“We made it!” sounds like the words you shouted out upon your arrival somewhere. It could be what you said when you got to your vacation destination. It could be what you said it when you closed on your new house. Or, it could be what you said when you got the key to the corner office. “We made it!” are words that express an exciting time in your life and it’s filled with nearly unbridled enthusiasm. Imagine then, in this week’s Torah portion, Ki Tavo, (Deuteronomy 26) when the Israelites are given instructions about the day they enter the Promised Land.
We read in Torah, “When you enter the land that the Lord your God is giving you as a heritage…you shall take some of the very first fruit of the soil, which you harvest from the land…put it in a basket…and go to the priest in charge and say to him, ‘I acknowledge this day before the Lord your God that I have entered the land that the Lord swore to our ancestors to assign us.’” With extraordinary joy and relief, someone among them must have been prepared to exclaim, “We made it!” But, the Torah doesn’t record that they would shout for joy or call themselves unbelievably lucky. They didn’t traverse the wilderness as a stiff-necked people behind the meandering path of Moses so they could do an end-zone shuffle on the other side of the Jordan. Here’s what they would do instead.
Torah records that their first instruction was to give thanks to God, with offerings of their first fruits. Their second instruction was to recall the heritage of their ancestor, a fugitive Aramean, who went down to Egypt, and who, as a populous nation, was redeemed by God “by a mighty hand, by an outstretched arm and awesome power.” And, only then were they instructed (Deut 26:11), “You shall enjoy all the bounty that the Lord your God has bestowed upon you and your household.”
The instruction by Moses to the Israelites was filled with great anticipation of the promise that God made to their ancestors and would fulfill with them. And the promise would be celebrated first with thanks and praise to God, then recognition of their heritage, and finally, permission to enjoy what they inherited. In the Hebrew, “to enjoy” is samachta, from the same root at simcha, joy and gladness. Now, close your eyes and imagine for a moment the Israelites entering the Promised Land, giving thanks to God, acknowledging their past, and then celebrating all the goodness before them, a land flowing with milk and honey. Or, imagine again the date in 1948, when the Land of Israel was recognized as a State. These are truly times when the Jewish people has said in different ways and in grateful words, “We made it!”
Now, keep your eyes closed and imagine the place you have reached in your life. Take a moment. How do you give thanks to God? What are the first fruits that you bring as an offering? Who do you remember who helped you arrive at the place you now occupy? What heritage enabled you to embrace your good fortune? And, finally, how have you celebrated your inheritance, your veritable Promised Land? Samachta, you’re commanded to enjoy it. But, appropriately, you’re commanded to enjoy it only after you give thanks for it. It wouldn’t be right otherwise. As Shabbat begins and the New Year comes, give thanks to God, recall the time and place from whence you came, and enjoy the bounty of your life and its blessings.
From my desk to yours, Shabbat Shalom.
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