(1-2) “Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; and let the earth hear the words of my mouth.” Rashi explains: Why did he [Moses] call upon heaven and earth as witnesses? So that if Israel were to say, “We did not accept the covenant,” who would come to dispute them? Therefore, he called upon heaven and earth as witnesses, which endure forever, as if they [Israel] merit, etc. According to the versions [of Rashi] that read “which endure forever, as if they merit, etc.,” this is all one reason. But according to the versions that read “and furthermore, if they merit,” then there are two reasons. And it is difficult to understand the first reason: Can heaven and earth have a mouth to testify? And one cannot say that certainly there are no words or speech from them, except that through the heavens giving dew and rain, and the earth yielding its produce when Israel does the will of God, and not giving when they do not do His will, this is a sign that Israel accepted the covenant. If so, what does it mean “and furthermore, if they merit, etc.”? This is the same as the first reason.

And it seems to resolve this version, according to what our Sages said (Shabbat 88a) that the extra “hei” [the] in the sixth day [in Genesis] is to teach that everything was contingent and suspended until the sixth day of Sivan — if Israel would accept the Torah, good, and if not, the world would return to chaos and void. Therefore, since we see today that the heavens and earth still exist and have not returned to chaos and void, this is conclusive proof that Israel accepted the Torah. And this is what it means when it says that He called the heavens and earth as witnesses, and what is the testimony they give? That they exist forever, for their continued existence provides reliable testimony from God that Israel has already accepted the Torah, because if not, they would not still be standing but would have already returned to chaos and void.

The reason for this matter, that the existence of heaven and earth depends on the Torah, is because the higher and lower realms are two opposites and require an intermediary to connect them. This intermediary is man, who is composed of matter and form, and this combination is by way of the Torah. For without the Torah, man would be compared to an animal and would have no part of the higher realms. Therefore, one who engages in Torah creates peace between the heavenly and earthly hosts so that they will not oppose each other, because the intermediary connects them. This is what is meant by My teaching shall drop as the rain (Deuteronomy 32:2), because every flow is a connection, like the rain that descends from heaven to earth, appearing as if it connects heaven and earth, for every flow resembles a connection. Similarly, My teaching, meaning the Torah that was taken from heaven to earth, is the place where earth and firmament kiss.

Listen, O heavens, and I will speak. We have already written above in the portion of Vayeilech (31:7) that Moses said to Joshua, For you will come with the people. The elders of the generation are with you, all according to their opinion and counsel. But the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Joshua, For you will bring, meaning against their will, etc. These statements do not contradict each other because Moses speaks regarding the lesser ones whom he called the people who rebel against all difficult matters and do not accept authority and discipline. Therefore, one needs to speak to them gently and softly according to their opinion and counsel. But the Holy One, blessed be He, speaks regarding the good ones among them, as is implied by the language, For you will bring the children of Israel, and He did not call them by the name “people” because He is speaking about the great ones of Israel who accept authority and discipline. Therefore, He said, For you will bring, against their will, and with them one speaks every harsh word. There we proved all this with clear evidence; see there.

Therefore it is said, “Give ear, O heavens,” referring to those who are higher in stature, as high as the heavens are above the earth. And I will speak, because all speech [dibur] is harsh, as it is written, The man, the Lord of the land, spoke harshly to us (Genesis 42:30). For those high in stature receive the discipline of harsh speech, but to those of lesser status, who are compared to the earth, it says, And let the earth hear the words of my mouth, for with them I need to speak with soft words.

“May my teaching drop like rain.” These are the words that I took from the mouth of the Almighty, for the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Joshua, For you will bring the children of Israel, against their will take a staff, etc. These are harsh words, and from Him, blessed be He, I took and learned to speak harshly, but not with every person. For harsh words resemble in every way the rain that falls with might, but not everyone rejoices in it. Similarly, the harsh words which I took and learned from the mouth of the Almighty to speak with, not everyone rejoices in them, for only people of high stature rejoice in them, but not the majority of the common people. Therefore, the one who rebukes needs to minimize these harsh words out of respect for Israel, a little here, a little there, like rain that falls drop by drop. That is why it says “yaarof” [will drop], which is an expression of dripping. However, my speech shall distill as the dew — what I said of my own to Joshua, for you will bring the people, all according to their understanding and counsel, for this is something that everyone rejoices in, like dew that everyone rejoices in. Therefore, I do not need to minimize those words, which is why it says “tizal” [shall distill], indicating an abundance of flowing.

And with this is resolved why he mentioned “will drop” regarding the rain, and “will flow” regarding the dew, whereas the way of the world is the opposite, as rain flows and dew drips. This is to indicate the matter we mentioned, that all of this is a metaphor for his manner of conduct with those who hear his words. And what he said my teaching refers to harsh speech that he mentioned, which is comparable to as if he took them forcefully with a strong hand and compelled them to accept his words. And what he said my speech refers to gentle speech as mentioned.

“Like droplets upon the grass.” Rabbenu Bachya explained that “se’irim” [droplets] is like “tze’irim” [young ones], and it refers to the fine rain similar to dew, which is good for the grass, which represents the general covering of the earth with vegetation called “deshe” [grass]. This alludes to the general masses of people, with whom one needs to speak in gentle, barely perceptible words, like this fine rain that does not act forcefully. And like showers, meaning the abundant and heavy rain that shoots down like an arrow, is good for herb, because each individual plant is called “esev” [herb], alluding to the unique, treasured individuals of the generation who do not mingle in confusion with the masses, and they are companions who listen attentively to harsh words that shoot down like arrows.

And close to this interpretation, Abarbanel wrote in Merkevet HaMishnah, that the heavens is a reference to males and the earth is a reference to females, as it is written For as the rain and snow come down from heaven, etc. and it makes it give birth and sprout (Isaiah 55:10). And it is written regarding the giving of the Torah (Exodus 19:3), Thus shall you say to the house of Jacob — these are the women, to whom you should speak gently; and tell the children of Israel — these are the males, to whom you should speak harsh words, hard as sinews. Therefore it says, Listen, O heavens, and I will speak — harsh speech for the males, and Let the earth hear the words of my mouth — gentle speech for the females.

It [also] seems appropriate to interpret this in the opposite way: The heavens refers to the haughty individuals whose opinion of themselves is elevated, and to them Moses spoke harshly. However, the righteous humble themselves to the ground, and to them he spoke gently. This is in accordance with what is said: A rebuke enters more into a wise man than a hundred stripes into a fool (Proverbs 17:10).

And there are those who say that he said “Listen, O heavens” [meaning] that they should stand and be silent from their movement, and if you will say, “During all that time, how will the world exist?” To this he said, Let my teaching drop like rain — that the world will exist by virtue of the Torah, which stands in place of rain and dew, for not by bread alone does man live, but by everything that proceeds from the mouth of God does man live (Deuteronomy 8:3). And perhaps this is why he said, For I will proclaim the name of the Lord; ascribe greatness to our God. For when I call upon the name of the Lord to decree something against the natural order of the world, such as Sun, stand still upon Gibeon (Joshua 10:12), and like Let there be dew on the fleece alone, and let the ground be dry (Judges 6:37), and similar instances, then ascribe greatness to our God, and listen to my words decreeing upon you in the name of the Lord, just as you did now with the decree of Listen, O heavens, meaning to be silent from their movement.

And when it says “Give ear, O heavens” in command form, and “let the earth hear” which is not in command form but implies that it will hear on its own, it seems that this is the explanation: Since he called upon heaven and earth as witnesses that if Israel does not listen, then the heavens will not give rain and the ground will not yield its produce. Therefore, he spoke to the heavens in command form, saying: “I command you that if Israel does not observe the Torah, then you shall not give them rain.” But regarding the earth, there is no need to command it, because if the heavens do not give rain, how can the earth yield its produce without rain? Therefore he said, and let the earth hear the words of my mouth, for it will certainly hear on its own without a decree that it should not yield its produce, as one thing follows from the other.

May my teaching drop like rain, may my utterance flow like dew. It seems to me, following an explanation I heard on the verse You save man and beast, O Lord (Psalms 36:7), based on the Jerusalem Talmud (Makkot 2:6): They asked Prophecy, “What should a sinner do to atone?” It replied, The soul that sins shall die. They asked the Torah, “What should a sinner do to atone?” It replied, “Let him bring a sacrifice and be atoned.” They asked the Holy One, blessed be He, “What should a sinner do to atone?” He replied, “Let him repent and be atoned,” as it is said (Psalms 25:8), Good and upright is the Lord; therefore He instructs sinners in the way. Consequently, according to Prophecy’s answer, there is no salvation for the sinning person; and according to the Torah’s answer, there is no salvation for the animal, which would inevitably be put to death to atone for the person’s sin. But according to the Holy One’s answer, who said, “Let him repent and be atoned,” both find salvation — the person and the animal. Therefore it says, You save man and beast, O Lord.

And in this way these verses can be explained, according to the Midrash that concludes in Yalkut (Haazinu 32:942): “Look at the heavens, have they changed their ways, etc. And let the earth hear, look at the earth, has it changed its ways, etc.” The concept of changing one’s ways in a person is when one changes the will of his Creator and departs from the boundaries of Torah and commandments. Therefore, He said afterward that if you change your ways, then according to the understanding of prophecy and Torah, it’s impossible to be exempt from death — either for a person or for an animal. But the word of God is refined to exempt both person and animal from death, and the sinner shall return to God and be healed. This is what is meant by My teaching shall drop like rain. Our Sages said (Taanit 7a): “The term dropping [yaarof] means killing, as it is said and they shall break the heifer’s neck there (Deuteronomy 21:4).” And my teaching [likchi] refers to Torah and prophecy, because the Torah is called good teaching [lekach tov], and likewise prophecy is taken [lekuchah] from Him, blessed be He. And Moses said that my teaching — that is, what I received from God, both Torah and prophecy — will drop, because from both of them emerges death for one of them, either for person or animal. And they are like this rain, which not everyone rejoices in. Similarly, there is never complete joy here — either for person or for animal. However, my speech shall flow like dew — for the refined word of God brings joy to both person and animal, like this dew that everyone rejoices in. Similarly, God saves both person and animal, and everyone rejoices in God’s salvation, as it is written Return, O Israel… I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely, for My anger has turned away from him. I will be like dew to Israel; he shall grow like the lily, etc. (Hosea 14:2-5-6). And our Sages (Yoma 86b) learned from here that even if an individual repents, forgiveness is granted to him and to the entire world, as it is said, I will heal their backsliding in plural form, and it is written, for My anger has turned away from him.

According to our explanation, “I will heal their backsliding” refers to both man and beast, as it states above (Hosea 14:3) and we will offer the prayers of our lips instead of bulls. For through the confession of our lips, we fulfill our obligations, and in this way, the bulls are also exempted from being sacrificed. The reason for sacrifices is that the animal-like nature within man is shared with other beasts and creatures of the earth. Therefore, the animal comes as a substitute for man. In God’s mercy upon all His creations, both man and beast, He taught the way of repentance to the wayward daughter. Although the term backsliding[meshuva] is only applicable to the sinning human and not to the animal, nevertheless, when a person brings a sacrifice and lays their hands upon it and confesses over it, it is as if all their sins are carried by that animal, as it is written (Leviticus 16:22) And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities. Therefore, it is appropriate to include the animal in the word their backsliding [meshuvatam]. And He says, I will love them freely, because I do not love them out of obligation, but rather as a free gift. Just as I created them initially as a free gift, so too now I love all the work of My hands freely, for My anger has turned away from him — from man. Therefore, both are exempted — man and beast. For I will be as dew to Israel, like this dew that everyone rejoices in. He shall blossom like the lily, because every penitent is like someone born on that day, as it is written (Psalms 103:3-5) Who forgives all your iniquities, followed by your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

The Rock, His work is perfect. This is explained in the way that Solomon said (Ecclesiastes 7:29), God made man upright, but they have sought out many schemes. This is to remove from the heart of man evil thoughts, to speak incorrectly about God, claiming that the Craftsman who created him put within him material that has a tendency toward physical desires, and that this corruption came from His hand. As we say by way of excuse, Remember that we are dust (Psalms 103:14), and similarly Job said (10:9), Remember, I beseech You, that You have made me as clay, etc. Perhaps the sinner might come to attribute his guilt to his Creator. On this it says that this is not so, but rather “the Rock [Tzur] who formed man with wisdom, His work is perfect.” For “there is no artist [tzayar] like our God” (Berakhot 10a), and all His work is perfect without deficiency. The proof of this is that all His ways are just, and if man were deficient because of his creation, then he would not have free will, as he would be compelled in his actions, and it would not be appropriate to bring him to judgment for his deeds. Yet you acknowledge that all of God’s ways are just and far be it from the Almighty to do injustice. For God is faithful, to reward the righteous, and without injustice, to repay even the wicked. Just as you acknowledge that He justly gives good reward to those who do His will, so too He justly punishes the wicked because He is righteous and upright, and He made man upright in every way, but they have sought out many schemes. For corruption came from their side and not from His side, blessed be He. This is what it means by He has corrupted himself, which Onkelos translates as “they have corrupted themselves, it is not His,” because the corruption depends on them due to their poor choices, and not on Him, for one cannot attribute the corruption to Him at all. The defect is not of His children, meaning that it is not as they thought, to attribute their defect to being His children, saying to the Craftsman who made me a physical being, This came to me from Your hand. Rather, their main defect is from themselves, in that they are a perverse and crooked generation. And they have no defect or deficiency from the aspect of being His children, blessed be He, for the Rock made them in perfection, without deficiency, but they chose for themselves corrupt ways that God did not command. This also fits well with Rashi’s interpretation, who explains himself/Himself as referring to the Holy One, blessed be He, meaning that this corruption should be attributed to Him, blessed be He — no, this is not so, but rather they were His children, and the corruption, their blemish, is their own blemish.

Another explanation of “He has corrupted Himself”: To attribute corruption to Him, blessed be He? No, this is not so; rather, “the defect is His children.” Their main defect is that the Holy One, blessed be He, called them His children and raised them and exalted them. Therefore, they assume that God will have mercy on them as a father has mercy on his children, and that He will not look at their wrongdoings. Moreover, because of this, their hearts became haughty to the point of corruption, and through their pride they came to sin. This verse will be further explained shortly, and see the section about the rebellious son for the refutation of this view.

He corrupted himself; the blemish is not His children’s. In the Yalkut for Parashat Ha’azinu (32:942), it concludes: “Look at the heavens that I created to serve you — have they changed their ways? etc. If these [celestial bodies], which were created neither for reward nor punishment, and do not care about their sons and daughters, have not changed their ways — you, who have [the potential for] reward and punishment, and who care about your sons and daughters, how much more so should you not change your ways.” Who told the author of this Midrash to mention sons or daughters in this kal vachomer [a fortiori] argument? Earlier, in Parashat Nitzavim (30:19), I explained that he learned this from what is written there: I call heaven and earth to witness against you, and it is written afterward, that you and your offspring may live. Why did it mention his offspring in this promise more than in all other promises? Rather, it is as if He said to him: “If you will not do it for the sake of your own life, please do it for the sake of your offspring’s lives, for you naturally care about sons and daughters.” Similarly, in this portion, after saying Listen, O heavens, etc., it says He corrupted himself; the blemish is not his children’s. Initially, it says He corrupted himself — that the sinner and rebel corrupts himself. And not only this, but he doesn’t even care about the lives of his children, as if they were not his children, and this is their great blemish. For sometimes the desire of the moment pressures him so that he does not consider the punishment that will eventually come, but what have his children done to him? They have no part in this pleasure, but they do have a part in the punishment.

And this is what it says immediately afterward, And the Lord saw and despised them because of the anger of His sons and daughters. For granted, the fact that he [the sinner] did not have pity on himself is not such a great [cause of] anger, because Jeshurun grew fat and kicked, you grew fat, you grew thick etc., meaning that momentary pleasure compels him. But his sons and daughters, who do not even have momentary pleasure, how could he not have pity on them to bring them into the trap of that punishment? This is what angers the Holy One, blessed be He, the most. This is what it says immediately after you grew fat, you grew thick, etc., And the Lord saw and despised them because of the anger of His sons and daughters, that God despised him because he caused the anger of his sons and daughters. Therefore, these two corruptions are mentioned here, and it emphasizes more the corruption that he causes to his children than the corruption of his own soul. For that is why it says, And the Lord saw and despised them because of the anger of His sons and daughters, and here [it says], They have corrupted themselves, they are not his children, that is their blemish. Although he corrupted himself, nevertheless this blemish in him is not as great as the blemish he causes in his children, because it seems to him as if they are not his children — this is the main aspect of their blemish.

Another explanation of “His children’s blemish.” This is their main blemish, that they are children of the Holy One, blessed be He, yet they did not look to the Rock from which they were hewn, for the Rock, His work is perfect. They should have followed the ways of their Father in heaven, as it is written, You shall walk after the Lord your God (Deuteronomy 13:5) — walk after His ways, as it is said, Is He not your Father who created you? And you should have walked in His ways.

Another explanation is that “His children” [or “His sons”] is a reference to a person’s deeds, which are called a person’s offspring. The offspring of the righteous are good deeds, while the deeds of the wicked are as it says He conceives trouble and gives birth to falsehood (Psalms 7:15). The wicked person never admits the truth, and regarding all the evil offspring that he produces, he will say “they are not his children.” This is the main blemish within them — that they do not place blame on themselves for any of their evil deeds, and they deny saying, “These are not my children, I did not give birth to them.” The reason for this is that they are a perverse and crooked generation. Because they are a perverse generation, they never admit the truth and say to anyone who rebukes them, “I have not done wrong.” A second reason is that when a person commits a sin and repeats it, becoming accustomed to doing it many times until it becomes like a permissible act to them (Yoma 86b). This is what Scripture means by saying and crooked [petaltol], like a threefold thread [petilah], so too someone who transgresses, and repeats, and does it a third time — it becomes like a permissible act to them, and they will never turn back from their way.

Is this how you repay the Lord, you foolish and unwise people, etc. The connection of these verses with the previous verses appears to me to be in the manner stated If you have sinned, what do you accomplish against Him? And if your transgressions are many, what do you do to Him? If you are righteous, what do you give Him? Or what does He receive from your hand? (Job 35:6-7). In the same order as mentioned there, they are mentioned here as well. For before entering into words of rebuke with them, He established this premise so they would not think wrongly about God, saying that it matters to the Holy One, blessed be He, whether you do evil or good. And you might think to say that the Holy One, blessed be He, seeks His own benefit to push away from Himself the harm that comes to Him from your transgressions, and to draw near to Himself the benefit that flows to Him from the fulfillment of the commandments. Regarding this it says that you are mistaken in both cases. For regarding corruption, it first says He has corrupted himself, not — as Onkelos translates it “They have corrupted for themselves, and it is not His,” as If your transgressions are many, what do you do to Him? The primary corruption is for them, and the blemish is theirs and not God’s. Afterward, it speaks about the fulfillment of commandments, for the term “repay” [גמול] applies to some good repayment, and it says Is this how you repay the Lord? The letter ה [which has a numerical value of five] in הלה’ is written large to allude to the five books of the Torah, meaning: Do you think you are repaying the Holy One, blessed be He, some favor by your fulfillment of the five books of the Torah which are called “זאת” [this], as it is said And this is the Torah (Deuteronomy 4:44).

A foolish [naval] people without wisdom. Even though without wisdom is not the opposite of a foolish people, nevertheless it seems to me that this is its explanation. For regarding the word “naval” [fool/base person], various interpretations have been given by commentators. I say that anyone who is not generous of heart is called a “naval,” with proof from the verse The naval shall no longer be called generous, nor the miser said to be noble (Isaiah 32:5). This implies that a “naval” is the opposite of a generous person. Naval the Carmelite proves this, as he said Shall I take my bread, etc., and give it to men of whom I know nothing? (1 Samuel 25:11) About him it is said As his name, so is he; Naval is his name, and nevalah is with him (1 Samuel 25:25). Perhaps this name is derived from the language of “yoval” [bring forth] and “yevulah” [produce], meaning just as you bring things to it [the land], so too this person who is not generous of heart spends all day bringing things from others to himself, but gives nothing to others. Now, the person who errs thinks that the Holy One, blessed be He, has some need for His commandments. Who led him to think such a corrupt thought? This is only because he himself is base [naval] and not generous, and it seems implausible to him that one would do good to another for free unless he knows that the recipient of his kindness will return and repay him according to his deed. For if he is not expecting repayment, why would he do good to another for free? Thus he thinks the same about the Holy One, blessed be He. When he sees the greatness of the good that God has done for him, he thinks: “Why does He do these good things for me for free? This must be so that He too will receive benefit from me greater than these.” Therefore, He calls one who thinks this thought “naval” and not generous, because it seems implausible to him that God would do good to him out of generosity and kindness. Therefore, it says afterward, Vayenabel the Rock of his salvation, meaning he spoke about Him as one would speak about one of the nebalim [stingy people]. Therefore, measure for measure, I will anger them with a stingy nation. Further, He called him without wisdom, because besides being stingy and not generous, he is a son without wisdom, for he did not ask about this matter wisely.

And then he explained about the first [issue] first and the last [issue] last, for what he said a foolish nation — about this he said Is He not your father who acquired you. Because even if one were to assume, let it be as you say, that no person does good to another for free — this applies to a stranger, but a father to his son, even one who is stingy with others, nevertheless, isn’t it the way of the world that a father does many kindnesses for his son from the day of his birth out of generosity, for free, without expecting any recompense? Similarly, the Holy One, Blessed be He, Is He not your father who acquired you, and He has mercy on you as a father has mercy on his children, even though He derives no benefit from you. And regarding what He called [Israel] “unwise children,” He wanted to prove this by saying He made you and established you. Since He made you, then everything that you do, He, blessed be He, can also do, all the more so — for if He made you, then certainly whatever you have the power to do, He blessed be He, obviously has the power to do as well, as it is written He who implants the ear, shall He not hear? He who forms the eye, shall He not see? (Psalms 94:9). And as it is written If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and its fullness are Mine (Psalms 50:12). Therefore, He said He made you — He made you and all that you have the power to do together. And since you did not understand this through your intellect, you are certainly “unwise children.”

And after that he said, “Remember the days of old.” You, the stingy and ungenerous one, who finds it difficult to believe that the Holy One, blessed be He, would do something out of generosity without expecting payment in return, Remember the days of old, the days in which the Holy One, blessed be He, created the world. For in this, you must at least acknowledge that the world is built on kindness (Psalms 89:3). For before the world was created, He, blessed be He, was alone, and His existence was self-sufficient, not needing any other being since nothing else existed yet. And if so, in the days of the world’s creation, when He created His world, He certainly did not create it except out of the generosity of His heart and His will, as it is written, the world is built on kindness. Consider the years of generation after generation. Rashi explains this refers to the generation of the Flood and the generation of the Dispersion [Tower of Babel], for in these two generations the deeds of all inhabitants of the world were corrupted. With this, the verse seeks to strengthen what was said: He made you and established you, for if He needed your deeds, how did the Holy One, blessed be He, act during these two corrupted generations who destroyed and made abominable their ways on earth? And God saw that there was no man, etc., and His arm saved for Him, and His righteousness sustained Him (Isaiah 59:16). He received no benefit from any being, and in these generations, the world returned to chaos and void, yet nevertheless, He, blessed be He, made it and established it on its foundation as at the beginning, lacking nothing. Therefore it says Consider, in response to calling them “unwise children,” wanting to prove their foolishness from He made you and established you. And now He returns to prove that they lack wisdom and understanding, from what is written: Consider the years of generation after generation, for they are not a people of understanding who have not considered the years of generation after generation.

And then he returned to explain in order, from the first: Regarding what he wrote Is He not your father who acquired you, and he wanted to prove from this that because the Holy One, blessed be He, is your father, therefore He benefits you out of generosity, as a father has compassion on his children. Perhaps even in this you will be doubtful whether a father would do something for his son without compensation? To this he says Ask your father and he will tell you, for he will tell you everything that he benefits you out of generosity, and from this you should also infer regarding your father in heaven. And regarding calling him “a foolish son,” he wanted to prove this from He made you and established you, and from what he said consider the years of generation to generation. To this he says, if in any case you lack wisdom and understanding to comprehend what happened in the past, then ask your elders and they will tell you. Rashi explains that your elders refers to the wise men, and they will tell you words of wisdom about what happened in the past. In this way, Is He not your father who acquired you is connected to what he called a foolish nation. And following it is the verse Remember the days of old and the verse Ask your father and he will tell you, for everything is connected to what he called a foolish nation. Similarly, on the other hand, what he called “an unwise son” is followed by the verses He made you and established you, consider the years of generation to generation, your elders and they will tell you.

And it seems appropriate to explain these verses in another way, as we have already said that he made a proof from “He made you and established you” that “you are an unwise son,” and afterwards he made a proof upon the proof of He made you and established you. For perhaps you will deny even this, saying: Who says that the Lord God made us? Perhaps all those who are born were born naturally, from one person to another, like the opinion of the heretics who say that the world is eternal and that the lineage of those born continues naturally forever from person to person, a generation goes and a generation comes (Ecclesiastes 1:4), and the world is eternal like the Holy One, blessed be He, who is also eternal along with the world. And perhaps you will return to your waywardness to say that He has some need for your deeds. Regarding this, it says understand the years of generation after generation, for from Adam until Noah, the years of human life reached almost 1,000 years, and afterward several hundred, and from there onward, the years of each generation decreased until these generations that stand at 70 years. This is proof that the world was created anew and is not eternal, and therefore those people who were close to the time of the world’s creation lived much longer than the generations that were further from the time of creation, for reasons given by the commentators. Some say that since the world was newly created, the air was still of the highest quality, for it had not yet deteriorated over time. And some say it was so they would produce many sons and daughters during those many days. And some say it was so they could learn during those years all the matters of wisdom and craftsmanship that the world needed from them, for in several hundred years they would not have been able to learn so many new things as one can learn in these generations in a single year. The Akedah expounds on this at length. In the end, the years of generation after generation is a great proof of the world’s creation, and from this you will learn that He made you and established you.

And if you also deny this, saying who can prove that those generations lived much longer than these generations, for this it says ask your elders and they will tell you. For the wise elders who investigate to know the previous things that happened since the beginning of the world received this matter from one person to another until those generations. And it specifically mentions your elders because the elders upon whom old age has jumped in these generations, they will tell the difference between their years and the years of the forefathers. For even if they do not investigate the creation of the world because they do not have much practical interest in the matter, nevertheless, the elders upon whom old age has jumped in few years, they will investigate if this was always the case. And through investigation they will truly know that the years of each and every generation have been decreasing due to the corruption of the air that occurred as the days lengthened. And through this you will truly know that He made you and established you. And this is conclusive proof that He has no need for you nor for your deeds.

And what is written “When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, etc.” He provided a proof for the error that he mentioned, and said: See how you are mistaken in saying that the Holy One, blessed be He, has any need or benefit from you performing His commandments. For undoubtedly, if He received any benefit from you, then why did He not give the Torah to all the nations and instead entrusted it to you, few in number, such that for every person from Israel there was a complete nation? For He established the boundaries of peoples according to the number of the children of Israel, as there were 70 nations corresponding to the 70 [men] of Israel [when they came down to Egypt]. Would it not have been better for Him if He had received that benefit from many nations? And examine the other side: If you say that He only gave the Torah to refine the creatures [meaning to perfect humanity], it is not difficult [to understand] why He did not care to refine many nations, because the Lord’s portion is His people, Jacob is the lot of His inheritance. All the nations are like husks [or shells], therefore He only cared to fence His field, because He found it like an uncultivated field, like this desert, lacking all perfection. This is what it means: He found him in a desert land, and in a desolate, howling wilderness. Meaning, they were lacking everything, He broke down its wall, and it was trampled (Isaiah 5:5). Therefore He surrounded him, He instructed him, because through teaching them Torah, they became surrounded and protected like the pupil of an eye. And soon all these verses will be explained in another way.

Another interpretation of “Remember the days of old” follows the approach of our Sages of blessed memory (Avot 5:1): “The world was created with 10 utterances. What does this teach us? Could it not have been created with a single utterance? Rather, it is to exact punishment from the wicked who destroy the world that was created with 10 utterances.” This means we say to the wicked person: “See how evil you are, for you are destroying something great, as it was created with 10 utterances.” Similarly, regarding the six days of creation — for the same reason — God could have created it in a single moment, but this teaches the wicked person that through his sin he destroys something great that was created in six days and with 10 utterances. The Holy One, blessed be He, established foundations for the world in the Written Torah, which is encompassed in the Ten Commandments, and in the Oral Torah, which is encompassed in the six Orders, indicating that the world’s existence depends on them. Therefore, He said, Remember the days of old — that the world was created in six days — and guard yourself from destroying this great thing. Similarly, consider the years of generation after generation — these are the 10 generations from Adam to Noah, and from Noah to Abraham, as it is said: Though a sinner does evil a hundred times and his punishment is delayed (Ecclesiastes 8:12). You might think that since the Holy One, blessed be He, is slow to anger and does not collect His due immediately, there is no justice and no Judge, and therefore your heart may be filled to do evil. But you would be trusting in falsehood. Learn understanding from those generations who provoked Him, blessed be He, until He brought the flood upon them, and until Abraham came and received the reward of all of them. As it concludes in Pirkei Avot, after mentioning “with 10 utterances,” it immediately mentions the matter of these 10 generations to make known how patient He is, blessed be He. Likewise, you should not rely on such vain consolations. Just as these concepts are connected in this verse, so too did the Tanna connect them in Pirkei Avot, for both provide moral instruction to sinners as stated.

When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when He separated the sons of man. From now on, [the Torah] began to tell of the kindnesses that the Holy One, blessed be He, did for Israel with greater abundance than for all the nations, and showed that Israel is equivalent to all of them. Regarding this it says, When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when He divided the world as an inheritance to all the nations at that time, He separated and distinguished Abraham from them and said to him, Go forth from your land (Genesis 12:1). This is what it means by when He separated the sons of man, because you [Israel] are called man and not the [other] nations, and the Holy One, blessed be He, separated them from the nations and took them to one side and established the boundaries of peoples according to the number of the children of Israel — 70 nations corresponding to the 70 souls of Jacob, because in this He showed that each individual among them is equivalent to an entire nation, as explained in the Akeidah, Parashat Beha’alotcha, on the verse I will mention Rahab and Babylon, etc., and of Zion it shall be said, “This man and that man was born in her” (Psalms 87:4–5).

“For the Lord’s portion is His people, etc.” This teaches that in three types of numbers, the Holy One, blessed be He, showed the love of Israel, for they are equal to all of existence. Number one: Our ancestors went down to Egypt with 70 souls, corresponding to the 70 nations and the 70 heavenly ministers. About this, it says He established the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of the children of Israel. Number two: The 12 tribes of Israel correspond to the 12 constellations which the Lord apportioned to all the nations, as it is written in the portion of Va’etchanan (4:19), And lest you lift up your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun, etc., which the Lord has allotted to all the peoples. Corresponding to this, it says here For the Lord’s portion is His people, meaning that those 12 constellations He gave as a portion to all the nations. However, the Lord’s portion is His people, for they too are numbered as the 12 tribes of Israel, share for share, equal to equal. Number three: It is the three worlds that encompass all of existence. About this it says, Jacob is the lot [chevel] of His inheritance. Like a triple-stranded rope [chevel], so He established the three Patriarchs as the foundation for all existence.

“He found him in a desert land,” etc. This verse can be interpreted as praise for Israel, saying that even in the desert land, a place of chaos, they followed after Him, blessed be He, as it is written I remember for your sake the devotion of your youth, how you followed Me in the wilderness (Jeremiah 2:2), as Rashi explains. However, according to the context of the passage which comes to rebuke them, as it is written For I know your rebellion and your stiff neck (Deuteronomy 31:27), we can say that it speaks of their disgrace, for it is known that in the land of Egypt they were wicked and sinful to God, as is found in Ezekiel (20:5-7): And I made Myself known to them in the land of Egypt… and I said to them: “Each of you, cast away the detestable things of your eyes”… but they did not wish to listen. This connects to the rebukes above, saying that despite all the superior qualities I bestowed upon you above all nations, nevertheless you did not cleave to Me. Furthermore, even when you were in the iron furnace in the land of Egypt, those sufferings did not bring you back to the right path, the food was still in their mouths (Psalms 78:30). But when He brought them out to the desert, a place of chaos, howling desolation, with no seed or fig, no bread to eat, no water to drink, then their uncircumcised hearts were humbled and they returned to God. This is what is meant by He found him in a desert land — not before then, even though they suffered afflictions in Egypt. God did not find their hearts perfect with Him except in the desert, due to the great pressure of hunger and thirst. Then God found their hearts perfect with Him, then He surrounded him with His clouds of glory, He instructed him with knowledge, understanding, and wisdom through the giving of the Torah, and He protected him as the pupil of His eye — not fleshly eyes, but His, blessed be He. And Ramban explained that this refers to man, just as a person guards the pupil of his eye.

And as a hint, it alludes to the Torah, which was written in black fire upon white fire, like this eye that has black and white. So too, the Torah has revealed aspects like the appearance of white, and hidden aspects like the appearance of black. Therefore, the Holy One, Blessed Be He, protects them [Israel] just as they protect the Torah, which is compared to the pupil of an eye, for these two types of protection depend on each other.

“As an eagle stirs up its nest, hovering over its young.” Here, the eagle is above and the fledglings below, and afterward He spreads His wings, takes him, bears him on His pinions — now the fledglings are above the eagle. This aligns with the Midrash (Song of Songs Rabbah 3:21) cited by Ramban in Parashat Chayei Sarah (24:1), that Israel is called daughter, sister, and mother, etc. For apparently this is not in order of progression. But it seems that initially the Holy One, blessed be He, called Israel “daughter” — Listen, daughter, etc. (Psalms 45:11). Just as a mother rules over her daughter, so the Holy One, blessed be He, rules over Israel. Afterward, He called them “my sister,” for just as brothers and sisters are equal, so the righteous become like partners with the Holy One, blessed be He. And afterward, He called them “mother,” for just as a mother rules over her daughter, so a righteous person rules through fear of God, as our Sages said (Moed Katan 16b): “The Holy One, blessed be He, said: ‘Who rules over Me? The righteous,’” etc. We have already explained all this in Parashat Yitro (19:4) on the verse I bore you on eagles’ wings, etc. And if you will find a difficulty [to reconcile this], behold there it explains the verse I bore you on eagles’ wings as referring to when He calls them “daughter,” as a nursemaid carries an infant. And here you must interpret takes him, bears him on His pinions to mean that the righteous rule through fear of God. The answer is that there He mentioned the wings but not on His body, while here He mentioned His pinions [evrato] instead of wings. And I found explicitly written in the words of the commentators that pinions refers to the feathers directly on His body, and this truly indicates that the Holy One, blessed be He, has given the righteous authority over Him, for He decrees a decree and the righteous person nullifies it. These two extremes are mentioned here, and He omitted the middle position between these two extremes.

And if you want to interpret “He spreads His wings, takes him” — meaning “to Him” and not “upon Him,” here are hinted all three levels in their order. For initially, He hovers over His young — the young are below Him, blessed be He; this is when He called them “daughter.” Afterward, He spreads His wings, takes him to Him — similar to Him; this is when He called them “My sister.” And afterward, He carries him on His pinions — the young are above Him, blessed be He, as it were; this is when He called them “mother.” Just as these three levels are mentioned in the portion of Yitro, examine the entire matter there and you will find it well explained.

“The Lord alone did lead him, and there was no strange god with him.” In Tractate Berachot (6), they interpreted the verse You have declared the Lord today (Deuteronomy 27:17). You have made Me a unique treasure in the world, as it is said (Deuteronomy 6:4), Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One. And the Lord has declared you, etc. (Deuteronomy 27:18), to make you a unique treasure in the world, as it is said (1 Chronicles 17:21), And who is like Your people Israel, one nation in the earth. This is what is meant by The Lord alone did lead him — meaning that He made Israel a unique treasure in the world, for He led them alone, as it is written (Numbers 23:9), Lo, it is a people that shall dwell alone. And alone refers to Israel, whom He separated from the nations to be one people dedicated to Him, blessed be He. They alone are separate, not the other nations. But this is conditional on there was no strange god with him — with Israel — meaning that they would make Him, blessed be He, a unique treasure in the world. Then God has made the one as well as the other (Ecclesiastes 7:14).

“He will place him on the heights of the land, etc.” In the word “bamotei” [heights], there is an extra “vav” written, and the Ba’al HaTurim explained it as he explained. But I say that this extra “vav” is a hint to the six times the word “eretz” [land] is mentioned in Parashat Ekev (8:7–9) in praise of the Land of Israel. Therefore, it says “bamotei eretz” [heights of the land] as if saying “six lands,” and this is easy to understand. And afterward it says, He will let him suck honey from the rock. In the word “vayenikehu” [He will let him suck], the letter “yud” is missing. It seems to me that this hints that because He let them suck honey from the rock, Jeshurun grew fat and kicked and they forgot the Torah, which is summarized in the Ten Commandments. And this interpretation is more correct than what the Ba’al HaTurim explained. Similarly, in tzur yeladcha teshi [the Rock who bore you, you neglected], the “yud” is small, because by transgressing the Ten Commandments, they caused, as it were, a weakening of strength Above. And regarding the phrase yatzev gevulot amim [He set the boundaries of peoples], the Ba’al HaTurim explained that “gevulot” is written without a “vav” to suggest that the 12 constellations were set according to the number of the children of Israel. An explanation of his explanation: when you [spell out] “vav,” what is missing [in the writing of the letter] is “vav” as well; similarly, the constellations include six that serve during the revealed day and six that serve during the concealed night. And since “Israel has no [controlling] constellation” (Shabbat 156a), therefore “gevulot” is written without a “vav” to indicate that the constellations have no dominion over the 12 tribes, but only over the nations. That is why it says yatzev gevulot amim [He set the boundaries of peoples].

“I will see what their end will be, for they are a generation of reversals.” Israel is called by three names: Jacob, Israel, and Jeshurun, and the final letters of these names spell “lavan” [white], signifying that through Jacob’s merit, God will whiten [or cleanse] their sins. But they have reversed the word “lavan” to “naval” [scoundrel], as stated above a scoundrel nation without wisdom, as our Sages said (Sanhedrin 97a): “In the generation of the Messiah, everything will turn to heresy. What is the Biblical source? As it is said (Leviticus 13:13), It has all turned white; he is pure.” This means that the reversal of the word “lavan” [white] is “naval” [scoundrel]. Therefore, He says here, I will see what their end will be, because the end [final letters] of these three names are the letters that spell “lavan,” alluding to the whitening of their deeds. But they are “a generation of reversals” who have turned “lavan” into “naval,” as it says, a scoundrel nation without wisdom. And above, I explained the verse a scoundrel nation as referring to one who loves money and is stingy, and about him it is said (Jeremiah 17:11), He who acquires wealth unjustly… in the end he will be a scoundrel. This is what is meant here by I will see what their end will be.

And some evidence to support this connection, as the matter begins with naval [foolish/disgraceful] and ends with naval — it begins with it as it says vayenabel tzur yeshuato [he disgraced the Rock of his salvation], and ends with it as it says begoy naval ach’isem [with a foolish nation I will anger them]. This is what is meant by ki dor tahpuchot hemah [for they are a generation of reversals] who reverse lavan [white] to naval [foolish], and from this aspect they are banim lo emun bam [children with no faithfulness in them]. They provoked Me with a non-god, because they also reversed the word El [God] which in its reversal is lo [not], as they denied God and said lo hu [it is not He] (Jeremiah 5:12). They angered Me with their vanities, by reversing all words. And against these two reversals, I will provoke them with a non-people, telling them you are not My people (Hosea 2:1). With nothing they sinned and with nothing they will be punished; with naval they sinned and with naval they will be punished. This is what is meant by with a foolish nation I will anger them. Therefore it says, If they were wise, they would understand their end, which refers to lavan [whiteness] — that they should whiten their deeds through repentance, returning to God, of whom it is said His garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head like pure wool (Daniel 7:9). And then He would fulfill in them though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool (Isaiah 1:18).

“I said I would make an end of them, I would erase their memory from mankind.” “Af’eihem” [I would make an end of them] — Rashi explains: “I said I would make them ownerless like the corner [pe’ah].” But is only the corner [of the field] ownerless? Aren’t the gleanings, the forgotten sheaves, and the corner all ownerless? Why specifically mention the corner? It seems that he mentioned here the corner and the forgotten sheaves, because “Af’eihem” refers to the corner, and I would erase their memory from mankind refers to forgotten sheaves. For if He erases their memory so that no one remembers them, they become ownerless like the forgotten sheaves, where the owner has no share in the corner and the forgotten sheaves. Similarly, where it says For the Lord’s portion is His people, I will remove them from before Me because they will no longer be called by My name. However, he did not mention gleanings [leket] because the Sages said (Pe’ah 6:5): “Two [fallen stalks] constitute gleanings, three do not constitute gleanings.” And here, those who are scattered will be more than two, therefore they do not have the status of gleanings which are forbidden to their owners. Rather, the Holy One, blessed be He, will gather [lelaketam] them in the future, as it is said And you shall be gathered [teluktu] one by one (Isaiah 27:12).

And what it means by “you will be gathered” in the passive form implies through another, for they will be gathered by the King Messiah, and since two [grains] in one place constitute leket [the gleanings that must be left for the poor], therefore they will be gathered specifically by the King Messiah, about whom it is said poor and riding upon a donkey (Zechariah 9:9), and a poor person is permitted to take the gleanings of one by one, meaning two, which constitutes leket. Therefore it says and you will be gathered one by one, meaning two. But when the scattered ones are more than two in one place, then the Holy One, blessed be He, the Master of the entire world, will gather them Himself in His glory. This is what is meant by and his arm shall reap the ears of grain, and it shall be as one who gathers ears in the valley of Rephaim (Isaiah 17:5) — implying that the Holy One, blessed be He, will gather them with His arm, not through another, because it does not mention there “one by one,” implying that those being gathered are more than two in one place, and they will never leave the domain of the Master of the house. And this is a correct and precious allusion.

See now that I, I am He. The repetition of “I am” comes to exclude the view of those who say there are two [divine] authorities, one ruling over the good and one ruling over the bad. Similarly, Hannah said, Talk no more so exceeding proudly (First Samuel 2:3), meaning do not say there are two supreme powers, rather everything comes from one source: The Lord impoverishes and enriches, the Lord kills and gives life (First Samuel 2:6). For He, blessed be He, performs all opposites. Rabbi Moses of Coucy explained at the beginning of the positive commandments in the name of Rabbenu Saadia, to answer the heretics who say there are two authorities: If each is permitted to do whatever they want, and one wanted to keep a person alive while the other wanted to kill him, then that person would need to be simultaneously dead and alive, alive and dead in an instant, in the blink of an eye, etc. Therefore, it says here I, I am He who rules over both good and bad, and there is no god beside Me.The proof of this is I kill and I make alive, and no one can deliver from My hand. If there were another [deity] beside Me, He would be able to rescue from My hand, and [the person] would be simultaneously dead and alive, alive and dead in an instant. From this you will understand and comprehend that there is no god beside Me.

And our Sages of blessed memory (Pesachim 68a) learned from here about the resurrection of the dead [being sourced] from the Torah, as it says I kill and I make alive. One might think that death would be for one person and life for another person, therefore Scripture says I have wounded, and I will heal. Just as wounding and healing refer to the same person, so too death and life refer to the same person. And support for their interpretation is that death precedes life [in the verse], for every person lives before they die, but this is speaking about life that comes after death. A second proof is that it says I kill and I make alive, as the word I applies to both. But with I have wounded, He inserted I in the middle: I have wounded and I will heal, because with death and life there is room for error and to say death is for one person and life for another person. Therefore, He did not insert “I” in the middle so as not to separate between them. But with wounding and healing there is no room for error, because there is no healing without a wound, and certainly both refer to the same person.

He and Hoshea son of Nun. Since he was only called Joshua because of [the prayer] “May God save you from the counsel of the spies,” and as long as one of that generation was alive he was called by the name Joshua. But when that entire generation had ended, there was no longer a place for this prayer, and he reverted to calling him Hoshea.

On this very day. Since the day of death is called the setting of one’s sun, and when Moses died his eye had not dimmed, nor had his vigor fled [Deuteronomy 34:7], therefore it was as if he was still standing in the midst of his days, meaning on this very day - when the sun is at its full strength.