The opening words of this week’s haftarah are among the most comforting in the Bible:

“Comfort, oh comfort My people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and declare to her that her term of service is over, that her iniquity is expiated” (Isaiah 40:1–2).

After the three weeks of mourning that culminate in Tisha B’Av, we read Isaiah’s prophecy announcing a dramatic reversal of fortune.

Tisha B’Av commemorates the devastation of Jerusalem; Isaiah announces that Jerusalem will be comforted. Tisha B’Av recalls exile; Isaiah describes a highway through the wilderness along which God and the exiles will return. Tisha B’Av awakens the fear that God has abandoned His people; Isaiah declares that God is returning as both sovereign and shepherd.

Yet we read these words on Parashat Vaetchanan, which presents us with a strikingly different story.

Moses recalls how he pleaded with God:

“Let me cross over, please, and see the good land beyond the Jordan, that good hill country and Lebanon” (Deuteronomy 3:25).

This was not a casual request. Entering the Land had been the goal toward which Moses had labored for forty years. He had confronted Pharaoh, led the people through the sea, received the Torah at Sinai, endured their rebellions,........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)