Davarim-Chap-10
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Remember the following truth from our beloved Torah!
“Ye shall NOT ADD TO THE WORD which I command you, NEITHER SHALL YE DIMINISH FROM IT, that ye may keep the commandments of יְהוָה
אֱלֹהֵיכֶם - the LORD your Eloleichem, which I command you”. Davarim -
Deuteronomy 4:2.
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With Rabbi, Dr. Reuven Ben
Avraham-Goossens, PhD.
An overview of Davarim - Deuteronomy chapter 10 centres on ‘covenant renewal’, ‘moral transformation’, and the ‘ethical heart of Torah’. The chapter revisits Israel’s sad failure with that hideous ‘Golden Calf’, but its deeper purpose is to show how ‘Divine justice’ and Divine compassion coexist’, and how Israel is called to embody both.
Davarim - Deuteronomy chapter 10 stands at a turning point in Moses’ final address. After recounting the rupture caused by the ‘Golden Calf’ incident, Moses shifts from rebuke to reconstruction. The chapter is not merely ‘historical’; it is ‘pastoral’. It teaches that people who have failed can ‘return’, ‘rebuild’, and ‘recommit’. It also articulates one of the Torah’s most profound ethical visions: a אֱלֹהִים - Elohim who loves the stranger, demands ‘justice’, and asks Israel to cultivate ‘a heart capable of reflecting that Divine character’.
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Let us first read Davarim
- Deuteronomy Chapter 10:
(JPS-1917 version of the Torah).
1. At that time יְהוָה - the LORD said unto me: ‘Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first, and come up unto Me into the mount; and make thee an ark of wood. 2. And I will write on the tables the words that were on the first tables which thou didst break, and thou shalt put them in the ark’. 3. So I made an ark of acacia-wood, and hewed two tables of stone like unto the first, and went up into the mount, having the two tables in my hand. 4. And He wrote on the tables according to the first writing, the ten words, which יְהוָה - the LORD spoke unto you in the mount out of the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly; and יְהוָה - the LORD gave them unto me. 5. And I turned and came down from the mount, and put the tables in the ark which I had made; and there they are, as יְהוָה - the LORD commanded me. 6. And the children of Israel journeyed from Beeroth-benejaakan to Moserah; there Aaron died, and there he was buried; and Eleazar his son ministered in the priest’s office in his stead. 7. From thence they journeyed unto Gudgod; and from Gudgod to Jotbah, a land of brooks of water. 8. At that time יְהוָה - the LORD separated the tribe of Levi, to bear the ark of the covenant of יְהוָה - the LORD, to stand before יְהוָה - the LORD to minister unto Him, and to bless in His Name, unto this day. 9. Wherefore Levi hath no portion nor inheritance with his brethren; יְהוָה - the LORD is his inheritance, according as יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ - the LORD thy Eloheicha spoke unto him. 10. Now I stayed in the mount, as at the first time, forty days and forty nights; and יְהוָה - the LORD hearkened unto me that time also; יְהוָה - the LORD would not destroy thee. 11. And יְהוָה - the LORD said unto me: ‘Arise, go before the people, causing them to set forward, that they may go in and possess the land, which I swore unto their fathers to give unto them’. 12. And now, Israel, what doth יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ - the LORD thy Eloheicha require of thee, but to fear יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ - the LORD thy Eloheicha, to walk in all His ways, and to love Him, and to serve יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ - the LORD thy Eloheicha with all thy heart and with all thy soul; 13. to keep for thy good the commandments of יְהוָה - the LORD, and His statutes, which I command thee this day? 14. Behold, unto יְהוָה - the LORD thy Elohim belongeth the heaven, and the heaven of heavens, the earth, with all that therein is. 15. Only יְהוָה - the LORD had a delight in thy fathers to love them, and He chose their seed after them, even you, above all peoples, as it is this day. 16. Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no more stiff-necked. 17. For יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם - the LORD your Eloheichem, He is אֱלֹהִים of gods, and יְהוָה - LORD of lords, the great אֱלֹהִים, the mighty, and the awful, who regardeth not persons, nor taketh reward. 18. He doth execute justice for the fatherless and widow, and loveth the stranger, in giving him food and raiment. 19. Love ye therefore the stranger; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt. 20. Thou shalt fear יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ - the LORD thy Eloheicha; Him shalt thou serve; and to Him shalt thou cleave, and by His Name shalt thou swear. 21. He is thy glory, and יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ - He is thy Eloheicha, that hath done for thee these great and tremendous things, which thine eyes have seen. 22. Thy fathers went down into Egypt with threescore and ten persons; and now יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ - the LORD thy Eloheicha hath made thee as the stars of heaven for multitude.
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The second tablets and the Ark (vv. 1-5):
The command to carve new tablets signals that the covenant is not destroyed by human failure. אֱלֹהִים initiates renewal, but Moses must carve the stone Divine forgiveness requires human participation. The Ark becomes the vessel of restored relationship, symbolizing that Torah must be both protected and carried.
The journey and the death of Aaron (vv. 6-7):
These brief travel notes, including Aaron’s death, remind the reader that leadership is mortal but the covenantal mission continues. The priesthood transitions to Eleazar, underscoring continuity despite loss.
The Levites’ role (vv. 8-9):
The Levites are set apart for service, blessing, and carrying the Ark. Their lack of territorial inheritance highlights a spiritual truth: some forms of service require freedom from material entanglement. Their “portion” is אֱלֹהִים an idea that later becomes a metaphor for spiritual vocation.
אֱלֹהִים- Elohim’s acceptance of Moses’ intercession (v. 10):
Moses’ forty days of prayer emphasize that intercession is not symbolic; it is transformative. The covenant is restored because Moses stands between אֱלֹהִים and Israel with persistence and love. This models a leadership rooted in responsibility rather than authority.
What אֱלֹהִים asks of Israel (vv. 12-13):
These verses form a concise theology of mitzvot:
Fear אֱלֹהִים - cultivate awe.
Walk in His ways - imitate Divine attributes.
Love אֱלֹהִים - relationship, not mere obedience.
Serve אֱלֹהִים - action flowing from devotion.
Keep the commandments - the structure that sustains the relationship.
This is not a list of burdens but a framework for flourishing.
אֱלֹהִים - Elohim’s universal sovereignty and particular love (vv. 14–15):
Heaven and earth belong to אֱלֹהִים, yet אֱלֹהִיi “set His heart” on Israel’s ancestors. The text holds universalism and particularism together: אֱלֹהִים is the אֱלֹהִים of all, yet covenant is intimate and specific.
“Circumcise the foreskin of your heart”. (v. 16):
This is one of the Torah’s most radical metaphors. It calls for removing spiritual calluses ‘defensiveness’, ‘stubbornness’, ‘ego’ that block ‘compassion’ and ‘responsiveness’. The physical sign of the covenant becomes an inner ethical demand.
אֱלֹהִים - Eloh’s character as ethical model (vv. 17–19):
אֱלֹהִים is described as: Great, mighty, and awesome. Unbribable, Champion of the orphan and widow. Lover of the stranger
Israel is commanded to love the stranger because they were strangers. Memory becomes moral obligation. Divine power is expressed not in domination but in justice for the vulnerable.
Fear, service, and praise (vv. 20–21):
Israel’s identity is rooted in relationship: “He is your praise and your אֱלֹהִים”. The chapter moves from ethical instruction to devotional affirmation. Service is not mechanical; it is grounded in gratitude for אֱלֹהִים - Elohim’s saving acts.
The growth of Israel (v. 22)
The closing verse recalls the promise to the patriarchs: from seventy souls to a multitude. It is a reminder that covenantal faithfulness yields generational blessing.
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Davarim - Deuteronomy 10 invites us to see covenant not as a static contract but as a living relationship shaped by ‘memory’, ‘humility’, and ‘ethical responsibility’. It challenges us to ‘refine the heart’, to ‘imitate Divine compassion’, and to build communities where justice for the vulnerable is not optional but essential. In this chapter, Moses teaches that spiritual greatness begins with moral ‘sensitivity’ and that the path back to אֱלֹהִים יְהוָה - the LORD Elohim is always open, בָּרוּךְ שֵׁם קָדוֹשׁוֹ - Baruch Shem Kadosho - Blessed be His Holy Name!
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This site was originally created, for those who desired to return to our blessed and wonderful faith. Thus be wise and work on your faith and pray at least two or three times a day (if possible) and always seek our beloved אֱלֹהִים - Elohim’s guidance, for His love is always with us, especially when we seek Him, blessed be He! However this site has become very much a teaching site with hundreds of studies!
Remember what אֱלֹהִים - Elohim, blessed be
He, said the following, via several of our prophets...
“Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith צְבָאוֹת- יְהוָה- the LORD of hosts”. Mal’a’chi - Malachi 3:7. (JPS).
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שָׁלוֹם
עֲלֵיכֶם - Shalom Aleichem - Peace be with you!
Rabbi, Dr. Reuven Ben Avraham-Goossens, PhD.
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