THE MOUNTAIN OF GOD, UNTO HOREB. This is the manner in which Moses recorded it.¹ since the Lord had not yet revealed Himself on it. However, when Moses wrote the Torah about 40 years later, it was so known. Hence we see that Moses used contemporary terminology when he wrote the Torah. The place is called Horeb because of its great heat and lack of rainfall.², which means dry. As Moses noted,³ it is located three days’ journey from Egypt. There is no moisture there and the dryness is overpowering because the Nile is far away.

footnotes: ¹ It was not yet known as the mountain of God ² The word comes from the root chet, resh, bet ³ Ex. 5:3.

APPEARED. Some interpret be-labbat esh to mean: in a flame of fire.⁴ (compare Num. 21:28). Those who say that be-labbat means in a flame explain that be-labbat is short for be-lahavat. However, it appears to me that its meaning is, in the heart⁵ in the word labbat. of the fire, for we indeed find, How weak is thy heart (libbatekh) (Ezek. 16:30).⁶ is the word libbah (heart) plus the second person pronominal suffix. Thus libbah means heart and labbat means heart of. It should be noted that the more familiar form for heart is lev. However, Rabbi Adonim⁷ says that if this were so, then be-labbat would have been vocalized with a chirik beneath the lamed like the word ginnat (garden of) in I went down into the garden of nuts (Canticles 6:11).⁸ is the construct form of libbah our text should read libbat not labbat, because libbah is vocalized like ginnah (garden), and the construct of ginnah is ginnat, not gannat. Now, Rabbi Adonim seems to have forgotten the word gannah (garden)⁹ or gannah. Similarly, the word for heart may be vocalized libbah or labbah. In the former the construct form is libbat, in the latter, labbat. The word in our verse follows the paradigm of labbah, hence the form labbat. in And as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth (Is. 61:11).

footnotes: ⁴ The word for flame is lehavah ⁵ That is, in the midst of the fire. This explains why there is no heh ⁶ Libbatekh ⁷ Rabbi Adonim ben Tomim, a medieval grammarian. ⁸ If labbat ⁹ The word for garden may be written ginnah

THE BUSH. Saadiah Gaon says that seneh (bush) is a type of thorn bush. He further explains that the word seneh in And the good will of Him that dwelt (shokhni) in the bush (seneh) (Deut. 33:16) means heaven;¹⁰ has two meanings. It means either a thorn bush or heaven (Filwarg). that is, it refers to God the glorious.¹¹). Rabbi Joshua,¹² on the other hand, says that the verse refers to the glory that dwelt in the bush.¹³ However, Rabbi Joshua spoke incorrectly, for how can God be called “Him that dwelleth in the bush” when he dwelt there for but a moment.¹⁴ Furthermore, why is the word shokhni (dwelt) in the po’el form?¹⁵ is the present form of words in the kal. Since God only revealed Himself once in the bush the perfect shakhan (dwelt) should have been used. The word oseh (makes) in Who makes (oseh) heaven and earth (Ps. 121:2) is different,¹⁶ (makes) is a po’el, a present form. Now God made heaven and earth at the time of creation. He does not at present make heaven and earth. We thus see that Scripture uses the present form to describe what God did in the past. Now if God is described as making heaven and earth, why can’t He be described as dwelling in the bush? I.E. answers that the two can’t be compared. as God is constantly making and causing heaven and earth to exist in the same manner as speech issues from the mouth of man.¹⁷ (oseh) heaven and earth. Isaac Husik in A History of Medieval Jewish Philosophy, J.P.S., Philadelphia, 1940, (p. 190) notes that I.E. “seems to favor the idea of eternal creation and maintenance of the universe, the relation of which to God is as the relation of speech to the speaker, which exists only so long as the speaker speaks. The moment he ceases speaking the sounds cease to exist.” Additionally, after mentioning all the precious things (Deut. 33:13-16), Scripture concludes with the good will of God.¹⁸. If Him that dwelt in the bush refers to God, why put the Lord’s blessings last (Krinsky)? Moreover, what reason is there to mention this angel?¹⁹ Furthermore, Scripture should have read, ba-seneh (in the bush)²⁰) rather than: And the good will of Him that dwells in a bush (shokni seneh). and thereby would have referred to the well-known bush.²¹In my opinion seneh (bush) refers to only one thing,²² does not mean a thorn bush or heaven. It has only one meaning. namely, a type of dry thorn bush. This is the case in Arabic.²³. Mount Sinai is so named because this type of bush grew there.²⁴ which grows there. Similarly, its²⁵. interpretation is: and the good will that he who lives in the place of the bush (seneh) seeks; that is, a person living in such a place entreats and prays that God do his will and wet the land that he lives in. He prays that God change it from a dry place, a place where the seneh grows, to an amply watered place so that it becomes like a wet and well-watered garden. Scripture states that an angel of the Lord appeared out of the midst of the bush.²⁶ (the bush) implies a distinctive bush. Since there was as of yet nothing special about the bush, Scripture should have read seneh (a bush). It should be noted that J.P.S. translates ha-seneh as a bush. However, its literal translation is, the bush. The word seneh has the definite article the (heh) prefixed to it because these are Moses’ very own words in writing the Torah.²⁷The word bo’er (burned) is a transitive verb. The phrase a burning fire is similar to a devouring fire (Deut. 4:24). As the fire that burneth (tivar) the forest (Ps. 83:15) is proof of this.²⁸ is transitive. Now the fire that burned in the bush devoured all that was around it. Our verse is similar to They have set Thy sanctuary on fire (Ps. 74:7).²⁹ (the bush burned with fire). I.E. believes this should be explained as if written: ba-seneh bo’er esh (a fire burnt the bush). He proves that this is the meaning of the clause through Ps. 74:7, which reads: shilchu va-esh mikdashekha. The literal meaning is: they have set with fire thy sanctuary. According to I.E. this verse is to be read as if written: shilchu esh be-mikdashekha (they have set fire in thy sanctuary) (Filwarg). While the mountain did burn with fire (Deut. 5:20) is also similar.³⁰ (while the mountain burned with fire). Now mountains do not burn. Hence I.E. says that the verse should be interpreted as: the mountain consumed its environment with fire. I.E. explains thus because he believes bo’er to be a transitive verb.

footnotes: ¹⁰ The word seneh ¹¹ Who dwells in heaven (in the seneh ¹² A Karaite Bible commentator. See I.E.’s introduction to the Pentateuch, Vol. I, p. 3, note 14. ¹³ That is, Deut. 33:16 alludes to God who revealed Himself to Moses in the bush. ¹⁴ Deut. 33:16 literally reads: And the good will of Him that dwelleth in a bush. Now God revealed Himself only once in a bush. Why then would Moses refer to God as “the One that dwelleth in a bush,” i.e., is always there? ¹⁵ Po’el ¹⁶ Translated literally. Oseh ¹⁷ Hence Scripture praises God as the one Who makes ¹⁸ Deut. 33:13-16 lists all the good things with which the land of Joseph was blessed, namely, the precious things of heaven, of the sun, of the everlasting hills, and of the earth. It concludes with And the good will of Him that dwelt in a bush ¹⁹ God appeared to Moses in the bush via an angel. Why mention this in the verses dealing with the good things with which the land of Joseph was blessed? ²⁰ Deut. 33:16 literally reads: And the good will of Him that dwells in a bush. However, in view of the fact that God appeared to Moses in a specific bush Scripture should have read: And the good will of Him who dwells in the bush (shokhni ba-seneh ²¹ The bush in which God appeared to Moses, for God does not dwell in any bushes. ²² Contra Saadiah Gaon, seneh ²³ The Arabic word for thorn is senna ²⁴ Mount Sinai takes its name from the seneh ²⁵ And the good will of Him that dwelt in the bush ²⁶ Ha-seneh ²⁷ When Moses wrote the Torah he referred to the bush wherein the angel of God appeared to him. See note 1. ²⁸ Here there is no doubt that the root bet, ayin, resh ²⁹ Our clause reads, ha-seneh bo’er ba’esh ³⁰ Deut. 5:20 reads, va-ha-har bo’er ba-esh

[WAS NOT CONSUMED.] The word ukkal (consumed) is an adjective.³¹ (consumed) appears to be a third person pu’al perfect. However, if this were the case it would be vocalized with a pattach, not a kamatz, and would have been preceded by lo, not by enennu (literally, is not). It is similar to the pa’ul.³². If it were pa’ul it would read akhul. The words lukkach (taken), which is vocalized with a kamatz in if thou see me when I am taken (II Kings 2:10), yullad (shall be born) in unto the child that shall be born (Jud. 13:8), yukashim (snared) in even so are the sons of man snared (Eccles. 9:12) are similar.³³-like vocalizations. Now since these verbs are transitive, the word mu’edet (unsteady) in and an unsteady leg (Prov. 25:19) cannot be classified among these words³⁴ also appears to be a pu’al-like adjective and should be classified as such, along with ukkal, lukkach, yullad, and yukashim. as these words are transitive.³⁵ form. Mu’edet is similar to mo’edet, a po’elet, with the exception that a shuruk has been substituted for a cholam.³⁶ is a variation of mo’edet, which is a po’elet, the kal singular participle form that is vocalized cholam, segol, segol.

footnotes: ³¹ I.E. refers to participles as adjectives. Ukkal ³² It is vocalized like a pa’ul ³³ They are adjectives with pu’al ³⁴ Prima facie, mu’edet ³⁵ Intransitive words do not come in the pu’al ³⁶ Mu’edet

AND MOSES SAID: I WILL TURN ASIDE (ASURAH) NOW. When a verb from the root samekh, vav, resh is followed by a mem it means: to distance from, as in suru mi-menni (turn aside from me) (Ps. 6:9) in which the speaker says, distance yourself from me. However, if the word el (to) which is vocalized with a segol follows it, then it has the opposite meaning, as in suru elai (turn in) (Jud. 4:18), the meaning of which is, turn from your place and come to me. Moses wanted to turn aside from where he was and to then draw near to the bush.³⁷ (I will turn aside now). I.E. believes that this is short for asurah na mi-mikomi (I will turn aside now from my place). We should thus interpret asurah as if it were followed by a mem; i.e., it means: I will turn aside from my place.

footnotes: ³⁷ The text reads, asurah na

AND SEE THIS GREAT SIGHT. This is the first sign recorded in the Torah that the Lord did via his prophet Moses. Scripture thus says, and this shall be the token (sign) unto thee that I have sent thee (v. 12).³⁸ Yefet³⁹ says that the interpretation of the sign is as follows: the enemy⁴⁰ is compared to fire and Israel to a bush. Hence the bush was not burnt.

footnotes: ³⁸ I.E. interprets in this way: And this burning bush shall be the token that I have sent thee. See I.E.’s comment on verse 12. ³⁹ A Karaite commentator on the Bible. See Vol. I, Foreword, pp. XIV-XV. ⁴⁰ The Egyptians. A very similar explanation is given in Midrash Rabbah (Ex. 2:10). The Midrash asks, “Why did God show Moses this vision (i.e., the burning bush)?” The Midrash answers, “God showed Moses a burning fire which did not consume…(for) just as the bush was aflame with fire but was not consumed neither shall the Egyptians be able to consume Israel.” It is difficult to understand why I.E. quoted a Karaite when the same interpretation is found in the Midrash.

AND WHEN THE LORD SAW. These words were also written later by Moses.⁴¹ The angel was called by God’s revered name in the sense of, for My name is in him (Ex. 23:21).⁴² (YHVH) saw. According to I.E. it was not actually the Lord but the angel of the Lord mentioned in verse 2. The angel is referred to by the Tetragrammaton because the Lord’s name is in him. See I.E. on Ex. 23:21. I will explain this when I comment on the latter verse. We find the same with the angel that appeared to Gideon. There it is written, And the Lord said unto him (Jud. 6:23).⁴³ (the Lord). Or its meaning is that the Lord saw that Moses turned aside to see the great sight and He commanded an angel to call Moses.⁴⁴ (YHVH) saw that he turned aside to see, God (elohim) called unto him. According to I.E.’s first interpretation the reference in this verse is to an angel. He now offers a different interpretation. He now suggests that Lord refers to the Deity and elohim (God) to an angel. Hence the use of the term elohim (God) in our verse.⁴⁵, i.e., an angel to call unto Moses. Hence Scripture reads, God (elohim) called unto him. The name Elohim is not a proper name but is, as I will explain, an adjective.⁴⁶ It pertains to all holy beings that are incorporeal and are not forces in a body, as it is written, except the angels,⁴⁷, which is equivalent to the Hebrew elohim. I.E. renders this as angels. whose dwelling is not with flesh (Dan. 2:11), that is, with a body.⁴⁸ refers to a human body. He explains the verse to mean: except the angels, who do not dwell in any body. Thus elohim refers to the above-noted angel.⁴⁹. Verse 4 states, God (elohim) called unto him. I.E. explains that elohim refers to the angel of the Lord, as an angel is termed elohin (Krinsky).

footnotes: ⁴¹ See I.E.’s comments on verses 1 and 2. At this point Moses did not yet know that God was about to reveal Himself to him. However, Moses later related what had happened earlier. ⁴² Scripture reads, And when the Lord ⁴³ Here too an angel spoke to Gideon. Nevertheless, the angel is referred to by the name YHVH ⁴⁴ The text reads, And when the Lord ⁴⁵ The Lord told elohim ⁴⁶ See I.E.’s comment on Gen. 1:1 and the notes thereto. Also see his comments on verse 15. ⁴⁷ The Biblical text is in Aramaic. The Aramaic has elohim ⁴⁸ I.E. explains that flesh ⁴⁹ Verse 2 reads, And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him

AND HE SAID: DRAW NOT NIGH HITHER. Its meaning is, stand in your place and draw not nigh to the bush where the fire is.⁵⁰ (draw not nigh hither). I.E. explains that the word halom means hither. Is there yet a man come hither? (I Sam. 10:22) is similar.⁵¹ (is there yet a man come hither). Here too halom means hither. A nun is missing in the word shal (put off), as it is in the word ga (touch),⁵² is nun, shin, lamed. In the kal imperative the nun is dropped. Similarly in the word ga, which comes from the root nun, gimel, ayin. for the word shal comes from the same root as ve-nashal (and shall cast out) in and shall cast out many nations (Deut. 7:1).

footnotes: ⁵⁰ The Hebrew reads, al tikrav halom ⁵¹ The Hebrew reads, ha-va od halom ish ⁵² The root of shal

MOREOVER HE SAID: I AM THE LORD OF THY FATHER. After stating, I am the God of thy father, He explains that the reference is to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He starts with Abraham because Abraham was the first to call upon the name of the Lord and he built an altar to the Lord,⁵³ (Abraham) builded there an altar unto the Lord, and called upon the name of the Lord. for his father and his brother worshipped idols. These three⁵⁴ are mentioned while those closest to Moses, namely, Levi, Kehat, and Amram, are not noted⁵⁵, if God told Moses, I am the God of thy father, and then enumerated three of Moses’ ancestors he should have mentioned these three rather than Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, for the former were closest to Moses in time. because the former were prophets. Furthermore, they were fathers of all of Israel. Levi was not,⁵⁶ whereas Moses stood for all of Israel.⁵⁷ When God told Moses, I am the God of thy father, He was, as it were, speaking to all of Israel because Moses represented Israel.

footnotes: ⁵³ Cf. Gen. 12:8, and he ⁵⁴ Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. ⁵⁵ Levi the son of Jacob begot Kehat who begot Amram who begot Moses. Prima facie ⁵⁶ He was a patriarch only of the tribe of Levi. ⁵⁷ Moses was the proxy of Israel.

AND MOSES HID HIS FACE. This is similar to for I have seen God face, to face, and my life is preserved (Gen. 32:31).⁵⁸ The sensory perception of the eye⁵⁹ is like the gate of heaven,⁶⁰ (from)-sha’ar ha-shamayim. What he probably means is ve-sha’ar ha-ayin karov (similar to) le-sha’ar ha-shamayim. Shamayim (heaven) represents the angels. I.E seems to be saying that the gift of sight is divine, for unlike touch, taste, or hearing it can perceive distant things (Filwarg). for it can see in one moment images that are both far and near. However, this is not the case with the senses of the ears, nose, palate, and hand.⁶¹ Moses hid his face because he was greatly afraid.⁶²

footnotes: ⁵⁸ There too “God” refers to an angel. Jacob implied that there is a great danger in seeing an angel. Similarly, Moses was afraid to look upon an angel. ⁵⁹ The sense of sight is unique. I.E. refers to the senses as gates. ⁶⁰ I.E. is vague. The Hebrew reads, ve-sha’ar ha’ayin m i ⁶¹ Hence Moses hid only his eyes. He did not cover his ears or any of his other sensory organs. ⁶² See note 58.

AND THE LORD SAID. The messenger speaks the same language as the one who sent him.⁶³

footnotes: ⁶³ Our verse records the words of an angel. The angel spoke on behalf of God. Hence it appears as if God Himself was speaking.

[I HAVE SURELY SEEN.] Its meaning is: I have seen that which people do not see, namely, the violence that is done to them secretly.⁶⁴ (I have surely seen). The repetition of the verb ra’ah implies: I have seen what others have not.

footnotes: ⁶⁴ Our verse reads, ra’o ra’iti

AND HAVE HEARD THEIR CRY. I have heard their cry which is heard by all and I know the pain which they bear in their hearts.⁶⁵. I.E. explains that any bystander would hear the cry of a slave in pain. However, only God would know what is in his or her heart. I.E. thus notes that God heard what all hear and knew what others did not know.

footnotes: ⁶⁵ Our verse reads, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their pains

AND I AM COME DOWN. Scripture says this because the heavens are more glorious than the earth.⁶⁶ implies that God is only in heaven. I.E. says that Scripture employs this terminology only because the heavens are more glorious than the earth since God is all over. God’s glory fills everything.⁶⁷ It is only because the decrees come down from heaven that Scripture employs the term And I am come down.⁶⁸. I.E. first proposed that it is used out of respect for God. He now suggests that it refers to God’s decrees. Furthermore, the angel was a higher form⁶⁹ and Moses was not able to go up to heaven.⁷⁰ Hence Scripture reads, and I am come down to save my people.⁷¹

footnotes: ⁶⁶ And I am come down ⁶⁷ God’s glory fills both heaven and earth. ⁶⁸ An apparently different interpretation of And I am come down ⁶⁹ Angels are superior to prophets. See I.E. on Gen. 1:1. ⁷⁰ The dwelling place of the angels. ⁷¹ The angel came down to Moses because Moses could not go up to him.

AND TO BRING THEM UP. This is in contrast to and I am come down.⁷² As I dwell in a high place⁷³ so will I cause them to dwell in the most elevated place that is upon the earth.⁷⁴ 69b, “The Land of Israel is elevated above all the lands of the earth.” I.E. soon implies that this is not to be taken literally. The aforementioned are the words of the angel.⁷⁵ are the words of an angel (Krinsky). It is likewise written, He made him ride on the high places of the earth (Deut. 32:13).⁷⁶ Behold, the Israelites went out of a land where they were afflicted to a good land.⁷⁷. Scripture does not mention the Girgashites⁷⁸ because they were the smallest of the seven.⁷⁹ Now, it is fitting to raise the following question: Since six nations were descended from Canaan, why does Scripture mention the Canaanites?⁸⁰ The answer is: The term Canaanites is an ethnic name and includes all the nations living in Canaan.⁸¹ Hence the entire land was called the land of Canaan. The Perizzite is to be identified with Sidon.⁸² The rest of the sons of Canaan mentioned in Scripture were few in number and are included in the term Canaanite.

footnotes: ⁷² The angel came down to bring Israel up out of Egypt. ⁷³ In heaven. ⁷⁴ Cf. Kiddushin ⁷⁵ And to bring them up ⁷⁶ Which shows that Israel was brought to a high place. ⁷⁷ I.E. explains that “bring up” is not to be taken literally; i.e., Israel was not taken from a geographically low area to a geographically high area. “Bring up” rather means to be taken from poverty in Egypt to a good land, and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey ⁷⁸ One of the nations inhabiting Canaan. ⁷⁹ Nations inhabiting Canaan. ⁸⁰ Canaan was the father of 11 sons. Six became nations with names of their own. Canaan was not a particular nation. Why then mention him? ⁸¹ The term Canaanites includes all the descendants of Canaan, those who became nations and those that did not. Here it refers to both the Girgashite, who because of his size was not mentioned by name, as well as the other descendants of Canaan who did not develop into nations. ⁸² I.E.’s reason for this identification is unknown.

AND NOW, BEHOLD. Its meaning is: And now, behold, the cry of the children of Israel who have repented⁸³ is come unto Me.

footnotes: ⁸³ See I.E.’s comment on Ex. 2:23.

[MOREOVER I HAVE SEEN THE OPPRESSION.] Its meaning is: Moreover I have seen the oppression with which they in their pride oppress them. Jethro similarly said, for that they dealt proudly against them (Ex. 18:11).

COME NOW THEREFORE. As My messenger to Pharaoh.⁸⁴ (come now therefore). I.E. renders the latter as: and now go, i.e., now go as my agent.

footnotes: ⁸⁴ The Hebrew reads, ve-attah lekha

AND MOSES SAID…WHO AM I. There is no difference between the words ani (I) and anokhi (I).⁸⁵ The latter are similar to immi (with me) and immadi (with me). We have found that it is the way of the Hebrew tongue to derive the word ani (I) and the words attah (you in the singular) and attem (you in the plural), whose nuns have been swallowed,⁸⁶ is short for antah and attem for antem. The omitted nuns are compensated for by a dagesh in the tavs. from the root of an (whither) in Whither went ye (I Sam. 10:14), as the place indicates the speaker.⁸⁷) are you standing? Where am I standing? Hence the pronouns ani, attah (antah), attem (antem). It is possible that the word anokhi is derived from the root of anakh (plumbline) (Amos 7:7)⁸⁸, like a plumbline (anakh), indicates the exact place of the person who is speaking. According to I.E. the personal pronoun anokhi means: I who stand here. It is thus similar to a plumbline. in a manner similar to the derivation of the word nechushtekh (thy bottom)⁸⁹ is derived from nechoshet (copper). Nechoshet is a strong metal. It serves as a base. Hence by extension it refers to the base (bottom) of a person. For the meaning of nechushtekh as bottom, see I.E. on Ezek. 16:36. Similarly, anokhi (I) is derived from anakh (plumbline). (Ezek. 16:36).Because the Lord told Moses, come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh (v. 10), Moses responded, I am a shepherd and Pharaoh is a great king.⁹⁰.Because God told Moses, that thou mayest bring forth My people the children of Israel out of Egypt (v. 10), Moses answered the Lord, Who am I that I am able to bring forth a great nation such as the children of Israel out of Egypt.⁹¹.

footnotes: ⁸⁵ Both words are used in the Bible for I. ⁸⁶ Attah ⁸⁷ One who addresses someone is, at it were, saying to the addressee, whither (an ⁸⁸ The personal pronoun anokhi ⁸⁹ Nechushtekh ⁹⁰ I.E.’s explanation of Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh ⁹¹ I.E.’s explanation of And I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt

AND HE SAID: CERTAINLY I WILL BE WITH THEE. Now go to Pharaoh and bring out the children of Israel and behold, I have given you a token⁹² that I have sent you. The reason they are being brought out of Egypt is that they should serve Me on this mountain where I have shown you this great wonder.⁹³ It is thus written, (I am the Lord)…that brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God (Lev. 22:23). Moses similarly said to Pharaoh, We will go three days’ journey into the wilderness, and sacrifice to the Lord our God (Ex. 8:23)⁹⁴ because the latter is the walking distance between eastern Egypt and Mount Sinai.⁹⁵ However, when Israel left Egypt they did not go there via the land of the Philistines.⁹⁶, this contradicts I.E.’s assertion that Ex. 8:23 refers to a request to go to Mount Sinai. I.E. answers that it took Israel three months to reach Sinai because they did not take a direct route. Furthermore, Israel, as I will explain, dwelt in one place for many days.⁹⁷ It is precisely this⁹⁸. that Moses spoke of when he wrote, and (Moses) builded an altar under the mount…and…offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings (Ex. 24:4, 5). He then made a covenant with Israel that they be a people unto the Lord and that the Lord be their God.⁹⁹. 38. Our texts read, “and the Lord be your God.”

footnotes: ⁹² The burning bush. ⁹³ According to I.E. our verse contains two elements: an allusion to the burning bush (the token) and a promise that Israel will serve God on the mountain upon which God first appeared to Moses. ⁹⁴ Since God had promised that Israel would serve Him on Sinai. Moses asked Pharaoh to allow the people to go there and do what the Lord asked of them. ⁹⁵ Sinai is east of Egypt. ⁹⁶ It took Israel three months, not three days to reach Sinai. Prima facie ⁹⁷ It took Israel three months to reach Sinai because they spent a lot of time in their encampments on the way to Sinai. ⁹⁸ God’s promise, when thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain ⁹⁹ So Vat. Ebr

AND MOSES SAID. Moses now asked which of God’s names he should relate to Israel, for with the name of El Shaddai (God Almighty) he could not perform signs.¹⁰⁰ The latter are only performed with God’s great and glorious name.¹⁰¹ and translated as Lord). Rabbi Joshua¹⁰² says that the Israelites had a tradition from their forefathers that Israel’s savior would reveal a new name of God to them, a name that they had never heard.¹⁰³ Now when Rabbi Joshua heard that Scripture states, I am the Lord that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees (Gen. 15:7),¹⁰⁴ he explained it by saying that these are the words of Moses.¹⁰⁵ (God Almighty) when he revealed Himself to the patriarchs. However, Rabbi Joshua is mistaken. In the Torah portion Bereshit at the beginning of the Pentateuch we find that Scripture does not employ the Tetragrammaton but uses the name Elohim (God) until the verse which concludes with the words in creating had made (Gen. 2:3).¹⁰⁶ (God). If Moses had employed the name that he knew in writing Genesis, he would have used the Tetragrammaton in Gen. 1, 2:3 as well. Hence we may deduce that Moses was very exact with regard to the names of God when he wrote the Torah and employed the names of the Lord that were applicable to the time or event concerning which he wrote. After the latter verse Scripture refers to God by the name Adonai Elohim (Lord God). After the birth of Cain, Scripture employs the term Adonai (Lord) for the Deity only by itself.¹⁰⁷. We never find Moses using the name Elohim for God. Moses always refers to Him by His great and glorious name.¹⁰⁸ He uses the term Elohim only in one place. He does this because Pharaoh said, Entreat the Lord, and let there be enough of God’s (Elohim)¹⁰⁹ thunderings (Ex. 9:28). Upon hearing this, Moses responded, I know that ye will not fear the Lord (Adonai Elohim) (Ex. 9:30).¹¹⁰) who is the Elohim that Pharaoh referred to (Weiser). However, there is no other similar case in Scripture.¹¹¹

footnotes: ¹⁰⁰ The name by which God appeared to the patriarchs. Cf. Ex. 6:2, 3. ¹⁰¹ The Tetragrammaton (read Adonai ¹⁰² A Karaite Bible commentator. See Vol. I, Introduction, note 14. ¹⁰³ God here appears to be revealing a new name, the Tetragrammaton. Also see Ex. 6:2,3. ¹⁰⁴ In this verse the Tetragrammaton is used. We find that it is also used in other revelations to the patriarchs. We thus see that the Tetragrammaton was known in pre-Mosaic times. ¹⁰⁵ In writing the account of the patriarchs Moses used the name of God that was revealed to him. However, God actually used the name El Shaddai ¹⁰⁶ From Gen. 1, 2:3 the Bible refers to the Deity as Elohim ¹⁰⁷ It does not refer to God as Adonai Elohim ¹⁰⁸ The Tetragrammaton. ¹⁰⁹ I.E.’s translation. J.P.S. renders “mighty thunderings.” ¹¹⁰ Moses was emphasizing to Pharaoh that it is the Lord (YHVH ¹¹¹ Where Moses refers to God as Elohim. We thus see that Moses was exact when using the names of God. Hence the names used in Genesis were the names used in the period that Scripture speaks of.

AND GOD SAID…I AM. Its meaning is, That I Am.¹¹² explains I Am. In other words, God’s name is not I Am That I Am. His name is I Am, the meaning of which is, that I am. Compare, And the house of David shall be as God, As the angel of the Lord before them (Zech. 12:8). Angel of the Lord, which follows God, explains the term God.¹¹³

footnotes: ¹¹² According to I.E. That I Am ¹¹³ Translated literally. God in this verse does not refer to the Deity but as the verse itself explains, adverts to an angel of God.

AND GOD SAID MOREOVER…THE LORD. Another name meaning the same as the first one.¹¹⁴ (the Tetragrammaton read as if written Adonai) and EHYH (I am) have the same basic meaning. They differ only in form. However, one name (EHYH) is in the first person and this name (YHVH) is in the third person.¹¹⁵ (I am) is a first person form. YHVH is a third person form. It comes from the same root as yah (Lord). These three names are proper names.¹¹⁶, and YH. I will now go on to explain the meaning of the proper name of God, the meaning of its letters, part of the secret of God’s glorious name, and why it is not read as written.¹¹⁷. It is prohibited to sound out its true consonants.

footnotes: ¹¹⁴ YHVH ¹¹⁵ The root of both names is heh, yod, heh. EHYH ¹¹⁶ YHVH, EHYH ¹¹⁷ God’s proper name is sounded Adonai

The words of Abraham the author: Behold, I now begin to elaborate because I need a firm foundation. Note that a proper name serves as a token and as a sign of the one being referred to by those who enunciate it and those who hear it.¹¹⁸ A proper name is distinguished from an adjective¹¹⁹ in four ways. The first is that an adjective is derived from an imperative, such as chakham (be wise)¹²⁰ beneath the chet. in My son, be wise (Prov. 27:11), or a perfect, as in My son, if your heart gets wisdom (chakham)¹²¹ beneath the chet. (Prov. 23:15), or an imperfect, as in That thou mayest be wise (techkam) in thy latter end (Prov. 19:20).¹²² (wise, intelligent) is derived from a verb meaning to become wise. However, this is not the case with a proper noun such as Abraham, as no perfect or imperfect form can be derived from it.¹²³ Now even though there are proper nouns that are derived from verbs, such as the name yitzchak (Isaac),¹²⁴, meaning laughed. we do not say yitzchakti (I was Isaaced) or itzchak (I will be Isaaced).¹²⁵ A proper name is not used as an adjective.¹²⁶ The second difference is that an adjective comes in the plural. For example, chakham (wise) becomes chakhamim (wise). However, we do not have a plural form for the proper name avraham (Abraham). Thus we do not say avrahamim (Abrahams). Neither is there a plural for the proper name yisra’el (Israel). Thus if there are two people named Israel in a place we do not say yisra’elim (Israels). We would only use the term yisra’elim if we wanted to relate each of them to the people of Israel, as the term Israel is the name of a group.¹²⁷) is both the name of a person and the name of a nation. If we want to say that an individual is an Israelite we use the term yisra’eli. If we want to say that two or more people are Israelites we use the term yisra’elim (Israelites). However, if there are two people named Israel in a place, we do not say there are two Israels there (which is proper in English), because the name of individuals does not come in the plural. The third difference is that a definite article is not prefixed to a proper noun as it is to an adjective. From the word chakham (wise) we get he-chakham (the wise man) (Eccles. 2:14).¹²⁸ can be written with the definite article (he-chakham). However, it is incorrect to say ha-avraham (the Abraham) or ha-yitzchak (the Isaac). The word ha-kohelet (Eccles. 12:8)¹²⁹ is a proper name. Nevertheless, it has a definite article attached to it. cannot be used as an argument against the aforementioned because the term kohelet is not a proper name but an adjective describing the wisdom which was accumulated.¹³⁰ is kof, heh, lamed, meaning to gather. Similarly, the word va-ha-adam (Gen. 2:8)¹³¹). is an adjective.¹³² It has a secret meaning to it, as it is the name of a genus.¹³³ The name ha-menasheh (Deut. 3:13)¹³⁴ (Manasseh) is a proper noun. Yet it has the definite article prefixed to it. has a definite article before it because it refers to genealogy.¹³⁵ The fourth difference is that a proper noun has no construct form whereas an adjective does. For example, we find, chakham lev (wise of heart) (Job 9:4). However, it would be incorrect to say yitzchak ha-dor (Isaac of the generation), because a proper name stands by itself.¹³⁶ The same is the case with the name Eheyeh (I am) and also with the glorious name of God, the Tetragrammaton, because both of these names are proper names.¹³⁷ Now, we do find, Adonai tzeva’ot (the Lord of hosts) (Is. 1:9),¹³⁸ is apparently in the construct. and as a result many were forced to conclude that tzeva’ot is a proper name¹³⁹. Hence Adonai tzeva’ot should be rendered, Lord Hosts, not Lord of hosts, for Adonai is not in the construct with tzeva’ot. or that the Lord is outstanding among¹⁴⁰ 16a. His host.¹⁴¹ means: Lord among His hosts. The Talmud thus interpreted Adonai tzeva’ot as Adonai be-tzeva’ot. The Talmud did so because Adonai cannot come in the construct. However, this is incorrect, because Scripture reads, Elohe ha-tzeva’ot (the God of Hosts) (Amos 3:13).¹⁴² has a definite article prefixed to it. Hence it cannot be a personal name. For the same reason, Adonai tzeva’ot cannot be interpreted to mean the Lord is outstanding among His hosts. Tzeva’ot is never encountered by itself. It is always connected either to the word Elohim (God) or to God’s glorious name, Adonai (Elohim).¹⁴³. However, this appears to be a scribal error, for I.E. goes on to say, “Do not be bothered by the phrase Adonai Elohim tzeva’ot.” Why should the latter present any problem to I.E.’s assertion that the name tzeva’ot is only found connected to Adonai or Adonai Elohim when in this case it is connected to Adonai Elohim? Furthermore, I.E. limits the use of the term “the glorious name of God” to Adonai. He does not use it in reference to Adonai Elohim. Hence we should read, “or to God’s glorious name, Adonai,” and omit the word Elohim (Krinsky). Do not be bothered by the phrase Adonai Elohim tzeva’ot (O Lord God of hosts) (Ps. 59:6),¹⁴⁴ is connected to Adonai Elohim (Krinsky) or where tzeva’ot seems to be a personal name, for the verse appears to read, “0 Lord God, Hosts.” as its meaning is similar to ve-ha-nevu’ah oded ha-navi (even the prophecy of Oded the prophet) (II Chron. 15:8).¹⁴⁵. That is, the word nevu’at is implied in the word ve-hanevu’ah. See I.E. on Gen. 2:9. Similarly, in our phrase the word Elohe is implied in the word Elohim. Our phrase is thus to be read: Adonai Elohim Elohe ha-tzeva’ot.

footnotes: ¹¹⁸ That is, a proper name indicates a specific person. ¹¹⁹ I.E. also refers to common nouns as adjectives. ¹²⁰ Vocalized with a chataf pattach ¹²¹ Vocalized with a kamatz ¹²² I.E.’s point is that an adjective is derived from a verb. Thus the adjective chakham ¹²³ A proper noun cannot be conjugated because it has no verbal form. ¹²⁴ From the root tzadi, chet, kof ¹²⁵ I.E.’s point is that although the root of Isaac can be conjugated, the proper name itself cannot be conjugated. ¹²⁶ One does not say, he is an Isaac, or he was Abrahamed. ¹²⁷ Israel (yisra’el ¹²⁸ That is, the word chakham ¹²⁹ Prima facie, kohelet ¹³⁰ By Solomon. The root of kohelet ¹³¹ Adam was the name of the first man. Yet this proper noun has a definite article before it (ha-adam ¹³² That is, it is not a personal name. ¹³³ It refers to all of mankind. See I.E. on Gen. 2:8 and the notes thereto. ¹³⁴ Menashah ¹³⁵ It refers to the tribe of Manasseh. Hence Manasseh in this verse is a common rather than a proper noun. ¹³⁶ It does not have a construct form. ¹³⁷ Hence they do not come in the construct. ¹³⁸ Wherein Adonai ¹³⁹ That is, a proper name of God. According to this interpretation Scripture here uses two personal names of God back to back as it does in Is. 12:2, in which we find Yah Adonai ¹⁴⁰ Literally, a token or sign in His host. Cf. Haggigah ¹⁴¹ According to the Talmud Adonai tzeva’ot ¹⁴² Here tzeva’ot ¹⁴³ The text has Adonai Elohim ¹⁴⁴ Where tzeva’ot ¹⁴⁵ For grammatical reasons this verse has to be read as if written: ve-hanevu’ah nevu’at oded ha-navi

Now the Lord’s personal name is sometimes used in an adjectival sense because God alone exists forever and the existence of all things is contingent upon Him.¹⁴⁶ God’s proper name is used here in the same way that the name moshe (Moses) is used in Then He remembered the days of old, when He drew (moshe) His people (Is. 63:11).¹⁴⁷ is used as a verb or an adjective. I.E. refers to verbs in the present as adjectives. Similarly, the name Adonai is used as an adjective. The meaning of Adonai when used as an adjective is: the maintainer of existence. Hence in the phrase Adonai Elohim the holy angels are connected to God.¹⁴⁸ means the angels (see I.E. on Gen 1:1). In the phrase Adonai Elohim, Adonai is in the construct with Elohim. Thus the meaning of the phrase is: Lord of the angels. Here Adonai is an “adjective,” as it is in the construct. According to I.E., Adonai tzeva’ot means: the One who maintains the world via the agency of the angels. Similarly, in the phrase Adonai tzeva’ot (Lord of hosts) tzeva’ot refers to the hosts of heaven.¹⁴⁹ Pay no attention to Saadiah Gaon who says that God is called Adonai tzeva’ot because of Israel.¹⁵⁰ refers to Israel. Hence Lord of hosts means Lord of Israel. I.E. disagrees. According to I.E. it means Lord over the angels. Saadiah offers proof¹⁵¹ (hosts) refers to the angels. from and I will…bring forth My hosts (tzivotai), My people the children of Israel, out of the land of Egypt (Ex. 7:4). However, look at I saw the Lord sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by Him (I Kings 22:19).¹⁵² Now the name Elohim is an adjective, because it comes in both the plural and the singular.¹⁵³ comes both in the singular and the plural it cannot be a proper name. Compare, Is not God (Elo’a) in the height of heaven (Job 22:12).¹⁵⁴ is the singular of Elohim. Furthermore, the word Elohim comes in the construct.¹⁵⁵ cannot be a proper name. Compare, Elohim Elohe yisra’el (God, the God of Israel) (Ps. 72:12).¹⁵⁶ (God of) is the construct form of Elohim. The word El (God) means mighty. The same is true of the term Shaddai (Almighty).¹⁵⁷ and Shaddai are the names of God. They are not proper names. Hence according to I.E. they are classified as adjectives. Compare, Like the noise of great waters, like a mighty voice (Ezek. 1:24); and, and thy treasure shall be mighty (shaddai) (Job 22:25).¹⁵⁸ means mighty.

footnotes: ¹⁴⁶ I.E. will soon note that when the name Lord is used as an adjective it means the maintainer of the universe. ¹⁴⁷ I.E.’s rendering of this verse (Krinsky). Here the name moshe ¹⁴⁸ Elohim ¹⁴⁹ The angels. ¹⁵⁰ According to Saadiah Gaon tzeva’ot ¹⁵¹ That tzeva’ot ¹⁵² Which implies that God is called Lord of hosts because the hosts of heaven are His servants. ¹⁵³ I.E. noted above that a proper name has no plural form. Since the name Elohim ¹⁵⁴ Elo’a ¹⁵⁵ Another point proving that Elohim ¹⁵⁶ Elohe ¹⁵⁷ El ¹⁵⁸ Rendered according to I.E. These verses prove that shaddai

Note that the number one is the secret and the foundation of all numbers,¹⁵⁹ (yod, heh, vav, heh) or EHYH (alef, heh, yod, heh). Thus God’s name is written with the letters alef (numerically equal to 1), heh (5), vav (6), and yod (10). and that two is the first of the even numbers and three the first of the odd numbers. Now from one point of view there are only nine numbers.¹⁶⁰ However, from another perspective there are ten numbers.¹⁶¹ If the numbers one to nine are written in a circle¹⁶² and the last number¹⁶³ is multiplied by each of the other numbers,¹⁶⁴ we find that the ones¹⁶⁵ are on the left and the tens, which look like ones, are on the right.¹⁶⁶ Now when we come to the number five which is in the middle, we find the reverse; i.e., the tens become ones and the ones become tens.¹⁶⁷ However, looked upon from another perspective, there are ten numbers¹⁶⁸ without any additions,¹⁶⁹ for one cannot begin to count one without ten.¹⁷⁰ The number ten is thus like the number one.¹⁷¹ It is a general term for all the ones, i.e., the numbers from one through ten.¹⁷² The number ten includes them because they are the first numbers. It is also similar to the ones because it is the first of the numbers,¹⁷³ in the same way that the ones are, because when we reach the number twenty we have two tens paralleling the number two. Similarly, thirty is like three and all the tens till ninety are like the nine ones. When the number one hundred is reached we once again come upon a number which is similar to one. When we reach nine hundred we once again have nine numbers similar to the nine ones.¹⁷⁴ This is so until we reach the number one thousand which consists of ten hundreds. Also, the number one thousand is similar to the number one, and likewise the following numbers correspond to the other nine numbers until nine thousand.¹⁷⁵ When we reach ten thousand the sum is concluded because we now have one myriad. The same applies¹⁷⁶ until we reach ten myriads. The beginning of all the numbers¹⁷⁷ is similar to the number one. Hence mathematicians say that all of the numbers¹⁷⁸ are either fractions of ten¹⁷⁹ or multiples of ten,¹⁸⁰ or the result of adding ten to the ones,¹⁸¹ or a combination of these two.¹⁸² Now the ten numbers are the same as the fingers on the hand,¹⁸³ (1), heh (5), vav (6), and yod (10) which make up the divine name (Weiser). five corresponding to five.¹⁸⁴ (1) through heh (5) correspond to the fingers of one hand and the letters/numbers vav (6) through yod (10) correspond to the fingers of the other hand. Similarly, there are nine spheres which are in a constant glorious state.¹⁸⁵ 38, p. 11). The tenth sphere, which is holy, is so called¹⁸⁶ (holy). because its power is manifest throughout the throne of glory.¹⁸⁷ It is the most powerful sphere and circles all the bodies.¹⁸⁸ There are two middle digits when we count from one to ten, namely, the numbers five and six.¹⁸⁹ and vav. See notes 166 and 167 and the text to which they pertain. Now the numbers alef (1), heh (5), vav (6), and yod (10) are the most glorious numerals.¹⁹⁰ and YHVH. It will be recalled that I.E. has explained that they are the same name. Any squared number that ends in one will always have the number one in its root.¹⁹¹ The same is true with its counterpart.¹⁹² Similarly, the number five will be found in the square of five¹⁹³ and the number six will be found in the square of six.¹⁹⁴ These four numbers always maintain their identity when squared;¹⁹⁵), 5 (heh), 6(vav), and 10 (yod) are not lost when squared as other numbers are. For example, the number 2 is not seen in 4. However, 5 maintains its identity in its square, 25. So too with the numbers 1, 6, and 10. therein lies their superiority over all other numbers that are squared. Additionally, every number is potentially present in the number one.¹⁹⁶ Similarly, the number one is found in all the actual numbers.¹⁹⁷ Furthermore, the number one accomplishes on one side what the other numbers accomplish in two sides.¹⁹⁸ Now behold the power of the number one. If you add its square to the square of its double you get five,¹⁹⁹ a number whose cube equals its squares, for if you add its square²⁰⁰ to the square of its double²⁰¹ it will equal its cube.²⁰² In all the numbers preceding five²⁰³ the relationship of the cube to the sum of the two squared numbers will be the same as the relationship of that number to five.²⁰⁴ The reverse is the case with the numbers above five.²⁰⁵ The number six²⁰⁶ (numerically equivalent to 6) of God’s name. is equal to its parts.²⁰⁷ There is no other number in the order of the integers that equals its parts aside from this number. When²⁰⁸ (numerically equivalent to 10) of God’s name. the square of one is added to the square of the first of the odd numbers²⁰⁹ we get ten.²¹⁰ Now if we bisect a circle with a line that is ten units long²¹¹ and a line is drawn across the circle a third of the way up, a triangle two of whose sides are equal may be drawn.²¹² The number representing the area of this triangle will equal the circumference of the circle.²¹³ Similarly the rectangle²¹⁴ formed in the circle.²¹⁵ Now up to ten²¹⁶ the value of the triangle²¹⁷ to the circumference will be the same as the diameter is to ten.²¹⁸ The reverse will be the case in the numbers above ten.²¹⁹

footnotes: ¹⁵⁹ I.E. now goes on to give a mystical explanation of God’s name based on numerology. God’s personal name is written YHVH ¹⁶⁰ 1 through 9. For the number 10 is like the number 1. See below. ¹⁶¹ Counting 10 as a number. ¹⁶² That is: ¹⁶³ The number 9. ¹⁶⁴ If we multiply each of the numbers in the circle by 9, we get the following: 9x9=81; 9x8=72; 9x7=63; 9x6=54; 9x5=45; 9x4=36; 9x3=27; 9x2=18; 9x1=9. ¹⁶⁵ The numbers 1 through 9. ¹⁶⁶ In the number 72, 7 is the ten number and 2 is a one number, for 72 i s 7x10+2. Now in the numbers 81, 72, 63, and 54 the ten number is on the right and the one number on the left. ¹⁶⁷ After number 5 the numbers reverse themselves, i.e., 54 to 45 (9x5), 63 to 36 (9x4), 72 to 27 (9x3), and 81 to 18 (9x2). Thus what was originally a ten number becomes a one number and what was a one number becomes a ten number. The number that was on the left goes to the right and the number on the right goes to the left. ¹⁶⁸ Up to this point I.E. explains the argument for only 9 numbers. He now goes on to explain the argument for 10 numbers. ¹⁶⁹ There are no new numbers beyond the number 10; i.e., anything above 10 is 10 plus some individual number. Upon reaching the next 100 the count begins again. ¹⁷⁰ The number 11 is 10+1. Thus we cannot begin to count one above 10 without having 10. Hence 10 is one of the numbers. I.E. should be paraphrased as: for one cannot count 11 (10+1) without 10. ¹⁷¹ It makes up one 10. ¹⁷² The number 10 includes all the numbers up to 10, i.e., 1, 2, 3, etc. ¹⁷³ That is, of the tens 10 is the first of the tens in the same way that the ones are the first of the first 9 numbers. ¹⁷⁴ That is, 100 through 900 corresponds to 1 through 9. ¹⁷⁵ That is, 1,000 through 9,000 corresponds to 1 through 9. ¹⁷⁶ One myriad corresponds to 1, two myriads to 2, three myriads to 3, etc. ¹⁷⁷ That is, 10, 100, 1,000, 10,000. ¹⁷⁸ That is, the numbers 1 through 9. ¹⁷⁹ One is a tenth of 10. The other numbers can be treated in the same manner. ¹⁸⁰ The number 20 consists of 2x10, the number 30, 3x10, and so on. ¹⁸¹ 10+1=11, etc. ¹⁸² Multiplying 10 and adding a one number to it. For example, 23 is 10x2+3. ¹⁸³ I.E. now offers an additional illustration of the importance of the letters/numbers alef ¹⁸⁴ The letters/numbers alef ¹⁸⁵ According to Ibn Ezra’s cosmology, there are 10 spheres surrounding the earth, each a revolving, imperceptible domain containing a heavenly body that revolves within the invisible matter comprising it. There are two for the sun and the moon; five for the planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn; one for the zodiac and one for the diurnal sphere. The highest of all is the throne of glory, which also comprises all of the spheres and actuates them. The heavenly bodies receive their various properties from the tenth sphere (Lev. 27:32), the realm of holiness from which the natural forces emanate (E. Levine, Introduction to Vat. Ebr. ¹⁸⁶ It is called kodesh ¹⁸⁷ The heavens. ¹⁸⁸ The heavenly bodies. See note 185. ¹⁸⁹ The letters heh ¹⁹⁰ The letters/numbers of the divine name EHYH ¹⁹¹ I.E. now explains the uniqueness of the number one. He points out that numbers that end in one, have one in their square. Other numbers, with the exception of 5, 6, and 10, do not have this quality. ¹⁹² That is, its cube. A cubed number that ends in one has one in its root; e.g., 1,331 is the cube of 11. I.E. refers to a cube as the counterpart of a square because a square is formed by multiplying a number by itself, while a cube is formed by multiplying a number by itself three times. ¹⁹³ That is, in the number 25. The same holds for the cube of 5. ¹⁹⁴ That is, in the number 36. The same holds for the cube of 6. ¹⁹⁵ The 1 (alef ¹⁹⁶ Any number imaginable is made up of ones. ¹⁹⁷ Every existing number consists of a number of ones. ¹⁹⁸ All the numbers have two sides, i.e., a preceding number and a following number. For example, the number 5 is preceded by 4 and followed by 6. However, the number one has no preceding number. All numbers are half the sum of the preceding and following numbers; e.g., 2 is half the sum of 1 and 3, 5 is half the sum of 4 and 6, and 6 is half the sum of 5 and 7. One is half the sum of 2, without having a preceding number. Hence the number one accomplishes with one side what the others need two sides to accomplish. ¹⁹⁹ 1 squared + 2 squared=5. ²⁰⁰ 5 squared=25. ²⁰¹ (5x2) squared=100. ²⁰² 125. In other words, 5 cubed (125) = 5 squared (25) + 10 squared (100). ²⁰³ With the exception of one, whose uniqueness I.E. has just pointed out. ²⁰⁴ For example, the relationship of 4 cubed (64) to 4 squared + 8 squared (80) is 4:5. The relationship of 3 cubed (27) to 3 squared + 6 squared (45) is 3:5. The relationship of 2 cubed (8) to 2 squared + 4 squared (20) is 2:5. ²⁰⁵ Above 5 the relationship of a number cubed to the sum of its square changes. Above 5 the cube is higher than the sum of its squared numbers whereas below 5 it is lower than the sum of its squares (see note 204). For example, 6 cubed is 216, 6 squared is 36, and 12 squared is 144; 36+144= 180. The relationship between 216 and 180 is 6:5. We thus see the following: below 5 the cube of a number is less than the sum of that number squared plus the square of its double. At 5 the cube is equal to the number squared then doubled and squared. Above 5 the cube is greater by the ratio of that number to 5 than the number squared then doubled and squared. Hence 5 is a very special number. ²⁰⁶ I.E. now goes on to explain the significance of the letter vav ²⁰⁷ The number 6 is equal to all the numbers by which it can be evenly divided, i.e., 1, 2, and 3; l+2+3=6. Hence 6 equals its parts. ²⁰⁸ I.E. now goes on to explain the significance of the letter yod ²⁰⁹ The number 3. ²¹⁰ Literally, the result equals the similar number. I.E. calls the number 10 the similar number because 10 is similar to 1. See note 173. ²¹¹ That is, the circle is 10 units in diameter. ²¹² An isosceles triangle may be drawn. ²¹³ Line AB is 10 units long. Line CD is a third of the way up. Lines AC and AD are equal. Triangle ACD is equal to the circumference of the circle. According to I.E. this shows the excellence of the number 10. Of course, one is area and the other linear, but the number, 31.4, is the same. However, it should be pointed out that they are not exactly equal, as we can see if we carry out the calculations; the circumference is equal to 31.4159 while the triangle’s area is equal to 31.4269. ²¹⁴ Literally, the long square. ²¹⁵ If another line is drawn a third of the way down along the line bisecting the circle and its points connected, a rectangle is formed. The number representing the area of this rectangle will equal the number representing the circumference of the circle. ²¹⁶ If the diameter of the circle is less than 10. ²¹⁷ Or the rectangle. ²¹⁸ Under 10 the ratio of the area of the triangle or rectangle to the circumference of the circle will be equal to the ratio of the diameter of the circle to 10, i.e., area/circumference=diameter/10. ²¹⁹ In cases under 10 the circumference of the circle is greater than the area of the inscribed triangle or rectangle. The reverse is true in cases where the triangle is greater than 10; i.e., the area is greater than the circumference. The basic error involved in the text discussed in note 213 and this note i s that I.E. assumes that two quantities, one involved in circumference and one involved in area, are equal, when in fact they are not, although they are very close.

Now these four letters²²⁰, and yod, the letters of the Tetragrammaton. are very precious. They add up to twenty-two,²²¹ = 1, heh =5, vav =6, and yod =10. the number of the letters in the Hebrew alphabet. Do not count the doubled letters twice,²²², and kaf come in two forms, regular and final. If the final forms of the aforementioned letters are counted as separate letters, then the Hebrew alphabet has 27 rather than 22 letters. Hence I.E. notes that the variant forms of these letters are not considered as separate letters. as they are the original letters with their horizontal bases straightened to form a line.²²³ becomes a final nun, the tzadi becomes a final tzadi, the feh becomes a final feh, and the kof becomes a final kof. I.E. speaks of four of the five double letters, since the final mem is a square and thus is not straightened out to form a line. Nevertheless, it is not counted as a separate letter because it is merely a variant of the normal letter. The reason they have one name even though they are written differently is that they have one sound.²²⁴ The master of Hebrew grammar²²⁵ perceived that the letters have five sources.²²⁶ are formed by the throat. The palatals, gimel, yod, kaf, and kof, are formed by the palate. The linguals, dalet, tet, lamed, nun, and tav, are formed by the tongue. The dentals, zayin, samekh, resh, tzadi, shin, and sin, are formed by the teeth. The labials, bet, vav, mem, and peh, are formed by the lips. He classified half of the letters as root letters²²⁷, and kof. only, and half as root, prefix, or suffix letters.²²⁸, and bet (half of the letters of the Hebrew alphabet) can either be a root letter or a prefix or suffix. Now the second group of letters²²⁹ is more important than the first group.²³⁰ It is proper that a letter that is said often be one that is easy to pronounce.²³¹ It is also fitting that the alef, heh, vav, and yod be easy to pronounce and have important meanings.²³² These four letters are found in the vowels²³³ or tzere is enunciated, the yod is sounded; when the kamatz is enunciated, the alef and heh are sounded; when the cholam and shuruk are sounded, the vav is enunciated. and are implied letters.²³⁴ These letters serve at times as consonants, at times as silent letters,²³⁵, and vav are not sounded, i.e., the alef in bereshit, the vav in rishon, the heh in parah, and the yod in beni. and at times as paragogic letters.²³⁶ in shosayikh (Jer. 30:16), the heh in redah (Gen. 45:10) (the usual form is red), the vav in ma’ayeno (Ps. 79:2) (the usual form is ma’ayan), the yod in shokhni (Deut. 33:16) (the usual form is shokhen). At times they drop out.²³⁷ is missing in the word banu (I Sam. 25:8), the vav in hokhachta (Gen. 24:14), the yod in yered (Gen. 42:38), and the heh in shema’an (Gen. 4:23) (the usual form is shemanah). At other times they are swallowed by a dagesh.²³⁸ compensates for them. For example, the alef is missing in yesham (Jer. 49:20), the yod in matti (Gen. 19:19), the yod in leviyyim (Ex. 21:29) and the heh in yishmerennu (Ex. 21:29) (yishmerennu is a variation of yishmerenhu). In all of these instances the missing letter is compensated for by placing a dagesh in the following letter. Finally, at other times they interchange with each other.²³⁹ interchanges with the heh in ata (Is. 21:12), the heh with the alef in refah (Ps. 5:4), the vav with the heh in mippo (Ezek. 40:10), the vav with the alef in yokhlu (Ezek. 42:5), and the yod with the alef in nibbeta (Jer. 26:4).

footnotes: ²²⁰ Alef, heh, vav ²²¹ Alef ²²² The letters mem, nun, tzadi, peh ²²³ For example the nun ²²⁴ The regular and final letters are sounded in the same way. Hence both forms have the same name. ²²⁵ Some render, originator. I.E. does not identify him. ²²⁶ The letters are formed by the throat, palate, tongue, teeth, and lips. The gutturals, alef, heh, chet, and ayin ²²⁷ Chet, tet, gimel, zayin, ayin, samekh, peh, resh, tzadi, dalet ²²⁸ The letters alef, yod, tav, nun, mem, shin, heh, vav, kaf, lamed ²²⁹ The 11 letters that can serve either as root letters or as prefixes or suffixes. ²³⁰ For they: a) contain the letters that are used in the Tetragrammaton; b) not only serve as root letters but also serve as prefixes, suffixes, and prepositions. ²³¹ The letters of the second group are easier to sound than those of the first group because they are used more often. ²³² These letters are easy to pronounce and, as already explained by I.E., are of great significance. ²³³ When the vowels are sounded, these consonants are used. For example, when the chirik ²³⁴ They can be used in place of vowels. ²³⁵ At times the alef, heh, yod ²³⁶ For example, the alef ²³⁷ For example, the alef ²³⁸ The letters are dropped and a dagesh ²³⁹ The alef

Now there are four gutturals. They start with the ayin, which is followed by the chet.²⁴⁰ is the hardest guttural to pronounce. Hence it is the first guttural. Next comes the chet, the second hardest guttural to pronounce (Weiser). Then comes the heh, followed by the alef. Do not consider all the letters that make up the name of a guttural in your definition of a guttural, as the additional letters are not made by the throat.²⁴¹ is spelled ayin, yod, nun. Only the ayin is a guttural. The yod and nun are not. We find this to be the case with all of the gutturals. It is best to refer to them as sounded with a pattach.²⁴² and alef as the ah sounds, to the chet as the cha sound, and to the heh as the ha sound. In this way the guttural sound is fully enunciated. Now the ayin and chet are very hard to sound. A person who is not accustomed to pronouncing them in his youth will not be able to sound them properly. Thus the gentiles cannot sound them.²⁴³ or chet, as there is no equivalent sound in the Latin alphabet. Hence only the alef and heh were chosen from among the gutturals to serve as ministering letters.²⁴⁴, ministering letters. Ministering letters were also chosen from among the palatals, i.e., gimel, yod, kaf, kof, as the palate is next to the throat. The yod and kaf were chosen from the palatals to serve as ministering letters because they are the easiest palatals to pronounce. The gimel and kof are therefore only used as root letters.

footnotes: ²⁴⁰ The ayin ²⁴¹ Only the first letter of a guttural spelled out is a guttural. The others are not. For example, ayin ²⁴² It is best to refer to the ayin ²⁴³ The reference is to the Christians. They cannot properly sound the ayin ²⁴⁴ Since these gutturals are easy to pronounce they were chosen to serve as prefixes, suffixes, and prepositions. The medieval grammarians refer to letters which serve as prefixes, suffixes, and prepositions as me’sharitim

The letters dalet, tet, lamed, nun, and tav are linguals. Two letters, the dalet and the tet, were chosen from the linguals to serve only as root letters. The others serve both as root letters and as ministering letters. The letters zayin, samekh, shin, resh, and tzadi are dentals. They are all hard to pronounce.²⁴⁵, they serve only as root letters. The shin is the easiest of the dentals to sound. Hence it was chosen as a ministering letter while the others were left to serve only as root letters. Therefore three letters were chosen from among the labials, namely, the bet, vav, mem, and peh, to serve as ministering letters.²⁴⁶ The peh was left to serve only as a root letter.

footnotes: ²⁴⁵ Hence, with the exception of the shin ²⁴⁶ Since half of the Hebrew alphabet serve as ministering letters and only one dental was chosen as a ministering letter. Three labials were chosen to complete the complement of 11 ministering letters.

It is only right that the alphabet begin with a guttural, because the throat is the first organ in the framework of the human body to produce a sound.²⁴⁷ It does so from bottom to top.²⁴⁸ The alef comes before the heh because it is the easiest guttural to pronounce. Hence the alef heads all the other letters of the alphabet and is equivalent to the number one. It is fitting that the heh be the fifth number equivalent to the glorious number five.²⁴⁹, the second most easily pronounced guttural, was chosen to represent the fifth letter of the alphabet, which serves as the number 5. This is so, as I.E. has previously explained, because the number 5 is a glorious number. A guttural was chosen to represent this number because the guttural was made by the “first” organ in the body. These two letters are the easiest to enunciate. Now since the first letter of the alphabet is a guttural the second letter in the alphabet was chosen from among the five labials, which are produced by the last of the body’s five organs of speech.²⁵⁰ Hence the bet follows the alef, the vav also follows the heh, and the peh the ayin.²⁵¹) follows the first guttural of the alphabet (the alef), a labial (a vav) follows the guttural heh and a labial (a peh) follows the guttural ayin. Now it was necessary to put in two letters between the bet and the heh. A palatal, the gimel, was chosen as the third letter and a lingual, the dalet, as the fourth letter.²⁵² Hence a dental, namely, the zayin, follows the vav. The Hebrew grammarian now had to use the fourth of the implied letters²⁵³. The implied letters are alef, heh, vav, and yod. for the tenth letter, which is equivalent to the number ten. He had already used the gutturals alef and heh whose great importance has previously been explained as the first and the fifth letters. He had similarly used the vav, which happens to be a very important and easily sounded labial. Now there are no root letters more easily pronounceable than the palatals. He chose from the palatals the yod and the kaf to serve as ministering letters. The more easily pronounceable of the two is the yod.²⁵⁴ rather than the kaf was chosen as the tenth letter.

footnotes: ²⁴⁷ The head is on top of the body. The throat, the top of which is connected to the head, is the first organ to produce speech. Hence the alphabet opens with a guttural (Krinsky). ²⁴⁸ It lies at the bottom of the head but its sound is heard in the mouth, which is above it. ²⁴⁹ The heh ²⁵⁰ The order of the organs producing speech are: throat, palate, tongue, teeth, and lips. Now since the first letter of the alphabet is produced by the throat, I.E. believes it is only right that the second be produced by the lips, the last organ in the head to produce speech. ²⁵¹ Since a labial (the bet ²⁵² The palate is the second organ of speech, the tongue the third, and the teeth the fourth. The master of the Hebrew language decided to follow the order of the organs of the body in choosing the first, third, fourth, and sixth letters. He did not follow this order for the second and fifth letters because of the reasons already noted by I.E. ²⁵³ The yod ²⁵⁴ Hence the yod

Four letters are fit to be implied letters.²⁵⁵, and yod. The alef is silent in all vowels²⁵⁶ is present as a silent letter in each one of the vowels. because it is equivalent to the number one. We find the alef with the cholam in the word rosh (head);²⁵⁷. with the kamatz in roshim (heads);²⁵⁸. with the chirik in the word rishon (first); with the tzere in reshit (beginning of);²⁵⁹. with the shuruk in pura (boughs)²⁶⁰. in Shall lop the boughs (Is. 10:33); with the pattach in chattat (purification)²⁶¹. in For purification and for sprinkling (Zech. 13:1); and with the segol in pele (wonders)²⁶². in doing wonders (Ex. 16:11). It serves as a first person imperfect prefix in the masculine and in the feminine because it is the first letter of the alphabet. Since the alef is never sounded when it comes at the end of a word, it does not serve as the sign of the feminine.²⁶³ serves this purpose. However, it occasionally takes the place of the heh, as in marah (bitter)²⁶⁴. The usual spelling is mem, resh, heh. in call me Marah (Ruth 1:20) and in gaveha (was exalted)²⁶⁵. The usual spelling would be gimel, bet, heh, heh. in its stature was exalted (Ezek. 31:5). The alef is also found employed as a superfluous letter at the end of a word, as in ve-attikeiha²⁶⁶ is an alef. The latter alef is superfluous. (and the galleries thereof) (Ezek. 41:15) and he-halekhu²⁶⁷ is an alef. The latter alef is superfluous. (that went) in that went with him (Joshua 10:24). It is also found as a sounded superfluous letter at the beginning of a word, as in etmol²⁶⁸ in etmol is superfluous. The basic word is temol. Compare, Ex. 5:8; I Sam. 15:20; 20:27. (yesterday) (II Sam. 5:2) and ve-ezro’i²⁶⁹. Hence the alef is superfluous. The text of I.E. reads, ezro’akha. However, the correct reading is ezro’i, as the word ezro’akha is not found in Scripture. (and my arm) (Job 31:22). It is similarly used in the middle of a word, as in ve-he’eznihu (shall become foul) in And the rivers shall become foul (Is. 19:6). The alef is also found unsounded at the end of a word, as in the word chet (sin)²⁷⁰. (Deut. 23:22). At times the silent alef is dropped, as in the word kes (throne)²⁷¹. The usual spelling is kaf, samekh, alef. in the throne of the Lord (Ex. 17:14). At times it interchanges with a heh or a yod, as in ha-amon²⁷² in place of a heh. The usual spelling is hamon. (the multitude) (Jer. 52:15), which is a variation of he-hamon (II Sam. 18:29); or tityammeru²⁷³ in place of an alef, for the root of the word is alef, mem, resh. (shall ye revel) (Is. 61:6), which is a variation of yitammeru (Ps. 94:4). It is also found sounded with a vav, as in tomeru (say ye)²⁷⁴. Actually there is no vav in tomeru in II Sam. 19:22. Either I.E.’s edition of the Bible had a vav, or I.E. quoted from memory and erred, or I.E. considered the cholam equivalent to a vav. in And say ye to Amasa (II Sam. 19:14).

footnotes: ²⁵⁵ The alef, heh, vav ²⁵⁶ The alef ²⁵⁷ Spelled resh, alef, shin ²⁵⁸ Spelled resh, alef, shin, yod, mem ²⁵⁹ Spelled resh, alef, shin, yod, tav ²⁶⁰ Spelled peh, alef, resh, heh ²⁶¹ Spelled chet, tet, alef, tav ²⁶² Spelled peh, lamed, alef ²⁶³ The heh ²⁶⁴ Spelled mem, resh, alef ²⁶⁵ Spelled gimel, bet, heh, alef ²⁶⁶ The last letter in ve-attikeiha ²⁶⁷ The last letter of he-halekhu ²⁶⁸ The alef ²⁶⁹ The more usual form is zero’i ²⁷⁰ Spelled chet, tet, alef ²⁷¹ Spelled kaf, samekh ²⁷² Spelled with an alef ²⁷³ Spelled with a yod ²⁷⁴ In place of the alef

Now these three letters²⁷⁵, and yod, the letters that the alef interchanges with. are fit to serve as prefixes and suffixes. The letter yod, which is similar to the number one (the alef),²⁷⁶ (numerically equivalent to 10) is the first of the letters which serve as tens (kaf=20, lamed=30, mem=40, etc.). serves as a first person suffix both in the masculine and in the feminine. In the verbal forms we find shamarti (I have kept) (Ps. 17:4) and amarti (I have said) (Ex. 23:13); among the nouns we find shemi (my name) (Ex. 23:21). The yod is also employed as a third person masculine imperfect prefix, as the number ten is like the number one.²⁷⁷, which is numerically equivalent to one, serves as a first person imperfect prefix. The letter yod, which is similar to the number one, i.e., the alef, serves as a third person prefix. In the feminine it is oppositely positioned and serves as a suffix,²⁷⁸ as in de’i (know), re’i (see) (I Sam. 28:17), and tizkeri (thou mayest remember) in that thou mayest remember (Ezek. 16:63). This yod also shows relationship²⁷⁹ at the end of a word sometimes indicates relationship, e.g., yisra’eli, an Israelite; shimoni, a Simeonite. because as a numeral it is similar to the number one.²⁸⁰ The yod is a sign of the plural construct connected to the third person, as in yede (hands of) in The hands of women full of compassion (Lam. 4:10) and yadai (my hands) in even My hands have stretched out the heavens (Is. 45:12) because the number ten²⁸¹ is numerically equivalent to 10. includes all numbers in it.²⁸² The yod is encountered as a silent letter when it follows a chirik, as in ragli (my foot) (Ps. 26:10); a tzere, as in ragle (the feet of) in He will keep the feet of his holy ones (I Sam. 2:9); or a kamatz, as in yadav (his hands) and raglav (his feet). The yod is found in place of a heh²⁸³ (it is also found in place of a vav),²⁸⁴ is found in place of a heh” be emended to “the yod is found in place of a vav.” If the emendation is accepted then we do not have to add what is in parentheses. as in hoyah (is) (Ex. 9:3), which is a variation of the word hovah (wouldest be) in and thou wouldest be their king (Nehemiah 6:6).²⁸⁵ is hovah. In hoyah a yod has been substituted for a vav. The yod takes the place of a heh in the word yechesayun (take refuge) (Ps. 36:8), which comes from the root chet, samekh, heh.²⁸⁶ of the root is missing in yechesayun. A yod takes its place. It takes the place of an alef in yisharti (to be right)²⁸⁷ (spelled with a yod) is a variant of the word isharti (spelled with an alef). in all precepts…all things to be right (Ps. 119:128). The yod is found as a superfluous letter in the words yitzhar (oil)²⁸⁸ is tzadi, heh, resh. The yod serves no purpose, and is therefore superfluous. (Num. 18:12), ha-yoshevi²⁸⁹. (that art enthroned) (Ps. 123:1), and rabbati²⁹⁰. (great) (Lam. 1:1). The heh is also used to indicate the presence of a thing,²⁹¹ for this is its meaning in he lakehem zera (Lo, here is seed for you) (Gen. 47:23). The heh is also sometimes used to introduce a question,²⁹², the heh interrogative. as in ha-bemachanim (whether in camps) (Num. 13:19), and ha-niheyeh (whether there hath been) (Deut. 4:32); or as the sign of the definite article,²⁹³, the heh which indicates the definite article. as in ha-eved ha-ivri (the Hebrew servant) (Gen. 39:17) and ha-anashim (the men) (Gen. 19:5). The heh suffixed to a verb indicates a third person feminine perfect. It is similarly used with nouns.²⁹⁴ is feminine. The masculine form, on the other hand, was left without a sign.²⁹⁵ is the sign of the feminine. The masculine form has no sign. Compare the word amar²⁹⁶. This is obviously a scribal error, for I.E. wants to contrast the third person perfect in the masculine and feminine. Ameru is a third person plural. See Krinsky. and the word amerah in saith Koheleth (Eccles. 7:27).²⁹⁷ is a feminine form, hence the word amerah, a third person feminine. The heh is also used as a sign of the feminine when the imperfect is combined with the pronoun, as in eshmerenah (I will watch her), yishmerennah (he will watch her),²⁹⁸ (he will choose her). nishmerennah (we will watch her), tishmerennah (you will watch her), yishmeruha (they will watch her), shemarnuha (we watched her), and shimruha (watch her). The heh serves as the sign of the feminine noun, compare, na’arah be-tulah (a damsel that is a virgin) (Deut. 22:28). The heh is appended to the hifil²⁹⁹ is added to the root in the hifil. and also to the hitpa’el³⁰⁰ is also added to the root in the hitpa’el. conjugations. The heh is also at times dropped, as in the word mazzeh³⁰¹ is made up of mah and zeh. In mazzeh a heh is dropped since the word is spelled mazzeh, not mahzeh. It should be noted that mazzeh is the ketiv. The kere is mah zeh. (what is that) in What is that in thy hand (Ex. 4:2). It is similar to the yod of etzarekha³⁰² is yod, tzadi, resh. The yod is dropped in etzarekaha. (I formed thee) in Before I formed thee (Jer. 1:4), and it is like the alef of va-abbedkha³⁰³ is alef, bet, dalet. The root alef is dropped in abbedkha, as the alef in abbedkha is a first person prefix. (and I have destroyed thee) in and I have destroyed thee, O covering cherub (Ezek. 28:16). It is also superfluously appended to the end of a verb, as in eshme’ah (I will hear),³⁰⁴. or a noun as in laylah (night).³⁰⁵. See I.E. on Gen. 1:5. It is silent when following the kamatz, tzere, segol, cholam, or shuruk. Compare the words asah (made)³⁰⁶. and boneh (doth build)³⁰⁷. in the Lord doth build up Jerusalem (Ps. 147:2); boneh (build)³⁰⁸. in And the house which I build (II Chron. 2:4); pera’oh (let them loose)³⁰⁹. in for Aaron had let them loose (Ex. 32:25), also shelomoh (Solomon)³¹⁰. and yikrechu³¹¹ but I.E. refers to it as a shuruk. (they shall not make baldness) (Lev. 21:5).

footnotes: ²⁷⁵ The heh, vav ²⁷⁶ The yod ²⁷⁷ See note 276. The alef ²⁷⁸ It serves as a second person feminine suffix. ²⁷⁹ A yod ²⁸⁰ See note 276. ²⁸¹ The yod ²⁸² See note 172. ²⁸³ Later on I.E. will offer an example of this. ²⁸⁴ The words in parentheses are not in the text. However, they have to be added to make sense of I.E.’s comments. Some suggest that “the yod ²⁸⁵ The participle form of the root heh, yod, heh ²⁸⁶ The heh ²⁸⁷ Yisharti ²⁸⁸ The root of yitzhar ²⁸⁹ The usual form is ha-yoshev ²⁹⁰ The usual form is rabbat ²⁹¹ It is used in the sense of lo, behold, here is. ²⁹² The heh ha-she’elah ²⁹³ The heh ha-yedi’ah ²⁹⁴ A noun ending in a heh ²⁹⁵ Without a sign indicating gender. The point is that the heh ²⁹⁶ The text reads, ameru ²⁹⁷ Kohelet ²⁹⁸ Some versions have yivcharunnah ²⁹⁹ Literally, the heavy. A heh ³⁰⁰ A heh ³⁰¹ Mazzeh ³⁰² The root of etzarekha ³⁰³ The root of abbedkha ³⁰⁴ The usual form is eshma ³⁰⁵ The basic word is layil ³⁰⁶ Vocalized kamatz heh ³⁰⁷ Vocalized tzere heh ³⁰⁸ Vocalized segol heh ³⁰⁹ Vocalized cholam heh ³¹⁰ Vocalized cholam heh ³¹¹ It is vocalized with a kubbutz

The vav is used as a connective and is in such instances placed in front of the word because the vav sound is made by connecting the lips. The vav is used as a connective in the phrases avraham ve-yitzchak (Abraham and Isaac) (Gen. 48:16) and in mi fa’al ve-asah (who hath wrought and done it) (Is. 41:4). The vav is also employed as a masculine and feminine plural perfect suffix. It is also used as a masculine imperfect suffix. It is similarly employed at times as a feminine imperfect suffix, as in im timtze’u (if ye find) (Cant. 5:8) and im ta’iru (that ye awaken not (Cant., 7:2).³¹² and ta’iru are masculine plural imperfects. However, they are used as feminines. The vav is found as a silent letter when employed with the shuruk and cholam vowels. It is used as a masculine pronominal suffix with words in the perfect, as in shemaro (he watched him); with a noun, as in yado (his hand), and with a verb in the imperfect, as in yirdefo (will pursue him). It is vocalized with a shuruk following a heh, or a nun with a dagesh, as in yishmerehu (preserve him) (Ps. 41:3) or yishmerennu be’alav (its owner hath…kept it in) (Ex. 21:36), because the heh is used as a feminine suffix.³¹³ is a feminine suffix and the vav a masculine suffix. The vav is also used as a sign of the plural in verbs in the perfect and imperfect.³¹⁴ (they wrote); yichtevu (they will write).

footnotes: ³¹² Timtze’u ³¹³ In other words, the heh ³¹⁴ For example, katevu

I have shown that these four letters³¹⁵, and yod. are implied letters. Therefore the proper names³¹⁶ and YHVH. that are constructed from these four glorious letters are glorious names. Now the first of these divine names³¹⁷. This term for God is found only in our verse. is only found here. It is not encountered elsewhere in Scripture. We know that when Moses spoke to Pharaoh he enunciated God’s name as written. He did not employ any substitute.³¹⁸ when he referred to God. He did not refer to Him as Adonai. Moses acted thus because he was holy. However,³¹⁹ the ancients³²⁰ were forced to use a substitute name when referring to God.³²¹ for YHVH. The meaning of and this is My memorial is the same as this is My name,³²² means My name. I.E. takes issue with the Talmudic statement that the term My name refers to the way God’s name is written (YHVH) and My memorial to the way that God’s name is sounded (Adonai). Cf. Kiddushin 71a: “This is My name forever (le’olam); it is written le’alem (to be concealed; i.e., God’s name is not ordinarily to be sounded)…R. Abina raised the following contradiction: It is written, This is My name to be concealed (le’alem). Then it is written, This is my memorial (which indicates that God’s name is to be enunciated). The Holy One, blessed be He, said: Not as My name is written shall it be pronounced. It is written Yod Heh (Vav Heh), but is pronounced Alef Dalet (Nun Yod-Adonai).” I.E. believes that the latter is aggadic and is not the literal meaning of the text. as our text employs two words with one meaning. Our reading of the divine name as Elohim whenever it is connected to Adonai,³²³ we read it as Adonai Elohim. Cf. Deut. 3:34; Hab. 3:19. If the original reading of YHVH was Adonai we would read Adonai YHVH as Adonai Adonai. the meaning of which is, He³²⁴. is Lord,³²⁵ was chosen as a substitute for YHVH. This substitution indicates that YHVH is Lord. is proof of the above.³²⁶ is not the original pronunciation of YHVH. This word comes in the plural³²⁷ is a plural. It literally means my Lords. out of deference to God³²⁸ in the same way that Elohim does.³²⁹ is a plural. For a full treatment of the use of a plural in reference to God, see I.E. on Gen. 1:1. Hence if someone addresses the Lord in the same way that he addresses a person and says Adoni (my Lord),³³⁰ (my lord) he errs, as he is addressing God the same way that he addresses a human master. as in adoni sha’al (My lord asked) (Gen. 44:19), he errs.

footnotes: ³¹⁵ The alef, heh, vav ³¹⁶ The divine names EHYH ³¹⁷ EHYH ³¹⁸ Moses sounded out YHVH ³¹⁹ Literally, therefore. ³²⁰ The reference is to the sages of the Talmud. See notes 322 and 323. ³²¹ The point is that Moses, being holy, was permitted to sound out God’s name. However, later generations not as holy were prohibited from sounding out God’s name and therefore had to substitute Adonai ³²² That is, My memorial ³²³ Whenever the text reads Adonai YHVH ³²⁴ YHVH ³²⁵ The term Adonai ³²⁶ That Adonai ³²⁷ Adonai ³²⁸ “It is considered a sign of dignity to employ the plural when speaking of a superior” (I.E. on Gen. 1:1). ³²⁹ Elohim ³³⁰ If someone addresses God as adoni

I will now explain the meaning.³³¹ Know that there are three worlds.³³², p. 190. One of them, the lower world,³³³ consists of objects that are on various levels of importance.³³⁴. The word can mean levels, steps or virtues. However, they can be classified in three groups.³³⁵ (dead matter), tzome’ach (plants), and chai (living beings). I.E. follows this classification. The first is the metals, which number seven³³⁶ and correspond to the seven stars.³³⁷ At a higher level come the plants, which have many levels of value. Above them come living things, which have many levels of importance. Man alone is on the highest level in this lower world.³³⁸ Change befalls him in his body. Also his soul changes with his thoughts.³³⁹ Similarly, change befalls his occupation and his affairs.³⁴⁰ The wise men have compared the genera which is the group that endures although the individuals which make it up perish.³⁴¹ The wise men have compared the intransient species to the shadow of a tree upon the ever-running water.³⁴² 38 reads, “The wise men have compared the genera which are the group that endures [to a shadow] of a tree over running water.” This appears to be the original reading. Our text arose from the incorporation into it of various glosses that were written to explain I.E.’s somewhat vague sentence. His point is that the wise men compared the relationship of the eternal species, with regard to the transient individual, to the shadow that a tree casts upon moving water. The branch which casts the shadow remains, but the shadow keeps on changing because of the movement of the water.

footnotes: ³³¹ Of our verse, i.e., why God revealed His name to Moses. ³³² Cf. Husik, op. cit. ³³³ That is, our world, the sublunar world. ³³⁴ The term used by I.E. is ma’alot ³³⁵ Medieval philosophy classified whatever is found on the earth in three groups: domam ³³⁶ The seven metals are: gold, silver, mercury, copper, tin, lead, and iron. ³³⁷ Literally, the seven ministers. The reference is to the moon, Mercury, Venus, the sun, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. ³³⁸ Man is the most noble creature on earth. Nothing on earth is as important as man. ³³⁹ By thinking noble thoughts man elevates his soul. By thinking base thoughts man debases his soul. ³⁴⁰ Stability was considered by the medieval philosophers to be a sign of perfection. Change was a sign of imperfection. Cf. Maimonides on the nobility of unchangeable form and the baseness of changeable matter. ³⁴¹ To the shadow of a tree upon the ever-running water. See next line and the notes thereto. ³⁴² This sentence is extremely verbose. Vat. Ebr.

The next world is the middle world. It too contains objects that are on various levels of importance. The five ministering stars³⁴³ are very important, as they are self-sufficient and do not die or diminish. Neither do their movements change, enlarge, or shrink. They do not ascend or descend. Howbeit, they do change greatly according to the arrangement.³⁴⁴ At times a given star³⁴⁵ is seen in the line of the zodiac; at other times it is seen at a greater or nearer distance to the left,³⁴⁶ or at a greater or nearer distance to the right.³⁴⁷ Sometimes it ascends in its epicycle, at other times in its large sphere,³⁴⁸ for the center of the latter is far from the center of the earth.³⁴⁹ Sometimes its sphere ascends or descends. At other times it runs. Sometimes it tarries. At other times it stands in its place. Sometimes it goes backwards. All of this is vis-à-vis the earth.³⁵⁰, Chap. 12. Sometimes it is seen. At other times it is hidden. Sometimes it is in the east, at other times in the west. Its relation to its companion,³⁵¹ and also to the hosts of heaven above and to the moon below, is indeterminately forever changing because it³⁵² is sometimes in conjunction with one of the seven fixed stars.³⁵³ Now there are one hundred and twenty conjunctions in each one of the three hundred and sixty degrees.³⁵⁴ It is due to these irregular movements that different things happen to man’s body and certainly to his fortune in this lower world. However, these stars themselves do not change. The moon is therefore on a lower level than they, because whatever happens to the stars happens to the moon, and even more. They³⁵⁵ have two spheres, neither of which has the earth as its center. Furthermore, the moon’s movement in its epicycle is opposite that of the great sphere.³⁵⁶) and the all-encompassing sphere (galgal ha-domeh). See note 27 to I.E.’s introduction to Genesis. Additionally, the moon by herself has no light. Her light comes from the sun. This can be seen from the fact that when the moon is in conjunction with the sun³⁵⁷ in the head or tail of the dragon³⁵⁸; Laws of the Sanctification of the New Moon, chap. 16:1, 2, Yale Judaica Series, Vol. XI). during the day, the sun cannot be seen,³⁵⁹ and if it faces the sun in one of the above-noted places at night³⁶⁰ the moon is invisible.³⁶¹

footnotes: ³⁴³ Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. They, in contradistinction to the sun and moon are unchangeable. ³⁴⁴ According to the way the heavens are arranged. I.E. appears to be contradicting himself Only a few sentences above he wrote, “Neither does their movement change.” Here, however, he writes, “Howbeit, they do change greatly.” Weiser suggests that I.E. is referring to the forms of the ministering stars, the sun, and the moon. The forms of the latter change while that of the former never do. However, I.E. speaks of movements, not of forms. Rabbi Joseph Ha-Sephardi suggests that what I.E. means is that the motion of the sun and moon actually changes while that of the ministering stars only appears to change. What I.E. apparently is saying is that the movement of the five “ministers,” left to themselves, would not change. However, the heavens are so arranged that their movements do change. ³⁴⁵ The reference is to one of the “ministering” stars. ³⁴⁶ That is, north of the zodiac (Weiser). ³⁴⁷ That is, south of the zodiac. ³⁴⁸ Its eccentric sphere. The stars appear to make various movements in the sky. To explain these movements, spheres within spheres were posited. See note 27 to I.E.’s introduction to Genesis. What applies to the movement of the moon more or less applies to the movement of the stars. ³⁴⁹ This sphere is so called because the earth is not its center. ³⁵⁰ In reality there is no change in the movements of these stars. These movements only seem to change because they are viewed from earth (Joseph ben Eliezer Ha-Sephardi). See Yesod Mora ³⁵¹ The star to which it is paired (Weiser). ³⁵² The star under discussion (one of the seven fixed stars) may be in conjunction with one of the other fixed stars. ³⁵³ The moon, Mercury, Venus, the sun, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. ³⁵⁴ The heavens are circular. There are 360 degrees in a circle. ³⁵⁵ The five ministering stars. See note 343. ³⁵⁶ The inclined sphere (galgal ha-noteh ³⁵⁷ That is, a solar eclipse. ³⁵⁸ The point at which orbits intersect is called “the dragon” by medieval astronomers. Maimonides writes, “The regular orbit of the moon is inclined toward the regular orbit of the sun; one half of it is inclined to the north and the other half to the south. But there are two points in it diametrically opposite each other, at which the two circular planes intersect each other…The point from which the moon begins to deviate to the north of the sun’s orbit is called the head, while the other point, from which the moon begins to deviate to the south of the moon’s orbit, is called the tail” (Mishneh Torah ³⁵⁹ And it is dark all over. If the moon had its own light, its light would be seen. ³⁶⁰ A lunar eclipse. ³⁶¹ If the moon had its own light, it would not be eclipsed when the earth comes between it and the sun.

Now the stars that make up the sphere of the constellations are a level above the “ministers.”³⁶² They are fixed in one sphere and they do not move as the ministers do. Their distances and relationship to each other do not change. They have one motion; it neither increases nor decreases. Their relationship to the earth is always the same. They appear different according to the place on earth where they are seen and the movement of the sun. The highest world is the world of the holy angels who are incorporeal and, unlike the souls of men, do not inhabit bodies. Their importance is far and above the understanding of their insignificant counterparts.³⁶³ This entire world is glorious and unchanging. There is no change in its arrangement. This world is not self-sufficient³⁶⁴ but its existence is dependent upon God the glorious. Man’s soul is of this same kind.³⁶⁵ It receives power from above in accordance to the arrangement of the ministers, that is, the arrangement of each “minister” vis-à-vis the great hosts at the time of a person’s birth. If the soul grows wise it will share the secrets of the angels and will be able to receive great power from an upper power that received it from the light of the angels. The person will then cleave to God the glorious. This is precisely what Jacob meant when he vowed, then shall the Lord be my God (Gen. 28:21). Jacob vowed that he would dedicate his entire life to cleave unto God to the fullest of his might. Jacob therefore said, Put away the strange gods that are among you (Gen. 35:2). Jacob did not utter these words till this point, for it was only now that he was going to serve God according to his vow. So too, Jethro, who said, Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods. (Ex. 18:11).³⁶⁶, what he meant was that he was now going to cleave only to God. Jethro was a very wise man.³⁶⁷ Proof of the latter is, And they asked each other of their welfare (Ex. 18:7). Additionally, Scripture states, and bowed down (Ibid.), which implies that Jethro did not stand in awe of Moses.³⁶⁸ in Ex. 18:7. Furthermore, Moses bowed in front of Jethro (Ibid.).

footnotes: ³⁶² See note 337. ³⁶³ Human beings. The latter are counterparts to the angels, as man is created in their image. See I.E. on Gen. 1:26. ³⁶⁴ As great as this world is, it is not independent of God. ³⁶⁵ As the inhabitants of this world, the angels. ³⁶⁶ Hence when he said, Now I know that the Lord is greater than all gods ³⁶⁷ Jethro advised Moses on the question of judges (Ex. 18:17). ³⁶⁸ Jethro is called Moses’ colleague, as is implied in the word le-re’ehu

When Adam realized that he would die he sired a son so that the human kind would be preserved.³⁶⁹ He received the power to preserve the human genus.³⁷⁰ Hence Eve³⁷¹ exclaimed, I have gotten a man with the help of God³⁷² (Gen. 4:1). Each one of the sons of the prophets³⁷³) mentioned in the prophets. used to isolate himself in the hope of being inspired from on high according to his ability. Now it is via this name³⁷⁴. that new signs and wonders come into this world. When this name was told to Pharaoh³⁷⁵ he asked for signs and wonders.³⁷⁶ sent him, Pharaoh asked for a sign to see if this power could change nature. Therefore this name is not found in the book of Koheleth, as this book speaks of things concerning which nothing can be added nor anything taken away (Eccles. 3:4). It deals with those things concerning which there is nothing new under the sun (Eccles. 1:9). It deals with those things which are based on the wisdom that comes from on high.³⁷⁷ changes natural law. Hence it would be misplaced in Ecclesiastes.

footnotes: ³⁶⁹ See I.E. on Gen. 4:1. ³⁷⁰ The power to preserve the kind. However, the individual would die. ³⁷¹ Who concurred with Adam. ³⁷² The power to preserve the human race came from God. ³⁷³ Students of the prophets (bene ha-nevi’im ³⁷⁴ YHVH ³⁷⁵ Literally, to him. ³⁷⁶ When Moses told Pharaoh that YHVH ³⁷⁷ The book of Ecclesiastes deals with natural law. However, the name YHVH

GO, AND GATHER. Scripture reads, the God of Abraham³⁷⁸ because God made a covenant with Abraham to give him the land of Canaan.³⁷⁹

footnotes: ³⁷⁸ The name God is not repeated in our verse with Isaac or with Jacob. ³⁷⁹ Canaan was first promised to Abraham (Gen. 15:18). God then promised Isaac and Jacob that he would keep the promise made to Abraham (Gen. 26:3-5; 35:11, 12) (Weiser).

[I HAVE SURELY REMEMBERED YOU.] The meaning of pakod (remembered) is that the time of their visitation had come.³⁸⁰ means to visit (cf. Ex. 20:5). Hence I.E.’s comment that pakod pakadti (I have surely remembered) means that the time that I should visit you (and keep my promise) has come. See Gen. 21:1 and the use of the word pakad therein.

footnotes: ³⁸⁰ The root peh, kof, dalet

AND I HAVE SAID. I have previously said to your fathers that I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt, the reference being to and afterward shall they come out with great substance (Gen. 15:14), and to and I will also surely bring thee up again (Gen. 46:4). Or its meaning is, I have now decreed³⁸¹, usually translated as and I have said, here means: and I have decreed. that this³⁸² shall come to pass, as in Thou shalt also decree a thing (Job 22:28).³⁸³. What it means is: ve-tigzar ge-zerah. We thus see that the root alef, mem, resh sometimes means to decree. Hence va-omar may be rendered: and I have decreed, rather than, and I have said.

footnotes: ³⁸¹ Va-omar ³⁸² What follows, in the verse. ³⁸³ Job 22:28 reads, ve-tigzar omer

AND THEY SHALL HEARKEN. When the word shama (heard) is followed by a lamed or bet its meaning is not to hear a voice but rather to hear the message which a voice carries. The yod in the word ha-ivriyyim (the Hebrews) has a dagesh for euphonic purposes. It is there to emphasize the yod genitive. The yod in ha-ivrim (the Hebrews) that follows the resh with a chirik beneath it is, in accordance with Hebrew grammar, the sign of the plural.³⁸⁴ is the sign of the plural (ivrim, yeladim, etc.). Chirik yod indicates membership in a group (compare, ivri, yehudi, yisra’eli). Now when the two yods come together the gentilic yod is usually dropped. In our verse not only do we have two yods, but one of them receives a dagesh (thus doubling it). The extra yod and the dagesh are in our word for euphonic purposes, i.e., to emphasize the gentilic yod (Filwarg).

footnotes: ³⁸⁴ Chirik yod mem

HATH MET WITH US. Nikrah (hath met) means the same whether spelled with a heh or an alef.³⁸⁵. In Ex. 5:3 it is spelled with an alef. Compare, nikro nikreti³⁸⁶ is spelled with an alef. Nikreti comes from the root kof, resh, heh, for the yod takes the place of the heh in a first person perfect. Compare, nikrah in our verse. (as I happened by chance) (II Sam. 1:6). I will now explain the meaning of nikrah.³⁸⁷ (met) means the same as pagah (fall upon). Its meaning is, lest he fall upon us (Ex. 5:3).³⁸⁸ means fall upon, as in lest he fall upon us (Netter).

footnotes: ³⁸⁵ Here the word is spelled with a heh ³⁸⁶ Nikro ³⁸⁷ In Ex. 5:3 I.E. explains that nikrah ³⁸⁸ That is, nikrah

AND I KNOW THAT THE KING OF EGYPT WILL NOT GIVE YOU. Leave.³⁸⁹) you to go. Or the meaning of yitten (give you) is, let, as in Therefore suffered I thee not (netatikha) to touch her (Gen. 20:6).³⁹⁰) you go.

footnotes: ³⁸⁹ The word leave or permission must be added to the text. Our verse literally reads: And I know that the king of Egypt will not give (yitten ³⁹⁰ In this case nothing is missing from the text. Our verse reads: And I know that the king of Egypt will not let (yitten

[EXCEPT BY A MIGHTY HAND.]³⁹¹ Neither will he let you go because of his mighty hand.³⁹² However, Saadiah explains it to mean: neither will he let you go if he is struck once with a mighty hand.³⁹³

footnotes: ³⁹¹ The text literally reads: and not by a mighty hand. Hence the two explanations which follow. ³⁹² Pharaoh’s hand is mighty and he therefore sees no reason to let you go. ³⁹³ In other words, it will take more than one plague to get Pharaoh to change his mind.

AND I WILL PUT FORTH MY HAND. Against his³⁹⁴ hand.³⁹⁵

footnotes: ³⁹⁴ Pharaoh’s. ³⁹⁵ God will show Pharaoh that His hand is mightier than Pharaoh’s hand.

AND I WILL GIVE. The Egyptians’ appeasing of the Israelites by imploring them to ask for jewels and raiments (which is the meaning of va-yashilum)³⁹⁶ (so that they let them have what they asked) is found in Ex. 12:36. I.E. renders va-yashilum: they implored them to ask. was also a great wonder.³⁹⁷ This is the opposite of the behavior of the world’s inhabitants.³⁹⁸

footnotes: ³⁹⁶ The word va-yashilum ³⁹⁷ Not only the plagues were wondrous. This too was a wonder. ³⁹⁸ People don’t go around imploring others to ask them for things.

[EMPTY.] The mem of rekam (empty) is superfluous.³⁹⁹. The mem has no meaning and apparently serves no purpose. The word rekam is used in the plural as in our verse.⁴⁰⁰ (ye shall not go empty). Telekhu is a masculine plural. Hence rekam too must be a masculine plural. I.E.’s point is that the Bible employs the term rekam with the masculine feminine and the plural. See I.E.’s comments on Gen. 31:42 and the notes thereto. It is also used as a feminine in Go not empty⁴⁰¹ (go) is a feminine singular. Hence rekam (empty) too must be a feminine singular. Cf. I.E. on Gen. 31:42 and the notes thereto. (Ruth 3:17). The word chinnam is similar.⁴⁰²

footnotes: ³⁹⁹ Its root is resh, yod, kof ⁴⁰⁰ Our verse reads, lo telekhu rekam ⁴⁰¹ Tavo’i ⁴⁰² See I.E. on Gen. 31:42 and the notes thereto.

BUT EVERY WOMEN SHALL ASK. Now elsewhere it is written with regard to both males and females, and let them ask (Ex. 11:2).⁴⁰³? Scripture mentions females here because women are more in the habit of asking their neighbors for jewelry of gold and silver to put on the necks of their sons and daughters. They are likewise in the habit of asking for ear rings, nose rings, bracelets, crescents, and anklets. This is the contemporary custom in Moslem countries. However, the inhabitants of the land of the uncircumcised⁴⁰⁴ do not act in this manner. Scripture similarly speaks of a sorceress,⁴⁰⁵. The same applies to a sorcerer. as women are more involved in witchcraft than men.⁴⁰⁶ 67a, Yerushalmi Sanhedrin 7:3, and Rashi and I.E. on Ex. 22:17.

footnotes: ⁴⁰³ We thus see that both males and females did the asking. The question thus arises: Why did Scripture state here that every woman shall ask ⁴⁰⁴ Christian countries. ⁴⁰⁵ Ex. 22:17 states, Thou shalt not suffer a sorceress to live ⁴⁰⁶ Cf. Sanhedrin

AND OF HER THAT SOJOURNETH IN HER HOUSE. For the Israelites owned land.⁴⁰⁷Some complain and say that our ancestors were thieves.⁴⁰⁸ Can’t these murmurers see that this was a command from on high? There is no sense in asking why? God created everything. He gives riches to whom He desires to give it, and when He wishes to, He takes the very same riches away. There is no evil in this, as everything is His.

footnotes: ⁴⁰⁷ Hence they had rooms or houses to rent to Egyptians. See I.E. on Gen. 47:27. ⁴⁰⁸ For they asked the Egyptians for goods and had no intention of returning them or paying for them.

AND YE SHALL SPOIL. Ve-nitzaltem (and ye shall despoil) is like ve-dibbartem (and speak ye)⁴⁰⁹ is a pi’el. (Num. 20:8), for it is possible that its form is that of the nifal conjugation.⁴¹⁰. However, in this case ve-nitzaltem means and ye shall be despoiled, an impossible rendering, for it was Israel that was doing the despoiling. Hence I.E.’s note that ve-nitzaltem is a pi’el, i.e., active, not passive. Krinsky quotes a reading: It is not possible that its form is that of the nifal. Compare, ve-niggaftem (and ye shall be smitten) (Lev. 26:17).

footnotes: ⁴⁰⁹ That is, ve-nitzaltem ⁴¹⁰ The word also looks like a nifal