ציטירנדיקער פּירוש אויף תהילים 78:20

You should realize that there is also a mystical dimension connected to the rebuilding of these towns and renaming them. Whereas our verse, as is customary, is explicit regarding events on terrestrial earth, it also contains allusions pertaining to what occurs in the celestial spheres in which we also have “structures” parallel to those on earth.
We are dealing here with nine names (Attarot, Divon, Yaazer, Nimrah, Cheshbon, Elealeh, Sebam, Nevo and Beon) which correspond to the nine times we find the word ויאמר אלו-הים in the report of the creation in Genesis chapter 1. The tenth (equivalent) of the word ויאמר is not mentioned as it is the word בראשית, and at a time when there was no matter to be addressed yet it would have sounded peculiar to issue instructions to אין, something non-existent. [This is a reference to the statement in Avot 5,1 that the world was created by means of ten directives, the assumption being that each directive was introduced by the word ויאמר. Rashi there comments that the tenth (missing) ויאמר is actually represented by the very word בראשית. Ed.]
Our verse here draws our attention to the nine directives with which the world was created after the initial raw material had come into existence, and divides it into three stages as represented by our mussaph prayer on Rosh Hashanah when we have three separate groups of benedictions called מלכיות, זכרונות, שופרות. The mystical dimension of the Mishnah in Rosh Hashanah 32 describing that three groups of shofar blasts must be blown on that day, is linked to the statement of our sages to read the weekly Torah portion three times. We must appreciate that just as repeating something three times, such as the blowing of the shofar or the reading of the Torah portion, each time deepens our understanding of it, so that even such names as Attarot and Divon which when we read them the first time make no impression upon us are going to give rise to more profound analysis if we repeat them again and again.
Seeing that the entire Torah from Bereshit to Vezot Habracha is a continuous document, indivisible, these names simply must have a significance over and beyond their sound. It is up to us to decipher the deeper meaning. There is no qualitative difference between reading about the leaders of the tribes of Esau, the names of the towns captured from Sichon, or the Ten Commandments. All of the Torah is of equal degree of sanctity. All of it stems from the same source. Its “waters” originate from the Temple (Ezekiel 47,12), and all have been given to us from the same shepherd.
[I believe the reason the author is at such pains to provide a meaning for these place names over and above merely giving us this information is that he wants to pre-empt anyone asking why the Torah did not simply write that these two tribes claimed lands in Gilead and Yaazer especially suitable for grazing without giving us a list of these names which we should read for the next several thousand years every week when these places had even be renamed. How would we know where these locations are if we did not know their original names? On the other hand, if the names listed are the original names why would we have to remember all these sites of idolatry? Ed.]
The meanings of the words עטרות ודיבון, etc. are as follows: the location עטרות, is spelled in the verse it occurs next, (34) without the letter ו, i.e. it is an allusion to עטרת, a crown. The word דיבון refers to the river which originates in Gan Eden which never ceases to flow. The word is written with the conjunctive letter ו at the beginning, although all the other locations mentioned have not been linked by the letter ו. The numerical value of the word ודיבון is 72, an allusion to the 72-lettered name of G’d. A never ceasing river reminds us of Psalms 78,20: הכה צור ויזובו מים, “He struck the rock and waters flowed.” The name of the place יעזר is a reference to the emanation הוד of which we know from Psalms 145,5 הדר כבוד הודך. The emanation הוד is the “lowest” on the left side of the diagram of emanations, a side representative of the negative spiritual influences of Satan. Because of this, man, i.e. Israel is in need of divine assistance to overcome its influence. The location described by the name נמרה symbolises the emanation נצח, the one opposite הוד on the right side of the diagram we referred to. The word may be perceived as an acrostic of the line ימין ה' רוממה In Psalms 118,16. The two emanations הוד, נצח are perceived as the two “thighs,” supports of the universe, in the diagram of the emanations which I referred to. We have an allusion to this in Psalms 16,11 נעימות בימינך נצח. The location described as חשבון is an allusion to our patriarch Yaakov, of whom it is written in Psalms 16,11: ישראל אשר בו אתפאר, a reference to the tetragram, i.e. the word חשבון has a numerical value of שם כ'ו, ‘the name equal to 26” [numerical value of י-ה-ו-ה]. The location described as אלעלה is an allusion to the patriarch Yitzchak who has been described variously as עולה תמימה, “an unblemished burnt-offering.” We could therefore read the word אלעלה as עלה לאל by slightly re-arranging the sequence of the letters. Since the Torah wanted to hint at his outstanding characteristic גבורה, a manifestation of the attribute of Justice, (the last letter ה in the tetragram), the name אלעלה concludes with the letter ה in the list of these nine locations. This becomes clearer when you compare the name in verse 37 as אלעלא with the letter א at the end instead of the letter ה. We have another instance where Yitzchak’s outstanding characteristic is alluded to by a change in the spelling of his name in Psalms 105,9 where the letter צ in יצחק is replaced by the letter ש, an allusion to the fact that he is a “great fire.”
The location described as שבם is a reference to Avraham; it may be understood as an acrostic of אברהם סבא, “grandfather Avraham, i.e. the originator of Judaism.” The location described as נבו alludes to the emanation בינה, whereas the location described as בעון is an allusion to the emanation חכמה. When you reverse the sequence of the letters in that word you get נובע. We find this word connected to wisdom, חכמה in Proverbs 18,4 נחל נבע מקור חכמה, “the source of wisdom is a flowing stream.” The word is also connected to מעון, מעונה (when the letters are reversed) “regions in the upper celestial heavens, origin of wisdom.” This is why this place is referred to as מעון in verse 38, i.e. ואת בעל מעון. At any rate, I believe we have demonstrated that the names of these locations all relate to important concepts although at first glance they may appear as irrelevant.

AND THE ETERNAL SAID UNTO MOSES: PASS ON BEFORE THE PEOPLE. This is similar in usage to the following expressions: he [Joseph] caused them to pass into cities;⁴¹⁸Genesis 47:21. and I will make thee to pass with thine enemies into a land which thou knowest not.⁴¹⁹Jeremiah 15:14. Thus the meaning thereof here is: “go away from them to another place,” [as will be explained further]. Perhaps this is similar to the expressions: and he [Ahimaaz] overran the Cushite;⁴²⁰II Samuel 18:23. and he [Jacob] himself passed over before them,⁴²¹Genesis 33:3. meaning that he [Jacob] went in the forefront of them.
The purport of this verse is that the people were in Rephidim, and the rock from which the waters were to come was in Horeb,⁴²²Verse 6: Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb. this being Mount Sinai, according to the opinion of the former ones,⁴²³I.e., the Rabbis of the Talmud. See Shabbath 89 a: “Mount Sinai bears five names: the wilderness of Zin, Horeb, etc.” or in my opinion, some city near the mountain, as I will yet explain.⁴²⁴At the beginning of Seder Yithro (18:1). Moses therefore had to go first before the people, to pass on from Rephidim to Horeb — a distance of one more parsah [a Persian mile] or more — from the camp before them. It was for this reason that G-d said to him, Pass on before the people, and take with thee of the elders of Israel… and go. That is to say, “Go until you will see Me stand before you upon the rock in Horeb.” Now Moses hit the rock, and water came out of it. Scripture however does not relate that the congregation and their cattle drank, as it does in the second incident [at the waters of Meribah],⁴²⁵Numbers 20:11. This took place in Kadesh. See also above, Note 414. for it is self-understood that they did so. It is clear that the people did not go to Horeb to drink, since they did not arrive in front of Mount Sinai until afterwards in the third month.⁴²⁶Further, 19:1. Instead, they sent their young men and their cattle there to draw water and bring it to them, as is customary in camps.
It appears likely to me that the waters — cold flowing waters⁴²⁷Jeremiah 18:14. — came out from the rock in Horeb and flowed to Rephidim, and there the people drank them. This is Scripture’s intent in saying, He brought streams out of the rock, and caused waters to run down like rivers,⁴²⁸Psalms 78:16. and it is further written, He opened the rock, and waters gushed out; they ran, a river in the dry places.⁴²⁹Ibid., 105:41. The verse stating, Behold, He smote the rock, that waters gushed out, and streams overflowed,⁴³⁰Ibid., 78:20. also applies to the rock in Horeb, in line with the plain meaning of Scripture.⁴³¹According to the Midrash, however, this verse (Psalms 78:20) was said with reference to Moses’ smiting the rock in Kadesh, or, as they are called, the waters of Meribah (Bamidbar Rabbah 19:8). The second rock in Kadesh,⁴³²Numbers 20:1. [instead of gushing forth water], became cleft with a sort of spring welling forth waters, and therefore Scripture states, That is ‘the well’ whereof the Eternal said unto Moses, etc.,⁴³³Ibid., 21:16. and Israel said in the Song, ‘The well,’ which the princes digged,⁴³⁴Ibid., Verse 18. for it was like a well that was dug. It is for this reason that Scripture says there, and the congregation drank, and their cattle,⁴³⁵Ibid., 20:11. which means that there they drank from it at that place immediately, but here [in Horeb], overflowing rivers came from it and they drank of it in their homes at their will. Now although according to the tradition of our Rabbis, it was all Miriam’s Well,⁴³⁶“That is to say, the rock which was in Rephidim (Horeb) is the same as the one in Kadesh, this being ‘Miriam’s Well,’ which accompanied the Israelites on all their marches during the forty years’ wandering” (Rabbeinu Bachya, Vol. II, p. 153 in my edition). The tradition is mentioned in Bamidbar Rabbah 20:2. This miracle was wrought for the merits of the prophetess Miriam. Ramban’s intent is thus clear: If it was all Miriam’s Well, how can you explain its different forms of activity, for in Horeb it was like a gushing stream, and in Kadesh it was like a well? it is possible that on the first occasion [in Horeb] and during all their forty years’ wandering, the waters came gushing out from the rock like overflowing rivers. The second time, [in Kadesh], as a punishment for that which took place there, it became [only] like a dug well that was full of fresh water [not a gushing spring].

V. 8. Das Land ist טובה: es entspricht der beabsichtigten geistigen und sittlichen Entfaltung des Volkes, und es ist רהבה: geräumig, daß es sich darin auch numerisch entfalten kann. — זבת וגו׳. Es ist sehr eigentümlich, daß die Bezeichnung der Produktenfülle durch — זוב nur bei א׳׳י und sonst nie wieder in solcher Bedeutung vorkommt, bei dem jüdischen Lande aber der stete Ausdruck ist. זוב heißt im תנ׳׳ך nie: überfließen. Es kommt vorzugsweise nur zur Bezeichnung eines krankhaften Zustandes beim Menschen und sonst nur als ein durch eine Wundermacht — הכה צור ויזובו מים (Ps. 78, 20) — oder durch Gewalt bewirktes Ausfließen — שהם יזובו מדוקרים (Klagel. 4, 9). — vor, "erdolcht strömen sie ihr Blut aus". Alles zusammengenommen dürfte ארץ זכת ח׳ וד׳ wohl nicht ein Land bezeichnen, das seiner natürlichen Fruchtbarkeit nach diese Fülle entfaltet, sondern ein Land, das dies nur unter besonderen Bedingungen tut. Palästina ist ein hartes Land, הארצות האל. (Bereschit 26, 3). Wiederholt sahen wir es von Hungersnot heimgesucht, und auch, nachdem Israel es verlassen, liegt es öde. למטר השמים תשתה מים heißt es von ihm. Ein Land, das nicht wie Ägypten nur ohne weiteres von seinen Bewohnern auszubeutende, natürliche Bedingungen der Fruchtbarkeit bietet, sondern, "das nur unter einer steten, von Anfang des Jahres bis zum Ende des Jahres darauf gerichteten besonderen Gottesfürsorge" aufzublühen vermag. Wenn es Wasser hat, so blüht es üppig auf. Allein dieses Wasser erhält es nur von oben. Es ist ein Boden, der seine Bewohner nötigt, brav zu sein. Für ein hartes Volk, wie wir waren, gehört ein hartes Land. — אל מקום הכנעני. Die jetzigen Bewohner sind durch die darin genossene Üppigkeit entartet, und das Land speit sie aus. Nur freibleibend von allem kanaanitischen Unwesen wird Israel sich seine Fülle erhalten.

In the rocks, He split rivers He refers back to the beginning of his topic, that he said that everything has a source. He split the rocks for the source of the rivers, and so, “His eye saw every precious thing,” whence it would emerge for the creatures, [as He did for Israel; He struck a rock and its water flowed.]

עתה תראה היקרך דברי THOU SHALT SEE NOW WHETHER MY WORD SHALL COME TO PASS UNTO THEE [OR NOT]. — R. Gamliel, the son of R. Judah ha-Nasi said, “The dialogue took the following course: Moses said, “One can never understand a babbler! (One can never fathom his meaning.) Since they are merely seeking a pretext You will never satisfy them (the meaning of the text is: If all the cattle in the world were slaughtered for them, ומצא להם, would this suffice them, i. e., would they be satisfied with that?), in the end they will always argue against You. If You give them flesh of large cattle (oxen) they will say ‘We wanted that of small cattle (sheep)’; if You will give them flesh of sheep, they will say We wanted that of oxen’, or, ‘we wanted wild beasts (venison) and fowls’, ‘we wanted fish and locusts!’ Thereupon He said to him, ‘If that be so and I give them nothing at all, they will say that My hand has waxed short!’ “Moses thereupon said, “I will go and appease them”. He answered him: “Thou shalt see now whether My word shall come to pass unto thee — for they will not listen to thee”. Moses went to appease them and said to them, “Is the hand of the Lord waxed short? Behold, he continued with the words used later by the Psalmist, (Psalms 78:20): “He smote the rock that the waters gushed out, etc. Surely then he can give bread also [and can provide flesh for His people!]”. But they (the Israelites) said: “This what you have said is only a compromise (a way of satisfying us). He has really no power to grant our request!” This is what Scripture means by: “and Moses went out and spake to the people [the words of the Lord]” (i.e. he told them the words used by the Lord only with a different implication). Since, however, they would not listen to him, he gathered the seventy men of the elders [of the people] etc.” (cf. Sifrei Bamidbar 95:1; Tosefta Sota 6:4).