Komentarz do Liczb 16:13

THAT THOU [Moses] WOULDST MAKE THYSELF A PRINCE OVER US ‘GAM HISTAREIR’ — [the repetition of this phrase — literally ‘also to rule’ means]: ‘also many forms of lordship.’ Or⁹²In our text of Ibn Ezra’s commentary the word “or” is missing, so that he is expressing only one thought: “also many forms of lordship — thou and thy brother Aaron.” [it may refer to lordship by] ‘thou and thy brother Aaron.’” This is the language of Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra. In my opinion the word gam (also) here means “even.” Similarly: There is none that doeth good, not ‘gam’ (even) one;⁹³Psalms 14:3. The poor is hated ‘gam’ (even) of his own neighbor,⁹⁴Proverbs 14:20. and similar cases. Thus Dathan and Abiram said to Moses: “Is it a small thing on your part that you have done us such a great evil to kill us in the wilderness, for which we should have stoned you, that you would rule over us even in a small measure of lordship, by sending us [a summons] to appear before you, let alone that you should play the king and be elevated over us!”

גם השתרר, the word גם in the Torah appears quite often as an introduction to something opposite or totally different from what had preceded it. Our verse is an example of such use, the line כי תשתרר ילינו גם השתרר meaning “do you now also want to lord it over us?” Another such example is found in Exodus 12,32 where Pharaoh begs Moses to bless him, using the word גם, although this word in that context certainly is not a continuation of any previously discussed thought. Genesis 29,30 as well as Numbers 22,33 where the angel said to Bileam גם הרגתי אותך “I would also have killed you,” is totally out of keeping with the standard meaning of the word גם when it is translated as “also.” [the angel had not killed the ass as yet. Ed.]

כי תשתרר עלינו גם השתרר, “yet you want to lord it over us, yea, dominate us even further?” According to Nachmanides the word גם, normally translated as “also,” needs to be understood as אפילו, “even,” in the sense of “even more so,” in our context here. Others understand the phrase to mean: “is it not enough that you lord it over us, that now you want to impose even your brother over us also?”

המעט כי העליתנו, “is it not enough that you have made us go up, etc.?” Datan and Aviram paraphrased (sarcastically) Moses’ question: “is it not enough that G’d has set you apart to become Levites, etc.” by referring to the “elevation” from a land flowing with milk and honey to the desert. Actually, Egypt, situated at sea level was lower than most of the Land of Canaan except a narrow coastal strip and the Israelites at that time were on a high plateau at the southern end of Eretz Yisrael.

V. 13. המעט וגו׳, hast du uns nicht schon genug unglücklich gemacht, indem du uns aus einem so herrlichen Lande wie Ägypten hinauf (d. h. unter dem Versprechen, uns in ein noch besseres zu bringen, oder der höheren Lage von Palästina wegen) geführt hast, um uns nach deinem jüngsten Verhängnis nun hier, in der Wüste, unsern Tod finden zu lassen, dass השתרר וגו׳. Wir haben drei, dem Laute nach ähnliche, begrifflich jedoch verschiedene Ausdrücke für herrschen: שור ,שרה und שרה .שרר bezeichnet das Herrschen nach der überragenden, größeren Macht, שור nach dem maßgebenden sittlichen Einfluss (siehe Bereschit 17, 15), שרר aber ist verwandt mit סרר, dem Ausdrucke des ungefügigsten Ungehorsams, bezeichnet die Willkürherrschaft, die an kein Gesetz sich bindet, und die werfen sie Mosche vor und finden schon einen Beweis darin, dass er sich erlaubt, sie zu sich rufen zu lassen, wozu er ganz und gar kein Recht habe!!

כי תשתרר עלינו גם השתרר, “but you have also imposed a dictatorship over us!” According to Rash’bam, the Torah uses the word גם, usually translated as “also,” both positively and negatively, i.e. as a continuation of something previous, or as an abrupt opposite of something previously stated. Our verse is an example of Datan and Abiram using it in the latter sense as if asking: “are you now going to also (even) act as dictator? Exodus 12,32 is such an example where the Pharaoh who had railed against Moses and Aaron all the time, suddenly makes a 180 degree turn by pleading for Moses to bless him also when offering sacrifices to the Jewish G-d. Numbers 22,33, is another such example where the angel who had not killed anyone tells Bileam that he would have killed not only his ass but also Bileam if he had been at liberty to do so.

כי תשתרר עלינו גם תשתרר, “that you also want to lord it over us?” The word “over us” refers to the manner in which they perceived Moses as having lorded it over them already in Egypt something which was followed by their continuing to exercise their rule over the people in the desert (this justifies the word גם, also, in this line). On the other hand, one may understand the reason the word השתרר has been repeated as the dual “rule” by Moses as the political autocrat over the people and Aaron as the religious autocrat in his capacity as the High Priest. Other secondary forms of authority wielded by the Levites and the princedom of Elitzafan ben Uzziel are referred to in the word גם, “also.”