…it is today. Devarim 8:10-18 According to Rashbam, Succot (like Pesach) is a reminder of the humble origins of the Jewish people, a powerful antidote to the risks of affluence. That is one of the overarching themes of Moses’ speeches in the book of Devarim and a mark of his greatness as a leader. The real challenge to the Jewish…
…Listen to great and small alike. Fear no one, for judgment belongs to God. Any matter that is too difficult for you, bring to me and I will hear it.” Tzedek, “justice”, is a key word in the book of Devarim – most famously in the verse: Justice, justice you shall pursue, so that you may thrive and occupy the…
Biblical Israel from the time of Joshua until the destruction of the Second Temple was a predominantly agricultural society. Accordingly, it was through agriculture that the Torah pursued its religious and social programme. It has three fundamental elements. The first was the alleviation of poverty. For many reasons, the Torah accepts the basic principles of what we now call a…
In majestic language, Moses breaks into song, investing his final testament to the Israelites with all the power and passion at his command. He begins dramatically but gently, calling heaven and earth to witness what he is about to say, sounding ironically very much like “The quality of mercy is not strained”, Portia’s speech in The Merchant of Venice. Here…
…Devarim – “Words” – Moses has become the most eloquent of prophets. Some are puzzled by this. They should not be. “Who gives man speech? Said the Lord to him… I will help you speak and I will teach you what to say.” (Ex. 4:11-12) God chose one who was not a man of words, so that when he spoke,…
…strength. It means that he no longer had permission. The moment had come when he had to hand on the role of leader to his successor and disciple, Joshua. He himself stayed full of vigour, as the passion of his speeches in the book of Devarim, delivered in the last month of his life, testify. To understand what Moses epitomises…
Imagine the following scenario. You are 119 years and 11 months old. The end of your life is in sight. Your hopes have received devastating blows. You have been told by God that you will not enter the land to which you have been leading your people for forty years. You have been repeatedly criticised by the people you have…
…the Israelites’ wanderings in the desert. Judaism is less about truth as system than about truth as story. And we are part of that story. That is what it is to be a Jew. A large part of what Moses is doing in the book of Devarim is retelling that story to the next generation, reminding them of what God had done for…
…forty-year journey and in sight of the Promised Land, to renew the covenant that their parents made with God at Mount Sinai. The Core Idea Moshe spends most of the book of Devarim retelling the national story to the new generation, reminding them of what God had done for their parents and also of some of the mistakes their parents…
…live” (Devarim 30:19). The Core Idea There have been many times throughout Jewish history when Jews have been tempted by other religions and cultures. In parshat Nitzavim, Moshe forewarned us: Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. It is not in heaven, so that you have to ask, “Who will…