Moses' opening words to Israel in Parashat Ha'azinu (Deut.32:1–52) introduce an epic song of instruction, warnings and prophecies for Israel's future and final redemption while also hearkening back to past.
Moses likens his teachings to rain, the dew, a storm and showers on grass. Sifri explains that Moses characterizes his teaching as rain and dew because they are the source of life. Many commentaries explain how these four kinds of precipitation reflect the tone of Moses' delivery; the dew represents a gentle approach, while rain suggests a manner of speaking strongly. Most agree that these are all metaphors for the deep effect of Moses’ words; how the souls hearing him were nourished, how they grew and were sustained. Like the rain, the source of this wisdom is directly from the Creator. The Moroccan sage, Or Hachaim, tells us that, here in Ha'azinu, rain is also symbolic of the Written Torah and the dew represents the Oral Torah, underscoring the sacred symbiosis between the two.
Moses’ song is replete with warnings for Israel’s future but despite any failings, God will, “...relent regarding His servants,” and save Israel.
As Ha'azinu comes to a close, HaShem tells Moses to ascend Mt. Nebo where he is shown The Promised Land and then he will die, b’etzelem hayom ha’zeh, ("on this very day"), on that mountain. The reader will recall that Moses was 120 years old. The first time we encounter that phrase, "on this very day" is Genesis 7:13, when we learn that Noach and his family enter the Ark, seven days before the Flood began. That was 120 years after the Creator issued a warning that humanity must repent of their destructive evil:
"Then the LORD said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.” - Genesis 6:3
The above is not a prophecy limiting the lifespan of humanity to 120 years. Genesis 11:10-19 lists several figures, such as Shem who lived to the age of 600. Others born after the Flood include Arpachshad who lived to be 438. His son Eber reached his 430th year. Genesis 25:7 reveals that Avraham lived to the age of 175; thus the 120 years is not only a declaration of the time allotted for humanity to repent, it is a hint that Moses would be connected to the first Yom Kippur.
The generation of Noach was warned to repent 120 years prior to the Mabbul (Flood). Noach entered the tevah (Ark) when his righteous grandfather Methushelah passed away. The entire family was safely sealed inside the tevah for their protection. Moses was born 120 years before the day he sang Ha'azinu. The infant Moses was saved from the rushing waters of the Nile, when placed in a little tevah (ark) sealed with pitch. The death of Moses signaled that it was time for the Children of Israel to enter the Promised Land—considered a kind of Ark that protects God’s holy nation when they are living together in the land.
At the beginning of Ha'azinu, Moses also says his words are, "like a storm." This calls to mind the torrential rains that cleansed the Earth, forty days and nights during the Mabbul (Flood of Noach). They were in the tevah for an entire year. Moses made three separate ascents to the top of Sinai, each ascent was Forty Days. He would descend with the 2nd set of Tablets, a sign that God had forgiven the people for the Sin of the Golden Calf. That was the first Yom Kippur. When building the tevah, HaShem instructs Noach to cover and seal it with pitch, called kopher in Hebrew. The Hebrew word kopher shares the same root as the second word in Yom Kippur, which means “cover”, a reference to HaShem covering our sins on Yom Kippur.
As I write these words, during Yomim Noraim, the Ten Days of Awe, we can see these parallels between Ha'azinu, the 120 years before the Flood, the 120 years of Moses' life, as well as the repentance and renewal during the Ten Days of Awe leading up to Yom Kippur. For example, the aforementioned phrase, "on this very day," appears in the description of the first Yom Kippur:
"And this shall be to you for an eternal decree: in the seventh month, on the tenth of the month, you shall afflict your souls, and you shall not do any work, neither the native nor the proselyte who dwells among you. For on this very day, He shall provide atonement for you to cleanse you; from all your sins before the Lord, you shall be cleansed." - Leviticus 16:29-30
All of these timely connections are a reminder of the limited time we have in this life and the importance of seizing the opportunity for repentance, renewal, and our drawing closer to HaShem during the sacred period of the High Holy Days.
We also pray, during this time, for the continued miracle of God's protective hand over the people of Israel whose enemies, more than ever, threaten the existence of the Jewish State. We can rest in the promises of HaShem. Here, the words of the prophet are reminiscent of Moses' mention of rain in Ha'azinu...
"And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to celebrate Sukkoth. If any of the peoples of the earth do not go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord Almighty, they will have no rain"
- Zechariah 14:16-17
Rav Raphael Samson Hirsch reminds us, "The treatment accorded Israel will be the yardstick by which allegiance to God is measured." Finally, when the nations cease to mistreat the Jewish People, the Kingdom of God will emerge on the earth.
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