וְהַלְוִיִּם֙ יִסְמְכ֣וּ אֶת־יְדֵיהֶ֔ם עַ֖ל רֹ֣אשׁ הַפָּרִ֑ים וַ֠עֲשֵׂה אֶת־הָאֶחָ֨ד חַטָּ֜את וְאֶת־הָאֶחָ֤ד עֹלָה֙ לַֽיהוָ֔ה לְכַפֵּ֖ר עַל־הַלְוִיִּֽם׃
Os levitas porão suas mãos sobre a cabeça dos novilhos, e oferecerás um como oferta pelo pecado e o outro como oferta queimada a Hashem, para fazer expiação pelos levitas.
Rashi
ולקחו פר בן בקר AND LET THEM TAKE A YOUNG BULLOCK, — and this was to be a burnt offering, as it is said, (v. 12) “and thou shalt offer the one [as a sin offering] and the other as a burnt offering”, and it (a bullock) was the communal offering prescribed (Numbers 15:24) in case of idol worship committed by the community (here the firstborn are regarded as a community).
Rabbeinu Bahya
ויעשו כן החרטמם בלטיהם להוציא את הכנים, “the sorcerers did so with their secret art in order to remove the lice.” Seeing the Torah testifies that they did not succeed, why did the Torah first write ויעשו כן, “they did likewise?” The words refer to the manner in which they wanted to reproduce the plague, i.e. they too struck the dust of the earth with their staffs, similar to what Moses had done (verse 12). Now that we know that ויעשו כן, “they did likewise,” does not necessarily mean that the sorcerers succeeded in duplicating Moses’ and Aaron’s miracles, we may presume that in the previous instance when the Torah wrote this expression (concerning the snake and the blood) the sorcerers also did nothing more than create an allusion. The words ולא יכולו, “they were unable,” applies to all their efforts.
Whereas prior to this the Egyptian sorcerers had been accorded the title חרטומי מצרים, here the word מצרים is missing. It is possible that up until now these sorcerers had been held in high esteem by all the Egyptians. Now, however, they had already lost some of their image in the eyes of the people. By the time the third plague occurred and the sorcerers had to make a public admission that a higher power than they had caused this plague, i.e. אצבע אלו-הים היא, their esteem amongst the people declined further and is reflected In the missing letter י when we encounter the word חרטומם again in 8,16. When someone’s name is spelled defectively this is an allusion to that person’s lack of ability, of power. We find these sorcerers at the nadir of their erstwhile reputation in 9,11 during the plague of “infectious boils” when they are reported as “unable” to make an appearance in the presence of Pharaoh. They were simply ashamed of their impotence. Not only were they unable to protect their fellow citizens but they could not even protect themselves.
Whereas prior to this the Egyptian sorcerers had been accorded the title חרטומי מצרים, here the word מצרים is missing. It is possible that up until now these sorcerers had been held in high esteem by all the Egyptians. Now, however, they had already lost some of their image in the eyes of the people. By the time the third plague occurred and the sorcerers had to make a public admission that a higher power than they had caused this plague, i.e. אצבע אלו-הים היא, their esteem amongst the people declined further and is reflected In the missing letter י when we encounter the word חרטומם again in 8,16. When someone’s name is spelled defectively this is an allusion to that person’s lack of ability, of power. We find these sorcerers at the nadir of their erstwhile reputation in 9,11 during the plague of “infectious boils” when they are reported as “unable” to make an appearance in the presence of Pharaoh. They were simply ashamed of their impotence. Not only were they unable to protect their fellow citizens but they could not even protect themselves.