Bamidbar 14:26-45 במדבר י״ד:כ״ו-מ״ה

לעדה הרעה וגו'. אֵלּוּ הַמְרַגְּלִים, מִכָּאן לָעֵדָה שֶׁהִיא עֲשָׂרָה (מגילה כ"ג):

Wicked congregation, etc. These are the spies. From here [we derive] that a congregation is ten.

אשר המה מלינים. אֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל עָלַי:

Those who provoke. The Israelites against me.

את תלנות בני ישראל אשר המה. הַמְרַגְּלִים מלינים אוֹתָם עלי, שמעתי:

The complaints of Bnei Yisroel which they, the spies provoked them into complaining against me, I have heard.

חי אני. לְשׁוֹן שְׁבוּעָה, אִם לֹא כֵן אֶעֱשֶׂה — כִּבְיָכוֹל אֵינִי חַי:

As I live. This denotes an oath. ‘If [I do] not, etc., so I shall do, if it were possible to say, I do not live.

כאשר דברתם. שֶׁבִּקַּשְׁתֶּם מִמֶּנִּי "אוֹ בַּמִּדְבָּר הַזֶּה לוּ מָתְנוּ" (פסוק ב'):

As you have spoken. You requested from Me, “Or would that we had died in this desert.”

וכל פקדיכם לכל מספרכם. כָּל הַנִּמְנֶה לְכָל מִסְפָּר שֶׁאַתֶּם נִמְנִים בּוֹ, כְּגוֹן לָצֵאת וְלָבֹא לַצָּבָא וְלָתֵת שְׁקָלִים, כָּל הַמְּנוּיִים לְכָל אוֹתָן מִסְפָּרוֹת יָמוּתוּ, וְאֵלּוּ הֵן מבן עשרים שנה וגו'; לְהוֹצִיא שִׁבְטוֹ שֶׁל לֵוִי שֶׁאֵין פְּקוּדֵיהֶם מִבֶּן עֶשְׂרִים:

All of you who were counted according to your numbers. All those counted in every census in which you were counted. For example, going and coming with the army, and contributing the shekolim. Everyone counted in all those tallies will die. They are the following: From the age of twenty, etc. This excludes the tribe of Levi, who were not counted from the age of twenty.

ופגריכם אתם. כְּתַרְגּוּמוֹ, לְפִי שֶׁדִּבֵּר עַל הַבָּנִים לְהַכְנִיסָם לָאָרֶץ וּבִקֵּשׁ לוֹמַר וְאַתֶּם תָּמוּתוּ, נוֹפֵל לָשׁוֹן זֶה כָּאן לוֹמַר "אתם":

Your corpses — yours. As Targum [Onkelos] renders [(דִי לְכוֹן) “yours”]. Since He discussed bringing the children into the land, and He now wants to say ‘but you will die,’ it is appropriate, here, to say “yours.”

ארבעים שנה. לֹא מֵת אֶחָד מֵהֶם פָּחוּת מִבֶּן שִׁשִּׁים, לְכָךְ נִגְזַר אַרְבָּעִים, כְּדֵי שֶׁיִּהְיוּ אוֹתָם שֶׁל בְּנֵי עֶשְׂרִים מַגִּיעִין לִכְלַל שִׁשִּׁים; שָׁנָה רִאשׁוֹנָה הָיְתָה בִכְלָל, וְאַעַ"פִּ שֶׁקָּדְמָה לְשִׁלּוּחַ הַמְרַגְּלִים, לְפִי שֶׁמִּשֶּׁעָשׂוּ אֶת הָעֶגֶל עָלְתָה גְזֵרָה זוֹ בְמַחֲשָׁבָה, אֶלָּא שֶׁהִמְתִּין לָהֶם עַד שֶׁתִּתְמַלֵּא סְאָתָם, וְזֶהוּ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר "וּבְיוֹם פָּקְדִי" — בַּמְרַגְּלִים — "וּפָקַדְתִּי עֲלֵיהֶם חַטָּאתָם" (שמות ל"ב); וְאַף כָּאן נֶאֱמַר "תִּשְׂאוּ אֶת עֲוֹנֹתֵיכֶם" — שְׁתֵּי עֲוֹנוֹת, שֶׁל עֵגֶל וְשֶׁל תְּלוּנָה, וְחָשַׁב לָהֶם בְּמִנְיַן חַיֵּיהֶם מִקְצָת שָׁנָה כְּכֻלָּהּ, וּכְשֶׁנִּכְנְסוּ לִשְׁנַת שִׁשִּׁים מֵתוּ אוֹתָם שֶׁל בְּנֵי עֶשְׂרִים:

Forty years. Not one of them died before the age of sixty. This is why the decree was for forty [years], so that those who were twenty years old would reach the age of sixty. The first year was included, although it preceded the sending of the spies, because, from the time that they made the golden calf, the plan for this decree was formulated, But He waited until their measure was filled. This is [the meaning of] what is said, “on my day of reckoning — with the spies — I will take their sin into account.” Here, too, it is said, “you must bear your sins,” [plural] two sins, that of the calf, and that of the complaint. In calculating their ages, He considered part of the year as the whole, so that when they entered their sixtieth year, those who had been twenty years old died.

ונשאו את זנותיכם. כְּתַרְגּוּמוֹ "וִיקַבְּלוּן יָת חוֹבֵיכוֹן":

They will bear [the burden of] your dissoluteness. As Targum [Onkelos] renders, “they will receive [punishment for] your sins.”

את תנואתי. שֶׁהֲנִיאוֹתֶם אֶת לְבַבְכֶם מֵאַחֲרַי, תנואה לְשׁוֹן הֲסָרָה, כְּמוֹ "כִּי הֵנִיא אָבִיהָ אֹתָהּ" (במדבר ל):

My displeasure. You diverted your hearts from following Me. תְּנוּאָה denotes turning away, like, “for her father restrained her [from her vow].”

וישבו וילינו עליו. וּכְשֶׁשָּׁבוּ מִתּוּר הָאָרֶץ הִרְעִימוּ עָלָיו אֶת כָּל הָעֵדָה בְּהוֹצָאַת דִּבָּה, אוֹתָם אֲנָשִׁים וימתו; כָּל הוֹצָאַת דִּבָּה לְשׁוֹן חִנּוּךְ דְּבָרִים, שֶׁמַּלְקִיחִים לְשׁוֹנָם לְאָדָם לְדַבֵּר בּוֹ, כְּמוֹ "דּוֹבֵב שִׂפְתֵי יְשֵׁנִים" (שיר השירים ז'), וְיֶשְׁנָהּ לְטוֹבָה וְיֶשְׁנָהּ לְרָעָה, לְכָךְ נֶאֱמַר כָּאן מוצאי דבת הארץ רעה, שֶׁיֵּשׁ דִּבָּה שֶׁהִיא טוֹבָה:

Who returned and provoked [the] complaints against him. When they returned from spying on the land, they incited the entire congregation against him by issuing a derogatory report — those men died. הוֹצָאַת דִּבָּה always denotes directed speech, where the tongue is plied to report about someone, like, “causing the lips of sleepers to murmur.” It may be either good or bad. This is why it says here “who spread evil slander against the land,” since דִּבָּה may be good.

דבה. פרליר"ש בְּלַעַז:

Slander. Parlerie in Old French.

במגפה לפני ה'. בְּאוֹתָהּ מִיתָה הַהֲגוּנָה לָהֶם, מִדָּה כְּנֶגֶד מִדָּה, הֵם חָטְאוּ בַּלָּשׁוֹן, וְנִשְׁתַּרְבֵּב לְשׁוֹנָם עַד טַבּוּרָם וְתוֹלָעִים יוֹצְאִים מִלְּשׁוֹנָם וּבָאִין לְתוֹךְ טַבּוּרָם, לְכָךְ נֶאֱמַר "בַּמַּגֵּפָה" וְלֹא "בְמַגֵּפָה", וְזֶהוּ לפני ה' — בְּאוֹתָהּ הָרְאוּיָה לָהֶם עַ"פִּ מִדּוֹתָיו שֶׁל הַקָּבָּ"ה שֶׁהוּא מוֹדֵד מִדָּה כְּנֶגֶד מִדָּה (סוטה ל"ה):

In a plague, before Adonoy. By the particular death suited to them, measure for measure. They sinned with the tongue, so their tongues were distended until their navel, and maggots came from their tongues and entered their navel. This is why it says, בַּמַּגֵּפָה, and not בְּמַּגֵּפָה . And this is [the meaning of] “before Hashem” — as particularly suited to them, according to the attributes of the Holy One, Blessed is He, Who metes out measure for measure.

ויהושע וכלב … חיו וגו'. מַה תַּ"ל חיו מן האנשים ההם? אֶלָּא מְלַמֵּד שֶׁנָּטְלוּ חֶלְקָם שֶׁל מְרַגְּלִים בָּאָרֶץ וְקָמוּ תַחְתֵּיהֶם לַחַיִּים (בבא בתרא קי"ח):

Yehoshua . . . and Caleiv . . . lived, etc. What does the Torah teach by saying, “lived, from among those men”? It teaches that they took the spies’ portion in the land, replacing them in life.

אל ראש ההר. הוּא הַדֶּרֶךְ הָעוֹלֶה לְאֶרֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵל:

To the peak of the mountain. This was the route going up to Eretz Yisroel.

הננו ועלינו אל המקום. לְאֶרֶץ יִשְׂרָאֵל:

We are ready to go up to the place. To Eretz Yisroel.

אשר אמר ה'. לְתִתָּהּ לָנוּ, שָׁם נַעֲלֶה:

Of which Adonoy spoke. To give to us — let us go up there.

כי חטאנו. עַל אֲשֶׁר אָמַרְנוּ הֲלוֹא טוֹב לָנוּ שׁוּב מִצְרָיְמָה:

For we have sinned. Since we said, “Is it not better for us to return to Egypt.”

והוא לא תצלח. זוֹ שֶׁאַתֶּם עוֹשִׂים לֹא תִצְלָח:

It will not succeed. Your actions will not succeed.

כי על כן שבתם. כְּלוֹמַר, כִּי זֹאת תָּבֹא לָכֶם עַל אֲשֶׁר שַׁבְתֶּם וְגוֹ':

For, you turned. As if to say, ‘for this will befall you because you turned, etc.’

ויעפלו. לְשׁוֹן חֹזֶק, וְכֵן "הִנֵּה עֻפְּלָה" (חבקוק ב'), אינג"ריש בְּלַעַז, לְשׁוֹן עַזּוּת, וְכֵן "עֹפֶל בַּת צִיּוֹן" (מיכה ד'), "עֹפֶל וָבַחַן" (ישעיהו ל"ב), וּמִדְרַשׁ תַּנְחוּמָא מְפָרְשׁוֹ לְשׁוֹן אֹפֶל — הָלְכוּ חֲשֵׁכִים, שֶׁלֹא בִרְשׁוּת:

They defiantly. The word [וַיַעְפִּלוּ] denotes strength. Similarly, “behold, [the wicked] are towering.” Engres, in Old French, denoting willfulness. Similarly, “the fortress of the daughter of Zion,” “fortress and stronghold.” But Midrash Tanchuma explains it as denoting darkness — they went in darkness, without permission.

ויכתום. כְּמוֹ "וָאֶכֹּת אֹתוֹ טָחוֹן" (דברים ט') — מַכָּה אַחַר מַכָּה:

And crushed them. Like, “I crushed it, grinding it [well].” Blow after blow.

עד החרמה. שֵׁם הַמָּקוֹם נִקְרָא עַל שֵׁם הַמְּאֹרָע:

Until Chormah. The place was named to commemorate this incident.