Literary Devices – Shemot 32/0

Literary Devices – Shemot 32

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Key Words

"עם"

The Tanakh Lab demonstrates that this word appears a full 19 rimes in the chapter.  Nechama Leibowitz notes that Tanakh uses it artfully to subtly reveal Hashem and Moshe's feelings throughouttas Hashem accuses the nation and Moshe defends them.

Character Titles

Moshe

• Moshe – Throughout most of the chapter, Moshe is referred to by this proper name.
• "This person Moshe"  – In verses 1 and 23, Moshe is uniquely referred to by the nation as "this person Moshe".¹ RambanShemot 32:1About R. Moshe b. Nachman suggests that this epithet proves that the people did not consider Moshe a god, and did not intend for the calf to be a god either. AbarbanelShemot 32:1About R. Yitzchak Abarbanel, by contrast, understands the epithet to reflect the people’s recognition  that Moshe was vulnerable due to being a human being, and their desire to replace him with a being that was divine and immortal. Cf. Da'at Mikra that this epithet (particularly the word “this”) conveys a tone of disrespect and disdain.

The Nation

The chapter refers to the Israelites in two ways, by the proper name Israel (3 times) and by the noun "people" (19 times).

• Children of Israel / Israel
• People "עם" – This term is theprevalent in the chapter and the way the text plays with it is revealing:

¹ Note that Moshe is also called “משה האיש” in Shemot 11:3. He is later referred to as “איש האלוקים”. [See Devarim 33:1, Yehoshua 14:6, Tehillim 90:1, Ezra 3:2, Divrei HaYamim I 23:14, and Divrei HaYamim II 30:16.] The association of Moshe with the word “man” perhaps indicates his role as the human being who is the most direct messenger of God.