The commentators write that the innovation of Rashi is that “even though there is no condition written here . . it must certainly be speaking of a condition. For if not, we do find that there are barren women”.

 

In other words, even though the previous verses expressly state a condition (for blessings), as it states: “For if you hearken to his voice and do all that I say etc (ibid 22) "And you shall worship the L-rd, your G-d, and He will bless your food and your drink, and I will remove illness from your midst (ibid 25).

 

Nevertheless since here the verse begins:"There will be no bereaved” (without a preceding “and”), it “appears” that this verse is a unique aspect, and it is a promise without condition”.

 

Therefore Rashi negates this by stating in his commentary: "If you perform My will" , meaning that even this promise is dependent on the condition that Bnei Yisroel perform the will of G-d.

 

And Rashi’s necessity in explaining so is because - “we find that there exists barren women”.

 

At first glance, this explanation is forced:

 

For even though it states: "There will be no bereaved”  (without a preceding “and”) – how could one think that the blessings of "There will be no bereaved etc” are different from the other blessings and that thhey were said without condition and are not dependent on the person’s situation - (so much so that Rashi is forced to negate this notion)?

 

Also:

 

The continuation of: "There will be no bereaved or barren woman in your land; I will fill the number of your days” is “I will send My fear before you, and I will confuse all the people among whom you shall come, etc. “ And I will send the Tzir'ah before you, and it will drive out the Hivvites etc (and also many particulars regarding the expulsion of the nations from the land and the inheritance of the land) –

 

And surely it is impossible to say that all those promises are stated “without condition”, for these are the exact promises that were stated previously with the condition of: “if you hearken to his voice etc” “I will hate your enemies and oppress your adversaries” “My angel will go before you, and bring you to the Amorites etc and I will destroy them”. And this section (of "There will be no bereaved”) is a continuation of the section that preceded it.

 

Some explain that the supposition that the promise is without condition is only regarding this blessing of:

 

"There will be no bereaved etc in your land”.

 

That by stressing the word “in your land”, it implies that, the blessing is not dependent upon keeping Torah and Mitzvot, 

 

(For if this is not so why is it only “in your land” and not in every place where one keeps the will of G-d).

 

but rather, that this is a Segulah (special property) of the land. Rashi, therefore comes to tell us that even this blessing (which is in your land) is also dependent on: “if you hearken to his voice etc.”            

 

But even this explanation is seemingly forced. For if this is so, Rashi should have also cited the words only “in your land” in the caption, since it is the foundation of his comment: “if you hearken to his voice”.

 

Also: According to this explanation there is a question concerning Rashi’s conclusion. For if indeed, the blessing is also dependent of performing the will of G-d, - why was the blessing given only “in your land” and not every place that a Jewish person keeps the will of G-d, (like the other blessings)?

 

The Rom (R’ Eliyahu Mizrachi) writes, that the intent of Rashi in stating: “If you perform My will” is

 

“as if he said “And you shall worship the L-rd, your G-d, and He will bless your food and your drink, and I will remove illness from your midst and there will be no bereaved or barren woman in your land" etc (ibid 25,26). For the explanation is; serve G-d and your food and your drink will then be blessed and there will be no bereaved or barren woman in your land.

 

In other words, “there will be no bereaved or barren woman in your land” is a continuation of the end of the preceding verse: “(And you shall worship the L-rd, your G-d) and He will bless your food and your drink, and I will remove illness from your midst”. And this is also the explanation of many commentators such as Ibn Ezra, Ramban ond others.

 

And it appears from his words, that Rashi is coming with his comment here –

 

(not to negate the thought that this blessing is given without the condition of hearkening to G-d voice, but rather

 

to resolve why the verse: “there will be no bereaved etc” is written without a preceding Vov (“And there etc”). Thus Rashi comes to tell us that that this is style of the verses, and it is as if it was written: “And there will be no bereaved” with the addition of the Vov (“And”)

 

But it is difficult to explain this in Rashi’s words: "If you perform My will". For, if this is the explanation, then the main point is missing from the book i.e. Rashi’s words are missing the main intent.. And Rashi should have written: a “Mikra Chosair” a defective verse or “Mechubar l’Mikra shel Maalah” this verse is attached to the preceding verse etc or “if you will serve Me” like the language of the verse here “And you shall serve”

 

Therefore, it appears to be just the opposite. That Rashi’s intent in writing the exact words: “If you perform My will” is to negate this explanation (that “there will be no bereaved etc” is a continuation of the end of the preceding verse “And you shall serve”)

 

From the simple understanding of the verse, it follows that, the intent in the verse: “And you shall worship the L-rd, your G-d” is not to include doing the will of G-d, but rather, to negate the worshiping of idols. For the preceding verse states: “You shall not prostrate yourself before their G-ds, and you shall not worship them, etc you shall tear them down” and in continuation to this it states: ““And you shall worship the L-rd, your G-d” ( a negation of idol worship)

 

And Rashi is exact in his comment on “there will be no bereaved” and changes the word “And you shall worship” to “if you will perform My will”. Namely, that the condition for this blessing is not the “And you shall worship” of the previous verse but rather, performing His will ( i.e. performing Mitzvot). And this verse refers to (the verse before the previous verse) the beginning of the topic, where it states: “Beware of him and obey him;” etc “For if you hearken to his voice and do all that I say” (ibid 21,22). In other words, performing all the Mitzvot. For when a Yisroel performs His will, besides all the promises that were written before: (“I will hate your enemies etc” and “bring you to etc” ibid 22,23) , there is an additional blessing of “there will be no bereaved”

 

[But the Torah pauses between them, as a “digression” ,(Maamar HaMusgar) in the warning against idol worship. For in continuation of mentioning the “Amorites, the Hittites” etc the Torah warns that they should not stumble in the idol worship of the inhabitants of the land, “You shall not prostrate yourself , and you shall not worship them” etc rather “you shall worship the L-rd, your G-d. ( And also the reward that is obtained through this – “He will bless your food and your drink, and I will remove illness from your midst.”) ]

 

 

And accordingly, the wording of the verse: “There will be no bereaved etc” (without a preceding Vov (“And there etc”).) is resolved. For it is in order to separate it from the preceding verse, and to stress that it is not a continuation of: “And you shall worship the L-rd, your G-d” but on the verse before the previous verse (ibid 21,22).

 

3. Yet an explanation is required for the main topic. What is the difference of this blessing: “There will be no bereaved etc” which is given specifically for performing G-d’s will ("If you perform My will" ) and not (just) for “And you shall worship the L-rd, your G-d” ( like the blessing : “will bless your food and your drink, and I will remove illness from your midst.”?

 

One could answer this by prefacing the reason that the Torah specifies: “There will be no bereaved or barren woman in your land”. For, seemingly, it is difficult (as above par. 1) for if this blessing is conditional on “if you hearken to his voice etc” why is the blessing only “in your land” and not and not every place that a Jewish person keeps the will of G-d?

 

And the explanation – simply (so much so, that Rashi does not need to explain it) is:

The explanation of “There will be no bereaved etc in your land” is simple as it sounds – that this blessing is (only) to a specific person who performs the will of G-d But the blessing to the land, “There will be no bereaved etc in your land”. In other words it is a blessing given to the land. Therefore, "If you perform My will", the nature of the land will be changed so that it is a land that does not have “bereaved or barren women”

 

Therefore, the addition of the word ‘in your land” does not come to limit this blessing ( that it is only in Eretz Yisroel). but, on the contrary, to increase the blessing that comes from performing the will of G-d – that the blessing not only is drawn into the person who performs G-d’s will but it brings a blessing to the entire Eretz Yisroel.

 

Accordingly, it is understood simply, the reason why this blessing is:

 

Reward for “performing My will” (keeping “All that I say”), and not just on “And you shall worship the L-rd, your G-d” (which is just the negation of idol worship, as above) – For such a great blessing as this requires the keeping of all the Mitzvot.

Only ‘in your land” and not in the Diaspora because the blessing is tied to performing the will of G-d in Eretz Yisroel. For since this is a special and lofty place that G-d prepared for the Bnei Yisroel (as is explained in the verses preceding this: “to bring you to the place that I have prepared.(ibid 20)”. Therefore, performing the will of G-d in Eretz Yisroel effects a special blessing to the entire land (which is not so in the Diaspora , for there the blessing (of “There will be no bereaved or barren woman”) is only for the person that performs G-d’s will)

 

[and with this, the difference between the two parts of the verse makes sense:

“There will be no bereaved or barren woman in your land”

“I will fill the number of your days” (without stressng that this is only in “your land”

For the first part speaks about the blessing that is effected in the entire land. Whereas the second part specifies a special blessing to the person that performs G-d’s will - “I will fill the number of your days”. Namely, in every place of habitation of each and everyone from Yisroel, even in the diaspora]

 

 4. And one could also add (according to pnimiyut):

 In the reward for “And you shall worship etc, it states: “and He will bless your food etc” - a phrase of blessing. But here the verse states: “There will be no bereaved etc” which means a promise.

 

And the difference between them is: A blessing is only the transference of potential power from Above on this effluence. But it could happen that there are hindrances and obstacles etc in drawing this flow into this world, in a way that they may not persist in actuality, in real physicality. However, it is impossible for G-d’s promise on good not to persist. (as explained in Rambam)

 

And this is the reason for the difference. For by keeping: “And you shall worship the L-rd, your G-d” whose subject is only the negation of idol worship (as above) , the reward comes only in the form of a “blessing” (and He will bless etc). However, when one “Performs My will” – then the reward comes as a promise: “There will be no bereaved etc in your land; I will fill the number of your days”. With long days and good years, in reality.

 

And we should merit to inherit the land until [the fulfilling of the verse: ” And I will make your boundary from the Red Sea to the sea of the Philistines, and from the desert to the river (ibid 31)”. For this verse speaks of the future in fulfillment of the attestation: “When the L-rd, your G-d, expands your boundary” and as it says:

“And may he reign from sea to sea, and from the river to the ends of the land”

 

(M’Sichas Shabbat

 parshat Mishpatim 5744 )