Making Sense of the Sedra: Ha’azinu
A message for our times
The UK appears to be in financial chaos. The country is facing a cost-of-living crisis, inflation has risen sharply, interest rates are at their highest in decades, the stock market has tumbled and the pound has tanked. Some analysts predict that house prices could fall by as much as 20 percent. Coupled with events on the global stage, all the headlines seem to be doom and gloom. We are so consumed by today’s challenges that yesterday’s news appears to be just that – old news. Even the pandemic and Brexit feel like they have faded into the past.
At the same time, there is a sense of history just repeating itself. As we near the end of the Torah, we read in Ha’azinu how Moses prepares the Jewish people for their future without him as leader. An exciting future awaits, as they conclude the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness and stand on the verge of entry into the Promised Land. At this point, Moses offers some final words of advice, “Remember the days of old, consider the years of ages past; ask your parent, who will inform you, your elders, who will tell you…”
What timeless message is being conveyed here?
The Seforno explains that the people are being reminded of God’s righteousness and how He has been proven to be loyal in showering goodness upon the nation. This provided us with the optimum conditions to serve Him joyfully while enjoying all the material advantages that life on earth has to offer. And now He has given us a beautiful country, one flowing with milk and honey, to do this in.
But Moses, the prophet, foresees the danger posed by material wealth and success. Instead of remaining faithful to God as the minimum symbol of appreciation for Divine benevolence, we will forget not only the wilderness years but also the generations who suffered the privations of slavery. The memory of that miraculous freedom will have faded and given way to rebellion, repaying good with evil.
The Chizkuni understands the instruction, “remember the days of old” as Moses’ way of reminding us of a whole list of acts of loving kindness that God has performed for us. We have a duty to take it to heart and to understand that just as God is eternal, so too should be our trust in Him. Markets fluctuate, fortunes are made and lost in the blink of an eye, economies grow at times whilst they experience recession at others. As the saying goes, “Change is the only constant.”
Here Moses’ sage advice is presented in the form of a song. The words are proffered without any harshness but instead are meant to be a sweet melody that should ring in our ears. Material possessions are by their very nature ephemeral; the only permanence we can enjoy is God’s presence and the blessings He confers on our lives.
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