Parasha Nitzavim (and Vayalekh?)

EDIT (9/19/14): I was informed that, despite it being a leap year, Nitzavim is still paired with Vayalekh this year. In light of that, there are no changes to this teaching and you are on your own to study Vayalekh. Have fun. :)

Nitzavim (Standing)

D'varim 29:9-30:20

This is a short Torah portion this week. Normally it is combined with the next portion, Vayalekh, but since this is a leap year, we get it by itself. This is the shortest Torah portion of the year at only 40 verses. While this is a quick read, it should not be assumed that there is little we can learn. As usual, YHVH has given us much to think about at various levels in this short portion.

This parasha continues the final teaching of Moshe before Israel enters the Promised Land. He begins this section by telling us who he was addressing. He says that everyone there is "standing today before YHVH your Elohim". He this lists all who are there from the leaders of Israel down to the foreigner staying in the camp, the man who cuts your wood, and the one who draws the water. He tells the people that they are there to enter covenant with YHVH. But wait! Didn't Israel enter into covenant with YHVH back at Mt. Sinai 40 years ago? Yes and no. The generation who came out of Egypt entered into covenant with YHVH, but they broke the covenant and died in the wilderness. Moshe is now speaking to the second generation who have not made that official declaration of acceptance and commitment.

However, Moshe explains in the next paragraph that he is not speaking only to those who were standing before him. He explains that this covenant is "with him who stands today before YHVH our Elohim, as well as with him who is not here with us today." All of Israel was standing there at the time? To whom else was he speaking? To all future generations of Israel, both natural-born and those grafted into the commonwealth. Some people say that Torah doesn't apply today. Moshe puts the lie to that statement right here.

Moshe then tells them (us) what would happen when the people turned away from Torah. First, the would think that they were okay. "I'll still do what I want and be counted among the righteous." Unfortunately for those who think this way, he tells us that YHVH will not forgive that attitude. All the curses spoken of in the last parasha will be put upon that person and his name blotted out from under heaven. This paragraph is written in singular form, speaking of the sins of an individual. The next paragraph changes to plural form, speaking of the entire nation of Israel.

Torah and it's blessings and curses apply to the individual and to the nation. As Israelites, we are expected to follow Torah and be accountable for our actions. As Israel, we are expected to follow Torah and be accountable for each other's actions. We must police ourselves so YHVH doesn't have to get involved. This is very similar to the way the motion picture industry was designed. At first there were no regulations; no censors, no ratings, etc. The movie makers went beyond what was acceptable and refused to police themselves. The Motion Picture Association of America was formed to take care of these issues. The community began to police itself to avoid government intervention. Those who would not govern themselves individually no had another safeguard in place. The safeguard can still be bypassed; unrated movies and independent releases bypass the MPAA. By doing so, however, the movie makers lose all benefits of membership in the MPAA; promotion, support, etc. How does this apply to us as believers?

If we don't follow Torah properly as individuals, the community is expected to intervene. We are to tell individuals the standards and work with them to stay within those standards. We can still bypass those safeguards by leaving the community, but in so doing, we lose the benefits of membership; blessings, instruction, and a relationship with YHVH. By choosing to stay within the community, a part of the nation of Israel, we are required to adhere to the community standards as set forth by Moshe from YHVH.

Just as there are some who say we don't have to keep Torah (an argument destroyed by Moshe as seen above), there are others who say we can't keep the Torah. It is too difficult. Well, that argument is handled by Moshe as well. In verse 29:28 Moshe tells us that the hidden things belong to YHVH. Some things are not for us to know or understand. We don't need to worry about those things; YHVH will take care of those. But all things that have been revealed belong to us. Therefore Torah belongs to us. We CAN, and indeed must, keep all of it. But what about our human fallacies? We all know that we make mistakes and fail to keep Torah correctly at all times. Doesn't that fit with the argument that we can't keep Torah? Only if you forget about t'shuvah (repentance). YHVH made a way for us to keep Torah even when we are too human to keep Torah. If we make a mistake, we can repent and turn back to the right path. Through Yeshua, we are restored and can retain our righteousness.

There is more in this short Torah portion, but I must leave something for you to study for yourselves. We have already heard from Moshe about the future misdeeds of our people. He knew that we would violate Torah and reap the curses and lose the land we were promised. This section of Torah can get a little depressing because of his comments and prophecies. However, reading the last half of this portion will keep your spirits up and give reason to rejoice. There is a day coming when... well, read it for yourself. I don't want to spoil the ending.

Parasha Re'eh

Re'eh - See
D'varim 11:26-16:17

For this week's teaching, I will be focusing on the first aliyah of the the Torah portion. This parasha begins with a familiar refrain that we will hear repeated throughout the book of D'varim; blessings and curses. But first, let's take a look at what YHVH has Moshe saying to the people.

The parasha starts with the name of this portion, re'eh. Re'eh, like most Hebrew words can be translated multiple ways. The most common is as see or behold. However, it can also mean learn about or understand. I believe in this instance, the meaning is a combination of these. Like the word sh'ma means more than just hear, but hear and do, re'eh means more than just see. It means to see or perceive and understand. Learn the meaning of what is being said and take it to heart. It has both a physical and spiritual component that must be made a part of our very being.

Now let's look at the first line of the Torah portion, "See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse...". The first word is singular; it is speaking directly to each individual. Moshe is saying "I am speaking to you personally." The word used for before you, lifneikhem, is plural. In this case, Moshe is referring to the whole nation of Israel. Why the difference? This is Moshe's way of reminding us that each individual has a responsibility to protect the whole. In essence, we can translate this opening (using myself as an example) as "See and understand, Robbie, I am setting before the whole people of Israel a blessing and a curse; you, Robbie, will choose for yourself which to receive as well as being a part of ensuring one or the other for this nation." As you can see, it's much more concise in the Hebrew. Those listening to this in the desert beside the Jordan River knew exactly what Moshe was saying.

The blessing and the curse that Moshe pronounced are two sides of the same requirement. As he states, we receive the blessing if we obey the mitzvot (commandments) of YHVH, and the curse if we do not listen and obey. He continues on to define disobedience as to "turn aside from the way I am ordering you today and follow other gods that you have not known". This last can also be translated as "gods that have not proven themselves to you". This sets them apart from YHVH who has proven Himself repeatedly throughout the last 40 years.

Moshe next commands the people to put the blessing on Mount G'rizim and the curse on Mount 'Eival once we enter the land. Both of these mountains are on the West side of the Jordan, inside the Promised Land. This is a reminder to us that the blessings and curses are a choice for only those who choose to accept the covenant of the land offered to His people. Anyone choosing to remain outside the land, choosing not to accept His covenant, is free from making a choice of accepting the blessing or the curse. This also reminds us that there is a responsibility involved in making the choice. We must take the land before we can get the blessing.

Moshe now lists some of the things we must do upon entering the land. We must destroy all the places where other nations served their gods; on high mountains, on hills, or under a leafy tree. We must break down their altars and smash their standing-stones to pieces. We must burn up their sacred poles and cut down carved images of their gods. We must exterminate their name from that place. Whose names must we exterminate? The gods of the nations. Not only are we to avoid following their gods, we must not even try to learn their ways of worshiping. Many people today will try to use scholarship or understanding of other cultures to justify learning other ways of worship. Even in many seminaries, students are encouraged to learn the ways of others. This is supposed to make us more tolerant and accepting of other religions and beliefs. Unfortunately that also makes us more tolerant and accepting of other religions and beliefs. Accepting that others have a belief is not the same as accepting those beliefs. Too many times, however, our people have blended those two types of acceptance. This is the reason for this command to avoid learning their ways. YHVH knew and still knows our hearts and our weaknesses.

As we study this Torah portion, we must not only see the words. We must understand and accept into our hearts the commands we were given. We must then choose, with open hearts and minds, whether to obey or not; whether to receive the blessings or the curse. May we always choose Mount G'rizim and stay away from Mount 'Eival.