May my discourse come down as the rain,
My speech distill as the dew,
Like showers on young growth,
Like droplets on the grass.
D’varim / Deuteronomy 32:2
Sifre D’varim (1) is inspired by Moshe’s imagery in his teaching especially the four different terms representing precipitation.
The Torah is comparable to rain. Just as rain is life to the world, so words of Torah are life to the world… Just as rain is one and it descends onto the trees, it imparts to each a distinct aspect: to the grapevine, in accordance with its nature; to the olive tree, in accordance with its nature; and to the fig tree, in accordance with its nature. So too, words of Torah are one and they impart to every individual a distinct aspect.
Cha”zal, our sages of blessed memory, express two powerful ideas rooted in Moshe’s metaphor, the first being the essential nature of Torah as the lifeblood of the Jewish people, and indeed the world. Divine messages regarding the sanctity of Creation and the role of human beings as divine stewards, as well as being builders of a moral and ethical society based on sacred scripture.
Building on the varied precipitation terminology, Cha”zal note that the need for moisture which varies by species and is met each according to its need, can be analogized to how Torah resonates within each individual according to their personal reality. This echoes the rabbinic teaching that each of us will be touched by a particular mitzvah which becomes a personal reflection of our encounter with Torah and a unique expression of our divine mission as partners with the Holy One.
Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi David M. Eligberg
1 Sifre Devarim. One of three collections of midrash halachah (legal midrash) compiled around the third century, part of the first layer of the Torah Sheh’b’al Peh (Oral Tradition). A line-by-line commentary that derives laws or clarifiies laws based on the biblical verse or a portion thereof. The halakhic midrashim on Numbers and Deuteronomy, though two separate works, were often transmitted together resulting in their being known as “Sifre,” or “Books.” It is important to note that the texts of the two genres of midrash, halachic and aggadic (narrative/homiletic midrash), are defined by the predominance of the genre within that text, instances of the other genre are interwoven into each work.
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