Chumash in Depth - What Really Happened at Sinai - Part I

(1) ביום הזה THE SAME (lit., this) DAY — on the day of the New Moon. (Mekhilta d'Rabbi Yishmael 19:1:3; Shabbat 86b). It ought not to write ביום הזה, but ביום ההוא, “on that day”; what, then, is the force of the words “on this day”? Since they refer to the day when the Israelites came to Sinai to receive the Torah they imply that the commands of the Torah should be to you each day as something new (not antiquated and something of which you have become tired), as though He had only given them to you for the first time on the day in question (Yalkut Shimoni on Torah 273; cf. Berakhot 63b).

(1) ויסעו מרפידים AND THEY JOURNEYED FROM REPHIDIM — What does Scripture teach us by again expressly stating from where they set forth on the journey, for is it not already written (Exodus 17:1) that they had encamped at Rephidim and it is therefore evident that they set forth from there?! But Scripture repeats it in order to make a comparison with the character of their journey from Rephidim to that of their arrival in the wilderness of Sinai! How was it in the case of their arrival in the wilderness of Sinai? They were in a state of penitence (as shown by the unanimity with which they encamped before the mountain: cf. Rashi on the end of this verse)! Thus, too, their setting forth from Rephidim was in a state of repentance for the sin they had committed there.

(2) ויחן שם ישראל AND THERE ISRAEL ENCAMPED as one man and with one mind — but all their other encampments were made in a murmuring spirit and in a spirit of dissension.

(2) כה תאמר THUS SHALT THOU SAY — Thus, i. e. in this (the Hebrew) language and in this form of words.

(3) לבית יעקב TO THE HOUSE OF JACOB — This denotes the women — to them you shall speak in gentle language.

(4) ותגיד לבני ישראל AND TELL THE CHILDREN (lit., the sons) OF ISRAEL — explain to the men the punishments and the details of the commandments in words that are as hard (distasteful) as wormwood (גידין).

(1) אתם ראיתם YE HAVE SEEN — It is not a tradition in your possession, not in written words do I send a message to you, not by means of eye-witnesses do I attest this to you, but you yourselves have seen אשר עשיתי למצרים WHAT I DID UNTO EGYPT — on account of many sins were they liable to Me for punishment before they came into contact which you, but I did not exact punishment from them except on your account.

(3) על כנפי נשרים UPON EAGLES’ WINGS — as an eagle which bears its fledglings upon its wings. Scripture uses this metaphor because all other birds place their young between their feet since they are afraid of another bird that flies above them, but the eagle fears none except man — apprehending that perhaps he may cast an arrow at it — since no bird can fly above it; therefore he places it (its young) upon its wings, saying, “Better that the arrow should pierce me than my young!” — “I, too”, said God, “did thus”: (Exodus 14:19, 20) “And the angel of God … journeyed etc…. And he came between the camp of Egypt etc.” … and the Egyptians were casting arrows and stone missiles and the cloud caught these.

(4) ואבא אתכם אלי AND I BROUGHT YOU UNTO MYSELF — Explain this as the Targum does: “and I have brought you near to My service”.

(4) [SAYING.] Its meaning is that the Lord called Moses to tell him: Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob). The meaning is, say something relating to all of the house of Jacob, to those alive today and to their children after them.

(5) [AND TELL THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL.] The reference is to the elders. The elders will then tell all of the people. We thus read, And Moses came and called for the elders of the people (v. 7), and it is then written, And all the people answered together (v. 8).

(1) IN THE THIRD MONTH. Scripture should have said, “And they journeyed from Rephidim and they encamped in the wilderness of Sinai, in the third month after their going forth from the land of Egypt,” just as it said above concerning the wilderness of Sin.

But [Scripture’s manner of expression here is] due to the fact that their coming into the wilderness of Sinai was an occasion for joy and a festival to them, and that since they left Egypt they had been yearning for it. They knew that they would receive the Torah there, for Moses had told them what was said to him, Ye shall serve G-d upon the mountain.

And to Pharaoh also he said, Let us go, we pray thee, three days’ journey, into the wilderness and sacrifice unto the Eternal our G-d. For this reason, Scripture begins the section with the statement that in the third month… the same day that the month began, they came there [as they had eagerly anticipated]. Following this opening, Scripture reverts [to the usual style] as in the other journeys: And they journeyed from Rephidim.

Now here too Scripture should have said “and they journeyed from Rephidim and encamped in the wilderness of Sinai.” Instead it writes, and they came to the wilderness of Sinai. This is because Scripture’s intent is to state that as soon as they came to the wilderness of Sinai and saw the mountain in front of them, they encamped in the wilderness and did not wait until they would enter a spot better for encampment. Instead, they camped in the wilderness or in Horeb, which was a waste land before the mountain. This is the purport of the verse; and they encamped in the wilderness, and there Israel encamped before the mount.

It is possible that they separated from their midst all the mixed multitude that was among them, and the children of Israel alone camped before the mountain while the mixed multitude was behind them. For the Torah was given to Israel, as He said, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel, and this is the meaning of the expression, and there Israel encamped. It may be that [the name “Israel”] is mentioned as a mark of honor at the time of their acceptance of the Torah.

The meaning of the expression, he went up unto G-d, and the Eternal called unto him, is that Moses went up towards the Glory of G-d, which was abiding on the mountain to declare the Ten Commandments to Israel, and with His Great Name [the Tetragrammaton] He would speak with Moses, as is the meaning of the verse, If there be a prophet among you, etc.

(1) AND I BROUGHT YOU UNTO MYSELF. I.e., “to the place of My Glory, namely, this mountain where My Presence abides there with you.” Now Onkelos translated: “and I brought you near to My service.” [To avoid a literal translation], Onkelos adapted an expression of respect towards Him Who is on high.

(1) בחדש השלישי לצאת בני ישראל, In the third month after the Exodus of the children of Israel, etc. Considering G'd's love for Israel and His urgent desire to give them their fiancee (the Torah), it is difficult to understand why G'd waited until the third month after the Exodus. One of the signs of fondness for one's counterpart is that one does not allow obstacles to stand in the way of one's joining the beloved.

We have instances in the Torah when G'd even accelerated the union of lover and beloved such as when Eliezer traversed the distance from the Holy Land (Hebron) to Aram Naharayim in a single day (G'd having telescoped the earth under his feet) only in order to bring about the union of Isaac and Rebeccah even more speedily than was possible without this miracle (compare Sanhedrin 95).

In view of this, we could have expected G'd to at least do the same for the Israelites and ensure their arrival at Mount Sinai immediately after they had crossed the Sea of Reeds.

(2) G'd therefore felt called upon to explain that the fact that מתן תורה was delayed somewhat was not to be interpreted as a lack of ardour of the bride for the groom but was due to the groom not being properly prepared before that date. Having spent so many years in a country full of all kinds of abominations, the Israelites had absorbed much of the spiritual pollution prevailing in Egypt and they required 49 days during which they progressively cleansed themselves of these pollutants and readied themselves for their bride. According to the Zohar third volume page 97 the seven weeks that we count between Passover and Shavuot are to be viewed as seven times the 7 day purification rite that a זבה, has to undergo before she is ritually pure.

When the Torah speaks of לצאת בני ישראל ממצרים, this is not to be understood as a date as much as a cause. Seeing the point of departure of the Israelites was Egypt (and not some other place), it required a certain number of days before the groom could ready himself spiritually for union with a bride such as the Torah.

As soon as the Israelites were close to regaining their spiritual purity, i.e. on the first of the third month, they immediately arrived at their destination at Mount Sinai. The Torah describes arrival in the desert of Sinai and arrival opposite the Mountain as occurring practically simultaneously.

We find confirmation of this in Shabbat 87 where the Talmud states: "on the day they travelled they arrived." Reviewing all these events I have asked myself that if our perception is correct, why did G'd not telescope the earth underneath the Israelites and bring them to Mount Sinai immediately? They could then have awaited the proper moment for מתן תורה at the end of seven weeks while encamped at Mount Sinai

(3) However, I have concluded that G'd demonstrated His love for the people by the manner in which He did things. Had He allowed the Israelites to encamp at Mount Sinai immediately and had then made them wait for seven weeks before giving them the Torah, this would not have reflected His love for the people. You do not make the lover wait an inordinate amount of time in the presence of his beloved.

G'd therefore chose to reduce the number of days the Israelites were encamped at Mount Sinai prior to the revelation to a minimum. As long a a groom is not aware that the time for the wedding is at hand he does not consider the absence of his bride as painful. Once the time is at hand and the bride is missing he does get upset. The Israelites' sojourn in the desert prior to their arrival in the desert of Sinai has to be viewed in that vein.

(1) ויסעו מרפידים ויבאו מדבר סיני, They journeyed from Refidim and arrived in the desert of Sinai, etc. The position of the verse is peculiar. We have already heard in verse one that the Israelites arrived in the desert of Sinai. Why did the Torah repeat it again? Perhaps we can explain this in terms of a statement in Sanhedrin 105 that "love has a tendency to disregard normal rules." As a result of love, what took place later may be reported earlier.

Inasmuch as the day the Israelites accepted the Torah was the day that G'd had been waiting for ever since He created the universe, it is understandable that the Torah reported the arrival of this day at the earliest possible moment. This explains the emphasis of the Torah on ביום הזה באו, "on this day they arrived." The arrival describes the meeting of the lover and his beloved. Heaven and earth both rejoiced that this day had arrived at last.

(2) Since the Torah repeated the arrival of the Israelites in the desert of Sinai, what does the word ויבאו add to our understanding? Why did the Torah have to add that they camped there? What else were they supposed to do there? (3) I believe the Torah wanted to acquaint us with three steps which were essential in the preparation to receive the Torah. G'd became willing to entrust the Torah to the Jewish people as an eternal inheritance after they had taken these three steps..

(4) The first step was for the Israelites to get a grip on themselves and to study the Torah diligently. Laziness is like a weed which leads one to forfeit whatever achievements in Torah insights one has acquired. You will observe that whenever G'd mentions the Torah He is careful to use such attributes as חוזק, strength, intensity as well as אמץ, fortitude and vigour. Numbers 19,14 אדם כי ימות באהל is one such example.

Our sages in Shabbat 83 explain that Torah study must be such that a person is prepared to endure death in order to acquire its insights. He is to study Torah even when at the point of death. The author refers to a book he wrote in his youth called Chefetz Hashem where he commented on Shabbat 88.

The Talmud there describes Torah as the elixir of life to those who treat it as if it were on their right side, whereas to those who treat Torah as if it were on their left side it will prove to be a fatal dose of poison. He explained that Rava (the author of that statement) meant that Torah proves an elixir of life only to those who invest all their vigour in studying it. In our verse, the Torah alludes to this by saying that the Israelites "moved away from Refidim."

If the Torah had wanted us to know from which location the Israelites journeyed towards the desert of Sinai, this would have had to be stated at the beginning of verse one. The Torah meant that the Israelites put some spiritual distance between their neglect of Torah as demonstrated at a place called Refidim, and their renewed progress towards receiving the Torah.

We have explained in 17,8 that the reason Amalek attacked the Israelites was because they had demonstrated neglect of Torah study. In the meantime they had begun to prepare themselves to become worthy of the Torah they were about to receive. This is what the Torah meant with the words

ויבאו מדבר סיני. (5) The second step which the Israelites had to take in preparation for מתן תורה was to be modest and humble. Our sages say that only people who are humble can be certain that they will not forget their Torah knowledge. They phrase it thus: אין דברי תורה מתקימין אלא במי שמשפיל עצמו ומשים עצמו כמדבר "Words of Torah do not endure except with people who humble themselves to be like the desert."

(6) (the third thing is) the teaching of the wise coming together with each other, and connecting with a full and whole friendship (heart). Not to be separated from each other, as for that the Talmud teaches us based on the words of Jeremiah, that it's like a sword on those who are [studying] alone. But, we need to come together, grow from each other [from the differences], and treat each other nicely. That is why the Torah uses a singular word, because all the Israelites became like one person - and now they were ready to receive to Torah.

(1) ומשה עלה אל האלוקים, "and Moses went up unto G'd." Why did Moses go up before G'd had asked him to come up? Where to exactly did Moses go up? If he ascended the Mountain, why did the Torah not say so? Shemot Rabbah 28, bases itself on Psalms 68,19: עלית למרום, "you went up to celestial regions." If we accept this Midrash at face value, why did G'd afterwards have to call upon Moses from the Mountain if he was already in the celestial regions? Besides, why does the Torah describe Moses as going up to האלוקים instead of to השם seeing that when G'd called to him from the Mountain G'd is described as השם?

(2) We have to understand what transpired in conjunction with G'd having told Moses already at the burning bush (3,12) that when the Israelites would arrive at this Mountain they would serve the Lord there. The term used there was את האלוקים. Moses, ever the faithful servant of the Lord, did not wait until he would be commanded to ascend the mountain but did so on his own initiative.

There was no need to identify where Moses ascended to since the Torah had last spoken about the Mountain. The reason the Torah mentions Moses' destination as being אל האלוקים is precisely because it was the reason for his ascent. Moses felt that if he waited until he would be asked to ascend this would demonstrate both lethargy on his part, perhaps even unwillingness. This clears up all the apparent peculiarities in this verse. We do not believe that our approach contradicts the explanation offered by the Midrash as we view G'd's presence on the Mountain as including the Mountain in the celestial regions.

(3) ויקרא אליו השם. G'd called out to him. As soon as G'd noticed that Moses was ascending, G'd called out to him. You have to remember that it is in the nature of קדושה, sanctity, not to make the first move towards a person until that person has made active preparations to welcome such sanctity. The Zohar third volume page 92 phrases it is as "invitations from the terrestrial regions being followed by invitations from the celestial regions." This is the mystical dimension of Genesis 2,6: "and a vapour rose from the earth and it irrigated (from above) the whole surface of the earth." When the Torah uses the term ויקרא for G'd calling to Moses it alludes to יקר, precious, (which is part of the word

ויקרא. (4) מן ההר לאמור, from the Mountain, saying: Seeing that the word of G'd originates in the upper regions of the Heavens, for G'd had not yet descended on the Mountain, the Torah had to tell us that G'd commanded His voice to travel via the Mountain. Moses would hear G'd's instructions from there. The voice would travel in a straight line, in a very narrow channel and Moses would not hear it until he arrived on the Mountain. The two statements 1) ויקרא אליו השם, followed by מן ההר לאמור are to tell us that the word of G'd became audible only once it had "arrived" on the Mountain. Had the Torah not added the word לאמור, I would have thought that G'd's presence had already descended on the Mountain, something which was not the case.

(1) אתם ראיתם אשר עשיתי למצרים "You have seen what I have done to Egypt, etc." Why did G'd stress what He had done to Egypt rather than what He had done for the Israelites, i.e. that He had taken them out of bondage in Egypt? After all, it was the latter which obligated the Israelites to accept the Torah and to accept G'd's words gladly as a gesture of gratitude. If G'd only intended to stress the miracles He had performed this would have been included in a statement such as: "I took Israel out of Egypt."

(2) According to our explanation that G'd operated on two levels when He informed the Israelites of His commandments, we find that He did so also in our verse. When G'd spoke about what He had done to Egypt, He reminded the people of what would happen to anyone who does not observe His commandments. By reminding the people of how He had carried them on the wings of eagles, G'd reminded the people of the loving kindness they could expect in return for observing the Torah's laws meticulously. G'd hinted that should the Jews refuse to observe the commandments He would consider them as in the same class as the Egyptians who had refused to listen to Him and who had paid the price. The words אשר עשיתי also have an additional connotation, namely that having witnessed the great miracles G'd had performed, surely the people would stand in awe of such a G'd. The plagues G'd brought upon the Egyptians by changing the laws of nature were a simultaneous demonstration of G'd's love for the Israelites for whose sake He had gone to such lengths as to re-enact מעשה בראשית. How could someone who reminded himself of having observed G'd manifest Himself in such a manner not develop a love for G'd? The above considerations were both incorporated in the introduction כה תאמר לבית יעקב ותגיד לבני ישראל. (3)

ואשא אתכם על כנפי נשרים, "I carried you on eagles' wings." G'd went on at length about the feats of love He had performed for the Jewish people. He wanted to show how great was the reward when one performs His commandments because of a feeling of love for G'd. Of course, it requires a great deal of emotional fortitude to always relate to G'd from feelings of love.

G'd wanted to encourage such feelings in the Jewish people by reminding them that He had already demonstrated that He treated them as a father treats his son. The "wings of eagles" are a reference to the ענני הכבוד, the clouds of G'd's glory, which were spread beneath the feet of the people so that they did not have to step on obstacles. Moses reminded the people of that in Deut. 8,4: "your feet never swelled during these forty years."

Whereas a mere hint such as אשר עשיתי is sufficient to awaken fear of retribution, more words of endearment are required in order to induce love in people. Hence G'd had to be more eloquent about the acts of love He had performed. (4) ואבא אתכם אלי, "and I brought you close to Me." In this verse G'd reminded the Jewish people that He had taken the first step to bring them close to Him. This was very remarkable since we have explained repeatedly that the normal procedure of making progress of a spiritual nature is for man to take the first step.

In taking the first step to elevate Israel to a higher spiritual level G'd had demonstrated His love for the people in an extraordinary manner. In our mundane life we also always observe that the lower classes make attempts to establish some contact with the higher classes, not vice versa.

(5) G'd also wanted to remind the people that even after He had taken them out of Egypt they had not shown Him the obedience due but had rebelled, such as at the Sea of Reeds, before they received the manna and the quail, etc. Nonetheless G'd had made every effort to bring them close to Him.

(6) G'd also hinted at what is spelled out in greater detail by the author of the Haggadah shel Pessach who says: "if G'd had not taken our forefathers out of Egypt when He did, both we and our forefathers would have remained there enslaved to Pharaoh, etc." The reason that G'd brought us out at the time was in order not to let us sink still deeper into the moral morass that was Egypt, a depth that we could not have rehabilitated ourselves from, ever. G'd therefore rescued us and brought us to a holy place. We have to understand the word אלי as the contrast to the deep moral abyss that was Egypt.

(7) G'd also wanted to answer the argument that seeing He had offered the Torah first to the Ishmaelites, to the Edomites, etc., and these people had declined to accept it (compare Yalkut Reuveni on Numbers 23,4), how did G'd demonstrate any special love for Israel by offering us the Torah? The answer is that G'd had merely sent messengers to these other nations asking them if per chance they wanted to accept His laws. In Israel's case, He had made it so much easier for this nation to accept the Torah by raising us first to be closer to His spiritual level. When G'd had offered the Torah to the other nations He did so in order to be able at some stage in the future to deny them certain privileges as a penalty for having spurned the Torah. Not so in the case of Israel. G'd had done everything possible to pave the way for acceptance of Torah by the Jewish people. There was no comparsion between the way G'd related to both Ishmael and Esau and the way He related to Israel.

(1) (1) They traveled from Rephidim and they came to the Sinai wilderness, and they camped in the wilderness. And Israel camped there opposite the mountain. Look at how many repetitions are written here. What would be missing in the [meaning of the] text if it would have just said, "They traveled from Rephidim and they encamped in the Sinai wilderness opposite the mountain"? Any why does it first say "they camped" [in plural] and then afterward "he camped" [in singular]? First it says, "in the Sinai wilderness," and then it just says, "in the wilderness." And first it refers to the mountain using the name Sinai, and after it just calls it a mountain.

And it seems that all of this is proving to us that Bnei Yisrael are not worthy of receiving the Torah until there is peace among them. "The owners of collections that are all stemming from one shepherd." (Ecclesiastes 12:11) All of the paths of Torah are paths of peace. And the result of separation of hearts, where one forbids something and another permits it, is that the Torah becomes 2 Torahs.

That is why the [previous] pasuk specifies that that it was in the third month on this day that they came to the Sinai wilderness. It is teaching that this month [of Sivan], which has the astrological sign of twins, is instructing us about attachment and love, that together [the Jews] should be perfect[ly connected] to each other like twins. And then there will be great peace among those who love Torah. And there is also a hint to this in the fact that there are 2 luchot which are like twins to each other, with 5 commandments [on one] parallel to 5 [on the other].

(2) (2) Afterwards, it says "they journeyed from Rephidim," which means to say, "from the place in which they fought and had disagreements" since the place was called "Masah uMerivah" [which means "Test and Fighting"], and the letters of רפידי׳׳ם spell פרידי׳׳ם, [which means "separate"]...because of the distance that existed between them. Our Sages (in the Talmud Sanhedrin 106a) expounded the name to connote רפו ידים "their hands weakened," since one is dependent on the other, since through growing distant from one another, they weakened their grip in the Torah.

When it says that they travelled Rephidim, it means from that place — from that separation between them and they arrived at the Sinai desert, which caused them to join together in unity. [How so?] Desiring honor and power is the reason for all fighting and all illness. Through seeing Mount Sinai, the lowliest of all the mountains — and realizing that this was the mountain that the Holy One Blessed Be He desired to rest [His Presence] on — through this they realized that God chooses the humble, and inspired them to choose humility themselves, which is the catalyst for peace.

This is why the Torah relates to them in the plural initially, "they came to the Sinai desert," "they encamped in the desert." As long as they were [aimlessly] in the desert they remained divided in their minds. They were not yet of one heart and mind like a single person. However, as they came to be opposite the mountain, and it was related to them that on this mountain God would descend, then [it switches to the singular] ויחן ישראל — they were like one person with a single heart and mind...

(3) A kingdom of kohanim. By accepting the Torah they would become kings even over the kohanim, because a Torah scholar is considered superior to a kohein. Thus the Sages rule that the life of a mamzer who is a scholar takes precedence over that of a kohein gadol who is an ignoramus (Horayos 13a).