More Than Just Seeing

Rashi V’zos Haberacha (34:4) says לאמר לזרעך אתננה הראיתיך בעיניך – הראיתיך כדי שתלך ותאמר לאברהם ליצחק וליעקב: שבועה שנשבע הקב״ה לכם קיימה. וזהו לאמר, לכך הראיתיה לך. אבל גזירה היא מלפני שמה לא תעבור, שאילולי כן הייתי מקיימיך עד שתראה אותם נטועים וקבועים, ותלך ותגיד.  What does Rashi mean, how is Moshe’s seeing of the land a fulfillment of the oath to give Eretz Yisroel to Klal Yisroel? Furthermore, the land is already considered acquired by the walking of Avrohom (Babba Bathra 100a,) so why is the oath not considered already fulfilled then?  Seemingly, because the oath means to actually conquer it and live in it.  If that’s the case, how does Moshe’s seeing accomplish this?  Rashi in Vaeschanan (3:26) says וראה בעיניך – בקשתה ממני: ואראה את הארץ הטובה (דברים ג׳:כ״ה), אני מראה לך את כולה, שנאמר: ויראהו י״י את כל הארץ (דברים ל״ד:א׳).  Why would Moshe have a separate request just to be able to see the land, what is the point of that?

The Gemorah in Babba Bathra (56a) says the only lands obligated in terumos and maaserot are the lands that were see by Moshe Rabbenu.  Why is this the means of determining the obligation in tithes, it should be determined by what lands are conquered (see Tosfos)? The Mikdash David Terumot siman 7 explains that there are two stages in making land part of Eretz Yisroel vis-à-vis the obligations of the land.  The first stage is to bring the kedusha of the land and then the second stage is the conquest.  The sight of the holy eyes of Moshe is what brought kedusha to the land and hence once conquered it would be obligated in tithes.  Other lands, it would not suffice to merely conquer them, they would also have to be made kadosh. 

Based upon this, we can understand our parsha. Yes, Eretz Yisroel in a monetary aspect is already considered מוחזק from Avrohom, but there was no kedusha to Eretz Yisoel yet.  It is only through the seeing of Moshe that the land becomes kodesh and that is already considered a fulfillment of the oath to give us Eretz Yisroel.   

The Sifri Pinchas (136:1) says ויאמר ה' אליו זאת הארץ. ר' עקיבא אומר: מגיד הכתוב, שהראהו המקום למשה את כל חדרי ארץ ישראל, כשלחן ערוך, שנא' ויראהו ה' את הארץ.  The Nitziv explains that that as opposed to Avrohom, Moshe saw the entire land.  Why did Moshe need to see the whole land?  Because he needed to bring kedusha to the land (Kuntres Meorah Or in the back of Rav Dovid Solevetchik’s sefer on Moadim, Meoray Hamoadim.)

The Duality Of V'zos Haberacha

The Gemorah at the end of Megillah (31a) lists what the krias hatorah of every holiday is.  Regarding Shemini Atzeret and Simchas Torah it says יו"ט האחרון קורין כל הבכור מצות וחוקים ובכור ומפטירין (מלכים א ט, א) ויהי ככלות שלמה למחר קורין וזאת הברכה ומפטירין (מלכים א ח, כב) ויעמד שלמה.)  Tosfos asks that we follow the Gemorah, for instead of reading  ויעמד שלמה, we read as the haftorah of the beginning of Yehoshua on Simchas .  Why don't we follow the Gemorah?

In order to understand this we have to understand why is it that we read V'zos Haberacha on Simchas Torah? One may think because its the last parsha and we want to end the Yom Tov by ceebrating Simchas Torah, but that can't be be the case for even where they would finish the Torah in only a three year cycle, the reading is still V'zos Haberacha.  The Ran explains that indeed V'zos Haberacha is considered to be a reflection of the idea of the holiday just like all the readings on the other days.  He says since this is the end of the holiday season, we want to end with the beracha of Moshe Rabbenu before we depart. Hence, the haftorah (of ויעמד שלמה) is also about the blessings Shlomo Hamelech gave as the people were departing.  Rav Zolti (Mishnas Yaavetz siman 72) suggests that when we read V'zos Haberacha, there are two elements to it.  One is element is because its the reading of the day, as the Ran said.  However, there is also the element of reading the last parsha, of finishing the torah cycle of the year since we finish the torah every year.  Based upon this idea, he answers the question of Tosfos.  The Gemorah gives the haftorah that patterns those that just reading the parsha as the obligation of the day.  however, our reading of the haftorah is to reflect the idea of the Torah portion itself just like every parsha of the year, for we are reading it to finish the parshiot. Hence, we read the haftorah of the beginning of Yehoshua, right after Moshe's death (see also the Meshech Chachma at the end of the sefer says the same idea.)