Komentaryong Sumisipi para sa Job 32:2

• He had been infuriated by Job for justifying himself rather than God (Job 32:2). Notwithstanding his conviction that he was a righteous person and that he could find no reason for his suffering, he should not have appraised the truth or otherwise of that which challenges the truth of the entity in question. For the notion that no lack of wisdom, ability or will can be attributed to God, Blessed be He, is of itself a truth, just as it is a truth that God exists. This follows from the philosophical proofs that teach us of the existence of a single impalpable entity who, by its infinite wisdom, ability and will, brought all that exists into being. These proofs also teach that this entity is absolutely perfect, that no shortcoming can be attributed to it and that it governs and exercises its authority with sublime wisdom, will and ability.³In Elihu's opinion, as Malbim sees it, Job should never have started the debate. Despite his suffering and his conviction that it was unwarranted, he should not have put the perfection of God or Providence into doubt. A unique God must be perfect. And so, the perfection or otherwise of a unique God is not a subject for debate, despite the apparent contradictions. All the proofs in the world, however convincing they might be, cannot deny His perfection. For He is by definition perfect, and so is His Governance. Despite the fact that experiment and experience (such as Job’s own unwarranted suffering) may prove the opposite, namely, that there is indifference or injustice in His Governance, philosophical proofs transcend the evidence of sense-perception and conjecture.⁴Echoes of the dictum of the Pythagorean philosopher Parmenides 'that the evidence of our senses is less reliable than the evidence of logical reasoning.' Or perhaps Malbim was aware of the new philosophy of positivism and was voicing his reservations concerning it. For judgments based on sense-perception can sometimes miss the mark, as was shown by the geometer astronomer who demonstrated, by scholarly proofs, that the sun is 170 times larger than the Earth.⁵Basing himself on Ptolmey's estimate of the diameter of the sun, viz. five and a half times that of the earth's, Pappus of Alexandria calculated that 'the solid magnitude of the sun is very nearly 170 times greater than that of the earth' (Heath p.414). In Maimonides Introduction to the Mishna, the more accurate figure of 1663/8 (51/2 cubed) is given. Just as he refuted the sense evidence that perceives the sun as a single small disc and attempted to explain that sense-perception can err and the reason for its error, so Job should have rejected the apparent truth derived from of his own experience in favor of the universal truth verified by general philosophy.⁶Once again the influence of Kant on Malbim is apparent. Hume had postulated that all knowledge derives from experience and that this restricted our knowledge of causes: we can only assert that event A habitually precedes event B but not that it causes event B. Kant attempted to rescue science from Hume's critique by arguing that there are universally valid features of knowledge that are not derived from experience. Forms such as space and time through which we our sensory perceptions must be filtered and which are responsible for the deep structure of our knowledge. Thus we possess no truths about the world but only about how we interact with it. (Layzer p.10)

Based on this tradition, the Sages have said in Shir Hashirim Rabbah³⁰Not found in our text. See, however, Shir Hashirim Rabbah 3:3, and see also my Hebrew commentary, p. 4, for further reference on this matter. concerning King Hezekiah [when he was visited by a delegation from the king of Babylon]:³¹Isaiah, Chapter 39. “He showed them the Book of Tagin [crownlets].” This book is known and is available to everyone. In it is explained how many crownleted alephs there are in the Torah, how many beths, and the [frequency of the] rest of the letters and the number of crownlets on each one. The praise which the Sages bestowed on this book and the disclosure of Hezekiah’s secret to the delegation were not for the crownlets themselves but rather for a knowledge of their essence and their meanings, which consist of many exceedingly profound secrets. There, in the Midrash Shir Hashirim Rabbah,³²1:28. they [the Sages] have also said: “It is written, And He declared unto you His covenant,³³Deuteronomy 4:13. which means: He declared unto you the Book of Genesis, which relates the beginning of His creation;³⁴The interpretation is based upon the similarity between the words b’riyah (creation) and b’ritho (His covenant). which He commanded you to perform, even the ten words,³³Deuteronomy 4:13. meaning the ten commandments, ten for Scripture and ten for Talmud.³⁵“Ten for Scripture and ten for Talmud.” Thus the Oral Law is made equal to the Written Law. The basis for the interpretation seems to be the extra word la’asoth (to perform), which is taken to refer to the Oral Law since it teaches us how to perform the commandments. For from what source did Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite³⁶Job 32:2. come and reveal to Israel the secrets of the behemoth³⁷Ibid., 40:15. See following note. and the leviathan?³⁸Ibid., 40:25. The Behemoth and the Leviathan are mentioned in G-d’s response to Job (Chapter 40) and are not found in Elihu’s speeches. Rabbi David Luria (in his notes to the Midrash) amends the text of the Midrash to read: “the secrets of the winds and the rains.” These are mentioned by Elihu in Chapter 37. And from what source did Ezekiel come and reveal to them the mysteries of the Divine Chariot?¹⁷Ezekiel, Chapter 1. It is this which Scripture says, The king hath brought me into his chambers,”³⁹Song of Songs 1:4. meaning that everything can be learned from the Torah.

צדקה ממני, more righteous than I. He referred to her accusation (words) as compared to his accusation (words) against her. “I had commanded her to remain in her father’s house until Shelah would grow up. She complied with the terms of our understanding. However, I did not keep my part of the bargain I had struck with her.” כי ..לא נתתיה לשלה בני, the construction here is similar to Job 32,2: על צדקו נפשו מאלוקים, “because he thought himself more righteous than G’d.” Another similar construction occurs in Samuel I 24,18 with King Sha-ul who admitted to David that he had been wrong in persecuting him with the words: צדיק אתה ממני, “you are more righteous than I.”...

The bellows is heated This is an allegory. When they refine silver, they blow with a bellows, and they always put lead into the crucible, which helps for the refining. But you—I have come to refine you. The bellows is heated and parched because of the fire, and the lead is completely consumed. נחר is an expression related to (Job 42:7) “My wrath has been kindled (חרה)”; (ibid. 30:30) “And my bones are burned (חרה) with heat,” (esrast in O.F.).