Comentários de Citação sobre Gênesis 27:33

Why did G’d phrase the command not to leave Eretz Yisrael as גור “dwell as a stranger,” when He had already told him in the previous verse שכון בארץ, “live permanently in the land!?” He wanted to give Yitzchak a hint of the גור אריה, the vision Yitzchak had seen while lying bound, something which transformed him into the epitome of פחד יצחק, the heading under which our tradition sums up Yitzchak’s relationship with G’d. It was because of this vision that when Yitzchak found out that he had been deceived by both his sons when he gave the blessing to Yaakov, that the Torah reports: ויחרד יצחק חרדה גדולה, ”Yitzchak experienced a very great trembling (27,33).” [Being wrong in one’s assessment of such an important matter as almost giving the power to bless and to curse to an unworthy person was a traumatic experience for someone whose life was based on the attribute of Justice. Ed.]

מה אקב ולא קבה אל HOW SHALL I CURSE WHOM GOD HATH NOT CURSED — Even when they deserved to be cursed, they were not cursed. When their ancestor, Jacob, made mention of their sin — (Genesis 49:6) “For in their anger they slew a man” — he cursed their anger only, as it is said, (Genesis 49:7) “Cursed be their anger”. When their ancestor, Jacob, went to his father with deceit he deserved to be cursed, but what is stated there (Genesis 27:33)? “Yea, he shall be blessed”. In the case of those tribes who had to recite the blessings it is said, (Deuteronomy 27:12) “These shall stand to bless the people”, but in the case of those who had to pronounce the curses it does not state, “And these shall stand to curse the people”, but, “And these shall stand for the curse”, — it does not wish to mention the term “cursing” in direct reference to them (the people) (Midrash Tanchuma, Vayechi 1; Midrash Tanchuma, Balak 12).

WHEN ‘HAYOVEIL’ (THE RAM’S HORN) SOUNDETH LONG, THEY SHALL COME UP TO THE MOUNT. “The Hebrew word hayoveil denotes a ram’s horn, and the horn used here was that of Isaac’s ram.”²¹⁰Genesis 22:13. Thus Rashi’s language. But I have not understood this, for Isaac’s ram was burnt as a whole-offering,²¹⁰Genesis 22:13. and horns and hoofs were completely burnt in whole-offerings.²¹¹Leviticus 1:9 and 13. Perhaps the Holy One, blessed be He, shaped the ashes of the horn [of Isaac’s ram] and restored it to what it was originally. But in my opinion, this Agadah (homily) contains a secret. Thus they²¹²Evidently, a reference to the masters of Cabala. The source of this statement, i.e., that the Voice heard on Mount Sinai was that of Pachad Yitzchak, is unknown to me. have said that this Voice [heard on Mount Sinai, as stated in Verse 16], was that of Pachad Yitzchak (the Fear of Isaac).²¹³Genesis 31:42.. See Ramban, ibid. (Vol. I pp. 388-389). And in Bachya’s commentary here (Vol. II, p. 172 of my edition): “This is the Pachad Yitzchak which they perceived at Mount Sinai.” It is for this reason that Scripture says, and all the people that were in the camp trembled.²¹⁴Verse 16. “Just as it says [in Genesis 27:33], in the case of Isaac: And Isaac trembled” (Bachya, ibid.) At this manifestation of G’vurah²¹⁵Literally: “strength.” But here it denotes one of the Ten Emanations, the one which is synonymous with Pachad Yitzchak. they did not grasp the commandment itself but only a voice.²¹⁶Deuteronomy 4:12. See also Ramban further on Verse 19.

צדה is a term denoting “lying in wait”; similarly it says, (I Samuel 24:12) “yet thou liest in wait (צדה) for my soul to take it”. It is, however, not correct to say that צדה is of the same derivation as, (Genesis 27:34) הצד ציד “he that hath hunted (הצד) venison”, for a ה has no place in the verbal forms of the term denoting “hunting beasts”. Then again, the noun form of the latter is צַיִד and that of the former צְדִיָה, whilst the participle of the verb “lying in wait” is צוֹדֶה and that of the other is צָד. I therefore say that its meaning is as the Targum gives it: “and if he did not lie in ambush for him”. Menachem ben Seruk placed it in the same section as הצד ציד (i. e. he held that the root is צד and that it has the meaning of “hunting”), but I do not agree with him. If it is to be placed in one of the sections of צד we had better place it in the same section as, (Isaiah 66:12) על צד תנשאו “ye shall be borne upon her side (צד)” and (I Samuel 20:20) “and I will shoot [three arrows] on the side thereof (צדה)”, and (Daniel 7:25) “and he shall speak towards the side of (against) the Most High”. Thus, here, the words אשד לא צדה could be taken to mean, “he did not turn aside (צִדֵּד)” to seek some side (occasion) for killing him. But there are objections even to this explanation. At any rate, even if it be connected with צד in this sense, it would still have the meaning “lying in wait”.