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Why did Klal Yisrael accept Torah (תורה) Shebichsav at Har Sinai but resist Torah Shebaal Peh until Purim (פורים)? The shiur builds on the Midrash Tanchuma (Parshas Noach) that Torah Shebichsav means following Hashem (ה׳)'s directives, while Torah Shebaal Peh demands taking personal responsibility—developing halacha (הלכה), creating Torah, and owning the relationship. The curses of this week's parsha are not about the relationship failing; they are about us, showing that Hashem's entire demand—even the responsibility of Torah Shebaal Peh—is for our growth, not His need.
The shiur opens with a difficult Tosafos (תוספות) in Megillah explaining why we read Parshas Ki Savo the week before Rosh Hashanah rather than immediately before it: to create a "break" between the curses and the Yom HaDin. Yet Parshas Nitzavim-Vayeilech is itself filled with graphic warnings—sulfur, brimstone, the fate of Sedom and Amorah. How does this constitute a respite? And why does the pasuk say "lo bashamayim hi"—implying it would have made sense for the Torah (תורה) to be in heaven or across the sea? Rav Zweig explains that Rashi (רש"י) on this week's parsha holds the key. When Klal Yisrael heard the curses of Ki Savo, their faces turned white—they felt they could not survive such a covenant. Moshe comforted them by saying, "You are all standing here today; you angered Hashem (ה׳) and He did not destroy you." This seems to undermine the entire threat system: if Hashem does not carry out His warnings, the whole structure of discipline collapses. But the answer is deeper. The curses of Ki Savo (referred to as "HaTorah HaZos," feminine, referring to the Torah itself) concerned the relationship—the bris of Torah Shebaal Peh, the infinite, demanding partnership in which we are responsible to develop halacha (הלכה), create Torah, and take achrayus. The curses of Nitzavim (referred to as "Sefer HaTorah HaZeh," masculine, referring to the written text) concern only Torah Shebichsav—the concrete mitzvos and the survival of the world.
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Parshas Nitzavim-Vayeilech, Devarim 30:12 ("lo bashamayim hi")
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