Illustration Credit: Elad Lifshitz, Dov Abramson Studio
Commentary פַּרְשָׁנוּת
What does it mean that God will make us “the head, and not the tail”?
Here are two ways to understand it.
This pasuk is the source for the custom to place a fish head on your table on Rosh Hashanah!
R. Shimshon Raphael Hirsch (Germany, 150 years ago)
By the amazing blessing bestowed on you by God as a result of your keeping the mitzvot, you will draw the eyes of the nations, so that they will recognize your example as worthy of copying you. You will lead them as an example, but you will not feel compelled to imitate them.
- R. Hirsch thinks that being at the “head” means to be a leader among all the nations of the world. People who aren’t Jewish will see the good acts of the Jewish people and will want to copy Jewish practices. Not being a “tail” means that we won’t want to copy what other people do. We’ll be leaders, not followers.
- In this understanding, the “head” refers to the Jewish people being leaders - an example for other people to follow. Why do you think it’s a good thing for others to copy Judaism and for Jews not to copy others?
- People sometimes feel differently about their own traditions based on how they think others will view them. What do you think - should it matter? How would you feel about your Jewish practices if you knew everyone wanted to copy them? How would you feel if no one wanted to copy them? Do you think this is part of the blessing here?
- Can you think of things that our non-Jewish friends might see about Judaism and want to copy and do for themselves? Why would they want to copy these things?
- Look at the previous pasuk: וְהִלְוִיתָ גּוֹיִם רַבִּים וְאַתָּה לֹא תִלְוֶה (You will lend to many nations, but you won’t borrow). How does this context support R. Hirsch’s reading?
וּנְתָנְךָ יהוה לְרֹאשׁ - פֵּרוּשׁ שֶׁיִּהְיוּ יִשְׂרָאֵל תַּחַת מֶמְשֶׁלֶת רֹאשׁ הָעוֹלָם שֶׁהוּא אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל
וְלֹא לְזָנָב - שֶׁהֵם שָׂרֵי מַעְלָה…
“God will make you the head” means that the Jewish people should be directly under the rule of the Head of the World, Who is the God of Israel, “and not the tail” - not under the rule of angels...
According to Or Ha-Hayyim, being ruled by angels might sound cool, but it would mean that God is not directly involved in our lives and that we’d be distant from God. The blessing here of being at the “head” represents the closeness to God we get when we keep God’s mitzvot.
- In this understanding, the “head” is God, not the Jews. Can you find evidence from the pasuk to suggest that we are not the head, but we serve the Head?
- Look at the next pasuk (Devarim 28:14). How does this verse support Or Ha-Hayyim’s reading?
- Why is it better to have a direct connection to God and to have God directly in our lives? What would be lost if we didn’t have that? What can we do to make sure we have a direct connection to God? What are some of the things (besides angels) that might get in the way of that?
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