Шмот 24:16 Комментарий: Rashi, Chizkuni, Rabbeinu Bahya & Siftei Chakhamim

ויכסהו הענן AND THE CLOUD COVERED IT (lit., “him”) [SIX DAYS] — Our Rabbis are of different opinions as to what this passage means. Some of them hold that these were the six days from the first of Sivan (until the Feast of Weeks, the day of the Giving of the Law) —

וישכון כבוד ה, “the glory of the Lord abode;” actually it had already settled on the Mountain, as we know from Exodus 19,20: וירד ה׳ על הר סיני, “the Lord descended onto Mount Sinai;” it had also stated that “Moses had approached the thick cloud which enveloped the higher regions of the Mountain beyond which was G-d’s presence.” (Exodus 20,18).

וישכון כבוד ה' על הר סיני, “the attribute כבוד of Hashem rested on Mount Sinai.” This is in line with what had been mentioned in connection with 20,1: “G’d said all these words.” I have elaborated on this subject there. When the Torah writes here that the cloud covered the mountain this means that during the six days from the first of Sivan until the time of Matan Torah the cloud enveloped the mountain.

and that the word ויכסהו in the phrase ויכסהו הענן “the cloud covered him” or covered “it” means that it covered the mountain.

ויקרא אל משה ביום השביעי AND HE CALLED UNTO MOSES ON THE SEVENTH DAY of Sivan to utter the Ten Commandments. It is true that Moses and all Israel were standing there but the text states, “He called unto Moses” merely to give special honour to Moses calling him by name. Others, however, say that the passage means: AND THE CLOUD COVERED HIM — Moses, FOR SIX DAYS after the Ten Commandments had been given. These were at the beginning of the forty days which Moses spent on Mount Sinai when he went up to receive the Tablets, and Scripture teaches you that whosoever enters the camp of the Divine Majesty (here the mountain and later on the Holy of Holies) requires separation from others (must live in seclusion) for six days (Yoma 4a).