Comentário sobre Êxodo 5:1

ואחר באו משה ואהרן AND AFTERWARDS MOSES AND AARON CAME — But the elders slipped away one by one from behind Moses and Aaron until every-one of them had slipped away before they arrived at the palace, because they were afraid to go there. At Sinai they were punished for this, for it is stated (Exodus 24:2) “And Moses alone shall draw near unto the Lord, but they, (the elders; cf. Exodus 24:1) shall not draw near” — He bid them stay behind. (Exodus Rabbah 5:14)

ואחר באו משה ואהרון ויאמרו אל פרעה, afterwards Moses and Aaron came to Pharaoh and said, etc. The word "afterwards" means after the people had believed that G'd had despatched Moses to them as their redeemer. The verse refers to fulfilment of what G'd had told Moses in 3,18. We now appreciate the dividing tone sign etnachta under the word לקולך in 3,18; we would have expected the words "and you will proceed to Pharaoh" to be part of the same sequence. Inasmuch as some considerable time passed between what was mentioned in the first half of that verse and the completion of what it was meant to lead to, the Torah repeats here that now the second part of verse 18 in chapter 3 was being played out.

They received their retribution at Sinai: “Moshe, alone, drew near . . .” Re”m wrote: “It is puzzling that Rashi here explains the verse from Shemos 24:2 as implying that ‘But they did not draw near’ refers only to the elders. This is not true, because the previous verse (24:1) states: ‘Ascend to Adonoy, you and Aharon, Nadav, and Avihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel.’ Then is written, ‘Moshe, alone, drew near . . .’ Yet if Hashem turned everyone back as a punishment, what was Aharon’s sin? Similarly with Nadav and Avihu, who were not among the seventy elders. [What was their sin?]” Re”m left the matter unresolved. But to me it seems not so problematic. For Rashi explains in Parashas Yisro (Shemos 19:24): “You [Moshe] will have your own designated area [when Hashem descends on Mt. Sinai], and also Aharon will have his own designated area, whereas the people may not break through their position at all.” Thus we see that the elders did not have their own designated area but stood among the people, and this was the punishment. And as for Nadav and Avihu, perhaps they stood in the same designated area as Aharon. (Kitzur Mizrachi)