(Devarim 32:18) "The Rock of your birth you have weakened": The Holy One Blessed be He said to them: You rendered Me (comparable to) a male who sought to give birth (viz.): If a woman were sitting on the mashber (the birth-stone, and she could not deliver), would she not be in great pain? viz. (I Kings 19:3) "For the sons have come to the mashber (i.e., they are at the point of being born), and she has no strength to bear them" (i.e., to eject them from the womb). And if she were sick and having her first child, would she not be in great pain? viz. (Jeremiah 4:31) "For I have heard an outcry like that of a woman sick (in labor), in pain as with her first child." And if there were two in her womb, would she not be in great pain? viz. (Bereshith 25:22) "And the sons wrangled within her" — And if it were a male, who cannot give birth, that sought to bear, would his agony not be compounded? viz. (Jeremiah 30:6) "Ask now and see if a male has ever given birth!" (Thus: "The Rock of your birth you have weakened.")
Variantly: "The rock of your birth you have forgotten": You have forgotten the acts of your forefathers, viz. (Isaiah 51:1-2) "Look to the rock from which you were hewn and to the hollow of the pit from which you were dug. Look to Abraham your forefather and to Sarah who bore you."
Variantly: "You have weakened the Rock of your birth": Whenever I sought to confer good upon you, you "weakened the celestial power" (i.e., Me): You stood at the Red Sea and said (Shemoth 15:2) "This is my G-d and I will extol Him," and I sought to confer good upon you, when you turned around and said (Ibid. 17:3) "Why did You bring us up from Egypt, etc." You stood at Sinai and said (Ibid. 29:7) "All that the L-rd spoke we will do and we will hear," and I sought to confer good upon you, when you turned around and said of the golden calf (Ibid. 32:4) "These are your gods, O Israel" — Whenever I sought to confer good upon you, you "weakened the celestial power." (Devarim, Ibid.) "And you forgot the G-d mecholalecha":
The G-d who conferred "hacheil" His name upon you — what He did with no other nation (— you forgot Him), viz. (Shemoth 20:2) "I am the L-rd, your G-d." R. Meir says: The G-d shechechil ("who suffered pangs [chil]") over you, as in (Psalms 48:7) "chil, as a woman in labor." And (Ibid. 29:3) "The voice of the L-rd is upon the water ... (Ibid. 9) The voice of the L-rd yecholel [lit., "brings pangs"] upon the hinds." R. Yehudah says: He made you mechilin, mechilin (i.e., with many natural openings).
R. Nechemiah says: The G-d who made you "profane" (chullin) in the eyes of all men, when you do not occupy yourselves with Torah, viz. (Isaiah 47:6) "I have profaned (chillati) My inheritance."
(דברים לב יח) צוּר יְלָדְךָ תֶּשִׁי, אָמַר לָהֶם הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא: עֲשִׂיתֶם אוֹתִי כְּאִלּוּ אֲנִי זָכָר מְבַקֵּשׁ לֵילֵד, אִלּוּ הָיְתָה חַיָּה יוֹשֶׁבֶת עַל הַמַּשְׁבֵּר לֹא הָיְתָה מִצְטַעֶרֶת, כָּעִנְיָן שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (מ״ב יט ג): ״כִּי בָאוּ בָנִים עַד מַשְׁבֵּר וְכֹחַ אַיִן לָלֶדֶת״? אִלּוּ הָיְתָה חוֹלָה וּמַבְכִּירָה לֹא הָיְתָה מִצְטַעֶרֶת, כָּעִנְיָן שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (ירמיה ד לא): ״כִּי קוֹל כְּחוֹלָה שָׁמַעְתִּי צָרָה כְּמַבְכִּירָה״? אִלּוּ הָיוּ שְׁנַיִם בְּמֵעֶיהָ לֹא הָיְתָה מִצְטַעֶרֶת, כָּעִנְיָן שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (בראשי׳ כה כב): ״וַיִּתְרֹצֲצוּ הַבָּנִים בְּקִרְבָּהּ״? אִלּוּ הָיָה זָכָר, שֶׁאֵין דַּרְכּוֹ לֵילֵד וּמְבַקֵּשׁ לֵילֵד, לֹא הָיָה צַעַר כָּפוּל וּמְכֻפָּל, כָּעִנְיָן שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (ירמיה ל ו): ״שַׁאֲלוּ נָא וּרְאוּ אִם יֹלֵד זָכָר״?
(Devarim 32:18) "The Rock of your birth you have weakened": The Holy One Blessed be He said to them: You rendered Me (comparable to) a male who sought to give birth (viz.): If a woman were sitting on the mashber (the birth-stone, and she could not deliver), would she not be in great pain? viz. (I Kings 19:3) "For the sons have come to the mashber (i.e., they are at the point of being born), and she has no strength to bear them" (i.e., to eject them from the womb). And if she were sick and having her first child, would she not be in great pain? viz. (Jeremiah 4:31) "For I have heard an outcry like that of a woman sick (in labor), in pain as with her first child." And if there were two in her womb, would she not be in great pain? viz. (Bereshith 25:22) "And the sons wrangled within her" — And if it were a male, who cannot give birth, that sought to bear, would his agony not be compounded? viz. (Jeremiah 30:6) "Ask now and see if a male has ever given birth!" (Thus: "The Rock of your birth you have weakened.")
צוּר יְלָדְךָ תֶּשִׁי, שְׁכַחְתֶּם אוֹתִי בִּזְכוּת אֲבוֹתֵיכֶם, וְכֵן הוּא אוֹמֵר (ישעיה נא א): ״הַבִּיטוּ אֶל צוּר חֻצַּבְתֶּם וְאֶל מַקֶּבֶת בּוֹר נֻקַּרְתֶּם״.
Variantly: "The rock of your birth you have forgotten": You have forgotten the acts of your forefathers, viz. (Isaiah 51:1-2) "Look to the rock from which you were hewn and to the hollow of the pit from which you were dug. Look to Abraham your forefather and to Sarah who bore you."
דָּבָר אַחֵר צוּר יְלָדְךָ תֶּשִׁי, כָּל זְמַן שֶׁאֲנִי מְבַקֵּשׁ לְהֵיטִיב לָכֶם אַתֶּם מַתִּישִׁים כֹּחַ שֶׁל מַעְלָה, עֲמַדְתֶּם עַל הַיָּם וַאֲמַרְתֶּם (שמות טו ב): ״זֶה אֵלִי וְאַנְוֵהוּ״, בִּקַּשְׁתִּי לְהֵיטִיב לָכֶם – חֲזַרְתֶּם בָּכֶם וַאֲמַרְתֶּם (במדבר יד ד): ״נִתְּנָה רֹאשׁ וְנָשׁוּבָה מִצְרָיְמָה״; עֲמַדְתֶּם לִפְנֵי הַר סִינַי וַאֲמַרְתֶּם (שמות כד ז): ״כֹּל אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר ה׳ נַעֲשֶׂה וְנִשְׁמָע״, בִּקַּשְׁתִּי לְהֵיטִיב לָכֶם – חֲזַרְתֶּם בָּכֶם וַאֲמַרְתֶּם לָעֵגֶל (שם לב ד): ״אֵלֶּה אֱלֹהֶיךָ יִשְׂרָאֵל״; הֱוֵי, כָּל זְמַן שֶׁאֲנִי מְבַקֵּשׁ לְהֵיטִיב לָכֶם אַתֶּם מַתִּישִׁים כֹּחַ שֶׁל מַעְלָה.
Variantly: "You have weakened the Rock of your birth": Whenever I sought to confer good upon you, you "weakened the celestial power" (i.e., Me): You stood at the Red Sea and said (Shemoth 15:2) "This is my G-d and I will extol Him," and I sought to confer good upon you, when you turned around and said (Ibid. 17:3) "Why did You bring us up from Egypt, etc." You stood at Sinai and said (Ibid. 29:7) "All that the L-rd spoke we will do and we will hear," and I sought to confer good upon you, when you turned around and said of the golden calf (Ibid. 32:4) "These are your gods, O Israel" — Whenever I sought to confer good upon you, you "weakened the celestial power." (Devarim, Ibid.) "And you forgot the G-d mecholalecha":
וַתִּשְׁכַּח אֵל מְחֹלְלֶךָ, רַבִּי מֵאִיר אוֹמֵר: אֵל שֶׁהֵחִיל בְּךָ, אֵל שֶׁנִּצְטַעֵר בְּךָ, כָּעִנְיָן שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (תהלים מח ז): ״חִיל כַּיּוֹלֵדָה״. רַבִּי יְהוּדָה אוֹמֵר: שֶׁעָשָׂךְ מְחִילִים מְחִילִים.
The G-d who conferred "hacheil" His name upon you — what He did with no other nation (— you forgot Him), viz. (Shemoth 20:2) "I am the L-rd, your G-d." R. Meir says: The G-d shechechil ("who suffered pangs [chil]") over you, as in (Psalms 48:7) "chil, as a woman in labor." And (Ibid. 29:3) "The voice of the L-rd is upon the water ... (Ibid. 9) The voice of the L-rd yecholel [lit., "brings pangs"] upon the hinds." R. Yehudah says: He made you mechilin, mechilin (i.e., with many natural openings).
דָּבָר אַחֵר וַתִּשְׁכַּח אֵל מְחֹלְלֶךָ, אֵל שֶׁהֵחִיל שְׁמוֹ עָלֶיךָ מַה שֶּׁלֹּא הֵחִיל עַל כָּל אֻמָּה וּמַלְכוּת, וְכֵן הוּא אוֹמֵר (שמות כ ב): ״אָנֹכִי ה׳ אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֲשֶׁר הוֹצֵאתִיךָ מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרָיִם״. רַבִּי נְחֶמְיָה אוֹמֵר: אֵל עָשְׂךָ חוֹלִים עַל כָּל בָּאֵי הָעוֹלָם בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁאִי אַתָּה עוֹשֶׂה אֶת הַתּוֹרָה, וְכֵן הוּא אוֹמֵר (תהלים כט ג-ט): ״קוֹל ה׳ עַל הַמָּיִם״ עַד ״קוֹל ה׳ יְחוֹלֵל אַיָּלוֹת״.
R. Nechemiah says: The G-d who made you "profane" (chullin) in the eyes of all men, when you do not occupy yourselves with Torah, viz. (Isaiah 47:6) "I have profaned (chillati) My inheritance."
דָּבָר אַחֵר וַתִּשְׁכַּח אֵל מְחוֹלְלֶךָ, אֵל שֶׁמּוֹחֵל לְךָ עַל כָּל עֲוֹנוֹתֶיךָ.
Variantly: "and you have forgotten the G-d mecholalecha": the G-d who forgives you (mochel lecha) for all of your sins.