Commentary on Parashat Nitzavim, Deuteronomy 29:9 - 30:20
Questions
1. In Nitzavim, whom did Moses call together to enter the covenant with God?
2. What was the purpose of this covenant?
3. Were only those who heard God’s word to be included in the covenant?
4. What would happen if the people refused to follow God’s commandments?
5. Was there any hope for those who disobey God?
6. Moses said that God’s laws were not too hard for the people nor too far away. Where were they?
Answers
1. Moses called together all of the people; no one was excluded. (29:9-11)
2. The covenant was to signify that God would be the God of the Israelites, as he promised Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. (29:12)
3. The covenant included those standing there that day and also those who were not there; i.e., the descendants of those who were there. (29:14)
4. God states that He will throw people out of the Land if they do not follow the commandments, and will blot out their names from under heaven. The curses written in the Torah will fall upon them. (29:19)
5. Yes; if later they chose to follow God’s commandments, they could be redeemed. (30:9)
6. Moses says: “The thing is very close to you, in your mouth and in your heart, to observe it.” (30:14)
Provided by the Pardes Institute for Jewish Studies.
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Torah
Pronunced: TORE-uh, Origin: Hebrew, the Five Books of Moses.
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