Parshat Vayelech

Vayelech is the shortest of all parshiyot, a mere thirty verses long. Poignantly, Moses tells the people, “I am now a hundred and twenty years old, and I can no longer go forth and come in” (Deut. 31:2). He will not lead them across the Jordan into the Promised Land.

So Moses summons his successor - Joshua - and, in the presence of the people, gives him words of encouragement. He instructs the people to gather every seven years to hear a public reading of the Torah. God appears to Moses and Joshua, warning them that the Israelites may eventually stray from the covenant. He instructs them to write down the Torah and teach it to the people, as permanent testimony of the covenant itself. He then encourages Joshua, assuring him that He will be with him as he leads the people.

Leadership
The great transition is about to take place. Moses’ career as a leader is coming to an end, and Joshua’s leadership is about to begin.…
To Renew our Days
The moment had come. Moses was about to die. He had seen his sister Miriam and brother Aaron pre-decease him. He had prayed to God…
Torah as Song
Moses’ long and tempestuous career is about to end. With words of blessing and encouragement he hands on the mantle of leadership to his successor…
Consensus vs. Command
What do you say to your successor? What advice do you give them? Vayelech is the place to look for the answer, because it is here that…
How to Renew a Nation
The Talmud gives an ingenious reading to the line, “Moses commanded us a Torah, as a heritage of the congregation of Israel.” Noting that there…
The Torah as God’s Song
At the end of his life, having given the Israelites 612 commands at God’s behest, Moses gave them the final mitzvah: “Now therefore write down…
The Second Mountain
What do you do when you have achieved it all, when you have risen to whatever career heights fate, or providence, has in store for…
Why Be Jewish?
In the last days of his life Moses renews the covenant between God and Israel. The entire book of Devarim has been an account of…
The Singers and the Song
At the end of his life, having given the Israelites 612 commands (mitzvot), Moses is instructed to give them the last; command number 613: Now…
The Heart, the Home, the Text
By now Moses had given 612 commands to the Israelites. But there was one further instruction he still had to give, the last of his…
Covenantal Politics
At the end of his life, Moses gave the people the penultimate command – the 612th of the 613 that comprise the Torah. It was…