Andrew's Commentary on V'etchanan
My Torah lesson takes place when Moses is pleading to G-d and asking him to let him go into the promise land. The title of this portion is Vetchenan which means, “and I pleaded.” My Dad and I were studying one night and Dad said that he was wondering why Moses wasn’t allowed into the Promised Land.
The Hebrews were thirsty and ready to revolt, again. In desperation Moses asks G-d what to do. So G-d told Moses to get water from a rock by speaking to it. Most of us had heard the story in Religion School with the explanation that Moses hit the rock to obtain water rather than talking to the rock. Doesn’t that seem like a small crime for such a large punishment? We researched this question and one rabbi said, that when G-d told Moses and Aaron to get water from the rock, Moses went to the rock and struck it, saying “Shall we get water from this rock?”, as opposed to “Shall G-d get water from this rock”. By saying “we” Moses was speaking like he was equal to G-d. By preventing Moses from coming into the promise land, and having his burial place be a secret, G-d could have been preventing Moses from becoming a king, and being treated like a god.
In the bible you almost never hear about Moses’ sons, Garshon and Elizier. This comes to my attention because G-d says “Command Joshua, strengthen him and encourage him, because Joshua will cross in front of this people”, why not “Command Garshon...” or “Command Elizier...”? Rabbis say that they were not worthy enough to follow in their father’s footsteps. It is rare to find tales of successful sons of great men in the bible. I guess it isn’t easy being the son, of a great man.
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