This Week’s Torah Portion: Nitzavim – נִצָּבִים (Deuteronomy 29:9–30:20)
“You stand this day, all of you, before your God יהוה —your tribal heads, your elders, and your officials, every household in Israel, your children, your wives, even the stranger within your camp, from woodchopper to water drawer” (Deuteronomy 29:9-10)
This section is so important, we read it not only when it is the Torah portion, but also on Yom Kippur.
It is the most profound statement of inclusion and equality before God.
It stresses how diverse we are as a people standing before God, everyone included equally.
Parsha Nitzavim – נִצָּבִים Torah Summary:
Moses tells the assembled people that God’s covenant speaks to them and to all of the generations who will follow. (29:9–14)
God warns the Israelites that they will be punished if they act idolatrously, the way the inhabitants of the other nations do. (29:15–28)
Moses reassures the people that God will not forsake them and that they can attain blessings by following God’s commandments. (30:1–20) Nitzavim – נִצָּבִים
“You stand this day, all of you, before your God יהוה —your tribal heads, your elders, and your officials, every household in Israel, your children, your wives, even the stranger within your camp, from woodchopper to water drawer” (Deuteronomy 29:9-10)
This section is so important, we read it not only when it is the Torah portion, but also on Yom Kippur.
It is the most profound statement of inclusion and equality before God.
It stresses how diverse we are as a people standing before God, everyone included equally.
