Rashbam - the great rishon and tosafist, Rashi's grandson, author of the standard commentary on most of Bava Batra and part of Pesachim - writes in his peshat-oriented commentary on the Torah that the words "Vayehi erev, vayehi boker" in the first chapter of Genesis mean that during the six days of creation, daytime preceded nighttime - in contrast to the general view. This interpretation does not imply that Rashbam contested the halachic principle that (for most purposes) a halachic day consists of nighttime followed by daytime, as Rashbam himself affirms; elsewhere he explains that his Torah commentary is not at all intended to serve as a source or explanation of halacha, or indeed to function on the halachic plane at all. He advances his interpretation exclusively as the simplest - not the halachic - meaning of the verse.
To my astonishment, I recently discovered that this piece of Rashbam has been edited out of some editions of the Mikra'ot Gedolot Chumash, seemingly because it has been misconstrued as a challenge to accepted halacha and is thus considered offensive. I find it shocking (or, perhaps more accurately, I wish I found it shocking) that someone would edit the words of one of the great rishonim because he found them distasteful. I cannot fathom how anyone today could with such confidence judge himself, and not Rashbam, the greater arbiter of exegetical propriety, particularly if one has already decided to print Rashbam's commentary alongside those of Rashi, Ramban, Seforno, etc. Even more atrocious than cutting out part of the commentary is the dishonesty of the publisher/s in not noting that portions of the work have been omitted; the reader is given the impression that he is being provided with Rashbam's entire (extant) commentary, when in fact he is not. This is destructive to scholarship and the pursuit of truth; perhaps it is theft as well.
In the interests of setting the record straight and helping provide access to that which has been so brazenly censored, what follows is the omitted piece of Rashbam, plus other related excerpts from the commentary. I have used the text of Mikra'ot Gedolot Hama'or (Jerusalem: Hamo'or, 1990).
בראשית א, ה - ולחשך קרא לילה. לעולם אור תחילה ואח"כ חשך: ויהי ערב ויהי בקר. אין כתיב כאן ויהי לילה ויהי יום אלא ויהי ערב, שהעריב יום ראשון ושיקע האור, ויהיה בקר, בוקרו של לילה, שעלה עמוד השחר. הרי הושלם יום א' מן הו' ימים שאמר הקב"ה בי' הדברות, ואח"כ התחיל יום שני, ויאמר אל[ק]ים יהי רקיע. ולא בא הכתוב לומר שהערב והבוקר יום אחד הם, כי לא הצרכנו לפרש אלא היאך היו ששה ימים, שהבקיר יום ונגמרה לילה, הרי נגמר יום אחד והתחיל יום שני: עכ"ל
א, ו - ויאמר אל[ק]ים יהי רקיע. לאחר שנגמר יום ראשון לבוקרו, ויאמר אל[ק]ים: עכ"ל
א, ח - ויהי ערב ויהי בקר יום שני. שנטה היום לערוב, ואח"כ ויהי בקר של יום שני. הרי נגמר יום שני מששת הימים שאמר הקב"ה בעשרת הדברות, והתחיל עתה יום שלישי בבקר: עכ"ל
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3 comments:
This RASHBA"M is contraversial and some go as far as saying that he never wrote it.
The story about the Even Ezer recieving a letter from the 'Holy Shabbos' pretains to this RASHBA"M.
This RASHBA"M is contraversial
In what sense is it controversial? In that some people disagree with it? That's no doubt correct.
and some go as far as saying that he never wrote it.
Is there any evidence to support this claim? Some people - especially people in certain segments of the orthodox Jewish community - have a nasty habit of crying "misattribution" when they encounter that things they don't like written by people they like - without necessarily having reasonable grounds for their claim. Thus the fact some people say Rashbam did not write this is, in and of itself, meaningless.
The story about the Even Ezer recieving a letter from the 'Holy Shabbos' pretains to this RASHBA"M.
There are many stories. Most are false.
interestingly enough, HaRav Yaakov Kaminetsky, Zichrono L'vracha, v'zechuso Yagen aleinu, actually writes in his chiddushim on Torah (Emes L'Yaakov) that day preceeded night all the way up to Matan Torah at Har Sinai. One place he writes this is by the Parshath haMann (in beshalah) when Moshe tells the zkeinim that tht Bnei Yisrael gathered double portions because the following day would be shabbos and no mann would fall " וַיֹּאמֶר אֲלֵהֶם הוּא אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר יְ-הֹ-וָ-ה שַׁבָּתוֹן שַׁבַּת קֹדֶשׁ לַי-הֹ-וָ-ה מָחָר אֵת אֲשֶׁר תֹּאפוּ אֵפוּ וְאֵת אֲשֶׁר תְּבַשְּׁלוּ בַּשֵּׁלוּ וְאֵת כָּל הָעֹדֵף הַנִּיחוּ לָכֶם לְמִשְׁמֶרֶת עַד הַבֹּקֶר:" "and he said to them 'this is that which HaShem has spoken - a shabbath shabbathon is to HaShem tomorrow ..."
Rav Yaakov writes that the reason Moshe said "machar" "tomorrow" (will be shabbos) as opposed to "tonight" "halayla" is that "tonight" was not shabbos, rther tomorrow and that the concept of day starting from night is a matan torah concept.
and to add the following, if i may; the pshat of 6 y'mei b'reishit is as the Rashbam says, that day preceeded night - pshat is not necessarily a torah concept, (correct pshat in the torah of course is, but seing a text and understanding the basics plainly is a non torah concept e.g. karaim) so the way we know that day preceedes night in shesheth ymei breishit is a torah sh'b'al peh and drash concept, torah specific. the fact that erev is written before boker, even if that doesnt mean that erev came after in creation.
Bayom Hahu Yihyeh HaShem Ehad U'shmo Ehad. b'mheirah.
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