Devarim 5758 – Gilayon #41


Shabbat Shalom The weekly parsha commentary – parshat Devarim


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Parshat Devarim


War Against the Slave Ethic


Gitit Nahaliel-Rotberg

This week's Torah portion Devarim is the first section of Deuteronomy. Throughout
this book Moses, prior to his death, addresses the Israelites who are about to enter
the Land of Israel. Deuteronomy consists mostly of ethical teachings and accounts of
the Israelites' conquests before their entry to the Land of Israel. Moses recounts
events of the recent past to teach the Israelites ethical lessons. Moses is fully aware
that he will not lead the Israelites into the Land of Israel and is fearful of the moral
decline that will face them after his death. The narration of the Israelites' conquests
is intended to strengthen the Israelites and prevent such a moral collapse.
The main part of this Torah portion contains descriptions of the Israelites' conflicts
with other peoples since their departure from Egypt until their entry to the Land of
Israel. Each of these struggles relates to war in some way. Some of them are
full-fledged wars while others are encounters which did not result in war following
G-d's command to avoid war.

Devarim is not the only Torah portion that deals with war-related issues. All of
Deuteronomy, in general, deals with war and associated laws and principles. The
subject of war is the forum for ethical teachings given by Moses. In Deuteronomy we
learn about the obligation to call for peace before declaring war (Deuteronomy 20:10),
when to destroy an entire city and when the male population should be killed
(Deuteronomy 20:12), regulations when taking women captive during war
(Deuteronomy 21:10), and the prohibition against cutting down fruit trees during a
siege (Deuteronomy 20:19).

Why is Moses so afraid of the moral decay of the Israelites especially during the time
of war? Moses, a leader who understands the Israelites well and is sensitive to its
moral character, is apprehensive that the Israelites will lack the necessary ethical
reserve without his presence. He is particularly fearful that this lack might be
detrimental to the Israelites during times of war.

The Israelites about to set foot in the Land of Israel are children of slaves, raised and
educated by the generation that left Egypt. This previous generation was born into
and reared in cruel conditions of slavery. This generation experienced the totality of
slavery with no legal process and where power of the master over his/her slaves had
no constraints.

The institution of slavery is based on maintaining power. The strong party, whether
the strength is based on physical or economic conditions, abuses its power to enslave
the weak elements in society. These conditions adversely affect both those in power
and those enslaved. The "slave ethic" can then develop among the slave population
and has two facets. In the eyes of the slave the world based on the exercise of
power. When the enslaved person is able to gain power, he/she then abuses it. With
the second component of the "slave ethic," slaves feel that since they were exploited
and abused in the past, they are always right even when they gain power and
consequently abuse this power towards others.

The idea of the slave ethic appears throughout the Bible. The first aspect of the slave
ethic, abuse of power, is mentioned in the Bible in expressions such as "For three
things the earth doth quake and for four it cannot endure: For a servant when he
reigneth…" (Proverbs 30:21-22) and "Slaves are ruling over us, there is none to
deliver us out of their hand (Lamentations 5:8). The second aspect of the slave ethic,
the feeling of constant deprivation, is expressed in the many warnings to the Israelites
not to abuse their power in their relations towards the weak. The justification of these
warnings is "For you were strangers in the Land of Egypt." Beyond the literal
meaning of this verse is just the reason that G-d fears the Israelites might oppress
the stranger. Since we ourselves were slaves, we might abuse our power and feel
vulnerable yet upright in this situation.

The "slave ethic" especially manifests itself during times of war. War demands the
use of power in order to defeat the enemy. This situation is even true in
circumstances where war is justified and its aims are honorable. Having power can
lead to ethical decay for anyone particularly when an individual has been raised in
conditions where power forms the basis for relations between individuals in the
society. To combat these influences Moses gives laws to the Israelites to limit their
use of power and their abuse of power towards the weak.

The conflicts mentioned in this Torah portion reflect the ideological battle Moses
wages with the "slave ethic." In three cases of confrontation in this week's Torah
portion, crossing through the border of Moab, Seir, and Ammon, the Israelites are
commanded not to provoke these peoples and not to make war with them. In the
fourth struggle, the conflict with Sihon, although G-d commands Moses to wage war
and is explicit about the certainty of war, Moses still sends angels to Sihon with words
of peace.

In his account of these four events, Moses is attempting to teach the Israelites that
even in periods of conquest and war, war should be initiated only if it is absolutely
necessary and all alternatives have been used. Using power to achieve the ultimate
goal is deplored. Even when war seems unavoidable and the opposing side does not
respond to a call for peace, the search for peace must first be exhausted.


Moses was especially very concerned about moral decay among the Israelites before
they entered the Land of Israel because he knew they would possess sovereignty
over their own land. Sovereignty translates into power, which means the opportunity
to manage their own lives, the occasion to initiate war against other peoples, and the
possibility of ruling over other peoples. Abuse of this power can lead to moral
corruption in relations between social and economic classes as well as with other
peoples.

This week's Haftorah portion provides an example of the abuse of power. Isaiah
describes the ruling class exploiting the weaker members of society – orphans,
widows, and the poor. The people, however, carefully uphold the religious rituals
including bringing sacrifices to the Holy Temple and observing the holidays. These
ornate religious ceremonies perpetuate the institutions of power and social injustice.
They also cleanse the consciences of those in power, who are naturally the wealthy
and ruling classes and who instill in the people a belief in their righteous conduct and
spiritual loftiness. For this reason, Isaiah strongly condemned those Israelites who
used the prayers and ceremonies to perpetuate their power while in reality they were
in such a state of deep spiritual corruption. Isaiah's description of hands full of blood
reaching upwards in prayer is a powerful and shocking image.

This week's Torah and Haftorah portions are read on the Shabbat before Tisha B'Av.
The Sages viewed Tisha B'Av as a day when we should conduct ourselves as Moses
did in the book of Deuteronomy. We should learn lessons from the past and do our
own national soul-searching based on these lessons. Our situation today, since
leaving conditions of "slavery" in the Diaspora when we were ruled by other peoples
and gaining our "freedom" with a sovereign state, is similar to the Israelites when they
left Egypt and became a sovereign nation dwelling on its own land. On this Tisha
B'Av, we should, then, examine our conduct as a sovereign nation with its own land
and be inspired by the battles Moses and Isaiah waged with the "slave ethic."


Gitit Nahliel-Rotberg is a rabbinical pleader.