Last week, in our weekly Torah discussion, we discussed Parashat Devarim, the Torah portion known as Devarim, which is the first portion of the fifth and final book of the Torah. The book’s Hebrew name is also Devarim (the first Torah portion of each book of the Torah is always named after the book itself).
In English, the book is referred to as Deuteronomy (which comes from a Greek word meaning “second law” because, in it, Moses offers a restatement of many of the laws that had been presented throughout the Israelites’ journey), but the translation of the word Devarim is, in fact, ambiguous. The most common translation of Devarim is “words,” as in “These are the words (devarim) that Moses addressed to all Israel…” (Deut. 1:1), but as the rabbinic sages observe, the word can also mean “rebukes,” which, for these rabbis, invokes a really important question that is still relevant today.
The ancient sage Rabbi Aha ben Rabbi Hanina notes that, under this reading, Moses is rebuking the people of Israel in this opening verse of the book, and he contrasts that with what occurred a few chapters earlier in the Torah, in the fourth book, Bamidbar/Numbers, when Balaam, a renowned non-Israelite prophet, blesses the People of Israel.
Shouldn’t it be the reverse, Rabbi Aha wonders? If there are blessings and rebukes to be offered, shouldn’t the blessings of the People of Israel come from this Israelite prophet, Moses, and the rebukes come from the non-Israelite prophet, Balaam?
Answering his own question, Rabbi Aha offers the following teaching: “Had Balaam rebuked them, Israel would have said: ‘An enemy is rebuking us,’ (and dismissed the critique). Had Moses blessed them, the nations of the world would have said: ‘The one who loves them is blessing them,’ (and assumed the blessing was baseless). The Holy One, blessed be He, said: ‘Let Moses, who loves them, rebuke them, and Balaam, who hates them, bless them, so that it will be unquestionable that the blessings and the rebukes are deserved by Israel’” (Devarim Rabbah 1:4).
With probing nuance, these ancient rabbis seem to understand a dynamic that remains present with us today: who the speaker is of a particular thought or argument, especially when directed at a distinctive group of people, matters greatly in terms of how the argument is received and perceived. Criticisms from those who do not have a stake in the targeted group are often dismissed; reasonable questions are present as to the degree to which those critiques come from a place of love and investment in the future of the people. (Debates around Israel should come to mind here.) Meanwhile, when they do come from such a place, they should be taken seriously.
Conversely, when words of love and affirmation are extended across the proverbial aisle and between peoples, those words can carry a great deal of weight and are probably used too sparingly.
Our tradition offers fertile ground for insights that we need in our own generation; the challenges we face, while unique to our generation, have profound commonalities with those faced in previous generations. We are blessed to have the opportunity to learn from their experiences.
In English, the book is referred to as Deuteronomy (which comes from a Greek word meaning “second law” because, in it, Moses offers a restatement of many of the laws that had been presented throughout the Israelites’ journey), but the translation of the word Devarim is, in fact, ambiguous. The most common translation of Devarim is “words,” as in “These are the words (devarim) that Moses addressed to all Israel…” (Deut. 1:1), but as the rabbinic sages observe, the word can also mean “rebukes,” which, for these rabbis, invokes a really important question that is still relevant today.