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Source Sheet Ibn Ezra on the Ten Commandments

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Source Sheet Ibn Ezra on the Ten Commandments PARSHAT YITRO 2020 – SOURCE SHEET IBN EZRA ON THE TEN COMMANDMENTS www.rabbidunner.com WITH THANKS TO RABBI DR. MARTY LOCKSHIN The Ten Commandments as recorded in Parshat Va’etchanan (Deut. 5:6–17) is different to the record of the Ten Commandments found in Parshat Yitro (Ex. 20:1–13), both in terms of small differences and also more substantive differences. The most detailed treatment of the differences between the two versions is presented by the medieval Torah commentator Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra (1089–1167). He begins with a list of all the differences, including those that appear trivial, but which are nevertheless present. שי תולאש תושק השרפב .תאזה ורמא בר םי כ י נשה םי רבדה םי םדבל רמא .םשה ו דע םתו ותכש ב בדב ו ר ד בוכ ת עו םה מ דלם בהם ש יכם ר רא תז שפ וקתלשש ןוארש יכנא' 'ה 'ךיהלא הינשבו יכ' יכנא 'ה ךיהלא לא 'אנק , ישילשבו בותכ תא' םשה 'ה 'ךיהלא םגו תא' רשא רשא תא' םגו 'ךיהלא 'ה םשה תא' בותכ ישילשבו , 'אנק לא ךיהלא 'ה יכנא יכ' הינשבו 'ךיהלא 'ה יכנא' ןוארש שיא תא ומש 'אושל אלו רמא ימש , יעיברבו יכ' תשש םימי השע 'ה , לע' ןכ ךרב 'ה ,מרבוייחשמ א שר הא '' '' הא שר א ,מרבוייחשמ ךיהלא נ ןתו .ךל ו שי לואשל ךיא רפסי רובד יכנא תרשעב םירבדה יכ אוה הוצמה הנהו יא נ נ ו תוצמ השע אלו אלו השע תוצמ ו נ נ יא הנהו הוצמה אוה יכ םירבדה תרשעב יכנא רובד רפסי ךיא לואשל שי ו .ךל ןתו נ ךיהלא תוצמ אל .השעת תולאשו תושק .הלאמ.למתש ואו הע לתצ הוהנ חננא ו נארק ו ז ו השרפה איהש תשרפ ו עמשי ורתי ושאר ,הנ תשרפו נחתאו ן נש .הי הוהנ יאר נ ו יכ תלחתמ תלחתמ יכ ו נ יאר הוהנ .הי נש ן נחתאו תשרפו ,הנ ושאר ורתי עמשי ו תשרפ איהש השרפה ו ז ו נארק ו חננא הוהנ יכנא ו דע ףוס רא'שת א תאשי א ומש 'אושל י ן א נש ו י יב ן יתש ישרפה .תו תלחתמו ' 'רוכז ודע ףס תרשע תרשע ףס ודע 'רוכז ' תלחתמו .תו ישרפה יתש ן יב י ו נש ן א י 'אושל ומש א תאשי א רא'שת םירבדה נש ו י לכב .םוקמ ושארב הנ ' 'רוכז נשבו תי 'רומש' . םג םש ורחאב הנ תפסות רשאכ' ךוצ 'ה 'ךיהלא . ךהא הךצרא'תסתה רא שם .'וש ינב 'וז'ה שר .ומלב שםרד ושרבא הנ ' 'ךתמהבו נשבו הי תפסות ' ךרושו 'ךרומחו . השקהו לכמ הלא יכ ושרבא הנ בותכ םעט :תבש כ'י תשש תשש כ'י םמיי השע 'ה תא םימשה אות ץראה ' , ראומ ע דו ' לע ןכ ךרב 'ה תא י םו 'תבשה . האול םקויספה יא םנ םיבותכ םיבותכ םנ יא םקויספה האול . 'תבשה םו י תא 'ה ךרב ןכ לע ' דו ע ראומ , ' ץראה אות םימשה תא 'ה השע םמיי נשב תי קר םעט :רחא ' תרכזו יכ דבע יה תי ץראב 'םירצמ רמאו ורחאב הנ לע' ןכ ךוצ 'ה ךיהלא תושעל תא י םו םו י תא תושעל ךיהלא 'ה ךוצ ןכ לע' הנ ורחאב רמאו 'םירצמ ץראב תי יה דבע יכ תרכזו ' :רחא םעט קר תי נשב 'תבשה . ושארב הנ בותכ רכש דובכ בא םאו אוהש ןעמל' וכיראי ן ךימי 'וכ בנשן רהסק,י ףמע ולןוי ' לךיםיטב ג ' ' ג לךיםיטב ' ולןוי ףמע רהסק,י בנשן 'וכ ףיוהס דובכב בא םאו רשאכ' ךוצ 'ה 'ךיהלא . ושארב הנ בותכ אל' 'חצרת , אל' 'ףאנת , אל' נגת 'בו , אל' 'הנעת . הע ל ,'ונתא' ףנ ל ,'צתא'בת נואב ךהא הךצרא'םוב וכ יה הינשב בותכ אל' 'חצרת , ' אלו 'ףאנת , ' אלו 'בונגת , ' אלו 'הנעת . הנושארב בותכ דע' 'רקש תינשבו דע' 'אוש . .'ו ע ישו רשד'בת נשר .'נתאו' בנתאו' ףנ ל ,'צתא'בת יש ושרבא הנ ותכ ב ' אל מחת דו תיב ךער אל דמחת תשא 'ךער נבוש תי ' אלו דמחת תשא ךער אלו הואתת תיב 'ךער . .'ע י ות ל ע ש מתאו'ת בש ךרתאדח לךרתבד ושרבא הנ יא ן בותכ והדש' ' נשבו תי בותכ והדש' ' . ושרבא הנ ודבע' ותמאו ' םדוק ורוש' ורומחו ' נשבו תי ורוש' רש ינב 'ווח וו'םו 'ומו דע נורא הש וכת שו הש וכ אה שב ורוחומ ' נפל י ' ודבע ותמאו ' . ושארב הנ בותכ ' ו רבדי םיהלא תא לכ םירבדה הלאה 'רמאל נשבו תי א' ת םירבדה םירבדה ת לאה ה ד ב ר ה ' לא כ ל הק ל םכ ' . כלה לכ א רבד א In the first instance Ibn Ezra presents us with the traditional Rabbinic solution, an exercise in Talmudic apologetics, which he then dismisses as absurd, for a number of reasons, although he does not offer any answer as to why the sages of the Talmud would have resorted to absurdities in order to reconcile these two texts. שפרכושא נח ו זירבדב לח המ ורמא לע ,הככ ונאצמ ורמאש רוכז רומשו רובדב דחא ורמאנ .הו ההדבז קרוש קרוש ההדבז .הו לכמ ישוקה תו יהש ו נל ו רשאכ .שרפא הלילחו ,הלילח רמואש אלש רבדו ,הנוכנ יכ וניתעד הלקנ דגנכ .םתעד םע גכהק ויע י ,נכ רד קר ישנא ירוד נ ו ובשחי יכ םהירבד ,םעממכש יאו נ ו ןכ , ראכש שרפא ,ףוסב רחא ריכזאש ישוקה .תו 1 “When we examined the words of the ancient rabbis to see how they related to this issue, we found were said together” [Rosh Hashana 27a]. This suggestion is even ’ מש ו ר ‘ and ’ רוכז ‘“ :that they said more difficult than all the problems that I listed above, as I shall explain. God forbid, God forbid, that I would say that the rabbis spoke incorrectly! Our minds are nothing compared to theirs! But the people of our generation insist on taking their comments literally, when that is not the case, as I shall explain at the end, after I have explained all the difficulties [that arise if we take this statement literally]. Ibn Ezra lists no less than a dozen reasons as to why it makes no sense to take this statement of Chazal literally, and apply it across the board to both texts – which would mean that everything in both texts was ‘miraculously’ said by God simultaneously when he spoke out the commandments. Here are some of Ibn Ezra’s arguments: 1. Why not both words? מלה אל בתכנ ושארב :הנ רוכז ,רומשו םג ןכ נשב .תי רוכז “ If the words were actually both pronounced at the same time,] why does the text not read] ?both in Yitro and in Va’etchanan ” ושומ רוו 2. The Shabbat laws have different rationales וירת יש :אהומתל ךי ורמאנ העשמב סנ יםקוספ יםבר תבב ,תחא ןיאו שמםעט ,הו יתמש שתולמ מםעט ,דחא ,דחא מםעט שתולמ יתמש ,הו שמםעט ןיאו ,תחא תבב יםבר יםקוספ סנ העשמב ורמאנ ךי :אהומתל יש וירת ,הוש יהתש י הנ תורמאנ תבב .תחא two words that basically mean the – ” מש ו ר “ and ” רוכז “ Instead of the rabbis addressing the issue of same thing – and saying that they were said at the same time, it would have made more sense for them to ask how whole verses that do not have the same meaning as each other were miraculously said simultaneously. 3. God ‘quotes’ himself in the third person? אוי ך ראימ :שהם רשאכ ךוצ י י ךיהלא And how could God say [in the third person] “as Hashem your God has commanded you”? 4. Missing phrases cannot be said at the same time הוהנ יא ן בותכ ושארב הנ: ןעמל י בטי ךל , םא ןכ , רמא הז אלו רמא .הז In Yitro, the phrase “that you may live long” [which is said in Va’etchanan] is missing. This would imply that God both said and did not say this phrase simultaneously. How does that make any sense? 2 5. How could the Israelites understand two things at the same time? םאו נרמא ו יא ן רובד םשה רובדכ לכ ,םדא הנה ךיא יבה נ ו לכ לארשי רובד .םשה יכ ,םדאה םא עמשי רוכז רוכז עמשי םא ,םדאה יכ .םשה רובד לארשי לכ ו נ יבה ךיא הנה ,םדא לכ רובדכ םשה רובד ן יא ו נרמא םאו רומשו תבב ,תחא אל יבי ן אל הז אלו .הז Even if we say that [God is capable of saying two things at the same time] since God’s speech is not like רוכז human speech, still, how did all the Israelites understand God’s speech? A person who hears both .pronounced at the same time won’t understand either word מש ו ר and As a result of these questions Ibn Ezra simply dismisses the idea that God said both versions of the Ten Commandments simultaneously, and instead proceeds to explain the existence of two versions of the Ten Commandments in a different way. Ibn Ezra’s ResoLution, Part 1: Moses ExpLains God’s Words Ibn Ezra’s explanation of the differences between the two versions of the Ten Commandments can be divided into two parts: the ones that reflect different content and the ones that reflect trivial wording changes. As far as Ibn Ezra is concerned, the Ten Commandments in Exodus represents God’s precise words: תרשע םירבדה םיבותכה השרפב תאזה םה ירבד םשה ילב תפסות ,תערגמו םהו םדבל םיבותכה לע תוחול תוחול לע םיבותכה םדבל םהו ,תערגמו תפסות ילב םשה ירבד םה תאזה השרפב םיבותכה םירבדה תרשע רבה י ת . The Decalogue as it appears in this portion (Yitro, Ex. 20) represents the words of God with no additions or deletions. Only they [and not the words found in Va’etchanan] were found on the tablets of the covenant [which Moses brought down from Mount Sinai]. But 40 years later, when Moses retold their history to the Israelites in Sefer Devarim, he deliberately reworded some of the commandments in the Ten Commandments to make them easier to understand.
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