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Parshat Ekev
2005
A Teacher for the Ages
In Parshat Ekev (Deuteronomy 7:12-11:25) Moses calls on the Israelites to demonstrate their continuing gratitude for the many ways God fulfilled the covenant with the Israelites so that they may continue to benefit as they move forward into the promised land: "And it shall come to pass (vehaya ekev), because you listen to these laws and do them, your God will observe the covenant and the mercy which He swore to your fathers."
Moses served as the quintessential rav, or spiritual teacher, reminding his pupils, the emerging Jewish people, of their history to help them create a better future. Nahum Sarna, who passed away a few weeks ago, was just such a teacher. One of the greatest Biblical scholars of the 20th century, Sarna was also a rabbi who infused his classroom with warmth, humor, intense scholarship and profound love for the Jewish story. Many Hillel professionals were privileged to study with him during his years at Brandeis University.
Sarna's unique style bridged the worlds of traditional Torah study and a modern historical approach to the text. A Sarna class would typically include references to archeology, ancient Near Eastern languages and Jewish tradition. Inevitably, his historical insights demonstrated how the Jewish people differed from their ancient contemporaries and added profound depth to students' understanding of the text.
Take, for example, his explanation of the Biblical story of the Golden Calf which is mentioned in this week's portion. "And I looked and, behold, you had sinned against the Lord your God; you had made a molten calf; ye had turned aside quickly out of the way which the Lord had commanded you. And I took hold of the two tablets and cast them out of my two hands and broke them before your eyes." (Deut. 9:16-17)
In his book Exploring Exodus, Sarna points out that the breaking of the tablets was not just an expression of Moses' frustration, but an ancient custom that symbolized the breaking of a covenant between two parties -- just as the Israelites had violated their covenant with God by creating a false god. Similarly, the burning, pulverizing and scattering of the Golden Calf over water was a common practice to demonstrate total annihilation of an enemy.
In the Torah story, Moses forced the Israelites to drink the water with the calf's ashes. Why such a strange act? Sarna draws from Talmudic commentators who noted that Jewish women accused of adultery were also forced to drink a bitter potion to assess their guilt. Is this a coincidence? Is it just an interesting theory proposed by later rabbis? Sarna finds support for the Talmudic theory in Akkadian marriage documents where the word for adultery is the same term the Torah uses for the "great sin" of the Golden Calf. Sarna writes: "It is reasonable, therefore, to perceive in Moses' action a strong intimation of a parallel with the suspected adulteress. Quite likely, the potion administered to all the Israelites…. and the breaking of the Tablets, are thus seen to be closely connected, both being symbols that express verdicts of infidelity." Thus, historical scholarship not only supports rabbinic Biblical interpretation, it also reinforces the image of a love pact between God and the Jewish people.
One of the joys of studying with Sarna was his humor. Unlike other scholars of his stature, humor was part of his teaching style and he punctuated his classes with puns, good and bad. I cannot read his commentary above on the bitter waters without thinking that he would have called them "sotah water," "sotah" being the Biblical term for an unfaithful wife. He once said that one of the smallest characters in the Bible was Job's friend, Bildad the Shuhite (get it: shoe-height).
I'm sure that the humor was meant to create a warm classroom environment. Sarna was a remarkable scholar who prided himself on his relationship with students. His office door was always open to even the lowliest of students, including me. I was not a stellar student in his class, to say the least. And yet he met with me to offer advice on a graduate-level paper I was writing years after I had my last class with him.
Although he was demanding of his students, he was equally demanding of himself. In a eulogy for his former teacher, Brandeis Prof. Marc Brettler, recalled that he once asked Sarna about his proudest accomplishment. He did not mention his honorary degrees, or his books, or his articles, or his numerous awards, but said "that I never came to class unprepared." Brettler also remembered that at least once a week, Sarna would read from one of his index cards: "On such and such a date, when I taught this passage, Mr. or Ms. So and So (a former student) suggested that this verse or word should be interpreted in the following way." When pressed, Sarna admitted that he meant to illustrate the rabbinic dictum, based on a verse in Esther: "anyone who cites a tradition in the name of its originator, brings redemption to the world."
In his teaching, his openness, his love of text and his commitment to the Jewish people, Sarna was a model for Hillel professionals and for Jewish studies teachers alike.
Other appreciations:
Biblical Scholar Nahum Sarna, 'Understanding Genesis' Author (registration required)
Nahum Sarna set the course for meaningful biblical scholarship
Selected Sarna writings:
Understanding Genesis, (1966); Exploring Exodus, (1986); Commentary on Genesis (1989); Commentary on Exodus (1991), and Songs of the Heart: An Introduction to the Book of Psalms (1993), a study of selected psalms.
Prepared by Jeff Rubin, associate vice president for communications
Learn More
Additional commentaries and text studies on Ekev at MyJewishLearning.com.
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