Ki Tavo

[13] In the fourth reading, Moses and the elders charged the people that as soon as they had crossed the Jordan River, they were to set up large stones on Mount Ebal, coat them with plaster, and inscribe on them all the words of the Torah.

[30] God would bring against them a ruthless nation from afar, whose language they would not understand, to devour their cattle and produce of their soil and to shut them up in their towns until every mighty wall in which they trusted had come down.

"[45] The parashah has parallels or is discussed in these Biblical sources:[46] Benjamin Sommer argued that Deuteronomy 12–26 borrowed whole sections from the earlier text of Exodus 21–23.

In Leviticus 21:1–5, God instructed Moses to direct the priests not to allow themselves to become defiled by contact with the dead, except for a mother, father, son, daughter, brother, or unmarried sister.

The parashah has parallels or is discussed in these early nonrabbinic sources:[54] Philo interpreted the curses of Deuteronomy 27:17–18 regarding moving landmarks and misleading the blind to apply allegorically to virtue and vice.

[55] Josephus expounded on the curse in Deuteronomy 27:18 of one who "makes the blind go astray in the way," teaching that one has a duty more generally to show the roads to those who do not know them.

[62] The Mishnah taught that firstfruits were brought only from the Seven Species (שבעת המינים‎, Shiv'at HaMinim) that Deuteronomy 8:8 noted to praise the Land of Israel: wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olive oil, and date honey.

As the procession approached the Temple Court, Levites would sing the words of Psalm 30:2: "I will extol You, O Lord, for You have raised me up, and have not suffered my enemies to rejoice over me.

Rabbi Jacob ben Dostai said that it is about three miles from Lod to Ono, and once he rose early in the morning and waded all that way up to his ankles in fig honey.

[82] Tractates Terumot, Ma'aserot, and Ma'aser Sheni in the Mishnah, Tosefta, and Jerusalem Talmud interpret the laws of tithes in Leviticus 27:30–33, Numbers 18:21–24, and Deuteronomy 14:22–29 and 26:12–14.

[88] In the Sifre, the Sages taught that the time for the removal of tithes specified in Deuteronomy 26:12–13 was the closing Festival day of Passover in the fourth and seventh years.

[96] The Tosefta reported that Rabban Joḥanan ben Zakkai said that Deuteronomy 27:5 singled out iron, of all metals, to be invalid for use in building the altar because one can make a sword from it.

Rabbi Judah replied that God endowed the people of that time with exceptional intelligence, and they sent their scribes, who peeled off the plaster and carried away a copy of the inscription.

The Gemara offered another explanation of the word "attend" (הַסְכֵּת‎, hasket) in Deuteronomy 27:9 to mean, "be silent" (has) listening to the lesson, and then "analyze" (katet), as Rava taught that a person should always first learn Torah, and then scrutinize it.

Rather, Rabbi Judah ben Naḥmani taught that Deuteronomy 27:15 alludes to one who commits adultery and has a son who goes to live among idolaters and worships idols; cursed be the father and mother of this man, as they were the cause of his sinning.

Rav interpreted the words of Deuteronomy 28:6, "Blessed shall you be when you come in," to mean that you would not find your wife in doubt of being a niddah upon returning home from travels.

Rabbi Johanan interpreted the words, "And blessed shall you be in the field," to mean that your estate would be divided into three equal portions of cereals, olives, and vines.

[120] Rabbi Isaac interpreted the words of Deuteronomy 28:3, "Blessed shall you be in the city," to mean that God will reward people for the commandments that they fulfil in the city—the dough offering (חלה‎, challah),[121] the fringes (ציצית‎, tzitzit),[122] the sukkah,[123] and the kindling of Shabbat candles.

Rabbi Ishmael replied that since Joshua 1:8 says, "This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate therein day and night," one might think that one must take this injunction literally (and study Torah every waking moment).

Rava would ask the Rabbis (his disciples) not to appear before him during Nisan (when corn ripened) and Tishrei (when people pressed grapes and olives) so that they might not be anxious about their food supply during the rest of the year.

[142] The heart speaks,[143] sees,[143] hears,[144] walks,[145] falls,[146] stands,[147] rejoices,[148] cries,[149] is comforted,[150] is troubled,[151] becomes hardened,[152] grows faint,[153] grieves,[154] can be broken,[155] becomes proud,[156] rebels,[157] invents,[158] cavils,[159] overflows,[160] devises,[161] desires,[162] goes astray,[163] lusts,[164] is refreshed,[165] can be stolen,[166] is humbled,[167] is enticed,[168] errs,[169] trembles,[170] is awakened,[171] loves,[172] hates,[173] envies,[174] is searched,[175] is rent,[176] meditates,[177] is like a fire,[178] is like a stone,[179] turns in repentance,[180] becomes hot,[181] dies,[182] melts,[183] takes in words,[184] is susceptible to fear,[185] gives thanks,[186] covets,[187] becomes hard,[188] makes merry,[189] acts deceitfully,[190] speaks from out of itself,[191] loves bribes,[192] writes words,[193] plans,[194] receives commandments,[195] acts with pride,[196] makes arrangements,[197] and aggrandizes itself.

Rabbi Simeon ben Jose replied that one should not wonder at this, as amianthus (a kind of asbestos) is cleansed only by fire, and as their clothes were made in heaven, the cloud rubbed against them without damaging them.

It is repeated in the Prophets in Joshua 1:8, "This book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate therein day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written therein; for then you shall make your ways prosperous, and then you shall have good success."

[204] The parashah is discussed in these medieval Jewish sources:[205] Maimonides counted it a positive commandment for one to make a declaration in the Temple concerning the first fruits when they were brought.

Maimonides reasoned that Abraham taught the people, brought many under the wings of the Divine Presence, and ordered members of his household after him to keep God's ways forever.

Maimonides argued that whoever holds back from this rejoicing deserves retribution, as Deuteronomy 28:47 states, "Because you did not serve God, Your Lord, with happiness and a glad heart with an abundance of prosperity."

[216] Robert Oden compared Deuteronomy 26:5–9, which he dated to 1100 BCE, in which he identified three themes (1) an ancient Patriarch Jacob, (2) the Exodus from Egypt, and (3) the conquest of the Land of Israel, to Nehemiah 9, which he dated to the 4th century BCE, in which he identified six themes, (1) creation, (2) the Patriarch Abraham, (3) a massively expanded Exodus story, (4) Moses and the reception of the Law, (5) wandering and rebelling in the Wilderness, and (6) the conquest.

[217] Reading the confessional recital in Deuteronomy 26:5, "A wandering Aramean was my father," John Bright wrote that a tradition so deeply rooted was unlikely to be without foundation.

The expression evoked a general sense of the bounty of the land and suggested an ecological richness exhibited in several ways, not just with milk and honey.

Plaut taught that the Torah promises and threatens based on the realistic assumption that, while pure love of God and the commandments is the highest rung, such devotion for its own sake can be scaled only by the very few, while the majority will need earthly rewards and punishments held up before their eyes.