​















Rabbi David Etengoff
  
The expression, “b’etzem hayom hazeh,” introduces the tragic narrative that portrays Moshe’s impending death: “And Hashem spoke to Moshe on that very day (b’etzem hayom hazeh), saying: “Go up this Mount Avarim [to] Mount Nebo, which is in the land of Moab, that is facing Jericho, and see the Land of Canaan, which I am giving to the children of Israel as a possession.” (Sefer Devarim, 32:48-49, this and all Tanach and Rashi translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach) Rashi (1040-1105), basing himself on Midrash Sifrei, notes that our expression is used when Hashem’s authority is challenged and the futility that accompanies such an act:

And Hashem spoke to Moshe on that very day: …  here (Sefer Devarim 32:48), regarding Moses’ death, the Torah states, “on that very day (בְּעֶצֶם הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה).” B’nai Yisrael said, “We swear by such and such, that if we notice Moshe [ascending the mountain to die], we will not let him do so! The man who brought us out of Egypt, divided the Red Sea for us, brought the manna down for us, made flocks of quails fly over to us, brought up the well for us, and gave us the Torah—we will not let him!” Thereupon, the Holy One, Blessed be He, said: “I will have Moshe ascend the mountain [to his resting place] in the middle of the day!”
 
What should our ancestors have done for Moshe instead of rebelling against the Almighty? My rebbe and mentor, Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik zatzal (1903-1993), known as the “Rav” by his students and disciples, suggested this response:

It was not the fault of the Jewish people that Moses made a mistake [by striking the rock instead of speaking to it, Sefer Bamidbar 20:8-13)]. But had the people possessed a sensitivity and love for Moses similar to the love that Moses felt for them, they would have torn the decree into shreds. It was their fault… When he was told that he would not enter the Land of Israel, Moses pleaded for forgiveness. Had the people joined him in prayer, the Holy One would have been forced to respond. But they did not join. Thus, we read in Parashat Va-etchanan that with tears in his eyes Moses tells them, “Va-etchanan” (Devrim 3:23): I prayed alone. It was not va-nitchanan, we prayed. I was a lonely solitary prayerful person; I prayed, no one else joined in with me. (Rabbi Joseph B. Soloveitchik, Vision and Leadership: Reflections on Joseph and Moses, editors, David Shatz, Joel B. Wolowelsky, and Reuven Ziegler, page 212, underlining, brackets and bolding my own)
 
The Rav’s answer is so heart-wrenching that it brings one to tears. The depth of Moshe’s love for Am Yisrael was nearly unrequited. Moshe had sacrificed every aspect of his personal happiness to serve his people. He divorced his wife, was a stranger to his children and lived alone. All of this was so he could be ready to communicate with Hashem at a moment’s notice, and quite often, on the nation’s behalf. Yet, where was their recognition for Moshe’s total self-sacrifice? Why did they abandon him? Why did they fail to join him in tefilah? The Rav explained this disconnect between Moshe and his beloved people in this manner:

Moses was too great for his generation. He rose high above them. His vision was too penetrating, his depth superhuman, his sweep too high. They could not follow him; they failed to understand him. Had they understood and appreciated him … Moses would have been admitted to the Promised Land. The people’s guilt consisted in their not opening up to Moses’ influence, in resisting his redemptive and cathartic power, in not being willing to become his disciples. Of course, Moses suffered the consequences. (Page, 214)
 
As the Rav notes, it is incredibly tragic that our forebears failed to advocate on Moshe’s behalf before the Master of the Universe:
​
[For] if Benei Yisrael had proven themselves worthy of communing with Moses, of being his disciples, if they had displayed the intellectual and emotional capacity to receive and absorb Torat Moshe [and prayed on his behalf], then Moses would have entered and conquered the Promised Land, and he would have been anointed as the King Messiah. Jewish history would have found its realization and fulfillment immediately upon entering the land. (Page, 214)
 
Sadly, our nation continues to wait for Mashiach and the “realization and fulfillment” of Jewish history. Let us hope and pray that he will not tarry long, and Zechariah the prophet’s vision will be fulfilled soon and in our days: “And Hashem shall become King over all the earth; on that day shall Hashem be one, and His name one.” (Sefer Zechariah 14:9) V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: https://www.box.com/s/7bf01f9abcabf02e25c3
 
*** I have posted 164+ of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

​Rabbi David Etengoff
 
ה' יעזור וירחם על אחינו כל בני ישראל בארץ ישראל ובכל חלקי הארץ
 
There is a popular saying regarding familiar pasukim: “If Rashi wrote about it, it is shagur b’pive ha’am—it is something that people know.” One such example is found in Sefer Bereishit: “These are the generations of Noach; Noach was a righteous man he was perfect b’dorotov—in his generations; Noach walked with Elokim.” (6:9, this and all Tanach and Rashi translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach, with my emendations) Rashi famously comments:

in his generations. Some of our Sages interpret it [the word בְּדֹרֹתָיו] favorably: How much more so if he had lived in a generation of righteous people, he would have been even more righteous. Others interpret it derogatorily: In comparison to his generation, he was righteous, but if he had been in Avraham’s generation, he would not have been considered of any importance. [Sanhedrin 108a, Bereishit Rabbah 30:9, Midrash Tanchuma Noach 5]
 
Rashi underscores the significance of this interpretation in his next gloss:
​
Noach walked with Elokim. But concerning Avraham, the Torah says [24:40]: “[Hashem] before Whom I walked.” Noach required [Hashem’s] support to uphold him [in righteousness], but Avraham strengthened himself and walked in his righteousness by himself. [Midrash Tanchuma, Noach 5]
 
Hashem’s earlier words to Avram (Avraham), in contrast, underscore this analysis: “And Avram was ninety-nine years old, and Hashem appeared to Avram, and He said to him, ‘I am the Almighty God; walk before Me and be perfect.’” In sum, one of Avraham’s defining characteristics was his ability to walk before Hashem, without any support from Him, and attain perfection. Little wonder then, that Avraham, and Avraham alone, is called “Ohavi, he who loved Me.” (Sefer Yeshayahu, 41:8)

Significantly, our parasha contains several pasukim wherein we find a variation of the infinitive, “lalechet—to walk or go:”

“Vayelech Moshe --And Moshe went, and he spoke the following words to all Israel.” (Sefer Devarim 31:1)
 
… for Hashem, Elokecha, Hu haholech imach —He is the One Who goes with you [Jewish people]. He will neither fail you, nor forsake you. (31:6)
 
… Hashem Hu haholech lefanecha--He is the One Who goes before you (Yehoshua); He will be with you; He will neither fail you, nor forsake you. (31:8)
 
A careful reading of 31:6 reveals that the descendants of the Dor HaMidbar who entered Eretz Yisrael were very much like Noach in the sense that Hashem walked with them. In other words, they did not have sufficient spiritual strength to survive the idol worshipping enticements of the surrounding native peoples on their own, and instead, they needed Hashem’s direct support.
 
Yehoshua, however, was on a very different level, in that “Hu haholech lefanecha,” Hashem went before him and taught him how to lead the Jewish people. Little wonder, then, that the people who entered Eretz Yisrael remained loyal to Hashem until after Yehoshua’s children passed away, in deference to the great leader’s spiritual stature.
 
Moshe Rabbeinu attained the highest level of all: “Vayelech Moshe --And Moshe went, and he spoke the following words to all Israel.” Moshe needed no support from Hashem to perform his holy mission as the greatest navi the world has ever known. In the final analysis, his entire being was engaged in performing one glorious task, namely, to bring the Torah and emunat Hashem to Klal Yisrael. As the Gemara teaches us: “Moshe v’Torato emet--Moshe and his Torah are the ultimate truth.” (Baba Batra 74a:)
 
Shabbat Shalom and Kativah v’Chatimah Tovah
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: https://www.box.com/s/7bf01f9abcabf02e25c3
 
*** I have posted 164+ of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

​Rabbi David Etengoff
 
ה' יעזור וירחם על אחינו כל בני ישראל בארץ ישראל ובכל חלקי הארץ
 
Parashat Nitzavim contains a celebrated pasuk that proclaims the accessibility of the Torah: “Lo bashamayim he—It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will go up to heaven for us and fetch it for us, to tell [it] to us, so that we can fulfill it?’” (Sefer Devarim 30:12, this and all Torah and Rashi translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach) Rashi (1040-1105), basing himself on Talmud Bavli Eruvin 55a, analyzes the phrase “lo bashamayim he” on the peshat level: “For if it were in heaven, you would have to climb up after it [in order] to learn it.” In a word, nothing whatsoever should stand in the way of the mitzvah of limud Torah.
 
Chazal view lo bashamayim he as the underpinning of one of the most crucial ideas in Judaism, namely, the eternality of the Torah. This idea is given powerful voice in a famous passage in Talmud Bavli, Baba Metziah 59b:

On that day R. Eliezer brought forward every imaginable argument [in a highly technical dispute regarding ritual purity and impurity], but they [the other Sages] did not accept them… [Said Rabbi Eliezer:] “If the halacha agrees with me, let it be proved from Heaven!” Whereupon a Heavenly Voice (bat kol) cried out: “Why do you dispute with R. Eliezer, seeing that in all matters the halacha agrees with him!” But R. Yehoshua arose and exclaimed: “Lo bashamayim he!” What did he mean by this? Said R. Yirmiyahu: That the Torah had already been given at Mount Sinai; we pay no attention to a Heavenly Voice (bat kol), because You [Hashem] have long since written in the Torah at Mount Sinai (Sefer Shemot 23:2), “One must follow the majority opinion.” (Translation, The Soncino Talmud with my brackets and emendations)
 
This section is nothing less than amazing. In one fell swoop, it denies any possibility of a post-Sinaitic Torah Revelation. Moreover, it demonstrates that human reason, in conjunction with the accepted principles of Torah exegesis and majority rule, is the sole determinant in any halachic dispute—even if one of the disputants is a bat kol! Rav Moshe Feinstein zatzal (1895-1986) drew upon this interpretation of lo bashamayim he in his analysis of Chazal’s power to determine the halacha:

The Holy One blessed be He gave the Torah to the Jewish people to act according to that which they will understand of the Written Law, and that which was given to them orally (ba’al peh) at Mount Sinai, based upon [the limits of] their comprehension. Moreover, the Holy One never explained nor determined the actual practice of the laws of the Torah, since lo bashamayim he; instead, He agreed from the outset to the understanding and explanations of the Torah Sages… even if this was possibly not in accord with the Holy One blessed be He’s understanding. (Iggerot Moshe, Introduction, translation, brackets and underlining my own)
 
The fundamental import of lo bashamayim he is also the focus of Talmud Bavli, Temurah 16a:

Rav Yehudah stated in the name of Shmuel: Three thousand halachot were forgotten during the period of mourning for Moshe. They said to Yehoshua: “Ask!” He replied: “Lo bashamayim he.” They [the Jewish people] said to Shmuel [the prophet]: “Ask!” He replied: “Aleh HaMitzvot--These are the commandments,” (Sefer Vayikra 27:34) suggesting [that since the Mitzvot have been given] no prophet at this time has the right to introduce anything new [to the Torah]… They [the Jewish people] said to Pinchas: “Ask!” He replied to them: “Lo bashamayim he.” They said to Elazar: “Ask!” He replied: “Aleh HaMitzvot,” suggesting that no prophet at this time has the right to introduce anything new. (Translation, The Soncino Talmud with my emendations)
 
A careful reading of this passage reveals that we have two answers to our ancestors’ demand “Ask!”  Yehoshua and Pinchas both responded with “Lo bashamayim he,” whereas Shmuel and Elazar declared “Aleh HaMitzvot.” At first blush it seems that these replies differ widely from one another, yet, in his commentary on this Gemara, the Maharsha (Rav Shmuel Eidels, 1555-1631) views them as complementary statements:
​
When the Jewish people requested Yehoshua to “ask,” they wanted him to inquire from Heaven itself to make known to him the halachot that had been forgotten. He then told them lo bashamayim he, for since the time of Moshe’s death, the Torah no longer granted us the permission to ask Heaven directly to clarify doubts [and questions that may arise] …Yet, the Torah did give [Chazal] permission to determine unclear matters in accordance with the principle of majority rule—as found in Moshe’s Torah.
 
And this is the same response that was given by Shmuel… namely, no prophet at this time has the right to introduce anything new [to the Torah]. This means, that since the time of Moshe’s death, no prophet was allowed to create something new [based upon a revelation] from Heaven, for the power to legislate whether something was ritually impure or pure was now given over to the Sages contingent upon the principle of majority rule. (Translation my own)
 
Based upon our sources, the concept of lo bashamayim he in conjunction with the principle of majority rule, represent the gold standard for halachic rulings from the moment of the Revelation at Har Sinai. As Rav Feinstein zatzal said: “The Holy One never explained nor determined the actual practice of the laws of the Torah, since lo bashamayim he; instead, He agreed from the outset to the understanding and explanations of the Torah Sages.” This is reminiscent of Hashem’s charge to Adam HaRishon when he became the steward of the world: “Now the Lord o-d took the man, and He placed him in the Garden of Eden to work it and to guard it.” (Sefer Bereishit 2:15) Just as Adam was tasked with protecting the entire world, so, too, are we obligated to study and guard Hashem’s holy Torah. With the Holy One’s bracha, and our fervent desire, may this be so. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom, Kativah v’Chatimah Tovah
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: https://www.box.com/s/7bf01f9abcabf02e25c3
 
*** I have posted 164+ of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

Rabbi David Etengoff

ה' יעזור וירחם על אחינו כל בני ישראל בארץ ישראל ובכל חלקי הארץ
 
One of the many mitzvot that is found in our parasha is vidui ma’aser (the Declaration of Tithing):

When you have finished tithing all the tithes of your produce in the third year, the year of the tithe, you shall give [them] to the Levite, the stranger, the orphan, and the widow, so that they can eat to satiety in your cities. Then you shall say before Hashem, your God, “I have removed the holy [portion] from the house, and I have also given it to the Levite, the stranger, the orphan, and the widow, according to all Your commandment that You commanded me; I have not transgressed Your commandments, nor have I forgotten [them].” (Sefer Devarim 26:12-13, this and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)
 
The Rambam (1135-1204) formulates our mitzvah in this manner:

The 131st mitzvah that we are commanded is to make a proclamation of the kindness God has bestowed upon us; and that we have separated the obligatory ma’asrot and terumot (types of tithes). We must verbally affirm our separation from them just as we have physically removed them from our premises. This is called vidui ma’aser. The source of this commandment is God’s statement, “And you must declare before Hashem, your God: ‘I have removed all the sacred portions from my house; I have given the appropriate ones to the Levite and to the orphan and widow....’” (Sefer HaMitzvot, 131, translation, Rabbi Reuven Bell, with my emendations)
 
In sum, according to the Rambam, vidui ma’aser is simultaneously hakaret hatov to the Almighty for His beneficence, and a review of the separation, and distribution, of the various tithes we have performed.
 
In his analysis of our mitzvah, the Sefer HaChinuch explains the underlying rationale of the phrase, “Then you shall say before the Hashem, your God,” in a novel manner:
At the root of the precept lies the point that the unique characteristic of man and the great element of his glory is the power of speech; in this he is superior to all [other] species of creatures. For as regards the other functions, other animals also behave as he does. For this reason, there are a great many people who are more fearful of desecrating their speech, which is the great element of distinction in them, than of sinning in action. (Sefer HaChinuch, Mitzvah 607, translation, Charles Wengrov, with my emendations)
 
While the singular import of human speech is a crucial idea, it is somewhat unclear how this concept contributes to our understanding of vidui ma’aser. Fortunately, the Sefer HaChinuch elaborates upon his previous statement:

Now, inasmuch as the manner of tithes and t’rumah is a great thing… it was out of His kindness toward us, in order that we should not sin about them, to adjure us about them to separate them, and then not to have benefit from them through any action; and that we should attest about ourselves, with our mouth, at the Sanctuary that we were not deceitful about them and did not detain anything of them—all this in order that we should be most careful in the matter.
 
Fascinatingly, the explanations of both the Rambam and the Sefer HaChinuch focus upon Hashem’s kindness in conjunction with the obligation of verbal attestation of tithes. Maimonides interprets “the kindness God has bestowed upon us” in reference to the bounty of the fields. In contrast, the Sefer HaChinuch stresses Hashem’s kindness toward us, “in order that we should not sin about them, [the tithes].” As such, he underscores the uniqueness of human speech to enable us to understand the crucial role of oral testimony in guarding the integrity of the tithes, which is the essential purpose and fulfillment of this mitzvah.
 
The Sefer HaChinuch’s discussion of the extraordinary significance of human speech is reminiscent of Onkelos’ explication of, “He [God] breathed into his [Adams’s] nostrils the soul of life, and man became a living soul,” (Sefer Bereishit 2:7) wherein he renders the expression, “and man became a living soul,” as “and man became a speaking being” (v’havat b’adam l’ruach m’mal’lah). In other words, for Onkelos, the distinctive marker that separates humankind from the rest of Creation is our ability to communicate through intelligently conceived speech.

I believe the emphasis placed upon the power of speech by both Onkelos and the Sefer HaChinuch is particularly apropos for the month of Elul and the upcoming period of the Yamim Noraim. My suggestion is strongly supported by the “Al Chet” of Yom Kippur, wherein nine of its 44 statements focus upon abusing the power of speech:
​
For the sin that we have sinned before You with the utterance of the lips.
For the sin that we have sinned before You through speech.
For the sin that we have sinned before You through insincere confession.
For the sin that we have sinned before You through foolish speech.
For the sin that we have sinned before You through impure lips.
For the sin that we have sinned before You through evil talk.
For the sin that we have sinned before You with the idle chatter of our lips.
For the sin that we have sinned before You by gossip mongering.
For the sin that we have sinned before You through vain oath-taking.
(Translation, the Artscroll Machzor)
 
The Al Chet informs us of the great obligation to harness the power of speech in a wise and discerning manner. Our option is clear: We can either use it for mitzvot like vidui ma’aser, and as a vehicle of meaningful communication with others, or chas v’shalom, for the nine sins cited herein. Elul is preeminently the time when we make choices. As Shlomo HaMelech said so long ago: “mavet v’chaim b’yad lashon—death and life are on the tip of the tongue.” (Sefer Mishle 18:21) With Hashem’s help, may we choose life, v’chane yihi ratzon.
​
Shabbat Shalom and kativah v’chatimah tovah.
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
They may also be found on http://www.yutorah.org using the search criteria Etengoff and the parasha’s name.
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: https://www.box.com/s/7bf01f9abcabf02e25c3
 
*** I have posted 164+ of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.