בס”ד

Parashat Va’etchanan

This week’s Torah reading has many fundaments of Judaism, like the ten commandments and Shema Israel. There’s one verse that explains a quality of the voice of G-d on the giving of the Torah with many

The Voice That Did Not Interrupt — Three Explanations

This week’s Torah reading is called Va’etchanan — which means “and he begged.” It begins with the begging of Moshe Rabbeinu, Moses our leader, to enter the Land of Israel. We know he did not enter, and so on.

This parsha, this week’s reading, contains many fundamental concepts in Judaism. For instance, the Ten Commandments with all their meaning, and the Shema Yisrael — “Hear, O Israel” — the declaration of the unity of G-d, and more.

But there is one verse that our sages offer different explanations for, and we will explore how these explanations apply to us. The verse is regarding the Ten Commandments, in Hebrew:

The voice of G-d was a very strong voice that did not interrupt.

Now, we know that the voice of G-d was, in a sense, “interrupted.” If you go to Mount Sinai, wherever that is, you’re not going to hear G-d talking over there. So what does it mean that the voice of G-d was a strong voice that did not interrupt?

Explanation 1 — The Power to Be Understood in 70 Languages

One explanation our sages offer is that the voice of G-d was so powerful, so to speak, that it had the strength to be translated into 70 languages.

In those times there were 70 nations, each with its own language. The Torah, in its giving, had a voice with the power to be translated into all of them. That means that the strength of the voice of G-d at that particular time gives us the possibility of learning Torah in any language.

For instance, right now we are learning in English. How can we do that? The Torah is such a holy thing — the voice of G-d, the word of G-d — and yet we can study it in our own tongue because that original voice carried the strength to be expressed in any language.

Explanation 2 — The Source of All Prophecy

A second explanation says that the voice of G-d was the source for all future prophecies.

Why do we say it “did not interrupt”? Not because everyone was talking the voice of G-d by translating the Torah into any language — that was the first explanation. This explanation says that the prophets actually prophesied through the voice of G-d at the giving of the Torah.

At that moment it was like a general voice that included all prophecies throughout all time. Then, each prophet in each stage of history drew from that voice and pronounced the particular prophecy that was theirs.

The problem is that today we do not have prophecy. The Talmud says prophecy ceased at the beginning of the Second Temple era, around 2,400 years ago. Today we have lower levels of divine inspiration, but this is not a class about prophecy.

Explanation 3 — A Voice Without Echo

A third explanation says that the voice of G-d at the giving of the Torah was such a strong voice that it did not have an echo — lo yafsiq, it did not get interrupted.

Our sages ask: what’s the importance of the voice of G-d not having an echo?

If you want to tell me that the voice was so strong it could be translated into any language — that’s important; we can learn Torah in English. If you want to tell me that all the prophets drew energy from that voice — that’s also important: prophecy, the word of G-d.

But why is it important that the voice of G-d did not have an echo?

One commentator explains that if the voice of G-d had had an echo, people might have thought there were many gods — one speaking this way, another speaking that way. But that’s hard to accept, because everyone knows an echo is not a different voice. It sounds exactly the same, just a few seconds later.

So what does it really mean that the voice of G-d did not have an echo?

The Chassidic Explanation — A Voice That Penetrated All Creation

Chassidic thought explains like this: What is an echo? An echo means you say something and it bounces back because it hit a wall — something the voice could not penetrate. That’s why it returns to you a few seconds later, depending on distance and strength.

The point here is that an echo happens when the voice does not penetrate.

Why didn’t the voice of G-d at the giving of the Torah have an echo? Because it penetrated every single thing in creation. That means that in every point in the universe you have, so to speak, the voice of G-d.

There is not a single place, thing, or person that was not penetrated by — that is not imbued inside — with the word of G-d.

This means that any single thing in life can be used in a G-dly way. That is what it means that the word of G-d did not have an echo — it didn’t bounce back. The whole creation “screams” from within: I am full of G-d; G-d filled me at the giving of the Torah.

That is the importance of the giving of the Torah. And that gives us the strength to take anything in life and ask: How can I use this in my service to G-d?

Talk from Rabbi Tuvia Serber


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