Cytowanie Komentarza do Psalmów 98:3

“All the people answered” [4:11]. All the people who were sitting in the gate responded. The elders witnessed it and said: God should make the woman who is coming into your house like Rachel and Leah who built the house of Israel with twelve tribes. Prosper in Ephrat and may his name be perpetuated in Bethlehem. The sages say, even though the people were descended from Judah, who was the son of Leah, so why does the verse mention Rachel first? She was younger than Leah. The verse should have said, like Leah and Rachel, with Leah first. Don’t think that the children themselves did not recognize that Rachel was primary for Jacob. Jacob’s intention was for Rachel when he served Laban. Therefore, Rachel is mentioned first in the verse. Our sages say about the verse, the generations were redeemed only through the pious women who were in that generation, as the verse says, “He remembered His steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel” [Psalms, 98:3]. This means that He remembered His grace and His truth to the house of Israel. The verse means the women of Israel, because it does not say the children of Israel.⁷³Midrash Zuta, Ruth 4.8. Why do we find that the sage calls his wife house, because she is the primary one in the house and that is what the verse means by house of Israel.

And abounding in goodness and truth; keeping mercy upon the thousandth generation — these three denote the attribute of mercy, since He increases the goodness over His strength and might and the truth in His mercies. And ‘notzeir’ (keeping) mercy unto the thousandth generation, for He hath remembered His mercy and His faithfulness toward the house of Israel.⁵⁰⁸Psalms 98:3. Or it may be that the word notzeir means “sprouting,” of the root, ‘v’neitzer’ (and a twig) shall grow forth out of his roots.⁵⁰⁹Isaiah 11:1. And in His goodness He is ‘nosei’ (forgiving) iniquity and transgression and sin. This is of the expression, I have made, and I ‘esa’ (will bear).⁵¹⁰Isaiah 46:4.
The two phrases, and that will by no means clear the guilty, and visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, are an explanation to the one of forgiving iniquity [mentioned before]. It is called an “attribute”⁵¹¹Thus it is now clear that Ramban counts the thirteen attributes as follows: 1. The Eternal. 2. The Eternal. 3. G-d. 4. Merciful. 5. Gracious 6. Long-suffering. 7.-8. Abounding in goodness and truth. 9. Keeping mercy unto the thousandth generation. 10.-11.-12. Forgiving iniquity, transgression and sin. 13. That will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity etc. — See Tosafoth Rosh Hashanah 17 b that such is also the opinion of Rabbeinu Tam. Ibn Ezra likewise follows generally this interpretation. because He clears the sinner by this visitation. And because this act of forgiving is not equal for iniquity, transgression and sin, but instead in each category has its own form of clearing the sinner, it is called in each case “one attribute.”⁵¹²“And the expressions, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers etc., also constitute an independent attribute, for the ‘clearing’ done in this form of forgiving is by visitation, it being another way of forgiveness of sin, that He will not forgive it outright, but visit it upon the generations etc.” (Abusaula).