Before he died, Moses delivered an epic speech to the people of Israel ā a speech that we know today as the Book of Deuteronomy. Mosesā final message to his people contains many of the most powerful, frightening and deeply inspirational verses in the Bible. During the months leading up to the High Holidays, the holy days of Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) and Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement), the Jewish people traditionally read the Book of Deuteronomy, for its powerful messages encourage us to repent and return to God.
But sometimes Mosesā great speech is an emotional rollercoaster.
This week, Jews throughout the world will read Mosesā recounting of the sin of the Golden Calf. Moses holds no punches; his description of the peopleās shameful sin is direct and painful:
The people of Israel, Moses makes clear, are ārebels against Godā ā and they always have been! Itās hard to imagine more painful words than this. And yet, only a few verses later, Moses radically changes his tone:
āGod loves you!ā says Moses to the people ā ājust as He loved your forefathers!ā Moses emphasizes that Godās great love for His people continues even now, even after the sin of the golden calf.
What are we to make of this? Why does Moses excoriate the people as rebels, only to remind them of Godās great love for them a few verses later?
āThe great virtue of religion, of course, is not so much its ability to help men succeed, although, of course, it can help them succeed. The great virtue of religion lies in its ability to console men in the midst of failure, to permit them to function even in the midst of despairā (Michael Beran, The Last Patrician: Bobby Kennedy and the End of American Aristocracy).
The Bible is Godās guidebook for how to live a holy life. By following Godās commandments, we become holy and moral people who can rise to heights even greater than that of angels. But the Bible does not only teach us how to live a holy life; it also gives us strength and comfort when we fail to live up to its teachings.
When Moses tore into the people of Israel, rebuking them for their sins, he had a clear goal in mind. He was really saying: āPeople of Israel ā you are capable of so much more than this! You can and must live a life of holiness!ā The Bible is no refuge for those who wish to live a comfortably mediocre life.
But within a few verses, Mosesā tone and message changed. He reminded them that God loved them ā even now, even after all their sins. Yes ā the Bible is a guidebook for holy living, but it is more than that. It is a testament to Godās eternal love.
May we never stop fighting for holiness and doing our very best to live up to Godās holy word. But at the same, may we always remember that even if we fail ā as we inevitably will ā God will continue to love us.
