Dear ,
Parashas V’Zot HaBeracha, the
final portion of the Torah, opens with an odd line: “And this is the blessing with which Moshe, the man of God, blessed the children of Israel before his death.” The blessing itself begins in the next verse, so why the introduction? The Or HaChaim sees in this verse a treasure of spiritual lessons. Moshe has just been told that he will not enter the land, yet his last act is not resentment but love. The Torah’s “and” connects his own disappointment to the blessing that follows, praising a leader
who responds to life’s greatest “no” with generosity.
The Torah calls this “the” blessing, not just “a” blessing. The Or HaChaim teaches that Moshe’s final words were the most elevated blessing ever given to Israel. Avraham, Yitzchak and
Yaakov blessed their children, but Moshe’s farewell is unique in its completeness. Only here is he called “the man of God,” a title earned by someone whose entire being is aligned with the Divine. Moshe didn’t just predict the future; he lived in a state of pure judgment. The verse notes that he blessed them “before his death” to show that his heart remained pure even in his final moments.
Next, the Or HaChaim turns to the tribe of Levi. Moshe prays that the Tumim and Urim—the mysterious devices through which the Kohen Gadol received Divine messages—should rest with “Your faithful one.” Why reference the trials at Massah and Merivah in a blessing? Because, explains the Or HaChaim, only those who stand firm in times of doubt and
conflict are worthy of carrying Divine clarity. At Massah, when the people questioned Hashem’s presence, Levi stayed loyal. At Merivah, when anger flared, Levi held the line. Moshe even reverses the usual order to say “Tumim and Urim.” Wholeness (tumim) comes before illumination (urim); integrity precedes insight.
Finally, the Torah closes with a stunning statement: “No prophet arose again in Israel like Moshe, whom Hashem knew face to face.” The Or HaChaim teaches that this is not a discouragement but a direction. Moshe’s soul was created from a higher realm, enabling him to experience an unparalleled intimacy with Hashem. His face-to-face relationship was necessary to transmit the Torah without distortion. Others, like Bilaam,
had flashes of clarity, but only Moshe maintained an ongoing, reciprocal closeness. The Torah ends here to remind us that although we can’t reach his level, we can follow his path—serving with humility, faith and unwavering love.
These three
teachings converge into a single message: greatness is forged when we respond to disappointment with blessing, when we seek wholeness before clarity, and when we strive for intimacy with Hashem knowing that the journey itself sanctifies. As we read the end of the Torah and prepare to begin again, may we carry Moshe’s final lessons into our lives—blessing others generously, standing firm in trials, and walking our path with faith.
Find the full PDF attached to this email!
