Audio Summaries of the daily Chumash portions In loving memory of Ousher Zelig ben Myer HaLevi Z”L
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G-d's Revenge
Moshe continues with his song, speaking on behalf of G-d who said that His anger will bring Him to make an oath to himself that He will avenge His adversaries by shifting away from his attribute of mercy to his attribute of jugement.
G-d says that He will intoxicate His arrows with the blood of the enemy and their flesh will be consumed by His sword. This will all be punishment for their attacks on Israel - regarding those they killed and took captive. They will be punished not only for their sins but for the very first act of harm they did against Israel. As it is G-d's way to punish the nations of the world not only for their sins, but for those of their ancestors as well.
The song then goes on to describe how after G-d punishes the nations, avenging the blood of Israel, and appeases Israel for their suffering, these nations will then praise Israel for having attached themselves to G-d throughout all of their suffering and still appreciate His goodness.
Rashi now comments this entire section which encompasses verses 28-43. While Rashi had explained verses 28-32 as referring to Israel's enemies and verse 33-43 as referring to Israel, Rashi notes that according to Rabbi Yehudah, this entire section of verses is referring to Israel as a rebuke for them going away from G-d's Torah while Rabbi Nechemia understood the whole section to be referring to the other nations, as a way of describing how they lack guidance.
Rashi now backtracks from verse 32 onwards (which he had already commentated upon in the previous aliya for this week) and explains this section according to Rabbi Nechemia's understanding that it is all about the other nations.
The vines of the other nations are likened to Sodom and their fields to Gemorrah, in that they don't attribute any of their greatness to G-d. Their anger against Israel poisoned them and made them bitter so in exchange their grape clusters and wine will be bitter and they will be forced to eat these bitter grapes and drink this bitter wine.
Eventually these wicked people will fall and when He sees that the enemy nations are growing, G-d will plead on behalf of Israel.
At that time, the nations will ask where Israel's G-d is and they will be shamed by seeing G-d's righteousness when He reveals that He is the source of good and evil that befalls them.
While G-d has the power to punish the nations immediately, He will wait to punish future generations as He is eternal. Also, while a mortal king rushes to exact revenge so that neither he nor his enemy dies before he does so, G-d is immortal and is capable of punishing both the living and dead, so He is not in a rush to exact revenge.
Ha'azinu, 6th Aliya