The poetry of Ha-Azinu differs from all other biblical poetry; it is neither praise nor prophecy; it is rather a statement of some of the basic concepts of Judaism. And because it deals with basics, it was singled out from all the Biblical passages in that it had to be memorized (Deut. 31:19). No other specific halakhah or biblical passage was to be memorized by the people --only Shirat Ha-Azinu.
Rashi (to 32: 1) feels that this section deals with the eternal existence of Israel and hence eternal witnesses — the heavens and earth — must be subpoenaed; that Israel’s history will be determined — in what seems to be a natural way — by Providence as a function of Israel’s observance of God’s religious and ethical laws; and that history and nature are intertwined in that they both derive from God. Thus Ramban (32:40) quotes the midrash: “This section speaks of the present, the past, and the future; of this world and of the world to come. . .” Indeed, our parasha states the conditions necessary for Israel’s eternal — nay even temporal — existence; it is no wonder that it deserves special attention.
A basic principle underlying the relationship between God and Israel is the family relationship. God is father to Israel; all Jews are brothers. Throughout Devarim, this family relationship is stressed: “You are children to the Lord your God” (14:1). By virtue of your election as an am segulah, you have additional family responsibilities.
Israel’s position as part of a divine family necessitates not only a special God- Man/father-son relationship, but also a special fraternal relationship between the brothers. Indeed, throughout the Torah, especially in Vayikra, we find the expression “your brother.” — “You shall not hate your brother in your heart” (Lev. 19:17); “should your brother sell you.. .“ (25:25); and so on.
This stress on a family structure sets Israel apart from all other nations. Not that it discriminates against others, but rather insists on special responsibilities towards one’s family. Thus, for example, we can understand the Torah’s laws regarding money lending. Actually, there is nothing wrong with taking interest when I lend money — but not so when I lend to a member of my family. “From the stranger you may take interest, but not from your brother.”
Since I see my fellow Jews as brothers, I am compelled to extend to them rights that I do not extend to other people. There is more than a subtle difference between a position that this law — and similar laws — is discriminatory against the non-Jew and a position that they force a Jew to extend privileges to a member of his immediate family.
The Nitsiv, author of the Ha-emek Davar, explicates Deut. 14:1 in a similar vein: “Rambam stressed that one city should not have two courts, for the Torah says: ‘You are children of God’. This is a warning against fragmenting the community. Since you are all God’s sons, it is not proper that you differ in matters relating to the Torah — as members of one family by nature have similar mannerisms.” Jews see themselves as members of one immediate family and this affects their relation to God — our father and king — and to the non-Jewish world.
The father-son relationship is a key for explaining a difficult verse (Deut. 32:5): “ [If the nation is] corrupted toward Him, [then] they are not His Sons [because of] their blemish. [They are of] a crooked and perverse generation.” The moment the son reneges his responsibilities as a son, the father acts accordingly: “Then my anger shall be kindled against them on that day and I will forsake them and I will hide my face from them and they shall be devoured...” (Deut 31:17).
This fatherly relationship can also be seen in all the beneficence God will bestow on His people: “He kept him as the apple of His eye”; “As an eagle that stirs up her nest, hovers over her young”. “And He made him to suck honey out of the crag”. (32:10-13)
As a result of this relationship, the Shirah does not end with a foreshadowing of destruction and exile, but with “He will avenge the blood of His servants . . . and cleanse the land of his people” (32:43). Ultimately, the Father is pleased with His son.
A review of Jewish history shows that the Jewish people constitute a historical anomaly. By all possible “rules of history” Israel should have ceased to exist — and we would have, had not God treated us as his children. While all humans may be God’s children, Israel is his “first born” (Ex. 4:22). As such we have special rights and obligations.
There is one recurrent motif which runs throughout the entire Shirah: Israel’s rejection of God. “He forsook God who made him, and condemned the Rock of his salvation.” The Shirah does not enumerate their sins; the only thing the Torah points to is idol worship. “They sacrificed to demons, no-gods. . . .You neglected the Rock that begot you; forgot the God who brought you forth” (32:16,18).
It is difficult to understand why the Torah singles out only this sin of idol-worship as the sole reason for the destruction and annihilation of the people. While it is a grievous sin, there are others just as horrible — for example, murder is also so terrible a sin that one should give his own life before murdering another. The statement in Leviticus (26:14) makes more sense: “And if you do not listen to Me and do not do all those commandments. . .” then God will bring upon them the curse. The emphasis there is on the whole corpus of commandments. Similarly we find in Deuteronomy (28:15): “But if you do not heed the voice of the Lord your God to observe faithfully all His commandments and laws which I enjoin upon you this day, all these curses shall come upon you and take effect.” Why did Moses change the emphasis in Ha-Azinu?
We should note the previous parasha (31:16) in which it is prophesized that Israel will “go a whoring (zanah)” after alien gods. (Notice that the Torah does not use the verb “go astray, sar).” Then in v. 21 we read that “when the many evils and troubles befall them — then this poem shall confront them as a witness. . . for I know their yetzer which they have even now, before I bring them into the land. . .”
In 32:15, Israel’s sin is “You grew fat and gross and coarse.” Israel’s unlawfulness is tied up with her following her yetzer. Indeed, the word “toavot” which appears in 32:16 is used in connection with only these things: 1) sexual immorality (Lev. 18:22, 26, 27, 29; 20:13, Deut. 24:4); 2) idol worship (Deut. 7:26; 12:31; 18:12; 23:19; and 3) forbidden foods (Deut. 14:3). Just as the first and third refer to acts involving a submission to the yetzer so does the second.
In Ha-Azinu, the Torah thus points out a major distinction between Israel and the other nations: Israel, through its system of mitzvot, is to control its yetzer and guard the Divine image that rests in each human being.
These are the fundamentals which the nation of Israel must abide by, for without them they cannot survive as a people. In essence, these fundamentals are but one precept and that is the acceptance of God as our father, a Godly father who commands His son and demands that His commands be fulfilled out of recognition of His love. This relationship between God and Israel is what separates Israel from the other nations and makes Israel the chosen people.
Rabbi David Eliach, principal of the Yeshivah of Flatbush H. S., is a member of Yavneh’s National Avisory Board.
YAVNEH STUDIES IN PARASHAT HASHAVUA, edited by Joel B. Wolowelsky, was a 1969-72 project of YAVNEH: THE RELIGIOUS JEWISH STUDENTS ASSOCIATION. The bios here are as they were at the time of the original publication. For a history of YAVNEH, see Benny Kraut, The Greening of American Orthodox Judaism: Yavneh in the 1960s (Cincinnti: Hebrew Union College Press, 2011).