And Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people, saying: "Keep all the commandment which I command you this day.
verse value 4340
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 57 letters. The shortest word is "Moses" (מֹשֶׁה֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "all·the·commandment" (אֶת־כׇּל־הַמִּצְוָ֔ה, 9 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "and·elders·of" (וְזִקְנֵ֣י). The root צוה appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 466x in Deuteronomy); "today" (root יום, 168x in Deuteronomy); "to·say" (root אמר, 144x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·say', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 7 words. Full calculation: וַיְצַ֤ו [and·he·commanded] (112) + מֹשֶׁה֙ [Moses] (345) + וְזִקְנֵ֣י [and·elders·of] (173) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל [Israel] (541) + אֶת־הָעָ֖ם [the·people] (516) + לֵאמֹ֑ר [to·say] (271) + שָׁמֹר֙ [keep] (540) + אֶת־כׇּל־הַמִּצְוָ֔ה [all·the·commandment] (597) + אֲשֶׁ֧ר [that] (501) + אָנֹכִ֛י [i] (81) + מְצַוֶּ֥ה [commanding] (141) + אֶתְכֶ֖ם [you] (461) + הַיּֽוֹם [today] (61) = 4340.
Onkelos
And Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people, saying: Observe all the commandments that I am commanding you this day.
Rashi
שמר את כל המצוה — The word שמור is a frequentative present tense, gardant in old French, keeping in English
Ramban
AND MOSES AND THE ELDERS OF ISRAEL COMMANDED THE PEOPLE, SAYING: KEEP ALL THE COMMANDMENT etc. The meaning thereof is that after Moses completed his words [to the people,] he ordered the elders also to join him and warn the people to keep all the commandments, for every nation follows the advice of its elders. It states which ‘I’ command you this day, not “we,” for the principal speech was that of Moses, while the elders merely proclaimed, saying to the people, “Hear, hearken, and observe.” Similarly, And Moses and the priests, the Levites spoke unto all Israel, etc. means that the priests said to the people, Keep silence, and hear, O Israel, and Moses said, This day thou art become a people. But Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra commented that the expression keep all the commandment refers to the commandment about the stones which he will mention further on. But this is not correct [since the verse states keep ‘all’ the commandment, it must refer to the commandments in general and not to one commandment in particular].
Ibn Ezra
"And Moses commanded" — by the command of Hashem. "And the elders of Israel" — he says this to make it easier to fulfill, and similarly [the mention of] many [together]; I have already noted these [instances]. "Keep the entire commandment" — and what is it? That you shall set up large stones sufficient to contain the Torah. The Gaon, of blessed memory, said that written upon them was the count of the commandments, as written in Halakhot Gedolot in the matter of the admonitions — and he spoke well.
Sforno
ויצא משה וזקני ישראל, G’d co-opted the elders seeing it was they who would stand at Mount Gerizim and Mount Eyval, and not Moses.
Or HaChaim
ויצו משה וזקני ישראל את העם, Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people, etc. Why did Moses single out this paragraph to mention the elders of Israel? Moses referred to what is spelled out by our sages in Berachot 19 that when the desecration of G'd's name is at stake there is no room for worrying about the respect or honour due to one's rabbi. We base this principle on Proverbs 21,30: "there is no wisdom, insight, or counsel which prevails against G'd." Moses, the Chief Rabbi of the Israelites, decreed that the elders too issue the same command to the people. [I believe the author means that normally Moses would consult with the elders and leave it to their own wisdom to communicate the Torah insights they had learned from him to the people in their own time and in their own words. In this instance, when a renewed commitment to Torah was required by a generation most of whom had not been alive at the revelation, Moses acted in what appears like a somewhat autocratic manner for the reasons mentioned. Ed.] Moses used the word שמר, because it refers to negative commandments, and the rule that one does not bother to give honour to elders applies when we need to make sure that negative commandments are not violated in public.
Rabbeinu Bahya
שמור את כל המצוה, “Observe the whole command ment, etc.” The Torah refers to the impending command to erect stones on Mount Eyval (verse 4) after they have been inscribed, stones taken from the river Jordan at the time the people would cross that river. These stones are intended to commemorate the miracles which occurred enabling the Israelites to cross the river without becoming wet at a time of year when it was swollen with melting snow from Mount Hermon. There were a total of 12 such stones as we know from Joshua 4,2 that one stone per tribe was to be erected. Joshua commanded the twelve men to whom he had assigned the task of taking these stones from the river after the people had completed crossing. These stones were carried on the shoulders of the twelve men, each of whom represented his tribe (Joshua 4,1-8). These stones were deposited next to the place at Gilgal where the Israeites spent the first night in the Holy Land, close to the river. The stones which were erected on Mount Eyval had the entire text of the Torah inscribed on them. Another twelve stones (Joshua 4,9) were erected in the river bed of the Jordan at the site of the miracle where the priests with the Holy Ark had crossed and G’d had arrested the flow of the river so as not to swamp the Holy Ark (Joshua 4,7). The reason the stones are described as having to be “large,” is to enable the engravers to inscribe the whole text of the Torah on their surface. The latter stones are reported as still being in existence at the time the Book of Joshua had been written. [What is written in Joshua 4,3-4 is an elaboration of what was mentioned in summary in the preceding verse 2.] (compare Daat Mikra). There were a total of 36 stones, three groups of 12. Twelve were erected in the river bed of the Jordan, before the Jordan had resumed flowing south. 12 were erected at Gilgal. The final twelve were taken all the way to Mount Eyval. These latter stones were made into the altar on Mount Eyval as mentioned by Rashi in his commentary on verse two of our chapter. [According to a view also mentioned by Rashi in conjunction with the Baraitha in Sotah 35, the stones which were made into a (temporary) altar on Mount Eyval were brought back to Gilgal and erected there.] Our author feels that the plain meaning of our verses allows for only a total of 24 stones, 12 of which were erected in the river bed, whereas the other 12 were taken from the river. The stones erected in the river bed remain to this day and their purpose had been to enable the feet of the priests carrying the Holy Ark not to get wet in the slime while crossing the river. [The actual flow of the water had been arrested in deference to the presence of the Holy Ark. Ed.] We find the expression באר used in Deut. 1,5 when Moses is reported as “explaining” the Torah. We find it used again in verse 5 of our chapter here. This gives rise to the exegesis by means of a גזרה שוה that just as Moses explained the Torah in 70 languages, the inscribing of the stones with the Torah also was in 70 languages. The words והקמות לך אבנים גדולות (verse 3) may be understood as a כלל, a general summary of the subject under discussion, whereas the words (verse 4) והיה בעברכם את הירדן תקימו את האבנים האלה may be viewed as the details elaborating on the summary mentioned before. It is as if the Torah wanted to say that the twelve stones mentioned earlier were to be treated in a certain manner. Verse four refers to the aforementioned stones and instructs for them to be erected on Mount Eival. They are to be covered with plaster and then inscribed after the altar on Mount Eival has been erected. [the building of the altar is to precede the erecting of these stones, not as the wording appears at first glance (Rabbi Chavell) Ed.] Following all this, the stones are to be inscribed with the text of the entire Torah, well clarified (verse 8). If we do not explain the verse in this fashion i.e. on the basis of A) summary (כלל) followed by B) detailed instructions (פרט), the entire passage will sound confusing. What would be the point of writing in verse 8 that the entire Torah, well clarified, is to be inscribed on these stones, seeing that G’d had already instructed the Torah to be inscribed on the stones in verse 3? Furthermore, how could the Torah first write: “you are to write upon them” (verse 3), and subsequently “you shall build an altar there?” (verse 5). The Talmud in Sotah 32 also appears to understand our paragraph as an example of the exegetical principle of כלל ופרט.
Tur HaArokh
ויצו משה וזקני ישראל, “Moses and the elders commanded the Israelites, etc.;” After Moses had concluded his review of the Torah he commanded the elders to also address the people and to caution them to observe all the commandments of the Torah, because he knew that such a warning would be effective as all the people willingly obeyed their respective elders. שמור את כל המצוה, “Observe the entire commandment, etc.” According to Ibn Ezra the “commandment” referred to here is the one to erect the huge stones upon which, after these stones had been properly whitewashed, a copy of the Torah would be engraved. Nachmanides writes that this is not correct, but that Moses referred to the entire Torah as a single “מצוה” at this point. אשר אנכי מצוה אתכם, “which I am commanding you.” Moses did not say: “which we are commanding you,” seeing that basically G’d had addressed Moses, and the function of the elders was to raise their voices so that the whole people could hear what G’d had commanded Moses. Not only that, but the elders by being placed strategically among the people, could secure the people’s attention. A little while later (verse 9) the Torah writes that Moses, as well as the priests and the Levites, addressed the whole of Israel, calling upon them to pay attention, and to make a note of the fact that on that day they had truly become a nation.
And it shall be on the day when you shall pass over the Jordan to the land which Hashem your God gives you, that you shall set up great stones, and plaster them with plaster.
verse value 6017 — וְהָיָ֗ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 74 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָ֗ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "to·you" (לָ֑ךְ, 2 letters) and the longest is "the·Jordan" (אֶת־הַיַּרְדֵּן֒, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 50: to·you, to·you. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "and·you·shall·erect" (וַהֲקֵמֹתָ֤), "great" (גְּדֹל֔וֹת). The root לך appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that·Hashem" (root יהוה, 541x in Deuteronomy); "that" (root אשר, 466x in Deuteronomy); "your·God" (root אלהים, 368x in Deuteronomy). First appearance of the root שיד ("and·you·shall·coat") in Deuteronomy. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 7 words.
Onkelos
And it shall be, on the day that you cross the Jordan into the land that Hashem your God is giving you, you shall set up for yourself large stones and coat them with plaster.
Rashi
והקמת לך THEN THOU SHALT RAISE THEE UP [GREAT STONES] — in the Jordan, and afterwards you shall take out from there others and build an altar of them on Mount Eval. Consequently you must say that there were three sets of stones: twelve in the Jordan, an equal number in Gilgal, and another twelve on Mount Ebal, as is stated in Treatise Sotah 35b.
Ibn Ezra
"The meaning of 'with plaster'" — so that they would stand firm.
Chizkuni
והקמות לך אבנים, “you shall set up for yourselves stones;” according to Rashi the Torah decrees three times that such stones shall be set up; once in the river Jordan, once in Gilgal, the first stop of the Israelites after crossing that river; and the third time at the base of Mount Eyval. He bases himself on the Talmud, tractate Sotah folio 35. [Actually, according to the Talmud there, one set of stones was erected in the land of Moav, another in the Jordan river by Joshua, and the third was erected by Joshua at Gilgal. The Talmud has two versions about this subject, Rashi apparently having preferred the other version. There is much discussion about this subject; seeing that we cannot resolve what the sages did not resolve who were chronologically much closer to the event, there is no sense in our pursuing the subject further, as it is of no consequence even after Moshiach will have come. Ed.] אבנים גדולות, “large stones;” large enough to engrave the list of the commandments in the Torah just as the Gaonim wrote Asharot (piyutim, i.e. poems about the commandments) in the volume Halachot Gedolot. These stones were to be placed on one another and separated by some kind of mortar, just as in any normal building.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ושדת אותם בשיד, “and you shall coat them with plaster.” The Torah did not use the term גיר, chalk, in this instance as the prophet Isaiah 27,9 used when describing shattered altar stones. This in spite of the fact that גיר is a far stronger material than שיד. The reason the Torah ordered the stones to be covered with שיד is that this is a material which stands up to rain better than גיר.
And you shall write upon them all the words of this law, when you have passed over; that you may go in to the land which Hashem your God gives you, a land flowing with milk and honey, as Hashem, the God of your fathers, has promised you.
verse value 7881 — יְהֹוָ֥ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 23 words, 100 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֥ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "to·you" (לְךָ֗, 2 letters) and the longest is "God·of·your·fathers" (אֱלֹהֵֽי־אֲבֹתֶ֖יךָ, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 50: to·you, for·you. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "upon" (עֲלֵיהֶ֗ן), "when·you·cross" (בְּעׇבְרֶ֑ךָ), "God·of·your·fathers" (אֱלֹהֵֽי־אֲבֹתֶ֖יךָ). The root דבר appears 2 times in this verse. 18 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that·Hashem" (root יהוה, 541x in Deuteronomy); "that" (root אשר, 466x in Deuteronomy); "your·God" (root אלהים, 368x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'when·you·cross', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 17 words.
Onkelos
And you shall write upon them all the words of this Torah when you cross over, so that you may enter the land that Hashem your God is giving you — a land flowing with milk and honey — as Hashem, the God of your fathers, spoke to you.
Ramban
AND THOU SHALT WRITE UPON THEM ALL THE WORDS OF THIS LAW. Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra wrote in the name of the Gaon that “they wrote upon the stones a list of the commandments like those written down in the ‘Hilchoth Gedoloth,’ in the form of Azharoth (‘Exhortations’ of the liturgical poets). And the meaning of the expression ‘ba’eir heiteiv’ (very plainly) refers to the writing” [i.e., that it be in legible script, but it does not mean “well explained,” since only a brief list of the commandments rather than a detailed rendering was inscribed upon the stones].And our Rabbis have said [that ‘ba’eir heiteiv’ means] in the seventy languages [of the peoples of the world]. Now, we find in the Book of Tagin (crownlets) that the entire Torah was written on them [i.e., the stones] — from the beginning of Bereshith to in the sight of all Israel — with its crownlets and its flourishes, and from there all the crownlets in the entire Torah were copied. It is likely that either these stones were huge, or it was a miraculous event [for, otherwise, it would have been impossible to inscribe so much on a few stone tablets]. SO THAT THOU MAYEST GO IN UNTO THE LAND. Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra commented that it means “that G-d will help you [to come into the Land] if you begin keeping His commandments, for this was the first commandment [that they were to observe] upon coming into the Land.” In my opinion the expression so that thou mayest go in unto the Land alludes to all the words of the Torah, the verse stating that you are to write upon the stones all the words of this Law when thou art passed over the Jordan immediately so that thou mayest go into the Land, for it was for the sake of the Torah that you will have come there. Similarly, so that thy manservant and thy maidservant may rest as well as thou. And thou shalt remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt which means: “let your manservant and your maidservant rest like you so that you shall remember that you were servants in the land of Egypt.” Or it may be that the meaning of the verse is as follows: “you shall write upon the stones all the words of this Law to serve you as a remembrance so that you may come into the Land and conquer it and drive out all these peoples, [a conquest that will be yours only] when you will remember the Torah and keep all its commandments.”
Ibn Ezra
"So that" — for Hashem will help you if you begin to keep His commandments. And this commandment was the first one upon their entry — to build themselves a new altar to give thanks to Hashem that they had begun to be in the land.
Or HaChaim
למען אשר תבא אל הארץ "in order that you may enter the land, etc." Rabbi Avraham ibn Ezra explains this to mean that when you commence to observe His commandments, i.e. to inscribe the stones, (and this is the first commandment), you will enter the Holy Land by dint of this merit. Nachmanides understands the words: "in order that you will enter" as a commandment to inscribe the entire Torah on these stones at the time the Israelites would cross the Jordan [as opposed to Ibn Ezra who wrote that only the actual commandments had to be inscribed on these stones. Ed.] I do not believe that either one of these two explanations does justice to the plain meaning of our verse. Another thing we have to explain are the words כאשר דבר ה׳ אלוקי אבותיך לך, "as the Lord the G'd of your fathers has said to you." The Torah should have written the word לך, to you, immediately after the words כאשר דבר, and we would have entertained no doubt about who had said this to the Israelites. However, the Torah had to consider the fact that previously Moses had told the Israelites that the fact that they would enter the Holy Land was not due to their own merits (compare 9,5), but to the wickedness of the Canaanites residing in that land at that time. Another reason given by the Torah at that time for the Israelites entering and taking possession of the land was the promise G'd had made to their forefathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. In view of all this, the Torah here had to state that fulfilment of a commandment would be a factor in the Israelites entering the Holy Land due to their own מצוה-input. The positioning of the word לך at the end of the verse is an arbitrary decision by Moses, the author of our verse. The meter of the whole verse is as follows: "in order that your entry into the land which the Lord your G'd gives to you in accordance with what He said to your forefathers will be one which you are entitled to by your own merit, so that you do not have to rely on the covenant G'd made with your ancestors."
Rabbeinu Bahya
וכתבת עליהן את כל דברי התורה הזאת, “You are to inscribe on them all the words of this Torah.” This teaches that the entire Torah was written on these stones. This is also the view of Nachmanides who writes: “for we have found in the book of Tagai that the entire Torah was inscribed upon them starting with Genesis and concluding with the words: ‘before the eyes of the whole of Israel’ (Deut. 34,12), complete with all the decorations of the letters which we are familiar with.” These stones were the model from which the script of the Torah nowadays was copied. Thus far Nachmanides. According to Rabbi Saadyah Gaon, quoted by Rabbi Avraham Ibn Ezra, these stones only contained a list of the 613 commandments as they are recorded in the Book Halachot Gedolot in the form of warnings. למען אשר תבוא אל הארץ, “so that you may arrive in the land,” etc.; this means that on account of your keeping these commandments of the Torah you will be allowed to enter the Holy Land. The reason the stones had to be erected and inscribed was to remind the people that their conquest of the land was only designed to enable them to keep the Torah in that land. This is the way Nachmanides understands these words. (verse 6) This would then be the reason that the sages decreed that mention of the Torah must be made when reciting the benediction acknowledging our taking possession of the land of Israel (in the recital of grace, ועל תורתך שלמדתנו). It is possible to explain the words למען אשר תבוא אל הארץ as “in order to enable you to come to the land,” seeing that the power of the Torah destroys all our enemies in the land enabling us to settle in their land as our heritage.
Tur HaArokh
וכתבת עליהן את כל דברי התורה הזאת, “you shall inscribe upon them all the words of this Torah. Ibn Ezra writes, quoting Rav Saadyah gaon, that the list of the commandments was inscribed on these stones in a manner similar to the well known work halachot g’dolot where these commandments are recorded in the form of warnings of what to do and what not to do. (Babylon, by Rabbi Yehudai ben Sh’muel gaon, 9th century) The words באר היטב, normally understood as in clearly comprehensible language, mean in “clearly legible script”, and do not refer to interpretation. Our sages claim that the entire text of the Torah was inscribed on these stones with careful attention given to the crowns on all the letters, and in addition the text was translated and inscribed in 70 languages. (Compare Rashi) Either the stones were exceedingly large, or there was a miracle that enabled the scribes to accomplish this. למען אשר תבא אל הארץ, “so that you may enter the land, etc.” Ibn Ezra understands these words to mean that the publication of the Torah on these stones will help the Israelites to acquire the merit to enter (and take possession of) the land of Canaan, as they have already fulfilled the first commandment tied to living in that land. Nachmanides adds, that according to the opinion of Ibn Ezra there is a hint in this commandment to constantly keep in front of our mental eye all the commandments, which in turn ensures that we will keep them and be worthy to keep the land that Hashem is giving us as an inheritance. Ibn Ezra further points out that the sons of Yaakov’s major wives stood on Mount Gerizim when the blessings were proclaimed, whereas the tribes descended from the minor wives stood on Mount Eyval, but seeing that there were not enough of them, two of Leah’s sons, the eldest, Reuven, and the youngest Zevulun, joined the sons of the minor wives on Mount Eyval.
And it shall be when you have passed over the Jordan, that you shall set up these stones, which I command you this day, in mount Ebal, and you shall plaster them with plaster.
verse value 5173 — וְהָיָה֮ = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 72 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָה֮) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "that" (אֲשֶׁ֨ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·stones" (אֶת־הָאֲבָנִ֣ים, 8 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "you·shall·erect" (תָּקִ֜ימוּ), "the·stones" (אֶת־הָאֲבָנִ֣ים). The root שיד appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 466x in Deuteronomy); "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 170x in Deuteronomy); "today" (root יום, 168x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Ebal', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 3 words.
Onkelos
And it shall be, when you have crossed the Jordan, you shall set up these stones, which I am commanding you this day, on Mount Ebal, and you shall coat them with plaster.
Chizkuni
תקימו את האבנים האלה, “you shall set up these stones.” This verse refers to the stones mentioned in verse two. בהר עיבל, “at Mount Eyval.” In order to pacify the tribes that had been ordered to stand on Mount Eyval while listening to the curses, Moses ordered the building of an altar of stones to be built there on which burnt offerings were to be offered [This is the only time we hear about burnt offerings being offered other than on the altar at the entrance to the Tabernacle, inside its compound for the last 39 years. Also peace offerings were to be offered there, i.e. offerings that in the main were eaten by the people at large, not the priests and their households. Ed.] This would convince the tribes lined up there that the presence of the Lord was as much in evidence there as above the Tabernacle itself.
And there you shall build an altar to Hashem your God, an altar of stones; you shall lift up no iron tool upon them.
verse value 2112
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 45 letters. The shortest word is "there" (שָּׁם֙, 2 letters) and the longest is "not·you·shall·wield" (לֹא־תָנִ֥יף, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 57: altar, altar. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "not·you·shall·wield" (לֹא־תָנִ֥יף). The root מזבח appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·Hashem" (root יהוה, 541x in Deuteronomy); "your·God" (root אלהים, 368x in Deuteronomy); "there" (root שם, 101x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·God', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 5 words. Full calculation: וּבָנִ֤יתָ [and·you·shall·build] (468) + שָּׁם֙ [there] (340) + מִזְבֵּ֔חַ [altar] (57) + לַיהֹוָ֖ה [to·Hashem] (56) + אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ [your·God] (66) + מִזְבַּ֣ח [altar] (57) + אֲבָנִ֔ים [stones] (103) + לֹא־תָנִ֥יף [not·you·shall·wield] (571) + עֲלֵיהֶ֖ם [upon] (155) + בַּרְזֶֽל [iron] (239) = 2112.
Onkelos
And you shall build there an altar before Hashem your God, an altar of stones; you shall not lift iron upon them.
Chizkuni
לא תניף עליהם ברזל, “you shall not lift up any iron tool over these stones in connection with building this altar. אבנים שלמות תבנה, “you are to use whole stones for building it.” (unhewn) Our sages in the Mishna Middot 3:4 derive from this verse that if any of these stones had been touched by iron the altar is disqualified from being used. Moreover any blemish on any of the stones used in building it, similarly disqualifies an altar from being used. Having heard the commandment not to use iron, where did we learn about the penalty if these instructions would be disregarded? It is found in Exodus 20,22: כי חרבך הנפת עליה ותחללה, “for if you have lifted an iron tool over it you have desecrated it.”
You shall build the altar of Hashem your God of unhewn stones; and you shall offer burnt-offerings on it to Hashem your God.
verse value 3151 — יְהֹוָ֣ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 53 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֣ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "you·shall·build" (תִּבְנֶ֔ה, 4 letters) and the longest is "altar" (אֶת־מִזְבַּ֖ח, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 66: your·God, your·God. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "complete" (שְׁלֵמוֹת֙), "altar" (אֶת־מִזְבַּ֖ח), "and·you·shall·offer·up" (וְהַעֲלִ֤יתָ). The root יהוה appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 541x in Deuteronomy); "your·God" (root אלהים, 368x in Deuteronomy); "upon" (root על, 87x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·God', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: אֲבָנִ֤ים [stones] (103) + שְׁלֵמוֹת֙ [complete] (776) + תִּבְנֶ֔ה [you·shall·build] (457) + אֶת־מִזְבַּ֖ח [altar] (458) + יְהֹוָ֣ה [Hashem] (26) + אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ [your·God] (66) + וְהַעֲלִ֤יתָ [and·you·shall·offer·up] (521) + עָלָיו֙ [upon] (116) + עוֹלֹ֔ת [whole·burnt·offerings] (506) + לַיהֹוָ֖ה [to·Hashem] (56) + אֱלֹהֶֽיךָ [your·God] (66) = 3151.
Onkelos
Of whole stones you shall build the altar of Hashem your God, and you shall offer upon it burnt offerings before Hashem your God.
And you shall sacrifice peace-offerings, and shall eat there; and you shall rejoice before Hashem your God.
verse value 2656 — יְהֹוָ֥ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 35 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֥ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "there" (שָּׁ֑ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·you·shall·sacrifice" (וְזָבַחְתָּ֥, 5 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "offerings·of·well-being" (שְׁלָמִ֖ים). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 541x in Deuteronomy); "your·God" (root אלהים, 368x in Deuteronomy); "before" (root פנים, 127x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'there', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְזָבַחְתָּ֥ [and·you·shall·sacrifice] (423) + שְׁלָמִ֖ים [offerings·of·well-being] (420) + וְאָכַ֣לְתָּ [and·you·shall·eat] (457) + שָּׁ֑ם [there] (340) + וְשָׂ֣מַחְתָּ֔ [and·you·shall·rejoice] (754) + לִפְנֵ֖י [before] (170) + יְהֹוָ֥ה [Hashem] (26) + אֱלֹהֶֽיךָ [your·God] (66) = 2656.
Onkelos
And you shall slaughter sacred offerings and eat there and rejoice before Hashem your God.
Sforno
ושמחת לפני ה' אלוקיך, over the privilege of entering a covenant with G’d at Mount Gerizim and Mount Eyval.
Targum Yonatan
and offer sacrifices upon it before the Lord your God. And you shall immolate the consecrated victims, and eat there, and rejoice before the Lord your God.
And you shall write upon the stones all the words of this law, well explained.
verse value 2961 — הֵיטֵֽב = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 37 letters. Notable word values: "well" (הֵיטֵֽב) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "to·expound" (בַּאֵ֥ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "upon·the·stones" (עַל־הָאֲבָנִ֗ים, 8 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "upon·the·stones" (עַל־הָאֲבָנִ֗ים). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "all·words·of" (root דבר, 170x in Deuteronomy); "this" (root זאת, 49x in Deuteronomy); "upon·the·stones" (root אבן, 25x in Deuteronomy). Full calculation: וְכָתַבְתָּ֣ [and·you·shall·write] (828) + עַל־הָאֲבָנִ֗ים [upon·the·stones] (208) + אֶֽת־כׇּל־דִּבְרֵ֛י [all·words·of] (667) + הַתּוֹרָ֥ה [the·Teaching] (616) + הַזֹּ֖את [this] (413) + בַּאֵ֥ר [to·expound] (203) + הֵיטֵֽב [well] (26) = 2961.
Onkelos
And you shall write upon the stones all the words of this Torah, well explained.
Rashi
באר היטב EXPLAINING THEM WELL — i.e. in seventy languages (Sotah 32a; cf. Rashi on Deuteronomy 1:5).
Ibn Ezra
"Very clearly" — refers to the writing.
Rashbam
'וכתבת על האבנים את כל דברי וגו, for when they were now sworn at Mount Gerizim and Mount Eyval the Torah was present before them in written format, and they were sworn to keep its commandments.
Targum Yonatan
And upon the stones you shall write all the words of this law with writing deeply (engraven) and distinct, which shall be read in one language, but shall be interpreted in seventy languages.
And Moses and the priests the Levites spoke to all Israel, saying: "Keep silence, and hear, O Israel; this day you have become a people to Hashem your God.
verse value 3944
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 71 letters. The shortest word is "to" (אֶ֥ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·the·priests" (וְהַכֹּהֲנִ֣ים, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "and·the·priests" (וְהַכֹּהֲנִ֣ים), "you·have·become" (נִהְיֵ֣יתָֽ). 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·Hashem" (root יהוה, 541x in Deuteronomy); "your·God" (root אלהים, 368x in Deuteronomy); "and·he·spoke" (root דבר, 170x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·say', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 9 words.
Onkelos
And Moses and the Levitical priests spoke to all Israel, saying: Be attentive and hear, O Israel — this day you have become a people before Hashem your God.
Rashi
הסכת — Understand this as the Targum does: אצית listen! היום הזה נהיית לעם THIS DAY YOU HAVE BECOME THE PEOPLE [OF THE LORD YOUR GOD] — On each day it should appear to you as though it were “today” that you have entered the covenant with him (Berachot 63b).
Ibn Ezra
"And Moses and the priests, the Levites, spoke" — as it is written "and the elders of Israel," but the principal [speaker] is Moses. "Be silent" — its interpretation fits its context, for it has no parallel elsewhere. "This day you have become a people" — in that He made a covenant with you.
Sforno
וידבר משה והכהנים הלוים, Moses co-opted the priests to caution them on the importance of studying the Torah in depth. This was because it was their primary duty to teach the Torah to the people. [service in the Temple occupied only a few days’ a year of each priest’s time. Ed.] (compare Deut. 33,10 יורו משפטיך ליעקב, “they shall teach Your laws to Yaakov.”) הסכת, illustrate the concepts for you in your mind, as in Amos 5,26 את סכות מלככם, “they even named the idol ‘image’.”
Chizkuni
היום הזה נהיית לעם, “on this day you have become a nation” after you have accepted the laws of the Torah with a solemn oath.
You shall therefore heed the voice of Hashem your God, and do His commandments and His statutes, which I command you this day."
verse value 4105 — יְהֹוָ֣ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 52 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֣ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "that" (אֲשֶׁ֛ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "his·commandments" (אֶת־מִצְוֺתָו֙, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "his·commandments" (אֶת־מִצְוֺתָו֙), "and·his·statutes" (וְאֶת־חֻקָּ֔יו). 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 541x in Deuteronomy); "that" (root אשר, 466x in Deuteronomy); "your·God" (root אלהים, 368x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·God', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 7 words. Full calculation: וְשָׁ֣מַעְתָּ֔ [and·you·shall·hear] (816) + בְּק֖וֹל [voice] (138) + יְהֹוָ֣ה [Hashem] (26) + אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ [your·God] (66) + וְעָשִׂ֤יתָ [and·you·shall·observe] (786) + אֶת־מִצְוֺתָו֙ [his·commandments] (943) + וְאֶת־חֻקָּ֔יו [and·his·statutes] (531) + אֲשֶׁ֛ר [that] (501) + אָנֹכִ֥י [I] (81) + מְצַוְּךָ֖ [commanding·you] (156) + הַיּֽוֹם [today] (61) = 4105.
Onkelos
And you shall hearken to the Word of Hashem your God, and perform His commandments and His statutes that I am commanding you this day.
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall hearken" — today to His voice. "And you shall perform His commandments" — in the future.
Sforno
ושמעת בקול ה' אלוקיך, you will hearken to the Lord your G’d as a result of carrying such a vivid image of your duties in your mind.
"These shall stand upon mount Gerizim to bless the people, when you have passed over the Jordan: Simeon, and Levi, and Judah, and Issachar, and Joseph, and Benjamin;
verse value 4213 — אֵ֠לֶּה = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 71 letters. Notable word values: "these" (אֵ֠לֶּה) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "these" (אֵ֠לֶּה, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·Jordan" (אֶת־הַיַּרְדֵּ֑ן, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 36: these, Judah. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "to·bless" (לְבָרֵ֤ךְ), "Simeon" (שִׁמְעוֹן֙), "and·Levi" (וְלֵוִ֣י). 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "the·people" (root עם, 123x in Deuteronomy); "in·your·crossing" (root עבר, 60x in Deuteronomy); "these" (root אלה, 56x in Deuteronomy). First appearance of the root יהודה ("Judah") in Deuteronomy. First appearance of the root יוסף ("Joseph") in Deuteronomy. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·Jordan', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 6 words. Full calculation: אֵ֠לֶּה [these] (36) + יַֽעַמְד֞וּ [shall·stand] (130) + לְבָרֵ֤ךְ [to·bless] (252) + אֶת־הָעָם֙ [the·people] (516) + עַל־הַ֣ר [upon·Mount] (305) + גְּרִזִ֔ים [Gerizim] (260) + בְּעׇבְרְכֶ֖ם [in·your·crossing] (334) + אֶת־הַיַּרְדֵּ֑ן [the·Jordan] (670) + שִׁמְעוֹן֙ [Simeon] (466) + וְלֵוִ֣י [and·Levi] (52) + וִֽיהוּדָ֔ה [Judah] (36) + וְיִשָּׂשכָ֖ר [Issachar] (836) + וְיוֹסֵ֥ף [Joseph] (162) + וּבִנְיָמִֽן [Benjamin] (158) = 4213.
Onkelos
These shall stand to bless the people on Mount Gerizim when you have crossed the Jordan: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph, and Benjamin.
Rashi
לברך את העם [THESE SHALL STAND UP …] TO BLESS THE PEOPLE — The procedure was as is found in Treatise Sotah 32a: Six tribes ascended the top of Mount Gerizim and the other six the top of Mount Ebal, the priests, the Levites and the Ark remaining below in the midst (i.e. in the valley between). The Levites turned their faces towards Mount Gerizim and began to recite the blessing: “Blessed be the man that does not make any graven or molten image etc.”, and both these and those (the tribes on Mount Gerizim and those on Mount Ebal) answered “Amen”! Then they turned their faces towards Mount Ebal and began to recite the curse, saying: “Cursed be the man who maketh any graven [or molten image]” — and so in the case of all of them (the curses set forth here) till the last: “Cursed be he that does not uphold [all the words of this law to do them]” (cf. Rashi on Deuteronomy 11:29).
Chizkuni
אלה יעמדו, “the following are to stand, etc.;” all the tribes that stood on the mountain listening to the blessings were descended from Yaakov’s principal wives Leah and Rachel. Seeing that Leah had so many sons, they took the oldest and the youngest of these and placed them with the four tribes that were descended from the auxiliary wives. Leah’s oldest son who had been under suspicion of having committed an inappropriate act with one of Yaakov’s auxiliary wives was placed there so that the curse on people sleeping with their neighbour’s, or their father’s wives would be impressed on the descendants of his who heard it. לברך את העם, “to bless the people;” the following tribes are to stand on Mount Gerizim, etc.” Rashi following the Mishnah tractate Sotah, folio 32, comments that six tribes ascended Mount Gerizim, and 6 tribes ascended Mount Eyval, the priests and that the Levites were standing at the respective bases of these two mountains. On the other hand, the opinion of Rabbi there, is that both the twelve tribes and the Levites stood at the base of the mountains as described in the Book of Joshua, the latter standing next to the Holy Ark. (Joshua 8,33) According to Rabbi, what has been described in Deuteronomy 11,29 means that the other tribes stood near each of those two mountains. The word על mentioned there, means the same as in Exodus 40, 3: וסכות על הארון, “you will screen the Ark with it.”Rabbi Eliezer, son of Yaakov, in tractate Sotah 37, claims that it is impossible that the members of the tribe of Levi stood at the base of these mountains as they had already been included as one of the tribes that stood on the mountain in our verse here, [which was written long before the one in Joshua 8,33. Ed.] At the same time, the verse in Joshua 8,33 clearly appears to contradict this. How are we to resolve this apparent contradiction? According to Rabbi Yoshiah, the Levites who were potentially fit to carry the Holy Ark, i.e. the ones 30 years and older but below the age of 50, stood at the base of the mountain, next to the Holy Ark, whereas the other Levites stood on Mount Gerizim. Rashi further comments on our verse here, that the Levites standing at the base faced the six tribes standing on top of Mount Gerizim commenced blessing the six tribes, using the text written for the curses but inverting it by saying that all the people not guilty of the sins described in our chapter are blessed.
Rabbeinu Bahya
אלה יעמדו לברך. “These are to stand (on Mount Gerizim) to bless the people.” Our sages (in Sotah 32) state that the blessing consisted of: “Blessed be the man who has not made a hewn image, etc.,” whereas the curse consisted of the words spelled out in verses 15-26. Six tribes whose ancestors were sons of either Leah or Rachel stood on the mountain facing which the blessing was pronounced, whereas the sons of Zilpah and Bilhah as well as Reuven and Zevulun stood on Mount Eyval, in whose direction the curses were pronounced in order to complete the number of six tribes required to stand there. The reason the tribe of Shimon was also associated with the tribes in whose direction the blessings were pronounced was that the Torah lists here eleven different curses and the Torah wanted to avoid pronouncing a curse in his direction. Moses decreed that all the tribes receive a blessing, seeing, however, that the tribe of Shimon was not deserving of a blessing on account of Zimri its leader who had caused so much death amongst his own people, he wanted to at least not make it appear as if he were being cursed, i.e. of associating the word ארור with something pronounced in his direction. Had he allowed this to occur Shimon would have been beyond redemption (Rashi in the name of Rabbi Moshe Hadarshan). Our sages in Sifri Vezot Habrachah item 348, claim that the blessing of the tribe of Yehudah contained within it an allusion to a blessing for the tribe of Shimon, seeing that Shimon’s tribal territory was described as an enclave within that of the tribe of Yehudah. The fact that the tribe of Reuven was placed on the mountain in whose direction the curses were pronounced does not constitute something negative against this tribe. I believe that this was the final part of the apology for the episode described in the Torah involving Reuven and Bilhah. Cursing someone who sleeps with the wife of his father (verse 20) was meant to draw our attention to the fact that actually Reuven had never been guilty of that sin. This is why the sages of the Midrash (Yalkut Shimoni Vayechi 157) claim that Yaakov, his father, had already told him that the stigma which had attached itself to him on account of what is described as יצועי עלה in Genesis 49,4 would not be totally removed from him until the one (leader Moses) of whom the Torah had written עלה, “arise!” would come. As soon as Moses arranged for the tribe of Reuven to take his place among the tribes facing the pronouncement of the curses, Reuven’s stigma had been completely wiped out. What occurred at Mount Eival enabled our sages to say (Shabbat 58) that anyone accusing Reuven of having committed the sin of sleeping with his father’s wife is in error. What precisely was the arraignment of the respective tribes like on these two mountains? Our sages in Sotah 32 have described it in these words: “6 tribes ascended the top of Mount Gerizim whereas 6 other tribes ascended the top of Mount Eyval. The priests and Levites took up their position in the valley separating these two mountains. The priests would surround the Holy Ark. The Levites would surround the priests. The Israelites would be on either side of them (on the mountain). This is the meaning of ‘and all of Israel its elders and law-enforcers and judges would stand on either side of the Holy Ark facing the Priests who carried the Ark of the Covenant’ (Joshua 8,33). The Priests and Levites turned their faces in the direction of Mount Gerizim, beginning to recite the blessing, commencing with the words: ‘blessed be the man who has not constructed a hewn image, etc.’ The tribes standing on both mountains would respond by chanting “Amen.” The blessings were followed by the curses, a similar procedure being followed.” After completion of this ceremony they brought the stones and built an altar of them, covering the altar with plaster and inscribing on it the entire Torah in seventy languages. This is proven by verse 8, i.e. באר היטב. After this they took the stones with them returning to their assigned place for the night (Gilgal). Thus far the wording of the Mishnah. [The difficulty in all this is the distance from Gilgal to Mount Eival and the impossibility to accomplish all this within a day without miracle. (Compare the various commentators of the Mishnah), Ed.]
Kli Yakar
These shall stand to bless the people, etc. And regarding the curses it does not say “these shall stand to curse,” because the good things come from God in actuality, but the curses only come by themselves through the hiding of His face, may He be blessed, for from the mouth of the Most High, evil does not come forth (Lamentations 3:38). Therefore it says, and these shall stand upon [i.e., for] the curse and not “to curse,” but only to designate the arrival of the curses, and the matter is uncertain whether they will come or not, since they only come through the hiding of [God’s] face, therefore the matter still depends on the indication of the celestial system/arrangement. And why were all the curses stated explicitly while the blessings remained implied and not the opposite? Because the main blessing is for the World to Come which is hidden, and people only eat of their fruits in this world, serving as preparation so they can fulfill the commandments through the presence of these blessings. Therefore, Scripture concealed them. Additionally, this hints that when God favors a person’s ways, He will transform curses into blessings, so that even the curses will be turned into blessings, as our Sages said (Moed Katan 9b): “You will sow but not reap,” as explained above in Parashat Bo (10:10) on the verse See that evil is before your faces. It further hints that blessing is included within the curses, because since the curse was the cause that out of fear of it, one came to turn from evil and do good, then from the aspect of the curses, the blessings were drawn forth. And the reason they come in the number 11, is because the name of God “Yah” represents the attribute of judgment, as it is said The Lord [Yah] has chastened me severely (Psalms 118:18), and also Blessed is the man whom You chasten, O Lord [Yah] (Psalms 94:12), and similarly My strength and song is Yah as explained in Parashat Beshalach (Exodus 15:2). Thus, the vav [the numerical count of which is six] and hei [the numerical count of which is five] in the Great Name [the Tetragrammaton] represent the attribute of mercy, as Rabbeinu Bachya wrote on the verse for the hand is on the throne of Yah (Exodus 17:16). Initially, the Holy One, blessed be He, wanted to create the world with the attribute of judgment, that is, with the name Yah, as it is said For in Yah, the Lord is an everlasting rock (Isaiah 26:4). But He saw that the world could not endure until He joined the letters vav and hei to Yah. Therefore, they said (Bava Batra 9b), “One who gives a coin to a poor person is blessed with six blessings,” because his main reward is in this world, which is bounded by six directions, as his reward comes “from the precious things of heaven above, and from the deep lying beneath,” and “you shall spread out westward, and eastward,” etc. But one who comforts the poor with words, which is what is spiritual in him, receives his main reward in the hidden world represented by the name vav-hei, which amounts to 11 blessings, because only in the World to Come is the Name complete. That is why the blessings come in the number 11. Similarly, even with the curses, the Holy One, blessed be He, does not send them in a flood of wrath immediately, but rather begins with mercy, gradually, perhaps they will repent, just as He did with the generation of the Flood, where if they had repented, the rains would have been rains of blessing. So too, even the curses come gradually from the aspect of mercy, therefore they also come in the number 11, which indicates mercy. For this reason, all the admonitions, both in Leviticus and in this portion, begin with vav and end with hei, to indicate that even in anger, He remembers mercy. And in the Talmudic tractate Sotah (37b), they interpreted all these 11 [curses] regarding an adulterer and adulteress, except for the ones about perverting justice for a convert, orphan, and widow. Rashi comments, “I do not know how to interpret this.” But I say that the explanation is as follows: If a man commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife and she bears a son from him, and when the husband dies, the judge rules that this illegitimate child inherits along with the other younger brothers, then he is robbing the orphan and also reducing the widow’s portion. Ibn Ezra wrote that all these are matters done in secret, and Chizkuni explained similarly. Since the court is unable to take action against these secret transgressions, they were [enforced] with “Arur” [cursed be]. This is a correct interpretation, and the proof is that the term secret is only mentioned regarding idolatry, where it says and puts it in secret, and regarding striking one’s fellow in secret — because these two encompass the entire Torah and commandments, as they all fall into these two categories: matters between man and God, blessed be He, and matters between man and his fellow. The Torah specified these 11 cases because they commonly occur in secret, but the same applies to all commandments of the Torah, which are included in the general curse, Cursed be he who does not uphold the words of this Torah. And how fitting is the rabbinic interpretation of who does not uphold — this refers to one who studies Torah not for its own sake, which is a matter of the heart, as he studies for self-aggrandizement and does not intend to fulfill the commandments. Who can discern his true intentions? Even the ministering angels erred in this, as our Sages said (Bava Metzia 85a): “For what reason was the land destroyed? This question was asked of the sages, the prophets, and the angels, and they could not explain it, until the Holy One, blessed be He, Himself explained it, saying, Because they have forsaken My Torah, etc.” For outwardly they saw them engaged in Torah study, but did not know they were studying not for its own sake, and when it came time to act, they abandoned it — as is the custom of most people in our generation. Therefore it says, who does not uphold the words of this Torah — what he speaks with his mouth, he does not fulfill. This proves he studies not for its own sake, and there is no greater secret than this; therefore he is cursed with “Arur.”
Rashbam
'אלה יעמדו לברך וגו, according to the plain meaning the tribes mentioned forthwith were to confirm what the Levites said by answering Amen. The Levites, when pronouncing the respective blessings or curses, would face Mount Gerizim when intoning the blessings, and Mount Eyval when intoning the curses. (Sotah 32)
and these shall stand upon mount Ebal for the curse: Reuben, Gad, and Asher, and Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali.
verse value 2265
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 48 letters. The shortest word is "Gad" (גָּ֣ד, 2 letters) and the longest is "upon·the·curse" (עַל־הַקְּלָלָ֖ה, 7 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "upon·the·curse" (עַל־הַקְּלָלָ֖ה), "Zebulun" (וּזְבוּלֻ֖ן), "Naphtali" (וְנַפְתָּלִֽי). 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·Asher" (root אשר, 466x in Deuteronomy); "these" (root אלה, 56x in Deuteronomy); "on·Mount" (root הר, 47x in Deuteronomy). First appearance of the root גד ("Gad") in Deuteronomy. First appearance of the root זבולן ("Zebulun") in Deuteronomy. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Ebal', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְאֵ֛לֶּה [these] (42) + יַֽעַמְד֥וּ [shall·stand] (130) + עַל־הַקְּלָלָ֖ה [upon·the·curse] (270) + בְּהַ֣ר [on·Mount] (207) + עֵיבָ֑ל [Ebal] (112) + רְאוּבֵן֙ [Reuben] (259) + גָּ֣ד [Gad] (7) + וְאָשֵׁ֔ר [and·Asher] (507) + וּזְבוּלֻ֖ן [Zebulun] (101) + דָּ֥ן [Dan] (54) + וְנַפְתָּלִֽי [Naphtali] (576) = 2265.
Onkelos
And these shall stand over the curses on Mount Ebal: Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali.
And the Levites shall speak, and say to all the men of Israel with a loud voice:
verse value 1785
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 31 letters. The shortest word is "loud" (רָֽם, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·every·man" (אֶל־כׇּל־אִ֥ישׁ, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "to·every·man" (אֶל־כׇּל־אִ֥ישׁ), "loud" (רָֽם). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·they·shall·say" (root אמר, 144x in Deuteronomy); "to·every·man" (root איש, 85x in Deuteronomy); "Israel" (root ישראל, 61x in Deuteronomy). Full calculation: וְעָנ֣וּ [and·they·shall·respond] (132) + הַלְוִיִּ֗ם [the·Levites] (91) + וְאָ֥מְר֛וּ [and·they·shall·say] (253) + אֶל־כׇּל־אִ֥ישׁ [to·every·man] (392) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל [Israel] (541) + ק֥וֹל [voice] (136) + רָֽם [loud] (240) = 1785.
Onkelos
And the Levites shall respond and say to all the men of Israel in a loud voice:
Ibn Ezra
"The meaning of 'the priests, the Levites'" — for they are the ones who pronounce: "Cursed be the man." For the blessings, the sons of the freeborn mothers, and for the curses, the sons of the handmaids; and if two were lacking, there were many sons of Leah, and the oldest and youngest were taken. "And they shall respond" — like [the form] "and you shall respond and say." The Sages said that the meaning of [the word] "to bless" is: "Blessed is the man who does not make a graven or molten image," and so throughout. According to the plain sense, the blessing is "Blessed are you in the city" and the curse is its opposite — and the proof is in the book of Joshua.
Or HaChaim
וענו הלוים, and the Levites will "answer," etc. Actually, the meaning is that the Levites will commence speaking whereas the people will respond by saying "Amen." Onkelos translates the word וענו by writing ויתיבון, "the Levites will sit down." According to Onkelos these words would be in response to the Torah mentioning in verses 12 and 13 that these tribes would "stand" on the mountains to listen to the curses and blessings respectively. Targum Yonathan ben Uzziel translates the word וענו as ויכרזון, "the Levites will proclaim." I find this difficult, seeing the Torah added that they would speak קול רם, "in a loud voice." Why would the word וענו merely duplicate the meaning of קול רם? Perhaps what Yonathan ben Uzziel meant was that not only the recital but also the proclamation should be in a loud voice.
Cursed be the man that makes a graven or molten image, an abomination to Hashem, the work of the hands of the craftsman, and sets it up in secret. And all the people shall answer and say: Amen.
verse value 5410 — יְהֹוָ֗ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 66 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֗ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "that" (אֲשֶׁ֣ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "molten·image" (וּמַסֵּכָ֜ה, 5 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "molten·image" (וּמַסֵּכָ֜ה), "artisan" (חָרָ֖שׁ). 17 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 541x in Deuteronomy); "that" (root אשר, 466x in Deuteronomy); "who·makes" (root עשה, 163x in Deuteronomy). First appearance of the root ארר ("cursed") in Deuteronomy. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·secret', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 4 words.
Onkelos
Cursed is the man who makes a graven image or a molten image — an abomination before Hashem, the handiwork of a craftsman — and sets it up in secret. And all the people shall answer and say: Amen.
Ibn Ezra
The reason these eleven transgressions are mentioned is because they can be committed in secret — and the proof is "and he sets it up in secret" — for if one did them openly he would be put to death. So too, "one who strikes his neighbor in secret." [The list] begins with what is most fundamental — [the offense] between a person and his Creator — and then [moves to offenses] between a person and his parents, for who would know if he dishonors them.
Sforno
ארור האיש, all of the “cursed be” mentioned here had first been intoned as a blessing for all the people refraining from becoming guilty of the sins that are mentioned here. (compare Sotah 32) This is also the reason why the Torah commences the paragraph with the words אלה יעמדו לברך את העם, “these are the people who take up position to bless the people.” The principal reason for these lines is to curse the sinners who violate these commandments, so that they alone will bear the burden of their guilt, the people at large not sharing in that responsibility. The reason is that the sinners referred to were in the main the leaders of the people, so that the ordinary Israelite did not have the power to protest the carrying’s on of their leaders. This thought has been stated clearly by Ezekiel 22,6-7 “every one of the princes of Israel in their midst used his strength for the shedding of blood, etc. etc.” In that same chapter the prophet specifically singled out most of the (12) sins listed in our paragraph here. These obscenities were all carried out in Jerusalem; however, this does not mean that all the inhabitants of the city were guilty of these iniquities, mostly it was the highly placed members of society who were guilty of them. When the sins of the population at large are mentioned, these sins are generally attributed to the city in which these sins have been carried out. Compare verse 8 in that chapter of Ezekiel. [the reference to the “city “ as the place where all this had taken place is found in verse 3 of that chapter. Ed.]
Or HaChaim
וענו כל העם ואמרו אמן, and the entire people are to respond by saying "Amen." In this instance the Torah was not satisfied to write ואמר כל העם as it did with respect to all the other ten curses listed here. The Torah wanted to make certain that the Israelites were required to respond (not merely say). Had the Torah not written the word וענו at this point we might have thought that it was the Levites who had to say the words ואמר כל העם, "and the entire people are to say."
Chizkuni
ושם בסתר. “and he set it up in secret;” all the transgressions mentioned in this chapter deal with sins usually committed in the privacy of one’s house, and therefore it is impossible to find witnesses who had warned the perpetrator in a legally acceptable manner. To quote just one example: “who would know if someone had cursed his father or mother?”
Rabbeinu Bahya
ארור האיש אשר יעשה פסל ומסכה, “cursed be the man who will construct a hewn image, etc.” Our sages in Avodah Zarah 52 understand the wording to mean that the curse becomes effective from the time construction of that image commences. We find proof of this in Deut. 9,21: “and the sin which you had constructed, the golden calf, etc.” Clearly, Moses considered the golden calf as a sin before it had even emerged from the crucible. ושם בסתר, “and he emplaced it secretly;” the Torah refers to idolatry which had not come to the attention of the authorities. Had it come to the attention of the court, the court would have dealt with the perpetrator and there would not be a need to pronounce a curse on him. Our sages in Avodah Zarah 51 state that idols made by Israelites become forbidden only from the moment they have been worshipped, whereas idols constructed by pagans become forbidden immediately. This is why the Torah refers to פסילי אלוהיהם, “hewn images of their deities” (Deut. 7,25) as having to be burned even if they have not yet served their intended function. Among the eleven sins listed here, the sin of idolatry is mentioned first as it is equivalent to all other sins combined (Chulin 8). This is followed by the sin of belittling father or mother, seeing that G’d, father, and mother, are the three partners who between them produce another human being (Kidushin 30). This is why the Torah is insistent that all of these three be treated with honor and respect. The reason the Torah singled out these eleven sins from among all the others, is that they result in exile for the people if they become habitually guilty of these sins. Now that the people were about to enter the Holy Land, it was important for them to realise which sins, if committed knowingly, would result in their forfeiting the land. According to the plain meaning of the text, the selection of these eleven sins was due to their being capable of being perpetrated without the sinner having to expose himself publicly and therefore facing either the court or the disapproval of his peers. The Torah started by listing the worst of these sins, a sin committed vis-a-vis one’s Creator only. It followed with sins which are perpetrated between man and his parents, not necessarily involving anyone else. Who would know if the son belittled his parents? Similarly, the sin of השגת גבול, making adjustments (illegal) to he boundary between one’s property and that of one’s neighbour, is one committed surreptitiously, not publicly. Misleading a blind person by causing him to go astray is also something which the person against whom the sin has been committed is unable to pinpoint and accuse the sinner of. Perverting the judgment of proselytes, orphans, or widows also belongs into this category as these people have no one who will take up their cause; the sinner expects to get away with what he does. Perverting justice is altogether something that is covered up by the one doing it. The various examples of illicit sexual relations are in the nature of something secretive seeing they are perpetrated between consenting adults, neither of which is liable to admit to having been involved in such acts. Moreover, the examples of which the Torah speaks here are the kind that no one would be suspected of in the first place, thus preserving the likelihood that it will go undetected except by G’d. The Torah lists sleeping with an animal, as the animal, if raped, cannot protest its treatment, so that in effect the deed has been committed in secret. [There is some debate as to the correct text in the wording of our author explaining why the sleeping between two males (homosexual relations) has not been listed. According to one view it was omitted because the second male, the passive one, could protest what has been done to him as opposed to the weaker sex, the women, who are afraid to complain. Ed.] The accepting of bribes is also, by definition, something secretive seeing that it is neither in the interest of the judge nor the litigant involved to publicize what he has done. Thus far Ibn Ezra. A Midrashic approach to the above. The eleven sins listed here correspond to eleven virtues mentioned by King David in Psalms 15 as determining who is entitled to sojourn in G’d’s tent, i.e. Temple. Anyone residing outside the land of Israel is obligated to practice these virtues; they are the very opposite of the sins listed in our chapter here. When David demands that the person be הולך תמים, live without blame, this parallels the Torah’s demand in Deut. 18,13 תמים תהיה עם ה' אלוקיך, “you shall be wholehearted with the Lord your G’d.” David’s demand to be פועל צדק, “do what is right,” means he must not rob or steal anything belonging to his fellow. Our sages (Baba Batra 88) phrased it as “righteousness should emanate from you, you should give a little extra to your customer rather than a little less than called for by the scales.” This is the opposite of adjusting boundaries in one’s favor. The next stipulation of David, i.e. “speaking the truth in one’s heart,” means that one’s heart and one’s mouth, one’s pronouncements, should by in harmony with one another. This is the reverse of steering the blind person the wrong way, pretending to be helpful to him. The words לא רגל על לשונו, “his tongue is not given to evil,” is the opposite of “striking his fellow in secret” (verse 25). This is a form of slander, הולך רכיל. The words לא עשה לרעהו רעה, “he has not committed any harm to his fellow,” is the reverse of perverting justice, listed in our chapter in verse 20. The words וחרפה לא נשא על קרובו, “he has not brought shame on his relative,” mean that he has not perpetrated deeds which result in his relative becoming guilty of a sin, i.e. the reverse of the sexual acts described in our chapter. The words נבזה בעיניו נמאס “a contemptible man is abhorrent in his eyes,” mentioned by David (verse 4) as a qualification required to entitle one to be at home in the Temple, is the opposite of the sin of belittling one’s father and mother. The cause of such belittling is that one feels haughty and superior. Honouring those who are G’d-fearing, another prerequisite listed by David as part of the entrance fee to the Lord’s Sanctuary, is the reverse of belittling one’s parents. “Not having lent money to a fellow Jew and charging interest on it nor accepting a bribe against the innocent” (verse 5), is in stark contrast to the sin of spilling blood. People who take David’s moral/ethical demands to heart will be sure not to become shaky in their faith and fair conduct, ever. וענו כל העם, “and all the people are to respond, etc.” This expression is reserved for the response in respect of committing idolatry. In connection with all the other ten sins listed, the Torah merely describes the people’s response as ואמר כל העם. The reason for this distinction is that the people had heard the prohibition of idolatry (the first two of the Ten Commandments) with their own ears directly from G’d. Their response therefore would be “a response in the true meaning of the word.”
Rashbam
ושם בסתר, there are a total of 12 “curses” corresponding to the 12 tribes, all of the sins mentioned in them being of the type that one commits in private, when one is unobserved and no witnesses are present. I will explain all of them. There are only two of these which are sometimes committed in private and sometimes in public. These are idolatry and striking one’s fellow Jew. This is the reason that the Torah mentions the word בסתר specifically in connection with thee two sins that are listed here. The reason is that for sins committed in public there is no need to utter a curse as people sinning in public are not frightened of the curses either. Not only that, the court has a chance to deal with crimes/sins committed in public. This is the message in 29,28 הנגלות לנו ולבנינו עד עולם, we are forever obligated to deal with publicly committed offenses. Only when crimes are committed in secret do we leave punishment of the sinners to G’d, i.e. הנסתרות לה' אלוקינו, “secretly committed sins are left to G’d to avenge.” (same verse) This includes the whole range of punishments to which the sinner had made himself liable, not only for sins carrying the death penalty. You will note that the Torah does not write ארור שוכב עם אשת רעהו, as normally when one enters another’s house this does not go unobserved. Sleeping with one’s mother-in-law, however, is different, as both parties usually dwell in the same house. (verse 23). Insulting father or mother (verse 16) is something normally done in one’s parents’ home, where strangers are not present. The same is true of someone moving boundaries in the field; (verse 17) it is done at night away from prying eyes. If the one doing it were to do it in full view of his neighbour, surely he would be challenged. The same applies to misdirecting the blind, (verse 18) or someone sleeping with a beast (verse 21). Naturally, all forbidden sexual unions are naturally performed by consenting adults, each one making sure he or she is unobserved. Verse 20 speaking of someone sleeping with his father’s wife (former, not his mother) is also something which normally occurs in the male’s home, the place he grew up in, where he is not an intruder. Intercourse with animals clearly occurs in the privacy of the home or the animal’s pen, no one wanting to take a chance at being found out in such depraved behaviour. All other incestuous couplings are presumed to take place at home and with consent of the second party.
Daat Zkenim
ארור האיש אשר יעשה פסל וגו, “cursed be the man who will construct a cast image, etc.” In the Talmud in tractate Sotah folio 37 the question is raised since when does making an idol only carry a curse as a penalty, and nothing harsher? The answer given here that the “man” mentioned here is a man who had incestuous relations which resulted in a son being born for him, who then left the fold and served the idols of whichever religion he adopted. The Torah curses the father and mother of such a son who are directly responsible for their son having left the fold as a result of their committing incest. Rashi explains that we face a list of eleven sins the punishment for which is introduced with the word: “cursed be;” they correspond to the eleven sons of Yaakov who had received his blessing. Shimon had not received such a blessing, and it was not Moses’ intention to bless that tribe in the manner in which he blessed all the other tribes. [Our editions of Rashi do not have this commentary on this verse, so I will not dwell on it further. Ed.] If you were to ask what makes the eleven sins subject to a curse for the sinner different from violating any of the other of G–d’s commandments, one answer may be that all these commandments when violated are known only to the sinner and the Creator. No human being can take the sinner to court for something he had not witnessed and warned the offender not to commit. [some of the eleven, of course, were committed by consent with one’s partner in sin, so that they too could not be brought to court. Ed.] According to a statement in the midrash שוחר טוב, the person subject to these curses is the one who had studied the laws in question, had taught them observed them personally, and had been in a position to protest these sins from being committed, but had failed to make use of his ability to prevent these sins from being committed. This is why at the end of the paragraph, the Torah concludes with cursing people who had been in a position to see to it that others keep the ordinances of the Torah, and had failed to make his weight felt. On the other hand, if someone had not learned the laws, had not taught them, had not observed them, say because he had sat in jail and could not do this, but had seized an opportunity to protest other people violating Torah laws, and had done so, he is included in all the people that Moses describes as being blessed for “keeping the Torah laws,” as he had demonstrated that only his physical inability to perform many of them had stopped him from doing so.
Cursed be he that dishonors his father or his mother. And all the people shall say: Amen.
verse value 1157
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 28 letters. Verse gematria: 1157 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "verily" (אָמֵֽן, 3 letters) and the longest is "all·the·people" (כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם, 5 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "who·dishonors" (מַקְלֶ֥ה). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·say" (root אמר, 144x in Deuteronomy); "all·the·people" (root כל, 121x in Deuteronomy); "his·father" (root אב, 69x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·his·mother', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: אָר֕וּר [cursed] (407) + מַקְלֶ֥ה [who·dishonors] (175) + אָבִ֖יו [his·father] (19) + וְאִמּ֑וֹ [and·his·mother] (53) + וְאָמַ֥ר [and·he·shall·say] (247) + כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם [all·the·people] (165) + אָמֵֽן [verily] (91) = 1157.
Onkelos
Cursed is he who dishonors his father and his mother. And all the people shall say: Amen.
Rashi
מקלה means, “making light of”, it has the same meaning as (Deuteronomy 25:3) “Lest … thy brother become despicable (נקלה).
Ibn Ezra
"Dishonors" — an expression of disgrace; it is a transitive verb.
Or HaChaim
ארור מקלה אביו ואמו, "Accursed is anyone who degrades his father or his mother." It is important to examine why Moses selected that only people guilty of non-observance of these eleven out of a total of 613 commandments were deserving to be publicly declared as being accursed? Are there not some more severe violations, such as the violation of commandments dealing with incest which would qualify no less for the treatment we see here accorded to the violators of these eleven commandments? Is it not difficult to consider adultery as less serious than moving a boundary stone, for instance? Perhaps the Torah here enumerates only sins which are normally committed in secret, or which will not be revealed by their victims. This may be the reason why the Torah speaks of ושם בסתר, "and emplace it in secret" (verse 15 where the sin is idolatry). If that sin would be committed in public the sinner would not merely be accursed but he would be executed and the Israelites themselves would be charged with seeing to it that he does not get away with his sin. The same consideration may apply to someone who degrades his father or mother. The Torah speaks of people who do this in private where the hand of the law cannot reach them. This is why Moses wants to make it plain that they will be accursed by the heavenly tribunal. The same consideration applies to someone who moves boundary stones or fences in a manner which is hard to detect. Not only that, who can prove who has moved the boundary? How are we going to convict the culprit? Similarly, the son-in-law who sleeps with his (consenting) mother-in-law is untouchable by the terrestrial courts so that the Torah has to demonstrate by this means that such people are not immune to the consequences of their actions. The reference to someone who strikes his fellow in secret, i.e. where there are no witnesses, is another such example of offences which cannot be adjudged by a terrestrial court seeing that the evildoer will deny having hit the other fellow, or he may not even be accused of doing so if he acted under cover of darkness or wore a mask, for instance. The reason the Torah inserted the offence of sleeping with a beast between the sin of sleeping with the wife of his father or the sin of sleeping with his sister, is to suggest that commission of either sin is as unlikely as having sexual intercourse with an animal. All three sins represent the most abominable aberration of which one can become guilty.
Cursed be he that removes his neighbor's landmark. And all the people shall say: Amen.
verse value 1345
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 28 letters. The shortest word is "verily" (אָמֵֽן, 3 letters) and the longest is "all·the·people" (כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם, 5 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "who·moves" (מַסִּ֖יג). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·say" (root אמר, 144x in Deuteronomy); "all·the·people" (root כל, 121x in Deuteronomy); "his·neighbor" (root רע, 37x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·neighbor', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: אָר֕וּר [cursed] (407) + מַסִּ֖יג [who·moves] (113) + גְּב֣וּל [border] (41) + רֵעֵ֑הוּ [his·neighbor] (281) + וְאָמַ֥ר [and·he·shall·say] (247) + כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם [all·the·people] (165) + אָמֵֽן [verily] (91) = 1345.
Onkelos
Cursed is he who moves the boundary of his neighbor. And all the people shall say: Amen.
Rashi
מסיג גבול [CURSED BE] HE THAT REMOVES [HIS NEIGHBOUR’S] LAND-MARK — i.e. puts it further back in his neighbor’s field and thereby steals ground from him. The word מסיג has the same meaning as the verb in (Isaiah 59:14) “and he is turned backwards (הֻסַּג )".
Ibn Ezra
"Who moves his neighbor's boundary" — for this is a hidden matter. And likewise "who causes the blind to go astray" — [the blind person] cannot publicly identify the one who misled him.
Chizkuni
מסיג גבול, “who removes his neighbour’s landmark.” The perpetrator certainly would not do such a thing in broad daylight. Similarly, he would not deliberately make a blind person go astray where there were witnesses observing this. He knows that the blind person himself cannot identify him.
Cursed be he that makes the blind to go astray in the way. And all the people shall say: Amen.
verse value 1760
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 27 letters. The shortest word is "blind·person" (עִוֵּ֖ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "all·the·people" (כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם, 5 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "who·misleads" (מַשְׁגֶּ֥ה). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·say" (root אמר, 144x in Deuteronomy); "all·the·people" (root כל, 121x in Deuteronomy); "in·the·way" (root דרך, 53x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·the·way', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: אָר֕וּר [cursed] (407) + מַשְׁגֶּ֥ה [who·misleads] (348) + עִוֵּ֖ר [blind·person] (276) + בַּדָּ֑רֶךְ [in·the·way] (226) + וְאָמַ֥ר [and·he·shall·say] (247) + כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם [all·the·people] (165) + אָמֵֽן [verily] (91) = 1760.
Onkelos
Cursed is he who leads a blind person astray on the road. And all the people shall say: Amen.
Rashi
משגה עור [CURSED BE] HE THAT CAUSES THE BLIND TO GO ASTRAY — This means: one who is blind (inexperienced) in a matter and one gives him bad advice (cf. Rashi on Leviticus 19:14).
Targum Yonatan
Accursed is he who causeth the pilgrim, who is like the blind, to wander from the way. And all of them shall answer together, and say, Amen.
Cursed be he that perverts the justice due to the stranger, fatherless, and widow. And all the people shall say: Amen.
verse value 2184
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 35 letters. Verse gematria: 2184 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "who·perverts" (מַטֶּ֛ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "sojourner·orphan" (גֵּר־יָת֖וֹם, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "sojourner·orphan" (גֵּר־יָת֖וֹם). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·say" (root אמר, 144x in Deuteronomy); "all·the·people" (root כל, 121x in Deuteronomy); "judgment" (root משפט, 37x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'widow', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 3 words. Full calculation: אָר֗וּר [cursed] (407) + מַטֶּ֛ה [who·perverts] (54) + מִשְׁפַּ֥ט [judgment] (429) + גֵּר־יָת֖וֹם [sojourner·orphan] (659) + וְאַלְמָנָ֑ה [widow] (132) + וְאָמַ֥ר [and·he·shall·say] (247) + כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם [all·the·people] (165) + אָמֵֽן [verily] (91) = 2184.
Onkelos
Cursed is he who perverts the judgment of the sojourner, the orphan, and the widow. And all the people shall say: Amen.
Ibn Ezra
"Who perverts the judgment of the stranger, the orphan" — for they have no advocate, and this too is [done] in secret. [The text] mentions the stranger, the orphan, and the widow because if a judge perverts the judgment of others, they will protest and make it public — but the stranger, the orphan, and the widow have no power. As for lying with one's father's wife, a sister, or a mother-in-law — a man is not suspected of secluding himself with her, and therefore it is a hidden matter; the other transgressions are not like this.
Chizkuni
גר, יתום, ואלמנה, “a stranger, orphan, or widow;” all these categories of people lack influential friends or protectors who will protest their having been maltreated to the authorities. People who have carnal relations with their closest relatives who live in the same house with them are not suspected of having been guilty of such behaviour, neither are people normally suspected of having sexual relations with their domestic animals. The only two sins listed here which are committed openly are idolatry and violent behaviour against one’s neighbour committed usually while angry and out of control. This is why the Torah adds the word “committed secretly,” when speaking of these two sins. When these two sins are committed openly there is a court which can take action against the perpetrator.
Cursed be he that lies with his father's wife; because he has uncovered the hem of his father's garment. And all the people shall say: Amen.
verse value 2299
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 40 letters. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֥י, 2 letters) and the longest is "with·wife·of" (עִם־אֵ֣שֶׁת, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 19: his·father, his·father. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "with·wife·of" (עִם־אֵ֣שֶׁת), "he·has·uncovered" (גִלָּ֖ה). The root אב appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "for" (root כי, 164x in Deuteronomy); "and·he·shall·say" (root אמר, 144x in Deuteronomy); "all·the·people" (root כל, 121x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'his·father', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 3 words. Full calculation: אָר֗וּר [cursed] (407) + שֹׁכֵב֙ [who·lies] (322) + עִם־אֵ֣שֶׁת [with·wife·of] (811) + אָבִ֔יו [his·father] (19) + כִּ֥י [for] (30) + גִלָּ֖ה [he·has·uncovered] (38) + כְּנַ֣ף [wing] (150) + אָבִ֑יו [his·father] (19) + וְאָמַ֥ר [and·he·shall·say] (247) + כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם [all·the·people] (165) + אָמֵֽן [Amen] (91) = 2299.
Onkelos
Cursed is he who lies with the wife of his father, for he has uncovered the hem of his father's garment. And all the people shall say: Amen.
Ramban
BECAUSE HE HATH UNCOVERED HIS FATHER’S SKIRT. This is a respectful euphemism for the father, for in the Torah He mentioned, he hath uncovered his father’s nakedness. So also He mentioned the term “their nakedness” in the cases of his brother’s wife and his uncle’s wife for there the transgressors are liable to severe punishment, death [by the court, if there were witnesses] or extinction [if there were no witnesses] and Scripture thus needed to condemn the evil they had done; therefore it mentioned “nakedness” concerning them. But here the transgressor being “cursed,” it was sufficient to mention because he hath uncovered his father’s skirt, for he is deserving of an imprecation merely for uncovering his father’s skirt, for it disgraces his honor, and anyone who dishonors his father, is cursed. Similarly, A man shall not take his father’s wife, and shall not uncover his father’s skirt is a respectful euphemism meaning that he should not approach her, for it is not proper to uncover the skirt which he spread over a wife by means of a canopy, similar to what is stated, spread therefore thy skirt over thy handmaid. This excludes the interpretation of him who says that this verse [A man shall not take his father’s wife] includes a woman that was violated by him.
Tur HaArokh
כי גלה כנף אביו, “for he has uncovered the robe of his father.” Nachmanides writes that the reason the Torah did not write ערות אביו (as it usually does) in such verses is out of respect for the father’s dignity. Earlier (Leviticus 20,12) when the Torah wrote ערות אביו the sin committed carried a heavy penalty, administered in many instances by a human court of law. The wording therefore had to reflect the severity of the sin in order to serve as a deterrent. The offending party in our verse is guilty of a lesser sin. Similar considerations prompted the Torah to use the term גלה כנף in 23,1 where the prohibition to marry a woman who had been raped by one’s father, or is one’s stepmother is revealed, the sin is of a lower order than sleeping with one’s mother, who is also the wife of one’s father. Nachmanides writes that the reason why Moses selected the people guilty of the above mentioned eleven sins as deserving public censure, i.e. the people mouthing a curse on anyone guilty of them, is that it is the norm for those sins to be committed in the privacy of one’s home, when there are no witnesses to the deed. The guilty party therefore cannot be convicted of his sin, as there had not been any witnesses. The curse pronounced here is to act as a deterrent not commit crimes when only G’d is the witness. The Torah begins the list with a sin committed vis a vis the Creator, i.e. idolatry, and switches to a sin committed vis a vis one’s parents, i.e. degrading them. Parents represent G’d the Creator, as He had a share in the child’s coming into this world. Bestiality is mentioned in the list, as opposed to rape performed on humans, the animals cannot protest what is being done to them, giving the sinner a distinct advantage. Similar considerations apply to proselytes, orphans, and widows, none of whom have easy access to someone who would defend them if they have been wronged.
Cursed be he that lies with any manner of beast. And all the people shall say: Amen.
verse value 1444
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 27 letters. Verse gematria: 1444 = 38². The shortest word is "lying·down" (שֹׁכֵ֖ב, 3 letters) and the longest is "with·all·beast" (עִם־כׇּל־בְּהֵמָ֑ה, 8 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "with·all·beast" (עִם־כׇּל־בְּהֵמָ֑ה). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·say" (root אמר, 144x in Deuteronomy); "all·the·people" (root כל, 121x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'with·all·beast', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: אָר֕וּר [cursed] (407) + שֹׁכֵ֖ב [lying·down] (322) + עִם־כׇּל־בְּהֵמָ֑ה [with·all·beast] (212) + וְאָמַ֥ר [and·he·shall·say] (247) + כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם [all·the·people] (165) + אָמֵֽן [verily] (91) = 1444.
Onkelos
Cursed is he who lies with any beast. And all the people shall say: Amen.
Ibn Ezra
"With any beast" — male or female, for it has no mouth to cry out and protest as a human male can — and therefore [the male beast] is not mentioned here.
Cursed be he that lies with his sister, the daughter of his father, or the daughter of his mother. And all the people shall say: Amen.
verse value 2634
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 38 letters. The shortest word is "or" (א֣וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "with·his·sister" (עִם־אֲחֹת֔וֹ, 6 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "with·his·sister" (עִם־אֲחֹת֔וֹ), "daughter·of·his·father" (בַּת־אָבִ֖יו), "daughter·of·his·mother" (בַת־אִמּ֑וֹ). The root בת appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·say" (root אמר, 144x in Deuteronomy); "all·the·people" (root כל, 121x in Deuteronomy); "or" (root או, 29x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'daughter·of·his·mother', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 3 words. Full calculation: אָר֗וּר [cursed] (407) + שֹׁכֵב֙ [who·lies] (322) + עִם־אֲחֹת֔וֹ [with·his·sister] (525) + בַּת־אָבִ֖יו [daughter·of·his·father] (421) + א֣וֹ [or] (7) + בַת־אִמּ֑וֹ [daughter·of·his·mother] (449) + וְאָמַ֥ר [and·he·shall·say] (247) + כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם [all·the·people] (165) + אָמֵֽן [verily] (91) = 2634.
Onkelos
Cursed is he who lies with his sister, the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother. And all the people shall say: Amen.
Cursed be he that lies with his mother-in-law. And all the people shall say: Amen.
verse value 2206
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 26 letters. The shortest word is "lying·down" (שֹׁכֵ֖ב, 3 letters) and the longest is "with·his·mother-in-law" (עִם־חֹֽתַנְתּ֑וֹ, 7 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "with·his·mother-in-law" (עִם־חֹֽתַנְתּ֑וֹ). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·say" (root אמר, 144x in Deuteronomy); "all·the·people" (root כל, 121x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'with·his·mother-in-law', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: אָר֕וּר [cursed] (407) + שֹׁכֵ֖ב [lying·down] (322) + עִם־חֹֽתַנְתּ֑וֹ [with·his·mother-in-law] (974) + וְאָמַ֥ר [and·he·shall·say] (247) + כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם [all·the·people] (165) + אָמֵֽן [verily] (91) = 2206.
Onkelos
Cursed is he who lies with his mother-in-law. And all the people shall say: Amen.
Cursed be he that strikes his neighbor in secret. And all the people shall say: Amen.
verse value 1918
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 27 letters. The shortest word is "striking" (מַכֵּ֥ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "all·the·people" (כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם, 5 letters). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·say" (root אמר, 144x in Deuteronomy); "all·the·people" (root כל, 121x in Deuteronomy); "his·fellow" (root רע, 37x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·secret', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: אָר֕וּר [cursed] (407) + מַכֵּ֥ה [striking] (65) + רֵעֵ֖הוּ [his·fellow] (281) + בַּסָּ֑תֶר [in·secret] (662) + וְאָמַ֥ר [and·he·shall·say] (247) + כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם [all·the·people] (165) + אָמֵֽן [verily] (91) = 1918.
Onkelos
Cursed is he who strikes his neighbor in secret. And all the people shall say: Amen.
Rashi
מכה רעהו בסתר [CURSED BE] HE THAT SMITETH HIS FELLOW SECRETLY — It is of slander that it here speaks (slander may be termed “smiting in secret”) (Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 53). — I have seen in the Work of R. Moses the Preacher; There are here eleven verses beginning with the words “cursed be” corresponding to eleven tribes. In allusion to Simeon, however, he (Moses) did not write down a formula beginning with “cursed be”, because he had no intention to bless him before his death when he blessed the other tribes (the tribe of Simeon is the only one not mentioned in chapter XXXIII. which contains the blessings that Moses bestowed on the tribes), therefore he did not want to curse him either.
Chizkuni
On this verse Rashi comments that there are eleven sins which have been introduced here with the word: “cursed be.” They correspond to eleven tribes. No such “curse” is written concerning the tribe of Shimon, as Moses did not have in mind to give this tribe a blessing, Zimri, its leader, having announced publicly that Moses had violated this law by marrying a Midianite woman, thus making him and the whole tribe guilty of “badmouthing” Moses. The court had ample evidence of convicting him of that sin. According to Rashi’s commentary, the last of the list, referring to people who do not uphold Torah law, would refer to people guilty of lashon hara, i.e. badmouthing others. There is no one who is not guilty of this at one time or another. There are scholars who claim that there are twelve sins to which the introductory word: “cursed be” applies, so that Moses did not make an exception concerning the tribe of Shimon. The word: “cursed be,” therefore had to be used only eleven times.
Cursed be he that takes a bribe to strike down a person — to shed innocent blood. And all the people shall say: Amen.
verse value 2455
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 35 letters. The shortest word is "blood" (דָּ֣ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·strike" (לְהַכּ֥וֹת, 5 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "to·strike" (לְהַכּ֥וֹת). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·say" (root אמר, 144x in Deuteronomy); "all·the·people" (root כל, 121x in Deuteronomy); "taking" (root לקח, 46x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'innocent', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 3 words. Full calculation: אָרוּר֙ [cursed] (407) + לֹקֵ֣חַ [taking] (138) + שֹׁ֔חַד [bribe] (312) + לְהַכּ֥וֹת [to·strike] (461) + נֶ֖פֶשׁ [soul] (430) + דָּ֣ם [blood] (44) + נָקִ֑י [innocent] (160) + וְאָמַ֥ר [and·he·shall·say] (247) + כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם [all·the·people] (165) + אָמֵֽן [verily] (91) = 2455.
Onkelos
Cursed is he who accepts a bribe to slay a person — the blood of the innocent. And all the people shall say: Amen.
Ibn Ezra
"Who takes a bribe" — in the opinion of many, this refers to the judge; but in my view it refers to a false witness.
Sforno
לוקח שוחד להכות, as in the case of Doeg the Edomite (Samuel I, chapter 22), whose accusation was intended to win him favours from the king. Compare also chapter 23 about the Ziphites. Tale-bearing is such a type of interest mentioned in our verse.
Tur HaArokh
לוקח שוחד, “killing for pay.” Most people understand the verse metaphorically, i.e. a judge accepting a bribe to render a guilty verdict where it results in judicial murder. Our author understands it as addressed to the witnesses who perjure themselves for payment, causing the innocent party to be condemned to death by their testimony.
Cursed is he who does not uphold the words of this Torah to fulfill them. And all the people shall say: Amen.
verse value 4501
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 49 letters. The shortest word is "that" (אֲשֶׁ֧ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·Teaching·this" (הַתּוֹרָֽה־הַזֹּ֖את, 9 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Deuteronomy. Unique to this verse in Deuteronomy (hapax): "not·shall·uphold" (לֹא־יָקִ֛ים). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 466x in Deuteronomy); "words·of" (root דבר, 170x in Deuteronomy); "to·do" (root עשה, 163x in Deuteronomy). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'them', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 3 words. Full calculation: אָר֗וּר [cursed] (407) + אֲשֶׁ֧ר [that] (501) + לֹא־יָקִ֛ים [not·shall·uphold] (191) + אֶת־דִּבְרֵ֥י [words·of] (617) + הַתּוֹרָֽה־הַזֹּ֖את [the·Teaching·this] (1029) + לַעֲשׂ֣וֹת [to·do] (806) + אוֹתָ֑ם [them] (447) + וְאָמַ֥ר [and·he·shall·say] (247) + כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם [all·the·people] (165) + אָמֵֽן [verily] (91) = 4501.
Onkelos
Cursed is he who does not uphold the words of this Torah to fulfill them. And all the people shall say: Amen.
Rashi
אשר לא יקים [CURSED BE] HE THAT DOES NOT UPHOLD [ALL THE WORDS OF THIS LAW TO DO] — Here (in these words) he included the entire Torah under a curse and they took it upon them pledging themselves by an execration and an oath.
Ramban
CURSED BE HE THAT CONFIRMETH NOT THE WORDS OF THIS LAW. “Here [in these words] he included the entire Torah and they took it upon themselves with an imprecation and an oath [to observe all the commandments thereof].” This is Rashi’s language. In my opinion this “acceptance” requires that one avow the commandments in his heart and consider them as the truth, believe that he who observes them will be requited with the best of rewards and he who transgresses them will be punished, and if someone denies any of them, or considers it annulled forever he will be cursed. However, if one transgressed any commandment, such as eating swine or some abominable thing because of his desire, or he did not make a Booth or take the palm-branch [on the Festival of Tabernacles] because of laziness, he is not included within this ban, for Scripture did not say “who does not perform the words of this Law” but it states that ‘confirmeth’ not the words of this Law to do them, similar to the expression the Jews ordained, and took upon them [and upon their seed … so as it should not fail, that they would keep these two days — of Purim — according to the writing thereof]. Thus the verse [before us] is the ban on those who rebel [against the authority of the Torah] and who deny [its validity].Now, I have seen the following text in Yerushalmi Sotah: “Asher lo yakim [literally: ‘that does not stand up’ — the words of this Law]. But is there ‘a falling Law?’ Rabbi Shimon ben Yakim says, This refers to the officer [of the Synagogue, as explained further on]. Rabbi Shimon ben Chalafta says, This is the court on earth, because Rav Yehudah and Rav Hunah in the name of Shmuel said: Due to this verse [asher lo yakim (that confirmeth not)] King Josiah rent his clothes, saying, ‘The duty is upon me to stand up [the Law].’ Rabbi Asi in the name of Rabbi Tanchum the son of Chiya said, [Even if a person] learned and taught [Torah], observed and fulfilled [its commandments], but had the means to enable [others to study the Torah] and did not do so — he is included within the curse” [mentioned in the verse before us]. Thus the Rabbis [in the above Yerushalmi] interpretated this “standing up” [of the Torah] as referring to the royal house and that of the Nasi [the Prince of the Sanhedrin] who have the power to uphold [the authority of] the Torah over those who annul it. And even if he was a perfectly righteous man in his own deeds, but he could have strengthened the Torah against the power of the wicked ones who annul it [but failed to do so], he is accursed. This is close to the subject that we have explained. And by way of a homily the Rabbis [in the above Yerushalmi] said: “This refers to the sexton of the Synagogue who does not stand up the Scroll of the Law to set it up properly so that it should not fall.” It appears to me that it [the Yerushalmi] refers to the sexton who does not stand up the Scroll of the Law before the public to show the face of its writing to all people as it i...
Ibn Ezra
"Who does not uphold" — some say [this refers] to the entire Torah, and some say [it refers] to those mentioned above, but neither opinion says anything [decisive], because it is written "to do them." What seems correct to me is that [the text] cursed those [who commit] the prohibitions mentioned, and also cursed whoever does not observe the positive commandments in secret — therefore it says "to do them."
Sforno
אשר לא יקים את דברי התורה הזאת לעשות אותם, who neither observes nor admits that they are all worth observing. but, who in his arrogance, considers some commandment or commandment of the Torah not worth his while observing. In the Talmud such a person is considered a “heretic because he rejects a single one of G’d’s commandments.”
Or HaChaim
ארור אשר לא יקים את דברי התורה הזאת, "Accursed is one who does not uphold the words of this Torah, etc." This verse includes both what is spelled out, i.e. the person who fails to observe the commandments mentioned in this paragraph and to thereby undermine the character-building effects of Torah observance, as well as all the other commandments not listed in this paragraph. Our sages in Sotah 37 concentrate on the wording here, i.e. אשר לא יקים…לעשות. Why was it not sufficient for the Torah merely to write לעשות, "to do?" They say that if the Torah had only written the words לא יקים or לעשות, no Israelite would have been able to face G'd. After all, if one does not own a field, for instance, how can one fulfil all the commandments that a farmer has to fulfil? Or, if a person did not own a slave, how could he be expected to treat the slave in accordance with the duties that the Torah imposes on the owner of such a slave? This is why the Torah adds the words לעשות in addition to writing the word להקים, "to uphold," to tell us that unless one has the opportunity to uphold, i.e. to fulfil the commandments of the Torah, one is not subject to the curse pronounced by the Torah through the Levites in this paragraph. It is our duty to make up our minds that we will carry out the commandments when the opportunity arises to do so.
Chizkuni
אשר לא יקים, “who does not accept;” this expression is used in the same sense in Deut. 29,12: למען הקים אותך היום לעם, “in order to accept you this day as a nation.”
Rabbeinu Bahya
ארור אשר לא יקים את דברי התורה הזאת, “cursed he who will not uphold the words of this Torah.” This includes all the commandments in the Torah. The meaning of the verse is: “a person must acknowledge all the commandments of the Torah as true and emanating from G’d; he may not exclude a single one of them from his acceptance as such by denying that it is of value to body and soul. He must not view a single commandment as superfluous and meaningless.” This is the meaning of אשר לא יקים לעשות אותם. He must be convinced in his heart that all the commandments are worthwhile observing seeing they are all full of meaning to people engaged in studying them. A more literal meaning of the words לא יקים is cited by the Jerusalem Talmud Sotah 7, which claims it refers to a reader of the Torah who fails to raise the Torah scroll with the text visible to the entire congregation.
Tur HaArokh
אשר לא יקים את דברי התורה הזאת, “who will not uphold the words of this Torah;” Rashi understands the verse as Moses demanding from the people that they accept the entire Torah by calling down a curse upon themselves if they were to deliberately commit violations of it. Nachmanides writes that in his view the word קבלו “they accepted”, in Rashi, means that they mentally accepted, i.e. believed in the authenticity of all the Torah’s commandments as relayed to them by Moses. This includes the belief that people observing the laws of the Torah would, in due course, receive a reward from the Lawgiver, whereas those flouting the commandments deliberately, would receive their punishment from G’d. If a Jew disbelieved even a single one of these commandments, -even the ones one does not have a single opportunity in one’s life to be called upon to perform, such as the levirate marriage if one did not have a brother- he is still subject to the curse called down upon the sinners in this verse. However, if one transgressed one of the commandments, even knowingly, but because one’s evil urge was too strong, not because of a matter of principle, one is not subject to the curse pronounced here. In the Jerusalem Talmud Sotah 7,4 the verse is understood as being addressed primarily to the kings and the authorities within whose power it is to see to it that the common people, at least in public, live according to the laws of the Torah. This is derived from the word יקים in the causative mode, hiphil, as opposed to the active mode kal that would have been יקום, and would refer to oneself, intransitively. Anyone who is capable of promoting Torah observance by others and fails to use his talents in this direction is included in the curse pronounced in our verse. The Jerusalem Talmud also understands the verse as addressed to the reader of the Torah in public, who is called upon to show the scroll he has read from to the public at the end of the reading, and to invite the congregation to rise and give honour to the Torah. (Sofrim 14,14) The congregation is to respond with the line (Deut. 4,44) וזאת התורה אשר שם משה לפני בני ישראל (על פי ה' ביד משה).
Rashbam
ארור אשר לא יקים, this is a blanket curse applying to all sins committed in private, the sinner making sure he is not observed.
Onkelos
Rashi
Ramban
Ibn Ezra
Sforno
Or HaChaim
Rabbeinu Bahya
Tur HaArokh