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text: Ramban on Genesis
  רמב"ן על בראשית
  Rabbi Mike Feuer, Jerusalem Anthology
  
  
  Ramban on Genesis
  
  Introduction
  
  
  
  Foreword
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Verse 1
  
  
  
  
  … and it is already known that the four elements are one continuous solidity. Its unmoving base is the sphere of the land, the waters surrounds the land, the air surrounds the waters and the fire surrounds the air. The Torah describes the land taking form with the fire surrounding the mingled water and dust from above and the wind blowing and entering into the darkness and hovering over the waters. It appears to me that this point (which Gd created out of absolute nothing) in its taking on form and becoming bohu (in it there is) is what the Sages call “the foundation stone” (Yoma 54b) from which the world was founded…
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Verse 1
  
  
  
  Verse 2
  
  
  
  Verse 3
  
  
  
  Verse 4
  
  
  
  Verse 5
  
  
  
  Verse 6
  
  
  
  Verse 7
  
  
  
  Verse 8
  
  
  
  Verse 9
  
  
  
  Verse 10
  
  
  
  Verse 11
  
  
  
  Verse 12
  
  
  
  Verse 13
  
  
  
  Verse 14
  
  
  
  Verse 15
  
  
  
  Verse 16
  
  
  
  Verse 17
  
  
  
  Verse 18
  
  And Malchitzedek king of Shalem – This is Jerusalem as it says, “His Tabernacle was in Shalem…” (Tehillim 76:3) And in the days of Yehoshua her king was also called “Adonitzedek” (Yehoshua 10:1) because from long ago the nations knew that site was the choicest of all places, located at the center of the settled world. Or they knew its value through received tradition, that it was aligned counter to the heavenly Temple where the Holy One’s Presence dwells, which is called “tzedek” (righteousness). In the midrash Bereshit Rabbah (43:6) it says this place makes its inhabitants righteous (matzdik) – Malchitzedek, Adonitzedek (Yehoshua 10:1). Jerusalem is called righteousness as it says, “…in which righteousness would lodge…” (Isaiah 1:21): It mentions that he is the priest of the Most High Gd to make it know that Avraham never would have given a tithe to a priest of other gods, but since he knew that Malchitzedek was the priest of the Most High Gd he gave him a tithe for the honor of HaShem. The hint to Avraham in this was that the House of Gd would be in that place and there his descendants would bring their tithes and offerings, and there they would bless the Lord. According to the opinion of our Sages who said (Nedarim 32b) that Malchitzedek was Shem the son of Noach, he left his land to go to Jerusalem in order to serve the Lord there. He became the priest of the Most High Gd for them because he was the honored brother of their father, as Jerusalem had always been within the lands of the Canaanites. Rashi wrote above (12:6) ‘and the Canaanites were then in the land’ – they were progressively conquering the land of Israel from the offspring of Shem, Avraham’s ancestor, because Jerusalem fell out in the portion of Shem when Noach divided up the land for his sons (Sifra 126) as it says, “And Malchitzedek the king of Shalem.” And this is not correct, because “And the border of the Canaanites was from Sidon…” (Bereshot 10:19) which includes all of the land of Israel and the border of the sons of Shem was to the east of Masa far from the land of Israel. But, if Noach apportioned the land to his sons and gave the land of Israel to Shem this has the force of ‘one who distributes his possessions directly’ (see Mishna Baba Batra 9:7 and Rashi Gittin 14b). Therefore the children of Canaan settled there until HaShem bequeathed it to the seed of his beloved as I recalled above (10:15 ).
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Verse 1
  
  
  
  Verse 2
  
  ... HaMoriah – Rashi says that this is Jerusalem, as it is in Divre HaYamim II 3:1 ‘to build the House of Gd in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah. And our Sages explained (Ta’anit 16a) that from there instruction (hora’ah) went out to Israel. Onkelos translated it according to the incense which has in it mor and other spices. If these are true, then the meaning of the verse is the land which will be Moriah, or that was always called that for the sake of that which would occur in the future. In Bereshit Raba (55:7) the rabbis said as much, ‘they say to the place where the incense is offered, as it is said “I will go to the mountain of myrrh…” (Shir HaShirim 4:6) However Onkelos, who translated it as “a land of service” does not appear to be speaking of the mor in the incense because the word service does not apply to one of the spices from among those used in the Temple service. Why did he not say ‘to a land of incense?’ Rather it appears that he meant to a land where they would serve Gd. In this he was aligned with what is written in Pirke d’Rabbi Elizer 31: They said, that Gd showed Avraham the location of the altar by pointing at it saying ‘this is the altar.’ This is the altar upon which the first man made offering, it is the altar upon which Cain and Abel made offering, it is the altar on which Noach and his sons made offering, as it says “and Avraham built there the altar.” It is not written ‘an altar’, but rather ‘the altar’ – this is the altar upon which the early ones offered. End of the midrash. They made the name Moriah from morah (awe/fear) that there they would stand in awe of Gd and serve before Him. The correct explanation in the simple sense is like “I will go to the mountain of myrrh (mor) and to the hill of frankincense.” Because upon that mountain will be found mor and aloes and cinnamon, as it says in the Talmud Yerushalmi ‘cinnamon used to grow in the land of Israel and the goats and deer would eat from it.’ Or that it is called so in order to praise Israel. Here the land is called ‘the land of Moriah,’ while in Divre HaYamim it appears that only the Temple mount is called ‘Mount Moriah.’ Perhaps the city is called by the name of the mountain which is within it, the land in which is Moriah, and only the mountain is actually called Moriah. Avraham knew the land, but did not know the mountain, therefore Gd told him to go to the land of Moriah and that He would show him one of the mountains there which is called thus. And He commanded him to offer up Yitzchak in that place because it is the mount on which Gd desired to come to rest, and He wanted the merit of the binding of Yitzchak within the offerings forever. If Avraham had done so suddenly by surprise, right where he was, then his act would have been in panic and haste. But when it came after a journey of days it was done with a settled consciousness and counsel. They said as much in Bereshit Rabba (55:6): R’ Akiva said ‘He tested him in a situation of certainty in order that it not be said that Gd shocked and confused him and that he didn’t know what to do.’ 