FROM THE TORAH
Deuteronomy 32:1-52
In the previous Sedra Vayelech, Moses has anticipated the future idolatry of the Children of Israel upon the Land of Settlement. He introduces a poem, to be taught to them, and to serve as God’s witness against them. In this week’s Sedra Ha’azeenu, the poem is recorded. Then the Eternal advises Moses of the time and place of his death. He reiterates that Moses shall not enter the Land.
THE POEM
32:1-47
Moses, together with Hosea son of Nun,
delivers all of the words of this poem,
in the hearing of the people:
Testimony Before Heaven and Earth
Give ear (Ha’azeenu), O heavens, and I shall speak;
pay heed, O earth, to the words of my mouth!
Let my teaching come down as rain,
my words as dew upon the grass.
As I declare the Eternal’s Name,
ascribe greatness to our God!
Justification of God’s Judgment
The Rock, His work is perfect,
all of His ways are just,
faithful God,
without unrighteousness,
true and upright is He.
Of corruption:
not His,
but His children’s,
a generation
crooked and perverse!
Ungrateful People
Is this how you repay the Eternal,
O people foolish and unwise?
He is your Father, your Creator;
He made you and sustains you!
Remember the days of old,
study the past generations.
Ask your father, he will tell you.
Consult your elders, they will teach you.
For the Sake of Israel
When the Most High granted portions to the nations,
He established their borders with Jacob in mind,
the Children of Israel, His people,
whom He found in the desert;
like an eagle, He spread His wings,
bearing them upon His pinions,
with no strange god at His side.
He carried him
to the Land’s sacred heights,
He fed him its yield:
honey from the rock,
oil from the flint,
the milk of cows and goats,
rams of Bashan,
the finest of wheat,
and the drink of grapes.
Jeshurun Rebelled
But Jeshurun grew fat and rebelled—
you grew fat and heavy!—
he abandoned the God who made him,
spurned his saving Rock,
they angered Him with their alien abominations,
sacrificed to gods unknown to their fathers—
you forgot the God who bore you!
The Eternal Would Punish Them…
When the Eternal saw this,
angrily He determined:
Let Me hide My face from them,
and I shall see what becomes of them!
They are a generation of perverseness,
children with no faithfulness.
They have insulted Me with a no-god,
so shall I insult them with a no-people.
For My wrath is a fire
that burns to the bottom of She’ol;
it consumes the land and its produce,
destroys the mountains’ foundations.
I would use up My arrows on them,
let loose plague and pestilence,
reptiles and vipers,
the sword from outside
and terror from within,
against boy and girl,
both the suckling and the aged!
…Except for the Enemy’s Arrogance
Except that the enemy might think:
our hand has prevailed,
not that of the Eternal—
for they lack understanding
(if they were wise,
they would understand
what lies ahead for them):
how could one of them
have pursued a thousand of Israel
unless Israel’s Rock had sold them!
What our enemies consider
to be their “rock”
is not like our Rock!
Their wine is from grapes
grown on the vines
of Sodom and Gomorrah,
the venom of poison vipers.
I have it, stored up,
ready for vengeance
when their foot slips,
as their day of disaster is near!
God’s Vengeance Is His People’s Vindication
For the Eternal will vindicate His people,
seeing that they are helpless.
Where are their gods, He will say,
whose sacrifices they ate,
and whose libations they drank?
Let them get up and shield them!
But only I, I, am He,
there is no true God besides Me,
bringing death and life,
wounding and healing,
none can override My power!
As I raise My hand to heaven
and whet the flame of My sword,
My hand shall grasp justice
and inflict vengeance
upon My enemies!
I shall intoxicate My arrows and My sword
with the blood of the fallen and captive,
and from those who drive the enemy.
Acclaim His people, O nations,
as He avenges on His enemies
the blood of His servants
and restores His people
upon its Land!
Testament for the Future
When Moses completes the recitation of all of these words to all of Israel, he calls for their attending to this, his testimony, as a testament to their children to preserve and observe all the words of this Torah. For this is not a vain thing, he says, rather it constitutes your life and your length of days upon the Land which you are crossing the Jordan to possess.
ANTICIPATION OF THE DEATH OF MOSES
32:48-52
On the same day, the Eternal speaks to Moses himself: Ascend to the hill country of Avarim, to Mount Nebo in Moab, overlooking Jericho, and see the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Children of Israel for a possession. You are to die there in that mountain and be gathered to your people, as Aaron your brother died in Mount Hor and was gathered to his people, for both of you acted unfaithfully against Me at the waters of Merivat-Kadesh, in the Wilderness of Tsin, by failing to sanctify Me in the midst of the Children of Israel. From a distance you may view the Land, but you may not enter it, the Land which I am giving to the Children of Israel.
FROM THE PROPHETS
Haftarah for Shabbat Ha’azeenu
II Samuel 22:1-51
David recites to the Eternal the words of this poem
when the Eternal rescues him from all of his enemies and from Saul:
The Eternal is my Rock and Fortress,
He is my Refuge and Shield,
the Source of my salvation!
I called upon Him,
and I was saved from my enemies.
For the breakers of death surrounded me,
the rivers of Belial, the cords of She’ol,
in my distress I called to the Eternal my God,
and from His Temple He heard my voice.
His angry response caused the earth to quake,
the foundations of heaven trembled!
Smoke, fire, burning coals, from His nostrils and in His mouth!
He pushed down the heavens and stepped off,
a dark cloud under His feet.
He rode upon a flying cherub
as if on the wings of the wind,
sukkot of darkness around Him,
water and thick clouds in the sky,
illumined by burning coals of fire!
The voice of the Eternal thunders from heaven,
His arrows of lightning sow confusion:
channels of the sea are exposed,
foundations of the earth are uncovered
by the angry blast of His breath!
He dispatches from the height,
draws me out of abundant waters;
He rescues me from my enemy,
from those who are stronger than I.
The Eternal favors me
and rewards me according to my merit.
For I have kept the ways of the Eternal,
I shall not deviate from His statutes.
With the straight You reveal Your lovingkindness,
and You requite the ways of the crooked.
You will save a humbled people,
You look upon the haughty to bring them down.
You are my lamp, O Eternal,
illuminating my darkness!
You enable me to take on an army,
by my God I can leap over walls;
O God, His way is perfect, His teaching is pure,
He is a Shield to all who take refuge in Him!
Who is God but the Eternal?
Who is a Rock but our God?
God, my Fortress, trains me for war,
He bends a bow of brass for my arms;
You grant me Your saving shield,
Your gracious attention makes me great!
You enable me to firmly pursue my enemies
and to persist until they are destroyed!
They, too, seek Your help,
but You answer them not!
You deliver me also from the quarrels of my people,
and You preserve me as the undisputed ruler
of nations whom I knew not
as they fall before me!
As the Eternal lives, blessed is my saving, avenging Rock,
who brings peoples down below me,
who removes me from my enemies,
and exalts me above those who come against me,
delivering me from men of violence!
Therefore shall I sing Your thanks among the nations:
A Tower of salvation for His King,
showing lovingkindness to His anointed one,
to David and to his seed,
forever!
FROM TALMUD AND MIDRASH
Sedra Ha’azeenu
Deuteronomy Rabbah 10:1
Preeminence of Hearing
“Give ear, O heavens, and I shall speak;
pay heed, O earth, to the words of my mouth!”
(Deuteronomy 32:1)
The Rabbis teach: If you wish to prevent harm to your ears or any of your other organs, incline your ear to the Torah and you will obtain life! Whence? The Prophet taught: “Incline your ear and come to Me; be attentive and your entire life shall live” (Isaiah 55:3)!
Said Rabbi Chaninah ben Pappa: Whoever removes his ear from hearing Torah—his prayer is rejected, as was said: “If one turns away his ear from listening to Torah, his prayer also is an abomination” (Proverbs 28:9)!
Rabbi Levi likened the ear to a pomander: Garments are placed in the pomander and benefit from the scent of burning spices under them. Similarly, all 248 organs of a person owe their life to the ear, as was said: “Incline your ear and come to Me, be attentive and your entire life shall live” (Isaiah 55:3)!
In addition, the Holy One, blessed be He, is saying: If you incline your ear to the Torah, then when you start to deliver words of Torah, everyone will listen to you and hear your words just as you inclined your ear to hear words of Torah. Whence do you learn this? From Moses our Rabbi, who inclined his ear to the Torah, and therefore, whenever he sought to deliver words of Torah, inhabitants both on high and below became quiet and listened to his words. This we know from what we read in the Sedra: “Give ear, O heavens, and I shall speak; pay heed, O earth, to the words of my mouth!”
Deuteronomy Rabbah 10:4
Both Heaven and Earth
“Give ear, O heavens, and I shall speak;
pay heed, O earth, to the words of my mouth!”
(Deuteronomy 32:1)
Said Rabbi Samuel bar Nachman: Moses was of the earth, as he was human. But he also became great in heaven, as was said, “He was there with the Eternal forty days and forty nights” (Exodus 34:28). This duality presented him with a dilemma: If I appeal to heaven, the earth will be upset; and if I appeal to earth, heaven will be upset. So his solution was: I shall appeal to both of them, to heaven and to earth, as was said, “Give ear, O heavens…pay heed, O earth…!”
Said Rabbi Tanchuma: Why to both heaven and earth? Because the Holy One, blessed be He, will not redeem Israel except by the agencies of both, for thus is written: “Shout aloud, O heavens, for the Eternal will act; sing out, O depths of the earth” (Isaiah 44:23)!
Another interpretation: Why to both heaven and earth? Because both were involved in the giving of Torah, as was said, “From the heavens He caused you to hear His voice, instruct you; and on earth He caused you to see His great fire, from which you heard His words” (Deuteronomy 4:36)!
Another interpretation: Because the provision of manna and quails was worked through both of them. Whence? “I shall cause bread (manna) to rain down to you from the heavens” (Exodus 16:4) and “In the evening quail came up (from the earth) and covered the camp” (Ibid. 13).
Another interpretation: Because the Holy One, blessed be He, likened Israel to both heaven and earth. He said to Abraham, “Look up to the heavens, and count the stars, if you could…thus shall be your seed” (Genesis 15:5)! and He said to Jacob in his dream, “Your seed shall be (as numerous) as the dust of the earth” (Genesis 28:14).
Rabbi Chanina taught: This may be likened to one who dies after entrusting a valuable possession to his friend. The son and heir of the deceased shows honor to the man with whom his father entrusted the possession—and to the man’s wife as well. The son is asked: Why do you show honor to both of them, to the man and his wife? He answers them: I (as his father’s heir) now own something valuable that is with them, but it is not clear to me exactly which of them is holding it, the man or his wife. I just want to be sure that wherever the object is, it is kept safe.
So was Moses asked the same question when he said, “Give ear, O heavens…pay heed, O earth…”: Why are you charging both heaven and earth? His answer: I will in the future die, but I do not know to which of these my soul is going, whether to heaven or to earth. Whence? “Who knows if a man’s spirit rises upwards or, as a beast’s spirit, goes down to the earth” (Ecclesiastes 3:21)? Therefore I charge both of them, just to be sure that wherever my soul rests, it is kept safe!
“Abigail gave to David…this blessing:
‘May the soul of my lord be [v’haytah] bound up
in the bond of life with the Eternal your God.’”
(I Samuel 25:24-29)
The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses: By your life, no created thing of earth will have dominion over your soul. Where will it rest? Under My throne of glory in heaven! This is as Abigail asserted to David: “The soul of my lord will be [v’haytah] bound up in the bond of life with the Eternal your God” (I Samuel 25:29)!
Numbers Rabbah 2:6
How God Found Israel
“The Children of Israel, His people,
whom He found in the desert,…”
(Deuteronomy 32:10a)
In the desert?
Did He not find us in Egypt?!
He means to characterize God’s finding of Israel in the sense of a gift: The Holy One, blessed be He, found Israel at first to be refreshing, as the Prophet said, “I found Israel to be like grapes in the desert; I saw your fathers like the first fig to ripen on the tree” (Hosea 9:10).
“…in a wasted, howling wilderness;”
(Deuteronomy 32:10a)
Such was the world before Israel went out from Egypt and received the Torah. The world, then without Torah, was a wilderness! But once they came out of Egypt and received the Torah, then:
“He surrounded him,
He attended him,
He guarded him,
like the pupil of His eye.”
(Ibid. 10b)
“He surrounded him” in that He surrounded Israel in the wilderness with Clouds of Glory (cf. Sifre Numbers Beha’alot’cha 25 and 48).
“He attended him” in the sense of teaching: He taught them words of Torah in the wilderness (cf. Talmud Sanhedrin 56b on Exodus 15:25; Exodus 19:1-23:19 et al).
“He guarded him”: Happy are the ears who heard (cf. Deuteronomy 32:1) through these words how much He loved them (by “surrounding” them), how much He assured their observance (by “teaching them words of Torah”), and how closely He guarded them as if they were “the pupil of His eye,” as if they were His own eyes!
For not only did their ears hear but their eyes saw how He surrounded them, how He attended them, and how He guarded them, when He said to Moses, “Let them make for Me a Sanctuary, that I may dwell among them (Exodus 25:8). It was if He were leaving the heavenly hosts (cf. Psalms 80:15 et al.) to dwell among (the hosts of) Israel below, as was said, “I shall bring out My hosts, My people, the Children of Israel, from the land of Egypt” (Exodus 7:4)! He made this apparent when He charged Moses: “Let the hosts of the Children of Israel encamp, each man by his division, each man by his banner” (Numbers 1:52)!
Talmud Kiddushin 36a
God’s Children
“They are a generation of perverseness,
children with no faithfulness.”
(Deuteronomy 32:20)
It is taught: Rabbi Meir says, Even when Israel fails to do God’s will, they are still called His children!
Yerushalmi Peah 1:1
Making the Torah “Your Life”
“Apply your heart to all of the words
that I attest to you this day,
which you shall command to your children to keep,
in order to carry out all of the words of this Torah.
For it is not too vain a thing for you [mikem],
but it is your life,
and by this thing you will have many days upon the Land…”
(Deuteronomy 32:46-47)
Rabbi Mana taught: “For it is not a vain thing from you” [mikem]—meaning that if it were a vain thing, then it would be “from you!” Why? Because in that case you would not be laboring in the Torah. This teaches you that any matter for which the members of the Beth Din truly devote themselves, even at the risk of death, will be sustained as truth in the end.
When is it “your life?” When you labor in it!
Yalkut Shimoni 164
“Tower of Salvations” and “Increaser of Salvations”
“Tower of salvations (Migdol yeshuot) for His king,
showing lovingkindness
to His anointed one,
to David and to his offspring
for ever.”
(II Samuel 22:51)
Rabbi Yudan explained:
“Tower of salvations…” for when the nation has its anointed king as a great protective tower, as was said, “A Tower of strength is the Name of the Eternal, to which the righteous runs and is safe” (Proverbs 18:10).
But another verse says:
“Increaser of salvations (Magdil yeshuot) for His king…”
(Psalms 18:51)
“Increaser of salvations…” because the salvation of a nation does not come all at once; it grows and increases over time.
SHABBAT SHALOM!
Copyright © 2025 Eric H. Hoffman
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