DEVARIM – THE TORAH IN SEVENTY LANGUAGES · Sukkat Shalom B'nei Noach

בס”ד

In this Torah portion, we encounter a defining historical moment: the explanation and translation of the Torah to the entire world. On the eve of entering the Land of Israel, Moses explained the Torah in seventy languages. Furthermore, he commanded the people to inscribe the Torah upon huge stones in seventy languages immediately after crossing the Jordan, once standing at the land of Israel (Sotah 32a).

The Sages explain that this was done so that the nations of the world would have access to the Written Torah and would have no excuse to claim that they had never been given the opportunity to study it (Sotah 35b).

Yet there is another event of translation of the Torah that was regarded negatively. Ptolemy, the king of Hellenistic Egypt, compelled the elders of Israel to translate the Torah into Greek. Concerning that day, the Sages said: “That day was as bad as the day on which the Golden Calf was made.” This raises a question: Why was Moses’ explanation of the Torah in seventy languages considered a holy and blessed act for the benefit of the nations of the world, whereas its translation into Greek for King Ptolemy was regarded negatively?

When the Holy One, blessed be He, appoints Moses to do something by His command, it serves only the will of G-d. So, there is not going to be any bad outcome from that. But when King Ptolemy translated the Torah he opened the door to misunderstanding and a risk of distorting the Torah inadequately to the outside world (Likkutei Sichot, Vol. 24, Devarim, Sicha 1).

This is the essential distinction between Moses and Ptolemy. When Moses explained the Torah in seventy languages, he did so by Divine command and through prophecy. The sanctity of the Torah accompanied those words, and the explanation itself became a protected Divine channel through which the Written Torah could illuminate all humanity without compromising its authenticity. By contrast, the translation commissioned by King Ptolemy originated from the political and cultural ambitions of a Hellenistic monarch who wished to incorporate the Torah into his royal library.

From this emerges an essential message for every Noahide. Maimonides teaches that a Noahide merits the exalted title of “one of the pious among the nations of the world” only if he accepts and observes the Seven Noahide Commandments because the Holy One, blessed be He, commanded them in the Torah and informed us through Moses our Teacher at Mount Sinai that all the nations of the world are obligated to observe them (Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Melachim 8:11).

When Noahides joyfully attach themselves to the Torah through its authentic source—with complete faithfulness to the Seven Noahide Commandments that were given at Mt. Sinai, they become partners in fulfilling G-d’s universal purpose for creation. They help prepare the world for the fulfillment of the prophetic vision: “For then I will transform the peoples to a pure language, so that they may all call upon the Name of the L-rd and serve Him with one accord.” (Zephaniah 3:9).

By Rabbi Moshe Bernstein

Sources:

Deuteronomy 1:5. Babylonian Talmud, Sotah 35a–36a. Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Avodah Zarah ch. 1. Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Melachim 8:11.Masechet Soferim 1:7–8. Likkutei Sichot, Vol. 24, Parashat Devarim, Sicha 1. Zephaniah 3:9. Sotah 32a.

If you want more questions for contemplation, SEE THE OTHER BLOGS FROM RABBI MOSHE BERNSTEIN