קוד: כפרי מעלליו בתנ"ך
סוג: פרטים1
מאת: אבנר רמו
אל:
The Psalmist wrote: ויטמאו במעשיהם; ויזנו במעלליהם - “Thus were they defiled with their works, and went astray in their doings” (Ps 106:39).
He also wrote: אזכיר (אזכור) מעללי-יה - “I will make mention of the deeds of YHWH” (Ps 77:12; see also: Ps 78:7).
The Chronicler wrote: ותכון כל-עבודת יהוה - “And all the labor of YHWH was prepared” (2 Ch 35:16).
These verses indicate that the words מעשים (maa’sim), מעללים (maa’lalim), and עבודות (a’vodoth) are synonymous and mean: “deeds.”
When dealing with “deeds”, the biblical writers are particularly concerned about “wicked deeds” as in: מעשינו הרעים - “our evil deeds” (Ezr 9:13; see also: Ecc 2:17; 4:3; 8:11), or:
מעלליהם הרעים - “their wicked works” (Neh 9:35; see also: Eze 36:3; Zec 1:4).
There are multiple biblical variants of the expression: רע מעלליך - “the evil of your doings” (Deu 28:20; see also: 1 Sam 25:3; Is 1:16; Jer 4:4; 21:12; 23:2, 22; 25:5; 26:3; 44:22; Hos 9:15; Mic 3:4; Ps 28:4).
In the Book of Numbers we read: ונתתה אותם אל-הלוים, איש כפי עבדתו - “and you shall give them to the Levites, to every man according to his labor” (Num 7:5; see also: Num 7:7, 8; 2 Ch 31:2).
Yet in the Book of Jeremiah we find: ולתת לאיש כדרכו, כפרי מעלליו - “to give [every] man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings” (Jer 17:10; see also: Jer 21:14; 32:19).
However, the internal logic of this verse and the comparison between these verses suggests that כפרי מעלליו (kephri maa’lalav) is a letter-deletion, order-type error and mis-division to words of: כפי רע מעלליו (kephi roa’ maa’lalav) - “according to the evilness of his deeds.”
In the Book of Jeremiah we read:
ונחמתי אל-הרעה אשר אנכי חשב לעשות להם, מפני רע מעלליהם.
“And I may repent Me of the evil, which I purpose to do to them because of the evil of their doings” (Jer 26:3; see also: Deu 28:20; Jer 44:22).
Yet in the Book of Micah we find: והיתה הארץ לשממה על-ישביה, מפרי מעלליהם - “And the land shall be desolate for them that dwell therein, because of the fruit of their doings” (Mic 7:13).
Yet again the comparison between these verses suggests that here מפרי מעלליהם (mipri maa’lalayhem) is a is a letter-deletion, order-type error and mis-division to words of:
מפני רע מעלליהם (mipnay roa’ maa’lalayhem) - “because of the evilness of their deeds.”