The parashah is discussed in these
rabbinic sources from the era of the
Mishnah and the
Talmud:
Deuteronomy chapter 29 A
midrash taught that the words, "You are standing this day all of you before the Lord your God," in Deuteronomy 29:9 should have been placed at the beginning of the Book of Deuteronomy, only the Torah does not follow chronological order. The midrash likened this to the words, "I Kohelet have been King over Israel in Jerusalem," in
Ecclesiastes 1:12, which Rabbi Samuel the son of Rabbi Isaac said ought to have been written as a superscription at the beginning of the Book of
Ecclesiastes, but is written in Ecclesiastes 1:12 because the Torah does not follow a chronological order. A midrash cited Deuteronomy 29:9 as one of several places where Scripture speaks of the people of Israel as it does of
angels. For Scripture speaks of both angels and the people of Israel as
standing. In reference to angels,
Isaiah 6:2 says, "Above Him
stood the
seraphim," while concerning Israel, Deuteronomy 29:9 says, "You are
standing this day." Similarly, Isaiah 6:3 reports that the angels daily proclaim a three-part praise of God, saying, "Holy, holy, holy," and the people of Israel correspondingly daily say in three parts in the
Amidah prayer, "The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." Psalm 104:4 calls the angels "fire," referring to, "The flaming
fire Your ministers," and
Obadiah 1:18 also calls Israel "fire," saying, "And the house of Jacob shall be a
fire." The midrash told how angels renew themselves each day, praise the Lord, and then return to the river of fire from which they emerged, and the Lord renews them and restores them to their former condition; for
Lamentations 3:23 reports, "They are new every morning." So also Israel is sunk in iniquity on account of the evil impulse (,
yetzer hara), but they do penitence, and God each year (on Yom Kippur) pardons them and renews their heart to fear God; for Ezekiel 36:26 says, "A new heart also will I give you." Hence God compared Israel to angels in
Song of Songs 6:10, which calls Israel: "Terrible as an army with banners."
Rabbi Berekiah interpreted Lamentations 3:1, "I am the man (,
gever) who has seen affliction by the rod of His wrath," to mean that God strengthened the writer (representing the people of God) to withstand all afflictions (interpreting ,
gever, "man," to mean ,
gibor, "strong man"). Rabbi Berekiah noted that after the 98 reproofs in Deuteronomy 28:15–68, Deuteronomy 29:9 says, "You are standing this day all of you," which Rabbi Berekiah taught we render (according to
Onkelos), "You
endure this day all of you," and thus to mean, "you are strong men to withstand all these reproofs." Similarly, a midrash reported that two teachers offered different explanations of Lamentations 3:12, "He (God) has bent His bow, and set me (,
vayatziveni) as a mark for the arrow." One taught that the verse compared Israel to a
wedge used to split a log (as the wedge, Israel, is struck, but the log, the enemy, is split). The other taught that the verse compared Israel to a post on which a target for arrows is placed, at which all shoot but which remains standing. Rabbi Judan taught that the verse meant that God strengthened the writer (representing the people of God) to withstand all afflictions (reading ,
vayatziveni, to mean "He has made me stand firm"). Rabbi Judan noted that after the 98 reproofs in Deuteronomy 28:15–68, Deuteronomy 29:9 says, "You are standing (,
nizavim) this day all of you," which Rabbi Judan taught we render (according to Onkelos), "you endure this day all of you," and thus to mean, "you are strong men to withstand all these reproofs." ) The
Gemara deduced from the separate mention of "all the men of Israel," "your stranger," and "the hewer of your wood to the drawer of your water" in Deuteronomy 29:9–10 that Moses meant to decree that the hewers of wood and the drawers of water (whom the Gemara deduced from Joshua 9:27 were Gibeonites) were to be considered neither Israelites nor converts in that generation. The Gemara further deduced that in Joshua 9:27, Joshua extended that decree of separation for the period during which the Sanctuary existed, and in 2 Samuel 21:2, David extended the decree for all generations. The school of
Rabbi Yannai relied on the reference in Deuteronomy 29:9–10 to "the hewer of your wood to the drawer of your water" to teach that slaves, as well, were children of the Covenant. The school of Rabbi Yannai taught that they could thus serve as agents for the delivery of divorce documents. The Gemara interpreted the words "not with you alone do I make this covenant" in Deuteronomy 29:13 to teach that Moses adjured the Israelites to agree with the covenant not just as they understood it themselves, but also as Moses understood it, and as God understands it. Based on this reading of Deuteronomy 29:13, a
baraita taught that judges would tell defendants that the court administered oaths to them not only according to the defendant's own understanding, but according to the understandings of God and the court. In response to a question from Rav Aha son of
Rava,
Rav Ashi taught that although later converts to Judaism may not have been literally present at
Mount Sinai, Deuteronomy 29:13–14 indicated that their angelic advocates were present when it said: "Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath, but with him who stands here with us this day before the Lord our God, and also with him who is not here with us this day." The
Tosefta deduced from Deuteronomy 29:13–14 that the conditions that the Rabbis deduced from the Torah for administering oaths will also apply to future generations and converts. Similarly, a baraita cited Deuteronomy 29:14 for the proposition that the covenant at Sinai included not only those who were standing by Mount Sinai, but also generations to come and converts who later became Jews. And the baraita taught that they were also bound by commandments promulgated later, such as reading the Scroll of Esther on
Purim, because
Esther 9:27 reports, "They confirmed and accepted," indicating that the Jewish people confirmed that they had long ago accepted such commandments at Mount Sinai. Similarly, Rabbi Isaac read Deuteronomy 29:14 to teach that the prophets received from the Revelation at Sinai all the messages that they were to prophesy to subsequent generations. For Deuteronomy 29:14 does not say, "who are not here
standing with us this day," but just "who are not with us this day." Rabbi Isaac taught that Deuteronomy 29:14 thus refers to the souls that were to be created thereafter; because these souls did not yet have any substance in them, they could not yet be "standing" at Sinai. But although these souls did not yet exist, they still received their share of the Torah that day. Similarly, Rabbi Isaac concluded that all the Sages who arose in every generation thereafter received their wisdom from the Revelation at Sinai, for Deuteronomy 5:19 says, "These words the Lord spoke to all your assembly . . . with a great voice, and it went on no more", implying that God's Revelation went on no more thereafter. Reading Deuteronomy 29:14, the
Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer told that at the Revelation at Sinai, when the voice of the first commandment went forth, the heavens and earth quaked, the waters and rivers fled, the mountains and hills moved, all the trees fell prostrate, and the dead who were in
Sheol revived and stood on their feet until the end of all the generations. For Deuteronomy 29:14 says, "with him who stands here with us this day." And the Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer read Deuteronomy 29:14 to teach that those who in the future would be created, until the end of all the generations, also stood there with those at Mount Sinai, as Deuteronomy 29:14 says, "And also with him who is not here with us this day." The Tosefta deduced from Deuteronomy 29:13–14 that Moses adjured the Israelites on the
plains of Moab not according to what was in their hearts, but according to what was in his heart. The Tosefta cited the words of Deuteronomy 29:16, "you have seen their detestable things, and their idols, wood and stone, silver and gold, which were
among them," for the proposition that items that were not used for the body of an idol—items that were merely
among idols—were permitted to be used. In Deuteronomy 29:18, the heart cavils. A midrash catalogued the wide range of additional capabilities of the heart reported in the
Hebrew Bible. The heart speaks, sees, walks, falls, stands, rejoices, cries, is comforted, is troubled, becomes hardened, grows faint, grieves, fears, can be broken, becomes proud, rebels, invents, overflows, devises, desires, goes astray, lusts, is refreshed, can be stolen, is humbled, is enticed, errs, trembles, is awakened, loves, hates, envies, is searched, is rent, meditates, is like a fire, is like a stone, turns in repentance, becomes hot, dies, melts, takes in words, is susceptible to fear, gives thanks, covets, becomes hard, makes merry, acts deceitfully, speaks from out of itself, loves bribes, writes words, plans, receives commandments, acts with pride, makes arrangements, and aggrandizes itself.
Rav Judah taught in
Rav's name that the words, "that he bless himself in his heart, saying: 'I shall have peace, though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart—that the watered be swept away with the dry'; the Lord will not be willing to pardon him," in Deuteronomy 29:18–19 apply to one who marries his daughter to an old man, or takes a mature wife for his infant son, or returns a lost article to an idolater. The
Mekhilta of Rabbi Simeon bar Yoḥai used the words of Deuteronomy 29:18, "the utter ruin of moist and dry alike," to describe what happened to Pharaoh when he chose to pursue the Israelites after they had left Egypt. In the
Jerusalem Talmud, Rabbi
Ḥaninah (or some say Rabbi Joshua ben Levi) deduced from the words "the whole land thereof is brimstone, and salt" in Deuteronomy 29:22 that all the land of Israel was burned, and thus even wicked people buried in the land of Israel before that time will merit to be resurrected, because the burning of the land will have executed on them the punishment that justice demanded. A baraita taught in the name of Rabbi Judah that the land of Israel burned for seven years. (illustration from the 1568
Mantua Haggadah) Explaining an assertion by
Rabbi Jose,
Rabbi Joḥanan deduced from the parallel use of word "covenant" in Deuteronomy 29:24 and
Daniel 9:27 that the land sown with "brimstone and salt" foretold in Deuteronomy 29:21–24 was the same seven years of barren soil inflicted by Israel's enemy in Daniel 9:27.
Rabbi Akiva interpreted the words "and [He] cast them into another land, as it is this day" in Deuteronomy 29:27 to teach that the
Ten Lost Tribes of Israel were destined not to return. But Rabbi Eliezer interpreted the allusion to "day" in Deuteronomy 29:27 differently, teaching that just as the day darkens and then becomes light again, so even though it went dark for the Ten Tribes, it will become light for them again. Reading Deuteronomy 29:28, Rabbi Joḥanan said in the name of Rabbi Elazar, son of Rabbi Simeon, that God did not punish the nation as a whole for hidden sins committed by individuals until the Jewish people crossed the
Jordan River, as recounted in Joshua 3. Two
Tannaim disputed why dots appear in the Masoretic Text over the words "to us and to our children forever" (,
lanu ulvaneinu ad) in Deuteronomy 29:28. Rabbi Judah said that the dots teach that God would not punish the Israelite community as a whole for transgressions committed in secret until the Israelites had crossed the Jordan River. Rabbi Nehemiah questioned, however, whether God ever punished the Israelite community for transgressions committed in secret, noting that Deuteronomy 29:28 said, "The secret things belong to the Lord our God . . . forever." Rabbi Nehemiah taught that God did not punish the Israelite community for secret transgressions at any time, and God did not punish the Israelite community as a whole for open transgressions until they had crossed the Jordan. Similarly, in the Jerusalem Talmud, Rabbi
Simeon ben Lakish (Resh Lakish) taught that when the Israelites were crossing the Jordan River, they took upon themselves responsibility for each other's hidden sins as well as revealed sins. Joshua told them that if they did not accept responsibility for hidden things, the waters of the Jordan would descend and drown them. Rabbi Simon bar Zabeda agreed, saying that we know that this is true, because
Achan sinned in secret after the Israelites crossed the Jordan, and the majority of the
Sanhedrin fell at the battle of
Ai on account of Achan's sin. Rabbi Levi, however, taught that at
Yavneh, the strap was untied, and people were no longer subject to punishment for the private sins of individuals. A Heavenly voice declared that the Israelites no longer needed to get involved in hidden sins or to inquire about them.
Rabbi (Judah the Patriarch) taught that when all Israel stood before Mount Sinai to receive the Torah, they decided unanimously to accept the reign of God joyfully. Furthermore, they pledged themselves responsible for one another. God was willing to make a covenant with the Israelites not only concerning overt acts that God revealed to Israel, but also concerning God's secret acts, reading Deuteronomy 29:28 to say, "The secret things belong to the Lord our God and the things that are revealed." But the Israelites told God that they were ready to make a covenant with God with regard to overt acts, but not with regard to secret acts, lest one Israelite commit a sin secretly and the entire community be held responsible for it. A midrash offered alternative explanations of why there are points over the words "to us and to our children" (,
lanu ulbaneinu) and over the first letter (,
ayin) of the word "to" (,
ad) in Deuteronomy 29:28. One explanation: God told the Israelites that they had performed the precepts that had been revealed, and God, on God's part, would make known to them the things that were secret. Another explanation:
Ezra (whom some consider the author of these diacritical points, although others regard them as having come from Sinai) reasoned that if
Elijah came and asked Ezra why he had written these words, Ezra could answer that he had already placed points over them. And if Elijah told Ezra that he had done well in writing them, then Ezra would erase the points over them. (If Elijah said that the words should not have been written, Ezra could answer that he had dotted them so that people could understand that they were to be disregarded. If Elijah approved of the words, then Ezra could erase the dots.) The
Avot of Rabbi Natan enumerated ten Torah passages marked with dots. The Avot of Rabbi Natan interpreted the dots over Deuteronomy 29:28 to teach that the secret things are not revealed to us in this world, but will be in the
world to come.
Deuteronomy chapter 30 A midrash interpreted Deuteronomy 30:1–6 to teach that if the Israelites repented while they were in exile, then God would gather them back together, as Deuteronomy 30:1–6 says, "And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon you, the blessing and the curse . . . and [you] shall return . . . and hearken to His voice . . . the Lord your God will bring you into the land . . . and the Lord your God will circumcise your heart." Rabbi
Simon ben Yohai deduced from the words "the Lord your God will return [with] your captivity" in Deuteronomy 30:3 that the
Shechinah went with the Israelites to every place to which they were exiled and will be with them when they are redeemed in the future. By way of explanation, the baraita noted that Deuteronomy 30:3 did not say "and [God] shall bring back" but "and [God] shall return," teaching that God will return with the Israelites from their places of exile. Rabbi Simon concluded that Deuteronomy 30:3 thus showed how beloved the Children of Israel are in God's sight. Rabbi
Jose bar Ḥaninah deduced from Deuteronomy 30:5 that when the Jews arrived back in the land of Israel in the time of Ezra, they once again became obligated to obey commandments like tithes (, ''ma'asrot''). Rabbi Jose bar Ḥaninah reasoned that the words, "And the Lord your God will bring you into the land that your fathers possessed, and you shall possess it," in Deuteronomy 30:5 showed that the Jews' possession of the land in the time of Ezra was comparable to their possession of it in the time of Joshua. And thus, just as Jews in the time of Joshua were obliged to tithe, so Jews in the time of Ezra were obliged to tithe. And the Gemara interpreted the words, "He will do you good, and make you greater than you fathers," in Deuteronomy 30:5 to teach that the Jews of the time of Ezra were still able to enter the land of Israel as their ancestors had, even though the Jews of the time of Ezra bore the yoke of foreign government on their shoulders and their ancestors had not. A midrash taught that fools enter the synagogue, and seeing people occupying themselves with the law, ask how a person learns the law. They answer that first a person reads from children's materials, then from the Torah, then from the Prophets (, ''Nevi'im
), and then from the Writings (, Ketuvim
). Then the person learns the Talmud, then the law (, halachah), and then the midrash (, haggadot''). Hearing this, fools ask themselves when they can learn all that and turn to leave. Rabbi Jannai compared this to a loaf suspended in the air. The fool exclaims that no one can bring it down. But the wise person says that someone put it there and takes a ladder or stick and brings it down. So fools complain that they are unable to read all the law. But wise people learn a chapter every day until they read all the law. God said in Deuteronomy 30:11, "it is not too hard for you," but if you find it too hard, it is your own fault, because you do not study it. Saw (1984 illustration by Jim Padgett, courtesy of Sweet Publishing) A midrash told that if people complained that the Torah disadvantaged them, they should know that God actually gave them the Torah to benefit then. The ministering angels eagerly sought to get the Torah, but God hid it from them, as
Job 28:21 says, "Seeing it (that is, Wisdom) is hid from the eyes of all living (,
chai)," and ,
chai, refers to the ,
chayot, the Heavenly living creatures cited in Ezekiel 1:5. Then Job 28:21 continues, "And kept close from the flying beings of the air," and this refers to the angels, as Isaiah 6:6 says, "Then flew to me one of the Seraphim." God told the Israelites that the law was too abstruse for the ministering angels, but not for the Israelites, as Deuteronomy 30:11 says, "this commandment that I command you this day, it is not too hard for you." Rav Judah taught in the name of Rav that because, as Deuteronomy 30:11–12 reports, the Torah is not in Heaven, God was not able to answer Joshua's questions about the law. Rav Judah reported in the name of Rav that when Moses was dying, he invited Joshua to ask him about any doubts that Joshua might have. Joshua replied by asking Moses whether Joshua had ever left Moses for an hour and gone elsewhere. Joshua asked Moses whether Moses had not written in Exodus 33:11, "The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one man speaks to another. . . . But his servant Joshua the son of
Nun departed not out of the
Tabernacle." Joshua's words wounded Moses, and immediately the strength of Moses waned, and Joshua forgot 300 laws, and 700 doubts concerning laws arose in Joshua's mind. The Israelites then arose to kill Joshua (unless he could resolve these doubts). God then told Joshua that it was not possible to tell him the answers (for, as Deuteronomy 30:11–12 tells, the Torah is not in Heaven). Instead, God then directed Joshua to occupy the Israelites' attention in war, as Joshua 1:1–2 reports. A baraita taught that one day, Rabbi Eliezer employed every imaginable argument for the proposition that a particular type of oven was not susceptible to ritual impurity, but the Sages did not accept his arguments. Then Rabbi Eliezer told the Sages, "If the law agrees with me, then let this
carob tree prove it," and the carob tree moved 100
cubits (and others say 400 cubits) out of its place. But the Sages said that no proof can be brought from a carob tree. Then Rabbi Eliezer told the Sages, "If the halachah agrees with me, let this stream of water prove it," and the stream of water flowed backwards. But the Sages said that no proof can be brought from a stream of water. Then Rabbi Eliezer told the Sages, "If the halachah agrees with me, let the walls of this house of study prove it," and the walls leaned over as if to fall. But
Rabbi Joshua rebuked the walls, telling them not to interfere with scholars engaged in a halachic dispute. In honor of Rabbi Joshua, the walls did not fall, but in honor of Rabbi Eliezer, the walls did not stand upright, either. Then Rabbi Eliezer told the Sages, "If the halachah agrees with me, let Heaven prove it," and a Heavenly Voice cried out: "Why do you dispute with Rabbi Eliezer, for in all matters the halachah agrees with him!" But Rabbi Joshua rose and exclaimed in the words of Deuteronomy 30:12: "It is not in heaven." Rabbi Jeremiah explained that God had given the Torah at Mount Sinai; Jews pay no attention to Heavenly Voices, for God wrote in Exodus 23:2: "After the majority must one incline." Later,
Rabbi Nathan met Elijah and asked him what God did when Rabbi Joshua rose in opposition to the Heavenly Voice. Elijah replied that God laughed with joy, saying, "My children have defeated Me, My children have defeated Me!"
Rav Ḥisda taught that one should use mnemonic devices to learn the Torah. And the Gemara taught that this agrees with Abdimi bar Ḥama bar Dosa, who interpreted Deuteronomy 30:12 to mean that if it were "in heaven," one would have to go up after it, and if it were "beyond the sea," one would have to go overseas after it. Rather, people can learn the Torah using the tools that they find where they are.
Rava (or some say Rabbi Joḥanan) interpreted "it is not in heaven" to mean that the Torah is not to be found among those who believe that their insight towers as high as the heavens. And Rava interpreted "neither is it beyond the sea" to mean that it is not to be found among those whose self-esteem expands as the sea. Rabbi Joḥanan (or some say Rava) interpreted "it is not in heaven" to mean that the Torah is not to be found among the arrogant. And Rabbi Joḥanan interpreted "neither is it beyond the sea" to mean that it is not to be found among traveling merchants and business people. A midrash interpreted the words "For this commandment . . . is not in heaven" in Deuteronomy 30:11–12 to teach that Jews should not look for another Moses to come and bring another Torah from heaven, for no part of the Torah remained in heaven. Rabbi Ḥaninah interpreted the words "For this commandment . . . is not in heaven" in Deuteronomy 30:11–12 to teach that God gave the Torah with all its characteristic teachings of meekness, righteousness, and uprightness, and also its reward. Samuel interpreted the words "For this commandment . . . is not in heaven" in Deuteronomy 30:11–12 to teach that the Torah is not to be found among astrologers who gaze at the heavens. When people countered that Samuel himself was an astrologer and also a great Torah scholar, he replied that he engaged in astrology only when he was free from studying the Torah—when he was in the bath. Reading Deuteronomy 30:11–14, "For this commandment that I command you this day . . . is very near to you, in your mouth, and in your heart," a midrash related the commandments to the human body. The midrash taught that Deuteronomy 30:11–14 bears out Proverbs 4:22, "For they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh."
Rabbi Hiyya taught that the law is a salve for the eye, an emollient for a wound, and a root-drink for the bowels. The law is a salve for the eye, as Psalm 19:9 says, "The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes." The law is an emollient for a wound, as Proverbs 3:8 says, "It shall be health to your navel." And the law is a root-drink for the bowels, as Proverbs 3:8 continues, "And marrow to your bones." Another midrash read Deuteronomy 30:11–14, "For this commandment that I command you this day . . . is very near to you, in your mouth," together with Proverbs 4:22, "For they are life to those who find them," to teach that the commandments are life for those who speak them aloud. The midrash related that a disciple of Rabbi
Eliezer ben Jacob used to run through all of his study in a single hour, and when once when he fell ill, he forgot all that he had learned, because he did not speak the words out loud. When, however, Rabbi Eliezer ben Jacob prayed for him, all his learning came back to him. Another midrash read Deuteronomy 30:11–14 together with Proverbs 4:22 to teach that the commandments are life to those who tell them to others. Another midrash read Deuteronomy 30:11–14 together with Proverbs 4:22, "For they are life to those who find them," to teach that the commandments are life to those who carry out the commandments completely, for Deuteronomy repeatedly says, "all the commandment" (,
kol ha-mitzvah), which the midrash taught means until one completely carries out all the precepts. And the midrash taught that the conclusion of Proverbs 4:22, "health to all their flesh," refers to all the parts of the body, demonstrating the force of Deuteronomy 30:11–14, "For this commandment that I command you this day . . . is very near to you, in your mouth, and in your heart." Reading Deuteronomy 30:11–14, "For this commandment that I command you this day . . . is very near to you, in your mouth, and in your heart," a midrash interpreted "heart" and "mouth" to symbolize the beginning and end of fulfilling a precept and thus read Deuteronomy 30:11–14 as an exhortation to complete a good deed once started. Thus Rabbi
Hiyya bar Abba taught that if one begins a precept and does not complete it, the result will be that he will bury his wife and children. The midrash cited as support for this proposition the experience of
Judah, who began a precept and did not complete it. When
Joseph came to his brothers and they sought to kill him, as Joseph's brothers said in Genesis 37:20, "Come now therefore, and let us slay him," Judah did not let them, saying in Genesis 37:26, "What profit is it if we slay our brother?" and they listened to him, for he was their leader. And had Judah called for Joseph's brothers to restore Joseph to their father, they would have listened to him then, as well. Thus because Judah began a precept (the good deed toward Joseph) and did not complete it, he buried his wife and two sons, as Genesis 38:12 reports, "Shua's daughter, the wife of Judah, died," and Genesis 46:12 further reports, "
Er and
Onan died in the land of
Canaan." In another midrash reading "heart" and "mouth" in Deuteronomy 30:11–14 to symbolize the beginning and the end of fulfilling a precept, Rabbi Levi said in the name of Ḥama bar Ḥanina that if one begins a precept and does not complete it, and another comes and completes it, it is attributed to the one who has completed it. The midrash illustrated this by citing how Moses began a precept by taking the bones of Joseph with him, as Exodus 13:19 reports, "And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him." But because Moses never brought Joseph's bones into the Land of Israel, the precept is attributed to the Israelites, who buried them, as Joshua 24:32 reports, "And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, they buried in
Shechem." Joshua 24:32 does not say, "Which
Moses brought up out of Egypt," but "Which
the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt." And the midrash explained that the reason that they buried Joseph's bones in Shechem could be compared to a case in which some thieves stole a cask of wine, and when the owner discovered them, the owner told them that after they had consumed the wine, they needed to return the cask to its proper place. So when the brothers sold Joseph, it was from Shechem that they sold him, as Genesis 37:13 reports, "And Israel said to Joseph: 'Do not your brothers feed the flock in Shechem?'" God told the brothers that since they had sold Joseph from Shechem, they needed to return Joseph's bones to Shechem. And as the Israelites completed the precept, it is called by their name, demonstrating the force of Deuteronomy 30:11–14, "For this commandment that I command you this day . . . is very near to you, in your mouth, and in your heart." Rabbi Samuel bar Nachmani told a parable to explain the words of Deuteronomy 30:14, "But the word is very near to you, in your mouth, and in your heart, that you may do it." Rabbi Samuel taught that it is as if there were a king's daughter who was not acquainted with any man, and the king had a friend who could visit him at any time, and the princess waited on the friend. The king told the friend that this indicated how much the king loved him, for no one was acquainted with his daughter, yet she waited upon the friend. Similarly, God told Israel that it indicated how beloved Israel was to God, for no being in God's palace was acquainted with the Torah, yet God entrusted it to Israel. As Job 28:21 says, "Seeing it is hid from the eyes of all living," but as for the Children of Israel (as Deuteronomy 30:11–14 says), "It is not too hard for you . . . but the word is very near to you."
Rabbi Ammi expounded on the words, "For it is a pleasant thing if you keep them [words of the wise] within you; let them be established altogether upon your lips," in Proverbs 22:18. He explained that the words of the Torah are "pleasant" when one keeps them within oneself, and one does that when the words are "established altogether upon your lips." Rabbi Isaac said that this may be derived from the words of Deuteronomy 30:14: "But the word is very near to you, in your mouth, and in your heart, that you may do it," for "it is very near to you" when it is "in your mouth and in your heart" to do it. Thus, reading the Torah aloud helps one to keep its precepts in one's heart, and thus to carry them out. ) The Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer told that Rabbi Eliezer heard God say the words of Deuteronomy 30:15: "See, I have set before you this day life and good, and death and evil." God said that God had given Israel these two ways, one good, the other evil. The good one is of life, the evil one of death. The good way has two byways, one of righteousness and the other of love, and Elijah stands exactly between the two. When a person comes to enter one of the ways, Elijah cries out in the words of Isaiah 26:2, "Open the gates, that the righteous nation that keeps truth may enter in."
Samuel the prophet, placed between the two byways, asked on which of the two byways to go. If he went on the way of righteousness, then the path of love would be better; if he went on the way of love, the way of righteousness would be better. But Samuel said that he would not give up either of them. God told Samuel that because the prophet had placed himself between the two good byways, God would give him three good gifts. Thus, everyone who does righteousness and shows the service of love inherits the three gifts of life, righteousness, and glory (as Proverbs 21:21 promises). Leading to the way of evil are four doors, and at each door stand seven angels—four merciful angels outside, and three cruel angels inside. When a person comes to enter a door, the merciful angels urge the person not to enter but to repent. If the person heeds them and repents, it is well, but if not, they tell the person not to enter the next door. Even as the person is about to enter the fourth door, the merciful angels say that every day God calls on people to return. The
Sifre interpreted the "ways" of God referred to in Deuteronomy 30:16 (as well as Deuteronomy 5:30; 8:6; 10:12; 11:22; 19:9; 26:17; and 28:9) by making reference to Exodus 34:6–7, "The Lord, the Lord, God of mercy and grace, slow to wrath and abundant in mercy and truth, keeping lovingkindness for thousands, forgiving transgression, offense, and sin, and cleansing . . . ." Thus, the Sifre read
Joel 3:5, "All who will be called by the name of the Lord shall be delivered," to teach that just as Exodus 34:6 calls God "merciful and gracious," we, too, should be merciful and gracious. And just as Psalm 11:7 says, "The Lord is righteous," we, too, should be righteous. The Gemara taught that the words "if your heart turns away . . . you will not hear" in Deuteronomy 30:17 can describe Torah study. If one listens to the old, and reviews what one has already learned, then one will perceive new understanding. But if one turns away and does not review what one has learned, then one may not perceive the opportunity for new learning. Rabbi Haggai taught that not only had God in Deuteronomy 11:26 set two paths before the Israelites, "a blessing and a curse," but God did not administer justice to them according to the strict letter of the law, but allowed them mercy so that they might (in the words of Deuteronomy 30:19) "choose life." The Sifre explained that Deuteronomy 11:26–28 explicitly says, "I set before you this day a blessing and a curse: the blessing,
if you obey the commandments . . . and the curse,
if you shall not obey the commandments," because otherwise the Israelites might read Deuteronomy 30:19, "I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse," and think that since God set before them both paths, they could go whichever way they chose. Thus, Deuteronomy 30:19 directs explicitly: "choose life." circa 1422–1411 B.C.E.)
Rabbi Ishmael deduced from the words "choose life" in Deuteronomy 30:19 that one can learn a trade to earn a livelihood, notwithstanding the admonition of Joshua 1:8 that "you shall contemplate [the Torah] day and night." Rav Judah interpreted the words "for that is your life and the length of your days" in Deuteronomy 30:20 to teach that refusing to read when one is given a Torah scroll to read is one of three things that shorten a person's days and years (along with refusing to say grace when one is given a cup of benediction and assuming airs of authority). The Rabbis taught that once the
Roman government forbade Jews to study the Torah. Pappus ben Judah found Rabbi Akiva publicly gathering people to study Torah and asked Akiva whether he did not fear the government. Akiva replied with a parable: A fox was once walking alongside of a river, and he saw fish swimming from one place to another. The fox asked the fish from what they fled. The fish replied that they fled from the nets cast by men. The fox invited the fish to come up onto the dry land, so that they could live together as the fox's ancestors had lived with the fish's ancestors. The fish replied that for an animal described as the cleverest of animals, the fox was rather foolish. For if the fish were afraid in the element in which they live, how much more would they fear in the element in which they would die. Akiva said that it was the same with Jews. If such was the Jews' condition when they sat and studied Torah, of which Deuteronomy 30:20 says, "that is your life and the length of your days," how much worse off would Jews be if they neglected the Torah! A baraita was taught in the Academy of Eliyahu: A certain scholar diligently studied Bible and Mishnah, and greatly served scholars, but nonetheless died young. His wife carried his
tefillin to the
synagogues and schoolhouses and asked if Deuteronomy 30:20 says, "for that is your life, and the length of your days," why her husband nonetheless died young. No one could answer her. On one occasion, Eliyahu asked her how he was to her during her days of white garments—the seven days after her menstrual period—and she reported that they ate, drank, and slept together without clothing. Eliyahu explained that God must have slain him because he did not sufficiently respect the separation that Leviticus 18:19 requires. ==In medieval Jewish interpretation==