## Kli Yakar on Exodus Chapter 17

###### Kli Yakar on Exodus 17:8:1
[Kli Yakar on Exodus 17:8:1](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Kli%20Yakar%20on%20Exodus/r/17:8:1)

**וַיָּבֹא עֲמָלֵק וַיִּלָּחֶם עִם יִשְׂרָאֵל בִּרְפִידִים.** בַּיַּלְקוּט מַסִּיק שֶׁעֲמָלֵק דּוֹמֶה לִזְבוּב כוּ׳, מָשָׁל לְמֶלֶךְ שֶׁהִקִּיף כֶּרֶם כוּ׳. בֵּאוּר הַמָּשָׁל וּסְבָרָתוֹ הוּא עַל דֶּרֶךְ שֶׁכָּתַבְנוּ לְמַעְלָה בְּפָרָשַׁת בְּרֵאשִׁית עַל פָּסוּק ״לַפֶּתַח חַטָּאת רֹבֵץ״ (בראשית ד:ז), שֶׁהַיֵּצֶר הָרָע הִמְשִׁילוּהוּ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ זִכְרוֹנָם לִבְרָכָה (ברכות סא.) לִזְבוּב, שֶׁכֹּחַ פִּיו חָלוּשׁ לַעֲשׂוֹת נֶקֶב בַּבָּשָׂר הַשָּׁלֵם, אַךְ בְּמָקוֹם שֶׁהַזְּבוּב מוֹצֵא אֵיזוֹ מוּרְסָא אוֹ שְׁחִין אֲשֶׁר שָׁם פֶּתַח פָּתוּחַ קְצָת לַבָּשָׂר, שָׁם יִרְבַּץ וְיַרְחִיב הַפִּרְצָה. כָּךְ הַיֵּצֶר הָרָע אֵין לוֹ כֹּחַ לְהִזְדַּוֵּג אֵצֶל הַצַּדִּיק הַשָּׁלֵם בְּכָל מַעֲשָׂיו וְלֹא פָּתַח לוֹ כְּלָל פֶּתַח לְחַטָּאת וּלְנִדָּה, אַךְ הַבָּא לִטַּמֵּא וְעוֹשֶׂה פְּתָחִים לוֹ, שָׁם יִרְבַּץ לְהַרְחִיב הַפִּרְצָה עַד עֲלוֹת חֲמַ״ס גָּבֶר לְאֵין מַרְפֵּא. וְאָמְרוּ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ זִכְרוֹנָם לִבְרָכָה (יומא לט.) ״אַל תִּטַּמְּאוּ בְּכָל אֵלֶּה״ (ויקרא יח:כד) — אָדָם מְטַמֵּא עַצְמוֹ מְעַט, מְטַמְּאִים אוֹתוֹ הַרְבֵּה כוּ׳, וְשָׁם הֶאֱרַכְנוּ לְדַבֵּר מִזֶּה, כִּי שָׁם מְקוֹמוֹ.

**Sefaria Kli Yakar, 2026 (Claude 3.7, ed. Francis Nataf) ✧:**
**And Amalek came and fought with Israel in Rephidim.** In the Yalkut, it concludes that Amalek is similar to a fly, etc., a parable of a king who surrounded a vineyard, etc. The explanation of the parable and its reasoning follows what we wrote above in the portion of Genesis on the verse *sin crouches at the door* (Genesis 4:7), that the evil inclination is compared by our Sages (Berakhot 61a) to a fly whose mouth is too weak to pierce healthy flesh, but when the fly finds some abscess or boil where there is already a slight opening in the flesh, there it will settle and widen the breach. Similarly, the evil inclination does not have the power to confront the completely righteous person who is perfect in all His deeds and has not opened any doorway at all to sin and impurity. However, for one who comes to defile Himself and creates openings, there the evil inclination will settle to widen the breach until violence rises up beyond repair. And our Sages said (Yoma 39a) regarding *Do not defile yourselves with any of these*: If a person defiles Himself a little, they defile Him greatly, etc. And there we elaborated on this topic because that is its proper place.


###### Kli Yakar on Exodus 17:8:2
[Kli Yakar on Exodus 17:8:2](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Kli%20Yakar%20on%20Exodus/r/17:8:2)

כָּךְ עֲמָלֵק, כָּל זְמַן שֶׁהָיוּ יִשְׂרָאֵל שְׁלֵמִים עִם ה׳, וְהָיָה גַּם שָׁלוֹם בֵּינֵיהֶם, אָז לֹא יָכוֹל לָהֶם כְּלָל. וְכַאֲשֶׁר רָאָה אוֹתָם בְּמַסָּה וּמְרִיבָה עַל רִיב בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל שֶׁהָיָה מְרִיבָה בֵּינֵיהֶם, כִּי כָל הַחֲנָיוֹת שֶׁקֹּדֶם מַתַּן תּוֹרָה כֻּלָּם הָיוּ בְּתַרְעוֹמֶת וּבְמַחְלוֹקֶת, כְּמוֹ שֶׁפֵּרֵשׁ רַשִׁ״י פָּרָשַׁת יִתְרוֹ (שמות יט ב), ״וְעַל נַסּוֹתָם אֶת ה׳״ – שֶׁהָיוּ מְרִיבִים גַּם עִם ה׳, אָז מָצָא לוֹ עֲמָלֵק פֶּתַח פָּתוּחַ וּמָקוֹר נִפְתָּח לְחַטָּאת וּלְנִדָּה, ״וַיָּבֹא עֲמָלֵק״ לְהוֹסִיף טֻמְאָה עַל טֻמְאָתָם עַל יְדֵי מִשְׁכַּב זָכוּר, כְּמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב (דברים כה יח) ״אֲשֶׁר קָרְךָ בַּדֶּרֶךְ״. וְכָל זֶה עָשָׂה כְּדֵי שֶׁיָּסוּר ה׳ מֵעֲלֵיהֶם לְגַמְרֵי, כִּי אֵין קְדֻשָּׁתוֹ יִתְבָּרַךְ כִּי אִם בְּמָקוֹם שֶׁיֵּשׁ גֶּדֶר עֶרְוָה. וּבַעֲבוּר זֶה יוּכַל לְהִלָּחֵם בָּהֶם, כִּי אָז רָפוּ יְדֵיהֶם מִכֹּל וָכֹל, כִּי אֵין לָהֶם הַצָּלָה עַל צַד הַנֵּס שֶׁהָיָה סָר ה׳ מֵעֲלֵיהֶם, וְגַם אֵין לָהֶם הַצָּלָה טִבְעִית שֶׁאִיש אֶת רֵעֵהוּ יַעֲזֹרוּ, שֶׁהֲרֵי חָלַק לִבָּם זֶה מִזֶּה. לְכָךְ נֶאֱמַר ״וַיִּקְרָא שֵׁם הַמָּקוֹם הַהוּא מַסָּה וּמְרִיבָה עַל רִיב בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְעַל נַסֹּתָם אֶת ה׳ הֲיֵשׁ ה׳ בְּקִרְבֵּנוּ אִם אָיִן״. וּמִיָּד ״וַיָּבֹא עֲמָלֵק וַיִּלָּחֶם עִם יִשְׂרָאֵל בִּרְפִידִים״, כִּי ״רְפִידִים״ אוֹתִיּוֹת ״פְּרִידִים״, וְאוֹתִיּוֹת ״רָף יָדַיִם״, וְהַאי בְּהַאי תַּלְיָא, כִּי עַל יְדֵי שְׁנֵי מִינֵי פְּרִידִים אֵלּוּ, שֶׁנִּפְרְדוּ מֵאֵת ה׳ וּפֵרוּד לְבָבוֹת שֶׁבֵּינֵיהֶם, בָּאוּ לִידֵי רִפְיוֹן יָדַיִם. וּמִטַּעַם זֶה לֹא הָיָה לָעָם מַיִם בִּרְפִידִים, לְפִי שֶׁרָפוּ יְדֵיהֶם מִן הַתּוֹרָה שֶׁנִּמְשְׁלָה לַמַּיִם, עַל כֵּן חָסְרוּ סְתָם מַיִם. וְלֹא נִתְּנוּ לָהֶם מַיִם כִּי אִם בַּצּוּר בְּחֹרֵב, מְקוֹם קַבָּלַת הַתּוֹרָה. וּמִטַּעַם זֶה הִמְשִׁילוּ אֶת עֲמָלֵק לִזְבוּב, כִּי לֹא הָיָה יָכוֹל לְיִשְׂרָאֵל כָּל זְמַן שֶׁלֹּא פָּתְחוּ לוֹ פֶּתַח. וְזֶהוּ שֶׁאָמְרוּ מָשָׁל לְמֶלֶךְ שֶׁהִקִּיף כֶּרֶם וְאָמַר ״כָּל מִי שֶׁיִּפְרֹץ הַגָּדֵר יִשְּׁכֶנּוּ הַכֶּלֶב״ כוּ׳, רוֹצֶה לוֹמַר שֶׁעַל יְדֵי שֶׁפּוֹתֵחַ הַגָּדֵר וְעוֹשֶׂה בוֹ פִּרְצָה, הֲרֵי הוּא פּוֹתֵחַ פֶּתַח אֶל הַכֶּלֶב שֶׁיּוּכַל לִכָּנֵס שָׁמָּה. כָּךְ עֲמָלֵק בָּא וְנִזְדַּוֵּג לְיִשְׂרָאֵל עַל יְדֵי שֶׁהֵם עַצְמָם פָּרְצוּ גְּדֵרָם. וְכֵן הָמָן שֶׁבָּא מִזֶּרַע עֲמָלֵק בָּא עַל יִשְׂרָאֵל בִּטְעָנוֹת אֵלּוּ בְּאָמְרוֹ (אסתר ג ח) ״יֶשְׁנוֹ עַם אֶחָד מְפֻזָּר וּמְפֹרָד״, דְּהַיְנוּ מְפֻזָּר אִיש מֵרֵעֵהוּ וּמְפֹרָד מִן הַשְּׁכִינָה.

**Sefaria Kli Yakar, 2026 (Claude 3.7, ed. Francis Nataf) ✧:**
**So Amalek, as long as Israel was whole with God,** and there was also peace among them, then he could not harm them at all. And when he saw them at Massah and Merivah over the quarrel of the children of Israel who were fighting [*merivah*] among themselves — for all the encampments before the giving of the Torah were with complaints and disputes, as Rashi explained in Parashat Yitro (19:2) — and because they tested God, as they were also quarreling with God, then Amalek found an open door and an opened source for sin and impurity, *and Amalek came*. He added impurity to their impurity through homosexual relations, as it is written *who happened upon you on the way* (Deuteronomy 25:18). And all this he did so that God would completely remove Himself from them, for His holiness is only in a place where there is a fence against immorality. Because of this, he was able to fight against them, for then their hands weakened completely because they had no miraculous salvation since God had departed from them. They also had no natural salvation where one might help his fellow, for their hearts were divided from one another. Therefore it says, *And he called the name of that place Massah and Merivah, because of the quarrel of the children of Israel and because of their testing God, saying, “Is God among us or not?”* And immediately, *Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim*. For *Rephidim* contains the letters of “*perudim*” [separated ones] and the letters of “*rafu* yadayim” [weakened hands], and one depends on the other. For through these two types of separation — that they separated from God and the division of hearts among them — they came to the weakening of hands. For this reason, there was no water for the people at Rephidim, because they weakened their hands from the Torah, which is compared to water, and therefore they lacked water generally. Water was given to them only at the rock in Horeb, the place of receiving the Torah. For this reason, they compared Amalek to a fly, for he could not harm Israel as long as they did not open a door for him. This is what they said in the parable about a king who enclosed a vineyard and said, “Whoever breaks through the fence will be bitten by the dog,” etc. This means that by opening the fence and making a breach in it, one opens a door for the dog to enter there. Similarly, Amalek came and attached himself to Israel because they themselves breached their fence. And so Haman, who came from the seed of Amalek, came against Israel with these claims, saying *There is a certain people, scattered and dispersed* (Esther 3:8). That is, scattered from one another and separated from the Divine Presence.


###### Kli Yakar on Exodus 17:8:3
[Kli Yakar on Exodus 17:8:3](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Kli%20Yakar%20on%20Exodus/r/17:8:3)

וְאוּלַי רָמַז בְּרִפְיוֹן יָדַיִם שֶׁרָפוּ יְדֵיהֶם מִן הַתּוֹרָה שֶׁנִּתְּנָה מִיָּד לְיָד, וּמִן הַתְּפִלָּה שֶׁעַל יְדֵי נְשִׂיאוּת כַּפַּיִם, וּמִן מִדַּת גְּמִילוּת חֲסָדִים דָּבָר הַנִּתָּן מִיָּד לְיָד. וּרְאָיָה לְזֶה מִמַּה שֶּׁכָּתוּב ״וְאַהֲרֹן וְחוּר תָּמְכוּ בְיָדָיו״ (שמות יז:יב), כְּדֵי לְהַחֲזִיק שְׁלֹשָׁה עַמּוּדִים אֵלּוּ אֲשֶׁר בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל נָכוֹן עֲלֵיהֶם, וּבָהֶם הֶחֱזִיקוּ שְׁלֹשֶׁת הָרוֹעִים: מֹשֶׁה וְאַהֲרֹן וּמִרְיָם, אֲשֶׁר בִּזְכוּתָם נָתַן לָהֶם ה׳ מָן וּבְאֵר וַעֲנָנֵי כָּבוֹד. מָן בִּזְכוּת מֹשֶׁה, כִּי לֹא נִתְּנָה הַתּוֹרָה כִּי אִם לְאוֹכְלֵי הַמָּן, וְהַבְּאֵר שֶׁהָיְתָה מְסַפֶּקֶת לָהֶם כָּל צָרְכָּם בִּזְכוּת מִרְיָם שֶׁהָיְתָה מְסַפֶּקֶת מָזוֹן לַיְלָדִים, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר ״וַתְּחַיֶּיןָ אֶת הַיְלָדִים״ (שמות א:יז), וַעֲנָנֵי כָּבוֹד בִּזְכוּת אַהֲרֹן, שֶׁהָיָה עָסוּק בַּעֲבוֹדַת הַקָּרְבָּנוֹת שֶׁהָיוּ גּוֹרְמִים שֶׁתִּשְׁרֶה שְׁכִינָה בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל, ״וַעֲנַן ה׳ עַל הַמִּשְׁכָּן״ (במדבר ט:יח). וְכַאֲשֶׁר שָׁמַע עֲמָלֵק מִיתַת אַהֲרֹן, שֶׁנִּסְתַּלְּקוּ עֲנָנֵי כָבוֹד, אָז בָּא לִלְחֹם עִמָּהֶם, כִּדְאִיתָא בְּפָרָשַׁת חֻקַּת (במדבר כא:א). וּמִשָּׁם רְאָיָה שֶׁזְּכוּתוֹ שֶׁל אַהֲרֹן עָמַד לְיִשְׂרָאֵל לְהַצִּילָם מִפְּנֵי עֲמָלֵק שֶׁהָיָה רְצוּעָה שֶׁל מַרְדּוּת לְיִשְׂרָאֵל לְעוֹלָם. עַל כֵּן בְּמִלְחָמָה זוֹ רָצָה מֹשֶׁה שֶׁיִּהְיוּ יָדָיו אֱמוּנָה עַל יְדֵי שֶׁיִּזְכֹּר לָהֶם זְכוּת שְׁלֹשָׁה עַמּוּדִים אֵלּוּ, וּלְפִיכָךְ הָיָה מֹשֶׁה עוֹמֵד בָּאֶמְצַע וּזְכוּת קַבָּלַת הַתּוֹרָה בְּיָדוֹ, וְאַהֲרֹן וְחוּר תָּמְכוּ בְיָדָיו מִזֶּה וּמִזֶּה, כִּי אַהֲרֹן זְכוּת הָעֲבוֹדָה בְּיָדוֹ, וְחוּר בְּנָהּ שֶׁל מִרְיָם זְכוּת גְּמִילוּת חֲסָדִים בְּיָדוֹ.

**Sefaria Kli Yakar, 2026 (Claude 3.7, ed. Francis Nataf) ✧:**
**And perhaps it alludes to weakness of hands** that they weakened their hands from the Torah which was given from hand to hand, and from prayer which is through the lifting of hands, and from the attribute of acts of kindness which is something given from hand to hand. And evidence for this is from what it says, *and Aaron and Hur supported his hands*, in order to strengthen these three pillars upon which the house of Israel is established. And these three pillars were upheld by the three shepherds: Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, in whose merit God gave them manna, the well, and the clouds of glory. The manna was in the merit of Moses, for the Torah was only given to those who ate the manna. And the well, which supplied all their needs, was in the merit of Miriam who supplied food for the children, as it is said, *and they kept the children alive*. And the clouds of glory were in the merit of Aaron, who was occupied with the service of the sacrifices which caused the Divine Presence to dwell among Israel, and *the cloud of the Lord was upon the Tabernacle*.
And when Amalek heard of Aaron’s death, and that the clouds of glory had departed, then he came to fight with them, as is found in the portion of Chukat (Numbers 21:1). And from there is evidence that Aaron’s merit stood for Israel to save them from Amalek, who was always a strap of rebellion for Israel. Therefore, in this war, Moses wanted his hands to be steady through reminding them of the merit of these three pillars. And therefore Moses stood in the middle with the merit of receiving the Torah in his hand, and Aaron and Hur supported his hands from this side and that side, because Aaron had the merit of the service in his hand, and Hur, the son of Miriam, had the merit of acts of kindness in his hand.


###### Kli Yakar on Exodus 17:12:1
[Kli Yakar on Exodus 17:12:1](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Kli%20Yakar%20on%20Exodus/r/17:12:1)

**וַיְהִי יָדָיו אֱמוּנָה עַד בֹּא הַשָּׁמֶשׁ.** כִּי עֲמָלֵק בָּא עֲלֵיהֶם בִּימֵי מֹשֶׁה שֶׁהָיָה זְמַן בּוֹקְרָן וּתְחִלַּת זְרִיחָתָן שֶׁל יִשְׂרָאֵל, וְאַחַר כָּךְ בִּימֵי מָרְדְּכַי וְאֶסְתֵּר בְּקוּם עֲלֵיהֶם הָמָן מִזֶּרַע עֲמָלֵק וְהוּא זְמַן הַעֲרֵב שִׁמְשָׁן שֶׁל יִשְׂרָאֵל, כְּמוֹ שֶׁפֵּרֵשׁ רַשִׁ״י עַל פָּסוּק ״וְלָעֶרֶב יְחַלֵּק שָׁלָל״ זֶה בִּימֵי מָרְדְּכַי (בראשית מט כז). לְכָךְ נֶאֱמַר ״וַיְהִי יָדָיו אֱמוּנָה עַד בֹּא הַשָּׁמֶשׁ״, כִּי עָמְדָה זְכוּתוֹ שֶׁל מֹשֶׁה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל גַּם בִּימֵי מָרְדְּכַי, כְּאָמְרוּ רַבּוֹתֵינוּ זִכְרוֹנָם לִבְרָכָה (מגילה יג:) כֵּיוָן שֶׁנָּפַל הַגּוֹרָל לְהָמָן בְּיֶרַח אֲדָר שָׂמַח שִׂמְחָה גְּדוֹלָה לְפִי שֶׁבּוֹ מֵת מֹשֶׁה, וְהוּא אֵינוֹ יוֹדֵעַ שֶׁבַּאֲדָר נוֹלַד מֹשֶׁה, עַיֵּן בַּיַּלְקוּט דִּמְגִלָּה. שְׁמַע מִינָהּ שֶׁהָמָן סָבוּר שֶׁמֹּשֶׁה מֵת וְתַמָּה זְכוּתוֹ, וְטָעָה כִּי מֵאַחַר שֶׁנּוֹלַד בַּאֲדָר זְכוּת זֶה עָמַד לְיִשְׂרָאֵל בַּחֹדֶשׁ הַהוּא. לְכָךְ נֶאֱמַר ״וַיְהִי יָדָיו אֱמוּנָה עַד בֹּא הַשָּׁמֶשׁ״. וְעַל כֵּן תִּקְּנוּ שָׁם שְׁלֹשָׁה עַמּוּדִים אֵלּוּ: תּוֹרָה, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (אסתר ט כז) ״קִיְּמוּ וְקִבְּלוּ״ – קִיְּמוּ מַה שֶּׁכְּבָר קִבְּלוּ; עֲבוֹדָה, עַל יְדֵי הַצּוֹמוֹת שֶׁנֶּחְשְׁבוּ כְּקָרְבָּן, וְזַעֲקָתָם הַיְינוּ עֲבוֹדָה שֶׁבַּלֵּב; וּמִשְׁלוֹחַ מָנוֹת, הַיְינוּ גְּמִילוּת חֲסָדִים.

**Sefaria Kli Yakar, 2026 (Claude 3.7, ed. Francis Nataf) ✧:**
**And his hands were firm until the sun set.** For Amalek came upon them in the days of Moses, which was the time of their morning and the beginning of Israel’s radiance, and afterward in the days of Mordecai and Esther when Haman from the seed of Amalek rose against them, which was the time of evening of Israel’s sun, as Rashi explained on the verse *and in the evening he divides the spoil* — this refers to the days of Mordecai (Genesis 49:27). Therefore it says *And his hands were firm until the sun set*, because the merit of Moses stood for Israel also in the days of Mordecai, as our Sages said (Megillah 13b): When the lot fell to Haman in the month of Adar, he rejoiced greatly because Moses died in it, but he did not know that in Adar Moses was also born, see the Yalkut of Megillah. This implies that Haman thought Moses was dead and his merit had ended, but he was mistaken because since Moses was born in Adar, this merit stood for Israel in that month. Therefore it says *And his hands were firm until the sun set*. And for this reason they established these three pillars there: Torah, as it says (Esther 9:27) *They confirmed and accepted* — they confirmed what they had already accepted. Service, through the fasts which were considered like sacrifices, and their cry, which is the service of the heart. And the sending of portions, which is acts of loving-kindness.


###### Kli Yakar on Exodus 17:12:2
[Kli Yakar on Exodus 17:12:2](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Kli%20Yakar%20on%20Exodus/r/17:12:2)

דָּבָר אַחֵר: **עַד בֹּא הַשָּׁמֶשׁ.** עַד בֹּא הַעֲרֵב שִׁמְשׁוֹ שֶׁל מֹשֶׁה, כְּמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב (במדבר לא, ב) ״נְקֹם נִקְמַת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל מֵאֵת הַמִּדְיָנִים, אַחַר תֵּאָסֵף אֶל עַמֶּךָ״. וְאַף עַל פִּי שֶׁשָּׁמַע שֶׁמִּיתָתוֹ תְּלוּיָה בִּנְקָמָה זוֹ, מִכָּל מָקוֹם לֹא אִחֵר לַעֲשׂוֹת הַדָּבָר, כִּי חָפֵץ בְּבֵית יַעֲקֹב לִרְאוֹת נִקְמָתָם מֵאוֹיְבֵיהֶם בְּחַיָּיו. לְכָךְ נֶאֱמַר ״עַד בֹּא הַשָּׁמֶשׁ״, שֶׁכָּל כָּךְ הָיוּ יָדָיו אֱמוּנָה לִנְקֹם נִקְמַת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, עַד שֶׁלֹּא הִקְפִּיד אֲפִלּוּ עַל בִּיאַת שִׁמְשׁוֹ, דְּהַיְנוּ מִיתָתוֹ, וַהֲרֵי כְּאִלּוּ מָסַר נַפְשׁוֹ עֲלֵיהֶם. וְיֵשׁ רֶמֶז גַּם עַל יְמוֹת הַמָּשִׁיחַ, כְּאָמְרוּ רז״ל (דברים רבה ג, טז) ״ה׳ בְּסוּפָה וּבִשְׂעָרָה דַּרְכּוֹ״ (נחום א, ג) – ״בְּסוּפָה״ זֶה מֹשֶׁה, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר ״וַתָּשֶׂם בַּסּוּף״, ״וּבִשְׂעָרָה״ זֶה אֵלִיָּהוּ שֶׁעָלָה בַּסְּעָרָה. וְלָמְדוּ מִזֶּה שֶׁגַּם מֹשֶׁה יָבוֹא עִם אֵלִיָּהוּ כְּשֶׁיָּבוֹא מָשִׁיחַ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר בּוֹ (תהלים פט, לז) ״וְכִסְאוֹ כַשֶּׁמֶשׁ נֶגְדִּי״. לְכָךְ נֶאֱמַר ״וַיְהִי יָדָיו אֱמוּנָה עַד בֹּא הַשָּׁמֶשׁ״, עַד שֶׁיָּבוֹא מָשִׁיחַ, ״וּכְאוֹר בֹּקֶר יִזְרַח שָׁמֶשׁ״.

**Sefaria Kli Yakar, 2026 (Claude 3.7, ed. Francis Nataf) ✧:**
**Another explanation of “until the sun set.”** Until the evening of Moses’ sun, as it is written *Take vengeance for the children of Israel against the Midianites, afterward you shall be gathered to your people* (Numbers 31:2). And even though he heard that his death was dependent on this vengeance, nevertheless, he did not delay in doing this thing because he desired the house of Jacob, to see their vengeance from their enemies in his lifetime. Therefore it says *until the sun set*, for his hands were so firm to avenge the children of Israel that he did not even mind the setting of his sun, meaning his death, and it is as if he gave his life for them. There is also a hint to the days of the Messiah, as our Sages said (Devarim Rabbah 3:16) *The Lord has His way in the whirlwind and in the storm* (Nahum 1:3) — *in the whirlwind [sufah]* refers to Moses, as it is said *and placed him in the reeds [suf]*, *and in the storm* refers to Elijah who ascended in a storm. And they learned from this that Moses will also come with Elijah when the Messiah comes, about whom it is said *His throne shall be as the sun before Me* (Psalms 89:37). Therefore it says *his hands were firm until the sun set*, until the Messiah will come and *like the light of morning when the sun rises*.