(1) Then God said to Moses, “Come up to the LORD, with Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy elders of Israel, and bow low from afar. (2) Moses alone shall come near the LORD; but the others shall not come near, nor shall the people come up with him.” (3) Moses went and repeated to the people all the commands of the LORD and all the rules; and all the people answered with one voice, saying, “All the things that the LORD has commanded we will do!” (4) Moses then wrote down all the commands of the LORD. Early in the morning, he set up an altar at the foot of the mountain, with twelve pillars for the twelve tribes of Israel. (5) He designated some young men among the Israelites, and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed bulls as offerings of well-being to the LORD. (6) Moses took one part of the blood and put it in basins, and the other part of the blood he dashed against the altar. (7) Then he took the record of the covenant and read it aloud to the people. And they said, “All that the LORD has spoken we will faithfully do!” (8) Moses took the blood and dashed it on the people and said, “This is the blood of the covenant that the LORD now makes with you concerning all these commands.” (9) Then Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy elders of Israel ascended; (10) and they saw the God of Israel: under God's feet there was the likeness of a pavement of sapphire, like the very sky for purity. (11) Yet God did not raise God's hand against the leaders of the Israelites; they beheld God, and they ate and drank. (12) The LORD said to Moses, “Come up to Me on the mountain and wait there, and I will give you the stone tablets with the teachings and commandments which I have inscribed to instruct them.” (13) So Moses and his attendant Joshua arose, and Moses ascended the mountain of God. (14) To the elders he had said, “Wait here for us until we return to you. You have Aaron and Hur with you; let anyone who has a legal matter approach them.” (15) When Moses had ascended the mountain, the cloud covered the mountain. (16) The Presence of the LORD abode on Mount Sinai, and the cloud hid it for six days. On the seventh day God called to Moses from the midst of the cloud. (17) Now the Presence of the LORD appeared in the sight of the Israelites as a consuming fire on the top of the mountain. (18) Moses went inside the cloud and ascended the mountain; and Moses remained on the mountain forty days and forty nights.
Moses, Aaron, Nadav, Avihu, and seventy elders of Israel went up. To the edge of the mountain, to bow there from a distance, as had been commanded in the manner of: do not draw near to the top of the mountain, where there is The Glory, for there should be approached only by Moses alone.
(ר"ה כ"ה א׳)
And seventy elders of Israel. It was taught, why were the names of the elders not directly given? In order to teach you that any group of three that stands as a beit din (a court) for Israel,
בא לו אצל רבי דוסא בן הורכינס כו': ת"ר למה לא נתפרשו שמותם של זקנים הללו שלא יאמר אדם פלוני כמשה ואהרן פלוני כנדב ואביהוא פלוני כאלדד ומידד
§ The mishna taught that Rabbi Yehoshua next came to Rabbi Dosa ben Horkinas, who proved to him that the court of Rabban Gamliel has the same legal status as the court of Moses. The Sages taught in a baraita: Why were the names of these seventy Elders who sat together with Moses on his court not specified? The reason is so that a person not say: Is so-and-so the judge in my time, like Moses and Aaron? Is so-and-so like Nadav and Avihu? Is so-and-so like Eldad and Medad? Therefore, the names of the other elders were not specified, so that there is no way of knowing the qualifications of the elders in the time of Moses to compare them to later judges.
(ט) אִם כֵּן מַהוּ זֶה שֶׁכָּתוּב בַּתּוֹרָה "וְתַחַת רַגְלָיו". (שמות לא יח) "כְּתוּבִים בְּאֶצְבַּע אֱלֹהִים". "יַד ה'". "עֵינֵי ה'". "אָזְנֵי ה'". וְכַיּוֹצֵא בִּדְבָרִים הָאֵלּוּ. הַכּל לְפִי דַּעְתָּן שֶׁל בְּנֵי אָדָם הוּא שֶׁאֵינָן מַכִּירִין אֶלָּא (הַנּוֹפוֹת) [הַגּוּפוֹת] וְדִבְּרָה תּוֹרָה כִּלְשׁוֹן בְּנֵי אָדָם. וְהַכּל כִּנּוּיִים הֵן. שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (דברים לב מא) "אִם שַׁנּוֹתִי בְּרַק חַרְבִּי". וְכִי חֶרֶב יֵשׁ לוֹ וּבְחֶרֶב הוּא הוֹרֵג אֶלָּא מָשָׁל וְהַכּל מָשָׁל. רְאָיָה לַדָּבָר שֶׁנָּבִיא אֶחָד אוֹמֵר שֶׁרָאָה הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא (דניאל ז ט) "לְבוּשֵׁיִהּ כִּתְלַג חִוֵּר". וְאֶחָד רָאָהוּ (ישעיה סג א) "חֲמוּץ בְּגָדִים מִבָּצְרָה". משֶׁה רַבֵּנוּ עַצְמוֹ רָאָהוּ עַל הַיָּם כְּגִבּוֹר עוֹשֶׂה מִלְחָמָה. וּבְסִינַי כִּשְׁלִיחַ צִבּוּר עָטוּף. לוֹמַר שֶׁאֵין לוֹ דְּמוּת וְצוּרָה אֶלָּא הַכּל בְּמַרְאֵה הַנְּבוּאָה וּבְמַחֲזֶה. וַאֲמִתַּת הַדָּבָר אֵין דַּעְתּוֹ שֶׁל אָדָם מֵבִין וְלֹא יְכוֹלָה לְהַשִּׂיגוֹ וּלְחָקְרוֹ. וְזֶה שֶׁאָמַר הַכָּתוּב (איוב יא ז) "הַחֵקֶר אֱלוֹהַּ תִּמְצָא אִם עַד תַּכְלִית שַׁדַּי תִּמְצָא":
(9) If so, wherefore is it written in the Torah, "And there was under God's feet" (Ex. 24,10), "Written with the finger of God" (Ex. 31,18), "The hand of the Lord" (Ex. 9,3), "The eyes of the Lord" (Deut. 11, 12), "The ears of the Lord" (Num. 11,18) and more like expressions? All such terminology is in accordance with the conception of humans who cannot recognize aught but corporeal things, and the words of the Torah is like human speech, but they are all attributes; for example, it is said: "If I whet My glittering sword," (Deut. 32. 41.); Hath God a sword, or doth God slay with a sword? But it is a metaphor, so is all metaphorical. As testimony thereto, one prophet says that he saw the Holy One, blessed is God! "God's raiment was as white snow" (Dan. 7,9), and another saw God "With crimsoned garments from Bozrah" (Isa. 63,1); Moses our Master himself saw God at the Red Sea "as a hero engaged in battle," (Ex. 15.3) and upon Sinai as "a garbed minister of a congregation (Ex. 19.19.), to say: God hath neither form nor image, but all is a vision of prophecy and a mirage, the absolute truth of the matter no human mind comprehends or is able to fathom it or penetrate it. It is even this what it says in Scripture: "Canst thou find out the deep things of God? Canst thou attain unto the purposes of the Almighty?" (Job. 11,7).
(1) ויראו את אלהי ישראל NOW THEY SAW THE GOD OF ISRAEL — They gazed intently and failing in this they peeped in their attempt to catch a glimpse of the Supreme Being, and thereby made themselves liable to death. But it was only because God did not wish to disturb the joy caused by the Giving of the Torah, that God did not punish them instantly, but waited (postponed the punishment) for Nadab and Abihu until the day when the Tabernacle was dedicated, when they were stricken with death, and for the elders until the event of which the text relates, (Numbers 11:16) “And when the people complained …. and the fire of the Lord burned among them and destroyed בקצה המחנה” — those who were the קצינים “nobles” of the camp (Midrash Tanchuma, Beha'alotcha 16).
(2) כמעשה לבנת הספיר AS IT WERE THE BRICKWORK OF SAPPHIRE — This had been before God during the period of Egyptian slavery as a symbol of Israel’s woes — for they were subjected to do brick-work (cf. Jerusalem Talmud Succah 6:3; Leviticus Rabbah 23:8).
(3) וכעצם השמים לטהר AND AS IT WERE AS THE BODY OF HEAVEN FOR PURITY — This implies that as soon as they (the Israelites) were delivered there was radiance and rejoicing before God.
(ג) ותחת רגליו כמעשה לבנת הספיר (שמות כד, י). הכלל, כי כל ניצוץ ואבר ותנועה ומלאך צריכין לעבוד את הבורא ברוך הוא כי הוא יחיד ומיוחד ואין סוף והעובד אותו מקבל תענוג אין סוף מה שאי אפשר לשום נברא להשיגה. והנה נודע ששם באין סוף אין שייך מספר ומדה ומנין רק כשהשפע בא בתוך העולמות אז מוכרח האין סוף לצמצם לכל אחד כפי מדריגתו והיה כמה צמצומים אז כביכול שייך שפיר מספר ומדה אצל האין סוף בחינות האי"ן שבתוך העולמות. והנה כל הברואים צריכין להסתכל על האי"ן שלהם, דהיינו שורשם שהוא האין סוף יתברך שממנו כל חיותם על ידי התחברות היש שלהם בהאין סוף ושם מקבלים חיות חדש ומחשבות קדושות כרצונו לעבודתו וכל העולמות מחברים אותיות שלהם בשרשם האין סוף ועושים שם על ידי אותיות שלהם גם כן אותיות למעלה באור אין סוף כמו שרוצים, דהיינו העולם השרפים מה שצריך למדריגתם ועולם האופנים ועולם החיות מה שצריכין לבחינתם. והענין איך יבוא התחברות אותיות באין סוף על ידי עשייתם ודבקים באי"ן שצריכין להסתכל באי"ן תמיד שלא יהיו נפרדים. והנה בחינות האותיות לעשות באין סוף על ידי התחברות אותיות שלהם נקרא קמ"ץ דאיתא בתיקונים שהוא סוד ניצוץ המחובר ברקיע והאין סוף נקרא קמ"ץ. והנה האין סוף שאין שם שום גוון נקרא בחינות לבן שלבנונית הוא תחלה קודם כל הגוונין ונודע שכל העולמות הם בבחינת שתי הסתכלות. א', שצריכין להסתכל באי"ן שהוא השורש של כל ומהאי"ן בא ליש ברכה וכל טוב וגם צריכין להיות למטה שלא יבטלו במציאות רק העיקר צריכין תמיד להסתכל על השורש שלהם שלא יפרדו מהאי"ן חלילה ויהיה האי"ן שופע עליהם תמיד כי הוא מקור הברכות מבוע דלא פסק לעלמין ובחינה זו הוא סוד והחיות רצוא ושוב (יחזקאל א, יד) שהחיות צריך תמיד להיות בחינות רצוא שהוא ההילוך לאי"ן והסתכלות בו שיהיה האי"ן נגד השורש וצריך להיות בחינות ושב למקומם ליש שלהם:
(3) Exodus 24,10. “and beneath God's feet there was something resembling a brick made from sapphire.” There is an ironclad rule that every “spark”, limb, movement, in this physical universe as well as the activity of every angel, i.e. disembodied creature of G’d, needs to be an instrument used in the service of the Lord. Seeing that God is unique and solitary and eternal, anyone serving God will experience satisfaction and pleasure of a kind that no creature could attain by its own efforts.
It is axiomatic that when speaking of the אין סוף, the essence of the Creator, concepts such as time, space and quantity, do not apply, seeing that these concepts define limitations, and the Creator, by definition, is “unlimited” i.e. does not suffer from the constraints imposed upon God's creatures by time, space and quantity. These concepts become applicable only when the Creator, in order not to destroy God's universe and the creatures in it, must impose restraints upon God's self, known as צמצום. These restraints that the Creator imposes upon God's self vary with the parts of the universe in which God desires to become manifest at different times. Concepts such as time, space, quantity, are useful in measuring the degree of such constraints G’d imposes upon God's self at different “times,” and in different “spaces.”
All living creatures are required to “gaze upon,” i.e. to relate to the אין from within the parts of the universe that is their habitat, to their roots, the cause from which all their חיות, life-force, draws its animation or vitality. In other words, speaking allegorically, a person must keep in contact with its Creator, much like an unborn baby must remain in contact through its navel with its life-giving mother. By maintaining such contact, the life force of the creature keeps being renewed. This “process,” though assuming different forms, is common to all creatures whether mobile, inert, free-willed or “programmed” by its Creator. The means by which these various creatures maintain this contact with their origins are the אותיות, “identifying letters,” for want of a better word, which represent the individuality of the various kinds of creatures. In the celestial regions there are “outlets,” marked as appropriate for each type of creature to connect to. When each one “concentrates,” i.e. sees with its mind’s eye this outlet whence they “recharge” their “batteries,” they thus ensure their continued existence and function in the parts of the universe that has been allocated to them.
It is important for these creatures to establish a system whereby their contact with their origin remains unbroken, so that their continued existence is not endangered.
According to the Kabbalists, this method or system is known as קמץ, like the vowel in the Hebrew alphabet. This method is discussed in the Tikkuney Hazohar. According to what is explained there, the אין סוף, infinite essence of G’d, is also known as קמץ. This אין סוף, seeing that it has no colour, is considered in the category of “white,” as “white” forms the basis of all other colours. Any other colour may be perceived as having been superimposed on the original white.