Rabbi Ari Kahn
Parashat V’zot Habracha
5776
From Sinai to Jerusalem
In the final parashah of the Torah, Moshe takes leave of his
people by blessing them:
And this is the blessing with which
Moshe, the
man of God, blessed the children of Israel [just] before
his death. He said: "God came
from Sinai and shone forth from Se’ir to
them; He appeared from Mount Paran …
(Devarim 32:2)
As a preface to the blessings he is about to bestow upon
them, Moshe makes reference to two specific geographical locations, two places
that have been mentioned before but whose significance he does not explain: Se’ir and Paran. Rashi, drawing upon earlier
traditions[1], fills
in the blanks for us:
…and shone forth from Se’ir to them: [Why
did He come from Se’ir?] Because God first offered the children of Esav [who
dwelled in Se’ir] that they accept the Torah, but they did not want [to accept
it].
…from Mount Paran: [Why did God then come
from Paran?] Because He went there and offered the children of Yishmael [who
dwelled in Paran] to accept the Torah, but they [also] did not want [to accept
it]. (Rashi, Devarim 32:2)
Rashi, always a sensitive reader of the text,
explains these cryptic references to long-forgotten places through the
application of a well-known tradition that has clear textual grounding:
Yishmael, son of Hagar and Avraham, “settled in the Paran wilderness” after he
and his mother were banished from Avraham’s tent (Bereishit 21:21), while Esav’s
domain in Se’ir was well-known to this generation of Israelites, who had been
instructed to steer well clear of the inheritance given to the other son of Yitzchak
(Devarim 2:5). Rashi deftly weaves the textual associations of Se’ir and Paran
together with the tradition regarding their unwillingness to accept the Torah:
Each of these sons of Avraham had been given the opportunity to become the
People of the Book, as it were, but each had rejected the offer when they found
out what was involved.
This approach stands in stark contrast to the
approach of the Children of Israel. At the foot of Mount Sinai, when offered
the Torah, they responded without hesitation: “Na’aseh
v’nishma” – “we will do and we will hear”. They accepted the Torah “sight
unseen”, as it were, without question, without consideration of the pragmatics,
of the demands that their acceptance of this Divine gift would entail.
The relationship between God and the Children of
Israel is not dependent upon the content of the Torah; rather, the Torah is an
expression of the unique relationship between them. This relationship, also
described by Rashi, in the verse that prefaces Moshe’s parting blessings:
“And this is the blessing with which Moshe, the man of God,
blessed the children of Israel [just] before his death. He said: "God came from Sinai…’”
He came out toward them when they came to stand at
the foot of the mountain, as a bridegroom goes forth to greet his bride, as it
is said, “[And Moshe brought the people forth] toward God” (Shmot 19:17). We
learn from this that God came out toward them. (Rashi, Devarim 32:2)
In a sense, when the Jews accepted the Torah, they
entered into a covenant with God, taking a vow similar to those of marriage. When
a man and woman are wed, they do not know what fortune (or perhaps misfortune) awaits;
their future is a book that is as yet unwritten. Their marriage is not based
upon any assurance of what the content of that book will be; it is based upon their
love for one another, and the decision that they wish to share the journey into
the unknown. Rashi contrasts the pragmatic relationship, the aborted relationship
between God and the nations that live in Se’ir and Paran, with the loving
relationship entered into by those who declared “na’aseh v’nishma”, who had no expectation of reading the content
of the book before making the loving commitment to the future of their
relationship. Esav and Yishmael demanded to read the fine print before entering
into the covenant; what they read seemed to them excessively demanding, and
they declined God’s offer. The sons of Yaakov, on the other hand, had complete
trust in the One who had offered them the covenant, and wanted nothing more
than the loving relationship that this covenant would foster.
There may be a deeper level to this teaching: The
names of the two protagonists, Esav and Yishmael, are suspiciously similar to
the two words said by the children of Israel, na’aseh v’nishma (we will do we will listen). Taking careful note
of the roots of these Hebrew words unlocks layers of meaning that might be
overlooked in translations: The word na’aseh
(we will do) shares the root asah with
the name of Yitzchak’s son Esav,
while nishma (we will listen) shares
its root, shama, with the name Yishmael.[2]
There are several conclusions that we might draw from
this etymological lesson: On the one hand, we might see within it an emphasis
on the fidelity of the Jews versus the hesitation of those who perhaps might
lay claim to some part of the inheritance of Avraham: The Children of Israel
succeeded, in declaring na’aseh v’nishma,
where the children of Esav and Yishmael had failed. Furthermore, we may say
that in using these precise words, the Children of Israel channeled the
spiritual power and potential that the others had forfeited.
On the other hand, as we approach the final verses of
the Five Books of Moshe - and begin again, returning to Genesis, to Bereishit,
to Creation, perhaps there is a new hope. All of mankind was created in the
image of God; the entire world was created with spiritual potential. The
message of the last chapter of Devarim leads directly to the message of the
first chapter of Bereishit: those who succeeded in creating this unique, loving
bond with God, and those who failed. We are given the opportunity to pause and wonder,
to pause and hope, that the realty of the past does not dictate the destiny of
the future. We do not rest on the laurels of the blessings of V’Zot HaBrachah and the knowledge that
our relationship with God is unique; instead,
we wait for the day that all peoples of the earth will embrace the word of God
and live in tranquility.
Also the
strangers that join themselves to God to serve Him and to love the name
of God, to be His servants… I will bring them to My holy mountain, and make them joyful in My house of prayer; their
burnt-offerings and their sacrifices shall be acceptable upon
My altar, for My house shall be called a house of prayer for all
peoples. Thus declares the Almighty God
who gathers the dispersed of Israel: Yet I will gather
others to him, beside those that are gathered. (Yishayahu 56:6-8)
Chazak
Chazak V’nitchazek!
For a more in-depth analysis see: http://arikahn.blogspot.co.il/2015/09/audio-and-essays-vzot-habracha.html
[1] See
Sifri Dvarim V’zot Habracha Piska 343.
[2]
This teaching is found in the commentary of the Vilna Gaon in his Aderet Eliyahu, Dvarim 32:2, and in
numerous places in the writings of the Hid”a, who attributes the idea to the Torat Haim (authored by R. Abraham
Hayyim ben R. Naftali Tzvi Hirsch Schor, d. 1632) commentary to Talmud Bavli Avoda
Zara 2b.
Echoes of Eden
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