Torah Portion

Devarim

דברים

Deuteronomy 1:1-3:22
Isaiah 1:1-27

Isaiah’s Warning: Piety without Justice Leads to the Fall of Jerusalem

Isaiah’s Warning: Piety without Justice Leads to the Fall of Jerusalem

“What need have I of all your sacrifices?” says YHWH. “Devote yourselves to justice; aid the wronged. Uphold the rights of the orphan; defend the cause of the widow” (Isaiah 1:11, 17). By placing a reminiscence of the Assyrian invasion of Judah right before this rebuke (1:7–8), the opening chapter of Isaiah sends the message that Judah can survive only when society takes care of its most vulnerable members.

Dr.
Ethan Schwartz
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Wandering in the Wilderness: Deuteronomy’s Ideological Harmonization of J and E

Wandering in the Wilderness: Deuteronomy’s Ideological Harmonization of J and E

Deuteronomy cannot accept that Israel, under YHWH’s command, had to bypass Seir because the Edomite king would not allow them to pass through (Numbers 20). Thus, Deuteronomy has Israel wandering aimlessly, skirting Seir in a southward march away from Canaan (E) while waiting for the exodus generation to die for the sin of the spies (J).  

Dr.
David Ben-Gad HaCohen
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Deuteronomy’s Wilderness Account: Ancient Revisionist History

Deuteronomy’s Wilderness Account: Ancient Revisionist History

Moses revises the account of why he appointed judges to oversee the Israelites, and the way the wars with the Amorites of the Transjordan were conducted. Examining the changes uncovers the ideological stances that motivated this revisionist history.

Prof.
Mordechai Cogan
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The Founding of Israel’s Judicial System

The Founding of Israel’s Judicial System

Even before Israel receives laws at Sinai, Exodus tells how Jethro the Midianite advises Moses to establish judges, a unique origin story for the judicial system with no parallel in ancient Near Eastern law collections. Deuteronomy revises the story to credit Moses with this idea after the revelation at Horeb.

Prof.
Bernard M. Levinson
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Ar Moab

Ar Moab

The Israelites travel to the east of Moab, through the wilderness, specifically to avoid encountering them. And yet, we are told that they travel through Ar-Moab, and even buy food and water from the locals. Do they walk through Moabite territory or not?

Dr.
David Ben-Gad HaCohen
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Deuteronomy: The First Torah

Deuteronomy: The First Torah

Before the Five Books of Moses were compiled as a complete work, evidence from Deuteronomy as well as from Joshua and Kings shows that Deuteronomy itself was known as “the Torah.”

Dr.
David Glatt-Gilad
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The Opening Of Devarim: A Recounting or Different Version of the Wilderness Experience?

The Opening Of Devarim: A Recounting or Different Version of the Wilderness Experience?

Deuteronomy presents Moses’ account as a retelling of the story narrated in Exodus and Numbers. And yet, so many details contradict the earlier narrative. Here are ten examples.

Dr. Rabbi
Zev Farber
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How the Concept of Mosaic Authorship Developed

How the Concept of Mosaic Authorship Developed

In the Persian period, the Torah, which is made up of various law collections, was ascribed to Moses as revealed by YHWH. A parallel development was taking place in Achaemenid Persia that sheds light on this process: The sacred texts called the Avesta, that contain the law​​ (dāta) and tradition (daēnā) of Zoroastrianism​, were being collectively ascribed to Zarathustra (Zoroaster) as revealed by Ahuramazdā.

Dr. Rabbi
Yishai Kiel
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Seven Torah Passages of Non-Mosaic Origin According to Ibn Ezra and R. Joseph Bonfils

Seven Torah Passages of Non-Mosaic Origin According to Ibn Ezra and R. Joseph Bonfils

A Source Sheet listing R’ Avraham ibn Ezra’s Six Non-Mosaic Biblical Passages plus his One Counter-Example, with the Complete Text of ibn Ezra’s Comments and Bonfils’ Glosses on these comments in English and Hebrew

Staff Editors
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The Yam Suph in the Transjordan?

The Yam Suph in the Transjordan?

Deuteronomy describes the Israelites camped opposite Suph in the Transjordan. However, the Israelites cross a Yam Suph near Egypt. Moreover, King Solomon builds a fleet of ships on Yam Suph near Eilat. Where is Yam Suph?

Dr.
David Ben-Gad HaCohen
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Understanding Deuteronomy on Its Own Terms

Understanding Deuteronomy on Its Own Terms

Deuteronomy, or Mishneh Torah, means “repetition of the law,” however, the author of Deuteronomy does not present the book as a repetition, but as the original revelation to Moses at Horeb, written down on the Plains of Moab.

Prof.
Itamar Kislev
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Who Wrote the Torah According to the Torah?

Who Wrote the Torah According to the Torah?

Jewish and Christian tradition ascribes authorship of the Pentateuch to Moses in the 13th century B.C.E. Is this what the Pentateuch itself implies about who wrote it and when?

Prof.
Christopher A. Rollston
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Where in the Transjordan Did Moses Deliver His Opening Address?

Where in the Transjordan Did Moses Deliver His Opening Address?

Deuteronomy 1:1 describes the place where Moses gave his address with a list of several toponyms. Early commentators interpreted these toponyms as Moses’ hidden rebuke, while peshat commentators from Bekhor Shor to R. David Zvi Hoffmann tried to fit them into their context. A geographic and source critical analysis suggests that this is an itinerary list, reflecting an alternative account of Israel’s travels through the Transjordan.

Dr.
David Ben-Gad HaCohen
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Devarim

דברים

Deuteronomy 1:1-3:22

אֵלֶּה הַדְּבָרִים אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר מֹשֶׁה אֶל כָּל יִשְׂרָאֵל...

דברים א:א

These are the words that Moses addressed to all Israel...

Deut 1:1

Deuteronomy

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