Parsha for Kids: V'Zot HaBracha
Below is the transcript for this week’s episode of Parsha for Kids, V’Zot HaBracha 2023.
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Season 5 Episode 11:
Hello! My name is Chana, and this is Parsha for Kids. The parsha of the week is V’zos HaBracha, or V’zot HaBracha. This means “And this is the blessing.” This parsha focuses on the blessings that Moshe gave to each of the tribes of Israel prior to his death.
This is also the last parsha of the Torah. Can you believe that? We did it! Those of you who have listened to this podcast every week have now learned every single parsha of the year with me! But you are actually about to begin again. Because V’zos HaBracha is read on the holiday of Simchat Torah, a time where we sing and dance and celebrate the Torah and its importance to us. And as soon as we finish reading V’zos HaBracha, we start again with Bereishit.
Why do we do this? Because we believe that the Torah is like a circle. It never truly ends. As soon as we finish V’zos HaBracha, it’s time to go right back to the beginning. As you have hopefully learned over the course of this year, the Torah contains many important, compelling and relevant ideas. These are ideas you can incorporate into your own life. Since the Torah helps us grow, we go right back to learning it from the beginning again- because we are never finished growing!
And now, let’s delve into this last parsha of the Torah, and what it includes.
TRANSITION
The last thing Moshe, or Moses, did before dying was bless the nation. This is profoundly important.
As you have seen, over the course of his life, Moshe encountered many difficulties. The nation did not always listen to him. They were wild and unruly. They rebelled- sometimes against God, like by the Golden Calf, and sometimes against Moshe’s authority, like by the rebellion of Korach. Because of the slander of the spies, the nation had to wander through the wilderness for an additional forty years. And despite all this, the last thing Moshe did was bless the people.
Rabbi Jonathan Sacks in his book Essays on Ethics: A Weekly Reading of the Jewish Bible comments to this. He explains that Moshe always defended the people, with all the passion and power at his disposal, even when they were making trouble for him. Rabbi Sacks comments that the leaders we should admire are those who defend the people- even if they observe Judaism differently from the way you might. The people worthy of respect are those who give respect. Those who hate will be hated, those who look down on others will be looked down on- this is the principle of middah kneged middah, measure for measure. The people who are great are those who help others to become great. Moses taught the Jewish people how to become great.” - pages 338-339
notes:Moshe had spent Sefer Devarim giving his last speech to the people. That speech included divrei mussar, words of rebuke, and words of caution. But the last words he spoke, the last thing he did, wasn’t to issue warnings or to shout or to be frustrated. His last action was to bless.
And I think that teaches us something powerful. Because we will all go through life and have people we want to influence. If we are parents, it might be our children. If we are workers, it might be the employees who work for us. If we are teachers, it might be our students. And sometimes we will become frustrated with the choices these individuals make. Sometimes we will try to guide them to make different choices. But it is important that we engage with a sense of love and care. That is what Moshe, our greatest leader, did. He loved the Jews- and his last act was to bless them out of that love.
TRANSITION
So what were the blessings?
Moshe blessed the tribe of Reuven to live and not die, and to have its men counted among the Tribes. Moshe was referring to the soldiers of the tribe of Reuven, who marched at the front of the Jewish army when they were engaging in kivush ha’aretz, the conquest of the land. They should not die in battle, and should return home safely.
Moshe blessed the tribe of Yehuda by urging God to listen to the voice of Shevet Yehudah, and help the tribe face their enemies. The Midrash understands this to be a reference to the kings who would one day emerge from the tribe of Yehuda, such as King David. God should always accept the prayers of the kings of David’s house, especially when they are threatened by their enemies.
Moshe blessed the tribe of Levi by noting the tribe’s history of devotion to God, blessing their possessions, and praying that God accept the work of their hands. He also prayed that their enemies be killed. According to the Midrash, many Leviim actually became wealthy due to this blessing, and the focus on enemies was a way of saying that anyone who would try to become Kohanim even though they were not from the tribe of Levi should not prosper.
Moshe blessed the tribe of Binyamin by saying that this tribe should live in security, without fearing enemies. God should dwell with this tribe as well. This was an allusion to the Beit Hamikdash, Temple, which would ultimately be built in the territory of Binyamin. Since the Shechina, God’s presence, dwells there, it would appear within Binyamin’s borders.
Moshe blessed the tribe of Yosef by saying that its portion of the land should yield more delicious fruits, vegetables and crops than those of the other tribes. According to the Midrash, Moshe also prophesied about two great leaders that would come from Yosef. These were Yehoshua, a descendant of Efraim who would kill tens of thousands of Canaanites, and Gidon, a descendant of Menashe, who would kill thousands of Midianites.
Moshe blessed the tribes of Zevulun and Yissachar jointly. This was because the two were partners. Zevulun would engage in business and give money to Yissachar, who focused on Torah study. Moshe said, “Succeed, Zevulun, in your going out to do business, and Yissachar in your tents,” which the commentaries understand as tents of Torah study.
Moshe blessed the tribe of Gad with strength in battle. This was because Gad had settled on the Eastern side of the Jordan and therefore was in danger of being attacked by enemies.
Moshe blessed the tribe of Dan by saying he was strong like a young lion. Dan’s territory formed the northern border of Israel, and therefore the men of Dan would protect the Land from enemies.
Moshe blessed the tribe of Naftali by praising his portion of the land. His portion included a valley where the fruits ripened first. Additionally, Naftali would inherit the Sea of Kineret and a strip of land to the south where he could spread his fishing nets.
Moshe blessed the tribe of Asher by blessing him with sons. This referred to Asher’s descendants, many of whom became nobles. Additionally, women from Asher would marry high-ranking Jews and Kohanim. Moshe states “and let him dip his foot in oil” as part of the blessing. This meant that Asher’s land was also blessed with many olive trees so that the people who lived there could bathe in olive oil.
You may notice that one tribe did not get their own blessing. This was the tribe of Shimon. Our sages say that Moshe was still upset with Zimri, who had decided to take Cozbi, a Moabite woman, into his tent in front of Bnei Yisrael, which caused many people to sin during Baal Peor. We know that long ago, Yaakov had rebuked Shimon and Levi for their zealousness and violence. Remember that it was these two brothers who had killed everyone in Shechem in order to get back Dinah after she was kidnapped. Levi found a way to uplift his violent and zealous nature in service of God. Shimon, however, continued to use his nature in rebellion against God. Therefore this tribe lost the privilege of receiving their own blessing.
There is a more positive approach, however. The Midrash notes that when blessing Yehuda, Moshe said “Shemah,” Listen, God, to Yehuda’s voice. The word Shema has the Hebrew letters Shin, mem and ayin, which are also found in Shiimon’s name. Additionally, Shimon’s portion of the land of Israel included strips of land in Yehuda’s portion. According to this approach, the idea was that Yehuda would have a quelling effect on Shimon, and thus Yehuda’s blessing could also be seen as a blessing for Shimon.
TRANSITION
Moshe then ascended Mount Nevo. His wife, Tzipporah, did not accompany him. Neither did his sons. He went alone.
God showed him the entire land of Israel. And God stated, “This is the Land I swore to Avraham, to Yitzchak and to Yaakov, saying ‘I will give it to your children.’ I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not cross over there.”
And Moshe, the eved Hashem, servant of God, died there. This title, eved Hashem, servant of God, is a very special designation. It is the greatest praise the creator of the world could give a mortal. Since we were all created in God’s image, and were placed on earth in order to partner with God and do His will, to be called an eved Hashem means that a person was successful in fulfilling that mission, and that is a high honor.
At this point, the Torah tells us what happened next. You may wonder how the words in the Torah can continue if Moshe already died. After all, wasn’t it Moshe who wrote the Torah he received from God? Our Sages offer two answers to this question. The first approach is that Yehoshua, Moshe’s disciple, wrote the last section of the Torah. The second approach is that Moshe was told to write even this, and that he wrote it down with tears in his eyes.
TRANSITION
So what happened next?
God Himself buried Moshe’s body. Moshe was buried in the valley in the land of Moav and no person knows the place where he was buried.
Why does it matter that no one knows where Moshe was buried?
It is because of celebrity culture. Had people known where Moshe was buried, they would have turned his grave into a shrine. There would have been pilgrimages to it, and over time, it is likely that it would have evolved into a site of idol worship, with people mistakenly thinking that he, the messenger, was actually a deity. Making sure that no one knows where Moshe was buried means making sure that his body could never be found, desecrated or worshipped.
Moshe died when he was 120 years old. His eyes had not dimmed and his natural energy had not slowed. Rabbi Jonathan Sacks explains that the fact that Moshe’s eyes were undimmed means that “he never lost the passion for justice that he had as a young man. It is there, as strong in Sefer Devarim, Deuteronomy as it was in Sefer Shemot, Exodus.” Moshe’s ideals stayed strong, no matter his age.
Bnei Yisrael mourned deeply for Moshe. Yehoshua bin Nun took over after Moshe’s death. Bnei Yisrael obeyed him. However, no other prophet ever arose in Israel like Moshe, who had spoken with God face to face, panim el panim.
TRANSITION
So here’s what we learned this week!
There will be times that your life is challenging. People may defy or disappoint you. It is important that even if you must issue words of rebuke and guidance, you remember to bless. Moshe died with blessings on his lips. We should emulate this.
When it is time for us to die, we meet God alone. Moshe was unaccompanied. There were no crowds; there was no adulation. There was only the simplicity of man and His Maker. This is what it will be like for us, too. The question to consider, while we live, is this: is the life we have lived one we will be proud to show to our Maker?
No one knows where Moshe is buried. This was to prevent his body from being turned into an idol.
The highest compliment that we can receive is that we are a servant of God. In Bereshit, God created us. He then told us that we were His partners in Creation. If we can serve as a conduit, a channel for God’s presence to touch others in the world, then we have been successful. This is what it means to be God’s servant- focused on His wishes rather than our own. Moshe achieved this, and it’s what each of us aspires to.
It has been my pleasure to learn with you each week. I hope you will listen to this podcast again from the very beginning, with Parshat Bereshit, so that you can learn all the parshiot once more. May you continue to grow in Torah and may you become teachers of Torah yourselves. You can always reach me with your questions at parsha4kids@gmail.com. That’s parsha, the number 4, kids at gmail.com. Good Shabbos!