פרשת כי תבוא תשכ"ו - נאום הסיכום לדברי הברית

ולא נתן ה' לכם לב לדעת YET THE LORD HATH NOT GIVEN YOU A HEART TO KNOW — i.e. to understand the loving-kindnesses of the Omnipresent and to cleave unto Him.

עד היום הזה UNTO THIS DAY — I have heard that on the day when Moses gave the Book of the Law to the sons of Levi, as it is written, (Deuteronomy 31:9) “And he gave it to the priests the sons of Levi”, all Israel came before Moses and said to him: Teacher Moses, we, too, stood at Sinai and accepted the Torah, and it was given to us; why, then, do you give the people of your tribe control over it, that they may tomorrow say to us, “Not to you was it given, but to us was it given”? Moses rejoiced at this matter and in reference to this he said to them, (Deuteronomy 27:9) “This day have you become the people [of the Lord thy God]”, meaning, Only this day have I come to understand that you are attached to and have a desire for the Omnipresent.

ותבאו אל המקום הזה AND YOU CAME TO THIS PLACE — Now you see yourselves in greatness and glory (you have defeated Sihon and Og); do not rebel against the Omnipresent nor let your hearts be proud, ושמרתם את דברי הברית הזאת BUT KEEP THE WORDS OF THIS COVENANT. — Another explanation of AND THE LORD HAS NOT GIVEN YOU A HEART TO UNDERSTAND [UNTO THIS DAY] — for no-one can fathom the depths of his teacher’s mind nor the wisdom of his teaching until after forty years of study under him. Therefore the Omnipresent has not dealt with you so strictly until this day (after forty years’ instruction of the Torah), but from now and onward He will deal strictly with you — therefore ושמרתם את דברי הברית הזאת וגו׳ KEEP THE WORDS OF THIS COVENANT etc. (Avodah Zarah 5b).

ותבאו אל המקום הזה AND YOU CAME TO THIS PLACE — Now you see yourselves in greatness and glory (you have defeated Sihon and Og); do not rebel against the Omnipresent nor let your hearts be proud, ושמרתם את דברי הברית הזאת BUT KEEP THE WORDS OF THIS COVENANT. — Another explanation of AND THE LORD HAS NOT GIVEN YOU A HEART TO UNDERSTAND [UNTO THIS DAY] — for no-one can fathom the depths of his teacher’s mind nor the wisdom of his teaching until after forty years of study under him. Therefore the Omnipresent has not dealt with you so strictly until this day (after forty years’ instruction of the Torah), but from now and onward He will deal strictly with you — therefore ושמרתם את דברי הברית הזאת וגו׳ KEEP THE WORDS OF THIS COVENANT etc. (Avodah Zarah 5b).

but the LORD hath not given you a heart to know, and eyes to see, and ears to hear, unto this day.

Ye have not eaten bread, neither have ye drunk wine or strong drink; that ye might know that I am the LORD your God.