Comentário sobre Deuteronômio 9:18

ואתנפל לפני ה׳ כראשנה ארבעים יום AND I FELL DOWN BEFORE THE LORD, AS AT THE FIRST, FORTY DAYS, as it is said (Exodus 32:30) “And now I will go up to the Lord, perhaps I may atone [for your sin]”. At that ascent, which was the second I made, I tarried there forty days — consequently these terminated on the twenty-ninth of Ab, since he had ascended on the eighteenth of Tammuz. On that same day in Ab He became reconciled with Israel and said to Moses (Exodus 34:1) “Hew thee out two tablets”. He stayed there another forty days; consequently these terminated on the Day of Atonement (the tenth of Tishri). On that same day, the Holy One, blessed be He, was gladly reconciled (i.e. completely reconciled) with Israel and said to Moses, I have forgiven according to thy word. On this account it was appointed for pardon and forgiveness. And whence do we know that He was reconciled with them with complete goodwill? Because it is stated in respect to the forty days of the last tablets (in respect to third period of forty days) (Deuteronomy 10:10), “And I stayed in the mountain according to the first days”! What was the case with the first days? They were passed in God’s goodwill! (for they had not yet committed the sin of worshipping the golden calf). So, too, the last forty days were in God’s goodwill! You must now say (admit) that the intervening forty days were passed in God’s anger (Midrash Tanchuma, Ki Tisa 31; cf. Rashi on Exodus 18:13).

As it is said, “I will now ascend to Adonoy, etc.” Rashi is explaining: You should not say that Moshe ascended at this time to receive the second Tablets after which he descended on Yom Kippur. For below it is written (10:1), “At that time, Adonoy said to me, ‘Hew for yourself, etc.,’” and Rashi explains there, “At the end of forty days He granted me favor,” which is referring to the same forty days written here. This implies that he did not ascend here in order to accept the second Tablets. Therefore Rashi explains: These forty days are the middle ones when Moshe ascended to pray (for forgiveness), as it says (Shmos 32:30), “I will now ascend, etc.”