Deuteronomy 1:1-3:22
This week we begin the book of Deuteronomy, which is sometimes called the Mishneh Torah, or repetition of the Torah, as described by Moses. Instead of Cliff's notes, Deuteronomy is Moses' Notes of the Torah. We are at the Jordan, across from Jericho. Deuteronomy is also Moses' last address before his death. In this week's portion, Moses summarizes the journey from Egypt to this point.
Deuteronomy 1:1 reads:
These are the words which Moses spoke to all Israel in Transjordan into the wilderness in the Arabah, opposite the (sea of) reeds between Paran and Tophel and Laban and Hatzrot and Di Zahav.
This is very different than the beginning of the last two books of Torah. Leviticus begins:
And the Lord called to Moses, and spoke to him out of the Tent of Meeting, saying,(Leviticus 1:1)
And in Numbers begins
And the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they came out from the land of Egypt, saying, (Numbers 1:1)
Since the burning bush, God has been speaking to Moses, but in Deuteronomy we begin with Moses’ words, and that is to the congregation of Israel. This is significant because one book of Torah was not given by God to Moses, but Moses actually wrote it. This is the first human written book of Torah. As long ago as the 2nd century CE rabbis, there was a strong belief in this idea. In Talmud tractate Baba Batra, we read:
Who wrote the Scriptures? — Moses wrote his own book and the portion of Balaam and Job. Joshua wrote the book which bears his name and [the last] eight verses of the Pentateuch. [B. Baba Batra 14b]
Thus the rabbis tell us that with the exception of the death of Moses, which Joshua wrote down, Moses wrote Deuteronomy. A folio later we read.
The Master has said: Joshua wrote the book which bears his name and the last eight verses of the Pentateuch. This statement is in agreement with the authority who says that eight verses in the Torah were written by Joshua, as it has been taught: [It is written], So Moses the servant of the Lord died there.9 Now is it possible that Moses being dead could have written the words, ‘Moses died there’? The truth is, however, that up to this point Moses wrote, from this point Joshua wrote. This is the opinion of R. Judah, or, according to others, of R. Nehemiah. [B. Baba Batra 15a]
There is, of course a dissenting opinion. R. Simeon claims Moses wrote of his own death just minutes before it happened, shedding tears as he wrote [B. Baba Batra 15a]. Yet there is a long tradition that Deuteronomy was the first human written book of Tanach. For the most part Deuteronomy or its nickname the Mishneh Torah is a summary of the law that the Israelites are to follow in their new land. It is such a good summary that Moses Maimonides called his own compilation and codification of Jewish Law the Mishneh Torah, quipping “from Moses to Moses.” The core of the book is law and the consequences for breaking the law. Yet then, why is this first section so full of history, a lot of it happening within the last few months of the journey?
Deuteronomy 1:1- through 2:14 recounts the events in Numbers 11-14 after leaving Sinai, forty years ago. The complaining about the lack of food and the episode of the spies are recounted, including the forty years of wandering. Yet, in Deuteronomy 2:24 - 3:22 Moses recounts the defeat of Sihon and Og, which as verse 1:1 tells us, just happened. Everybody listening to this speech not only knows this, but experienced it. Why then is it necessary?
One answer came out of my adventures in the last few weeks. I’ve been working on how people are convinced to do things, both personally and in groups. Last week, I took the lecture part of my Graduate class in Modern Jewish thought and history. Since events in late May, I had been bothered by a question that has become my research topic for the final exam in that class. How does a false messiah like Sabbatai Sevi or a Tzaddik like the Baal Shem Tov get followers so rapidly and so devoted? While it is a gross oversimplification, the Baal Shem Tov’s Hasidic movement spread like wildfire over an emotionally depressed Eastern Europe Jewry based on the mere idea of “don’t worry be happy.” Yet say that to a bunch of depressed people and they are not likely to believe you. What did the Hasidim do to inspire the masses?
Moses and some psychological theory might provide part of the answer. There is a concept among social psychologists that people need consistency. If someone does something they will be committed to do it not just that time but again. They might even do more the second time than the first, just to do the thing they wanted to. For one example, a sales man can bait and switch using this idea. When A customer comes in to buy an Air conditioner advertised for a low price, the sales man can tell the prospective customer they are out of that air conditioner and then try to sell a more expensive product of the same type to the customer. The customer, already deciding that they wanted an air conditioner buys the more expensive one. It is not a rational thought, but it happens all the time. Wi-fi hotspots work the same way. Whether free or subscription wi-fi, consistency has us buy the product of the store in order to use the internet in the store. I’ll buy coffee in Starbucks, even though I don’t have to, just to check my e-mail.
Moses may actually be doing the same thing, but with two more constructive goals in mind. In Deuteronomy 1:38 we read:
38. But Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall go in there; encourage him; for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.
And in Deuteronomy 3:21-22
21. And I commanded Joshua at that time, saying, Your eyes have seen all that the Lord your God has done to these two kings; so shall the Lord do to all the kingdoms which you pass. 22. You shall not fear them; for the Lord your God shall fight for you.
Joshua is to be the leader after Moses’ impending death. Moses is bulking up the idea of Joshua as leader using his own authority as a leader. But just an endorsement is not enough. Moses takes victories fresh in the minds of the congregation for them to believe in their victory against the yet to be conquered Canaanite peoples. Victories against Sihon and Og translate to continued victories against everyone else, no matter how big or powerful they are. And the leader for that job is of course Joshua who had been consistently winning in combat sine the Amalekites forty years earlier. Moses uses the stories of the spies to remind everyone that their ancestors died for not believing they could take the land and only Joshua and Caleb believed otherwise and thrived. But this generation is stronger and can do the job when led by the man who believed. But Joshua is not the only leader of import. Even more important of a leader than Joshua is the very last line of the portion: “the Lord your God will fight for you.”
Deuteronomy’s summary of laws pivots on this. The consistent victories happen because of the following of the mitzvot. Joshua’s combat record throughout Tanach is often linked to his belief in God. As the rules are told to the people again in the next couple of weeks, two positions come clear: If you do the laws then victory and prosperity will be yours. If you do not you will be defeated and stricken with poverty. Even the history before crossing the Jordan bears this out, according to Moses. Remain consistent with the mitzvot; God will remain consistent with you.
This simplistic view of following the mitzvot is of course difficult to swallow millennia later. 9/11 Katrina, and the Shoah make it hard to believe, as much as fundamentalists of many faiths would demand us to do so. Yet as part of a motivational speech, one devoted to creating a consistent message to a bunch of people who might be very afraid of the unknown leader and land they are about to cross into, it is very comforting and motivating. History was used to provide a consistency issue that says the land can be taken, if the people don’t make the mistakes of the past. Moses was not really recounting history but setting up the argument about following God, both before and after the land is conquered. Moses would not be there to see his task completed but after 40 years of vexing work, he wanted the task he started at the burning bush to continue. Moses in his use of consistency to motivate the troops to remain with God and obey the mitzvot provides me with an important clue as to how leaders motivate people through the consistency of history.
Watching the lines four weeks ago weave into a small stone building in downtown San Antonio Texas I can remember that we all have used this. On my trip to Hawaii I too remember how much we still use it today. Both the Alamo and the U.S.S. Arizona show us how we still use this today. With the 9th of Av approaching, I really wonder about that.
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