The Torah in our Parasha, continues to relate Moshe Rabeinu’s admonition to Bnei Israel:(9:1-6)’Hear O Israel, today you cross the Jordan, to come and drive out nations that are greater and mightier than you..But you know that Hashem, your G-d - He crosses before you..He will destroy them and will subjugate them before you, you will drive them out..as Hashem spoke to you.
‘Do not say in your heart, when Hashem pushes them away from before you:’Because of my righteousness did Hashem bring me to possess the Land and because of the wickedness of these nations did Hashem drive them away from before you’.
‘Not because of your righteousness and the uprightness of your heart are you coming to possess their Land, but because of the wickedness of these nations does Hashem, your G-d, drive them from before you, and in order to establish the Word that Hashem swore to your forefathers, to Avraham, to Yitzchak and to Yaakov.
‘You should know that not because of your righteousness does Hashem, your G-d, give you this good Land to possess it, for you are a stiff-necked people.’
The Malbim elucidates:’Know, that if you were righteous on the one side, that the reason Hashem vanquished them was because of their wickedness - not your righteousness on the one side, as what causes you to possess the Land, is not your righteousness, but only to establish the oath He made to your forefathers.
‘Know that your coming to possess the Land is not due to your righteousness, as you are a stiff-necked people.. as you have always angered Hashem, be it when you left Egypt, be it in the years since then till this day.’
The Netziv adds:’Moshe warned them repeatedly against making two wrong assumptions: the First: not to trust in themselves, that they would not fall into idolatry, as the over-confidence makes you less careful, and more likely to transgress.
‘The Second error, is, so to speak, trusting that Hashem would never render the Land desolate, even of they engaged in idolatry, trusting that He greatly desired that the Land be populated.
‘As against the first assumption, Moshe said:’Because of my righteousness, Hashem brought me to the Land’, Hashem trusting that I would not transgress, and therefore, I, too, can trust in myself.
‘As to the second assumption, that ‘because of the wickedness of the nations, Hashem will drive them out, before you’ - so strong being Hashem’s desire that the Land not be unpopulated, this despite the wickedness of these nations till now, Hashem did not drive them out, as this would leave the Land barren, bit only ‘before you’ - finding you righteous.
‘Therefore, even if you should transgress into idolatry, there will still be no nation better than you - and the Land cannot be allowed to be unpopulated, as can be seen from the seven wicked nations being permitted to possess it, till now.
‘But because of the wickedness of these nations, Hashem, your G-d’- Moshe adding the words:’your G-d to denote that by Hashem’s השגחה פרטית: Divine Providence, the unmatched wickedness of these nations increased, so that their full measure of wickedness should be fulfilled, this so that the oath to Avraham in the Covenant between the Halves - that his descendants would return to the Land when the full measure of the wickedness of the local inhabitants was reached.
‘Know you this day - if you reflect on the matter, that even your past righteousness does not guarantee that you will not transgress in the future - because you are a stiff-necked people, as your past proves.’
The Ktav Sofer comments:’We need to understand the reason for the lengthy and repetitious saying - after already saying:’Not because of your righteousness’, it should have concluded by saying:’Because you are a stiff-necked people’.
‘We also need to note that initially it says:’To possess their Land’, without mentioning ‘the good’ - yet, it then says ‘this good Land’.
‘It can be said - as Ramban has noted in Parashat Ki Tavo - that we do not find that Hashem promised the Avot ‘a Land flowing with milk and honey’, only that He would give their descendants ‘the Land’.
‘It was only to the generation that came out of Egypt, did He promise this.
‘The reason is, that the Avot did not seek to eat of the prime produce of the Land, only to enjoy its spiritual sanctity- so there was no need to mention to the Avot, the nature of the Land - that it was ‘a Land flowing with milk and honey’.
‘However, the generation that left Egypt, were not seeking the sanctity of the Land, but only to eat of its goodly produce.
‘They therefore undoubtedly said in their hearts that the main goodness of the Land they were to enter, waa not ‘because of their righteousness’, but only to fulfil Hashem’s covenant with Avraham - and that it was a Land blessed with material bounty in which nothing was lacking, and this must surely be because of our righteousness, as this was not promised to the Avot.
‘To set them straight, Moshe then told them, that it was ‘not because of their righteousness’, as ‘you are a stiff-necked people’, and not deserving any additional blessing -but that this was in the merit of the Avot.’
The Abarbanel expounds:’Moshe was concerned that ‘you might come to say in your heart: ‘In driving the nations from the Land before you’, that they have lost the Land, and you will inherit it’ - that the two are joined -this for two reasons: First, that the reason they lost the Land, was their wickedness; the Second: that you - and no other nation - will inherit it, this because of your righteousness, as this is the way of people, to ascribe all their successes to themselves - be it as due to their bravery, or their strength from their efforts, and, on seeing their success, they will ascribe it to their merits and righteousness.
‘Moshe warned them against such thoughts: from saying that because of their righteousness Hashem brought them here, and that because of the wickedness of the nations, Hashem disinherited them before you - as one part of what you said was correct - that Hashem drove them out because of their wickedness - however, you erred in thinking that Hashem gave you their Land, because of your righteousness, as it says:’Not in the merit of your righteousness and the uprightness of your heart are you coming to possess the Land, but because of the wickedness of these nations’.
‘Should you conclude: If they lost the Land because of their wickedness, if not for our righteousness, why did Hashem then give us their Land?
‘Know you: you are inheriting the Land because of Hashem’s oath to the Avot, as He promised in the Covenant Between the Halves:’the fourth generation will return here, as till then the full measure of the wickedness of the nations will not have been completed’ - to make clear that the wickedness of the inhabitants of the Land was the reason for they being driven from the Land - not the righteousness of Bnei Israel.
‘To reinforce this truth, Moshe then added:’You are a stiff-necked people’, who have constantly angered Hashem, this being proof that it was not because of your righteousness that Hashem brought you into the Land.’
Sforno comments:’When you see that you vanquish them not by natural means, and you acknowledge that it is the work of the One Above, do not err to say that it is due to your righteousness, Hashem brought you to inherit the Land, and so that occurs rapidly, He drove the inhabitants out, speedily, and that, due to their wickedness,,Hashem drove them out before you - as the reason Hashem drove them out was indeed their wickedness -,not so that you should speedily inherit, in their place.
‘You are not inheriting the Land because of your righteousness - and your righteousness is therefore does not merit that Hadhem drive out the inhabitants speedily, as it is because of their wickedness that Hashem is driving them out, before you - as He wished that this be by your hand, and to thereby establish that by His command, you merit to inherit the Land.
‘ThIs because you are a ‘stiff-necked people, which precludes being just and righteous, as it leads to not heading admonition, when required.
The Ohr Hachaim Hakadosh elucidates:’’Not by your righteousness’:Meaning: not by your righteousness do you merit to inherit the Land, though this generation was a kosher one - it was not sufficiently meritorious to inherit the Land, and this required also the merit of the Avot.
‘At the same time, the merit of the Avot by itself, would not have sufficed for them to inherit the Land, if it had been a wicked generation, as the genetation of the desert proves.’
The Alshich Hakadosh expounds:’Do not consider the Land as your eternal gift, as it is only yours whilst you observe the Torah.
‘This is what is alluded to by Moshe prefacing his admonition with: ‘Shema Israel’, in the singular, meaning:whilst you are united and righteous.
‘Further: ‘You are crossing the Jordan today, to come to inherit the Land’, do not think that this will be by the might of your hand, ‘as the nations are mightier than you’ and their ‘cities great and fortified to the heavens’, so that you will not be able to defeat them by natural means
- but, rather recognize ‘that Hashem, your G-d, He crosses before you.. He will subjugate them before you, and then you will be able to ‘drive them out and cause them to perish quickly’.
‘Should you err to think that your righteousness has caused that Hashem himself brings you into the Land, know that this is not the case, as He ‘only’ enables you to drive them out.’
A parting gem from the Chidushei Ha’Ri:’’Not because of your righteousness and the uprightness of your heart’: Moshe Rabeinu wanted to establish this to encourage less meritorious future generations - whose deeds in themselves do not merit that they inherit the Land - nevertheless, the merit of the Avot will stand them as a merit.’
לרפואת נועם עליזה בת זהבה רבקה ונחום אלימלך רפאל בן זהבה רבקה, בתוך שאר חולי עמנו.