Sifrei Devarim Paragraph 97
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(דברים יד ב) כִּי עַם קָדוֹשׁ אַתָּה לַה׳ אֱלֹהֶיךָ, קַדֵּשׁ אֶת עַצְמְךָ. כִּי עַם קָדוֹשׁ אַתָּה לַה׳ אֱלֹהֶיךָ – קְדֻשָּׁה שֶׁהִיא עָלֶיךָ, הִיא גָּרְמָה לָךְ.
Pisqa’ 97²¹⁴
- “For you are a people consecrated (qadosh) to HASHEM your God” (Dt. 14:2)— [therefore,] consecrate (qadesh) yourself. “For you are a people consecrated” (Dt. 14:2)— the holiness (qedushah) upon you has caused [your consecration].
footnotes: ²¹⁴ H:145; JN1:255.
דָּבָר אַחֵר: לֹא תִגְרֹם לְעַם אַחֵר לִהְיוֹת קָדוֹשׁ כַּיּוֹצֵא בְּךָ.
Another word: [For you are a people consecrated” (Dt. 14:2)—] do not cause another people to be consecrated like yourself!
וּבְךָ בָּחַר ה׳, (תהלים קלה ד) ״כִּי יַעֲקֹב בָּחַר לוֹ יָהּ״. לִהְיוֹת לוֹ לְעַם סְגֻלָּה – (תהלים קלה ד) ״יִשְׂרָאֵל לִסְגֻלָּתוֹ״.
“And HASHEM has chosen you” (Dt. 14:2), [as He says:] “For Jacob was chosen by HASHEM” (Ps. 135:4)— to be His cherished people, [as He says:] “Israel, as His cherished people” (Ps. 135:4).²¹⁵
footnotes: ²¹⁵ F:158, n. 14 consider this material a marginal insertion.
וּבְךָ בָּחַר ה׳ אֱלֹהֶיךָ לִהְיוֹת לוֹ לְעַם סְגֻלָּה מִכֹּל הָעַמִּים, מְלַמֵּד שֶׁכָּל אֶחָד וְאֶחָד חָבִיב לִפְנֵי הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא מִכָּל אֻמּוֹת הָעוֹלָם.
“And HASHEM has chosen you to be His cherished people from among all the peoples” (Dt. 14:2) this you [in the singular (bekhah)] teaches that each and every [Israelite] is more beloved before the Holy One, than all the nations of the world.
יָכוֹל אַף מֵאָבוֹת הָרִאשׁוֹנִים? תַּלְמוּד לוֹמַר: מִכֹּל הָעַמִּים אֲשֶׁר עַל פְּנֵי הָאֲדָמָה, אֱמֹר מֵעַתָּה: מִשֶּׁלְּפָנָיו וּמִשֶּׁלְּאַחֲרָיו, וְלֹא מֵאָבוֹת הָרִאשׁוֹנִים!
Is it possible to say that [each Israelite] is even more [beloved] than the founding Patriarchs [of Israel]? The Teaching states: “From among all the peoples who inhabit the earth” (Dt. 14:2)— from this verse, you may conclude that [Israel is] most [beloved] among all its predecessors and most [beloved] among all its successors, but not more than the founding Patriarchs!