Stopping of the Sun at Givon/2

Stopping of the Sun at Givon

Exegetical Approaches

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Full Miracle: Literal Stoppage

Hashem wrought a miracle in which the celestial spheres stopped their movement, increasing the number of daylight hours.

Sources:Ben Sira46:1-7About Ben Sira, Bavli TaanitTaanit 19b-20aAbout the Bavli, Bavli Avodah ZarahAvodah Zarah 25aAbout the Bavli, Bereshit Rabbah5:5About Bereshit Rabbah, Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer52About Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, R. Yehuda ibn BalaamYehoshua 10:12About R. Yehuda ibn Balaam, R. Yosef KaraYehoshua 10:12-14About R. Yosef Kara, RadakYehoshua 10:12-14About R. David Kimchi, R. Chasdai CrescasOhr Hashem 2:4:3About R. Chasdai Crescas, R. Asher CrescasR. Asher Crescas, Commentary on Moreh Nevukhim 2:35, Abarbanel, Malbim

Miracles and nature – These sources are comfortable with Hashem suspending natural order, even when there might have been alternative methods of accomplishing the same goal.

"שֶׁמֶשׁ בְּגִבְעוֹן דּוֹם": a request or praise? According to this position, Yehoshua's words were a prayer to Hashem, said in the midst of battle. The verse is understood according to its simple sense, that Yehoshua was asking that the sun literally stand still, as the parallelism in verse 13 implies "וַיִּדֹּם הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ וְיָרֵחַ עָמָד".‎¹

Need for the Miracle – These commentators differ in how they explain why such a miracles was necessary if Hashem had already intervened in the battle by sending heavenly hail stones:

• Prevent Shabbat desecration – Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer suggests that the battle took place on a Friday and that Yehoshua requested that the day be lengthened so that the nation would not need to desecrate Shabbat so as to finish the battle.
• Sanctify Hashem – Malbim agrees that the miracle was not needed for strategic purposes, claiming instead that Yehoshua's sole goal was to ensure that the nation knew "that Hashem was fighting for Israel".  The obvious miracle left them no doubt that Hashem was on their side.
• Finish the battle – Abarbanel, in contrast, assumes that the miracle was needed to totally vanquish the Canaanites ("עַד יִקֹּם גּוֹי אֹיְבָיו").  He does not elaborate, only pointing out how light was required in order to chase and kill off enemy soldiers. It is likely that Yehoshua was trying to prevent them from reaching the safety of their walled cities by nightfall.²

"שֶׁמֶשׁ בְּגִבְעוֹן דּוֹם" versus "יָרֵחַ בְּעֵמֶק אַיָּלוֹן" – These sources differ in how they view the relationship between the roles of the sun and moon in the miracle: 

• Two halves of a whole – According to Ibn Balaam, R. Yosef Kara, R. Crescas, and Abarbanel the phrases "שֶׁמֶשׁ בְּגִבְעוֹן דּוֹם" and "יָרֵחַ בְּעֵמֶק אַיָּלוֹן" refer to two halves of the same miracle.
• R"Y Kara explains that Yehoshua was really only requesting to extend the day; when the sun stopped, the moon simply followed suit, waiting for the sun to set before it moved.³
• Abarbanel further explains why Yehoshua mentioned both the sun and the moon. Since the event happened close to sunset when the moon was already in the sky,⁴  he requested that the sun not fall lower and that the moon not rise higher.
• Distinct phenomena – Radak, however, implies that Yehoshua prayed for both extended sunlight and also extended moonlight.  The daylight hours only lasted as long as the longest natural day,⁵ so it was necessary for the moon, too, to shine more than usual.

"וְלֹא הָיָה כַּיּוֹם הַהוּא לְפָנָיו וְאַחֲרָיו" – R. Asher Crescas points to this verse, which highlights the uniqueness of the episode, as proof that it was a supernatural and not a natural phenomenon.

Comparison to Moshe's miracles – As the sun's suspension appears to be a miracle on the highest level, and the text declares it unprecedented, these sources must explain how this squares with Devarim's contention that Moshe's miracle-making transcended all others.

• The Bavli⁶ asserts that this miracle of Yehoshua did not surpass those of Moshe, since the sun stood still for Moshe as well.  Though this is not explicit in Torah it is hinted to.⁷
• R. Crescas, instead, maintains that the greatness of Moshe lay not in the quality of his miracles but in their abundance and public nature. Yehoshua's miracle, in contrast, was short-lived enough⁸ that many, especially those in the midst of battle, might not have even noticed it.
• According to Abarbanel, Moshe's uniqueness as prophet lay not in which miracles he wrought, but the manner in which he did so.  As opposed to Yehoshua, Moshe could bring miracles without needing to first pray.  Moreover, Abarbanel claims that since miracles occur out of necessity, they can not be used to determine the stature of a prophet.⁹ For elaboration see Moshe's Epitaph – Signs and Wonders.

הִיא כְתוּבָה עַל סֵפֶר הַיָּשָׁר

Comparison to Melakhim II

Minimized Miracle: More Sunlight

Hashem intervened to help the Israelites by giving them light when needed, but He did not tamper with the entire astronomical system and stop the sun to do so.

Sources:R. Moshe ibn ChiquitillaYehoshua 10:12‎, Rambam according to AbarbanelCommentary on Moreh Nevukhim 2:35About R. Yitzchak Abarbanel, R. Shelomo b. R. Yuda, Hoil Moshe

Were Yehoshua's words a request or praise? These sources opine that Yehoshua's words were a request for Divine aid.

Need for the Miracle

• Hail storm – R. Shelomo b. R. Yuda and Hoil Moshe maintain that the need for Divine assistance stemmed from the darkness brought about by the hail storm.
• Hoil Moshe claims that Yehoshua mistakenly believed that night was arriving and he would not be able to defeat his enemies before they retreated to their fortified cities, leading him to request that the sun stand still.  He, thus, takes Yehoshua's words "שֶׁמֶשׁ בְּגִבְעוֹן דּוֹם" at face value.
• According to R. Shelomo, Yehoshua was requesting that the sun continue to shine despite the clouds and hail.  The word "דום" in the phrase "שֶׁמֶשׁ בְּגִבְעוֹן דּוֹם" is somewhat difficult for this approach, but could be understood to mean "let the sun stay in Givon [despite the weather.]."

• Sunset – According to R. Moshe ibn Chiquitilla and Abarbanel's understanding of Rambam, in contrast, Yehoshua wanted more light because the sun really was about to set and Yehoshua wanted to be able to fight during the night until his enemies were vanquished.

Nature of Hashem's intervention – These sources differ in how they understand the exact role played by Hashem, in line with their explanation's regarding the need for the miracle outlined above :

• Light without sun – R. Moshe ibn Chiquitilla posits that though the sun set, Hashem ensured that its light continued to reflect and provide illumination. Abarbanel posits instead that Hashem created a new entity of light for Israel.  He compares the miracle to the Plague of Darkness, in which Hashem brought darkness for the Egyptians while there was light for the Israelites.

Miracles and nature

No Miracle

Perception that Time Stood Still

Sources:simple reading of RambamMoreh Nevukhim 2:35About R. Moshe b. Maimon (According to EfodiEfodi, Commentary on Moreh Nevukhim 2:35, R. Moshe of NarbonneR. Moshe of Narbonne, Commentary on Moreh Nevukhim 2:35), , ?Ralbag

Metaphor

¹ R. Yosef Kara and Radak also point to the phrase, "דֹּמּוּ עַד הַגִּיעֵנוּ אֲלֵיכֶם" in Shemuel I 14:9 where the root is again parallel to the verb "וְעָמַדְנוּ".  Ibn Balaam, instead, suggests that the root דממ really means to be quiet, but has the secondary connotation of standing still/stopping since silence is the stopping of speech.

² Had they been able to reach their fortifications, the earlier victory would be not have been worth much as the enemy could regroup and win the next battle.

³ See Ibn Balaam and R. Crescas who point out that really all the other celestial spheres also stopped in their tracks, as the astronomical system is interconnected, but the text sufficed with speaking of the two "leading" luminaries.

⁴ He notes that the text is ambiguous regarding the time of day in which the miracle occurred.  On one hand, the verses state, "וַיַּעֲמֹד הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ בַּחֲצִי הַשָּׁמַיִם" (and the sun stood in the middle of the sky), suggesting that it was noon.  On the other hand, the language of "וְיָרֵחַ בְּעֵמֶק אַיָּלוֹן" assumes that the moon was already visible, as it would be if it were close to sunset.  Abarbanel assumes that it is more likely that Yehoshua would be concerned about insufficient daylight hours if it was close to dark and thus tries to reread the phrase " בַּחֲצִי הַשָּׁמַיִם".  He claims it simply means that the sun was still in the sky, not that it was literally midway in the horizon.

⁵ Though Radak has no issues with positing a literal stoppage of the sun, he might still prefer that this be in the realm of a realistically long day.  As such, the miracle only caused the day to extend to its longest natural length.

⁶ See both Bavli Taanit and Bavli Avodah Zarah.

⁷ R. Shemuel b. Nachmani suggests that the usage of the word "תֵּת" in both Devarim 2:25 and Yehoshua 10:12, teaches the reader to compare the two and learn that the miracle which is explicit by Yehoshua also occurred in the time of Moshe. [This opinion is attributed to R. Yochanan in Bavli Avodah Zarah.] It is somewhat difficult, however, to suggest that if such a great wonder had happened under Moshe's leadership that the Torah would not have recorded it explicitly.

⁸ In contrast to opinions in the Bavli which suggest that the miracles lasted for anywhere from 24 to 48 hours, he maintains that it might have lasted for only half an hour.  Abarbanel questions how adding only 30 minutes of extra light could have been so significant to victory that it would have merited a miracle. In addition, he claims that there is no point to a miracle if it is not recognized and does promote sanctification of Hashem.  R.. Crescas does not really disagree with this last point, and, in fact, suggests that this is exactly why it is not considered a great miracle and does not come close to those of Moshe.

⁹ Had Moshe needed the sun to stand still, it would have done so for him as well.