Book of Common Prayer

א (Alef)

ב (Bet)

ג (Gimel)

Parashah 44: D’varim (Words) 1:1–3:22

1 These are the words Moshe spoke to all Isra’el on the far side of the Yarden River, in the desert, in the ‘Aravah, across from Suf, between Pa’ran and Tofel, Lavan, Hatzerot and Di-Zahav. ² It is eleven days’ journey from Horev to Kadesh-Barnea by way of Mount Se‘ir.

³ On the first day of the eleventh month of the fortieth year, Moshe spoke to the people of Isra’el, reviewing everything Adonai had ordered him to tell them. ⁴ This was after he had defeated Sichon, king of the Emori, who lived in Heshbon, and ‘Og, king of Bashan, who lived in ‘Ashtarot, at Edre‘i. ⁵ There, beyond the Yarden, in the land of Mo’av, Moshe took it upon himself to expound this Torah and said:

⁶ “Adonai spoke to us in Horev. He said, ‘You have lived long enough by this mountain. ⁷ Turn, get moving and go to the hill-country of the Emori and all the places near there in the ‘Aravah, the hill-country, the Sh’felah, the Negev and by the seashore — the land of the Kena‘ani, and the L’vanon, as far as the great river, the Euphrates River. ⁸ I have set the land before you! Go in, and take possession of the land Adonai swore to give to your ancestors Avraham, Yitz’chak and Ya‘akov, and their descendants after them.’

⁹ “At that time I told you, ‘You are too heavy a burden for me to carry alone. ¹⁰ Adonai your God has multiplied your numbers, so that there are as many of you today as there are stars in the sky. ¹¹ May Adonai, the God of your ancestors, increase you yet a thousandfold and bless you, as he has promised you! (ii) ¹² But you are burdensome, bothersome and quarrelsome! How can I bear it by myself alone? ¹³ Pick for yourselves from each of your tribes men who are wise, understanding and knowledgeable; and I will make them heads over you.’

¹⁴ “You answered me, ‘What you have said would be a good thing for us to do.’ ¹⁵ So I took the heads of your tribes, men wise and knowledgable, and made them heads over you — leaders in charge of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties and of tens, and officers, tribe by tribe. ¹⁶ At that time I commissioned your judges, ‘Hear the cases that arise between your brothers; and judge fairly between a man and his brother, and the foreigner who is with him. ¹⁷ You are not to show favoritism when judging, but give equal attention to the small and to the great. No matter how a person presents himself, don’t be afraid of him; because the decision is God’s. The case that is too hard for you, bring to me and I will hear it.’ ¹⁸ I also gave you orders at that time concerning all the things you were to do.

9 I am speaking the truth — as one who belongs to the Messiah, I do not lie; and also bearing witness is my conscience, governed by the Ruach HaKodesh: ² my grief is so great, the pain in my heart so constant, ³ that I could wish myself actually under God’s curse and separated from the Messiah, if it would help my brothers, my own flesh and blood, ⁴ the people of Isra’el! They were made God’s children, the Sh’khinah has been with them, the covenants are theirs, likewise the giving of the Torah, the Temple service and the promises; ⁵ the Patriarchs are theirs; and from them, as far as his physical descent is concerned, came the Messiah, who is over all. Praised be Adonai for ever! Amen.

⁶ But the present condition of Isra’el does not mean that the Word of God has failed.

For not everyone from Isra’el is truly part of Isra’el; ⁷ indeed, not all the descendants are seed of Avraham;^[a] rather, “What is to be called your ‘seed’ will be in Yitz’chak.”^{[b] 8} In other words, it is not the physical children who are children of God, but the children the promise refers to who are considered seed. ⁹ For this is what the promise said: “At the time set, I will come; and Sarah will have a son.”^{[c] 10} And even more to the point is the case of Rivkah; for both her children were conceived in a single act with Yitz’chak, our father; ¹¹ and before they were born, before they had done anything at all, either good or bad (so that God’s plan might remain a matter of his sovereign choice, not dependent on what they did, but on God, who does the calling), ¹² it was said to her, “The older will serve the younger.”^{[d] 13} This accords with where it is written, “Ya‘akov I loved, but Esav I hated.”^[e]

¹⁴ So are we to say, “It is unjust for God to do this”? Heaven forbid! ¹⁵ For to Moshe he says, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will pity whom I pity.”^{[f] 16} Thus it doesn’t depend on human desires or efforts, but on God, who has mercy. ¹⁷ For the Tanakh says to Pharaoh, “It is for this very reason that I raised you up, so that in connection with you I might demonstrate my power, so that my name might be known throughout the world.”^{[g] 18} So then, he has mercy on whom he wants, and he hardens whom he wants.

²⁷ “Woe to you hypocritical Torah-teachers and P’rushim! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look fine on the outside but inside are full of dead people’s bones and all kinds of rottenness. ²⁸ Likewise, you appear to people from the outside to be good and honest, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and far from Torah.

²⁹ “Woe to you hypocritical Torah-teachers and P’rushim! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the tzaddikim, ³⁰ and you say, ‘Had we lived when our fathers did, we would never have taken part in killing the prophets.’ ³¹ In this you testify against yourselves that you are worthy descendants of those who murdered the prophets. ³² Go ahead then, finish what your fathers started!

³³ “You snakes! Sons of snakes! How can you escape being condemned to Gei-Hinnom? ³⁴ Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and Torah-teachers — some of them you will kill, indeed, you will have them executed on stakes as criminals; some you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town. ³⁵ And so, on you will fall the guilt for all the innocent blood that has ever been shed on earth, from the blood of innocent Hevel to the blood of Z’kharyah Ben-Berekhyah, whom you murdered between the Temple and the altar. ³⁶ Yes! I tell you that all this will fall on this generation!

³⁷ “Yerushalayim! Yerushalayim! You kill the prophets! You stone those who are sent to you! How often I wanted to gather your children, just as a hen gathers her chickens under her wings, but you refused! ³⁸ Look! God is abandoning your house to you, leaving it desolate.^{[a] 39} For I tell you, from now on, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of Adonai.’”^[b]