Behar-Behukotai 5785 – Present Tense

By Rabbi Alex Freedman.

When we read an ordinary book or an article, a verb’s tense indicates when the event is occurring. That’s all.

Sometimes that is true when we read the Torah. But other times the verb’s tense instead expresses a value.

Take one of the opening verses of Parashat Behar as an example: “When you will enter the land that I [G-d] am giving to you, the land shall observe a Sabbath of the L-rd” (Lv. 25:2). 

Here G-d is announcing that when the Israelites will one day in the future enter the land of Israel, they shall observe the sabbatical year. At this point in the story, they are still marching through the desert, so the first verb is in the future, “will enter the land.” It’s odd then that the second verb is in the present, “the land that I am giving to you.” We would expect it to say, “the land that I will give you,” but the Torah uses the present tense. Why is that? 

The Hasidic book Iturei Torah quotes a story with Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav, in which he moved to Israel as an adult, and every day there was a new experience for him. Each day was better than the day before, and he never grew tired of living there. Each day was new and fresh, and – in his words – as if G-d were giving him the land of Israel then and there. In other words, G-d granting Israel to the Jewish people was not a one-time experience in the past, but an ongoing gift that renews itself constantly. It’s truly an act of the present. Even today, despite Israel’s many challenges externally and internally, it is a wonder that we live in a moment with a Jewish State. The land of Israel feels vigorous and fresh, not old and stale. In this way, G-d continues to give it anew.

This reminds me of a similar teaching connected to Shavuot, which we will celebrate in about ten days. We are all familiar with the blessing one recites when one is called to the Torah for an Aliyah. After beginning “Barchu et Adonai Hamevorach” the blessing concludes “Baruch Atah Adonai Noten HaTorah.” This means, “Blessed are You Hashem Who gives the Torah.” I will pose the same question: Shouldn’t the verb be the past tense, “Who gave the Torah”? After all, Revelation at Sinai happened thousands of years ago! But this blessing articulates a value: G-d gives the Torah on an ongoing basis. Whenever we engage in thoughtful Torah study, it’s as if we ourselves are standing at Sinai. It’s live, fresh, and energizing. 

This should change our perspective when we study Torah too. We are not merely satisfying an intellectual curiosity, as if we’re taking a college course. Instead, we are encountering G-d and opening ourselves to our tradition to live a better life for ourselves, our community, and our world. The present tense expresses all of that in a single word.