The Torah as a Witness

When Moshe completed writing the Torah down until the end, he told the Levites to take the Torah and place it next to* the Aron HaKodesh and that the Torah will serve as a witness.

*There are two opinions brought in Bava Basra (14b) as to what is meant by “next to” the Aron. According to one opinion, there was a board protruding from the Aron and this is where the Torah was placed. According to the second opinion, the Torah was placed inside of the Aron against the inside wall, next to the two tablets.

Moshe says this witness is necessary as he knows about the rebellious tendencies of the Israelites – they have rebelled against G-d while Moshe was alive so he knows they will continue to do so after he passes away.

Moshe asks for all of the tribe elders and officers to be brought to him so he can tell them all of this and that he will call upon heaven and earth as a witness.

Usually trumpets would be blown for such an assembly however Moshe was the one who made the trumpets and he did not give Yehoshua the authority to use them while Moshe was alive, and G-d hid them on that day as it was the day before Moshe was to pass away, fulfilling what is stated in Eicha 8:8, that “there is no ruling on the day of death”.

Earlier (see yesterday’s portion), G-d had told the Israelites that he would call upon the heavens and the earth to bear witness to this song. Now G-d calls out to the heavens and earth for this purpose.

Moshe says that he knows that after he passes away*, the Israelites will go against the ways he had commanded them, resulting in bad things happening to them because their actions will provoke G-d’s anger.

*In fact, the Jews did not rebel during the times of Yehoshua after Moshe had passed away. It was only after Yehoshua passed away that they began rebelling. Thus when Moshe spoke about his own passing, he really meant the passing of Yehoshua, teaching us that one’s student is as dear to him as his own self.

Moshe then proceeded to recite the song to the entire congregation of Israel (see next week’s parsha).

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