Parashat HaShavua - Nitzavim

הַעִדֹ֨תִי בָכֶ֣ם הַיּוֹם֮ אֶת־הַשָּׁמַ֣יִם וְאֶת־הָאָ֒רֶץ֒ הַחַיִּ֤ים וְהַמָּ֙וֶת֙ נָתַ֣תִּי לְפָנֶ֔יךָ הַבְּרָכָ֖ה וְהַקְּלָלָ֑ה 

וּבָֽחַרְתָּ֙ בַּחַיִּ֔ים לְמַ֥עַן תִּֽחְיֶ֖ה אַתָּ֥ה וְזַרְעֶֽךָ׃

I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day: I have put before you life and death, blessing and curse. Choose life—so that you and your offspring will live.

This verse appears at the very end of the first of the double Torah portions we read this Shabbat. In parashat Nitzavim, God calls the Israelites to attention and urges them to choose life. The question is - if this is God’s command, is it a choice? 

Bechor Shor (France, 12th century) suggests that God is laying out two possible paths and that God’s instruction to choose life is not a requirement but rather an עצה טובה - a piece of good advice. In Midrash Rabbah, Rabbi Chaggai suggests that it would have been enough for God to have laid out the two paths, but God goes above and beyond and acts לִפְנִים מִשּׁוּרַת הַדִּין (beyond the firm letter of the law). 

This term לִפְנִים מִשּׁוּרַת הַדִּין appears many times throughout the Talmud. 

In one example, in tractate Brachot 7b, Rabbi Yishmael who served as the the High Priest in the Temple, shares a story of a time when he entered the קודש קודשים the Holy of Holies on Yom Kippur and saw God sitting on the exalted thrown. God asked Rabbi Yishmael to bless Him. Rabbi Yishmael’s blessing went as follows:

יְהִי רָצוֹן מִלְּפָנֶיךָ, שֶׁיִּכְבְּשׁוּ רַחֲמֶיךָ אֶת כַּעַסְךָ, וְיִגּוֹלּוּ רַחֲמֶיךָ עַל מִדּוֹתֶיךָ, וְתִתְנַהֵג עִם בָּנֶיךָ בְּמִדַּת הָרַחֲמִים, וְתִכָּנֵס לָהֶם לִפְנִים מִשּׁוּרַת הַדִּין.

May it be Your will that Your mercy overcome Your anger, and may Your mercy prevail over Your other attributes, and may You act toward Your children with the attribute of mercy, and may You enter before them beyond the letter of the law.

Rabbi Yishmael reports that God nodded God’s head. Earlier in the Talmud as an answer to the question what does God pray, we learn that God internalizes these words of blessing from Rabbi Yishmael and turns them into God’s own tefillah. 

It is not easy to act לִפְנִים מִשּׁוּרַת הַדִּין - above and beyond what is expected of us. If it were easy, God would not need to remind God’s self to act in this manner.  In another source Rabbi Yochanan teaches that the Jews inability to act לִפְנִים מִשּׁוּרַת הַדִּין was what led to the destruction of the 2nd Temple. 

The high school had the privilege of hearing from Tal Becker, senior Vice President at the Hartman Institute in Israel. Tal represented Israel at the International Court of Justice earlier this year. One of the many insights Tal shared was about the way we Jews hold ourselves to a particular standard. He referenced this source and reminded us all that the reason the 2nd Temple was destroyed was the Romans destroyed it. Just as the reason the hostages are in Gaza is because Hamas took and is holding them captive there. Tal reflected on the phrase “Bring them Home” and wondered why we don’t shout “let them go!” Tal shared that he saw it as our expression of each and every one of our shared commitment to do our part - even if not required of us and even if not expected of us - to bring them home. 

This week’s Torah portion begins with Moshe confirming the covenant between God and all those present on that day. And then the Torah states:

וְלֹ֥א אִתְּכֶ֖ם לְבַדְּכֶ֑ם אָנֹכִ֗י כֹּרֵת֙ אֶת־הַבְּרִ֣ית הַזֹּ֔את וְאֶת־הָאָלָ֖ה הַזֹּֽאת׃

I make this covenant, with its sanctions, not with you alone,

כִּי֩ אֶת־אֲשֶׁ֨ר יֶשְׁנ֜וֹ פֹּ֗ה עִמָּ֙נוּ֙ עֹמֵ֣ד הַיּ֔וֹם לִפְנֵ֖י יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵ֑ינוּ וְאֵ֨ת אֲשֶׁ֥ר אֵינֶ֛נּוּ פֹּ֖ה עִמָּ֥נוּ הַיּֽוֹם׃

but both with those who are standing here with us this day before our God and with those who are not with us here this day.
 

Our covenant is strong. We are mindful every day of the hostages who are not with their families. We pray for their return. 

Shabbat Shalom,

Rabbi Dahlia Kronish
High School Associate Head