Chapter 10

אותירס. זוֹ פָּרַס (ב"ר):

1ותירס AND TIRAS — This is Persia (Yoma 10a).

אלהיות גבור. לְהַמְרִיד כָּל הָעוֹלָם עַל הַקָּבָּ"ה בַּעֲצַת דוֹר הַפַּלָּגָה:

1להיות גבור TO BE A MIGHTY ONE — Mighty in causing the whole world to rebel against the Holy One, blessed be He, by the plan he devised for the generation that witnessed the separation of the races (דור הפלגה) to build the Tower of Babel (Genesis Rabbah 23:7).

אגבר ציד. צָד דַּעְתָּן שֶׁל בְּרִיוֹת בְּפִיו, וּמַטְעָן לִמְרֹד בַּמָּקוֹם:

1גבור ציד A MIGHTY HUNTER — He ensnared the minds of people by his words, misleading them to rebel against the Omnipresent (Genesis Rabbah 37:2).

בלפני ה'. מִתְכַּוֵן לְהַקְנִיטוֹ עַל פָּנָיו:

2‘לפני ה BEFORE THE LORD — intending purposely to provoke Him to His face

געל כן יאמר. עַל כָּל אָדָם מַרְשִׁיעַ בְּעַזּוּת פָּנִים, יוֹדֵע רִבּוֹנוֹ וּמִתְכַּוֵּן לִמְרֹד בּוֹ, יֵאָמֵר זֶה כְּנִמְרֹד גִּבּוֹר צַיִד:

3על כן יאמר WHEREFORE IT IS SAID — Regarding any man who brazenly acts wickedly — knowing his Master and yet of set purpose rebelling against Him — it is said. “This man is like Nimrod a mighty hunter” (Sifra, Bechukotai, Section 2 1-2).

אמן הארץ וגו'. כֵּיוָן שֶׁרָאָה אַשּׁוּר אֶת בָּנָיו שׁוֹמְעִין לְנִמְרוֹד וּמוֹרְדִין בַּמָקוֹם לִבְנוֹת הַמִּגְדָּל יָצָא מִתּוֹכָם:

1‘מן הארץ וגו OUT OF THAT LAND WENT FORTH ASSHUR — As soon as Asshur saw that his sons listened to Nimrod, rebelling against the Omnipresent by building the Tower, he went forth out of their midst (Genesis Rabbah 37:4).

אהעיר הגדלה. הִיא נִינְוֵה שֶׁנֶּ' וְנִינְוֵה הָיְתָה עִיר גְּדוֹלָה לֵאלֹהִים (יונה ג'):

1העיר הגדלה THE GREAT CITY — This refers to Nineveh (not to Calah the last mentioned city nor to Resen), as it is said (Jonah 3:3) “Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city” (Yoma 10a).

אלהבים. שֶׁפְּנֵיהֶם דּוֹמִים לְלַהַב:

1להבים LEHABIM — So called because their faces were fiery as a flame.

אפתרסים ואת כסלחים אשר יצאו משם פלשתים. מִשְּׁנֵיהֶם יָצְאוּ, שֶׁהָיוּ פַּתְרוּסִים וְכַסְלוּחִים מַחֲלִיפִין מִשְׁכַּב נְשׁוֹתֵיהֶם אֵלּוּ לָאֵלּוּ וְיָצְאוּ מֵהֶם פְּלִשְׁתִּים:

1ואת פתרסים ואת כסלחים אשר יצאו משם פלשתים AND PATHRUSIM AND CASLUHIM OUT OF WHOM CAME PHILISTIM — They (the Philistines) were descended from both of them for the Pathrusim and the Casluhim used to live together in promiscuous intercourse, and the Philistines were their offspring (Genesis Rabbah 37:5).

אואחר נפוצו. מֵאֵלֶּה נָפוֹצוּ מִשְׁפָּחוֹת הַרְבֵּה:

1ואחר נפוצו AND AFTERWARDS WERE SPREAD ABROAD — From these many families were spread abroad (besides those already mentioned. 5:15—18).

אגבול הכנעני. סוֹף אַרְצוֹ. כָּל גְּבוּל לְשׁוֹן סוֹף וְקָצֶה:

1גבול הכנעני THE BOUNDARY OF THE CANAANITE means the end of his land: wherever גבול occurs it signifies end and extremity.

בבאכה. שֵׁם דָּבָר. וְלִי נִרְאֶה כְּאָדָם הָאוֹמֵר לַחֲבֵרוֹ, גְּבוּל זֶה מַגִּיעַ עַד אֲשֶׁר תָּבֹא לִגְבוּל פְּלוֹנִי:

2באכה AS THOU COMEST - This word is a noun. I think it is a colloquial expression like that used by a person who says to another: This boundary stretches until you come to such and such a boundary.

אללשונותם בארצותם. אַעַ"פִּ שֶׁנֶּחְלְקוּ לִלְשׁוֹנוֹת וַאֲרָצוֹת, כֻּלָּם בְּנֵי חָם הֵם:

1ללשנתם בארצתם AFTER THEIR TONGUES, IN THEIR LANDS — Although these were of different tongues and lands they are nevertheless all sons of Ham.

אאבי כל בני עבר. הַנָּהָר הָיָה שֵׁם:

1אבי כל בני עבר THE FATHER OF ALL THE CHILDREN OF EBER — (עבר means the “side” or “ other side” of a river) — The father of all the children of עבר הנהר, the other side of the River (Euphrates), was Shem.

באחי יפת הגדול. אֵינִי יוֹדֵעַ אִם יֶפֶת הַגָּדוֹל אִם שֵׁם, כְּשֶׁהוּא אוֹמֵר שֵׁם בֶּן מְאַת שָׁנָה וְגוֹ' שְׁנָתַיִם אַחַר הַמַּבּוּל, הֱוֵי אוֹמֵר יֶפֶת הַגָּדוֹל, שֶׁהֲרֵי בֶּן ת"ק שָׁנָה הָיָה נֹחַ כְּשֶׁהִתְחִיל לְהוֹלִיד, וְהַמַּבּוּל הָיָה בִּשְׁנַת שֵׁשׁ מֵאוֹת שָׁנָה, נִמְצָא שֶׁהַגָּדוֹל בְּבָנָיו הָיָה בֶן מֵאָה שָׁנָה, וְשֵׁם לֹא הִגִּיע לְמֵאָה עַד שְׁנָתַיִם אַחַר הַמַּבּוּל:

2אחי יפת הגדול [SHEM …] THE BROTHER OF JAPHETH, THE ELDER — (The Hebrew is ambiguous: “the elder” may refer either to Shem or to Japheth). One cannot from here determine whether Japheth was the elder or Shem. Since, however, it states (10:10) “Shem was a hundred years old … two years after the flood” you must admit that Japheth was the elder. Because Noah was 500 years old when he first had children (5:32), and the Flood happened in the six hundredth year of his life (7:11), consequently the eldest of his sons was then one hundred years old, whereas Shem reached his hundredth year only two years after the Flood (and therefore Japheth was the elder of the two) (Genesis Rabbah 37:7).

גאחי יפת. וְלֹא אֲחִי חָם? שֶׁאֵלּוּ שְׁנֵיהֶם כִּבְּדוּ אֶת אֲבִיהֶם, וְזֶה בִּזָּהוּ:

3אחי יפת THE BROTHER OF JAPHETH — It does not state “brother of Ham”, because those two honoured their father whereas Ham put him to shame.

אנפלגה. נִתְבַּלְבְּלוּ הַלְּשׁוֹנוֹת וְנָפוֹצוּ מִן הַבִּקְעָה וְנִתְפַּלְּגוּ בְכָל הָעוֹלָם. לָמַדְנוּ שֶׁהָיָה עֵבֶר נָבִיא, שֶׁקָּרָא שֵׁם בְּנוֹ עַל שֵׁם הֶעָתִיד; וְשָׁנִינוּ בְסֵדֶר עוֹלָם שֶׁבְּסוֹף יָמָיו נִתְפַּלְּגוּ, שֶׁאִ"תֹּ בִּתְחִלַּת יָמָיו, הֲרֵי יָקְטָן אָחִיו צָעִיר מִמֶּנּוּ וְהוֹלִיד כַּמָּה מִשְׁפָּחוֹת קֹדֶם לָכֵן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר וְיָקְטָן יָלַד וְגוֹ' וְאַחַר כָּךְ וַיְהִי כָל הָאָרֶץ וְגוֹ'; וְאִ"תֹּ בְּאֶמְצַע יָמָיו, לֹא בָא הַכָּתוּב לִסְתֹּם אֶלָּא לְפָרֵשׁ, הָא לָמַדְתָּ שֶׁבִּשְׁנַת מוֹת פֶּלֶג נִתְפַּלְּגוּ:

1נפלגה [THE EARTH] WAS DIVIDED — The languages became confounded and they (the peoples) were scattered abroad from the plain of Shinar, and were dispersed throughout the whole world. We may learn from this that Eber was a prophet, for he gave his son the name פלג, “division” after an event which was to happen in the future (Genesis Rabbah 37:7). For we learn in Seder Olam that it was during the last of his days that they were dispersed abroad. For if you argue that this happened early in his life (and that therefore he was not anticipating the future in so naming his son, but that the name referred to an event that had already happened), behold, his brother Joktan was younger than he and he had begotten many families previous to the dispersion, as it is said (10:26) “And Joktan begot etc.” and only afterwards is it stated “And the whole earth was etc.” (with reference to the dispersion). If, on the other hand, you argue that the dispersal happened in the middle period of his life, then I reply that the verse surely does not intend to refer to the time when the dispersion took place in an indefinite manner, but to state quite definitely when it was. Hence you may learn that it was in the year of Peleg’s death that they were dispersed.

בויקטן. שֶׁהָיָה עָנָו וּמַקְטִין עַצְמוֹ, לְכָךְ זָכָה לְהַעֲמִיד כָּל הַמִּשְׁפָּחוֹת הַלָּלוּ:

2יקטן JOKTAN — He was so called (“the little one”) because he was so humble and thought little (ומקטין) of himself; therefore he merited the privilege of rearing all these families (Genesis Rabbah 37:7).

אחצרמות. עַל שֵׁם מְקוֹמוֹ, דִּבְרֵי אַגָּדָה (ב"ר):

1חצרמות He was so called (Court of Death) after his city. So is the statement of the Agada (Genesis Rabbah 37:8).

Sefaria: Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934 · Public domain · sefaria.org

Sefaria: Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934 · Public domain · sefaria.org