Comentários de Citação sobre Deuteronômio 13:6

והנה הסנה בוער, “and lo, the bush continued burning.” The word בוער is equivalent to the expression דולק באש, “is in flames.” As to the Torah describing Moses as wanting to investigate why the bush did not turn into ash,מדוע לא יבער הסנה הסנה, he marveled at the phenomenon, seeing that flax in similar circumstances would have disintegrated into ash without delay. It is also possible to understand the word יבער as a form of בעור, destruction, elimination, as in ובערת הרע מקרבך, “you must eliminate evil from your midst.” (Deut. 13,6 and 8 other times in the Torah) Some commentators follow a forced approach to the words אסורה נא ואראה, understanding these words as an introduction to the statement that Moses wanted to find out why this bush would not be consumed by the flames. [I suppose the reason why our author describes this interpretation as “forced,” is that the Torah had already described Moses as having observed the phenomenon. He had not remained at a safe distance. Ed.]

AND HE GIVE THEE ‘OTH’ (A SIGN) OR ‘MOFEITH’ (WONDER). A Sign [denotes a natural phenomenon serving as] a symbol of something similar that will take place afterwards, this being associated with the expression, every man with his own standard, ‘b’othoth’ (according to the ensigns).¹¹⁰Numbers 2:2. See Ramban there that on each of the ensigns there was some symbol representing the character of the tribe. For when a prophet comes and says “The following [natural] matter is to represent something which is to take place” that is termed an oth (a sign), similar to what is stated, Therefore, the Eternal Himself shall give you an ‘oth’ (a sign)¹¹¹Isaiah 7:14. that G-d is with us, [the omen being] the name of the son of the prophet’s wife, [“Immanuel,” meaning “G-d is with us”]¹¹¹Isaiah 7:14. The word oth is thus derived from at hah [“coming,” since the oth represents something about to come]. A mofeith (a wonder), on the other hand, applies to something novel which the prophet does before us, making some change in the natural order of the world, similar to what is stated, to inquire of ‘hamofeith’ (the wonder) that was done in the Land;¹¹²II Chronicles 32:31. And I will show ‘moft him’ (wonders) in the heavens and in the earth, blood and fire.¹¹³Joel 3:3. The word mofeith is thus a shortened form of mufleith (marvelous)¹¹⁴See Job 37:16: ‘mifl’oth’ (the wondrous works) of Him Who is perfect in knowledge. Ramban’s point is that the word mofeith is derived from mufleith with the letters lamed and aleph missing. — just like the expression ‘sheirith’ (the rest of) Israel¹¹⁵I Chronicles 12:38. In this instance the word sheirith drops the letter aleph which is found in she’eirith. [which is a shortened form of she’eirith]. The [Sacred] Language adopted the term to signify anything which is supernatural, just as it is stated, Thus Ezekiel shall be unto you ‘l’mofeith’ (for a wonder),¹¹⁶Ezekiel 24:24. and it is stated there, and thou shalt speak, and be no more dumb; so shall thou be ‘l’mofeith’ (for a wonder) unto them,¹¹⁷Ibid., Verse 27. seeing that his actions were wondrous in the eyes of the beholders. The word mofeith [a derivative from pele — wonder] is thus similar in sense to the following expression, and she is come down ‘p’la’im’ (wonderfully).¹¹⁸Lamentations 1:9. So also: the signs ‘v’thimhaya’ (and wonders);¹¹⁹Daniel 3:32. how great are His signs, ‘v’thimhohie’ (and His wonders) how mighty they are!;¹²⁰Ibid., Verse 33. the signs ‘v’hamofthim’ (and the wonders),¹²¹Further, 29:2; 34:11. for the terms pele and teimah refer to the same topic. Now, in the departure from Egypt there were signs, these being the matters which Moses told them from the beginning, such as, by tomorrow shall this ‘sign’ be,¹²²Exodus 8:19. and there were wonders which were done spontaneously without previously informing Pharaoh about them [such as the splitting of the Red Sea]. So also, what is ‘the sign’ that I shall go up to the House of the Eternal?¹²³Isaiah 38:22. [King Hezekiah asked of the prophet Isaiah] that he should give him foreknowledge [by means of a sign that he would recover from his illness]. And in connection with that very sign it states that [the king of Babylon sent his princes to Hezekiah] to inquire of ‘hamofeith’ (the wonder) that was done in the Land¹¹²II Chronicles 32:31. in order to learn how this novel matter had occurred among them.¹²⁴Ramban is evidently referring to all the various events described in II Chronicles 32:24-31 that occurred in the days of the Hezekiah — the miraculous salvation of Jerusalem from the hands of the Assyrians, etc. Thus the point is clearly established that an oth (a sign) is given before the event, while a mofeith (a wonder) is a supernatural event not announced beforehand. Hence Hezekiah asks for a sign that he will yet go up to the Sanctuary, while the king of Babylon seeks to inquire of the wonder which happened. Similarly, the rod which was turned to a serpent¹²⁵Exodus 7:15. He referred to as a sign¹²⁶Ibid., 4:17. when He informed the children of Israel thereby [of the purpose of Moses’ mission], and He called it a wonder¹²⁷Ibid., Verse 21. The Israelites did not require a miracle to prove the existence of G-d; to them the miracle was an oth, demonstrating that redemption was at hand. Pharaoh, on the other hand, did not believe in the G-d of Israel; to him, the miracle was a mofeith, a wondrous act entirely apart from any significance for the future (Malbim). when He performed it before Pharaoh as an unannounced miracle. Likewise, Just as My servant Isaiah hath walked naked and barefoot for three years as ‘a sign’ and ‘a wonder’ upon Egypt and upon Ethiopia, so shall etc.,¹²⁸Isaiah 20:3-4. [implying that the same act can be simultaneously an oth and a mofeith], because in this act of the prophet, there was a sign foretelling what was to come, and a wonder in the practice of the prophet in walking that way.
If so, the meaning of the expression [before us], and he give thee a sign or a wonder is that he will say, “I am the prophet sent to you that you worship a particular idol, and this shall be ‘the sign’ for you: tomorrow there shall come the locust, the caterpillar, and the palmer-worm.” Or he shall show them “a wonder:” he will cast down a rod before them and it will become a serpent. Now, in the Sifre the Rabbis have said:¹²⁹Sifre, Naso 23. “A sign is [identical to] a wonder and a wonder is [identical to] a sign except that the Torah refers [to them] in two terms.” Perhaps the intent of the Rabbis was [not to state that the terms are identical in meaning but that] there is no difference between the two or distinction in their legal status, and [therefore] it would have been sufficient to mention one. But the Torah wanted to elaborate on the matter saying in effect “whatever sign he gives you, from whatever signs [exist] on earth.”
Now, this man who calls himself “prophet” and commands [you] to worship idols is by way of the simple meaning of Scripture a prophet of an idol who says “The idol [Baal] Peor sent me to you declaring that he is god and he commanded that you worship him in a certain way.” It is he of whom Scripture further says, and he that shall speak in the name of other gods, that same prophet shall die,¹³⁰Deuteronomy 18:20. for all who prophesy in the name of other gods, do so in order that people worship them, because they are [that prophet’s] deities, and Scripture mentions him there, among the [general] false prophets. But what emerges from the words of our Rabbis¹³¹Sanhedrin 90a. is that the prophet mentioned here prophesies in the name of G-d, saying “The Glorious Name¹³²Further, 28:58. sent me that you worship [Baal] Peor because he was His partner in creation,” or that he [Baal-peor] is greater than all the gods before Him and He desires that they worship him. And the Rabbis of blessed memory have mentioned¹³¹Sanhedrin 90a. that even if he were to say that they should worship a certain idol but for one moment alone, for example, if he says, “Worship [Baal] Peor just this day alone and you will succeed in a certain project for such is the will before the Glorious Name” — that prophet is guilty of a capital offense. This, too, lies within the plain meaning of Scripture.
Thus Scripture commanded that we hearken not at all to him who prophesies in the name of G-d to worship the idols, nor take note of the signs and wonders that he will make. And it mentions the reason¹³³Verse 6 here: who brought you out of the land of Egypt. because we know from the exodus from Egypt which was an actual event — not a vision or a mirage — that the earth is the Eternal’s¹³⁴Psalms 24:1. and He is the Creator, the One Who wills all, and the Omnipotent, and there is no god beside Him, and we further know from the Revelation on Mount Sinai that face to face¹³⁵Above, 5:4. He commanded us to walk in this way, not to worship anything at all beside Him, and that He has not given His glory to another [deity].¹³⁶See Isaiah 42:8. This is the sense of the expression, which the Eternal thy G-d commanded thee.¹³⁷Verse 6. Thus the prophet hath spoken perversion against the Eternal¹³⁷Verse 6. Who never commanded him so, or he spoke perversion against His Glory, for it is not proper to worship another god.

FOR THE ETERNAL YOUR G-D TRIETH YOU. This is to state that the purport of the wonder which came to pass and which G-d showed him in his dream or [as the philosophers say] in his kahin¹⁰⁷This is borrowed from the Arabic, kahanah, a term referring to the power residing in man to be able to foretell the future. It is so explained by Shmuel ibn Tibbon in his list of “Foreign words.” was G-d’s will in order to test you in your love of Him. Now I have already explained¹³⁸Genesis 2:1 (Vol. I, p. 275). that the term “test” is derived from the point of view of the one who is being tested. It states here to know [for the Eternal your G-d trieth you ‘to know’ whether ye do love … meaning] that it became known in fact what exists in potential and is revealed [only] to Him. Thus the commandment of this entire section refers to someone who prophesies to worship the idols. But concerning one who prophesies in the name of G-d to change any of the commandments of the Torah, our Rabbis have interpreted¹³¹Sanhedrin 90a. that if he came to [completely] uproot any item from the Torah, such as permitting [the eating of] swine or [permitting] one of the adulterous relationships, according to this judgment shall it be done to him¹³⁹Exodus 21:31. [i.e., he is liable to death as is stated here in Verse 6]. But if he declares it to be permissible only for some time as a temporary measure such as Elijah did on Mount Carmel [in permitting offerings to G-d outside of the Sanctuary in Jerusalem],¹⁴⁰I Kings 18:33-38. The purpose was to vindicate the belief in the true G-d and cause the people to reject the idolatrous worship of Baal. And because Elijah was an acknowledged righteous prophet we were commanded to listen to him (Rambam, Hilchoth Yesodei Hatorah 9:3). we are obligated to listen to him and to do everything that he commands us.
It appears [to me] that if he prophesies in the name of G-d to command a precept that he innovates, as happened concerning reading of the Scroll [of Esther on Purim],¹⁴¹See Ramban above, 4:2. that he is not guilty of a capital offense, only that we are not to obey him, because it is written, These are the commandments,¹⁴²Leviticus 27:34. [which our Rabbis interpret to mean]:¹⁴³Torath Kohanim, end of Bechukothai. The reading of the Megillah (Scroll of Esther) on Purim is “a positive commandment by the authority of the Scribes” (Mishneh Torah, Hilchoth Megillah V’Chanukah 1:1). “No prophet is henceforth permitted to declare any new matter therein.” But perhaps, since we do not believe him, he is thus a false prophet and his death is by strangulation.¹⁴⁴See “The Commandments,” Vol. II, pp. 25-26.

אשר ידבר הנביא WHEN THE PROPHET SPEAKETH [IN THE NAME OF THE LORD] and says, “This thing will once happen to you”, and you will see that it did not happen, הוא הדבר אשר לא דברו ה׳ THAT IS THE THING WHICH THE LORD HATH NOT SPOKEN — and, therefore, slay him. If, however, you say, “But this refers to one who will prophesy about the future. But suppose one comes and says, ‘Do so and so, and I say this by the command of the Holy One blessed be He’? How, then, can we know whether God has spoken this or not?” The reply is: As regards such a case they have already been commanded that if one comes to thrust thee away from one of the divine commandments, לא תשמע לו “then thou shalt not hearken unto him” (Deuteronomy 13:12), unless you are certain that he is a perfectly righteous man, as, for instance. Elijah at the incident on Mount Carmel, who offered sacrifices on a Bamah (an improvised altar) at a time when offering on Bamoth was forbidden, but who did so in order to fence Israel in against idolatry. Thus all depends on the needs of the time and the necessity of taking preventive measures (סיג) against a breach. With reference to such a case it states, (v. 15) “unto him ye shall hearken” (Sanhedrin 89b; Yevamot 90b).