AND MOSES AND THE ELDERS OF ISRAEL COMMANDED THE PEOPLE, SAYING: KEEP ALL THE COMMANDMENT etc. The meaning thereof is that after Moses completed his words [to the people,] he ordered the elders also to join him and warn the people to keep all the commandments, for every nation follows the advice of its elders. It states which ‘I’ command you this day, not “we,” for the principal speech was that of Moses, while the elders merely proclaimed, saying to the people, “Hear, hearken, and observe.” Similarly, And Moses and the priests, the Levites spoke unto all Israel, etc.⁵⁵ means that the priests said to the people, Keep silence, and hear, O Israel,⁵⁵ and Moses said, This day thou art become a people.⁵⁵ But Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra commented that the expression keep all the commandment⁵⁶ refers to the commandment about the stones which he will mention further on.⁵⁷ But this is not correct [since the verse states keep ‘all’ the commandment, it must refer to the commandments in general and not to one commandment in particular].

footnotes: ⁵⁵ Further, Verse 9. ⁵⁵ Further, Verse 9. ⁵⁵ Further, Verse 9. ⁵⁶ In Verse 1 before us. ⁵⁷ Verses 2-8.

AND THOU SHALT WRITE UPON THEM ALL THE WORDS OF THIS LAW. Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra wrote in the name of the Gaon⁵⁸ that “they wrote upon the stones a list of the commandments like those written down in the ‘Hilchoth Gedoloth,’⁵⁹ contained in the Torah. The listing is in the preface to his work “Hilchoth Gedoloth”. His concept was utilized by the Paitanim, the writers of liturgical poetry who wrote various Azharoth (Exhortations), liturgical poems containing the Divine Commandments. — It should be noted that while the “Hilchoth Gedoloth” contains the first historical record in our possession of an attempt at enumerating the individual commandments, there is no doubt that the author drew upon older sources of such lists, and as Rabbeinu Saadia Gaon writes here, such “a list of the commandments” was written upon the stones by Moses. in the form of Azharoth (‘Exhortations’ of the liturgical poets). And the meaning of the expression ‘ba’eir heiteiv’ (very plainly)⁶⁰ refers to the writing” [i.e., that it be in legible script, but it does not mean “well explained,” since only a brief list of the commandments rather than a detailed rendering was inscribed upon the stones]. And our Rabbis have said⁶¹ [that ‘ba’eir heiteiv’⁶⁰ means] in the seventy languages [of the peoples of the world]. Now, we find in the Book of Tagin (crownlets)⁶² that the entire Torah was written on them [i.e., the stones] — from the beginning of Bereshith to in the sight of all Israel⁶³ — with its crownlets and its flourishes, and from there all the crownlets in the entire Torah were copied. It is likely that either these stones were huge, or it was a miraculous event [for, otherwise, it would have been impossible to inscribe so much on a few stone tablets].

footnotes: ⁵⁸ Rav Saadia Gaon. See Vol., II p. 99, Note 230. ⁵⁹ Rabbi Shimon Kairo of the Gaonic period, who flourished in the second half of the eighth century Common Era, was the first to enumerate the Taryag Mitzvoth ⁶⁰ Verse 8. ⁶¹ Sotah 32a. ⁶⁰ Verse 8. ⁶² See Vol. I, p. 11. ⁶³ Further, 34:12.

SO THAT THOU MAYEST GO IN UNTO THE LAND. Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra commented that it means “that G-d will help you [to come into the Land] if you begin keeping His commandments, for this was the first commandment [that they were to observe] upon coming into the Land.” In my opinion the expression so that thou mayest go in unto the Land alludes to all the words of the Torah, the verse stating that you are to write upon the stones all the words of this Law when thou art passed over the Jordan immediately so that thou mayest go into the Land, for it was for the sake of the Torah that you will have come there. Similarly, so that thy manservant and thy maidservant may rest as well as thou. And thou shalt remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt⁶⁴ which means: “let your manservant and your maidservant rest like you so that you shall remember that you were servants in the land of Egypt.”⁶⁵ (so that …) as the effect of an event although the intent thereof is really for the cause of the event. Thus in the verse before us the order of the words is: And thou shalt write upon them … ‘so that thou mayest’ go in unto the Land. From this it would appear that the cause is the writing upon the stones, and the effect is the coming into the Land. Ramban points out that the real thought of the verse is: you are coming into the Land so that you may write G-d’s Torah upon the stones. Thus the cause is the coming into the Land and the effect is the writing upon the stones. The word ‘l’ma’an’ (so that) although written with reference to the coming into the Land refers to the writing upon the stones. A similar case is the verse referring to the Sabbath where the word ‘l’ma’an’ (so that) appears with the cause [so that your servants may rest] but should be interpreted with the effect, the remembering of your being a servant. Therefore, the sense of the text is, let your servants rest so that you will remember that you too, were servants in the land of Egypt. Or it may be that the meaning of the verse is as follows: “you shall write upon the stones all the words of this Law to serve you as a remembrance so that you may come into the Land and conquer it and drive out all these peoples, [a conquest that will be yours only] when you will remember the Torah and keep all its commandments.”

footnotes: ⁶⁴ Above, 5:14-15. ⁶⁵ The thought conveyed is as follows: Scripture usually writes the phrase ‘l’ma’an’

BECAUSE HE HATH UNCOVERED HIS FATHER’S SKIRT. This is a respectful euphemism for the father, for in the Torah He mentioned, he hath uncovered his father’s nakedness.⁶⁶ So also He mentioned the term “their nakedness” in the cases of his brother’s wife⁶⁷, Verse 21. and his uncle’s wife⁶⁸, Verse 20. for there the transgressors are liable to severe punishment, death [by the court, if there were witnesses] or extinction [if there were no witnesses] and Scripture thus needed to condemn the evil they had done; therefore it mentioned “nakedness” concerning them. But here the transgressor being “cursed,” it was sufficient to mention because he hath uncovered his father’s skirt, for he is deserving of an imprecation merely for uncovering his father’s skirt, for it disgraces his honor, and anyone who dishonors his father, is cursed.⁶⁹ Similarly, A man shall not take his father’s wife, and shall not uncover his father’s skirt⁷⁰ is a respectful euphemism meaning that he should not approach her, for it is not proper to uncover the skirt which he spread over a wife by means of a canopy, similar to what is stated, spread therefore thy skirt over thy handmaid.⁷¹ This excludes the interpretation of him who says⁷² — above 23:1] as referring to a woman violated by his father. To this Ramban objects, for this opinion coincides with that of Rabbi Akiba, while the majority of the Sages hold that a man may marry such a woman (Yebamoth 49a). that this verse [A man shall not take his father’s wife] includes a woman that was violated by him.

footnotes: ⁶⁶ Leviticus 20:11. ⁶⁷ Ibid. ⁶⁸ Ibid. ⁶⁹ Verse 16. ⁷⁰ Above, 23:1. ⁷¹ Ruth 3:9. ⁷² The reference is to Ibn Ezra who interpreted the verse [A man shall not take his father’s wife

CURSED BE HE THAT CONFIRMETH NOT THE WORDS OF THIS LAW. “Here [in these words] he included the entire Torah and they took it upon themselves with an imprecation and an oath [to observe all the commandments thereof].” This is Rashi’s language. In my opinion this “acceptance” requires that one avow the commandments in his heart and consider them as the truth, believe that he who observes them will be requited with the best of rewards and he who transgresses them will be punished, and if someone denies any of them, or considers it annulled forever he will be cursed. However, if one transgressed any commandment, such as eating swine or some abominable thing because of his desire, or he did not make a Booth or take the palm-branch [on the Festival of Tabernacles] because of laziness, he is not included within this ban, for Scripture did not say “who does not perform the words of this Law” but it states that ‘confirmeth’ not the words of this Law to do them, similar to the expression the Jews ordained, and took upon them [and upon their seed … so as it should not fail, that they would keep these two days — of Purim — according to the writing thereof].⁷³ Thus the verse [before us] is the ban on those who rebel [against the authority of the Torah] and who deny [its validity]. Now, I have seen the following text in Yerushalmi Sotah:⁷⁴ “Asher lo yakim [literally: ‘that does not stand up’ — the words of this Law]. But is there ‘a falling Law?’ Rabbi Shimon ben Yakim says, This refers to the officer [of the Synagogue, as explained further on]. Rabbi Shimon ben Chalafta says, This is the court on earth, because Rav⁷⁵ Yehudah and Rav Hunah in the name of Shmuel said: Due to this verse [asher lo yakim (that confirmeth not)] King Josiah rent his clothes,⁷⁶ (ibid). The question now arises as to which particular verse affected the king to rend his clothes? Rav Hunah in the name of Shmuel said that it was the verse before us, asher lo yakim — ‘that confirmeth not’ the words of this Law, and since he was king, he felt it his responsibility to re-institute the authority of the Law. saying, ‘The duty is upon me to stand up [the Law].’ Rabbi Asi in the name of Rabbi Tanchum the son of Chiya said, [Even if a person] learned and taught [Torah], observed and fulfilled [its commandments], but had the means to enable [others to study the Torah] and did not do so — he is included within the curse” [mentioned in the verse before us]. Thus the Rabbis [in the above Yerushalmi] interpretated this “standing up” [of the Torah] as referring to the royal house and that of the Nasi [the Prince of the Sanhedrin] who have the power to uphold [the authority of] the Torah over those who annul it. And even if he was a perfectly righteous man in his own deeds, but he could have strengthened the Torah against the power of the wicked ones who annul it [but failed to do so], he is accursed. This is close to the subject that we have explained. And by way of a homily the Rabbis [in the above Yerushalmi] said: “This refers to the sexton of the Synagogue who does not stand up the Scroll of the Law to set it up properly so that it should not fall.”⁷⁷ It appears to me that it [the Yerushalmi] refers to the sexton who does not stand up the Scroll of the Law before the public to show the face of its writing to all people as it is explained in Tractate Sofrim⁷⁸ that “they lift the Torah high and show the face of its writing to the people who stand there to the right and left thereof and turns it frontwise and backwards, for it is incumbent upon all men and women to see the written words and bend the knee and say And this is the Law which Moses set before the children of Israel,”⁷⁹ and such is the custom.

footnotes: ⁷³ Esther 9:27. ⁷⁴ Yerushalmi Sotah VII, 4. ⁷⁵ The title “Rav” (Rabbi) indicates that that particular Sage lived in Babylon, where there was no ordination of the traditional nature. “Rabbi” indicates that the Sage lived in the Land of Israel where such ordination was conferred. On “ordination” see Vol. II, p. 339, Note 20. ⁷⁶ II Kings 22:11. The event is narrated that Josiah was brought back to the true faith by the discovery of a copy of the Torah found in the Sanctuary, which escaped the attempts of his predecessors to eradicate the true faith from their kingdom. And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the Book of the Law, that he rent his clothes ⁷⁷ This obviously refers to the custom of reading from the Torah with the Scroll of the Law in an erect position. This is the custom still followed in Sephardic Synagogues. In Ashkenazic Synagogues the reading from the Torah is done while the sacred Scroll of the Law lies flat on the Reading table. ⁷⁸ “Scribes.” Laws of writing and reading the Torah are found in this tractate. The text referred to is found in 14:14. ⁷⁹ Above, 4:44.