Parshah Ki Tavo
TL;DR of the Text
Moses instructs the Israelites on the first things they’re to do when they enter the Land, then prophecies future blessings and curses for them.
Major Themes
Genocide and victim mentality
*Important attribution note: All quotes listed in this article are credited to the Artscroll Stone Edition Chumash. Here is an Extremely Clear Citation so I don’t get in trouble: Nosson Scherman, Hersh Goldwurm, Avie Gold, & Meir Zlotowitz. (2015). The Chumash: the Torah, Haftaros and Five Megillos. Mesorah Publications, Ltd.
Deuteronomy 26:1-6*
“It will be when you enter the Land that Hashem, your God, gives you as an inheritance… that you shall take of the first of every fruit of the ground that you bring in from your Land that Hashem, your God, gives you, and you shall put it in a basket…
You shall come to whoever will be the Kohen in those days, and you shall say to him, ‘I declare today to Hashem, your God, that I have come to the Land that Hashem sowre to our forefathers to give us…
Then you shall call out and say before Hashem, your God, ‘An Aramean tried to destroy my forefather. He descended to Egypt and sojourned there, few in number, and there he became a nation - great, strong, and numerous. The Egyptians mistreated us and afflicted us, and placed hard work upon us.” Imagine. You’ve trekked through the desert for forty years, constantly worried about being massacred by your leaders for things like falling in love with a non-Jewish woman, or daring to complain about the conditions. You finally make it to the land you’re supposed to conquer, and you’ve managed to successfully genocide the existing population. And, of course, because the aforementioned things are apparently a cause for celebration, you’re ready to celebrate.
How do you celebrate? Well, it should go without saying that the very first thing you do is recite your list of grudges (even if you happen to have already genocided the people you hold grudges against, too.)
Genocidal regimes always hinge on the seemingly irreconcilable combination of victim mentality plus delusions of ultimate strength. Israel is no different.
*Again with the Extremely Clear Citation so I don’t get in trouble: Nosson Scherman, Hersh Goldwurm, Avie Gold, & Meir Zlotowitz. (2015). The Chumash : the Torah, Haftaros and Five Megillos. Mesorah Publications, Ltd.
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