The Torah’s last Parasha, with its prophetic blessings
upon the People of Yisrael and the individual tribes, is also the last curtain
for Moshe who takes his leave off the stage of history. We have seen the
Patriarchs bless their sons before their departure, and now we view Moshe
blessing the people whom he had carried in his bosom like a father (sometimes
in spite of himself, ref. Num, 11:12) for over forty years.
The opening statement, “ve’zot habracha”
(“and this is the blessing”), indicates that the first and more general
component of the blessing (33:2-5) is part and parcel of one singular
blessing that Moshe delivers as YHVH’s spirit rests upon him. That is to say
that each tribe’s blessing is not separate from the word bestowed upon the
nation as a whole. The very usage of “b’racha”, singular, implies that YHVH is
considering each individual tribe as part of a complete entity.
The glorious and majestic description of the giving of
the Torah at Sinai is likened to an epiphany, if you will, of YHVH Himself,
denoted by His “coming,” “rising” and “shinning forth”
over physical and geographical locations (ref v. 2). An equivalent description,
although underscored by a more specific prophecy, found in Chavakuk (Habakkuk)
3:3, will perhaps help us realize that this expose’ of YHVH may not be
restricted only to the event which took place at Chorev, as YHVH is not bound
to, or limited by Time, even when He intercepts our dimensionally-confined
world. Thus, a wider scope of revelation of Yisrael’s Elohim is presented here.
Interestingly, in “He came with ten thousands of
saints” (v. 2), it is not the usual “ba” (“came”), but rather the Aramaic “ata,”
evoking the Aramaic “maranatha” – or “maran ata” (Revelation 22:20) - that is,
“Master come” or “the Master has come.” The
enigmatic meaning of verses 2 and 3 is matched by the very words and syntax
used, all of which are difficult and extraordinary, and present a task for the
commentators to grapple with. The literal rendering, for example, of
“ten thousands of saints,” mentioned in verse 2, is “ten thousands of holiness,”
the word there being “kodesh.” Thus, if the text is referring to “ten
thousands of saints” or “holy ones,” why are “His holy ones” in the next verse
(v. 3) rendered as “k’doshav” (“kadosh” - “holy one”), plain and simple? If in
both cases the meaning is “His holy ones,” why are they not identical? Or, is
it possible that “ten thousands of holiness” is not a reference to “saints” (or
“angels” according to rabbinic interpretation) at all, but is a description of
His abode being “abundant in holiness”?
The next expression in the same verse (2) is no less
problematic. That which is translated either “firey law” or “flashing
lightning” is “eshdat” in Hebrew, being a term that appears
nowhere else. If broken in two it is: “e’sh” – fire – and “dat”
– “law, edict” or “manner of things.” However,
“dat” is found only in Esther, one time in Ezra and in the Aramaic sections of
Daniel, making its usage here, at such an early stage, totally doubtful.
According to the B.D.B Lexicon “eshdat” was originally “esh yokeh-dat,”
that is “burning fire” (with the first two syllables now missing). [1]
According to this viewpoint we should read, “On His right (-that is, the right hand
side) is a burning fire.”
Verse 3 reads: “Indeed, He loves the people; all thy
holy ones are in Thy hand, and they followed in Thy steps, carrying your words.”
This presents several problems. It changes mid-sentence from third to second
person. “He who loves the nations” or “peoples” is described as “chovev
amim.” The root ch.v.v. (chet, vet, vet) – love dutifully – also forms
the name Chovav, which is one of the names of Moshe’s father-in-law (ref. Num.
10:29). According to Daat Mikra, “even when He expresses love toward all
peoples, ‘all His Holy ones’ are Yisrael and they are ‘in Your hand.’”
Therefore the change to second person in the second part of the verse denotes
YHVH’s closeness to His people. Daat Mikra adds that the rest of the verse
should read: “And they will be smitten at Your feet, and receive Your
Word,” [2]
whereas according to BDB the verb “tuku,” (“smitten”) is of dubious
meaning and should therefore be understood as: “will be assembled,” as it is
more compatible with the context. [3]
Yisrael’s present and future destiny is defined in the
next two verses. Since Moshe is mentioned here in third person, the question
arises whether he is speaking of himself, or is the assembly intoning the
following: “Moses charged us with Torah, an inheritance for the assembly of
Jacob. And there was a king in Jeshurun” [remember last Parasha’s Yeshurun,
“the one who has been straightened,” in contradistinction to Ya’acov who is
“winding or crooked”?]; when the heads of the people were gathered, the tribes
of Israel
At this point Moshe confers on each tribe its
respective prophetic blessing.
The first three tribes to receive their blessings are
the firstborn Reuven, who in spite of having lost the birthright (ref. 1st
Chronicles 5:1, 2), symbolizes here this significant position; Secondly,
Yehuda (Judah), who was to receive the kingly position, while Levi is third to
be given his blessing and stands for the office of the priesthood. There is no
mistake - this is the order of YHVH’s Kingdom: the birthright comes first,
ideally consisting of kingship and priesthood. However, in the un-regenerated
state the birthright had to be divided up into its two offices (namely the
‘kingly’ and the ‘priestly’), which were only brought together in Yeshua (ref.
Zech. 6:13). But when YHVH’s kingdom will be fully manifested upon the earth,
His people will form the long-awaited-for nation of priests (after the order of
Malchitzedek) and kings (e.g. ref. 1st
Peter 2:9).
Since Yehuda, according to the blessing (v. 7), was
destined to be “brought to his people,” it is apparent that he will be
separated from them at some point. This prediction became fact when the ten
northern tribes seceded from the united kingdom
Of Levi it says (v.
9): “who said to his father and to his mother, I have not seen him; and he has
not acknowledged his brothers, nor knew his own son, for they have observed
Your word and kept Your covenant.” The word for “acknowledge” is “hekir,”
also meaning to “recognize” and stems from the root n.ch.r (noon,
kaf/chaf, resh) used in “nochri,” “stranger,” and in the verb “hitnaker,” to be
“estranged.” This term describes Yoseph’s initial treatment of his brothers in
B’resheet (Genesis) 42:7. The Levites, who were also to assume the position of
judges, could not be “partial” to anyone, including their own family members,
or as the Hebrew has it, they could not “recognize or acknowledge"
their relatives, but rather, had to become “estranged” from them.
“Estrangement” and “recognition,” although appearing to be contradictory, are
in fact not that far apart; at times it takes the former in order to achieve
the latter (as was the case with Yoseph and his brothers).
The description enumerating Yoseph’s blessing (vs. 13
– 17) resembles a trail going up and down hills, descending into valleys and
underground resources and climbing mountain tops; a journey, which while
topographical and geographical, also crosses the boundaries of Time and is
‘intercepted’ by the human element as well as by heavenly bodies, such as the
sun and the moon (recalling to mind Yoseph’s dreams). “Meged” - translated
“precious - is the leitmotif of this passage, as it is repeated five times
within a few verses. Its expanded meaning is “excellence, glory, and
gifts of choice” in reference to nature.[4] In verse 15, Yoseph’s hills and mountains are
termed “ancient” (“kedem” - “first, initial, primary”),
and “everlasting” (the word being “olam,” which also means
“futurity”). Both the heavens and the abyss are destined to contribute toward
Yoseph’s well being. That which the ground will produce for him on a monthly basis
will grow so fast, that it will seem as though “expelled” (‘”the best
yield” is “geresh”, g.r.sh, to “expel, force out”)
by the earth. On the one hand “he shall push out the peoples” (v. 17). His
leadership position, however, is not likened to the prowess of a king or a
military leader, nor even to that of a typical priest, but rather to that of
the Nazarite (ref. end of v. 16 – “n’zir ehcav”, literally the “nazarite
among his brothers” and translated as “the one who was separated from his
brothers,” or “a prince among his brothers”). The title used here originates in
“nezer,” a “crown or a miter,” which is made up of the
nazarite’s uncut hair (as we saw in Parashat Nasso, Num. 6). The “nazarite” -
or “nazir”- is one who takes upon himself an oath to abstain from worldly
pleasures.
Z’vulun (Zebulun) is told to rejoice in his “going
out” (v. 18). In Parashat Ki Tetze (Deut. 21:10) we already noted that “going
out” many a time connotes going out to war (ref. 1st Ch. 12:33), and
in Z’vulun’s case also going out to sea (ref. Ya’acov’s blessings to his sons,
in Gen. 49:13). Yisas’char’s (Issachar) tent dwelling is the antidote to
Z’vulun’s “going out,” and refers to homestead and attachment to the land (the
tent dwelling here does not seem to suggest a nomadic life style; cf. Jacob’s
blessings, Gen. 49:14), and perhaps also to the wisdom and discernment
characteristic of this people (ref. 1st Chronicles 12:32). The
mutual cooperation between these two neighboring tribes is captured by verse
19. Yisas’char “shall call the peoples to the
mountain. There they shall offer sacrifices of righteousness,” while
Z’vulun will make provisions of “the bounty of the
seas and treasures hidden in the sand.”
Naphtali is “satisfied
with favor,” which is “s’vah ratzon” (v. 23), while Asher, who is
“favorable in the eyes of his brothers,” is “r’tzooy echav” (v.
24). Both these words emanate from the root r.tz.h., which is to “please,
accept, favor.”
In verse 15 we read about the “ancient – kedem –
mountains,” while in verse 27 Elohim, who is described as a “dwelling place”
(“me’ona”), is called “Elohey kedem,” translated here as “eternal.”
Thus, He who always was from the very beginning, is also the One who will ever
be and it is He who will enable Yisrael to “dwell alone securely” (v. 28,
literal translation; cf Bil’am’s blessing, Num. 23:9), as He Himself is her
dwelling place while “underneath [her] are [His] everlasting arms” (v. 27).
Moshe’s last words constitute an exhilarating
exclamation: “Blessed are you, O Israel! Who is like you, O people saved by
YHVH, the shield of your help, and who is the sword of your excellency! And
your enemies shall be found liars to you, and you shall tread on their high
places” (33:29). It is most likely that Moshe himself did not compose the last
eight verses of D’varim (chapter 34, or even the entire chapter, consisting of
12 verses). About his body it is said, “He buried him…” (34:6), inferring the
direct involvement of the Holy One of Yisrael in the task. And although in
Sh’mot (Exodus) 33:20 YHVH said to Moshe: “You cannot see My face. For there no
man can see Me and live,” here we read, in verse 10: “And never since has a
prophet like Moses arisen in Israel ,
whom YHVH knew face to face.” These
words do point to Moshe’s intimate knowledge of the Almighty, Who Himself is
said to have “known” Moshe (cf. 1st Cor. 13:12a). “Panim el
panim” (“face to face”) implies exposure before
someone, as in Hebrew “face” is not only an external image, with the root p.n.h
(which we have noted several times in the past) meaning “to turn.” Thus “face” is that which “turns” to look at
another. And while “panim” is the “exterior,” or the “surface,” “p’nim”
means “inner” (ref. Ezekiel 40:19,23 etc.). Thus “panim” - face - expresses
also that which is on the inside. In 2nd Corinthians 3:18 this
principle is applied in a powerful way to each individual believer: “We all,
with our face having been unveiled, having beheld [‘turned
toward’] the glory of YHVH as in a mirror, are being changed [on the
inside] into the same image from glory to glory, even as by YHVH, the Spirit”
(italics added).
[1] The New Brown, Driver, Briggs, Gesenius Lexicon, Francis Brown
Hendrickson. Publishers, Peabody,Mass.
[2] Da’at Mikra, A’ahron Mirski, Rav Cook Inst., Jerusalem
[3] The New Brown, Driver, Briggs, Gesenius Lexicon
[4] Ibid.
