וּרְאִיתֶ֗ם אִם־דֶּ֨רֶךְ גְּבוּל֤וֹ יַֽעֲלֶה֙ בֵּ֣ית שֶׁ֔מֶשׁ ה֚וּא עָ֣שָׂה לָ֔נוּ אֶת־הָרָעָ֥ה הַגְּדוֹלָ֖ה הַזֹּ֑את וְאִם־לֹ֗א וְיָדַ֙עְנוּ֙ כִּ֣י לֹ֤א יָדוֹ֙ נָ֣גְעָה בָּ֔נוּ מִקְרֶ֥ה ה֖וּא הָ֥יָה לָֽנוּ׃
E observem: se ela subir pela estrada de sua fronteira até Beit Shemesh, então foi Ele quem nos causou este grande mal; mas se não, saberemos que Sua mão não tocou em nós – foi mera coincidência.
Ibn Ezra
happen upon [Hebrew: yiqqare ] from the word “happenstance” [Hebrew: miqreh] [I Samuel 6: 9] [albeit here the word is spelled with an ’alef — Translator] (as in “as I happened by chance” [II Samuel 1: 6]). Here it means “to encounter”.
Ramban
AND THE MAGICIANS SAID UNTO PHARAOH: THIS IS THE FINGER OF G-D. Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra commented that because the magicians had done as Aaron did with the serpent and also with the plagues of blood and the frogs and now they could not do so, they therefore said to Pharaoh: “This plague of gnats has not come through Aaron for the sake of Israel. Rather it is a plague of G-d due to the particular [evil] stars under which the land of Egypt found itself at the time.” Pharaoh did not deny the existence of the Creator142See Ramban above in Seder Shemoth 5:3. but only the Divine Name which Moses mentioned to him. This is similar in sense to the verse, It was not His hand that smote us; it was a chance that happened to us.143I Samuel 6:9. Therefore Pharaoh’s heart was hardened. And Ibn Ezra brought proof for his explanation from the fact that Scripture does not state that the magicians said, “This is the finger of the Eternal,” which would have been a reference to the G-d of Israel, just as Pharaoh said to Moses and Aaron, Entreat the Eternal.144Verse 4. Another proof [which Ibn Ezra brought for his explanation] is that in the case of the smiting of the river, Moses had forewarned Pharaoh,145Above 7:17-18. And so also was there a forewarning in the case of the frogs (ibid., Verses 27-29). but he mentioned nothing to him about the plague of gnats. [Therefore the magicians felt justified in saying that it was not a plague for the sake of Israel but merely due to the evil stars.]
Ibn Ezra’s interpretation does not appear to me to be correct. “A chance” is not called “the finger of G-d.” Only a plague which comes directly from Him as a form of punishment is called the hand of the Eternal146I Samuel 5:9. and the finger of G-d, just as it is written in the verse which [Ibn Ezra] mentioned: It was not His hand that smote us.143I Samuel 6:9. And it is furthermore written: And Israel saw the great hand;147Further, 14:31. And the hand of the Eternal shall be against you;148I Samuel 12:15 and ibid., 5:11. the hand of G-d was very heavy there.148I Samuel 12:15 and ibid., 5:11. Moreover, in the next plague of swarms, as well as in the following ones, Pharaoh no longer called upon the magicians to stand before Moses to do the same things, even though there had been a forewarning of their coming!149How then could Ibn Ezra say that because Moses had not forewarned Pharaoh of the coming of the gnats, the magicians said that the plague came through the evil stars and not from the Eternal? In the following plagues when Pharaoh was forewarned of their coming, why did he not call upon the magicians to do likewise? The answer must be, as Ramban explains, that in the case of the plague of the gnats, the magicians already admitted that it was from the Eternal and therefore they could not do likewise. There was thus no need for Pharaoh to call upon them in the following plagues of which he was forewarned, since those were surely from the Eternal, the G-d of Israel, before Whom the magicians were helpless.
But the subject, in accordance with the simple explanation of Scripture, is as follows: When the magicians saw that they could not bring forth the gnats, they admitted Aaron’s deed to be through an act of G-d, and this is why Pharaoh no longer called upon them from that time on. They [the magicians] said, This is ‘the finger’ of G-d, and not “the hand” of G-d [as is the customary way of the Scriptures to refer to plagues, as e.g., It was not His ‘hand’ that smote us]143I Samuel 6:9. in order to minimize the plague, that is to say, it is but a small plague from Him [which we can easily endure].150In his Discourse “The Law of the Eternal is Perfect,” Ramban adds: “Nevertheless the magicians [thereby] admitted [that it was an act of G-d], and thus they became apprised of the fact that Moses’ deed was effectuated by the Lord of the universe.” They did not, however, say to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of ‘the Eternal,’” [but instead they said, “This is the finger of ‘G-d’”]. Pharaoh and his servants would not mention the Proper Divine Name except when speaking to Moses because he mentioned that Name to them. [In addressing Pharaoh, however, the magicians would not use that Name since that would be an open recognition on their part of His existence and power. Therefore they said to Pharaoh, “ This is the finger of ' G-d, ’” although their intent was to say, “This is the finger of ‘the Eternal.’ “] That the magicians could not bring forth the gnats was [not because they really could not do it, but it] was by reason of the fact that G-d so caused it to happen to them. He confounded their counsel in accordance with His Will, for everything is His and it is within His power to do all.
It appears to me further that in the first two plagues — in the one of blood, where the water naturally151Since water and blood are both liquids, the change of the one into the other may be spoken of as in “the nature” of things inasmuch as both are classified under the element of water. See above, Note 117, on the four elements. changed into blood, and in the one of the frogs, which consisted of bringing them up from the river — since they did not involve the creation of some new phenomenon out of nothing or some act of new formation,152The Hebrew text reads: bri’ah o yetzirah. See Vol. I, p. 23, that only the term bara (or bri’ah) signifies “bringing forth something from nothing.” the magicians could do [as Aaron did]. Scripture does not say, “and the frogs came into existence,” but only, and the frogs came up;153Verse 2. they assembled and came up. In the plague of gnats, however, there was an act of creation, for it is not in the nature of dust to turn into gnats. Therefore He said, that it may become gnats.154Verse 12. The word “become” suggests a new act of creation. The verse, And the magicians did so with their secret arts to bring forth gnats,155Verse 14. is similar in intent to: Let the earth bring forth the living creature, etc., and it was so.156Genesis 1:24. In other words, the expression here, “to bring forth the gnats,” means a new act of creation, just as in the Book of Genesis. But only the Creator, praised and magnified be He, can perform such a [new] act of creation. The verse, And the magicians did so…but they could not,155Verse 14. means they incanted the demons to do their command, but they were powerless.
Confirming me in my opinion concerning the frogs, [i.e., that there was no new act of creation there], is the following text [of the Talmud]:157Sanhedrin 67b. ‘Rabbi Akiba said that there was only one frog158As Verse 2 has it: ‘Vata’al hatz’phardei’a’ (and the frog came up), in the singular. which swarmed and filled the whole land of Egypt. Rabbi Eliezer159“Eliezer.” In our text of the Gemara, “Eleazar,” and so also further in Ramban. ben Azaryah said to him: ‘Akiba, what have you to do with Agadah (homily)? Turn from these matters and go instead to [delve in the difficulties of] Negaim160Negaim (Leprosies) is the name of a treatise in the Mishnah dealing with the laws of leprosy. It is considered a very difficult subject. and Oholoth.161Oholoth (Tents) is one of the most difficult treatises of the Mishnah. It deals with the laws regarding the uncleanness of a corpse as affecting a house and its vessels, as well as human beings. It was only one frog croaking to all other frogs, and so they gathered.’” Rabbi Eleazar ben Azaryah could not accept the opinion [of Rabbi Akiba] that the magicians should have been able to bestow a new nature upon the frog, i.e., that one frog should give birth to so many, which is contrary to its nature, but rather they gathered them in order to bring them up. In the opinion then of Rabbi Akiba, the verse And the river shall swarm with frogs,162Above, 7:28. means that the river should swarm with them more than its due. But according to Rabbi Eleazar ben Azaryah, the sense of that verse is like, ‘shirtzu’ in the earth,163Genesis 9:7. Said to Noah and his sons. which connotes movement, as I have explained in Seder Bereshith,164Ibid., 1:20 (Vol. I, pp. 47-48). and here its meaning is that the frogs gather and move about in the river and from there go up upon Egypt.
Now with regard to the gnats, our Rabbis have said165Sanhedrin 67 b, and mentioned by Rashi here in Verse 14. that the demon [through whose power this was to be done by the magicians] is powerless in the case of a creature that is smaller than a lentil.166“Lentil.” In our text of the Gemara, as well as in Rashi here: “a barley-corn.” At any rate, it was completely unnecessary for Scripture to inform us that the magicians could not bring forth gnats, as these are creatures smaller in size than a barley-corn. The expression, but they could not, must hence mean as explained in the text. Such is Ramban’s intent as explained by Rabbeinu Bachya. See my Hebrew commentary, p. 313. The expression, but they could not, must therefore mean that they could not assemble gnats from their [breeding] places and bring them.
In Midrash Rabbah, the Rabbis have further said:167Shemoth Rabbah 10:7. “Perceiving that they cannot bring forth the gnats, the magicians at once recognized that [Aaron’s deed] was an act of G-d and not an act of the demons. From that moment on, therefore, they were no longer anxious to liken themselves to Moses by bringing forth the plagues.”
Now with regard to Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra’s statement that Moses did not inform them of the coming of the plague of gnats, it appears to me that Aaron struck [the dust of the earth] with the rod in the sight of Pharaoh, just as he did in the case of the soot of the furnace.168Further, 9:8. In other words, just as in the case of boils it is said that it was done in the sight of the king, so also in the case of gnats, where the verse reads, And Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod and smote the dust of the earth (Verse 13), it was done in the sight of the king. However, there was no forewarning here, since the Holy One, blessed be He, warned Pharaoh only of those plagues which entailed the death of people. In the case of the frogs, [there was also death involved], as it is written: And [He sent among them] frogs, which destroyed them,169Psalms 78:45. which is an allusion to death or to the kind of destruction mentioned by our Rabbis,170Shemoth Rabbah 10:4. i.e., that the frogs made them impotent. Similarly, [He warned him of] the locusts, [which destroyed the crops], because it would cause the Egyptians to die of hunger, for they ate up the residue of that which escaped, which remaineth unto you from the hail.171Further, 10:5. All this reflects His mercies towards man, just as it is said, Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it, and he turn not from his way; he shall die in his iniquity, but thou hast delivered thy soul.172Ezekiel 33:9. Therefore, He did not warn Pharaoh of the plagues of gnats, boils, and darkness, [as these did not entail the loss of human lives]. He warned him173Further, 9:3-4. only of the pestilence of cattle because it involved death which should have taken effect also on man, as He told him afterward, For now I might have stretched out My hand and I might have smitten thee and thy people with pestilence. But in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, etc.174Ibid., Verses 15-16. Therefore He informed him of what was to happen.
Ibn Ezra’s interpretation does not appear to me to be correct. “A chance” is not called “the finger of G-d.” Only a plague which comes directly from Him as a form of punishment is called the hand of the Eternal146I Samuel 5:9. and the finger of G-d, just as it is written in the verse which [Ibn Ezra] mentioned: It was not His hand that smote us.143I Samuel 6:9. And it is furthermore written: And Israel saw the great hand;147Further, 14:31. And the hand of the Eternal shall be against you;148I Samuel 12:15 and ibid., 5:11. the hand of G-d was very heavy there.148I Samuel 12:15 and ibid., 5:11. Moreover, in the next plague of swarms, as well as in the following ones, Pharaoh no longer called upon the magicians to stand before Moses to do the same things, even though there had been a forewarning of their coming!149How then could Ibn Ezra say that because Moses had not forewarned Pharaoh of the coming of the gnats, the magicians said that the plague came through the evil stars and not from the Eternal? In the following plagues when Pharaoh was forewarned of their coming, why did he not call upon the magicians to do likewise? The answer must be, as Ramban explains, that in the case of the plague of the gnats, the magicians already admitted that it was from the Eternal and therefore they could not do likewise. There was thus no need for Pharaoh to call upon them in the following plagues of which he was forewarned, since those were surely from the Eternal, the G-d of Israel, before Whom the magicians were helpless.
But the subject, in accordance with the simple explanation of Scripture, is as follows: When the magicians saw that they could not bring forth the gnats, they admitted Aaron’s deed to be through an act of G-d, and this is why Pharaoh no longer called upon them from that time on. They [the magicians] said, This is ‘the finger’ of G-d, and not “the hand” of G-d [as is the customary way of the Scriptures to refer to plagues, as e.g., It was not His ‘hand’ that smote us]143I Samuel 6:9. in order to minimize the plague, that is to say, it is but a small plague from Him [which we can easily endure].150In his Discourse “The Law of the Eternal is Perfect,” Ramban adds: “Nevertheless the magicians [thereby] admitted [that it was an act of G-d], and thus they became apprised of the fact that Moses’ deed was effectuated by the Lord of the universe.” They did not, however, say to Pharaoh, “This is the finger of ‘the Eternal,’” [but instead they said, “This is the finger of ‘G-d’”]. Pharaoh and his servants would not mention the Proper Divine Name except when speaking to Moses because he mentioned that Name to them. [In addressing Pharaoh, however, the magicians would not use that Name since that would be an open recognition on their part of His existence and power. Therefore they said to Pharaoh, “ This is the finger of ' G-d, ’” although their intent was to say, “This is the finger of ‘the Eternal.’ “] That the magicians could not bring forth the gnats was [not because they really could not do it, but it] was by reason of the fact that G-d so caused it to happen to them. He confounded their counsel in accordance with His Will, for everything is His and it is within His power to do all.
It appears to me further that in the first two plagues — in the one of blood, where the water naturally151Since water and blood are both liquids, the change of the one into the other may be spoken of as in “the nature” of things inasmuch as both are classified under the element of water. See above, Note 117, on the four elements. changed into blood, and in the one of the frogs, which consisted of bringing them up from the river — since they did not involve the creation of some new phenomenon out of nothing or some act of new formation,152The Hebrew text reads: bri’ah o yetzirah. See Vol. I, p. 23, that only the term bara (or bri’ah) signifies “bringing forth something from nothing.” the magicians could do [as Aaron did]. Scripture does not say, “and the frogs came into existence,” but only, and the frogs came up;153Verse 2. they assembled and came up. In the plague of gnats, however, there was an act of creation, for it is not in the nature of dust to turn into gnats. Therefore He said, that it may become gnats.154Verse 12. The word “become” suggests a new act of creation. The verse, And the magicians did so with their secret arts to bring forth gnats,155Verse 14. is similar in intent to: Let the earth bring forth the living creature, etc., and it was so.156Genesis 1:24. In other words, the expression here, “to bring forth the gnats,” means a new act of creation, just as in the Book of Genesis. But only the Creator, praised and magnified be He, can perform such a [new] act of creation. The verse, And the magicians did so…but they could not,155Verse 14. means they incanted the demons to do their command, but they were powerless.
Confirming me in my opinion concerning the frogs, [i.e., that there was no new act of creation there], is the following text [of the Talmud]:157Sanhedrin 67b. ‘Rabbi Akiba said that there was only one frog158As Verse 2 has it: ‘Vata’al hatz’phardei’a’ (and the frog came up), in the singular. which swarmed and filled the whole land of Egypt. Rabbi Eliezer159“Eliezer.” In our text of the Gemara, “Eleazar,” and so also further in Ramban. ben Azaryah said to him: ‘Akiba, what have you to do with Agadah (homily)? Turn from these matters and go instead to [delve in the difficulties of] Negaim160Negaim (Leprosies) is the name of a treatise in the Mishnah dealing with the laws of leprosy. It is considered a very difficult subject. and Oholoth.161Oholoth (Tents) is one of the most difficult treatises of the Mishnah. It deals with the laws regarding the uncleanness of a corpse as affecting a house and its vessels, as well as human beings. It was only one frog croaking to all other frogs, and so they gathered.’” Rabbi Eleazar ben Azaryah could not accept the opinion [of Rabbi Akiba] that the magicians should have been able to bestow a new nature upon the frog, i.e., that one frog should give birth to so many, which is contrary to its nature, but rather they gathered them in order to bring them up. In the opinion then of Rabbi Akiba, the verse And the river shall swarm with frogs,162Above, 7:28. means that the river should swarm with them more than its due. But according to Rabbi Eleazar ben Azaryah, the sense of that verse is like, ‘shirtzu’ in the earth,163Genesis 9:7. Said to Noah and his sons. which connotes movement, as I have explained in Seder Bereshith,164Ibid., 1:20 (Vol. I, pp. 47-48). and here its meaning is that the frogs gather and move about in the river and from there go up upon Egypt.
Now with regard to the gnats, our Rabbis have said165Sanhedrin 67 b, and mentioned by Rashi here in Verse 14. that the demon [through whose power this was to be done by the magicians] is powerless in the case of a creature that is smaller than a lentil.166“Lentil.” In our text of the Gemara, as well as in Rashi here: “a barley-corn.” At any rate, it was completely unnecessary for Scripture to inform us that the magicians could not bring forth gnats, as these are creatures smaller in size than a barley-corn. The expression, but they could not, must hence mean as explained in the text. Such is Ramban’s intent as explained by Rabbeinu Bachya. See my Hebrew commentary, p. 313. The expression, but they could not, must therefore mean that they could not assemble gnats from their [breeding] places and bring them.
In Midrash Rabbah, the Rabbis have further said:167Shemoth Rabbah 10:7. “Perceiving that they cannot bring forth the gnats, the magicians at once recognized that [Aaron’s deed] was an act of G-d and not an act of the demons. From that moment on, therefore, they were no longer anxious to liken themselves to Moses by bringing forth the plagues.”
Now with regard to Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra’s statement that Moses did not inform them of the coming of the plague of gnats, it appears to me that Aaron struck [the dust of the earth] with the rod in the sight of Pharaoh, just as he did in the case of the soot of the furnace.168Further, 9:8. In other words, just as in the case of boils it is said that it was done in the sight of the king, so also in the case of gnats, where the verse reads, And Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod and smote the dust of the earth (Verse 13), it was done in the sight of the king. However, there was no forewarning here, since the Holy One, blessed be He, warned Pharaoh only of those plagues which entailed the death of people. In the case of the frogs, [there was also death involved], as it is written: And [He sent among them] frogs, which destroyed them,169Psalms 78:45. which is an allusion to death or to the kind of destruction mentioned by our Rabbis,170Shemoth Rabbah 10:4. i.e., that the frogs made them impotent. Similarly, [He warned him of] the locusts, [which destroyed the crops], because it would cause the Egyptians to die of hunger, for they ate up the residue of that which escaped, which remaineth unto you from the hail.171Further, 10:5. All this reflects His mercies towards man, just as it is said, Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it, and he turn not from his way; he shall die in his iniquity, but thou hast delivered thy soul.172Ezekiel 33:9. Therefore, He did not warn Pharaoh of the plagues of gnats, boils, and darkness, [as these did not entail the loss of human lives]. He warned him173Further, 9:3-4. only of the pestilence of cattle because it involved death which should have taken effect also on man, as He told him afterward, For now I might have stretched out My hand and I might have smitten thee and thy people with pestilence. But in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, etc.174Ibid., Verses 15-16. Therefore He informed him of what was to happen.
Ibn Ezra
And the magicians said: Since they saw that they did like Aaron's act with the snake and with the plagues of blood and frogs, but they could not do now like what Aaron did; they said to Pharaoh, "This plague did not come on account of Israel, that you should send them away. Rather, it is a plague of God, according to the system of the stars, upon the constellation of Egypt... Moreover, since Moses had given word to Pharaoh about the plague of the Nile before it occurred, as well as the plague of the frogs; but the did not mention the plague of the lice beforehand.
Rav Hirsch
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then You caused...to come upon them You caused to happen to them, an expression of a happening (מִקְרֶה).