Parashat Ha'azinu - Fifth Aliyah
Read the biblical text and try to understand it on your own, before reading the commentary.
I put to death and I give life: the gaze returns to the source
The aliyah opens with a call for wisdom and reflection. Moses presents a situation in which Israel should have understood, from what was happening to them, where the road leads. The defeat before enemies is not explained only by the military power of the other side, but as part of a process in which Israel is handed over into the hand of its enemies following its distancing from the path.
Afterwards the song moves to a sharp description of the enemies themselves. Even though they prevail at that stage, this is no endorsement of their way or proof of their righteousness. The song describes their fruit as something bitter and poisonous, and makes clear that their deeds too are not forgotten. The reckoning with them is kept for the fitting time.
From here comes an important turn. When God sees that the strength of the people has almost run out and that it has no one left to lean on, a stage of judgment on the enemies and compassion for his servants begins. The song also exposes the weakness of the foreign powers in which Israel sought to trust: at the moment of truth they are unable to rise and save.
The aliyah ends with a declaration of God’s uniqueness and sovereignty. Life and death, wounding and healing, are all in his hand, and there is no other power that can stand against him or deliver from his hand. In this way the song turns the gaze back from the enemies and the idols to the true source of power.
Insights from the aliyah
Wisdom is to understand not only what happened but why
The song criticizes the inability to see the end. On the level of the idea, a wise person does not examine only the present moment, but asks where the road they are walking leads them.
The success of the other side is not necessarily proof of its righteousness
The enemies can win and still be described as those whose way is corrupt. This teaches that it is not right to measure truth only by who succeeded at the moment.
Results can be delayed
The song describes the judgment as something kept for the fitting time. On the level of the idea, the fact that a result does not arrive immediately does not mean that deeds have no meaning.
There is a stage at which false supports collapse
Israel turned to other powers, but at the moment of crisis it becomes clear that they have no ability to save. On the level of the idea, a crisis sometimes exposes what a person really trusted in and how much of it was stable.
Compassion appears precisely when human strength runs out
When the people reaches a state of deep weakness, the song describes a change of direction. This teaches that sometimes precisely the place where a person can no longer lean on their own strength opens the possibility of a new understanding of dependence, help and compassion.
Life and healing are not two separate powers
The end of the aliyah gathers the whole picture into one hand: the one who wounds is also the one who heals, and the one who puts to death is also the one who gives life. On the level of the idea, reality is not split between competing powers, but stands under one sovereignty.
The aliyah turns the gaze back to the source
After descriptions of enemies, defeat, vengeance and idols, the song ends with one foundational point: there is no power parallel to God. This brings the whole story back from fear of the enemy to the central question of loyalty, faith and acknowledgment of the source.
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