Ramban on Ki Tavo

── Shiur Outline ──
(0:10) Bikkurim Locations: Shilo, Temple and Beyond
(1:38) Who Is the Kohen 'In Our Days'?

AI-Generated Summary (AI can be inaccurate. Check important information):

This shiur explores various insights from the Ramban on Parshas Ki Savo, beginning with the laws of bikkurim and the requirement to bring them to the specific priest currently on duty rather than a preferred individual. The discussion examines the obligation to write the Torah on stones, suggesting this was achieved either through a miracle or by recording a concise minyan hamitzvos to demonstrate that the Torah is the prerequisite and purpose for dwelling in the land. Finally, the shiur addresses the communal responsibility of leadership, noting that the curse for one who does not "uphold" the Torah refers to those who deny its divinity or leaders who fail to ensure its observance among the people.

1. Defining the Chosen Place — The Ramban explains that Bikkurim were brought not only to the Beis HaMikdash but also to Shilo, and potentially other locations where the Mishkan stood, such as Gilgal, Nov, and Givon.
2. Priority of the Serving Priest — The requirement to bring fruits to the Kohen "who shall be in those days" teaches that one must give to the Kohen currently on duty (mishmar), rather than bringing a personal favorite from home.
3. Validity of the Act — According to the Sifrei, this phrase also ensures that if a Kohen performed the service and was later discovered to be disqualified (chalal), the mitzvah remains valid and need not be repeated.
4. Action as Declaration — The term Higadeti (I have declared) in the past tense suggests that the very act of bringing the Bikkurim serves as a testimony and an act of hoda'ah (thanksgiving) to God.
5. Deciphering "Giving to the Dead" — Regarding the declaration of Viduy Ma'aser, the Ramban disputes the Rambam's view that "not giving to the dead" refers metaphorically to any non-sustaining items like clothing.
6. Writing the Torah on Stones — There are multiple views on how the whole Torah was written on stones: it may have been just a list of the 613 mitzvos as in Halachos Gedolos, or the entire text written miraculously or on massive stones.
7. Prerequisite for the Land — The Torah was written upon entry to the land to teach that Torah study and mitzvah observance are both the prerequisite for and the ultimate purpose of inhabiting Eretz Yisrael.
8. Upholding the Torah — The curse on one who "does not uphold (yakim) this Torah" refers to one who denies the divine origin or significance of the mitzvos, rather than a simple incidental transgression.
9. Proper Torah Honor — On a drush level, "upholding the Torah" refers to the chazzan or the one performing hagbahah, who must ensure the scroll is stable and that the ksav (script) is visible to all.
10. Leadership Responsibility — The obligation to "uphold" the Torah falls heavily on the Beis Din and the King, who must use their influence to ensure the entire nation remains faithful to the halacha.
11. Order of Blessings and Curses — In the brachos, children (pri bitnecha) are mentioned before crops because they are more significant; in the klalos, the order is reversed so the suffering begins with property before reaching the family.
12. Torah Study and Joy — The association of sacrifices and a feast with the writing of the Torah teaches that Kabbalas HaTorah must always be celebrated with simcha, serving as the source for making a siyum.

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Okay,

at the beginning of the פרשה we have the מצוה of בכורים.

Torah says that when one takes from the first fruits,

one notes the fruits of the ז' מינים,

it says והלכת אל המקום אשר יבחר ה' אלוהיך.

So,

the הרמב"ן explains that although generally speaking יבחר ה' אלוהיך could be taken to

mean the בית המקדש,

but he says the מצוה of בכורים also applies on a במה גדולה,

certainly in שילה as well as the בית המקדש.

I think he indicates also in גלגל,

and נוב and גבעון,

but certainly in שילה and the בית המקדש.

He does point out there's another פסוק that says ראשית בכורי אדמתך תביא בית

ה' אלוהיך,

and thus it's possible that that would dictate דוקא in שילה and בית עולמים.

In שילה,

they had a משכן with walls,

on top there was a tent.

But in נוב and גבעון and גלגל,

it was just a tent.

So perhaps בכורים is limited to שילה and the בית המקדש.

Okay,

the פסוק says that one brings the בכורים אל הכהן פסוק ג',

אל הכהן אשר יהיה בימים ההם.

I'll be finishing long before שקיעה,

so whatever.

אל הכהן אשר יהיה בימים ההם.

So what does this teach us?

So let's point out there is a similar phrase that the Torah says in

פרשת שופטים,

that when you have a halachic שאלה,

then you go to the כהן אשר יהיה בימים ההם.

Says הרמב"ן over there,

we can understand what it means.

Over there it means they might say,

eh,

if the leader is a great scholar,

then we'll go to him,

but if the leader is not the biggest scholar in the world,

then we'll figure it out ourselves without,

or we'll ask ChatGPT,

whatever it is.

We won't bother to ask.

Says there the פסוק,

אין לך אלא כהן שבימיך,

that the leader in your generation יפתח בדורו כשמואל בדורו.

Okay,

but when it comes to בכורים,

so obviously you're going to bring it to the כהן in your time because

you can't bring it to the כהן,

can't give it to yourself if you're not a כהן,

and you can't bring it to the כהן of earlier generations.

So what does the Torah mean when it says אשר יהיה בימים ההם?

So the הרמב"ן says what it means is the following.

Let's say I have בכורים,

and I have a favorite כהן,

and I want to bring that כהן to ירושלים with me and I'll give

him the בכורים.

Says the פסוק,

no,

you need to give it to the כהן whosever turn it is,

whosever doing the עבודה in the בית המקדש at that particular time.

So says הרמב"ן,

וטעם אל הכהן אשר יהיה בימים ההם,

אל הכהן אשר יהיה שם בימים ההם,

כי הם נתונים לאנשי משמר כל הקרבנות.

The כהן,

the כהן of that משמר,

the משמרות,

the כהנים taking turns.

לא שיוליך עמו כהן מעירו להקריב קרבן להקריב בכורים.

I can't bring my local neighborhood כהן with me.

Okay,

but רש"י,

רש"י כתב אין לך אלא כהן שבימיך כמו שהוא,

says הרמב"ן.

I don't understand what רש"י is talking about,

כי בענין הזקן when it comes to going to the תלמיד חכם in פרשת

שופטים,

ראוי לומר אל השופט אשר יהיה בימים ההם אף פי שאינו גדול וחכם כשופטים

הראשונים אשר היו לפנינו מן העולם.

Nevertheless,

צריך לשמוע לו,

יפתח בדורו כשמואל בדורו.

אבל בהקרבת בכורים למי יביאם אלא לכהן שבימיו.

And he says I can't blame רש"י for this,

it's also the ספרי.

So he suggests that the point is the following.

We know,

you guys perhaps learned,

I think also in קידושין and also in מכות,

that if one brought a קרבן,

and a כהן was מקריב a קרבן,

turns out he's a בן גרושה,

פשוט it wasn't known at the time,

nevertheless the קרבן is כשר.

ברך ה' חילו,

אפילו חללים שבו,

אפילו חלל.

So you might have thought that בן הקשר as the חלל,

although he's not meant to do the עבודה,

so let's say one brought בכורים to a כהן and it turns out that

he's a פסול.

So do you need to bring the בכורים again?

So says the פסוק,

no,

אין לך אלא כהן שבימיך.

Just like with respect to the other עבודה,

then if it was...

if you did the עבודה or another,

if some כהן did the עבודה and it turns out that he's a פסול,

so the קרבן isn't נפסל,

so also with respect to ביכורים,

you don't have to bring ביכורים again.

Okay,

הגדתי היום.

When a person brings ביכורים,

we're still on פסוק ג and says הגדתי היום לה' אלוהיך.

הגדתי is לשון עבר.

What do you mean הגדתי?

He's just opening his mouth now.

So the רמב"ן has a couple of פשטים.

The first פשט he says that the very fact you're bringing ביכורים,

that's an act of הודאה to God.

That the bringing of the ביכורים,

that's an act of הודאה.

Okay,

פסוק י"ד,

the רמב"ן has a discussion concerning the following:

We know there's a concept of וידוי מעשר.

At the end of every set of three years,

one is meant to come to the בית המקדש and to say that he

gave the תרומות ומעשרות to their proper people and he dealt with them properly.

And one thing which he says is לא אכלתי באוני ממנו,

with respect to which is applicable חז"ל say to מעשר שני,

לא אכלתי באוני ממנו.

I didn't eat it when I was an אונן.

לא נתתי ממנו למת.

I didn't give it to a dead person.

Now,

what does that mean,

I didn't give it to a dead person?

Didn't use it for the ארון ותכריכין.

But says רמב"ן,

I don't understand.

We know that מעשר שני,

what do you do with מעשר שני?

You bring it to ירושלים and eat it,

or you're פודה it in a coin,

and that coin you go to ירושלים and buy with it what?

Food.

So what's the point of one saying ולא נתתי ממנו למת?

I didn't give this מעשר שני for a מת?

After all,

what would you give it to a מת for?

To buy ארון ותכריכין?

But even for a live person,

you can't use מעשר שני to buy clothes.

You're only able to use it for food.

So what's the point?

Why would the תורה say that you make such a declaration?

You didn't give it to a dead person,

and after all,

even for a live person,

if it ain't for food,

it's improper.

So the רמב"ן has a number of פשטים.

He quotes one פשט from the רמב"ם which he says is nonsense.

But the רמב"ם said it,

so let's see that פשט.

ורבי משה,

in the standard printing,

we're in פסוק י"ד,

page תס"ח,

in the sixth line,

ורבי משה כתב בחיבורו,

מעשר שני ניתן לאכילה ושתייה,

שנאמר ואכלת שם לפני ה' אלוהיך,

וסיכה כשתייה,

ואסור להוציאו בשאר צרכיו,

כגון שיקח בו כלים ובגדים ועבדים.

And how do you know you can't use מעשר שני for all sorts of

things other than food?

Because the פסוק says לא נתתי ממנו למת.

This is quoting the רמב"ם:

לא נתתי ממנו למת,

כלומר לא הוצאתי אותם בדבר שאינו מקיים את הגוף.

When it says לא נתתי ממנו למת,

מת doesn't mean דוקא a מת.

מת is anything that's not food,

anything that's not מקיים את הגוף.

That's not a very smooth reading of לא נתתי ממנו למת.

So says the רמב"ן,

עשה מילת למת כעין כינוי לדברים שלא יחיה האדם בהם.

Says רמב"ן,

אלו דברי הבאי.

That's nonsense.

Okay,

those that say that the point of לא נתתי ממנו למת is even for

a מצוה,

unless it's a מת מצוה that needs ארון ותכריכין,

for that you can't use מעשר שני since it's not food.

Okay,

skipping to פסוק י"ט,

ולתתך עליון על כל הגוים אשר עשה לתהילה לשם ולתפארת.

So what does this mean,

לתהילה?

שיחללוך כל עמי הארץ.

That when we keep the מצוות and God blesses us,

then all the nations of the world will praise us.

בהיות ה' קרוב בכל קראנו אליו.

When the nations see how well you're doing,

when the nations see that God listens to your prayers,

then they will praise us.

Okay,

פרק כ"ז פסוק ג,

כ"ז ג on page תע"א.

וכתבת עליהם את כל דברי התורה הזאת.

The תורה commands us to write כל דברי התורה הזאת on stones in the

ירדן or on הר עיבל.

Don't remember which,

or a number of stones.

רש"י says to write all the תורה on these stones.

All the תורה on these stones?

Boy,

that ain't going to be so easy.

So the רמב"ן says,

אמר רבי אברהם,

the אבן עזרא,

בשם הגאון.

I don't know which גאון.

שכתבו עליהם מניין המצוות,

כמו שכתוב בהלכות גדולות,

כמין אזהרות.

Just write the מניין המצוות.

without writing the entire Torah.

The entire Torah,

that that's not possible.

Ay,

but it says באר היטב.

So says רמב"ן,

וטעם באר היטב הכתיבה,

that the באר היטב means that the כתיבה needs to be a clear כתיבה,

but not that you're meant to explain all the מצוות.

However חז"ל say,

רבותינו אמרו בשבעים לשון,

write the entire Torah in שבעים לשון on these stones.

That's amazing.

So says the רמב"ן,

he quotes from some ספר תגי,

I'm sorry,

meant to look this up,

but meant to be written with all the תגין on the letters.

And you know there were special תגין on different letters aside from the תגין

that we have in the ספר תורה on the letters.

What are the letters that have a תגין?

שעטנז גץ:

ש,

ע,

ט,

נ,

ז,

ג,

צ,

they have some sort of crowns.

But there were in the Torah that was written by משה רבינו crowns also

on other letters and so the מדרש indicates that on the Torah that was

written on the stones it was written with all the תגין.

So how'd they manage that?

So says רמב"ן,

וייתכן שהיו אבנים גדולות מאד,

must've been mighty big stones.

That's one possibility.

Or alternatively,

it was a נס.

A נס.

Probably both,

but right,

okay.

In any case,

the פסוק says to write the Torah on the stones,

למען אשר תבוא אל הארץ.

So רמב"ן has a couple of related interpretations.

According to one interpretation,

what the פסוק is saying is that you need to write the stones,

the Torah on the stones,

to write the Torah on the stones in order to be able to come

to the ארץ.

Meaning you need to be involved in Torah in order to be able,

being involved in Torah,

learning the Torah,

writing the Torah,

is a prerequisite for entering ארץ ישראל.

Alternatively,

he says that keeping the מצוות of the Torah is something which is the

purpose for which we came to the land.

So the Torah is a prerequisite for being able to keep the land and

also it is the purpose for which we came.

We came to this land not to eat Jaffa oranges,

not for the sake of the wonderful climate here compared to some parts of

the world,

but rather for the sake of keeping the מצוות of the Torah.

Okay,

אשר לא יקים.

Oh boy,

I'm sorry,

I'm about to go over time.

אשר לא יקים את דברי התורה הזאת.

So there are ארורים on a person that's not מקיים את דברי התורה הזאת.

What does that mean?

So,

so the רמב"ן interprets that this קבלה doesn't mean,

the פסוק is not coming to say and חז"ל are not coming to say

that whoever violates any מצוה,

he's cursed.

No,

no,

no.

Rather if a person denies a certain מצוה,

says,

"Ah,

that doesn't really make any sense.

God,

He probably didn't say that." So such a person is included in אשר לא

יקים את דברי התורה הזאת.

One needs to acknowledge that the מצוות were given by God and that doing

the מצוות brings significant שכר and violating them is something which brings a punishment.

Okay,

he has some additional פשטים.

One פשט,

which he says בדרך פשט,

says אשר לא יקים that refers to a חזן,

which רמב"ן in the continuation says,

that means one of two things.

One possibility is the חזן whose job is it to place the ספר תורה

in the ארון and he needs to be careful to place it in a

fashion that it won't fall חס ושלום,

that it will be upright and it won't fall.

Alternatively,

it refers to one that has הגבהה.

When a person has הגבהה,

he is meant to show the Torah to all the people.

It's interesting,

he says at the end,

מצוה to all the men and women to see the כתב.

Which we learn one of two things.

Either the מחיצות there were,

because so obviously the מחיצות weren't so thick,

so the women were also able to see the כתב.

And the רמב"ן also says one is meant to bow when he sees the

כתב and to say וזאת התורה אשר שם משה.

Doesn't say in the רמב"ן he's obligated to kiss his finger,

but some people have that practice.

Okay,

or to do with the pinky,

if you do the point thing,

whatever.

In any case,

the רמב"ן though in the middle though he has another פשט that says this

refers to בית דין של מטה.

Meaning the leaders of the Jewish people,

they have an obligation to see to it the Torah is kept.

And when there was a ספר תורה found in the times of the kings,

in the times of יאשיהו,

and they found the ספר,

ספר תורה,

although some say the original תורה of משה רבינו that was open to the

פסוקים of ארור אשר לא יקים,

יאשיהו realized that that פסוק quite possibly referred to him because as a king,

he has an obligation to see to it that the people keep the מצוות,

and then he was involved,

got involved in seeing to it that everyone keep the מצוות of the תורה.

Okay.

The רמב"ן points out in פסוק י"ח that the תורה mentions also in the

ברכה and also the קללה,

פרי בטנך,

and also your crops.

But in the ברכות it mentions first פרי בטנך,

then it mentions a ברכה on your crops.

In the קללה,

it's the opposite.

First mentions the crops,

and then mentions פרי בטנך.

Why is this so?

So says the רמב"ן very simply and beautifully,

which ברכה is more significant?

Obviously,

ברכה on פרי בטנך and then the crops.

In the קללה,

so the תורה says that if we don't do the מצוות חס ושלום,

then first there's going to be a small קללה and we don't get the

message,

then a bigger קללה.

Therefore in the קללה,

first mentions the crops and then פרי בטנך.

Okay.

The רמב"ן in כ"ט ה',

the פסוק says לחם לא אכלתם ויין ושכר לא שתיתם.

רמב"ן discusses how that works out with the fact that the Jewish people,

the פסוקים indicate they did buy from certain nations as we discussed last week,

did buy from certain nations food.

So how's that work out,

לחם לא אכלתם ויין ושכר לא שתיתם?

רמב"ן has a couple of approaches.

According to one approach,

that was only at the end of their period in the מדבר.

But most of the years they didn't have bread and wine.

The מפרשים in fact talk about how they מקיים the מצווה of מצה.

If you assume that throughout the forty years they bought some food from the

merchants,

so you understand how they מקיים the מצווה of מצה.

מצווה of מצה you can't fulfill the מצווה of מצה with מן.

Okay,

in any case,

to review some things which we've seen,

the רמב"ן points out המקום אשר יבחר ה' is לאו דווקא the בית המקדש,

also שילה is included.

Other places where there is a משכן.

It's not so clear after all,

the פסוק says בית ה' אלוהיך.

אל הכהן אשר יהיה בימים ההם.

The רמב"ן says what this means,

don't bring your local neighbor כהן to the בית המקדש for ביכורים,

give it to the כהן that's on duty.

However,

רש"י says this means אין לך אלא כהן שבימיך.

So what's that coming to say?

So the רמב"ן understands perhaps it's coming to say is that if you brought

it to the כהן בימיך and it turns out that he's פסול,

nevertheless the מצווה of ביכורים you fulfilled.

ולא נתתי ממנו למת is a difficult פסוק because after all מעשר שני can

only be used for a חי.

So what's it mean you can't use it for a מת?

Or even תכריכים?

Even for a live person,

you can't use it for clothes.

So the רמב"ם says that למת doesn't mean דווקא למת,

למת means for anything that doesn't sustain a person,

anything that's not food.

And the רמב"ן didn't like that,

he has another פשט.

Okay.

וכתבת עליהן את כל דברי התורה הזאת.

So the רמב"ן says how's that possible?

So either it means the ספר המצוות or there were mighty big stones or

there was a נס.

I'm sorry,

very important רמב"ן that's not over here but elsewhere that makes reference to the

פסוקים.

The פסוקים say on הר עיבל וזבחת שלמים ואכלת שם ושמחת לפני ה' אלוהיך.

רמב"ן points out that whenever there's a קבלת התורה,

קבלת התורה is meant to be associated with making a party,

with joy,

with שמחה.

ויחזו את האלהים ויאכלו וישתו.

That's the idea of making a סיום.

שלמה המלך he threw a party.

So learning תורה is meant to be associated with a joy.

אשר לא יקים את דברי התורה הזאת,

that means a person doesn't accept the מצוות,

doesn't acknowledge they have significance.

שכר?

If one of the מצוות,

then he's included in the ארור.

בדרך דרוש it refers to a חזן,

either a חזן that doesn't place the ספר תורה on the עמוד properly or

one that doesn't do הגבהה,

one is meant to do הגבהה properly and everybody have everybody see the כתב.

And point out if you swing around when you're doing a הגבהה at,

you know,

a hundred miles an hour,

people won't be able to see the כתב.

So do that הגבהה not too quickly and as the רמב"ן said,

meant to bow down,

point at the כתב and say וזאת התורה.

And the רמב"ן quoted also בית דין של מטה saying that if בית דין

של מטה has the ability to see to it that the rest of the

Jewish people keep the מצוות,

they're obligated to do so.

Then the רמב"ן talked about why by the ברכה it mentions פרי בטנך before

טנאך ומשארתך and the קללה the opposite.

Okay,

sorry for going a few minutes overtime.

יישר כח,

Rabbi Sacks.

יישר כח.