ובי"ת במראות. תחת מ"ם כי נכון הוא בלשון הקדש כמו והנותר בבשר ובלחם. וככה בלשון ישמעאל. [OF THE MIRRORS.] Be-marot (of the mirrors) has a bet rather than a mem prefaced to it.1The usual way to say “of the mirrors” is mi-marot, for a mem prefaced to a word means from or of. On the other hand, a bet prefaced to a word means in or with. Hence our verse should have read mi-marot rather than be-marot. It is proper Hebrew to do so.2In other words, the bet may be used in place of a mem. We find the same in the verse ve-ha-notar ba-basar u-va-lachem (and that which remaineth of the flesh and of the bread) (Lev. 8:32).3Here too a bet is used in place of a mem, for we would expect ve-ha-notar me-ha-basar u-me-ha-lachem. It is the same case in Arabic.
וטעם הצובאות. כי משפט כל הנשים להתיפות לראות פניהם בכל בקר במראות נחשת או זכוכית לתקן הפארות שעל ראשיהם. הם הנזכרים בספר ישעיה כי מנהג ישראל היה כמנהג ישמעאל עד היום. והנה היו בישראל נשים עובדות השם שסרו מתאות זה העולם ונתנו מראותיהן נדבה כי אין להם צורך עוד להתיפות. רק באות יום יום אל פתח אוהל מועד להתפלל ולשמוע דברי המצות. וזהו אשר צבאו פתח אוהל מועד. כי היו רבות. [THAT DID SERVICE.] Scripture states this because it is the custom of all women to beautify themselves. They look at their faces in brass or glass mirrors every morning to arrange the head coverings4Hebrew, pe’arim. upon their heads. These head coverings are mentioned in the Book of Isaiah.5Is. 3:20 speaks of the pe’arim (the headtires). The custom of Israel was the same as the Moslem practice unto this very day.6Moslem women in I.E.’s day placed head coverings on their heads. Hence I.E.’s comment. Now there were in Israel women who served God and removed themselves from the pleasures of this world. These women gave their mirrors as a free-will offering because they had no need to beautify themselves. They rather came daily to the door of the tent of meeting to pray and to hear the words of the commandments. Scripture states, that did service (tzave’u)7Tzave’u is in the plural. at the door of the tent of meeting because there were many such women.
ולא הזכיר הכתוב מדת הכיור כאשר הזכיר מדת הכיורים שעשה שלמה. רק נעשה בכל המראות שהביאו. [THE LAVER.] Scripture does not mention the dimensions of the laver as it does in the case of the lavers that Solomon made.8Each one of the lavers made by Solomon contained forty baths (I Kings 7:38). The laver9Mentioned in our verse. was rather made out of all the mirrors that were brought.10It had no preconceived measure. It measured whatever size all the brass mirrors came to.
והכן שהוא המכונה לעולם הוא כמדת הכיור וכן המשפט. [THE BASE.] The ken,11Referred to in our verse. that is, the base,12Weiser renders: The ken (base), which is the same as the mekhonah (base) mentioned in I Kings 7:38, was in all instances the same size as the laver. was in all instances the same size as the laver13“By the same size” I.E. means that a larger laver had a larger base, a smaller laver had a smaller base. as is normally the case.
