parshaמפרשי הפרשה

רמב"ן — מרבים העם להביא

When the chachamim tell Moshe 'מרבים העם להביא', the Torah orders Moshe to halt the donations. Why include this episode at all — and what does it teach?

והזכיר הכתוב 'מרבים העם להביא', לשבח את העם המביאים בנדבתם, ולפאר החכמים בנאמנותם, וגם הנגיד עליהם משובח בזה שהעביר קול במחנה למנעם, כי אין לו חפץ בכספם וזהבם כשאר המושלים בעמם, כענין שאמר 'לא חמור אחד מהם נשאתי'.

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רמב"ן

Ramban on Exodus 36:1

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Q — When the chachamim tell Moshe 'מרבים העם להביא', the Torah orders Moshe to halt the donations. Why include this episode at all — and what does it teach?

A — Ramban reads a triple-praise. (1) Praise of the people for the overflowing nedivut. (2) Praise of the chachamim for their ne'emanut — they could only declare 'too much' if every shekel had been weighed and accounted ('ולא יחשבו את האנשים אשר יתנו את הכסף... כי באמונה הם עושים'). (3) Praise of Moshe as nagid: he stopped the people because 'אין לו חפץ בכספם וזהבם כשאר המושלים בעמם,' echoing his later cry to Korach: 'לא חמור אחד מהם נשאתי.' Other rulers keep accepting; Moshe halts. The chiddush makes the moment a small portrait of an entire ethical order — citizens, professionals, and leader each at their best.

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