Pisqa’ 311¹

1

“When the Most High bequeathed to the nations”² (Dt.32:8)—

Before Father Abraham came into the world,

The Blessed Holy One judged the world

—so to speak—

according to a standard

whose measure was the quality of cruelty.

When the people of the Deluge sinned,

He drowned them like sparks

on the surface of the waters.

When the people of the Tower sinned,

He dispersed them from one end

of the world to the other.

When the men of Sodom sinned,

He swept them away with fire and brimstone.

But, when Father Abraham came into the world,

he had the merit to receive progressively more challenging chastisements

[instead of universal catastrophes],

as it is stated:

“Now, there was a famine in the Land, so Abram descended to Egypt” (Gn.12:10)—

[where there was no famine].

2

Now, do you ask:

What is the purpose of such chastisements?

Because of the loveliness of Israel!

[For it is said:]

“He defined the borders of the [gentile] peoples,³

according to the number of the descendants of Israel” (Dt.32:8)—

[That is, one people for each

of the seventy offspring of Jacob (cf. Ex.1:5; Dt.10:22)].

Another word:

“When the Most High bequeathed to the nations” (Dt.32:8)—

when the Blessed Holy One bequeathed

                                             the world to the [gentile] nations,⁴

He defined a territory for each and every nation,

so as to not mix them together.

He sent the Gomerites to Gomer,

the Magogites to Magog,

the Medians to Media,

the Yawanites to Yawan,

and the Tubalites to Tubal.

Now, He defined the territories of the nations

so that they should not enter the Land of Israel!

[As it is stated:]

“He defined the borders of the peoples

according to the number of the descendants of Israel” (Dt.32:8).

Another word:

“When the Most High bequeathed to the nations” (Dt.32:8)—

when the Blessed Holy One gave the Torah to Israel,

He stood, gazed forth, and contemplated,

as it is stated:

“When He stands, the earth shakes; when He looks out,

He causes trembling among the [gentile] nations” (Hab.3:6).

And there wasn’t among the nations

any nation suited to receive the Torah, except for Israel.

[As it is stated:]

“He defined the borders of the peoples

according to the number of the descendants of Israel” (Dt.32:8).

3

Another word:

“When the Most High bequeathed to the nations” (Dt.32:8)—

when the Blessed Holy One bequeathed the world to the nations,

their portion was in Gehenna,

For it is said [of Sheol]:

“Assyria is there with her entire populace” (Ezek.32:22).

“And there are the princes of the North and all the Tzidonians” (Ezek32:30);

“And there are Edom, her kings, and all her chieftains” (Ezek.32:29).

And do you ask:

Who took their wealth and prestige?

I would answer: none but Israel—

[of whom it is said:]

“He defined the borders of the peoples

according to the number of the descendants of Israel” (Dt.32:8)—

[Thus the inheritance of the gentile nations

was ultimately bequeathed to Israel].

4

Another word:

“When the Most High bequeathed to the nations” (Dt.32:8)—

[that is,] when the Blessed Holy One bequeathed the world to the nations,

He selected the most God-fearing and virtuous of them [to become proselytes].⁵

“As He separated out the descendants of Adam” (Dt.32:8)—

this [refers to] the generation of the Dispersion,

As it is said:

“And from there did HASHEM scatter them” (Gn.11:9).

“He defined the borders of the peoples

according to the number of the descendants of Israel” (Dt.32:8).

R. Eliezer, son of R. Yose the Galilean says:

Indeed, He says—

“Sixty are the queens,

[nations with royal dynasties,]

And eighty are the concubines,

[nations without royal dynasties]” (Song6:8).

Now the sum of sixty and eighty is 140 nations.

But when our Patriarchs descended into Egypt,

they were only seventy souls!

As it is said:

“With seventy souls your Patriarchs descended to Egypt” (Dt.10:22)—

[In what sense, then, do the nations

equal in number the descendants of Jacob?]

On this point, He says:

“Borders of the peoples” (Dt.32:8).

“Border of the peoples” is not what is written here;

rather, “borders of the peoples” is written.

The point is that the nations merited

                                             to take two⁶ portions for each one

of the seventy descendants of Israel.

1. H:316-318; JN2:329-331.
2. Heb: goyim; literally, “nations.” Context will determine whether the term refers only to gentiles or also to the Israelite nation. In Dt. 32 the term is used interchangeably for the Hebrew nation (Dt.32:28) and for gentile nations (Dt.32:21).
3. Heb: `amim; literally, “nations.” Unlike goyim, the referent of `am in the plural is always to gentile nations.
4. Heb: ‘umah (sing.);’umot (Pl.) refers to non-Israelite ethno-linguistic-territorial groups.
5. I follow H:317 in reading the slight differences in the diction (e.g, “of them” rather than, “to them”) as justifying proselyte inclusion.
6. For midrashic purposes, plural nouns are occasionally read as duals. Thus, here, the plural, “borders” (gevulot) yields the proposition that each nation received two shares for each of the seventy Israelites that descended to Egypt.