Maimonides’ Interpretation of the Story of ‘The Nobles of the Children of Israel’ (Exodus 24:9-11)

Abstract

The story of ‘the nobles of the children of Israel’ (Exodus 24:9-11) deals with the relationship between God and the prime matter of Earth. Although it is possible to create a continuous interpretation of this story from the Guide of the Perplexed, the phrase ‘the like of the very heaven for clearness’ (Exodus 24:10) is not interpreted in the book. Instead, it can be deduced from Maimonides’ interpretation of the Mishna. In the first part of the article, I suggest an explication of Maimonides’ interpretation of the story, based partly on the interpretation of the Mishnah. In the second part of the article, I argue that this verse was deliberately not interpreted in the Guide of the Perplexed in order to allow ambiguity regarding the sin of ‘the nobles of the children of Israel’.