When Rashi uses, what we may losely call, the hononym method, Rashi
does not explain new meaning but rather shows an underlying unity in disparate
meanings. Rashi will frequently do this by showing an underlying unity in
the varied meanings of a Biblical root.
In my article
Peshat and Derash found on the world wide web at
http://www.Rashiyomi.com/rashi.pdf.
I advocate enriching the Rashi explanation
using a technique of parallel nifty translations in modern English. Today's examples
show this.
The Heberw Biblical root
Mem-Lamed-Alpeh
has a fundamental meaning of
to fill.
Hence this Biblical root can mean / refer to
-
to fill
-
a full field
[
which appears filled vs empty
]
-
famous
[
the honor of the famous person fills the world
]
-
cloth jewels,
[
stones which you set and fill-in garment crevices
]
Applying the above translation to
Ex25-07
discussing
items used in building the temple
we obtain
Onyx stones, and stones to be
set on the breast garment and the breastplate
to set in the garments
In providing this English translation notice that we have used the English idiom
set a stone
which mirrors the Hebrew
filling stones
since
we fill the setting with the stone.
|