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Va'Etchanan: Zemer of The Week

Parshat Va'Etchanan
 
The zemer for this week: יצוה צור חסדו
(last 4 stanzas of ד' ברוך יום יום )
 
The first 8 stanzas of the zemer ד' ברוך יום יום are usually sung on Shabbat day. (Those stanzas describe how Hashem’s presence accompanied Bnei Yisrael throughout all of our major exiles.) Then, at Seudah Shlishit, we sing the last 4 stanzas of the zemer (stanzas 9-12), beginning with the words יצוה צור חסדו.
 
Central elements of this parsha include Hashem’s choosing us to receive the Torah, the text of Shema, and the requirement to educate our progeny.
 
Some of the linkages of these final 4 stanzas to the parsha are as follows:
  • 3rd line of 11th stanza: “מכל אום, גבר עלינו חסדו” (“His kindness overwhelmed us more than any other nation”) – Bnei Yisrael’s “chosen” status is mentioned in three places in this week’s parsha:
    • In Devarim 7:6, we are called Hashem’s “עם סגולה םכל העמים” (“a treasured people from among all the nations”).
    • Rashi (Devarim 6:4) says that “ד' אלקינדו, ד' אחד” (from the first line of Shema) means that Hashem is only our G-d now, not the G-d of the other nations.
    • “לקחת לו גוי מקרב גוי” (“to take for [H]imself a nation from amidst a nation”) – Devarim 4:34.
  • 3rd line of 9th stanza: “ובהר מרום הרים” (“Upon the loftiest of mountains”) – Although Har Sinai – “Choreiv” in our parsha (Devarim 4:10) – was the most modest of mountains, that is what made it the “loftiest” of mountains and worthy of having the Torah given on it.
  • End of 11th stanza: “נמליכו וניחדו” (“We will proclaim Him King and proclaim Him One/Unique”) – This echoes the words of the first line of the Shema (Devarim 6:4).
  • 4th line of 11th stanza: “לכן בכל לב ובכל נפש ובכל מאודו” (“Therefore with complete heart, with complete soul, and with complete resources”) – This is based on the first line of the “V’ahavta” paragraph of the Shema: “ךמאוד ובכל ךנפש ובכל ךלבב בכל” (Devarim 6:5).
  • 4th-5th lines of 12th stanza:
ויזקו לראות בנים ובני בנים”
“עוסקים בתורה ובמצװת
(“And may they merit to see children and grandchildren engaging in Torah and the mitzvot”) – The requirement to educate the next generations is a recurring theme in the parsha. For example:
  • Right before Shema: “You, your son, and your son’s son” should keep all of Hashem’s mitzvot (Devarim 6:2).
  • In Shema: “ושננתם לבניך” (“You should teach [the mitzvot] to your sons” – Devarim 6:7).
  • The answer we give to the Wise Son at the Seder is in Devarim 6:20-23.
 
Daf Yomi bonus: This week on Pesachim 25a, the Gemara analyzes the difference between “b’chol nafshecha” and “b’chol meh’odecha” (Devarim 6:5, and 4th line of the 11th stanza of this zemer).