelites at that time, the first four representing whole encampments surrounding the Shechinah and presided over by the fifth angel נוריאל who “rode” above the others. This concept has been called ארגמן by Solomon when he wrote in Song of Songs that G’d’s chariot is Argaman (Song of Songs 3,10). The idea described at length in Bamidbar Rabbah 2,2 of the reason for the Jewish camp being provided with flags also goes back to what they experienced a few months earlier when they saw the flags held by the angels. This evoked in them a desire to be given flags also, a request which G’d honored at the time the Tabernacle was erected. According to another Midrash the experience of listening to G’d’s voice at Mount Sinai was of such overwhelming proportions that each time the people heard a word (commandment) their soul escaped their bodies. They were revived immediately, i.e. they experienced multiple resurrections on that day. This is also alluded to in Song of Songs 5,6 when Israel is quoted as recalling: נפשי יצאה בדברו, “my soul departed when He spoke.” A similar Midrash is found in Devarim Rabbah according to which the sun stood still five times for the sake of Moses; they were the day of the Exodus, the day the Israelites had crossed the Sea of Reeds; the day of the battle against Amalek; the day on which the Torah was given, and on the day the Israelites observed the rivers of blood in the river Arnon (Numbers 21,14-15).
Rabbeinu Bahya
The Jewish people merited this commandment as a result of which they have received three promises. 1) The kingdom of the house of David. that would endure forever. 2) the gift of the land of Israel which would remain our inheritance forever. 3) that the Presence of G-d would be manifest over the people of Israel. All these three promises have been hinted at in this paragraph. The promise involving the dynasty of the house of David is alluded to in the words ונתתיך לגוים ומלכים ממך יצאו “I will give you to be nations, and kings will come forth from you.” (17,6). This verse speaks of the consequences of this covenant. We also have a verse in Psalms 89,4-5 concerning David which uses similar language. כרתי ברית לבחירי נשבעתי לדוד עבדי עד עולם אכין זרעך ובניתי לדור דור כסאך סלה, “I have made a covenant with My chosen one; I have sworn to My servant David ‘I will establish your offspring forever, I will confirm your throne for all generations.’”
The gift of the land of ארץ ישראל is hinted at in our paragraph when the Torah writes (verse 8 in our chapter) ונתתי לך ולזרעך אחריך את ארץ מגוריך את כל ארץ כנען לאחוזת עולם, “and I have given to you and to your descendants after you the whole land of Canaanas an eternal possession.” The meaning of this verse is that though there may be times when others occupy this land it will never be theirs, and the Jewish people will return to it in due course after their exile.” The proof of the truth of this promise is that no nation which tried to settle in this land ever succeeded to make it a land of milk and honey as it had been when occupied by the Jewish people. It remained largely desolate ever since the destruction of the Holy Temple.
The reference to he third promise that G-d’s presence would be manifest over the Jewish people is based on 17,8 והייתי להם לאלוקים, “I will remain as their G-d.” This means that only the Jewish people will be able to claim G-d as their exclusive national G-d. Hail to the nation to whom three such assurances have been given. No other nation has ever received such a package of promises. This is what David had in mind when he said (Psalms 144,15) אשרי העם שככה לו, אשרי העם שה' אלוקיו “hail to the people who have it so; happy the people whose G-d is the Lord.”
The gift of the land of ארץ ישראל is hinted at in our paragraph when the Torah writes (verse 8 in our chapter) ונתתי לך ולזרעך אחריך את ארץ מגוריך את כל ארץ כנען לאחוזת עולם, “and I have given to you and to your descendants after you the whole land of Canaanas an eternal possession.” The meaning of this verse is that though there may be times when others occupy this land it will never be theirs, and the Jewish people will return to it in due course after their exile.” The proof of the truth of this promise is that no nation which tried to settle in this land ever succeeded to make it a land of milk and honey as it had been when occupied by the Jewish people. It remained largely desolate ever since the destruction of the Holy Temple.
The reference to he third promise that G-d’s presence would be manifest over the Jewish people is based on 17,8 והייתי להם לאלוקים, “I will remain as their G-d.” This means that only the Jewish people will be able to claim G-d as their exclusive national G-d. Hail to the nation to whom three such assurances have been given. No other nation has ever received such a package of promises. This is what David had in mind when he said (Psalms 144,15) אשרי העם שככה לו, אשרי העם שה' אלוקיו “hail to the people who have it so; happy the people whose G-d is the Lord.”
Or HaChaim
הרנינו גוים עמו, "O nations, sing the praises of His people, etc." Moses means that when the time comes that G'd exacts retribution from the nations, from the enemies of the Jewish people, the other nations will praise the Israelites and jubilate and elevate them, as we know from Psalms 144,19: "Hail to the people who experience this."