Nitzavim places us at the moment before entering Eretz Yisrael when B’nei Yisrael will participate in a Brit (covenant) ceremony that affirms their obligations to God and God’s promises to the people. Note that all Israelites were present as well as the strangers in their midst. God’s threats for not following the commandments are dire, but Moshe also offers hope—the possibility of return. Moshe repeats God’s belief that B’nei Yisrael can and will choose to keep the covenant and reap the blessings. He encourages B’nei Yisrael, “Choose life!” (Deut. 30:19b) Vayeilekh is Moshe’s personal farewell. He is 120 years old and will not enter the Land of Israel. He announces his successor and enjoins the people to write down the Torah and to read it aloud every seventh year during Sukkot. Moshe and Yehshua enter the Tent of Meeting so that God can speak to them together. The ending is not “they lived happily ever after,” but, rather, Joshua will need to be strong and resolute as he leads B’nei Yisrael across the Jordan River.

Find the food connection...

אַתֶּם נִצָּבִים הַיּוֹם כֻּלְּכֶם, לִפְנֵי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם
You stand this day, all of you, before the Lord your God... Deuteronomy 29:9

Ears of Corn!
Like cornstalks, B’nei Yisrael stand at attention with their ears attuned to Moshe.

The Side Dish

My favorite verses from these parshiyot are Deuteronomy 30:11-14:

Surely the instruction which I enjoin upon you this day is not too baffling for you, nor is it beyond reach. It is not in the heavens that you should say, “Who among us can go up to the heavens and get it for us and impart it to us, that we may observe it?” Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, “Who among us can cross to the other side of the sea and get it for us and impart it to us, that we may observe it?” No, the thing is very close to you, in your mouth and in your heart, to observe it.

For a people who have waited forty days at Sinai to receive the Torah and forty years to reach Israel, this is quite a statement. It is a new world for B'nei Yisrael and, like any good teacher, God is showing God’s faith in the people to be able to both comprehend the Torah and to observe it. Jewish learning is democratized. It is not only for the elite, for the kohanim, or those selected by God. It doesn’t await the Israelites in heaven. It’s here in the everyday world and learning is available to all who seek it.

Think about how important learning has been to the Jewish people throughout history. Schools were set up wherever Jews lived. We continue to establish more and more opportunities for Jewish learning here on earth. It’s up to us to take advantage.