Nitzavim Answers

Netzavim-VaYelech  5715

דברים פרק ל

(יא) כִּי הַמִּצְוָה הַזֹּאת אֲשֶׁר אָנֹכִי מְצַוְּךָ הַיּוֹם לֹא־נִפְלֵאת הִוא מִמְּךָ וְלֹא רְחֹקָה הִוא:

(יב) לֹא בַשָּׁמַיִם הִוא לֵאמֹר מִי יַעֲלֶה־לָּנוּ הַשָּׁמַיְמָה וְיִקָּחֶהָ לָּנוּ וְיַשְׁמִעֵנוּ אֹתָהּ וְנַעֲשֶׂנָּה:

(יג) וְלֹא־מֵעֵבֶר לַיָּם הִוא לֵאמֹר מִי יַעֲבָר־לָנוּ אֶל־עֵבֶר הַיָּם וְיִקָּחֶהָ לָּנוּ וְיַשְׁמִעֵנוּ אֹתָהּ וְנַעֲשֶׂנָּה:

For this Commandment which I command thee this day, it is not too hard for thee, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say: 'Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, and make us to hear it, that we may do it?' Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say: 'Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto us, and make us to hear it, that we may do it?' 

Alef.

1.  The fact that what is being discussed is a “Mitzva” (v. 11) suggests that there is an expectation that it be carried out regardless of the difficulty entailed in fulfilling it. If it were an impossibility to fulfill, it would not make sense for it to be Commanded.

2.  Once the Tora has been given at Sinai to Moshe and the Jewish people, there is no assumption that it will require some sort of supernatural feat to access the Tora going forward, i.e., the process is not going to be reversed. However, once it has been given, one could think that it only is accessible in certain environments on earth; v. 13 comes to dispel such a thought. (R. Hirsch¹ sees v. 12 as referring to the type of individual who will be required to teach the Tora, i.e., someone like Moshe who could spend all that time on Sinai communing with HaShem. Therefore you have the following statement in the Talmud: 

תלמוד בבלי מסכת ראש השנה דף כה עמוד ב

ואומר (תהילים צט:ו) “משה ואהרן בכהניו ושמואל בקראי שמו.” שקל הכתוב שלשה קלי עולם כשלשה חמורי עולם, לומר לך: ירובעל בדורו - כמשה בדורו, בדן בדורו - כאהרן בדורו, יפתח בדורו - כשמואל בדורו. ללמדךשאפילו קל שבקלין ונתמנה פרנס על הצבור - הרי הוא כאביר שבאבירים, ואומר ובאת אל הכהנים הלוים ואל השפט אשר יהיה בימים ההם. וכי תעלה על דעתך שאדם הולך אצל הדיין שלא היה בימיו? הא אין לך לילךאלא אצל שופט שבימיו, ואומר אל תאמר מה היה שהימים הראשונים היו טובים מאלה.(

Beit.

MaHaRShA distinguishes between “מגביה דעתו” (elevates himself in his estimation) as representing someone who would not even consider seeking out anyone else to explain something to him, as opposed to “גסי הרוח” (haughty; arrogant), who even if they would listen to another opinion, would never think enough of such an opinion to consider it seriously.

מהרש"א חידושי אגדתא

במי שמגביה דעתו כו'. היינו שדעתו גבוה ואין צריך לקבל מרב ולא תמצא במי שמרחיב דעתו כו' גם אם הוא מקבל מרב לא ירחיב דעתו לסמוך על זה דדי לו בקבלתו אלא דצריך לחזור אחריה שלא תשתכח ממנוכדאמרי' לעיל ור"י שאמר לא תמצא בגסי רוח כו' כדאמרי' לעיל אם משים אדם עצמו כמדבר כו' ולא תמצא בסחרנים כו' היינו דנקט מעבר לים שמשהין הרבה ע"י סחורתן ולא יבואו לביתם כמ"ש הספנים אחת לששהחדשים וק"ל:

Gimel.

RaShI does not understand v. 14 as dealing with inner qualities of the individual vis-à-vis Tora observance, but rather the accessibility and format of the Tora itself. I.e., it is not esoteric material that only to a limited elite will there be accessibility, but rather it is open source material in written and oral form available to all.

MaLBIM and NeTzIV understand the verse as dealing with the inner personal qualities that will be required for the fulfilliment of the Tora, i.e., what one says, what one wills to do, what one does, how one thinks about the Mitzvot and the ability to study in general, all qualities that all human beings possess.

Daled.

1.  Rather than view v. 12 as a statement about how the Tora is readily accessible to all who wish to study it, R. Yehoshua in the passage in Bava Metzia 59a, uses v. 12 as a justification for not deciding Halacha based upon the expressions of Divine Will once the Tora was conveyed to the Jewish people at Sinai. Perhaps at one point in time, during Moshe’s lifetime, Halachic questions, such as what to do with the Mekallel (YaYikra 24:12) , the Mekoshesh Eitzim (BaMidbar 15:35) , Benot Tzelophchad (Ibid. 27:5) could be decided upon by HaShem Revealing His Will. But when the leadership shifted first to Yehoshua, and then all those who followed him, Halacha was determined by majority rule, as indicated in Shemot 23:2 “Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou bear witness in a cause to turn aside after a multitude to pervert justice”.

2.  RaShI suggests a diametrically opposite interpretation. If for some reason the understanding of the Tora would be in Heaven, i.e., that it continues to reside with HaShem, then it would be necessary to continue consulting with Him. R. Yehoshua rejects that idea and insists that the Halacha no longer resides with HaShem, and it would be wrong to try to ascend to Heaven and find out what HaShem is “Thinking”.

¹ רש"ר הירש דברים פרשת ניצבים פרק ל פסוק יב

(יב) לא בשמים הִוא. ההכרות והמעשים שהיא מתכוונת אליהם אינם בתחום העל - חושי, השמימי, וכל ההתגלויות האלוקיות הדרושות להבנתה ולקיומה כבר ניתנו לנו במלואן ודבר לא נותר מהן בשמים. לפיכך לא תוכל לומר: היכן נמצא איש בעל רוח על -אנושית שיחדור למעננו לסודות השמים או שיוריד לנו מן השמים התגלות חדשה שתשלים את הכרתנו, ורק אם נמצא איש כזה אשר רוח אלהים בו, נוכל לקיים את התורה על פי רצון ה'.

(יג) ולא - מעבר לים הִוא. וההכרות והמעשים שהיא מתכוונת אליהם אינם מותנים בנסיבות ובמצבים המתקיימים אי - שם בארץ מרחקים, ולפיכך לא תוכל לומר: התורה מתאימה לארצות ולמצבים השונים באקלימן ובתנאיהםהחברתיים מאלה שאני חי בהם; יַמִּים מפרידים ביני לבינם וחוסר ידיעתם מונעת את הבנת התורה שמוטל עלי לקיימה. יש צורך שאדם יפליג למדינות הים וילמד את תנאי אדמת התורה במקומה ובארצה, והוא יביא לנו אתהידיעה החסרה לנו, למען נבין את התורה בטרם נקיימנה.