טיב הפרשה – וזאת הברכה
שמחתינו בתורת ה'
He said, “Hashem came from Sinai and He shone forth for them from Seir, He appeared from Har Paran, and He came with some of the myriads of the holy, from His right hand He presented a fire of law to them. (33:2)
Rashi explains: Came from Sinai – He went out toward them when they came to stand at the bottom of the mountain, like a groom who goes out to greet a bride, as it says (Shemos 19:17), 'לקראת האלקים' – ‘Toward G-d’. We have learned He went out toward them. And He shone forth for them from Seir – for He proposed to the children of Eisav that they accept the Torah, but they did not want it. He appeared – to them. From Har Paran – for He went there and proposed to the children of Yishmael that they accept it, but they did not want it. And He came – to Israel. A fire of law – for it was written of Him of old in black fire upon white fire. He gave it to them on the Luchos, the writing of His right hand.
On the day when Am Yisrael rejoice with the Torah, they read this passage, which speaks of their great joy, stature, and merit after having received the Torah. We must reflect inwardly to truly understand how good our portion is, how pleasant our lot, and how beautiful our inheritance.
This posuk speaks about the unwillingness of the children of Eisav and Yishmael to accept the Torah. Upon careful examination, we see that the text reveals HaKadosh Baruch Hu's great love for Israel, for in truth, HKBH only wished to give the Torah to His chosen people, Israel. However, He did not want the nations to have any claim, questioning why the Torah was given only to Israel and not to them. Therefore, He first offered the Torah to other nations, but He concealed its light and beauty from them. This caused them to reject it, and they readily agreed to let Israel receive it.
These events are well described in Pirkei D’Rebbe Eliezer (Chapter 41): "Rebbe Tarfon says, 'HaKadosh Baruch Hu shone forth from Mount Seir and revealed Himself to the children of Eisav,' as it is written (Devorim 33:2), 'And He said: Hashem came from Sinai and shone forth for them from Seir.' Seir refers to the children of Eisav, as it says (Genesis 36:8), 'וישב עשו בה ר שעיר' - 'Eisav settled on Har Seir.' HKBH asked them if they would accept the Torah. They replied, 'What is written in it?' He said, 'לא תרצח' - 'You shall not murder' (Shemos 20:13). They responded, 'Leave us, for we cannot abandon the blessing that Yitzchak gave to Eisav, our father, when he said, 'ועל חרבך תחיה' - "You shall live by your sword" (Bereishis 27:40). From there, He went and revealed Himself to the children of Yishmael, as it is written (Devorim 33:2), 'He appeared from Har Paran.' He asked them if they would accept the Torah. They asked, 'What is written in it?' He said, 'לא תגנב' - 'You shall not steal' (Shemos 20:15). They said, 'We cannot abandon what our ancestors did, for they stole Yosef and sold him into Egypt,' as it is written (Bereishis 40:15), 'כי גנב גנבתי מארץ העברים' - 'For indeed I was stolen from the land of the Hebrews.' He then approached all other nations and asked if they would accept the Torah. They asked, 'What is written in it?' He said, 'לא יהיה לך אלהים אחרים על פני' - 'You shall have no other gods before Me' (Shemos 20:3). They replied, 'We cannot abandon the religion of our ancestors who worshipped idols. We do not want the Torah; give it to Your people,' as it is written (Tehillim 29:11), 'ה' עוז לעמו יתן ה' יברך את עמו בשלום' - 'Hashem will give strength to His people; Hashem will bless His people with peace.' From there, He returned and revealed Himself to Bnei Yisrael, as it is written (Devorim 33:2), 'And He came with myriads of the holy.' The term 'myriads' refers to Israel, as it says (Bamidbar 10:36), 'ובנחי יאמר שובה ה' רבבות אלפי ישראל' - 'Return, Hashem, to myriads of thousands of Israel.' He was accompanied by angels of holiness, and His right hand held the Torah, as it says (Dev. 33:2), 'From His right hand, a fiery law went forth.'"
The Midrash teaches that the nations had such a strong yetzer hara that they could not restrain themselves to accept the Torah's restrictions. Their advice to give the Torah to Israel was not out of goodwill but rather out of hatred and fear of Israel. From the time Israel left Egypt and witnessed the splitting of the Red Sea, the nations began to fear them, as it is written in our Torah (Shemos 15:14-15): 'שמעו עמים ירגזון חיך אחז יושבי פלשת אז נבהלו אל ו פי אדום אילי מואב יאחזימו רעד נמוגו יושבי כנען' - "The nations heard and trembled; terror gripped the inhabitants of Philistia. The chiefs of Edom were terrified; the mighty men of Moav, trembling seized them; all the inhabitants of Canaan melted away." For this reason, the nations wanted HKBH to give the Torah to Israel, thinking that if Israel failed to uphold it, Hashem's anger would turn against them, and He would no longer protect them. The nations believed that if they could not handle the Torah, certainly Israel, who were considered the most obstinate of nations (see Beitzah 25b), would also fail, and this would remove the fear of them.
However, as explained in the Gemara, this was the reason Israel should receive the Torah. As the Chazal expounded (Beitzah 25b) on the posuk "From His right hand, a fiery law went forth for them": "The school of Rebbe Yishmael taught: HKBH said, 'These people are worthy of receiving a fiery law.'" The Maharsha explains that the "fiery law" refers to a law that would subdue their stubbornness. Despite the Torah’s demands, which require a person to subdue their inclinations, it also provides the strength to do so. By adhering to the Torah, a person becomes the happiest being in creation, as the Torah leads him to a righteous path in this world and to a great reward in the World to Come. This was hidden from the nations, as hinted in the verse, "And He shone forth from Seir," meaning, when He left Seir, the light of the Torah was revealed. "He appeared from Har Paran" – after withdrawing from Paran, HKBH illuminated those He wished to give the Torah to, enabling them to understand that "From His right hand, a fiery law went forth for" – a Torah described as "black fire on white fire." With the power of the Torah, they could overcome all negative inclinations.
As we learn in the Gemara (Kiddushin 30b): "And you shall place [the words of the Torah]" – as a 'perfect remedy.' The Torah is compared to a life-giving remedy. It is like a person who strikes his child with a great blow but then places a bandage on the wound, telling the child: 'As long as this bandage is on your wound, you may eat and drink whatever you desire, and bathe in hot or cold water without fear. But if you remove it, the wound will fester.' So too, HKBH said to Israel: 'I created the yetzer hara, but I also created the Torah as its antidote. If you engage in the Torah, you will not fall into its grasp.'
This is what Israel meant when they declared, "We will do" before "We will hear." Even though at the time of receiving the Torah, they may have thought it was impossible to keep it, by accepting it and doing what it demands, they would come to understand and yearn to hear its voice. Indeed, those governed by nature are driven by physicality and cannot overcome their inclinations. But when one merits the Torah, they rise above natural forces and can, through it, expel all negative inclinations. As the Tanna DeBei Rabbi Yishmael taught (Succah 52b): "If that despicable one encounters you, drag him into the study hall. If he is like stone, he will dissolve, and if he is like iron, he will shatter." In light of the above, we should rejoice and be glad with this Torah, and on this day when we begin reading the Torah from Bereishis, each individual should strengthen his Torah learning and delve into it. Then the posuk will be fulfilled in us (Devorim 28:6): "Blessed shall you be in your coming in, and blessed shall you be in your going out," as Rashi explains: "That your departure from the world will be without sin, as your entrance into the world."
