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Our Parashah opens with Moshe Rabbeinu’s description of his prayer that he be allowed to enter Eretz Yisrael. Midrash Rabbah relates that Moshe prayed 515 prayers--the Gematria of the Hebrew word “Va’etchanan”--for this purpose, until Hashem told him (3:26), “Do not continue to speak to Me further about this matter.” R’ Chaim ben Attar z”l (1696-1743; Morocco, Italy and Eretz Yisrael; the “Ohr Ha’Chaim Ha’kadosh”) explains that Hashem rejected Moshe’s prayers for the good of Bnei Yisrael, as we read (in the same verse), “Hashem became angry with me for your sake.” Had Moshe entered the Holy Land, he would have built the Bet Hamikdash and it would have stood forever. Then, instead of Hashem taking out his wrath on sticks and stones, He would have taken it out on the Jewish People, G-d forbid.

R’ Avraham Mordechai Alter shlita (Yerushalayim) asks: Why did Hashem allow Moshe to pray in vain so many times? Why didn’t Hashem tell Moshe right away, “Don’t waste your time praying for this”? R’ Alter answers: Hashem “could not” (so-to-speak) grant Moshe’s request literally for the reason suggested by the Ohr Ha’Chaim Ha’kadosh, for example. Nevertheless, no prayer is ever wasted. While Moshe did not get to enter the Land, his prayers strengthened his spiritual connection to Eretz Yisrael, which is itself valuable. And he was allowed to see the Land from a distance, as we read in the next verse: “Ascend to the top of the cliff and raise your eyes westward, northward, southward, and eastward, and see with your eyes, for you shall not cross this Jordan.”

The same is true about our prayers, R’ Alter continues. Often, we do not see the result for which we prayed. Only Hashem knows why a specific prayer is or is not answered literally. Nevertheless, we should never stop praying, as no sincere prayer fails to produce some beneficial result. (Divrei Emet: Emtza Makom L’Hashem p.137)

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“You shall know this day and take to your heart that Hashem, He is the Elokim--in heaven above and on the earth below--there is none other.” (4:39)

R’ Don Segal shlita (Yerushalayim and Brooklyn, N.Y.; a leading contemporary teacher of Mussar) quotes R’ Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev z”l (1740-1809; early Chassidic Rebbe) as teaching: “In heaven--above!” When one is evaluating his standing in Heavenly matters--for example, how well he prays or studies Torah--he should look at those “above” him, i.e., he should aspire to be like those who pray or study better than he does. On the other hand, “On the earth--below!” When one is evaluating his earthly existence--i.e., his financial status, his home, etc.--he should focus on how well off he is compared to those “below” him, i.e., those who have less.

R’ Segal adds: Human nature is to do the opposite--to be jealous of those who are better off in this world, and to be content when one’s prayers and Torah study are better than the next guy’s. (Chovat Ha’adam Al Iggeret Ha’Ramban p.54)

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“This is the Torah that Moshe placed before Bnei Yisrael.” (4:44)

R’ Chaim Druckman z”l (1932-2022; rabbi, Rosh Yeshiva, and Knesset member) asks: Why does the verse say that Moshe “placed” the Torah before Bnei Yisrael, instead of saying, “This is the Torah that Moshe taught Bnei Yisrael”?

He answers: The Gemara (Yoma 72b) comments on the fact that the Hebrew words for “placed” (שם) and “elixir” (סם) are homonyms. (Both are pronounced “Sahm”). The Gemara says: If one merits, the Torah will be an elixir of life for him. If one does not merit, it will be an elixir of death, a poison. [Until here from the Gemara]

As such, R’ Druckman writes, the Torah’s word choice is teaching: Moshe placed the Torah before us. What we do with it, whether we use it properly or do not, is our choice.” (Hakdamah L’Shir Ha'shirim p.112)

R’ Eliyahu z”l (1720-1797; the Vilna Gaon) explains the above Gemara: The Torah is like rain. If rain falls on a field planted with beneficial seeds, the result will be a beneficial crop. But if rain falls on a field of weeds, the result will be thicker weeds.

Likewise, when Torah is taught to a good-hearted person who works on his character, the result is an even better-hearted person with an even finer character. But, if Torah is taught to a bad-hearted person with no interest in character improvement, the result will be a person with even worse traits.

Therefore, says the Vilna Gaon, before a person begins studying Torah each day--and again when he finishes learning--he must clear away the rottenness of any improper beliefs or character traits and replace them with Yir’at Chet / fear of sin and with good deeds. (Even Shleimah 1:11)

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“You shall love Hashem, your Elokim, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your resources.” (6:5)

R’ Moshe ben Maimon z”l (Rambam; 1135-1204; Spain and Egypt) writes (Hil. Teshuvah 10:2), “One who serves Hashem out of love engages in Torah study and Mitzvot and goes in the ways of wisdom--not because of any worldly thing, not for fear of something bad happening, and not to gain any good, but only because it is the truth. Good will result inevitably. This is a very high level that not every wise man reaches, and this was the level of Avraham Avinu. . .” [Until here from Rambam]

R’ Binyamin Yehoshua Zilber z”l (1916-2008; a leading Halachic authority in Israel) asks: The Torah’s Mitzvot apply to every person. Given the Rambam’s statement that the love of Hashem he describes “is a very high level that not every wise man reaches,” rather it “was the level of Avraham Avinu,” what chance do we have of performing this Mitzvah?!

R’ Zilber answers: It appears that Rambam himself means to address this very question later in the chapter (Hil. Teshuvah 10:6), where he writes: “It is well-known and clear that love of Hashem does not become solidified in a person’s heart until he occupies himself with it at all times, and he abandons all other things in this world, as the Torah commands, ‘With all your heart [and] with all your soul.’ A person can love Hashem only to the extent that he knows Him, and proportional to that knowledge will be his love--if a little, a little; if a lot, a lot. Therefore, one must dedicate himself to the extent of his ability to understand and comprehend that which will educate him about his Creator, as we explained in Hilchot Yesodei Ha’Torah.” [Until here from Rambam] (Ed. Note: Rambam is referring to Hil. Yesodei Ha’Torah (2:2), where he writes that the way to develop love of Hashem is to reflect upon the wonders of His deeds and His creations, and to infer from them how great Hashem’s wisdom is.)

R’ Zilber concludes: Rambam is teaching us how to perform this Mitzvah in practice. Just as one who wants to grow something must first plow the ground to clear a place to plant, and then he must plant a seed, so one who wants to love Hashem must first “abandon all other things,” and then he must dedicate himself to “understand and comprehend that which will educate him about his Creator.” (With proper work, the very high level of which Rambam speaks is attainable.) (Mekor Halachah: Kuntreis Darchei Ha’lishmah, p.461)

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Shabbat

“And you shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and Hashem, your Elokim, has taken you out from there with a strong hand and an outstretched arm; therefore Hashem, your Elokim, has commanded you to make the Shabbat day.” (5:15)

The Gemara (Pesachim 117b) states that one is required to mention the Exodus from Egypt in Kiddush. What is the connection between Shabbat and the Exodus? Isn’t Shabbat primarily a reminder that Hashem created the world?

R’ Eliezer Kashtiel shlita (Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivat Bnei David in Eli, Israel) explains: We speak of Shabbat as the “Day of Rest.” Ordinarily, however, rest is not an end in itself; it is something that people must do so they will have the energy to be productive. Surely Shabbat is not just a day to regain our strength for the coming workweek. Indeed, in Birkat Ha’mazon, we pray for “the day that is entirely Shabbat and rest for eternal life.” And we say (in the song Ma Yedidut), “The Shabbat rest is a sample of Olam Ha’ba / the World-to-Come,” indicating that Olam Ha’ba is a place of eternal rest. What is the purpose of resting for all eternity?

R’ Kashtiel answers: We read in Tehilim (132:8), “Arise, Hashem, to Your resting place.” Here, “resting place” means a destination or goal. When the Torah says (Shmot 20:11) that Hashem “rested on the seventh day,” the Torah means that Hashem created the world over a period of six days for a purpose. Then, on Shabbat, Hashem created the possibility of man stepping back from the busy workweek and discovering Creation’s purpose.

Still, continues R’ Kashtiel, there needed to be people to who would actualize this potential, who would implement the world’s purpose. Through the Exodus, Hashem formed and selected Bnei Yisrael to be that people. Thus, the Exodus is a continuation of what Hashem created on that first Shabbat. (Vy’kadesh Oto p.183)

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