God and His Retinue

Second verse of the parasha (13:18):

וַיַּסֵּ֨ב אֱלֹהִ֧ים ׀ אֶת־הָעָ֛ם דֶּ֥רֶךְ הַמִּדְבָּ֖ר יַם־ס֑וּף וַֽחֲמֻשִׁ֛ים עָל֥וּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל מֵאֶ֥רֶץ מִצְרָֽיִם׃

But God ledde the people about through the way of the wilderneſſe of the Red ſea: and the children of Iſrael went vp harneſſed out of the land of Egypt.

Our commentator notes a number of different interpretations of the verb vayyassev (translated here by the KJV as "ledded the people about"): Surrounded them with His presence, gave them couches on which to lie down, as at a meal; gave them a meal.

And who did all this for them?

אלהים. תגין. כלומר הוא וצבאו הסיבן, אלהים המעוטר והמצויין

The word "Elohim" has tagin, to indicate: He and His retinue did this for them; Elohim, the crowned and distinguished.

(Note that he draws this word twice, and the tagin appear differently in the two places; it seems that here, as in many other places, the number of tagin isn't important. Sometimes the number is important, but only when he specifically says so. I think. Interestingly, here there's also the discrepancy in the placement of tagin; I think, based on my limited exposure to this manuscript, that that is true specifically in divine names, which are viewed as unitary items, rather than composed of letters. I think.)