Vayelech: The Song
Deuteronomy 31:1-30 In spite of everything, the song was never forgotten.
We read in parshat Vayelech the following
Now therefore write ye this song for you, and teach thou it the children of Israel; put it in their mouths, that this song may be a witness for Me against the children of Israel. (Deut 31: 18-19)
G-d's word, the Bible, has been described in many ways. Some refer to it as the Law, some refer to it as the Teaching, and many describe it as a way of life, a belief system.
Hashem describes it as a”song”:
And Moses came and spoke all the words of this song in the ears of the people (Deuteronomy 32:44)
If you hear only one part of a song, you will not completely understand it. Even if you miss one word, the song will not be intact.A song impresses the listener with the words but also with the rhyme, the meter, and the melody. It moves the listener to connect with feelings left unspoken; it moves us with pauses that beckon for more. A song hearkens to what was and whispers to what is yet to be.
In all these ways, G-d's song is destined to be a witness for the people of Israel and through them, for all of humanity. The song will need to be sung during difficult times, where the strength to sing may ebb, as well as when silence is needed. It is that song and melody therefore that has sustained this people through difficult and tumultuous time.
Hashem understands the difficult voyage that the people of Israel are about to embark on and declares the following:
And HaShem said to Moses: Behold, you are [about to] lie with your forefathers, and this nation will rise up and stray after the deities of the nations of the land, into which they are coming. And they will forsake Me and violate My covenant which I made with them. And My fury will rage against them on that day, and I will abandon them and hide My face from them, .. And now, write for yourselves this song, and teach it to the Children of Israel. Place it into their mouths, in order that this song will be for Me as a witness for the children of Israel.( Deuteronomy 31 :16-19)
It was truly difficult to sing the song in the midst of those turbulent and painful years of exile. :”How can we sing the songs of HaShem while in a foreign land?(Psalm 137:4)”
Yet it would be those difficulties and hardship that would prove to be a powerful witness to the world. The Malbim writes” Thus the prediction that the people of Israel will abandon the Torah and will be punished for their sins, serves as a "witness" both for the people and for G-d. For the people, that they have been forewarned of the consequences of their deeds. And for G-d, that He should not be too harsh on them, since He Himself foresaw it all and said, "For I know their inclination, and what they do, even now, before I have brought them into the land of which I promised..."
Yet in spite of all that, the song was never forgotten.
And it will be, when they will encounter many evils and troubles, this song will bear witness against them, for it will not be forgotten from the mouth of their offspring." ( ibid :21)
As the world goes through its difficult upheavals and as the people of Israel learn to face greater and greater hatred and opposition, “the song” will always be their witness. That melody and the words of that song will not only be remembered by the people of Israel. It will in fact impact many G-d fearing people of the world. It will move them to stand alongside the Jewish people against all the designs of the UN and the others with malicious intent.
That Song of HaShem will help to direct the world towards the destiny and forward along the “ plan” that has been put into place from the beginning of time.
“When HaShem brought back the captives to Zion, we were like men who dreamed. Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, "HaShem has done great things for them." HaShem has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy. ( psalm 126 :1-4)
