The Parsha of Ki Teitze has the highest density of commandments of any weekly section of the Torah. This expansive set of 74 mitzvot do not appear to be clearly related to one another. A range includes returning lost objects, keeping one’s commitments, and maintaining even weights and measures. It concludes with an obligation to destroy Amalek.

The Parsha begins with the laws related to encountering a beautiful woman in the context of war. The Torah regulates permissible interactions and imposes significant restrictions. It then discusses the laws of inheritance among sons, prohibiting showing preference outside of birth order. It goes on to discuss a rebellious son.

רש"י דברים כ"א:י"א

(יא) ולקחת לך לאשה – לא דברה תורה אלא כנגד יצר הרע. אם אין הקב"ה מתירה ישאנה באיסור, אבל אם נשאה, סופו להיות שונאה, שנאמר אחריו: כי תהיינה לאיש וגומ', וסופו להוליד ממנה בן סורר ומורה. לכך נסמכו פרשיות הללו

Rashi on Devarim 21:11

[and you desire her,] you may take [her] for yourself as a wife: [Not that you are commanded to take this woman as a wife,] but Scripture [in permitting this marriage] is speaking only against the evil inclination [, which drives him to desire her]. For if the Holy One, blessed is He, would not permit her to him, he would take her illicitly. [The Torah teaches us, however, that] if he marries her, he will ultimately come to despise her, as it says after this, “If a man has [two wives-one beloved and the other despised]” (verse 15); [moreover] he will ultimately father through her a wayward and rebellious son (see verse 18). For this reason, these passages are juxtaposed. — [Tanchuma 1]

Rashi ties these three items together. He explains that the juxtaposition of these three sections imply a relationship. If one chooses a spouse based on superficialities, it can lead to marital discord, and this will ultimately impact one’s children. In the beginning of his book on Politics, Aristotle argues that the family is a primary unit of society. He explains, “For, inasmuch as every family is a part of a state, and these relationships are the parts of a family, and the virtue of the part must have regard to the virtue of the whole” (Politics Book I). If one wishes to build a successful society, it begins with the family.

Many mitzvot and institutions in the Parsha provide a snapshot of the ideal Jewish society. Returning lost property (22:1-3), building a fence around a roof for safety (22:8), the prohibition against charging interest (23:20), maintaining one’s verbal commitments (23:22-24), paying wages on-time (24:15), leaving fallen crops for the poor and destitute (24:19-21), keeping even weights and measures (25-13-16) all serve as examples. Many of the other mitzvot can fit into this theme. The final mitzvah in the Parsha is to remember Amalek:

דברים כה – יז) זָכוֹר, אֵת אֲשֶׁר-עָשָׂה לְךָ עֲמָלֵק, בַּדֶּרֶךְ, בְּצֵאתְכֶם מִמִּצְרָיִם.  יח) אֲשֶׁר קָרְךָ בַּדֶּרֶךְ, וַיְזַנֵּב בְּךָ כָּל-הַנֶּחֱשָׁלִים אַחֲרֶיךָ--וְאַתָּה, עָיֵף וְיָגֵעַ; וְלֹא יָרֵא, אֱלֹהִים.  יט) וְהָיָה בְּהָנִיחַ יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ לְךָ מִכָּל-אֹיְבֶיךָ מִסָּבִיב, בָּאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר יְהוָה-אֱלֹהֶיךָ נֹתֵן לְךָ נַחֲלָה לְרִשְׁתָּהּ--תִּמְחֶה אֶת-זֵכֶר עֲמָלֵק, מִתַּחַת הַשָּׁמָיִם; לֹא, תִּשְׁכָּח.  {פ}

Devarim 25 – 17) You shall remember what Amalek did to you on the way, when you went out of Egypt,18) how he happened upon you on the way and cut off all the stragglers at your rear, when you were faint and weary, and he did not fear God. 19) [Therefore,] it will be, when the Lord your God grants you respite from all your enemies around [you] in the land which the Lord, your God, gives to you as an inheritance to possess, that you shall obliterate the remembrance of Amalek from beneath the heavens. You shall not forget!

At first glance, the obligation to remember the evil of Amalek appears to be out of place. It should be considered external affairs, international relations, and not related to the internal workings of Jewish society. Is there something we can learn from its placement at the end of this section?

The obligation to remember Amalek is a sad but necessary reminder that there is evil in the world. The verse states unequivocally, “do not forget” (25:19). No matter how beautiful a society may be, reflecting the highest values of compassion, justice, and charity, there are forces in the world that are intent on tearing it down. Some interests are more intent on promoting chaos over progress. The noble building blocks of Jewish society do not make it invulnerable. The final step in maintaining Jewish society is a commitment to protect and defend it.

References

Aristotle. (n.d.). Politics (B. Jowett, Trans.). The Internet Classics Archive. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Retrieved from https://classics.mit.edu/Aristotle/

Rosenberg, A. (1980). A new English translation of the Hebrew Bible text and Rashi, with a commentary digest. New York: Judaica Press. Retrieved from: https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/

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