Re'eh 1st Portion
26 See,
I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse [those (to be) pronounced
in Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal]—
Rashi’s Commentary
A blessing and a curse—Those which are later to be recited on Mount
Gerizim and on Mount Ebal respectively (cf. v. 29).
27 the
blessing if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am
giving you today;
Rashi’s Commentary
The blessing—With the condition that you should obey.
28 the
curse if you disobey the commands of the Lord your God and turn from
the way that I command you today by following other gods, which you have not
known [whence it is derived that serving idolatry is tantamount to denying the
entire Law (“the way”)].
Rashi’s Commentary
If you . . . depart from the way that I command you today by following other gods—You thus learn that he who serves idols departs
from the entire path of life that Israel has been commanded. From this passage
they (the Rabbis) taught the well-known dictum that he who acknowledges the
divinity of an idol is as though he denied the Law in its entirety (Sifrei
Devarim 54:4).
29 When
the Lord your God has brought you into the land you are entering to
possess, you are to proclaim on Mount Gerizim the blessings, and on Mount Ebal
the curses [The blessers face Mount Gerizim and recite: “Blessed is anyone who
does not make an idol,” and then they turn to Mount Ebal and recite the
corresponding curse, viz. (27:15): “Cursed is anyone who makes an idol,” etc.].
Rashi’s Commentary
You are to proclaim . . . the
blessings—Understand this as the
Targum renders it: יָת מְבָרְכַיָא
those who pronounce the blessing.
30 As
you know, these mountains are across the Jordan, westward, toward the setting
sun, near the great trees of Moreh [Shechem], in the territory of those Canaanites
living in the Arabah in the vicinity of Gilgal.
Rashi’s Commentary
As you know, these mountains are across
the Jordan—He gave geographical
indications regarding them (the mountains).
Westward—This means: behind the passage of the Jordan much
further on in a distance, for that is the force of the expression אַחֲרֵי, because wherever the term אַחֲרֵי is used it
signifies “greatly separated” (Genesis Rabbah 44:5; cf. Sifrei Devarim 56:1;
Sotah 33b).
Across the Jordan, westward, toward the setting sun—i.e. beyond the Jordan towards the west. The
accents in the verse prove that they (the words אַחֲרֵי and דֶּרֶךְ) are two unconnected
phrases since they bear two separate accents of a different character, viz.,
the word אַחֲרֵי is marked by a pashta (a disjunctive accent), and
the word דֶּרֶךְ is marked by a mashpel (our yetib), and also has a
dagesh. If, however, אַחֲרֵי דֶרֶךְ
formed one phrase, the word אַחֲרֵי
should be marked by a conjunctive accent, a shofar hafuch (our mahpach) and דֶּרֶךְ by a pashta, while the ד of דֶּרֶךְ
would be “weak” (i.e. have no dagesh; cf. Rashi on Jos 7:15).
In the vicinity of means,
distant from Gilgal (not near Gilgal).
31 You
are about to cross the Jordan to enter and take possession of the land
the Lord your God is giving you [the miracles that you experience
then will be a sign to you]. When you have taken it over and are living there,
Rashi’s Commentary
You are about to cross the Jordan—The miracles that will be wrought for you during
your crossing of the Jordan shall be an omen for you that you will indeed
enter and inherit the land (cf. Sifrei Devarim 57).
SifreiDevarim 57:1
You are about to cross the Jordan—When you cross the Jordan, you will know that you will inherit the
land.
The Lord your God is giving you—In your merit.
When you have taken it over and are
living there—In reward for inheriting, you will
dwell.
32 be
sure that you obey all the decrees and laws I am setting before you today.
The One Place of Worship
1 These
are the decrees and laws you must be careful to follow in the land that
the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has given you to possess—as long as
you live in the land.
2
Destroy completely [(whence it is derived that in destroying idolatry one must
uproot it entirely)] all the places [which are] on the high mountains, on the
hills and under every spreading tree, where the nations you are dispossessing
worship their gods.
Rashi’s Commentary
Destroy completely—Destroy and again destroy! (i.e. destroy
completely). From here we learn that he who eradicates an object
of idol-worship must thoroughly uproot it (i.e. remove every trace of it).
The places . . . where the nations .
. . worship—And what shall you destroy from them?
Their gods which are on the mountains (Avodah Zarah 45a).
SifreiDevarim 60:1
Whence is it derived that if an Asherah
(a tree devoted to idolatry) were cut down and grew again it must be cut down
again—even ten times? From “Destroy completely.”
3 Break
down their altars [of many stones], smash their sacred stones [of one stone]
and burn their Asherah poles [trees that they worship] in the fire; cut down
the idols of their gods and wipe out their names from those places [by giving
it a new, demeaning name].
Rashi’s Commentary
Altar consists of many stones.
Monument of one stone only. It is the בִּימוּס, the pedestal for idolatrous statuary, of which we
learn in the Mishna (Avodah Zarah 3:7): A stone which one originally hewed for
an idol’s pedestal is forbidden for use.
Asherah is a tree that had been worshiped (Avodah Zarah 47a).
And wipe out their names by giving them contemptuous nicknames. What they call בֵּית גליא, “a
sublime house,” you should call בֵּית כְּלִיָא, “a base
house,” what they call עַיִן כָּל, “the universal eye,” you should call עַיִן קוֹץ
“the thorn eye” (Avodah Zarah 46a).
4 You
must not worship the Lord your God in their way [to offer sacrifices
in all places].
5 But
you are to seek the place the Lord your God will choose from among
all your tribes to put his Name there for his dwelling [the sanctuary of
Shiloh]. To that place you must go;
Rashi’s Commentary
You are to seek for his dwelling—This refers to the Tabernacle at Shiloh (Sifrei
Devarim 62:3).
6 there
bring your burnt offerings and sacrifices [obligatory peace-offerings], your
tithes [the beast-tithe and the second tithe] and special gifts [first-fruits],
what you have vowed to give and your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of
your herds and flocks [to give them to the priest to be sacrificed there].
Rashi’s Commentary
And sacrifices—Obligatory feast-offerings (cf. Sifrei Devarim 63:7).
Your tithes—i.e. both the tithe of the herds and the second tithe, in order to
consume them within the wall (cf. Sifrei Devarim 63:8).
And the firstborn of your herds—In order to give them to the priest that he may offer them there.
7 There,
in the presence of the Lord your God, you and your families shall eat
and shall rejoice in everything you have put your hand to, [bring offerings in
accordance with the blessing] because the Lord your God has blessed you.
Rashi’s Commentary
Because the Lord your God has
blessed you—In accordance with the
blessing bring the offerings of festive rejoicing (Sifrei Devarim 64:5).
SifreiDevarim 64:1
There, in the presence of
the Lord your God, you . . . shall eat—It
is found that there were two precincts (for eating), one for holy of holies,
and one for lower-order offerings.
8 [(11:31):
“You are about to cross the Jordan, etc.” and you are permitted to sacrifice on
temporary altars all the fourteen years of conquest and apportionment of the
land]. You are not to do [i.e., you shall not sacrifice upon the temporary
altars] as we do here today [in the tabernacle that is with you and which is
anointed and fit for sin-offerings, guilt-offerings, and vow and
gift-offerings, but], everyone [may offer on the temporary altars, only] doing
as they see fit [i.e., vow and gift-offerings],
SifreiDevarim 65:1
You are not to do as we do here
today—As long as the tabernacle had not
been established, the individual altars were permitted, and the
(sacrificial) service was performed by the first-born. When the tabernacle
was established, the individual altars were forbidden and the service
was performed by the priest.
9 since
you have not yet reached [all those fourteen years] the resting place [Shiloh]
and the inheritance [Jerusalem] the Lord your God is giving you.
Rashi’s Commentary
Since you have not yet reached the
resting place—All those fourteen years of
conquering and dividing the land.
Not yet
is the same as “not yet.”
The resting place—This refers to Shiloh (Sifrei Devarim 66:2).
And the inheritance—This refers to Jerusalem (Sifrei Devarim 66:2; Zevachim 119a).
10 But
you will cross the Jordan and settle in the land the Lord your God is
giving you as an inheritance [after you apportion it and each one knows his
portion and (that of) his tribe], and he will give you rest from all your
enemies around you [which he left there to test you] so that you will live in
safety [this did not transpire until the days of David].
Rashi’s Commentary
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