V-1 Devarim: Final Words of Moses

Aliyot:
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1. Dt 1:1-11
2. Dt 1:12-21
3. Dt 1:22-38
4. Dt 39:-2:1
5. Dt 2:2-30
6. Dt 2:31-3:14
7. Dt 3:15-22

OVERVIEW:
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Devarim opens the last book of the Torah with "these are the words that Moses spoke..." In the other four books of the Torah, the Israelites are instructed by the words of God through Moses's mouth; but in Devarim, Moses addresses the community of Israel directly. Deuteronomy is a Mosaic repetition of the laws given in Exodus 19-23. Deuteronomy is is associated with the "lost scroll" that was publicly presented with the recostruction of the Temple after the Exile (2 Kings 22:8) and the reforms of Josiah (ca 622) who restricted sacrifice to Jerusalem and removed foreign cult elements from the worship. There is debate regarding the age of the scroll's origin. Devarim opens at the eve of Moses's death and contains a long narrative broken up into speeches covering the nation's history, travels, laws and the importance of loyalty to God. Moses opens his valedictory address with a rebuke regarding the past transgressions of Israel, recalling the disastrous mission of the spies, blaming the children of Israel for his inbility to enter the Promised Land and his death on the plains of Moab.

IN FOCUS
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"These are the words that Moses addressed to all Israel..."
Dt 1:1

"Then all of you came to me and said, "Let us send men..."
Dt 1: 22

Because of you the Lord was incensed with me too, and He said: You shall not enter it either."
Dt 1:37

"But Moses said to the Lord, "Please O Lord, I have never been a man of words, either in times past or now that you have spoken to Your servant; I am slow of speech and slow of tongue."
II-1 Shemot Ex 4:10-11

WORDS OF MOSES
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Moses gives his valedictorian speech shortly before his death on the plains of Moab. His rebuke fall upon the younger generation, reminding them of the disastrous results of sending the spies into Canaan. There is a subtle shift between the account in Numbers 13-14 and Deuteronomy 1. In Shelach Lecha, the proposition is man-initiated, but God-approved, whereas in Deuteroomy, Moses shifts the blame of his death in wilderness onto the Children of Israel with the spy mission resulting from peer-pressure, stepping aside from his personal involvement in the disaster.

Commentaries note a radical shift between the first four books and the last. Previously, the tribes of Israel followed the divine will of God, revealed by the movements of the Pillar of Fire and the Cloud by day. In Shelach, the Israelites demand control of their destination. God replies, "send for yourself men..." In Deuteronomy, Moses accuses the community of concocting the plan of spies and pressuring him for concession. He found it a good idea, but bringing bad results, inciting rebellion and God's anger. Consequently, the orginal generation from Egypt all died in the wilderness, including Miriam and Aaron (IV-6 Chukat). Moses, the last of his generation, rebukes those who cannot remember the Exodus from Egypt or the giving of Torah at Mt Sinai. The story of the Golden Calf is just that: a story.