“When you have come – ki
tavo – into the land…” informs us that “living in Israel land
of Yisrael
“And the priest shall take the basket out of your hand and place it
before the altar of YHVH your Elohim. And you shall speak and say before YHVH
your Elohim…” (26: 4). Now the Israelite is bidden to recount before YHVH some
of the history of his people (v. 5ff), which of course highlights YHVH’s
indispensable role in leading the said Israelite worshipper to thanksgiving, as
well as enhancing his sense of oneness with his ancestors and with the future
generations. As we have seen many times before, place, time and people all come
together under the sovereign rule of YHVH.
However, this declaration: “And you shall
place it before YHVH your Elohim, and bow yourself before YHVH your Elohim,” along
with the presentation of the fruit in the basket - does
not end this particular activity. In 26:11 we read: “… and rejoice in all the good which YHVH your Elohim has given to you, and
to your house, you, and the Levite, and the alien who is in your midst,” immediately
leading to: “When you have made an end of tithing all the tithes of your
increase the third year, the year of tithing, and have given it to the Levite,
the alien, the orphan, and the widow, that they may eat inside your gates, and
be filled…” (v.12). Thus the individual Israelite, who is responsible before
his Elohim for handing over the initial yield of his land, for thanking Elohim
and rejoicing before Him, is at the same time also to encompass the needy ones
within his gates, since rendering to them their dues is as good as “lending to
YHVH” Himself (ref. Prov.19:17).
Noticeably, the address
made to the Israelites in chapter 26 is in the second person singular, which
constitutes, as noted before, a means to emphasize the individual
responsibility to be borne by each person. The confession, however, made by the
Israelite worshipper is in first person plural, denoting the collective
national identity in relationship to YHVH. In verse 10 there is an immediate
change, again to first person, as the focus shifts back to the individual’s
responsibility and relationship with his Elohim. Verses 17-19 sum up the
‘transaction’ which will thus take place: “You have today declared YHVH
to be your Elohim, and to walk in His ways, and to keep His statutes and His
commands, and His judgments, and to pay attention to His voice. And YHVH has declared
you today to be His people, a special treasure as He has spoken to you, and to
keep all His commands. And He will make you high above all nations that He has
made, in praise, and in name, and in glory; and that you may be a holy people
to YHVH your Elohim, as He has spoken” (italics added). The verb “declared”
in both instances is “he’emir,” of the root a.m.r (alef, mem, resh),
meaning to “say, utter, declare, speak.” However, because “he’emir” is
an unusual conjugation, rather than the regular “amar,” some translate it
“elevate,” from the root word “a’mir,” which is “top or summit” (for example,
“uppermost branch” in Yishayahu - Isaiah 17:6). The wilderness journey had seen
many incidents of rebellion, as Moshe states in Dvarim (Deuteronomy) 9:24: “You
have been rebels against YHVH from the day that I knew you.” There, as in many
of the other references to the Israelites’ rebelliousness, the word used is
“ma’mrim,” of the root m.r.h. Thus, the sad fact, stated in alliteration form
in Tehilim (Psalms) 107:11: “They defied Elohim’s words” – “himru ee’mrey El,”
finds its ‘remedy’ in another alliteration - “he’emiru” - that is in the action of “saying and
declaring” YHVH’s words, deeds and goodness toward His people.
The rest of the Parasha is mostly devoted
to the blessings and the curses. Even the undertaking in the future, of writing
the Torah on “large stones” after crossing the Yarden and of reading it to the
people, is intended to illustrate vividly the extant dichotomy of “blessings”
and “curses,” as this event was to take place between the “Mountain of
Blessing” and the “Mountain of Curse.”
And, as if to make sure that the people will understand the simple
equation of ‘obedience equals blessings - rebellion equals curses,’ it says:
“And you shall write on the stones all the words of the law very plainly”
(27:8). “Very plainly” is “ba’er heytev,” and while we have
already examined once the verb “ba’er” (and its connection to “b’er,” “well”),
here we encounter the additional “heytev,” of the root “tov” - well,
good, pleasant.” “Ba’er hey’tev,” then, is plainly “do a good job of
explaining and making the meaning clear and simple.”
Moving now to the blessings versus the
curses, we take a look at 28:1 (regarding the blessings) and at verse 15 (the
opening verse of the passage enumerating the curses) and read the following
commentary: “Particularly remarkable is the difference between the emphatic
double phrase of obedience used in the positive passage: ‘If thou shalt
diligently hearken (shamo’a tishma)’ and the bare: ‘if thou shalt not
hearken’ in the negative one. … Rashi, following Talmudic exegesis interprets
the idiomatic doubling of the verb in a conditional sense: ‘And it shall be,’ im
shamoa, ‘if thou shalt hearken,’ tishma, ‘then thou shalt continue
to hearken.’ Though grammatically this is not the implication of the verb
doubling, it nevertheless expresses a deep psychological truth that once man
has started on the right path, his progress becomes easier, gathering momentum
with each fresh good deed. As Maimonides observed: ‘The more man is drawn after
the paths of wisdom and justice, the more he longs for them and desires them’”.
[1]
The blessings and the curses are set
side by side in chapter 28, and are parallel in content. But whereas it takes
14 verses to spell out the blessings, it takes almost four times that to go
through all the curses. It appears that both blessings and curses are
all-encompassing. Being blessed, one is blessed everywhere one goes or happens
to be, and likewise when one is cursed. The blessings and the curses are therefore
all-pervasive. The more the blessings sound pleasant and appealing, the more
horrendous and appalling are the curses, and using some of the same words in
both underscores this fact all the more. The word fruit, for example, is
used this way. In 28:4 and 11 we read: “The fruit of your body shall be
blessed, and the fruit of your ground, and the fruit of your
livestock, the offspring of your oxen, and the young ones of your flock.
(italics added).” “And YHVH shall prosper you in goods, and in the fruit
of your body, and in the fruit of your livestock, and in the fruit
of your ground in the land which YHVH swore to your fathers to give it to you.
(italics added).” In the next section we read about a fierce nation, which
“shall eat the fruit of your livestock, and the fruit of your
land, until you are destroyed (italics added)” (v. 51). But what renders
“fruit” and its usage much more macabre is verse 53: “And you shall eat the fruit
of your body, the flesh of your sons and your daughters whom YHVH your Elohim
has given to you… (italics added)”
Let us review several other similar examples (where the same
term, or root, is used in widely differing contexts, highlighting the severity
of the message). In 28:11 we read: “And
YHVH will grant you plenty of goods…” (emphasis added), which is “ve’hotircham”
from the root y.t.r -“that which surpasses”
and is therefore a “surplus.” But y.t.r. is also the root for “that
which remains.” And so in 28:54 the root y.t.r is employed once more,
though with a very different message: “The sensitive and very refined man among
you will be hostile toward his brother, toward the wife of his bosom, and
toward the rest – “yeter” - of his children whom he leaves
behind – “yotir” - so that he will not give any of them the flesh of
his children whom he will eat…” (emphasis added). These words, aside from
highlighting the horrid situation, especially as juxtaposed against the
blessings of y.t.r., also echo the same morbidity which characterized the
passage we just read above (having had to do with “fruitfulness”). “Avod” - “work, labor, worship,
serve” is another term which is used in this manner. “Because you did
not serve/worship YHVH your Elohim with joyfulness and with gladness of
heart for the abundance of all things, you shall serve your enemies whom
YHVH shall send on you, in hunger, and in thirst, and in nakedness, and in lack
of all things. And he shall put an iron yoke on your neck until he has
destroyed you” (vv. 47, 48 italics added). Verse 64 takes us even further: “And
YHVH shall scatter you among all people, from one end of the earth even to the
other, and you shall serve other gods there, wood and stone, which you
have not known, nor your fathers” (italics added).
Becoming “a proverb and a byword – ma’shal u’shneena
- among all the peoples” (v. 37) is another outcome of not heeding YHVH’s
voice, as opposed to “all the peoples of the earth shall see that you are
called by the name of YHVH, and they shall fear you” (v. 10). In Parashat
Chayey Sarah we examined “ma’sha-l” extensively. We found that one of the verbs
for “to rule” – mashol – shares its root (m.sh.l) with words such as “proverb,
parable and example.” Thus, a ruler who represents his higher authority,
as he is meant to in YHVH’s kingdom, becomes a fit example of the latter.
Here Yisrael is warned against misrepresenting YHVH and becoming an object
lesson exemplifying what happens to
those who betray trust. In Yoel (Joel) 2:17 the prophet laments: “And do not give Your heritage to reproach, that the
nations should rule (“lim’shol”) over them. Why should they say among the
peoples, 'Where is their Elohim?'" The second term used in the
above “proverb and byword” - “sh’neena” - stems
from the root sh.n.n. (shin, noon, noon) and means to “sharpen or to whet,”
and by implication “repeat.” Thus, if Yisrael should set a negative
example, that fact will be told repeatedly, over and over and in every place.
However, if they obey the word, “vesheenantam… “teach repeatedly” YHVH’s
Word to their children (Deut. 6:7), not only will they not become a “sh’neena”
- “a byword”- among the nations,
rather they will be at the “head” of all
the nations (ref. 28:13).
The ultimate fulfillment of the curses is being scattered
among the nations. This entails a situation which will be totally unbearable,
“and among these nations you shall find no ease, nor shall the sole of your
foot have rest – ma’no’ach…” (v. 65). In Parashat No’ach we read: “The dove was sent to see if the water had abated and,
found no resting place – again ma’no’ach - for the sole of her foot….” (B’resheet,
Genesis 8:8,9). But the suffering, anguish and dread only continue: “And your life shall hang in doubt before you, and you shall
fear day and night, and shall have no assurance of your life. In the morning
you shall say, Oh that it were evening! And in the evening you shall say, Oh
that it were morning! For the fear of your heart with which you fear, and for
the sight of your eyes which you shall see” (vv. 66, 67). Indeed, one Holocaust
survivor chose to name the book he wrote about his experiences, Oh That It Were
Evening. “Evening” as we noted several times already is “erev” of the
root e.r.v (ayin, resh, bet/vet), with its numerous derivations, such as, mix,
pleasant, raven and guarantee (the end of the day, “erev,” is a guarantee of
the coming of the morning). The Guarantor of the coming day, in this case here, can only be the
One who is ‘mixed in’ (that is involved) with those to whom He is pledging His
guarantee. Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) chapter 30, for example, contains tremendous
(and guaranteed) promises to Yisrael. In verse 21 we read the following: “Their
leader [“moshel” which we just encountered above] shall be one of them and
their ruler shall come forth from their midst [remember Parashat Shoftim and
the leader who was to be raised from “among their brethren”?]. And I will bring
him near and he shall approach Me; For who would dare to risk his life to
approach Me?”. “Dare to risk (his life)” is once again from the same familiar
e.r.v - “a’ra’v.” The answer to that question is quite clear, as no one else
but the Son could risk His life, as indeed He has, by “sacrificing” (which is the
same verb as “approach”) Himself!
Finally (in v. 68), “And YHVH shall bring you into Egypt Egypt Egypt
Verses 1-9 of chapter 29, which form the
epilogue of our Parasha, serve to remind the future Israelites, once again, of
the miracles that they had experienced in this Egypt, which just a moment ago
was presented before them as a potential place of untold future sufferings.
They are called to remember in the future the extent of YHVH’s past goodness
toward them and His great mercy, love and power; a remembrance which will be
essential for their conduct and wellbeing in the future, hence the exhortation:
“Pay attention to the words of this covenant, and do them, that you may act
wisely in all that you do”! (29:9)
[1] New Studies in
Devarim, Nechama Leibowitz, trans. Aryeh Newman, Eliner Library, Department for
Torah Education and Culture in the Diaspora, Hemed books Inc., Brooklyn , N.Y.
