Devarim – Once Upon a Week

Read the transcript below, or watch a video of the teaching by Yehuda Bachana.

This week we begin a new book, Deuteronomy, which will also be the last book of this series. Deuteronomy is special, because it is based entirely on the speech given by Moses in Trans-jordan. This book is actually composed of speeches and prophesies. They all share the same clear, foundational message: do not abandon God’s commandments and Torah, because they are your source of life.

Moses tries his best to prepare the People of Israel for the entrance to the Land of Israel, thinking beyond his leadership time.

By means of the speeches, we return to past events, viewing them from different perspectives. This includes the Ten Commandments, the legal revolution and the appointment of the Hebrew judges from Parashat Yitro, the sin of the spies and more. For this reason, Deuteronomy is sometimes referred to as: ‘Mishne Torah’, the repetition of the Torah.

It is nice when we get to discuss the name of the Torah portion, the first word of that Torah portion. In this case, Devarim refers both to this Torah portion, as well as to the Hebrew name for book of Deuteronomy. ‘Devarim’ means ‘words’ and comes from the first sentence:

Until now, we were used to read statements like:

, but this time Moses is the one speaking.

Some might find the name Devarim (meaning: ‘words’) a bit amusing, as it connects to speech and words. Many commentators point out the great contrast between Moses at the burning bush - at the beginning of his calling - and Moses at the end of his journey.

At the beginning, Moses tried to escape his calling and responsibility:

God does not accept Moses’ excuses and says: ‘You are fit for the task.’ However, God also comes towards us, as people. He tells Moses: “You have been chosen and together we will take the People of Israel out of Egypt. We will birth this People, as they pass through the Red Sea. But you know what? If speaking makes you feel uncomfortable: your brother Aaron will help you and he will speak instead of you.”

In the New Testament, God promises us that He will not give more then we can handle:

Usually, the outcome of a test, or in other words: of training, is positive. After training and passing ability tests, a trainee becomes stronger and more confident. In this verse from Corinthians, God promises to safe-guard our stress level. He will only test us to a certain level in order to give us the outcome; yet, He will not test us beyond our abilities.

Therefore, at the beginning, God provides Aaron to be Moses’ spokesman or interpreter. And now in this week’s Torah portion, Moses who used to stutter, now translates the Torah, the Word of God, to plain language:

Moses conveys the exalted Word of God, written by God’s finger. He interprets it for the human ear and clarifies the will of God. The stutterer, chosen by God, become the best interpreter.

Deuteronomy continues the story of the Exodus, after the People of Israel wandered the desert for 40 years. We hear Moses’ speeches after the hardships of that desert-journey, just before the entrance to the Land of Israel. Moses, the same stutterer who cried out to God about being unfit for the job, addresses the entire People of Israel!

It’s this speech that turns into a book; but, not just any book. It is the book we dig into and try to analyze its every word and letter. We also try to read between the lines. It is fascinating how many ‘words’ Moses, who was ‘slow of speech and of tongue’, could say with the help of God Who gives him strength. Philippians 4:13 is such a suitable verse here:

Yeshua offers strength to cope with anything: in times of lack or abundance, or in hardships, physical or emotional. We can endure any situation, thanks to Yeshua the Messiah who gives us the strength.

Faith gives us tremendous power. Let’s take a look at our people. Despite a long and dark exile, we kept the faith, hoping one day, maybe even next year, as we said throughout the generations, hoping and praying, we would have the privilege to visit the rebuilt Jerusalem.

And here we are, the third generation living in Jerusalem, as a fulfillment of ancient prophesies. This topic is still relevant today and we will continue later on, because this Tora potion always falls closely to the 9th of Av.

Again, it is important for me to emphasize that our faith in Messiah gives us hope. Our life here is not in vain, and everything we do has eternal significance. Yeshua gives us tremendous strength!

Parashat Devarim includes descriptions of past events. Which, traditionally, are read as a reproach to warn the People of Israel, as well as ourselves, not to repeat the same mistakes. Moses presents geopolitical descriptions of conquests of the Land of Israel.

On the one hand, we hear about nations that we never heard of; while also reading about well-known nations, kings and kingdoms such as the city of Heshbon (the capital of Sichon). Sichon was the king of the Amorites, a section of Moab, in the territory of today’s Jordan.Along with those well-known regions and kings, Moses also speaks about unknown people, such as: Rephaim, Emim and Zamzummim. Why are they mentioned?

Moses mentions them in order to remind us, that every one of these nations received a portion of the Land of Israel as their inheritance; nevertheless, even though they were strong and scary giants, they vanished and became extinct.

It is said that Og, King of Bashan, was the last descendant of Repha’im. Og was a giant and is described in Deuteronomy 3:11. Rashi interprets the name ‘Repha’im’ (literally: ghosts) by saying that the arms of anyone who would see them, would turn limp from fear. And still, their inheritance was taken from them.

Moses said that the Ammonites inherited the land from Zamzummim, and now the People of Israel inherit the land from them. We remember God’s promise to Abraham at night, and how his descendants would be as many as the stars in heaven. However, the fulfillment of this promise was postponed for 400 years,

Meaning that there is a certain quota of sins for the inhabitants of the land. When that limit is crossed, the inhabitants of the land lose their right to exist, and God redistributes the land. Moses tells us that is what happened to the Zamzummim, Ammonites, Amorites, and even to the giant Repha’im.

Moses clarifies the connection between a people’s morality and the time they live on a certain piece of land, and especially the Land of Israel. We should read these verses as being addressed to us, too.

Moses reminds us that we are not the first landlords here. Regardless of our strength and the strength and development of our army and economy: the moment we fill the sin-quota, God will redistribute the right for this land. This means that our life in the Land of Israel is conditioned!This condition is not measured by our physical strength, nor by our economic strength nor by our wisdom. We are measured by our moral standards, and the measure for our moral life is the Bible.

Moses rebukes the people. Similarly, the Torah and the New Testament command us to rebuke those falling into sin and those wandering from the straight path. We must do so, especially for the greater good, because we belong together as one nation. When our nation gets punished, we all pay the price. Those less guilty will pay along with those who are more guilty. That is how it works in public, and we are one people.

Criticism is important and necessary, but there are rules and boundaries we must adhere to. It is important to remember, that the purpose of criticism is to restore a person back to the straight path. Criticism is not punishment, and we don’t rebuke others in order to punish them but to help them to improve.

Here are a few basic questions to ask ourselves:

Does my criticism result from my anger or pain, or from my true desire to improve?Is this the right time to speak? Or would it be better to wait for a better moment?*Tone of voice: does the way I speak reflect my intentions (to help improve, of course)?*Do I really understand the person I am trying to correct?

Yeshua teaches:

Yeshua asks us to see a person from his or her prospective, and not from our own. It is easy to judge others. Yeshua asks us to walk a mile in their shoes before we criticize them. And it is always good to remember that no one appointed us to be the guardians of God’s law, nor for us to be His executors.

We are one people, and our time in the Land of Israel is conditional. This Torah portion comes closely to the 9th of Av. The collective Jewish-Israeli mindset views this fast as the second important fast, after the Day of Atonement. It is a National Day of Mourning.

On the 9th of Av in the year 70 AD, in accordance to Yeshua’s words, not one stone was left upon another. It is said that the Second Temple was destroyed due to baseless hatred.

Today we suffer from baseless hatred as well, and you know what? Some are less guilty and others more, but the entire nation is responsible for it. We attack and hate each other based on their religious or secular point of view, or whether one identifies with the right or left side of the political camp.

When I say ‘we’, I mean everyone: religious and secular. As religious people, we focus on the ceremony, on the way we utter our prayers, on our customs and principles of faith; however, we quickly forget about the person next to us.

As secular people, we tend to forget that we were preserved as a people and returned back home by a miracle. And that it was God’s doing. As seculars, we often assimilate, dismissing the identity which our ancestors preserved with their blood, sweat and tears during 2000 years of exile.

The Haftarah of Devarim is from Isaiah chapter 1, and is meant for both the secular and the religious, for those on the right and left side of politics. It really is meant for everyone. Isaiah asks a rhetorical and mocking question:

“You come to the House of God? Why? Who asked you to come? Do not come. God does not want to see you here.” Isaiah continues: “Everything you do, your Shabbats, your holidays, your fasting – it is all an abomination.”

Isaiah’s prophecies in a very harsh way, and God tells us through Isaiah – that we will pray, but He will not hear our prayers. We will offer Him a sacrifice, but He will not accept our sacrifices.Why so? Because we hurt one another and take advantage of the weak in our society!Isaiah continues by saying:

If you want God to hear you, to bless you – then this is the formula:“Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow's cause.” (Isaiah 1:16-17)

As a society, we are guilty of taking advantage of the weak, the poor, and of strangers. We take advantage of each other.

Isaiah demands justice, and I think the majority of the people today do not believe in our justice system. We see the system as ineffective and slow, with week and inefficient punishment for perpetrators. There is no real justice.

Similar to Isaiah, Zechariah also demands justice and care for the weak in society:

Zechariah adds to the discussion concerning the fast of the 9th of Av. At the beginning of chapter 7, the priests and Levites are asked whether there still is a need to fast and remember the days of destruction. This question is asked, because the Second Temple was still under construction in the days of Zechariah.

These were the days of the return to Zion, when the People of Israel were coming back from the Babylonian exile. So, they ask Zechariah:“Jerusalem is being restored. Is the fast still necessary?”

God’s answer in chapter 7 is very harsh. Similar to Isaiah, Zechariah mocks those asking and asks them in return:

“Where were you when the prophets warned you? How did you allow the morals to deteriorate so much? Why did you add fuel to the fire of hatred and division? You put your trust in the army and economy in vain. Yet, suddenly you seem caught by surprise by the destruction and the exile…”

The question we need to ask ourselves is whether anything has changed. Are we better now? Zechariah is a prophet of comfort. He tries to encourage and strengthen the people. To overcome the exile and to restore the City of Jerusalem.

We are in the similar situation now. The long and painful exile is behind us. We returned to Israel and rebuilt the Land of Israel as a modern, and strong state. Only three generations ago there was nothing here. As promised by our prophets and thanks to God, we managed to rebuilt this country.

The question remains if we learnt our lesson. Will we listen to the prophets and the Word of God, now?The Bible is our source of life and it is our measure of morality. We should never abandon the Scriptures!