KI TAVO, DEVARIM 26:1-29:8
Parshat Ki Tavo, at 26:1 -
Ki Tavo26:1-2 -
וְהָיָה֙ כִּֽי־תָב֣וֹא אֶל־הָאָ֔רֶץ אֲשֶׁר֙ יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ נֹתֵ֥ן לְךָ֖ נַֽחֲלָ֑ה וִֽירִשְׁתָּ֖הּ וְיָשַׁ֥בְתָּ בָּֽהּ
“And it will be, when you come into the land which the Lord, your God, gives you for an inheritance, and you possess it and settle in it,
וְלָֽקַחְתָּ֞ מֵֽרֵאשִׁ֣ית | כָּל־פְּרִ֣י הָֽאֲדָמָ֗ה אֲשֶׁ֨ר תָּבִ֧יא מֵֽאַרְצְךָ֛ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יְהֹוָ֧ה אֱלֹהֶ֛יךָ נֹתֵ֥ן לָ֖ךְ וְשַׂמְתָּ֣ בַטֶּ֑נֶא וְהָֽלַכְתָּ֙ אֶל־הַמָּק֔וֹם אֲשֶׁ֤ר יִבְחַר֙ יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ לְשַׁכֵּ֥ן שְׁמ֖וֹ שָֽׁם
that you shall take of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you will bring from your land, which the Lord, your God, is giving you. And you shall put [them] into a basket and go to the place which the Lord, your God, will choose to have His Name dwell there”.
The Mishnah Bikkurim asks another question (1:3): What are the specific “fruits” that fall into the category of fruits of the ground?
One only brings Bikkurim from the seven species; special to the Land of Israel,
These are the seven fruits or species for which Israel was renowned, namely wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, oil olives and date-honey (Devarim 8:8). And they must be of high quality.
Raisins can substitute for grapes, but wine may not.
Any thoughts, why?
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At 26:5, there are two accepted translations regarding the אֲרַמִּי "Aramean" in the verse below:
וְעָנִיתָ וְאָמַרְתָּ לִפְנֵי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ, אֲרַמִּי אֹבֵד אָבִי, וַיֵּרֶד מִצְרַיְמָה, וַיָּגָר שָׁם בִּמְתֵי מְעָט; וַיְהִי-שָׁם, לְגוֹי גָּדוֹל עָצוּם וָרָב
1. "And you shall call out and say before the Lord, your God, "An Aramean [sought to] destroy my forefather, and he went down to Egypt and sojourned there with a small number of people, and there, he became a great, mighty, and numerous nation".
This is the translation-interpretation found in the Passover Hagaddah. Jacob's father in law, Lavan, is the villain seeking to destroy the Jews.
2. "And thou shalt speak and say before the LORD thy God: 'A wandering Aramean was my father, and he went down into Egypt, and sojourned there, few in number; and he became there a nation, great, mighty, and populous".
In this instance the Aramean is Jacob himself, depicted as a wanderer, perhaps a person lost.
Whichever translation-interpretation you choose will turn on the translation of the verb אֹבֵד, which commonly means "lost" or "wandering", but in a stretch could mean "perish".
Pays your money and takes your choice.
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At 26:11 - Then, you shall rejoice with all the good that the Lord, your God, has granted you and your household you,
וְשָׂמַחְתָּ בְכָל-הַטּוֹב, אֲשֶׁר נָתַן-לְךָ יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ--וּלְבֵיתֶךָ:
From here, [our Rabbis] said that the first fruits declaration is recited only at the time of “rejoicing,” namely, from Shavuoth until Sukkoth, for [then] a person gathers in his grain, fruit, wine and oil [over which he rejoices]. However, from Sukkoth and onwards, he must bring [his first fruits to the Temple], but he does not recite the declaration. - [Pes. 36b]
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Rabbi Riskin speaks about the Parsha, quoting 26:13 as it applies to Bikkurim:
"Then you shall say before the Lord, your God, "I have removed the holy from the house, and I have also given it to the Levite, the stranger, the orphan, and the widow, according to all Your commandment that You commanded me; I have not transgressed Your commandments, nor have I forgotten".
Rabbi Riskin asks us to focus on "nor have I forgotten".
He takes us back to the Commandment not to forget Amalek, to destroy Amalek, the Amalek with out and the Amalek within.
Watch the video. There is much to learn.
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In Ki Tavo a farmer who owns his land brings ripened first fruits, including olives from the seven species to the Kohen.
He makes a two-part declaration, the first part of which is in Hebrew. Since some of the farmers were Hebrew-language challenged (Is there anyone out there who can relate?), the Chazal had a Hebrew speaker make the declaration so that the farmer would not be embarrassed.
The rationale being that if the farmer was to be embarrassed he may be hesitant to bring the first fruits. This custom is employed today when a person is called up to the Torah, again not to cause embarrassment.
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At 26:17-19 we learn that we have entered into a contract with Hashem: We have chosen Him as our God. In turn He has chosen us as His לְעַ֣ם סְגֻלָּ֔ה, “treasured nation”.
And if you have any doubts what this means:
וּלְתִתְּךָ֣ עֶלְי֗וֹן עַ֤ל כָּל־הַגּוֹיִם֙
“to establish you above all the peoples.”
It may seem hardly politically correct, perhaps even racist.
And whatever you may think, it is an enormous burden.
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In the Parshah at 27:9 Moshe and the Priests say to us:
וַיְדַבֵּר מֹשֶׁה וְהַכֹּהֲנִים הַלְוִיִּם, אֶל כָּל-יִשְׂרָאֵל לֵאמֹר: הַסְכֵּת וּשְׁמַע, יִשְׂרָאֵל, הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה נִהְיֵיתָ לְעָם, לַיהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ
"And Moses and the Priests the Levites spoke to all Israel, saying: 'Silence! Hear, O Israel; today you have become a people for the LORD your God."
I am curious about the word "הַסְכֵּת" , translated here as "Silence!". It occurs nowhere else in the entire Torah.
We receive a blessing at 28:4
בָּר֧וּךְ פְּרִֽי־בִטְנְךָ֛ וּפְרִ֥י אַדְמָֽתְךָ֖ וּפְרִ֣י בְהֶמְתֶּ֑ךָ שְׁגַ֥ר אֲלָפֶ֖יךָ וְעַשְׁתְּר֥וֹת צֹאנֶֽךָ-
"Blessed will be the fruit of your womb, the fruit of your soil, the fruit of your livestock, the offspring of your cattle, and the flocks of your sheep".
A similar blessing was received at 7:13 -
"And He will love you and bless you and multiply you; He will bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your soil, your grain, your wine, and your oil, the offspring of your cattle and the choicest of your flocks, in the land which He swore to your forefathers to give you".
Focus on עשתרות, עַשְׁתְּרֹ֣ת:
Devarim 7:13 – וְעַשְׁתְּרֹ֣ת צֹאנֶ֔ךָ - He will bless “the choice of your flocks”
From Rashi: Because they enrich (מַעֲשִׁירוֹת) their owners (Chul. 84b).
This word to enrich is too much like Astarte, goddess of the flocks.
Astarte is the Greek form of the name Ashtart, who, along with Asherah and Anath, was one of the three great goddesses of the Canaanite pantheon. Astarte is well known as a goddess of sexual love and fertility but also has associations with war.
I'm guessing that in any blessing there may be hidden some danger to be made aware of.
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בָּר֥וּךְ אַתָּ֖ה בְּבֹאֶ֑ךָ וּבָר֥וּךְ אַתָּ֖ה בְּצֵאתֶֽךָ
At 28:12 – “The Lord will open up for you His good treasury, the heaven, to give your land its rain in its [right] time,”
יִפְתַּח יְהוָה לְךָ אֶת-אוֹצָרוֹ הַטּוֹב אֶת-הַשָּׁמַיִם, לָתֵת מְטַר-אַרְצְךָ בְּעִתּוֹ,
In the Talmud, Ta’anith טעa - . The fact that this verse is written in the second person singular demonstrates that rain can fall even for the sake of an individual.
This is an adaptation of Rav Kook’s take on the Bikkurim:
The Mishnah in describing the Bikkurim offerings speaks of two groups of people: those who lived near to Jerusalem and could bring fresh fruits; and those who lived further away and had to be content with bringing an offering of dried fruit that could withstand the long journey. These two situations correspond to two spiritual paths the Jewish people have taken throughout history: the path of Prophecy and the path of Torah, each with its own advantages and benefits.
The path of Prophecy deals with Divine wisdom and lofty matters. It is closely connected to meditative prayer and the Torah’s mystical teachings.
The path of Torah concerns the development of the Oral Law, applying Halachah to all aspects of life. The fruit of these legalistic efforts may seem dry and uninspiring.
When we lived in the Land of Israel and the Shechinah dwelled in our midst, our spiritual world centered primarily on prophetic enlightenment. When we were banished from the Land it became necessary to take the second path - a path capable of retaining our special character, despite exile and dispersion.
This is the path of Torah,
Now we are back in our land, close to God’s Presence; it is not unreasonable to expect the gift of prophecy to return once more.
However we still must rely on the gift of Torah, which may appear dry, but has retained its flavor despite the long journey.
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The Haftarah portion for Parshah Ki Tavo emphasizes the concept of a "chosen people". It is taken from the Prophet Isaiah, 60:1-22. It is one of the seven weekly consolation messages that we receive prior to Rosh Hashannah. And it is indeed beautiful. Consider verses 1 and 3:
קוּמִי אוֹרִי, כִּי בָא אוֹרֵךְ; וּכְבוֹד יְהוָה, עָלַיִךְ זָרָח
“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has shone upon you”.
וְהָלְכוּ גוֹיִם, לְאוֹרֵךְ; וּמְלָכִים, לְנֹגַהּ זַרְחֵךְ
“And nations shall walk by your light and kings by the brilliance of your shine”.
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Continuing with the Haftorah portion for Parshat KI TAVO, at 60:10 it reads:
“And foreigners shall build your walls, and their kings shall serve you, for in My wrath I struck you, and in My grace have I had mercy on you.”
וּבָנוּ בְנֵי-נֵכָר חֹמֹתַיִךְ, וּמַלְכֵיהֶם יְשָׁרְתוּנֶךְ: כִּי בְקִצְפִּי הִכִּיתִיךְ, וּבִרְצוֹנִי רִחַמְתִּיךְ
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