ואתחנן

In the valley near Beth-peor, Moses spoke to the Israelites with a voice that carried both hope and sadness. Moses begged God, vaetchanan, “I pleaded,” is the Hebrew word he used, to let him cross the Jordan and see the good land, the hill country and the Lebanon. Moses remembered how he prayed, calling God mighty beyond any power in heaven or on earth. But God answered firmly: “Enough! Do not speak to Me of this again.”

Still, God gave Moses something to do. “Go up to the summit of Pisgah,” God said, “and look west, north, south, and east. You will see the land, but you will not enter it.” Then God told him, “Give Joshua his instructions. Strengthen him and give him courage, because he will lead the people across and allot the land.”

So Moses turned back to the people. “Listen carefully to the laws and rules I teach you,” he urged. “Do not add to them or take away. If you keep them, other nations will see your wisdom, and they will know God is close when we call.”

Moses asked them to remember what they had seen with their own eyes. “Do not let it fade from your mind,” he said, “and tell it to your children and your children’s children.” He brought them back to Horeb, the mountain wrapped in dense cloud, blazing with fire up to the sky. “You stood at the foot of the mountain,” Moses reminded them. “God spoke out of the fire. You heard words, but you saw no shape, only a voice.”

That was when God declared the covenant, the Ten Commandments, and wrote them on two stone tablets. Because they saw no form, Moses warned them not to make any sculptured image, no person, animal, bird, creeping thing, or fish. He also warned them not to be lured into serving the sun, moon, or stars.

Moses reminded them that God brought them out of Egypt “like from an iron furnace” to be God’s own people. He warned that if they forgot the covenant and chased idols, they would be scattered. Yet he also spoke of hope: even far away, if they searched for God with all their heart and soul and returned to obey, they would find God compassionate and faithful to the oath made to their ancestors.

Moses gathered everyone again. “Hear, O Israel,” he said. “God made a covenant with us at Horeb, not only with our ancestors, but with us, the living.” He repeated the Ten Commandments: God brought them out of Egypt; they must have no other gods, make no idols, and not swear falsely. They must keep the Sabbath so everyone can rest, and honor parents. They must not murder, commit adultery, steal, lie, or covet.

Then Moses spoke words the people would say again and again: “Hear, O Israel! God is our God, God alone. Love God with all your heart, soul, and might.” He told them to keep these words close, teach them to their children, and speak of them at home and on the road.

He warned that when they entered a land with cities they did not build and vineyards they did not plant, they must not forget the One who freed them from bondage. If children asked, “What do these laws mean?” they should answer with the story of Egypt and God’s mighty hand. As they faced stronger nations, they were to tear down false worship and remember: God chose them not because they were many, but because God loved them and kept the promise to their ancestors.